No. 3 Byrd Yellow Jackets vs No. 19 Airline Vikings Friday Night

Catch all the action with Charlie Cavell as the No. 3-seeded Byrd Yellow Jackets will travel across the Red River to north Bossier City to battle the No. 19-seeded Airline Vikings. It’s the second time in three weeks the district foes will play.

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It also marks the second time in three years the two schools have played twice in a season. Kickoff for the regional round game is set for 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 18 at Airline Stadium.

The Yellow Jackets own a 10-0 overall record and are the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. Byrd captured the District 1-5A title, its first district title since 2002. Byrd crushed West Jefferson 56-21 last Friday to advance to the regionals.

The Airline Vikings own a 7-4 overall record and are the No. 19 seed in the playoffs. The Vikings squeaked by the Covington Lions 28-27 last Friday to advance to the regionals.

Fullback Xavier Long rushed for a career-high 198 yards and five touchdowns to lead Byrd to a 56-21 win over the West Jefferson Buccaneers. Long’s five rushing touchdowns tied a school record.
The Airline Vikings and 14th-seeded Covington Lions were tied at 14 in the middle of the third quarter. The Vikings scored two quick touchdowns and held a 28-14 lead into the fourth, then withstood a ferocious Lion comeback and hang on for the 28-27 win.

This will be the 36th meeting between Byrd and Airline in a series that began in 1964 with a 27-6 Byrd win. The Yellow Jackets hold a 19-16 edge in the series after beating the Vikings 52-17 two weeks ago. These two schools have played every year since 1991, including playing twice in one season in 2008. In those 22 games, Byrd holds a 14-8 advantage. The Yellow Jackets have won eight straight games over the Vikings.

Mike Suggs is in his 14th season as the head coach at C.E. Byrd. Suggs owns a 94-57 (.622) record as the top Jacket. He is the school’s all-time winningest coach with 94 victories. Suggs was the Class 5A Coach of Year and the District 2-5A Coach of the Year in 2002.

Suggs was an All-State end for the Southwood Cowboys in 1980 before taking his talents on to Northeast Louisiana University where he played wide receiver for the Indians. He served as a graduate assistant coach with the Indians’ 1987 National Championship team. After a two-year stint at Southwood, he came to Byrd in 1990. In 1998, Suggs replaced Alan Carter to become the 13th head coach in Byrd history.

Suggs and his wife Sandy have a daughter Cali, a senior cheerleader at Byrd, and a son Andrew, who is an eighth grader at Caddo Middle Magnet. Airline is coached by Bo Meeks, who is in his first season at the helm of the Vikings’ football program. Meeks owns a 40-20 overall coaching record. He came to Airline after two years at Calvary Baptist Academy where he posted a 19-6 mark. Meeks also spent two seasons at Mangham where he went 14-10.

2011 Schedule and Results
9/1 vs. West Monroe ............... W, 30-23
9/10 vs. Marshall, TX ................ W, 48-23
9/16 at Fair Park .......................... W, 63-8
9/23 at Ruston ........................... W, 42-14
10/7 vs. *Haughton (HC) ............. W, 48-7
10/14 at *Parkway ....................... W, 52-21
10/20 at *Southwood ..................... W, 49-8
10/27 vs. *Captain Shreve ........... W, 35-10
11/4 vs. *Airline ......................... W, 52-17
11/11 vs. West Jefferson ............. W, 56-21
11/18 at Airline ..................................... 0-0