Trojans have the winning mix: Central Lafourche 2-0 on season

Adams eyes lofty swimming goals
September 13, 2016
Prep Roundup: Week 2
September 13, 2016
Adams eyes lofty swimming goals
September 13, 2016
Prep Roundup: Week 2
September 13, 2016

Central Lafourche coach Keith Menard has been around football for a while – dating all the way back to the 1980s when he was a quarterback at Nicholls State University.

But even with all that experience, Menard said he’s not seen anything quite like what took place on Friday night at Buddy Marcello Stadium when his team faced Vandebilt.


It was a shootout that featured almost 100 points and nearly 1,000 yards of combined offense.

It had drama. It had multiple lead changes in the final few minutes.

And in the end, the Trojans won the ball game – stopping the charging Terriers a half-yard short of what could have been a game-tying touchdown.


Emotions were high on Friday when Central Lafourche played Vandebilt – a game which featured two of the area’s best teams, according to experts.

In the end, the Trojans made the last play and were victorious – earning a thrilling 42-35 win.

Menard said after the game that he was exhausted, calling the battle one of the most exciting matchups he’s ever been a part of.


“I have a lot more grey hairs,” the coach said after the game. “I don’t know if I can survive too many more of those. It was so exciting. It was an excellent night for high school football.”

For the Trojans, the win was vindication – a sure sign that the team is capable of making the playoffs for the second-straight season in Class 5A.

Under Menard, Central Lafourche has made continual success.


After a steady climb, the Trojans had a winning season in 2015 and made the playoffs – the team’s first such season under the veteran coach, which landed in Mathews after a successful stint at Catholic-New Iberia.

“To get to play an 11th game was good for our program,” Menard said last season.

But even with the taste of success, Trojans players said many outside the locker room doubted whether the team could get back to postseason in 2016.


Central Lafourche lost a big senior group after last season, especially on defense where the team’s depth chart was almost completely reworked.

Senior safety Norman Taylor said he heard the whispers throughout the offseason – naysayers who said the departures would be too much for the team to overcome.

Against Vandebilt, the Trojans did take their medicine early, but were one of the biggest reasons the team won the game, securing four-straight stops in the fourth quarter, including a late interception, which helped the team turn a 35-34 deficit into a 42-35 lead.


“People have their doubts, and we know that,” Taylor said. “But we want to make our play do the talking for us on the field on Friday nights. We don’t know what other people think or are saying, but we believe in ourselves, and that’s what matters most to us.”

Menard said the Trojans have done exactly that on the defensive side of the ball, adding that the group is getting better every week.

“Coach (Shelly) Vedros does an excellent job with that group,” Menard said. “We told them before the season that we needed guys to step up and make some plays, and we’re so happy with the way some things are developing. We had some growing pains against Vandebilt, but no one hung their heads or let it affect them. We got the stops we needed late in the game, and on the last play, we kept them out of the end zone.


“I told the kids, ‘I don’t care if he was a million of an inch short, as long as we kept him out of there, and we did.”

As the Trojans’ defense comes to form, its offense continues to blister opponents into submission.

Central Lafourche has one of the top offenses in the area – a group which is capable of scoring in both its running and passing game with relative ease.


Under center, quarterback Jake Allemand has been masterful, distributing the ball to dynamic weapons like slot man Gage Bourg and outside receivers Kenneth Poindexter and David Robinson – a duo which accumulated more than 200 yards combined against the Terriers.

On the ground, Nelton Allen continues to be effective. He rushed for 100 yards against the Terriers – one of many 100-plus-yard games the physical back has mustered in his career.

“We like the way we can mix it up,” Menard said. “We like the balance. We have a lot of playmakers who can make plays.”


Now the challenge is to keep going.

With Friday’s win, the Trojans are now 2-0 on the season, but deeper waters await.

After this week’s matchup with South Terrebonne, the Trojans will face five teams who finished 2015 with winning records – a group which features River Parish powers Hahnville and Destrehan.


But the Trojans aren’t backing down.

They think they have what it takes to beat anyone.

So far, they’re been right.


So far, they’ve been up for the challenge.

“We want to treat every game like it’s our last,” Allen said. “We want to play as hard as we can every time we take the field.” •

Central Lafourche


Follow Casey on Twitter for more. 

https://twitter.com/casey_gisclair