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It wasn’t a pretty game, Prince Edward Middle Coach Louis Gould said. There were still mistakes on both sides of the ball. But the Eagles were able to overcome those issues and pick up the win over Appomattox 32-22 on Tuesday night. 

Gould described the win as a “bounce back”, as the team recovered from their first loss of the season, which happened last week against Dunbar. Both Tuesday night’s win and the loss that preceded it, have been opportunities for the team to learn, Gould said. It’s about knowing what to do and what not to do in situations. 

“People don’t know our team is very young,” Gould said. “We have some players who are in 8th grade, that it is their first year playing middle school football. We have five 7th grade starters on defense. I say this to say we don’t make any excuses. We work to get and our preparation for games is top tier. We are prepared and are expected to execute.”

And that’s where the learning comes in this season for Prince Edward Middle. After struggling against Dunbar, how would the team respond? Would they see what went wrong and fix it? The answer to that was yes. 

“Our first loss was hard, but it was so much they were able to learn,” Gould said. “Our goal was to go undefeated but our journey is not over. The guys are developing like we want. Every mistake is a teaching tool.” 

That’s one of the things Gould enjoys about coaching, the teaching aspect. 

“We have a lot of football left and we are not throwing in the towel,” he said. “We will continue to fight on and absorb the obstacles and challenges that are to come. These guys are so disciplined and they are coachable. You couldn’t ask for a better group of kids.” 

The 4-1 Eagles go on the road next week, set to take on Benedictine.