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No matter how you slice it – last season was absolutely magical for the Covenant Christian Academy football team.
The small, Houma-based private school advanced to the Division IV State Playoffs for the first time ever in its inaugural year of postseason eligibility within the LHSAA.
The Lions also won a playoff game while there, soundly beating Madison Prep in the opening round of action.
Now, CCA wants more. And they’ll chase it with a first-year coach who has experience winning high-stakes football games in the Tri-parish area.
First-year coach Randy Boquet will lead the Lions into 2014 with high expectations after last season’s magical ride.
Boquet replaces outgoing coach Blyght Wunstell who resigned after the 2013 campaign to pursue outside endeavors. Wunstell was the only coach in the short history of the Lions’ program, and Boquet was honest in saying that his main goal for 2014 is to keep things chugging along the same way that they were when Wunstell was at the helm.
“It’s our hope to continue to do the things that we’ve done in the past to be successful,” Boquet said. “You hope to continue to push the kids toward continuing to go forward. We want to continue to keep improving. That’s the goal – to keep improving.”
Offensively, Boquet said the Lions will keep its Wing-T offense in tact – a formation that was very effective for CCA last season, allowing the Lions to score 36.6 points per game.
The reason the Lions utilize the Wing-T look is because of the variety of backs the team has within its arsenal.
Boquet said the Lions use deception to their advantage – something that also allows CCA to keep its most skilled ball carriers fresh throughout the game.
“We can hurt you with four people. Actually, sometimes it’s more like five different people on any given play,” Boquet said of his Wing-T alignment.
Halfback Jordan McKay is one of those lethal weapons for the Lions. He returns after having an explosive 2013 campaign on the edges for the Lions. Joining him in the crowded and talented backfield is fullback Devyn Allen and new starting quarterback junior Marquel Daigle, who is set to replace 2013 starter Brock Wunstell, who transferred from CCA to John Curtis Christian Academy after his father Blyght Wunstell resigned as head coach following this past season.
Boquet said Daigle will add a new element to the Lions’ offense: passing ability. The coach said that Daigle is a polished passer that can punish defenses deep down the field if they choose to move a lot of defenders into the box in an effort to control the Lions’ running game.
“We think he brings a little bit more athleticism to our quarterback position,” Boquet said. “We think he’s got a really solid, strong arm. He’s a kid that throws a really good deep ball. … We’re excited to have him out there under center for us.”
Up front, the Lions will also return a lot of beef from last year’s team – a group led by Dayshon Livas and Ceon Sauceberry – two players who will split time along both the offensive and defensive lines for CCA in 2014.
Playing both ways is something the Lions will do a lot of in 2014. It’s something commonplace for Class 1A schools like CCA, but not something Boquet has had to do in the past as a head coach.
In his last stint calling the shots for a local prep football program, Boquet was the headman at H.L. Bourgeois. While there, he won a district championship and had plenty enough players to pick from to fill out an entire depth chart. That’s not a luxury he enjoys at CCA where the student population is far greater.
“Here at the 1A level, we’re hoping to have 35 to maybe 50 kids, if you’re lucky, that we can count on to play,” Boquet said. “What that does is it forces you to play some of your better kids both ways. At the 5A level, you have one kid who plays on one side of the ball and another kid who plays on the other side of the ball. That’s not a luxury that we have here right now.”
Defensively, the Lions return mammoth 300-plus pound junior defensive tackle Sashen Staidum – a player that will be tasked with the role of disrupting opponents at the line of scrimmage.
“He’s big, but he also can move like a linebacker at times,” Boquet said. “He’s going to cause problems for people in this district.”
The Lions also welcome back senior defensive end Jacob Verdin and defensive backs Anthony McCoy and Caleb Seitz. When needed, Allen and McKay will pitch in at linebacker and free safety, respectively, to help the Lions keep opponents out of the end zone.
“We have a lot of very talented kids coming back on that side of the ball,” Boquet said. “We’re very happy with the group that we have back there.”
But no matter how it’s sliced, the 2014 season is all about continuance and keeping the Lions’ positive momentum moving forward into the future.
Boquet has won as a head coach before, but he’s never been the head coach on a Friday night at CCA.
Heck, no one but Wunstell has.
That will change this September. And Boquet said he’s thrilled and honored to have another opportunity to lead a local program – something he’s looked forward to now for several seasons since stepping aside from the Braves.
“I’m excited about being back in the head coaching position,” Boquet said. “It comes with a lot of responsibilities and a lot of challenges, but I’m excited to be back in that area. And most importantly, I’m excited about our young football team that we have coming back.”
Covenant Christian Academy halfback Jordan McKay was a monster for the Lions last season, helping the team score 36.6 points per game in 2013. With McKay back, CCA hopes to again punish opponents with their diverse, Wing-T offense that focuses on rushing the football to wear down opponents.
