Valdin’s eyes will be focused on special teams during jamboree

Jonathan Menard

The Hahnville defense struggled to contain Higgins’ run attack in a scrimmage last week, and the unit will need to have a much better performance against St. James in the jamboree on Aug. 26.

The defense was supposed to be one of the main strengths for the Hahnville Tigers this season, but the unit struggled last week in a scrimmage against Higgins. Now, they will get a chance to redeem themselves when they host St. James in the Ed Reed Jamboree on Aug. 26.

"Higgins came out in something we weren't expecting on offense and they kind of took it to our defense," Tiger head coach Lou Valdin said. "We are going to have to be more physical up front."

While the defense did give up a lot of yardage on the ground to Higgins, the offense looked good, with the Tigers having success in both the running and passing games. Receiver Derek Howard was impressive and made several big grabs, while running back Ahmad White tore through a physical Higgins defense.

"I thought offensively we played well," Valdin said. "Our receivers did a good job and we had a few of them make some nice plays. Our running back also ran hard."

St. James is a perfect opponent to get the Tiger defense back on track. Last year, the Tigers dominated the Wildcats for a 21-6 win.

But while St. James finished the 2009 season with only four wins, Valdin said that they're no pushover.

"St. James is very athletic and they don't make mistakes on offense," he said. "They only try to do a few things, but they do them well. They return a lot of their guys from last season."

Valdin is hoping for a solid performance from both his offense and defense, but he will be focused primarily on special teams.

"The jamboree is a dress rehearsal for special teams," he said. "We evaluated our offense and defense during the scrimmage last week and the jamboree is when we evaluate our special teams.

"I want to see how our punter and kicker respond to a live rush and we want to get those guys on camera."

In fact, Valdin said his team is heading into the jamboree with three main goals. Winning the game is the last of the three.

"First, we want to make sure that we have 11 guys on the field for special teams," he said. "Second, we want to come out of the game healthy. The third goal is that we'd like to win the game."

Hahnville will face off against St. James at 8 p.m. Destrehan and Lutcher will battle against each other at 6:30 p.m. in the first game.

Both games will consist of two 15 minute halves, and the clock will stop just as it would in a real game situation.