Patriots bring new attitude to field

After a winless 2009 campaign at Ellender, head coach Tawaskie Anderson looks to instill a new attitude among coaches and players.

“Being physically and mentally tough are the things that we worked on in fall camp,” Anderson said. “We’re looking to go into the season to be successful, win a couple ball games and be very competitive.”

Tempo and intensity are at an all-time high, and coaches are pushing players to the limit.

But there are some players talented enough to have skill sets that can’t be taught by coaches, and Ellender is lucky enough to have one of those players in wide receiver Jermaine Johnson.

With more than half of the team’s touchdowns last season, Johnson caught 44 passes for 905 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.

His play caught the eye of current Memphis head coach and former LSU assistant coach Larry Porter, and the three-star prospect committed to Memphis in July.

But with one high school season still to go, Anderson knows he will need another great season out of his star receiver if Ellender wants to be competitive, and he is pleased Johnson got his decision out of the way before the start of the season.

“We’re both happy that he’s made his decision on where he’s going to go, so he can get that behind him and focus on his senior season and finishing up in the classroom,” said Anderson.

Due to the 6-foot-3-inch, 170-pound receiver’s big-play ability, Anderson expects Johnson to receive quite a bit of attention from opposing defenses.

“He worked really hard last year to help us move the ball on offense, but this year we have to be a little more balanced,” Anderson said. “We know some teams are going to try to double team him, so the other guys on the field need to produce on offense as well.”

The quarterback who will be spreading the wealth in 2010 is junior Drake Granier, who will be starting under center for the first time but has two years of experience starting at safety.

“He may not have experience at quarterback, but he has game experience, and that’s needed,” Anderson said. “[Granier] is an athlete. He’s going to be more of a runner. We’re going to use his talent to move the pocket around, get him to distribute the ball to everybody and get everybody involved on the offense.”

Running a variation of the spread and the wing-T, Ellender will keep three running backs in the game at all times.

“It’s just a multiple offense where we utilize the slot guys to be running backs with a lot of speed sweeps and different things,” Anderson said.

Senior and four-year starter Drake Eschete will anchor the group at fullback, while junior Jamahl Payton and sophomore Ralph Singleton round out the group as slot backs.

“Ralph brings speed and agility. Jamahl brings finesse running game, and Drake Eschete brings the power running game,” their coach said. “Drake Granier is going to run the ball also, so it’ll be like we have four running backs on the field at the same time.”

Sophomores Matthew Ross and Tyree Gray will battle for the wide receiver spot opposite Johnson.

The left side of the Ellender offensive line returns in the form of senior left tackle Zach Comeaux, junior left guard Devron Smith and junior center Brendan Robichaux. New starters junior Todd Fitch at right guard and sophomore Justin James at right tackle round out an offensive line that Anderson said will be better in 2010.

“They’re getting bigger and stronger in the weight room, and they’ve been working on footwork drills in the offseason,” Anderson said. “They’ve developed unity within that offensive unit, and they’re just working hard together.”

James, Eschete, Payton and Granier will start both ways at nose guard, defensive end, outside linebacker and free safety, respectively.

Anderson isn’t worried about these players getting tired, because he feels confident in his reserve players if one of the four needs to take a few plays off.

“We have a lot of role players on the team who understand their position to get in the game to give those guys a breather so we can have the ability to start strong and finish strong in those close games,” Anderson said.

Running a 3-3-5 defense, sophomore defensive end Willshawn Jones rounds out the defensive line and juniors Kenrock Verrett and Chris Morgan join Payton at linebacker.

Senior Vandebilt transfer Kevin Crispino will join sophomore Darrick Burrel at strong safety, and junior Travis Verdin and sophomore Damien Fitch will start at cornerback.

Ellender High Patriots

District 8-4A

Sept. 3 Terrebonne

Sept. 10 @ South Terrebonne

Sept. 17 @ H.L. Bourgeois

Sept. 24 East Ascension

Oct. 1 Assumption

Oct. 8 @ Morgan City*

Oct. 15 @ Vandebilt*

Oct. 22 Lutcher*

Oct. 29 Helen Cox*

Nov. 5 @ Belle Chasse*

* Denotes district game

Coach: Tawaskie Anderson

Assistant Coaches: Matthew

Dardar, Corey Bourg, John Haslitt

Record last season: 0-10

Returning Starters: 6 on offense, 4 on defense

Players to Watch: Wide receiver Jermaine Johnson, fullback Drake Eschete, left tackle Zach Comeaux, safety Kevin Crispino

Primary Strengths: Big-play ability on offense

Fun FACTS

905: The number of receiving yards Patriots standout receiver Jermaine Johnson accumulated last season

3: The number of halfbacks who will see action in Ellender’s primarily wing-T attack

3: The number of offensive linemen who return for the Patriots’ offensive front

Ellender seniors (from left) Kevin Crispino, Zachary Comeaux, Drake Eschette and Jermaine Johnson enter 2010 with redemption on their mind after going 0-10 last season. RICHARD FISCHER TRI-PARISH TIMES