Week 8 Prep Roundup

Part Lion, Part Freebird, CCA standout has good genes
October 26, 2016
Hooray for the NBA season
October 26, 2016
Part Lion, Part Freebird, CCA standout has good genes
October 26, 2016
Hooray for the NBA season
October 26, 2016

Hahnville 49


Central Lafourche 24

The Trojans’ woes continue for another week, as the Tigers used 28-unanswered points in the first half to turn an early 6-0 deficit into a comfortable victory. The Trojans have allowed 42 or more points in four-straight games. That won’t be enough to beat many teams. They have to get better on that side of the ball.

Destrehan 48


H.L. Bourgeois 27

The Wildcats stay unbeaten, pouncing on H.L. Bourgeois in a big-time home win. Destrehan will clinch the District 7-5A Championship on Friday if they beat Thibodaux – their final game of the regular season. It’s funny listening to folks around Louisiana talk about how this year’s Destrehan team isn’t as good as others in the past. They’re 8-0. They don’t seem to be too bothered.

East St. John 40


Terrebonne 37

Terrebonne needs to get some wins in a hurry after dropping their fifth-straight on Friday night against East St. John. The Wildcats led the Tigers 40-17 at the end of the third quarter. From there, Terrebonne scored 20-straight fourth quarter points to battle back. It just wasn’t quite enough to get the win.

St. Augustine 31


Thibodaux 14

The Tigers made a leap up in competition on Saturday afternoon, traveling to Tad Gormley Stadium to take on the Purple Knights. The Tigers competed favorably for a lot of the game, but it just wasn’t enough to overcome a slow start, which enabled St. Aug to lock up the win.

Assumption 27


Vandebilt 26

Vandebilt this. South Lafourche that. Ellender this. South Terrebonne that. Assumption has gotten no attention so far this season, even though they’re the reigning district champions. I think they’re going to start to get some of the love that they deserve after beating Vandebilt on Friday after the Terriers failed to convert a late-game 2-point try. The Mustangs are District 7-4A’s lone unbeaten – just like last year.

South Lafourche 29


Ellender 24

For as good as Ellender’s special teams have been all season, that unit let the Patriots down on Friday night against South Lafourche. A fumble on a kickoff gave the Tarpons an extra possession, which they used to take more comfortable lead. Kudos to South Lafourche for getting a huge win. Several Tarpons players were limited by injuries, but they found a way to make enough plays to beat a quality football team.

South Terrebonne 49


Morgan City 28

Big-time kudos to the South Terrebonne team for traveling to St. Mary Parish and getting a big-time win on Friday night against Morgan City. The Gators have had a tough season, but those guys haven’t given up, and have played their best football in the past few weeks. The win is their first of the season, and it may not be their last.

E.D. White 52


North Vermilion 28

The Cardinals have now won three of their past four games after trumping North Vemilion in a blowout win. E.D. White has a shot to avoid a losing season, but it won’t be easy. To get to five wins, the Cardinals have to beat both Berwick and Erath – teams with a combined 12-4 record so far this season. But both games are in Thibodaux, and the Cardinals are awfully stout at home.

CCA 31


St. Martin’s 0

The Lions were a little bit sluggish on Friday – a byproduct of the school’s homecoming festivities. But CCA played well when it mattered most, using timely offense and absolutely dominant defense to secure a big-time win against St. Martin’s. The Lions will now take on their biggest rival, Houma Christian – a game that’s annually one of the most intense of the year.

Houma Christian 53


Slaughter Charter 40

Houma Christian got its second-straight victory on Friday, using an offensive outburst to beat unsanctioned Slaughter Charter. The Warriors always have a solid offense under coach Chuck Battaglia. The challenge for these guys is on the defensive side of the ball. When they get stops, they win. When they don’t, they struggle.


Week 9 games

Central Lafourche @ Terrebonne

Destrehan @ Thibodaux


Hahnville @ H.L. Bourgeois

South Lafourche @ Assumption

Ellender @ South Terrebonne


Morgan City @ Vandebilt

Berwick @ E.D. White

CCA @ Houma Christian


Players of the Week – Week 8

Bronze – South Lafourche H-Back/tight end Davin Richoux – Davin Richoux did just about everything for South Lafourche on Friday night. He was the team’s kicker – drilling a clutch field goal to give the Tarpons a two-score lead in the fourth quarter. But he also was a dominant blocker at the tight end position. And guess what? Late in the game, he recovered an onsides kick to seal the win.


Junior – CCA athlete Devante Johnson – The Lions got a big-time homecoming victory on Friday night, rushing for more than 300 yards against St. Martin’s. A lot of that surge came from Johnson, who had 163 rushing yards in the win, which guarantees the Lions will have a winning season.

Gold – South Terrebonne halfback Logan Melancon – The Gators got their first win of the season on Friday night, and it was in large part because of Melancon, who gained more than 160 yards on the ground and had three touchdowns. Congratulations to the Gators coaches, players and fans on a big-time victory.

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High-Five

1. Thibodaux – They lost to St. Augustine, and that’ll be a blow to the Tigers’ postseason seeding – no doubt. But the Purple Knights are one of the best teams in Louisiana, so let’s pump the brakes on any type of panic for Thibodaux. The Tigers will be heavily challenged on Friday against Destrehan, though. That game ought to be a war.

2. Vandebilt – After beating South Lafourche, I fully expected the Terriers to win out and secure the district championship. But it ended up not materializing. The Terriers had a letdown performance on Friday night against Assumption, falling for just the second time this season. Special teams woes were really harmful on Friday night.


3. South Lafourche – The Tarpons have been waiting for a breakout performance, and they finally got it on Friday, using all three phases to beat a very, very good Ellender team. Now, the ball is back in the Tarpons court. If they beat Assumption on Friday night, then beat South Terrebonne in Week 10, they can earn a share of the District 7-4A title. My buddy Billy Jo Brunet has said the Tarpons ought to run the ball more. They did in a big way on Friday night.

4. Central Lafourche – The Trojans are really struggling right now. They’ve lost four-straight games and just can’t seem to find a way to get off the field defensively. Central Lafourche still does have a shot at the playoffs, but they’d better play well in the final two games, because Terrebonne and East St. John both can score, too.

5. Ellender – The Patriots lost on Friday night, and I know that’s a disappointing result for Coach McCormick and his staff. But Ellender football is on the way up, folks. Those guys competed through adversity for the full 48 minutes – something they wouldn’t have done in the past.


By the numbers

0 – With South Terrebonne’s win over Morgan City, there are now no winless teams in the Houma-Thibodaux area. The Gators opened the season with seven-straight losses, but they’ve never gotten down on themselves, despite the sore luck. Those guys deserved that win.


5 – With quarterback Jaydon Cheramie limited with a sprained ankle and halfback Corbin Allen also hampered, South Lafourche coach Brandon Nowlin had to get creative offensively. To combat the woes, the Tarpons played five players at quarterback, rotating athletes in different direct-snap sets to try and pound Ellender for yardage.

84 – CCA’s run-based offense is always tough to stop. But on Friday night against St. Martin’s, the Lions’ defense was flawless, as well. The Lions limited their opponent to just 84 yards of total offense, while also pitching a shutout on Homecoming night.

2 – The number two was big for Vandebilt on Friday night against Assumption – for a lot of reasons. For starters, the Mustangs scored on two key kickoff returns, which made up for the team’s lack of offensive success. And at the end of the game, the Terriers were one point short of overtime, thanks to a missed 2-point conversion try.


No. 2 Gators deal with 2 tragedies in 1 year

The South Terrebonne community suffered a couple great losses during the 2016 calendar year.

Over the summer, the Gators’ world was shook when Andraye Verdin was killed as a passenger in a one-car wreck on the Bourg-Larose Highway — an accident caused by slick roads after a rainstorm.


Verdin, 16, was a standout football player for the Gators – a guy that coach Richard Curlin said was about to be a “breakout star”.

“He was just getting comfortable,” Curlin said. “This is such a shame and is so unfair.”

Unfortunately, the tragedies didn’t stop there for South Terrebonne.


At the end of a tough football season, Gators standout lineman Louis Blanchard was severely injured after falling off a trampoline after school.

In the fall, Blanchard condensed his neck, which temporarily left him paralyzed, and which required multiple surgeries.

Doctors speculated Blanchard could possibly make a full recovery, but weeks later, things took a turn for the worst and he passed away at a New Orleans hospital.


He was 18.

Just weeks before the injury, Blanchard had given a verbal commitment to continue his football career at UL-Monroe.

After his death, locals rallied together to show their respects to the dominant lineman, who ended up winning his third-straight District Defensive MVP Award in 2016.


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