Two programs with deep tradition square off at Tiger Stadium Friday night at E.D. White visits Hahnville.
E.D. White finished as state runner-up in Division II Select, falling 28-25 to top-seeded Shaw in the final game of the season. The Cardinals defeated Livingston Collegiate and Vandebilt Catholic on its way to the Dome.
The Cardinals are an especially hungry team this week – E.D. White is 0-2 thus far, both losses in tight games against the Catholic League. It fell 27-26 to Holy Cross in Week 1 and 24-21 to Jesuit in Week 2.
Hahnville head coach Greg Boyne said that E.D. White, however, represents a level the Tigers are attempting to get back to – a program never far from the Superdome conversation.
“It’s as we’ve said to our kids – they’re where we’re trying to get back to,” said Boyne. “And it’s not a snap of the fingers, overnight type of thing. It’s not a one-year process. But this is our first true measuring stick, benchmark game this year. We scrimmaged Jesuit and Holy Cross, played St. James in the jamboree … those games were to get us ready for E.D. White. It’s two good programs, and for us, we learn where we are. It puts us on the map a little bit, if you win it.”
History says E.D. White is a team that will turn things around quickly – though the Tigers hope to delay that process by at least another week. The Cardinals have advanced to the state quarterfinals or further in each of the past five seasons. The team is led by an experienced quarterback in Grant Barbera. The running backs, Reece LaFont and Landon Babin, are both returning starters, as is fullback Carter Douglas.
Fans should see plenty of all four on Friday – this is an option offense, the Flex-Bone, that is going to base everything off of its rushing attack. That said, it would be a mistake to overlook Chase Naquin, a very fast wide receiver who keeps opposing defenses honest.
“They have two or three kids who catch everything,” Boyne said. “They’re extremely fast and have good hands. Chase Naquin’s probably the top guy among them, and we’ll see him at cornerback too. He kicks and punts. He’s probably their best athlete – if it’s not Barbera, it’s probably him.”
Defensively, it all starts with linebacker Charlie Diedrich, an All-State selection in 2024. Diedrich sets the tone in the middle of the Cardinals defense.
“He’s a big kid, six-foot, probably 220 pounds, and he starts in the middle,” said Boyne. “He’s very physical and he’s very vocal. You can kind of tell he moves the other guys around on defense. Those middle linebackers pretty much call the defense. You can tell he thrives off of playing physical. He’s not just tough but he’s also pretty quick to the ball in the run game. He makes a lot of plays … he’s willing to lay out and dive and do whatever he has to do to make plays.”
Jonathan Lee is another impact player at linebacker for the Cardinals.
Last season, Hahnville made a fourth-quarter rally but fell short in a 21-18 loss in Thibodaux.
Landen Teague’s touchdown pass to Lance Marshall and Calvin Smith’s 2-point conversion run pulled HHS within 3 with eight minutes left. But needing a stop, a penalty for taunting cost the Tigers dearly, and the Cardinals were able to run out the remainder of the clock from there.
“Even with the loss last year, I felt it have our kids some confidence,” Boyne said. “We talked about how that team had a shot to go to the Dome, and sure enough, they were right there with Shaw, who I thought was one of the top three or four teams in the entire state.
“They have our respect. But our kids also know that at the point we’re at in our program, if we do what we should do, on our home field, we should have a shot to win the football game.”
The name of the game with E.D. White is always physicality. Boyne likes the challenge the Cardinals give his team in that department and he said the schools have agreed to continue the series beyond this season.
“They’re good at what they do,” Boyne said. “You have to be willing to play 48 minutes of physical football. If you’re willing to do that, you give yourself a shot. I think they count on teams that they play not being willing to do that. So, that’s something we’ve emphasized this week.”
