And that trip takes a sharp turn down a tough road, starting with tonight's 7:30 game against Lexington at Eagle Stadium.
With matchups against playoff contenders the rest of the way, the Eagles better hope they've turned the corner from an 0-4 start if they want to claim a fifth straight postseason appearance.
"We've been going through this year as a journey," Salado coach Jeff Cheatham said. "We've had a lot of ups and downs and I see the kids jelling together as a team. More so than anything, when we jell together as a team we can play good football."
Salado (2-4 overall, 2-0 District 25-2A) has played good - and most important winning - football the last two weeks. In wins over Florence and Jarrell, the Eagles rushed for nearly 650 yards thanks to junior Cole Calder, sophomore Austin Silva and an experienced offensive line.
On defense in those two games, Salado allowed two touchdowns and picked off seven passes, including two interceptions each by Calder and Colton Norman.
Silva is the area's sixth-leading rusher with 645 yards and seven touchdowns on 102 carries. Calder has 264 yards and three scores on 35 carries, most coming in the last two weeks.
"We've been able to lean on the big boys up front the last couple of games," Cheatham said. "We've got to continue to do what we've got to do to win football games. Whether that's run or throw the football, we're going to do what we have to do to win."
But going from playing the district's cellar dwellers to a strong Lexington team (3-3, 1-1) is quite a jump.
Particularly worrisome are Lexington's speedy playmakers. Among that group is arguably the district's fastest player, Clinton Hutson, the defending Class 2A 110-meter hurdle champion.
In last week's 34-14 win over Academy, Lexington rolled up 214 rushing yards, led by quarterback Josh Murray's 81. Hutson had 64 combined rushing and receiving yards.
"They're going to threaten on the edge quite a bit," Cheatham said. "More so than anything, you've got to tackle. If they get loose in space, they can go."
That speed has made Lexington quite dangerous on defense, as well. The Eagles held Academy, one of the area's top rushing teams, to 96 yards. However, it's also worth noting that same Lexington team allowed 418 yards in a loss to Lago Vista in its 25-2A opener.
"They make no bones about it - they're going to bring a bunch of folks on defense," Cheatham said.
As for how all that speed matches up with Salado, some of it depends on whether two of the Eagles' top playmakers are available. Starting quarterback Cole Brentham and leading receiver Hunter Ward were held out of last week's game.
Of their status for tonight, Cheatham said, "They will be on the field Friday night."
rschneider@temple-telegram.com
