Early on this fall, Destrehan fans won’t generally have to go far to see their Wildcats take the gridiron.It will be a tale of two seasons in at least one regard for coach Stephen Robicheaux’s team in 2016, as the Wildcats will host opponents in four of their first five games of the season before hitting the road for three of their last four.
Robicheaux sees a few positives in that development, particularly as it regards to the team’s retooled defense. Destrehan replaces nine starters on that side of the ball, and a steady diet of early home games could give that group a chance to get their feet under them.
“With a young team on defense, being at home hopefully will help us,” Robicheaux said. “You never know how kids will react to being on the road at first. Being home should allow us to mature and catch up and ultimately get ready for late stretch.”
Of course, no matter where Destrehan plays their games, there is an intimidating truth staring down each of their opponents: the Wildcats next regular season loss will be their first on the football field since 2012, Destrehan unbeaten over their last 29 non-playoff contests.
The Wildcats kick off the season officially at home against Slidell on Sept. 2. Last season, the Tigers fell behind 26-0 before rolling back to cut the lead to three; Destrehan put things away on a Karon Taylor touchdown run late in the fourth quarter.
The opener represents a game Robicheaux believes will carry a great amount of importance for his team — these Wildcats, he says, have to find themselves.
“I think week one is probably the most important for us,” Robicheaux said. “Slidell comes in, they always do a tremendous job. Last year they kinda came back on us a bit after we got out to a big lead. This team has to find an identity this year so the way we start is going to be a big thing for us. We certainly want to start strong.”
Then Destrehan travels to Baton Rouge, where for the second consecutive season the Wildcats are matched up with former DHS assistant Daniel Luquet’s Woodlawn Panthers.
Three home games follow, beginning with what appears to be the team’s toughest back-to-back slate of the season. On Sept. 16, the Wildcats host Class 5A runner-up John Ehret. A week later, archrival Hahnville comes to town to open district play. Terrebonne travels to Destrehan to close the home stand.
The final four regular season games include road games at East St. John and Central Lafourche, a home date with H.L. Bourgeois and a road clash with a Thibodaux team that’s played Destrehan closer than most, falling by 11 last season at DHS and by 7 at Thibodaux two years ago; the Wildcats have won all other district contests over the past three seasons by 14 or more.
As was the case last year, the final week of the regular season will be a bye for the Wildcats. Because teams set up their schedules two-years at a time, the repeat slate from last season left Destrehan in the same bind for this year. Robicheaux said some conversations were held to try and nail down an opponent for the final week, but ultimately there were no takers.
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