Accenting double negatives
October 28, 2015Accenting double negatives
October 28, 2015
Friday night will be a big night for prep football in the Houma-Thibodaux area.
A total of three district championships will be decided throughout the area’s playing fields in games that will be played in Class 5A, Class 4A and Class 1 A.
In Class 5A, Thibodaux will travel to battle Destrehan – a meeting between the only two unbeatens in District 7-5A. Over in District 7-4A, homestanding South Lafourche will look to win the district crown in its first season in Class 4A. But to do so, they must trump Assumption, who enters the game with a polished 7-1 record.
In Class 1 A, it will be a battle between cross-town rivals as Houma Christian tangles with CCA in a game that will decide both the district champion and who will get an automatic bid into the Division IV Playoffs.
The stakes will be high. The intensity will be up. And local coaches are eager for the challenge.
“It’s going to be a fun game,” South Lafourche coach Dennis Skains said of the meeting with Assumption. “It’s our homecoming, so we have to protect our team against some of the distractions and different things that come with that week. But we think we’re playing some of our best football of the season, so we can’t wait to take on the challenge.”
“It’s going to be a great atmosphere for high school football,” Thibodaux coach Chris Dugas added. “We wish that the game
would be home, but I’m sure that our fans will travel out to support our team. We already know that Destrehan will pack a big crowd as well. It’s a meeting between two good teams who are playing good football. We expect it to be an exciting game.”
Last year’s Thibodaux and Destrehan game was one for the ages.
Like this year, it, too, decided the district title in District 7-5A, as both teams beat everyone in the regular season leading up to the matchup.
In the 2014 affair, Destrehan scored the victory, using dominant defense to secure a 21-14 victory at Thibodaux – a game that truly could have gone either way.
The Tigers proceeded to win four-straight games to close the regular season, then won their first-round playoff game.
Dugas’s 2015 team has been a bit different, as Thibodaux lost two-straight games to open the season, but have since fired back with six-straight victories to set up Friday’s battle.
The Wildcats have never flinched in 2015. They’ve won eight-straight games in 2015 – most of the games coming via blowout.
“Their defense is tough and physical,” Dugas said. “We have to do a great job blocking them and making them uncomfortable at the line of scrimmage.”
In Class 4A, South Lafourche is unbeaten in three games – something that comes as little surprise to most coaches in the area who picked the Tarpons to be among the favorites in the district during the preseason.
But what is a surprise is the resurgence of Assumption – a team that won just three games last season, but is currently 7-1 on the season.
The Mustangs run a veer offense, which heavily utilizes its running backs and speed. Skains said the Tarpons must bottle the run and make crisp tackles to keep the team off balance.
“Their offense is good, man,” Skains said. “They can score points. We have to prepare hard and make sure that we stick to our assignments and stay focused throughout the 48-minute game.”
Over in 1 A, CCA is roaring after a slow start, which paves the way for a matchup with Houma Christian to decide the district title.
The two teams met last season in a thriller – a defensive struggle that CCA won 21-14.
In this year’s battle, both teams are about even, owning similar victory margins over the other teams in district play.
‘It’s going to be a great atmosphere…’
Chris Dugas
Thibodaux football coach
Rivals Houma Christian and CCA battled down to the wire in 2014. Coaches expect the same this Friday in a game that will decide the local Class 1A District Title.
