Football coaches, by nature, are forced to find negatives.
It's in their DNA. Things to do better one night or mental preparation the next week.
Heck, most football coaches would find flaws in the Sistine Chapel - provided, of course, they took the time off to visit the Sistine Chapel.
Baylor School coach Phillip Massey understands - and even modestly accepts - the characterization.
Call it a professional stereotype.
With that knowledge, Massey's inability to find fault with his Red Raiders first-team offense was even more telling Friday night after Baylor's 47-7 win over Red Bank.
"We wanted to come out and do what we do from the very beginning," Massey said after his team improved to 2-0 with a cumulative score of 82-7. "I was pleased with what we were able to do from the start."
How dominant was the Baylor offense? Well, the Red Raiders didn't face a third down until the last half of the second quarter and converted that on Kalvin Watson's 30-yard run.
Starting with a one-play, 61-yard scoring drive on the strength of Trusten McArtor's quarterback keeper, the first half was filled with a string of production that kept an entire stat crew and three abacuses working full time. Baylor scored five TDs - Watson had three runs and quarterback Lorenzo White found Mike Benning for another score - on six first-half possessions.
Other than incomplete passes - and Baylor had only four in the decisive first half - and the one illegal-substitution penalty early in the second quarter, the least productive play for the Baylor offensive starters went for 5 yards.
Of course, after the lone presnap penalty, White found a streaking Emanual Williams for a 57-yard completion that set up Watson's second first-half scoring run.
"It was very important," Baylor senior offensive lineman Isaiah Strawter said, "because the coaches are always talking to us about going 110 percent. We rallied around each other and kept the intensity up because we don't let the scoreboard determine how we play."
Massey was not completely without complaint: He's a football coach, after all.
"Now we need to go back and find the things we can improve on," he said, "and know we need a great week of practice heading into league play."
Baylor will host Ensworth next Friday night; Red Bank (1-1) will play at Howard.
For the Lions, a step up in competition did not take away from their effort.
After they fell into a 37-0 halftime hole, Mike Porter returned the second-half kickoff 95 yards, and the Lions got on the board on the next play after a penalty when Zay Brown scored from the 11.
"The response we had I think tells you a lot about our effort," Red Bank coach Chad Grabowski said. "That's a very good team we played and we're still young, but we kept fighting."
Baylor freshman Noah Martin answered the Red Bank second-half touchdown with a 24-yard run, and Red Raiders kicker Keegan Weekley closed the scoring with a 30-yard field goal.
"We have adopted the phrase of 'Respect everyone and fear no one' this year," Massey said. "I think we delivered on that."
After a pause the Baylor football coach added, "But there's still a lot we can do better," because, well, he's a football coach.
Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com and 423-757-6343.