Blanchard making progress after fall

South Terrebonne ended its season the best way it knew how.

They won one for Louis Blanchard and Andraye Verdin.

The Gators rallied around their own on Friday night, using stingy defense and efficient offense to beat South Lafourche 31-21.

The victory wasn’t significant for the Gators in terms of playoff seeding or district championship implications. They knew going in that Week 10 would be their final game of the season.

But coach Richard Curlin said it was important for the team’s seniors to end a tumultuous season on a high note – playing spirited football for their brothers who couldn’t take the field with them to close the year.

“That was for Louis and that was for Andraye – there’s no question,” Curlin said. “It’s been a year that we’ve had to deal with a lot of things. It’s been a year that’s tested us and has tested all of our emotions. But we competed hard tonight and got a win, and I know the kids were really emotional before the game, and they’re really happy about the send-off we were able to have to the year.”

The week before the game was a trying one for everyone in the South Terrebonne family.

Last Monday, two-time District Defensive MVP Louis Blanchard was severely injured when he fell off a trampoline and landed on his neck – an injury which left the standout lineman without feeling in his extremities after the incident.

Blanchard’s neck condensed in the fall, and doctors spent the past week trying to stretch it back out again, while also not affecting his spine – a sensitive process that has kept everyone in the Gators community asking for prayers from

everyone throughout the Houma-Thibodaux area. Before the game, South Lafourche’s captains handed the Gators a couple balls – one honoring Blanchard and the other honoring Verdin.

The Tarpons also gave the Gators a banner that said “PRAYERS FOR LOUIS – FROM SLHS”, which was signed by all of the team’s players.

After Friday night’s game, Curlin said Blanchard’s prognosis was getting better by the day, but the big fellow was still sedated – a strategic move being done by doctors to relieve his body from tension.

“They still think that he is going to be able to make a recovery,” Curlin said. “But right now, there’s still not anything certain. Right now, it’s all still one day at a time.”

Just days before the incident, Blanchard, a 6-foot, 3-inch, 280-pound lineman, had given a verbal commitment to UL-Monroe.

“It’s really a blessing to be in this position,” Blanchard said when asked about his collegiate options. “It’s hard to narrow down. There are a lot of good places that anybody would be lucky to play for. I think I am looking for the place that just feels the most like home.”

For the Gators, the football field felt like home on Friday night after the rough week.

The Gators played mistake-free football for the first team in the season during Friday’s game, forcing three turnovers and turning them into points and a multi-score advantage.

After training 7-3 in the second quarter, South Terrebonne battled back with a vengeance, scoring 28-straight points to take a 31-7 lead in the fourth quarter.

The Tarpons battled back and scored two-straight touchdowns to make it close.

But the Gators finally stiffened and forced a turnover on downs late to seal the senior night victory and the team’s second victory of the season.

After the game, Gators players posed for photos, and there was joy around the team’s fieldhouse for the first time this season.

In one of the photos, assistant coach Archie Adams is holding a dry erase board that had both Blanchard and Verdin’s names and numbers written onto it – a fitting end to the season.

“I think the kids deserved that,” Curlin said. “It definitely feels good to a lot of people here.”