Duo sparks Week 1 victory

South Lafourche quarterback Jaydon Cheramie collected his thoughts, then got into his pre-snap routine on Friday night against Bonnabel.

He looked to his left, sent a wide receiver in motion and then got ready for the battle which lied ahead.

“Down … set … hike!” he shouted.

That’s when it all started.

On command, the center flicked the ball to Cheramie, who put it into halfback Corbin Allen’s belly and started the play.

Allen juked left, but had little space to maneuver. He was tackled about two yards beyond the line of scrimmage – an apparent victory for the Bruins defense.

But then the home-standing South Lafourche crowd roared.

As Bonnabel tackled Allen for an apparent stop, Cheramie trekked down the field – almost untouched until he was deep into the secondary.

He put the ball into Allen’s belly, yes – an illusion that caused almost everyone on the defense (and some in the working media) to think the halfback was the focus of the play.

But at the last possible second, Cheramie pulled it back out and moved down the field for a huge gain – an act of wizardry that will cause problems to opposing defenses throughout the 2016 season.

Cheramie and Allen are a one-two punch that will power the Tarpons’ spread offense in 2016 – a duo coach Brandon Nowlin said are among the best he’s coached in his career.

On opening night on Friday, the players lived up to the hype, combining for more than 360 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the Tarpons 40-24 victory over the Bruins – the second-straight season South Lafourche opened with a victory over Bonnabel.

“Our running game was good tonight,” Nowlin said after the win. “I think those two guys are both dangerous. I think they both want to do the right things and want to have big seasons. Together and with the help of an offensive line that we like, I think that can become reality.”

For the duo, the 2016 success is part of a plan they both say has been paved through hard work and dedication to the sport.

Cheramie’s 2016 season marks his second as the Tarpons starting quarterback.

In 2015, the signal caller was rushed into duty because of a preseason injury, but still shined, completing 74-of-141 passes for 1,024 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also rushed for 743 yards and 12 touchdowns.

But Cheramie said he didn’t truly get comfortable in his rule until late in 2015, and that he worked hard throughout the offseason to try and perfect his craft.

“I’m way less nervous now,” Cheramie said with a laugh. “I know what’s expected of me and I’ve settled down. It’s much different now.”

In the offseason, Cheramie said he worked hard on his passing skills and ball-handling ability.

Through that work, he developed that magician’s like touch and the ability to keep the ball in Allen’s gut until the last possible second to read the defensive line’s reactions.

That deception hurt Bonnabel throughout Friday’s game, allowing the Tarpons to pile up more than 400 yards rushing in the win.

“He’s a good player,” Bonnabel coach Reggie Rogers said. “He’s a weapon in both the running and passing game. He’s good with his fakes, which makes it really difficult to know what to do as a defender.”

But while Cheramie spends a lot of the game distributing the ball, Allen occupies his time running people over – whether he has the ball in his hands or not.

Allen is the stereotypical power back – a player who routinely lowers his shoulder and barrels through defenders to earn extra yardage at the tail-end of plays.

Like Cheramie, Allen said he also spent the offseason grinding, adding muscle to his already-big frame.

In 2015, Allen started as a sophomore and gained 1,200 yards.

This fall, he’s noticeably bigger, faster and stronger and is off to a pretty good start. In the season opener, the halfback gained 179 yards with three touchdowns – gaining the tough, inside yards the team used to keep the Bruins’ defense honest.

“It was a good game,” Allen said. “It was a good start to our season. We’ve worked hard and we were ready to get going. I knew I was ready. I had a feeling we’d put together a good game. It was just good to get on the field and make it happen.”

But for all the headlines Cheramie and Allen may get – and rightfully so – both said they know there’s a huge catalyst to the team’s success: the South Lafourche offensive line.

Both Cheramie and Allen bragged on their line for the opening-week victory, each giving credit to the big fellows for holding off defenders long enough to allow Cheramie time to read the defense and decide whether to keep or hand off the ball.

The group is led by Chad Cheramie, Luke Vizier, Melik Guidroz, Ryan Istre and Garet Serigny.

With the combination of talented playmakers handling the ball and beefy linemen opening holes, the Tarpons said they think they’re capable of scoring on anyone they face.

Nowlin agrees. He said if the team consistently improves, the sky is the limit.

“If we execute, we like our chances against anyone we face,” Nowlin said.

Week 1 Players of the Week

HONORABLE MENTION: Vandebilt’s defense— In the team’s annual rivalry game with E.D. White, Vandebilt Catholic’s defense stood tall, limiting the Cardinals to just seven points in a blowout win. We know the Terriers can score the ball offensively. If their defense plays this well throughout the season, that’s bad, bad news for opponents in District 7-4A and Division II.

BRONZE: Terrebonne halfback Keshawn James— Terrebonne bullied Ellender up front, gashing the Patriots for several big plays in the running game. James was a huge culprit in that, rushing 22 times for 151 yards and two scores.

SILVER: Houma Christian halfback T.J. Moore— The Warriors avenged a 50-7 loss against Highland Baptist last year, thanks in large part to Moore, who had 165 yards in Houma Christian’s big-time win.

GOLD: South Lafourche halfback Corbin Allen— Before Friday’s game, Allen winked to an assistant coach and said, ‘The Beast is back.’ He was right. The powerful back kicked off his junior season by rushing for 179 yards and three touchdowns in Friday’s win over Bonnabel.

The High-Five

1. VANDEBILT: It’s going to take one bear of a team to beat Vandebilt Catholic in 2016. The Terriers steamrolled rival E.D. White on Friday night – a continuation of what’s been a dominant ride for the team so far this fall. They’re the real deal, folks.

2. CENTRAL LAFOURCHE: The Trojans started poorly, but finished with a bang, rolling to a 22-12 victory over Patterson on Friday night. Keith Menard is easily among the top coaches in the Bayou area. The work he’s done to turn the Trojans program around is terrific.

3. THIBODAUX: The Tigers dropped to 0-1 for the second-straight season, but no one should be writing Thibodaux’s obituary just yet. St. Charles Catholic is a tough out for anyone – especially on their own field. The Tigers played ’em tough and nearly challenged victory, which is a good showing.

4. SOUTH LAFOURCHE: It always takes a while to get acclimated to a new coach, but the Tarpons are continuously getting better and better each week. To rush for 400 yards isn’t easy, but with Jaydon Cheramie and Corbin Allen, the Tarpons may challenge that mark every week.

5. TERREBONNE: The Tigers opened 2016 in style, crushing rival Ellender, thanks to timely defense and a run-heavy offense. The challenge for the Tigers now is to keep that momentum going through district – an area that’s plagued the team in years past.

By The Numbers for Week 1 of the Prep Football Season

401: The South Lafourche football team bullied Bonnabel on Friday night, dominating the line of scrimmage to score a 16-point win. The Tarpons rushed for 401 yards in the victory, getting 193 from Jaydon Cheramie and 179 from Corbin Allen. The duo combined for four touchdowns, as well.

41: Central Lafourche was a wreck in the first half against Patterson on Friday night. The Trojans gained just 41 first-half yards and had two turnovers – woes which put the team behind 12-0. But the Central rallied, scoring 22-straight in the second half to win.

5: South Terrebonne’s tough start to the season continued on Friday night in a blowout loss at the hands of H.L. Bourgeois. The Gators turned over the ball five times in the game, which set up the Braves for an easy shutout victory.

28: Vandebilt led rival E.D. White 13-7 at halftime on Friday night – a score that didn’t please coach Jeremy Atwell. The Terriers battled back in a big way in the second half, scoring 28-unanswered points to roar to a dominant victory.

0: For the second-straight week, South Terrebonne’s struggling offense left the playing field without scoring. H.L. Bourgeois shut out the Gators in blowout fashion in Week 1.

Week 1 Scores

CENTRAL LAFOURCHE — 22

PATTERSON – 12

The Trojans started about as poorly as one could possibly start, but they battled back in a big way, scoring 22-straight points in the second half to score a victory over a very talented Patterson team. The Trojans will next play Vandebilt – a game that is probably the marquee matchup in the area for Week 2.

H.L. BOURGEOIS – 45

SOUTH TERREBONNE – 0

The Braves did just about everything well, rolling their rivals to kick off the new season. South Terrebonne has a lot of work to do if it wants to improve off last year’s two-win campaign. But we trust Coach Curlin and his staff to make adequate adjustments and get that team playing better football in short order.

TERREBONNE – 48

ELLENDER – 19

Coach David McCormick’s debut at Ellender didn’t quite go as planned, as the Terrebonne Tigers gashed the Patriots with a run-heavy attack to secure an easy win. Terrebonne looks to be much improved in the Bayou District. The challenge will now be to find ways to beat some of the River Parish squads so that they can punch a bit into the always-tough Class 5A State Playoffs.

ST. CHARLES – 27

THIBODAUX – 19

St. Charles Catholic slowed the pace of the game down, controlled time of possession and walked away with a victory over the Tigers on Friday night in LaPlace. The victory marks the second-straight season that the Comets defeat Thibodaux to open the season. But have no fear, Thibodaux fans. Your team will be just fine. St. Charles is one of the top programs in the state. There’s no shame in losing to those cats.

SOUTH LAFOURCHE – 40

BONNABEL – 24

Welcome to Galliano, Coach Brandon Nowlin. The offensive-minded coach earned his keep on Friday night, helping coach the Tarpons to more than 400 yards of offense and 40 points in a comfortable victory over the Bruins. Next up is a matchup against Carver – a team which beat the Tarpons one year ago.

VANDEBILT – 41

E.D. WHITE – 7

Vandebilt showed its dominance on Friday night, wallopping its rival in their own stadium, scoring 28-straight points in the second half to beat the Cardinals. The Terriers can go. They can really, really go. They will not be easily taken down by anyone they face.

CCA – 20

WESTMINSTER – 14

The Lions lost a close, hard-fought game with Westminster last year. This time, they came up on the right side of the battle. The Lions are a tough group in Class 1A and Division IV – one of the more talented teams in the state within their classification. That’s a good win for CCA. It jump starts their season.

HOUMA CHRISTIAN – 25

HIGHLAND BAPTIST – 13

Houma Christian lost to Highland Baptist by more than 40 points last year. But this year, the Warriors battled back and scored a two-touchdown win. Houma Christian is much improved and will be a great story to follow in 2016.

Next week’s schedule

Central Lafourche @ Vandebilt

Ellender @ H.L. Bourgeois

Terrebonne @ South Terrebonne

East Ascension @ Thibodaux

Carver @ South Lafourche

E.D. White @ Lakeshore

Hannan @ CCA

False River @ Houma Christian

South Lafourche quarterback Jaydon Cheramie (right) and halfback Corbin Allen are one of the area’s best one-two punches for 2016. The duo accumulated more than 360 yards rushing and combined for four touchdowns on Friday.

FILE

The Houma Christian senior class stood tall on Friday, scoring a huge win over Highland Baptist to jump-start the team’s season.

CASEY GISCLAIR | THE TIMES