Gators to play for themselves, fallen classmate in 2016

Tarpons want to replicate first-year coach magic
August 24, 2016
Vandebilt aiming to protect home, go deep in 2016
August 24, 2016
Tarpons want to replicate first-year coach magic
August 24, 2016
Vandebilt aiming to protect home, go deep in 2016
August 24, 2016

We don’t yet know if South Terrebonne will win the District 7-4A title, nor whether they will make the playoffs.


But we do know who the Gators are playing for in 2016, and it’s a cause that matters far more than any win or loss the team will endure in the new season.

South Terrebonne coaches and players said they are dedicating their season to teammate Andraye Verdin, who died earlier this month after a traffic accident on the Bourg-Larose Highway.

Gators players said they miss Andraye’s presence every day, but know he’s looking down on them and wishing them well.


The memories of him, they said, will be the No. 1 source of inspiration for the team as they hope to push past last year’s difficult 2-8 season.

“It’s hard to even think about what happened,” center Michael Kemp said. “But once the sadness went away, it motivated us. We know our mission now. We know we have to do good on the field for him. We know we have to play the way he’d want us to play.”

The good news for the Gators is that they’re far more experienced than they were last season.


South Terrebonne coach Richard Curlin called 2015 a perfect storm of inexperience for his team. The Gators lost a huge senior class after 2014’s 11-win season, then had a small returning group of juniors to fill in the gaps.

That meant the often-powerful Gators were far more youthful than normal, often starting four freshmen on Friday nights.

“I’ve been here more than 30 years. We’ve never started freshmen – never,” Curlin said. “But last year, we started four. Heck, in the past, if we had to start one or two sophomores, we’d get worried sick about it. We just had a spat of youth and our inexperience really showed.”


But the benefit of youth is that those players return, which means the Gators have a more seasoned bunch in 2016.

Offensively, South Terrebonne returns six starters, and many of those players are still in just their sophomore or junior seasons.

Curlin said he’s excited about sophomore halfback Jonathan Smith – a player who was among the freshman fleet a year ago.


The coach said he worked throughout last season to remind Smith that brighter days were ahead. Those brighter days are now.

“I kept telling him, ‘Son, you will be a really good football player here. You just have to believe it,’” Curlin said. “And he came around. He had a big game against Ellender at the end of the season, and he’s worked hard to have a better understanding of our offense.”

Also retuning are halfback Casey Guy, fullback Logan Melancon, Kemp and fellow lineman Charlton Arceneaux.


That group will be led by first-year starting quarterback Davis Arceneaux, who has looked good in practice, according to teammates.

“He’s smart,” Kemp said. “Davis knows the plays inside and out. He’s a good leader for us.”

Defensively, South Terrebonne has seven starters back, including arguably the best all-around football player in the Houma-Thibodaux area.


That’d be defensive lineman Louis Blanchard, who is the two-time reigning District 7-4A Defensive District MVP.

Curlin said Blanchard had a great summer and is in the best shape of his career.

Also returning are 2015 starters linebackers Kaleb Voisin and Luke Lirette; defensive backs Deonte Ross, Allen Vizier and Tristen Pinell and lineman Cobie Lirette.


Lirette said having Blanchard on the front-line is a huge plus.

“He helps us,” he said. “He leads us in tackles every year. Opponents pay a lot of attention to him, but it’s earned, because he backs it up on Friday nights.”

But for the Gators, playing for the cause is the overlying theme of the new season.


Curlin said in three-plus decades as a head coach, he’s never had a player die during the season. He called it one of the toughest things he’s ever had to deal with in his career.

The coach said Verdin was going to be a two-ways player for South Terrebonne in 2016 – a player who was beloved by his teammates.

“There’s only so much you can say,” Curlin said. “It’s a terrible thing. I coached Andraye’s dad. I coached his brothers. They’re all good people. They’re all good athletes. There are no words that describe it. You just tell the kids to keep working and to keep him in mind and honor what he meant to our team.”


Lirette said the team plans to do exactly that – play for Andraye.

“We all loved him,” Lirette said. “He was our brother. He was a friend to all of us. But now, we have to start the healing process and we have to play the season for him and do our best to make him proud – to make the community proud.” •

South Terrebonne footballCASEY GISCLAIR | THE TIMES


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