NEW BEGINNINGS: Gators will search for identity in 2007

Phillip Livas’ graduation leaves the South Terrebonne football program with a sizeable hole to fill this season.

Actually, it’s more like a sizeable canyon.

The Louisiana Tech running back rushed for more than 1,900 yards during his senior campaign, and he did it on Formula One legs (Livas was clocked at 4.23 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the Nike Camp – the fastest time in the nation).

“We don’t have that kind of speed anymore,” admitted coach Richard Curlin.

Nor will they have that kind of experience.

The Gators graduated 18 seniors from a 2006 squad that rumbled to a District 5A championship on the strength of a commanding 10-1 record.

Included in that mix were linchpins like Jonathan Lirette and Gabe Trujillo (linebackers) and Corey Dupre (receiver).

“We’re going to have a much younger squad than we’ve had in the past,” Curlin added.

Nonetheless, Curlin still has high hopes for South Terrebonne.

He knows that new faces can always emerge to lead the team – it’s just the way thing usually work out.

“You watch some of these boys when they’re freshman and say to yourself ‘Oh boy! When it’s their turn, they’re going to step up and do a good job,” Curlin said.

In the meantime, he’ll look for leadership from five starters who return to action.

Blake Martin comes back as the Gators signal-caller. Martin passed for 11 touchdowns and more than 700 yards as a junior.

Martin relishes South Terrebonne’s “underdog” role.

“Last year we had some big names, and this year we won’t have big-name guys,” Martin said. “But we play together as a team. We have 24 seniors this year, and we’ve all played together since we were 9 years old, so I think we’ll be alright.”

Kody Breaux returns at running back. Breaux lined up alongside Livas last season and netted more than 500 yards rushing.

“Kody is a hard-nosed kid, he’s fast, and he did a good job running the ball for us last year,” Curlin said.

Curlin saw a different team during the Gators spring scrimmage.

“I thought we looked a lot more balanced on offense between passing and running than we have in the past,” he said. “That’s what we’re going to try to carry on into the regular season. We want to have a more balanced offense.”

South Terrebonne’s defense will benefit from the experience of outside linebackers Chris Verdin and Brandon Culpepper and cornerback Chris Bankston.

That is, if they can stay healthy.

“All three of these kids have had surgery since last year,” Curlin said. “Two had shoulder surgery, and one had knee surgery.”

The key to a successful season will hinge upon the development of new talent.

“We’ll have to have some young kids step up and fill some spots,” Curlin said. “We saw some good things from some of these kids during the spring. We saw potential.”

Mother Nature, however, has prevented Curlin from spending a substantial amount of time with his players.

This contributes to his ambivalent mindset.

“So far this summer, we’ve only had one complete practice where we weren’t run off the field by rain,” he said. “Training camp might actually extend to mid-season. It might take that long to find an identity for this team. But hopefully when we do, it will be a good one.”

The Gators open their season Friday at the South Lafourche Jamboree.