LHS jumps into thick of district race

LOREAUVILLE -- A 3-1 pre-district mark under their belts, the Loreauville Tigers jump right into the meat of their schedule for homecoming week this Friday.

And with unbeaten Livonia coming to town, the Tigers already face a tough challenge to start their District 7-2A slate.

“They are by far the most talented offensive team we’ve played this year,” said Loreauville coach Trent Delahoussaye. “Their quarterback (Justin Mingo) is a freshman, but he doesn’t play like a freshman. He can run the ball and he can throw.

“Then they have (running back) Dustin Dixon. I think he’s the best player in district this year. I thought he was the best player in district last year.”

The talented Dixon rushed for 1,220 yards and 26 touchdowns last season. He’s got 431 yards and eight touchdowns this year on the ground, and had a TD catch last week in the Wildcats’ 55-14 win over Ascension Catholic. Mingo rushed for 123 yards and passed for 178 last week, scoring twice on the ground and throwing two TD passes.

Livonia had three scoring plays of greater than 50 yards last week, including a 55-yard run by Dixon, an 84-yard run by Mingo and a 59-yard pass from Mingo to Dixon.

“(Dixon) hasn’t touched the ball much the last couple of weeks,” said Delahoussaye, explaining that Livonia has had big leads and is working on other aspects of its offense. “I think they’re going to give the ball to Dixon (this week), somewhere, somehow. I think they’re going to try to establish the run first. He ran 28 times against Catholic of Pointe Coupee (on Sept. 19), but last week they were 50-50 on offense (14 runs and 14 passes). They’re a big-play offense.”

Defensively, Delahoussaye expects the Wildcats to try to stop running back Dillon Anthony first. Anthony has rushed for 729 yards and 10 touchdowns, including 240 yards and five touchdowns on 24 carries last week in a 53-6 win over Vermilion Catholic.

“Everybody knows when you play Loreauville, you have to stop Dillon Anthony,” said Delahoussaye. “I know that’s what I’d try to do. They’re going to stack the box, so we have to throw over the top.”

Fortunately, Loreauville’s new spread offense, brought in partly because of the Tigers’ smaller front line this year, has been a boon to both the running game and the passing game, led by quarterback Jonathan Louviere.

“I’m a little more confident going into this game with our passing game,” said Delahoussaye. “Eddie Gaddison caught a touchdown pass (last week). Dillon Anthony has caught the ball out of the backfield. B.J. Green has been real reliable (catching the ball). We’re trying to get Nevin Landry involved in the passing game this week too. I’m confident in our passing game.”

The Wildcats are big up front, Delahoussaye said, with players 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds, 6-3 and 290 and 6-4, 225. While not fast, they’re tough to move. The linebackers aren’t big but are quick, while the defensive backfield is speedy, the coach added. While not as good on defense as they are on offense, Delahoussaye said, it’s unfair to compare the two Livonia units because the offense is so good. An open enrollment policy in Pointe Coupee Parish has helped the LHS football team this year.

“They picked up a few athletes from Pointe Coupee Central this year who’ve become starters, and that’s made a world of difference,” said Delahoussaye.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Franklin vs. St. Helena Central

FRANKLIN -- The Franklin Hornets are coming off a win over nearby rival Jeanerette, one that rankles FSH coach Zeb Simon after comments by Jeanerette coach Terry Washington disputed a call by the officials late in the game.

Washington was unhappy overall with the officiating after his team was socked with nine penalties for 81 yards, and saw what he thought was an interception ruled a catch for Franklin (2-2).

The play was a pass from quarterback Chase Boykins to receiver Ryan Sorrell. Darion Hurst got his hands on the ball and he and Sorrell went out of bounds fighting for possession.

“The guy from Jeanerette’s hands touched the ball first,” acknowledged Simon. “Our kid put his hands on the ball. They had dual possession, took a couple of steps and went out of bounds. When they went out of bounds, their kid took the ball away.”

That made the call by the officials the correct one since dual possession of a pass gives possession to the offensive team, by rule, said Simon. He added that the Hornets were penalized frequently (9 for 80 yards) as well as JSH.

“You could look at calls that were made all night by the officials,” said Simon. “There was a fourth-and-four play where they threw a fade route to Michael Tolds, and he missed the ball. We tackled him after that and they called pass interference. That led to a touchdown. It was 6-6 at that point (before the penalty) and we didn’t complain about that. His first touchdown came with 30 yards of penalties on the drive. You can look at calls all night.”

Simon said that the key to his team’s 20-18 win, which came on a TD with 4:33 left in the game followed by a 2-point conversion run, was Boykins’ composure after early struggles.

“He maintained throughout the game and orchestrated the second half really by running the ball,” said Simon. “They gave us the quarterback draw and we took it. He made the right calls on several audibles.”

The Hornets play at St. Helena Central (2-2) this week.

The Hawks have wins over Kentwood (46-22) and Desire Street Academy (1-2) sandwiched between losses to Clinton (14-8) and Amite (39-6) this season.