The purple and gold pitted themselves against each other under overcast skies in the annual Burger Bowl intrasquad scrimmage last Saturday at Hahnville High School.
The offense edged the defense 13-11 using the Iowa Hawkeye football spring scoring system, a method that allows each side to score non-traditional points whether playing offense or defense.
Hahnville head coach Nick Saltaformaggio said the scrimmage didn’t show him anything he didn’t expect.
“Our offense has dominated us all spring,” Saltaformaggio said. “They kind of got the better of us today.”
Three separate quarterbacks played a series under center during the hour-long scrimmage, with seniors Mike Neal, Dylan Crockett and sophomore Mike Gray showing what they have to offer.
Neal and Crockett have been the odds on favorites for the starting slot, but Gray showed promise with a 50 plus-yard touchdown run late in the game.
Earlier in the week Saltaformaggio said he felt the team was in a very good place at the quarterback position, praising all three of the team’s quarterbacks as the type of player he’d want for this offense.
He remarked all three were outstanding players who were able to trust reads, accelerate quickly after the read and use all their weapons.
He does, however, have some concerns about the defense.
“We’re struggling at the second level,” Saltaformaggio said, adding their linebacker and invert play is kind of shaky.
“When you’re a 3-3 stack team and you’re bad in those spots you’re going to have trouble stopping people,” he said.
“When you’re in an intrasquad scrimmage and the defense is this porous, I get a little upset.”
The Tigers ended last season with a 5-2 district record (9-4 overall) and naturally feel the loss of defensive tackle Fred Brown, who graduated out to a Big 10 program with Perdue, and linebacker Dwaine Thomas, who found a home with Texas A&M, according to Saltaformaggio.
Also missing from this year’s roster is defensive back Jai White, who stayed in the Sun Belt Conference after graduation as a part of the Arkansas State Red Wolves.
On the plus side for the defense, Saltaformaggio described the team’s secondary as the strongest position group of this year’s spring practice. Coming back this year is senior cornerback JaMonte Williams and senior free safety Justin Young.
Optimistically, Saltaformaggio said he hopes the team’s defensive problems can be attributed to an ‘exceptionally talented offense.’
And he believes they will get it all ironed out, stating “that’s what summer practice is all about.”
The Hahnville head coach feels they will learn a lot more when the Tigers go up against the two-time defending
District 8-5A champion John Ehret Patriots on May 14 at 5:30 p.m. in West Jefferson High School’s Hoss Memtsas Stadium in Harvey.
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