Destrehan will look to cement a top 4 seed this week as it travels to face H.L. Bourgeois this Friday night.
Bourgeois (1-8, 0-5) has one win this season, a 53-2 win over General Trass. That win came two weeks ago, the first victory for first year Braves head coach Muncie Legaux.
Bourgeois went 5-5 last season. Legaux, who starred at Karr and the University of Cincinnati as quarterback during his playing days, has taken on a rebuilding project of the Braves program.
Ethan Rhodes leads the huddle at quarterback for the Braves, the sophomore winning a preseason competition for the position.
Defensively, La’Rance Mitchell can cause plenty of problems. The senior defensive end is a three-year starter. On the opposite side, Tyler Harris is another talented and productive defensive end. At 6’2 and 230 pounds, he’s another disruptive force.
The secondary is skilled and Bourgeois leans on them heavily, playing an aggressive man to man style.
A slow offensive start for Destrehan led to a hole the Wildcats could not dig out of in a 31-21 loss at Zachary Friday night.
Zachary led 17-7 at halftime. That lead was extended to 24-7 with 3:57 left in the third quarter on quarterback Jakori Platt’s 2-yard touchdown run, the first in a flurry of scores to end the third quarter.
It took just a little over a minute for Destrehan to respond. Aushai Smith got loose on a long run which set up a Malachi Dabney 2-yard touchdown run out of the Wildcat formation to make it 24-14.
Tylek Lewis punched in a score to put Zachary (6-3) back ahead by 17, 31-14, after a long reception by Ethan Kimmie from Platt set up the Broncos inside the DHS 10.
Smith cut the lead to 10 on a touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter, but Destrehan could draw no closer.
Destrehan head football coach Marcus Scott said it was a disappointing outcome, in particular due to some redzone possessions that the Wildcats were not able to convert on. That, he said, echoed a similar issue in Destrehan’s only other loss this season in Week 2 to St. Augustine.
“We had opportunities two different times in the redzone and didn’t convert. That was probably the difference in the game,” said Scott. “Whenever you have chances with a short field, you have to come away with seven.”
Scott credited a balanced attack from the Zachary offense for keeping the Destrehan defense on its heels.
“They had a steady dose of run and then they were able to hit over the top with Kimmie on a post route,” said Scott.
“Tonight was disappointing because the last time we lost, it was three opportunities against St. Aug inside the 10-yard line that we didn’t get points from, and tonight was a similar story.”
Destrehan’s first touchdown came on a 35-yard run by Smith, tying the game 7-7 in the second quarter.
Destrehan (7-2) remained a top 4 ranked team in power points following the loss, while Zachary climbed to 8 from 10. Destrehan ranked second before the game.
