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Following a tough season-opening loss, Florala (0-1) looks to get in the win column Friday, Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. in Samson (1-1).

The Tigers went to Cottonwood last week and dropped their first road game, 28-14. The Wildcats were also on the road at Houston County and nearly overcame a 21-0 first-half deficit before falling short, 21-12.

Head Coach Chris Littleton said Samson is a very well-coached and physical football team.

“It will be a great challenge for us, but I believe our guys will be ready.” Littleton added that it is always exciting getting into region play. “Everything amps up a little, and I expect everyone will be a little more locked in.”

It will be a reunion for Littleton, who previously coached at Samson from 2015 to 2017.

“It really means a lot and is a very special game to me personally. Samson was a very special place to us, and we still have a lot of friends there that are like family to us. They always will be,” he said.

Littleton said it was special to be a part of Samson’s only three consecutive playoff trips in school history, but for now, the focus has to be on Florala.

“Once the whistle blows and the game starts, it’s not about me. It’s about the players, and we are going to do everything we can to put our players in a position to win.”

Jason Wambles took over in 2018 and has a 15-17 mark in his fourth season with the Tigers. Wambles is 50-78 in his 13th year overall after coaching at Kinston and Excel.

The two teams play for the 63rd time as Florala has a 35-25-2 edge in the series. Samson has a slight 5-4 lead in contests dating back to the 2000 season. The Wildcats have a scoring edge of 1,115-868 in the previous 62 meetings including last year’s 44-0 home rout of the Tigers.