NATCHEZ — Ron Rushing blinked, and all of a sudden, his team’s regional schedule was staring him in the face.

The Cathedral High School head football coach will take the practice field this week to prepare for Bogue Chitto High School, where the Green Wave will travel Friday.

“Obviously, it’s our first region game, and (Bogue Chitto) only lost five starters from last year’s team that went 13-1,” Rushing said. “It’s important for us to get off to the right start.”

Rushing said he hopes his team’s games against St. Aloysius and St. Joseph Catholic of Madison have helped prepare his team for a regional schedule that’s already here in Week 3.

“It’s tough having nine region games, and of those nine, we’ve got Bogue Chitto, Hinds (AHS), Stringer and Lumberton in four of our first five games,” Rushing said. “We’ve already played eight quarters, and I think it’s better prepared us for this point.”

After giving his players a day off from film review and lifting Sunday, the Green Wave took to the practice field Monday, and Rushing said he was a bit disappointed with his team’s effort.

“I just wasn’t happy with our enthusiasm,” Rushing said. “Our attitudes were good — they always are — but I thought we’d come out with a lot more fire and effort. We came out laid back, and I didn’t like the feeling heading into the first week of regional play.”

Cathedral (2-0) will need that fire to beat Bogue Chitto. The Bobcats were ranked No. 2 in Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 1A in last week’s Associated Press poll. That ranking is unlikely to change with Bogue Chitto sitting at 2-0.

“They’re always well-coached, and they’re a really good defensive team as far as stopping the run,” Rushing said. “They have great athletes and are always a physical team.”

Cathedral’s passing game looks to factor heavily in whether Cathedral can top the Bobcats next week. Last week, Cathedral was 33 in 51 in passing last week for 365 yards and five touchdowns.

“Last Friday, we threw the ball as well as we’ve ever thrown in the last four years,” Rushing said. “We dropped a few and missed a few, but as long as we continue to be smart and take what teams give us, I feel like we can be effective against anyone.”

Limiting turnovers will also be critical for the Green Wave, which has given up the ball eight times in the past two games.

“I think if we can cut down on penalties and turnovers, that will be key to the game,” Rushing said. “Playing disciplined and not turning it over will be big this week.”

Kickoff is at 7 Friday night.