HCS ready for first varsity season

Last year was a tease, a mere four-game appetizer for what was about to come.

This year, the main course has finally arrived.

Houma Christian has a varsity football team.

The school’s students, faculty and community couldn’t be hungrier to dig in.

After playing a four-game junior varsity schedule in 2010, the Warriors are hard at work learning fundamentals in what will be their first-ever varsity season in 2011.

With kickoff nearing, excitement is riding high among the school’s students, faculty and community.

“We’re very excited,” wide receiver Jacob Mathieu said. “We got a little taste of what it’s like last year, but this year to actually get out there and learn the game to prepare for a full season, we’re really looking forward to it.”

Full-fledged varsity football is something a lot of people never thought would take shape at the small Houma-based Christian school.

One of those who were skeptical about the possibility is the team’s coach Chuck Battaglia.

Fighting back a smile, the coach said he always hoped the school’s administration would adopt the sport, but he never thought it’d be a realistic possibility.

“When I got here 16 years ago, football was basically never even an option,” Battaglia said. “My second year here, we started our flag football program and honestly, even that was a shock to people at the time.”

The coach’s wish became a reality when Houma Christian announced last year that it would adopt the sport and play a four-game junior varsity schedule with plans to begin full-time varsity action this year.

That decision coincided with the school’s jump to Class 1A.

Battaglia said school-wide morale took a giant leap following the announcement that football would be a part of the school’s athletic department.

“We had to drop flag football when we joined the LHSAA,” the coach said. “And that honestly caused excitement to drop in the school. But that’s back again around here, because everybody loves football. You can definitely see the difference in the spirit now that it’s back.”

With no varsity experience, a lot of question marks surround the team’s depth chart.

But one certain is at quarterback where junior Nate Frye will be the team’s starter.

The offense Frye will operate is a triple-option attack.

That offense was put in place this offseason when former Central Lafourche head coach Chad Callais joined the Warriors’ staff this spring.

And while it’s still early, Warriors players say they believe Callais’ offensive teachings are having a positive impact.

“The offense is looking great,” Mathieu said. “Everybody’s getting all the motions of it and all of the gears are shifting together. We feel like that group’s going to be pretty good.”

Callais resigned from the Trojans this spring to spend more time with his family.

He landed with the Warriors where he’ll be able to do just that. Callais’ son, Noah, serves as an offensive lineman on Houma Christian’s line.

Noah Callais agreed with Mathieu’s predictions and said he believes the team will be able to score points in its inaugural season.

“We’ll be just fine on offense,” Noah Callais said. “We’ll be able to move the football.”

The biggest issue for the Warriors in the new season will be depth.

Houma Christian has a roster of approximately 25 players.

Because of those small numbers, the team has a hard time scrimmaging because of a lack of linemen.

“We don’t have enough linemen,” the younger Callais said.

With those limitations, the Warriors haven’t been able to go through much of their defensive game plan at full speed.

“We practiced basic things like tackling and everything,” Mathieu said. “But we just got our basic defensive outline yesterday. That’s not an excuse. We expect good things out of our defense, also.”

So with the impossible now possible at Houma Christian, the obvious question is what should people expect in the standings?

The Warriors admit they have disadvantages because they are the new kids on the block.

But that doesn’t mean they expect to fold and have a losing season.

Players and coaches believe the Warriors have a good chance to be a winner in 2011.

Football at the school was unlikely as-is, so why can’t the team overcome the odds and become a playoff team?

The answer to that question is simple: They believe they can.

“We’re like any other team, we’re trying to take state,” Callais said. “Obviously, in our first year, we know that’s a little bit of a long shot, but we feel realistically we can go out there and have a winning season. We definitely think we’re capable of that.”

“Ultimate goal would be the sneak into the playoffs and get ourselves a playoff game,” Battaglia said. “If we can do that in our first year, man, that’d be a huge accomplishment for us.”

Regardless of the outcome, football has finally arrived and the Warriors’ nation couldn’t be happier.

The appetizer is finally over.

The Warriors’ nation can finally get a taste of the main dish.

“I was the first one to sign up,” Callais said. “I didn’t think this would ever happen, but when it did, I was just so happy. … I can’t wait. I cannot wait for the season to get started.”

Houma Christian Warriors

District 10-1A

Sept. 2 at False River

Sept. 9 OPEN

Sept. 16 at Archbishop Hannan

Sept. 23 at St. Martin’s Episcopal*

Sept. 30 vs. Crescent City*

Oct. 7 at Ecole Classique*

Oct. 14 vs. Metairie Park Country Day*

Oct. 21 vs. Lutheran*

Oct. 28 vs. Haynes Academy

Nov. 4 at Ridgewood*

* Denotes district game

Coach: Charles Battaglia

Assistant Coaches: Chad Callais, Shane Cheramie, Craig Nicholas

Record last season: 2011 will be Warriors’ first varsity season

Returning Starters: First year as a program

Players to Watch: Jacob Mathieu, Nate Frye, Noah Callais

Primary Strength: Energy and excitement

Fun FACTS

4: The number of JV games Houma Christian played last year to prepare for this season

5: The number of weeks into the season the Warriors must wait before their first home game

25: The approximate number of players Houma Christian has on its roster