FAYETTE — The real season begins this Friday night for Jefferson County.

Coming off two blowout victories, the Tigers are getting prepared for their first Region 7-3A game when they travel to face Amite County.

It is the third in what will be four consecutive road games for the Tigers (2-1), who defeated Port Gibson and Crystal Springs on the road the past two weeks after a season-opening loss to Natchez High at home.

Jefferson County coach James Herrington said he was pleased with the improvement he saw in his team in their 46-15 win over Crystal Springs last Friday.

“We did better than we did in our first two games of the season,” Herrington said. “But we’re still working on the little things, sweeping those corners out to be cleaner and more efficient. Friday we weren’t as clean as we want to be offensively in order to make the run we’re trying to make.”

Amite County brings a 1-1 record into the Friday’s game. The Trojans opened their season with a 42-14 loss to Hinds AHS before defeating Prentiss 16-7 last Friday night.

“It’s always tough going into Amite County,” Herrington said. “They’re very tough at home. They’re small in numbers, but they’re very resilient and they play hard.”

Herrington said it is very important that the Tigers win all of their region games in what is one of the toughest regions in the state.

“We found out last year that (a 5-1 region record) isn’t enough to win it,” Herrington said. “A lot of other regions we would have won with a 5-1 record but in this region you can’t afford to lose a game.”

This week also begins a tough stretch for the Tigers. After their game against Amite County, Jefferson County faces perennial powers South Pike, Franklin County and Tylertown.

“It’s a very tough schedule,” Herrington said. “It’s like I said last year. If we are able to hold on and finish strong, the people can’t say we had a soft schedule. I dare someone to find a tougher schedule in the state. Ours is one of the toughest.”