MEADVILLE — A week after opening their 2009 season with a thud, the Franklin County Bulldogs are working on getting back to the way they played last season.

The Class 3A Bulldogs lost 12-0 to Loyd Star last Friday and coach Trent Hammond said lack of execution is what doomed the team.

“The execution has to get better,” Hammond said. “Small problems turn into major ones when they happen. We’ve got to go back and play technique like we used last year. It seemed like kids got in the game and didn’t play well technique wise.”

But it doesn’t get any easier this week as Franklin County travels to play Class 5A opponent Brookhaven.

“We’ve got our hands full,” Hammond said. “We have to use everything we can to win.”

Brookhaven just missed being ranked in the Associated Press Class 5A poll, finishing just two points out of the fifth and final ranking spot.

Hammond said the Panthers offer a huge challenge to the Bulldogs due to their size and speed.

“We’re a small team this year,” Hammond said. “We’ve got just three kids over 200 pounds. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”

Hammond said Brookhaven’s spread option offense will require total concentration and discipline to defend it.

“They play hard every snap and are very sound,” Hammond said of the Panthers. “Coach (Tucker) Peavy does a great job over there. They’re an option team with some spread option and do a very good job at it. It makes you have to be a well-disciplined team on Friday to give yourself a chance.”

And giving themselves a chance is something the Franklin County offense didn’t do in last Friday’s game against Loyd Star.

The Bulldogs had the ball just five times in the game, with three of those drives ending in turnovers, one of them at the Loyd Star 1-yard line.

“We didn’t have the ball (much),” Hammond said. “We only took 28 snaps. Had two punts, two fumbles and an interception. One thing we need to work on is holding onto the football. If we hold on to the football, we’ll give ourselves a chance.”