He and his fellow seniors on the Rosebud-Lott football team adopted this newfound tradition as a motivational ploy among teammates desperate for a playoff trip in their final season.

“Leave it all on the field,” one message says.

“Don’t have any regrets,” says another.

With the Cougars now undefeated three weeks into the season, those messages remind them not to let their golden opportunity slip away.

“We really want it this year, that’s what it is,” Guthrie said. “A lot of us seniors, we know it’s our last year. We really want to make it to the playoffs this year.”

Rosebud-Lott, winner of the 2002 Class 2A Division II state championship and one of the area’s most successful programs earlier in the decade, is a week away from starting a potential run to the 2A playoffs. The Cougars play Florence (1-2) at 7:30 tonight at Stampede Stadium to close their non-district schedule.

It’s not the wins in its first three games that have made Rosebud-Lott the area’s biggest early-season surprise; it’s the way the Cougars have done it.

With speedy playmakers and a rejuvenated attitude on defense, the Cougars believe their sky-high confidence can take them back to the playoffs.

“We pretty much feel like we can take on anybody after some of our wins,” senior Brandon Butler said. “A lot of people are picking against us and we’re still winning. That’s just motivation.”

‘Track team in pads’

Rosebud-Lott has gotten off to its surprising start with what coach Kyle Maxfield likes to call a “track team in pads.”

The Cougars don’t have imposing size, so the only way they were going to win with this group was taking advantage of their speed.

But listen to Maxfield talk about the offense and it’s clear they have fully shown what they’re capable of.

“In spurts we have,” Maxfield said when asked if they’ve lived up to the nickname. “We just haven’t been consistent with it. Hopefully we can keep taking advantage of it.”

Rosebud-Lott’s dangerous spread attack starts with first-year quarterback Ernesto Flores, a 5-10, 160-pound junior.

In his first three varsity starts, Flores has accounted for nearly 75 percent of the Cougars’ offense. He has 528 all-purpose yards and six touchdowns.

“He’s handled game situations fairly well,” Maxfield said. “Hopefully he can build on the success he’s had and make improvements where he needs to.”

Flores’ backfield mate Guthrie is a speedy running back who’s been clocked at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He has 106 yards and two touchdowns on nine catches to go with six carries for 50 yards.

Flores’ top target has been sophomore receiver Deandre Thompson, who has 112 yards and two touchdowns on seven receptions.

To negate the Cougars’ speed, opponents have tried to stop them from getting the outside corner. But that’s left open the middle of the field, where Rosebud-Lott is just as dangerous.

The Cougars spend time working on screen passes, sweeps, pitches and just about anything else to get Flores, Guthrie, Thompson and Co. into open space. Every detail, including downfield blocking, is practiced to precision.

“Of course, when you have playmakers,” Maxfield said, “they’re going to do some things that you don’t work on.”

‘We know we’re small’

As dangerous as the Cougars have been on offense, it’s the defense that might be the biggest reason they’ve already surpassed last season’s win total.

Maxfield brought in former Rogers coach John Stillwell as defensive coordinator and instituted his 4-3 attack to take advantage of that speed.

It’s a defense that players say is more fun to play and allows them to fly to the ball.

The change has already paid big-time dividends.

In the season opener, Rosebud-Lott shut out McGregor - the favorite to win District 16-2A - 27-0 on the road.

The Cougars then needed a sack by lineman Alec Newman in the final minute to hold off Moody and a goal-line stand last week against Class A No. 7 Normangee to seal the win.

So far, the Cougars’ lack of size hasn’t been a problem.

“We don’t let it get to us,” Guthrie said. “We know we’re small; we just know we’ve got good coaching.”

And when Rosebud-Lott does face bigger, more physical teams in District 20-2A, Maxfield says he’ll know exactly where to turn.

“Coach Stillwell, he’s faced those problems before and he’s got great schemes to try and offset that advantage,” Maxfield said. “But we still have to be able to line up and hold our own.”

Aside from schematic changes, players say the biggest change has been their attitude. At times last year, they say, they had 11 individuals working for their own goals.

It showed.

Rosebud-Lott’s defense ranked near the bottom among area teams, allowing nearly 3,500 yards last season.

“Everybody’s working together and doing the same thing,” Butler said. “Last year it wasn’t like that.”

‘One day at a time’

As the wins continue to pile up, Maxfield reminds his team to stay grounded. These three wins are nice, but they don’t do a thing toward getting the Cougars in the playoffs.

“Keeping it going is just taking one day at a time, getting better each and every week,” Maxfield said. “We’re nowhere near where we need to be for district.

“Hopefully we continue to improve."

rschneider@temple-telegram.com