Wildcats excelling beyond youth, host Central Lafourche Friday

Kendell Anderson
Kendell Anderson signals for a Destrehan safety.

Destrehan is a much younger team than it was a year ago. The 2014 squad was more experienced than the current squad and largely carried higher preseason expectations, at least from the outside world.

But just like last year’s team, this one is undefeated through six games — and the 2015 edition has won its games by an even greater margin.

This season’s Destrehan squad has outscored its first six foes by a total of 153 points, up from its differential of 141 a season ago. After a 10-point win over Slidell to begin the season, Destrehan has toppled each of its past five opponents by 20 points or more. The Wildcats have climbed to third in the LSWA Class 5A poll.

Destrehan coach Stephen Robicheaux cautions that there is still plenty of work to do.

“We’re still making mistakes,” he said. “We’ve still got to get better.”

The idea that there is still room for improvement should be a scary thought for upcoming opponents. The next on the list is Central Lafourche, which visits Destrehan this Friday night.

The Trojans (4-2) appear to be much improved this season. After going 4-6 last season, they have already matched its win total of a year ago.

“Coach (Keith) Menard’s got them playing really well,” Robicheaux said. “They’re doing a tremendous job. They’ve beaten the teams they were supposed to. They beat a 5-1 H.L. Bourgeois team to give them their only loss. We’ve got a lot of respect for what they do. Those kids are always in the right spots and they play extremely hard.”

Robicheaux pointed out that last season, Central Lafourche played Destrehan tough early on before DHS pulled away for a 42-7 victory in Mathews. Destrehan led 14-0 at halftime. The Wildcats eventually got rolling and ended the night with more than 300 yards rushing.

“We were fortunate enough to get a few plays loose on the outside,” Robicheaux said. “They do a good job with their blitzing scheme, and you’ve got to take advantage when the opportunity presents itself.”

Central Lafourche(4-2, 1-1)  produces largely through its running game, led by tailback Nelton Allen. The Trojans get him loose through spreading the field with receivers. Allen rushed for 109 yards in the team’s 14-7 win over H.L. Bourgeois two weeks ago. Austin Aucoin leads the team at quarterback, the senior lefty largely operating out of the pocket — but with enough mobility to extend plays with his legs. Andrew Griffin is a 5-foot-11 senior wide receiver who operates as his team’s top big play threat.

“They move the ball on just about everyone,” Robicheaux said. “They do what they do well.”

Defensively, Central Lafourche shifts between a 3-3 look and a four-man front. Defensive lineman Alex Duplantis sets the tone alongside high-motor end/tackle Isham Hendon. Central Lafourche held H.L. Bourgeois to less than 200 yards, but allowed 41 points last week to Thibodaux in a 41-20 loss.

REVAMPED OFFENSIVE LINE, SECONDARY

HAVE BLOSSOMED

One of the biggest question marks for Destrehan before the season was how it would be able to replace all five of its offensive linemen from last year’s state finalist.

Very well, as it turns out.

Destrehan’s offense has been incredibly dominant this season, in large part because it’s line has come together to blow open holes in the running game and give Kohen Granier time to find his weapons downfield.

“I thought our line had a lot of potential, but they’ve come together and played at such a high level quickly,” Robicheaux said. “Coach (Jason) Madere and coach (Ashton) Duhe have done a great job with that group.”

The secondary, meanwhile, brought back only Kendell Anderson among starters from last season’s team. But the Wildcat defensive backs have gotten better each week, helping anchor a defense that has played at a higher level than its points allowed would indicate recently. While Destrehan has given up 21 and 27 points over the past two weeks, it has allowed four total touchdowns in the fourth quarter of those games, all after the first team was finished for the evening.

Against East St. John, Destrehan was tasked with slowing down Damonte Coxie, a highly regarded LSU commitment. Coxie tallied over 100 yards receiving, but with most of that coming in the second half. Anderson drew the task of covering him and Robicheaux was pleased with his performance.

“I thought our secondary was tremendous against East St. John,” he said. “To hold them to 13 points, given the type of athletes and firepower they have, I thought it was a good performance for us.

“We put Kendell Anderson on (Coxie). He’s one of our best athletes, and he did a great job. We had him on Coxie all night long and he played tough.”

In that game, a 62-27 Destrehan victory, Karon Taylor rushed for 201 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries. Kohen Granier connected with Mike Young on two touchdown passes, while Granier rushed for two more. Kristian Mosley also added a touchdown run and Macon Clark scored on a fumble return.

 

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