But head coach Darcy Delcambre can’t remember the last time the Panthers had a running back produce back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons. Until Lane Reaux came along, that is.
Reaux topped the mark for the second consecutive year during Delcambre’s home playoff game against Delhi Charter School on Nov. 21. Reaux, who played a key role in Delcambre’s rise to the District 8-A championship this season, rushed for 1,091 yards and 12 touchdowns as a junior and ran for more than 1,100 yards and 13 touchdowns with three 2-point conversions as a senior.
 Lane Reaux of Delcambre (3) was named the Offensive MVP for The Daily Iberian's 2008 Best of the Teche Football Team. - Lee Ball/The Daily Iberian Advertisement
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“I think it’s a lot of self-determination,” said DHS coach Darcy Delcambre, who shares Best of the Teche Coach of the Year honors with New Iberia’s Rick Hutson. “He put it upon himself. When he came in during the summer, he really got after it in the weight room. He really pushed himself.
“He’s a quiet guy, but this year even when he was hurt, he got a little more vocal. He really was a team leader this year; he’d be first one tell you (fullback) Kyle (Romero) was big part of that (1,000-yard season).”
Joining Reaux on the Best of the Teche first team for the second straight year is another 1,000-yard running back who was considered for MVP honors by the sports staff of The Daily Iberian. Loreauville’s Dillon Anthony ran for an area-best 1,359 yards and 15 touchdowns on 203 carries, earning first-team All-District honors in 7-2A. He ran for 1,330 yards and nine touchdowns as a junior.
Running back Uriah Joseph of New Iberia, who was named the District 3-5A Offensive MVP, also was considered for the honor. Joseph rushed for 920 yards and 10 touchdowns on only 113 carries, and had 14 pass receptions for 226 yards and a touchdown in helping the Yellow Jackets win the District 3-5A championship.
“He and (former NISH standout) Vetric (Sam) were a lot alike in that as juniors you could see the potential but they weren’t very consistent,” said Hutson. “As seniors they got stronger, and consequently, when they got stronger, they got a little faster. That little bit of difference was huge in terms of breakaway speed and long runs. (Joseph) had great hands. Sometimes defenses can shut a running back down by overloading the box, but if you can get him outside the box against a linebacker he’s got a chance.”
Also considered for the honor were a pair of quarterbacks who both were named to the Best of the Teche first team. Franklin senior signal-caller Gregory “Chase” Boykins completed 94 of 205 pass attempts for an area-leading 1,404 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also ran for 162 yards and two touchdowns on 60 carries, earning first-team All-District honors.
“First of all he understood our offensive system very well,” said Franklin coach Zeb Simon. “He was able get us out of a bad play call when one was made because of his ability to recognize the defensive front and secondary coverage. He has tremendous knowledge of the game. He’s able to audible and check into better plays.
“In our passing game, he knew where the hot receivers were and was able check into the hot route. In a zone read offense like we have, you have to be able to read options. He did a great job reading all year long.”
Boykins played through a sprained ankle that hampered him for a game and a half.
“The kid is very tough,” said Simon. “He’s hard as nails. He does a good job running the ball. He’ll stick his nose in there and try to make something happen. If we needed a yard or so, we didn’t hesitate to call a quarterback draw.”
Catholic High’s Taylor Bullock, a junior, completed 127 of 213 attempts for 1,272 yards and seven touchdowns, and ran for 417 yards and seven TDs on 124 attempts, garnering first-team honors on the Best of the Teche team as an athlete. Bullock split time at QB as a sophomore with Ryan St. Julien, who is now at LSU, and still threw for nearly 1,000 yards.
“Over the summer with us going to 7-on-7 tournaments, we finished fourth in the LSU camp and fourth in the Northwestern State camp,” said CHS coach Craig Brodie. “He just worked with the receivers, getting a year more experience. He’s getting recruited pretty heavily (by) Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Tulane, UL. I expect big things out of him his senior season.”
The two receivers on the Best of the Teche first team are senior Harold Roberts of New Iberia and junior Darius Henry of Franklin.
Roberts had 30 catches for 442 yards and three TDs and was a first-team All-District pick at receiver and defensive back. Henry had 29 catches for an area-best 634 yards and 10 touchdowns in earning first-team All-District honors.
Kyle Lamothe is the tight end, edging Catholic High’s Cory Brodie. Lamothe had 16 catches for 179 yards and six touchdowns, playing a key role in red zone appearances by the Jackets. Brodie had 21 catches for 191 yards.
The Best of the Teche offensive line includes senior Coby Landry and junior Dustin Edwards of new Iberia, senior Kevin Landry of Delcambre, senior Leon Roy of Catholic High and senior D’Amate Ledet of Westgate.
Coby Landry and Edwards were the Jackets’ top linemen, with Edwards, a transfer from Franklin, the most physical lineman NISH had, Hutson said. Roy was a two-way starter on the offensive and defensive lines for CHS, while Landry was Delcambre’s best offensive lineman. Ledet was a smart player and a solid citizen who earned first-team All-District honors, coach Brian Fine said.
Several other players who stood out in multiple areas earned honors as athletes on the team. They include senior Kurt Bouie of Jeanerette, senior Ridge Gonsoulin of Catholic High, junior Diontae Spencer of Westgate, junior Chris Tyson of Erath and senior Johnathan Louviere of Loreauville.
Gonsoulin was a running back, receiver and defensive standout for the Panthers. He had 51 carries for 314 yards and nine touchdowns, caught 30 passes for 310 yards and two TDs, and completed all three of his pass attempts for 46 yards on offense. On defense Gonsoulin made 64 tackles, seven for loss, with three interceptions.
“He was first team All-District last year as a defensive back,” said Craig Brodie. “This year we used him more. He was an all-purpose guy. He did a little of everything. He ran the ball, caught the ball, did well on defense.”
Bouie ran for 294 yard and three touchdowns on 64 carries, completed 63 of 160 passes for 1,056 yards and seven touchdowns and earned second-team All-District honors for JSH.
Tyson played quarterback, running back and defensive end for Erath, leading the Bobcats in passing and rushing yards. He was a first-team All-District player on defense with 49 tackles, 13 for loss, including 11 sacks.
Louviere was the starting quarterback and punter for Loreauville and played safety as well. A two-time first-team All-District choice, he rushed for more than 500 yards and threw for a similar amount for the Tigers and averaged 32 yards a punt.
Spencer led Westgate in receiving yards, and also played quarterback, throwing and rushing for the Tigers.
Like the other Westgate players earning Best of the Teche honors, Spencer is the kind of player deserving of any honors he gets, said WHS coach Brian Fine.
“He’s a great kid,” said Fine. “He’s not only a great player, he’s a great kid. He does all the right things, on the field and off the field. He’s the kind of kid you want all your kids to be like.
“They do the right things,” Fine added of his group. “They’re not only good players, they’re good people.”
That was something that NISH also stressed this season, and it showed up on the field as well as in school.
“We ask our players to be accountable to their teammates, and to understand when they get in trouble in class or misbehave and get put in the adjustment center, it affects the whole team,” said Hutson. “By far since I’ve been here this team had the fewest discipline problems we’ve had, not just major ones but minor ones too. This was a really good group of young men. I enjoyed being around them.”
Benci Watkins of New Iberia is the team’s placekicker.
Honorable mentions include wide receivers Thomas Theriot of Catholic High, Darion Hurst of Jeanerette, Ryan Sorrel of Franklin and Josh Pillette of Erath; tight end Cory Brodie of Catholic High; offensive linemen Christian Guidry and Jarrett Devillier of St. Martinville, Myles McGhee of New Iberia, Gary Artiste of Franklin, James Crosby of Jeanerette, Jacob Broussard of Delcambre and Tony Panyanouvong of Westgate; and running back Willie Ware of Westgate.
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panther fan wrote on Dec 27, 2008 2:47 AM: