Eunice Marie Dupre
August 26, 2008Stephen Michael Eschete
August 28, 2008
Two very short seasons ago, the Central Lafourche Trojans were coming off of a 1-9 season with little or no expectations.
That’s when head coach Chad Callais arrived.
In his first year as coach, the Trojans went 5-5 (4-2 in district) with Callais’ triple-option offense. The team missed the playoffs by one game last season after finishing third overall in the district.
For the first time since the late 1990s, the Trojans start the season with high expectations. Callais said player and fan spirit at the Mathews school is proof the Trojan football program is on its way to being restored.
“We’re extremely excited about what has been going on in the community,” the coach said. “Our season ticket sales are going through the roof. We only have a certain section and we are nearly sold out. It’s unbelievable.”
Of course, this renewed fervor also translates into increased pressure to produce wins.
When the Trojans returned to practice this season, Callais said he didn’t know what to expect. Once the first session was over, he left believing that this year could be special.
“On the first day, we came out here and picked up where we left off on day 15 of spring training,” he said. “We got more stuff in now than we had at the end of last year.
“Like anything, it’s our second year in the system and everybody understands what we want,” the coach continued. “We’re light years ahead of where we need to be.”
And Callais’ gut feeling is infectious. The players, too, are expecting this season to bring wonders.
“When you go 1-9, it’s not fun playing football,” senior linebacker Tory Hebert said. “Now, when you know you have a good team, you want to win and you are willing to do whatever it takes. Football is fun again.”
The offense is the Trojans’ backbone this year. Callais’ system, now in its second year, sees seven starters – six of whom are seniors – return.
Tight end Dylan Curole, split end Matt O’Gueyun, guards Zack Uzee and Clint Salter (1st Team All-District), split back Byron Thomas (1st Team All-District) and fullback Chevell Shelby join junior quarterback Cobie Savoie (Honorable Mention All-District) as the returnees.
Juniors Brad Vedros (tackle), Jake Dominique (center) and Sabree Abdullah (tackle) and senior split back Rendell Clark are the fresh faces on the offense.
Senior Jordan LeBoeuf is also expected to see playing time at split back.
Overall, Callais is pleased with the offense.
“We have threats back there,” Callais explained. “Not that we didn’t last year, but our two slot receivers are coming back. We moved one to quarterback. We are just excited about the potential we have offensively. We put in some new things and the guys have really picked up on everything.”
Salter is equally excited as he enters his senior season and hopes to end his high school career with a championship.
“We want six home games,” he said, suggesting the Trojans could still be alive come playoff time. “We have five now, but we want one playoff game here. They (seniors) laid the foundation for us last year, now we just want to bring back the winning tradition.”
Defensively, the Trojans suffered their biggest losses after many key players graduated in 2007. Callais is looking to his four returning starters – seniors Cody Chiasson (defensive end), Courtney Parker, Hebert and Jovi Theriot (safety) – to keep last season’s strong defensive performance going.
“Our defense did a great job last year,” the coach said. “They kept us in every game. We lost a lot of starters on defense, but we have talented guys back there. If we can put in the same kind of performance as last year, we are going to be tough to beat.”
Joining the four will be seven newcomers. Senior defensive tackle Randall Falgout and sophomore nose guard Jordan Thompson wrap up the defensive line, while juniors Jacob Badeaux (linebacker), Marcus Randall (linebacker), Brandon Smith (cornerback), Davon Anderson (cornerback) and Austin Naquin (safety) round out the rest of the starting defense.
Naquin will also handle the punting and kicking duties for the Trojans.
Even with such a young defense, Callais expects the Trojans to be competitive and give the Trojans fans something to be excited about in the very wide-open race for the District 8-5A title.
“Everybody is undefeated right now at 0-0, so we are all in first place, which is a good place to be,” he joked. “The district is tough from top to bottom and week in and week out. Each week is going to be extremely competitive. There is no easy win on the schedule.
“At one time, some people may have said we used to be like that, but I definitely don’t think you can look at us like that anymore,” the coach added. “It’s going to be wide open, and we are excited about the possibilities for our team this season.”
