Battle of unbeatens Friday as Destrehan faces St. James

Wildcats trounce Tarpons 42-7 backed by arm of QB Jefferson

Last Friday night, the Destrehan Wildcats took down the South Lafourche Tarpons 42-7. The offense scored on all but three of their possessions in their second consecutive victory over a former District 6-5A rival. The Wildcats had the offense running on all cylinders racking up almost 500 yards of total offense.This brings the Wildcats into their final non-district contest with a 4-0 record and some very formidable stats from their key players. Tomorrow the team will play its second consecutive road game, this time traveling to St. James to take on their Wildcats.

This will be the first true test for Destrehan this season. St. James is also 4-0 and regarded by many as one of the best teams in the state. St. James defeated Hahnville in the jamboree at the beginning of the season, so they are not intimidated by playing up in class.

“St. James is a very good team,” said Destrehan Head Coach Steven Robicheaux. “They have as good a running back as we’ve seen so far this year and some guys up front that are good. And their head coach is one of the best in the state.”

This game against a very tough opponent will help prepare the Wildcats for their difficult district schedule. “Any time you play a team like this, it makes you better. Like our road trip to Alexandria earlier this year, I think going to St. James and facing another tough team will help us down the road,” said Robicheaux.

Last Friday against South Lafourche, quarterback Jordan Jefferson threw for four touchdowns for the third time this season. He ended the game completing 15 of 19 passes for 284 yards. Wide receiver Damaris Johnson was the main recipient of those passes with six catches for 116 yards and two touchdowns. And running back Jerico Nelson again eclipsed the century mark with 124 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries.

“South Lafourche is a tough place to play,” said Robicheaux. “But we made plays. Jordan [Jefferson] threw for 300 yards and Jerico [Nelson] rushed for 124 yards, so I think our attack was pretty balanced.”

The Wildcats began the game stopping the Tarpons offense three and out. Then they began a 42-yard drive culminating in a 1-yard Nelson run to take a 7-0 lead after the Ryan Rome extra point.

The Wildcats again scored on their next possession. The drive began and ended with a Jefferson to Johnson connection, the latter resulting in an eight-yard touchdown to give the Wildcats a 14-0 lead.

After an interception on their next drive, the Wildcats got the ball back just four plays later when linebacker Durrell Bell intercepted a Tarpon pass at the Destrehan 30-yard line. Jefferson then turned to Johnson and Reed for receptions of 29 and 17 yards respectively. And he connected with Johnson again on a 24-yard touchdown pass to give the Wildcats a 21-0 lead with less than six minutes left in the half.

The Wildcat defense forced another turnover on the Tarpons’ next drive when defensive lineman Dwayne Dewey recovered a fumble and returned it 38 yard to the Tarpon 42-yard line. After a penalty, Jefferson turned to wide receiver Tim Molton for two catches, the second being a 32-yard touchdown. That put the Wildcats ahead 28-0 with less than two minutes left in the first half. Molton finished the game with three catches for 66 yards.

With the Tarpons driving at the end of the first half, defensive back Joshua Victorian put an end to any hope of scoring with a 23-yard interception with took the Wildcats into the half leading 28-0.

The Wildcats continued where they left off in the second half. A 33-yard kick return by Johnson was followed by a 52-yard Nelson touchdown run down the sidelines to start the third quarter. And with just 29 seconds taken off of the clock, the Wildcats led 35-0.

The Tarpons then drove deep into Wildcat territory, but the defense was able to stop them on a fourth down at the Wildcat 18. And from there, Jefferson and the offense mounted their final assault. Beginning with a short pass to Reed and then a 19-yarder to Molton, the team drove across midfield. Then Jefferson connected with Reed on a 43-yard touchdown which put the Wildcats ahead 42-0 near the end of the third quarter. Reed finished the game with five catches for 88 yards.

Destrehan then sent its second team out for the fourth quarter. And the Tarpons took advantage, scoring their only touchdown of the game on an 80-yard drive ending in a one-yard draw from quarterback Phillip Leger. That brought the scoring to its end at 42-7.

 

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