Now that the high school football regular season is officially at its halfway point, I have one point to make to Baton Rouge teams.
My message is simple and direct.
Keep working — there is still plenty to do before the Louisiana High School Athletic Association playoffs begin in November.
That goes for our list of unbeaten teams like St. Amant, Lutcher and Parkview Baptist. Rankings and early season wins are nice, but a résumé is never complete until the Week 10 scores are in.
Believe it or not, the same message holds true for teams that have yet to win a game. Remember, the season is a progression. You’d be surprised how powerful working to get better each week and notching a few wins can be. Depending on how other teams fare, it’s not unheard for a team to mount a late charge and ride it all the way through the playoffs.
Lessons about parity were among the most important ones I hope local teams and their fans learned during the first five weeks of the season.
Consider these scenarios that have already happened:
Class 5A Central beat 4A power St. Thomas More-Lafayette; Catholic High beat then 10th-ranked Denham Springs in 5A; Central beat Catholic; St. Amant beat Central; Class 3A No. 1 Parkview beat Catholic; Zachary beat Dutchtown in 5A; and St. Thomas More beat 5A No. 2 Barbe.
Many of these games were decided by one TD or less. So on any given night it is possible for either team to win
Look for the districts races that start this week, especially the ones in 4-5A and 5-5A, to be extremely competitive.
With West Feliciana (4-0) and East Feliciana (2-2) in its district, Parkview’s District 6-3A may not be the cakewalk some expect.
Now that defending state champion St. Charles Catholic (2-2) is rebounding, the District 7-3A race will be another to note.
Already, teams and individuals have put together a highlight reel full of memorable moments. My favorite moments don’t involve wins or losses.
The on-the-field moment that left an impression on me came from the Denham Springs-Catholic game. Catholic’s sophomore running back Derrius Guice ran into the line for what I figured would be a short gain.
You couldn’t see Guice once he ran into the cluster of linemen. But the pile of linemen suddenly started rolling. About 7 or 8 yards later, Guice crawled out of the pile of bodies and flipped the ball to the official.
The most emotional moment I witnessed happened Friday night. After beating No. 9 Brusly, players for fifth-ranked Livonia presented the game ball to sophomore running back Malcolm Dedrick, whose uncle was one of two men murdered in Plaquemine last week.
Yes, there have already been some great moments and great games. I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to see what the second half of the season brings.
Dutchtowh High lineman David Elias and Zachary High baseball player Evan Tidwell are the area’s latest college commitments.
Elias, a top defensive player for the Griffins, committed to the University of Louisiana-Monroe.
Tidwell, a senior who had 6-1 record last spring, committed to Northwestern State. Tidwell, who was 6-0 as a sophomore, plans to sign during the NCAA’s early signing period in November.
Live Oak High will once again use its preseason wrestling take down tournament as a benefit for the Baton Rouge Regional Eye Bank.
The Eagles’ “Take Down Blindness” event is set for Oct. 27. Competition begins at 9 a.m.
The first 50 people to register as organ, eye and tissue
donors will receive a free T-shirt.
East Iberville seeks a girls basketball opponent on Dec. 22.
Contact coach Cormanda Grace-Green at (225) 642-0032 or email CormandaGrace@ipsb.org.
Call coach Yancy Wilmot at (225) 505-5161 or send email to yancy,wilmot@parkview
baptist.com.
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