<p>After winning a combined six games the past three seasons, expectations for the Hardin-Jefferson Hawks were profoundly low heading into the 2013 season.</p><p>Fast forward to this Friday's match-up against the district leading Silsbee Tigers (6-1, 4-0) and optimism is soaring at the school as Hardin-Jefferson (5-3, 2-2) is in great position to earn its first playoff berth since 2008.</p><p>"Our goal is to make the playoffs and we talk about it a lot," said first-year head coach Dwayne Dubois. "For us getting into the playoffs would be very rewarding and something to build on for the future."</p><p>The Hawks have placed themselves in this position with a stout defense which is giving up only 20 points per game on average. Even more impressive has been the team's Slot-T running attack. In last week's 54-27 win over Bridge City, Hardin-Jefferson ran for 416 yards for its best performance of the year.</p><p><a href="http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/sports/hs/article/Hardin-Jefferson-has-playoff-opportunity-4943881.php">Keep reading...</a></p>