2013 HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PREVIEW
KICKOFF 2013 TEAM PREVIEWS
SNEAK PEEK Here’s who coaches and Advertiser staff picked to win their districts in 2012: COACHES ADVERTISER 3-5A Barbe Acadiana 5-4A STM Teurlings 4-4A LaGrange LaGranage 5-3A Livonia Church Point (tie) Livonia (tie) 6-3A Notre Dame Notre Dame 5-2A Catholic-NI Catholic-NI 7-1A VermilionCatholic VermilionCatholic 5-1A PCC PCC St. Edmund (tie)
6 Acadiana Wreckin’ Rams 8 Carencro Golden Bears 10 Comeaux Spartans 12 Lafayette Mighty Lions 14 Northside Vikings 16 St. Thomas More Cougars 18 Teurlings Catholic Rebels 20 Ascension Episcopal Blue Gators 22 Lafayette Christian Knights 25 New Iberia Yellow Jackets 27 Breaux Bridge Tigers
LOOKING BACK AT 2012
28 St. Martinville Tigers 29 Cecilia Bulldogs 30 Westgate Tigers 32 Rayne Wolves 33 Opelousas Tigers 34 Beau Chene Gators 35 Eunice Bobcats 36 Crowley Gents 40 Church Point Bears 41 Northwest Raiders 42 Port Barre Red Devils 48 Notre Dame Pioneers 49 Abbeville Wildcats 50 Erath Bobcats 51 North Vermilion Patriots 52 Kaplan Pirates 56 Westminster Crusaders 57 Delcambre Panthers 58 Catholic High Panthers 59 Opelousas Catholic Vikings 60 Jeanerette Tigers 61 Loreauville Tigers 64 Iota Bulldogs 68 Vermilion Catholic Eagles 69 Highland Baptist Bears 77 North Central Hurricanes 85 St. Edmund Blue Jays 4
COVER STORY For more than a decade, arguments raged on whether or not the Louisiana High School Athletic Association should separate into separate public and private school divisions. At the time those arguments fell on deaf ears. But this past January, more than enough principals around the state have agreed and for the first time ever the LHSAA will split into select and non-select playoff brackets. Although things will remain the same throughout the regular season, when the playoffs begin times will truly have changed for high school football in the state.
PAGE 5 PREP FANTASY FOOTBALL ARRIVES We’re always looking for unique and creative ways to cover high school football in the Acadiana area. The most recent example is our newly unveiled prep fantasy football league that will feature local media personalities. To see the participants of the Advertiser Prep Fantasy League, team rosters and what round each player was drafted in view pages 82-84. Follow the league all season at theadvertiser.com.
SPECIAL THANKS A special thanks goes out to Jay Faugot Photography, Petry Photography and Susan Angelle Photography. theadvertiser.com
How did the Daily Advertiser do last year? Here’s who we picked to win: OUR PICK CHAMPION 3-5A Barbe Barbe 7-5A Westgate South Lafourche 4-4A Wash-Marion Wash-Marion 5-4A Teurlings STM 4-3A Notre Dame Notre Dame 5-3A Eunice Eunice 9-3A Patterson North Vermilion 5-2A Loreauville Catholic-N.I. 6-1A Westminster P.C. Central 8-1A Verm. Cath. Verm. Cath.
DISTRICT PREVIEWS
NEED TO KNOW
24 District 3-5A 26 District 5-4A 31 District 4-4A 38 District 5-3A 47 District 6-3A 55 District 5-2A 67 District 7-1A 73 District 5-6A
43-46 Pullout schedules 80 All-Acadiana 86 TV and radio
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COVER STORY
BIG SPLIT THE
Regular season will be calm before the playoff storm
pions in December at the MercedezBenz Superdome in New Orleans. “A lack of leadership in the LHSAA hen the Louisiana High has led us to this,” said Catholic High of School Athletic Associa- New Iberia first-year head coach Brent tion voted in January to Indest, who has coached non-select split schools into select schools his entire career before joining and non-select playoff brackets this the Panthers this year. “This would have year, it raised a lot of questions — and a never come about if (former LHSAA commissioner) Tommy Henry was lot of hackles. there. Any watered down system is not a Essentially, the playoffs will go from five to nine championships as the league good system. “We are talking about rewarding meseparates charter, private and some magnet schools into “select” divisions, diocrity and that’s not OK. These days, while public “non-select” schools will people love to reward mediocrity and that’s not good. I felt compete in Class the system was wa1A-5A based on entered down before “We are talking about rollment size. this decision, and How will it play rewarding mediocrity and now I think it is just out? The answers silly.” that’s not OK. These days, aren’t likely to come Indest is referuntil the end of the people love to reward ring to the fact that regular season. there aren’t enough For the next 10 mediocrity and that’s not select schools to fill weeks, it will be four 32-team playbusiness as usual good. I felt the system was off brackets. As a refor high school watered down before this sult, they’ve recoaches, players duced it to three (Didecision and now I think it and fans. But the vision I, II, III) 16 moment the regular is just silly.” team brackets and season concludes, one (Division IV) 32 BRENT INDEST, things could ugly. team bracket. DiviThere have been Catholic High of New Iberia coach sion IV will encomrumors of lawsuits pass 1A select attempting to stop the start of the playoffs and reunite the select and non-se- schools; Division III is 2A select schools; Division II will be a mixture of 3A and lect schools. “I don’t know how ugly it is going to 4A schools while Division I will be a couget at the end of the season, but I’ve ple of 4A select chools who opted to play been hearing rumors that people will up one class and the remaining select 5A file lawsuits,” Breaux Bridge head schools. On the non-select side, all brackets coach Paul Broussard said. “I don’t are still filled with 32 teams, but in Class know for sure, but I’d like to think for the most part that everyone is going to 1A all of the schools are guaranteed a accept things as they are. But if lawsuits playoff spot and byes will be awarded are filed, I don’t think it will fly and because there aren’t enough teams to fill the bracket. things will go on (as voted upon).” “It didn’t matter to me whether we If the legal maneuvers aren’t successful, the LHSAA will crown five non- split or stayed together,” said Northselect champions and four select cham- west head coach Darnell Lee, whose By Eric Narcisse
enarcisse@theadvertiser.com
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KICKOFF 2013
Brent Indest, shown here during his tenure with the Carencro Bears, points to the lack of leadership in the LHSAA office as the reason for the postseason split. LESLIE WESTBROOK/THE ADVERTISER
St. Thomas More coach Jim Hightower is one of the coaches from the select schools against the idea of splitting up the story in postseason play. LESLIE
school is considered non-select. “ (But) If I’m 0-10, 1-9, 2-8 or even 3-7, I don’t think I should make the playoffs. I just don’t think it is appropriate for a team to be in the playoffs with those types of records.” Church Point head coach John Craig Arceneaux says he doesn’t understand why schools in other divisions are so worried about Class 1A having all of their teams making the playoffs. “I think it is funny that the people who had the biggest advantages in the way things were are the ones who are crying the loudest,” said Arceneaux, whose school is considered a non-select school. “The only reason1A is set up that way is because its class had the largest number of select schools. “People are just trying to muddy the waters. I don’t see the system as being watered down. I see a system that is going to level the playing field and, in turn, is going to provide those communities of schools with an opportunity to experience what it is like to play in the playoffs.” Among schools benefiting from the reclassification will be North Central, a non-select school that is trying to build a football program. But first-year head
coach Jacobi Thierry is hoping his team earns their way into the postseason. “Our school definitely needs to build up its morale, and being in the playoffs I believe is going to be a step in the right direction to help us accomplish that,” Thierry said. “I’ve never been to the playoffs as a player or coach, so this is big for me. But I want to know that we are going to be playing in the playoffs because we paid the price to be there. The playoffs are supposed to be a reward for working hard and my goal for my program is for people to feel North Central deserves to be in the playoffs.” While Thierry has the playoffs in his sights, other coaches are choosing to just let the season run its course. “I can’t speak for other coaches around the state, but in my 39-year history with the LHSAA it is hard to look forward to something that is so different,” said St. Thomas More head football coach Jim Hightower, whose program is considered a select school. “But I can tell you that we are going to take the field to play 10 games and in the end hopefully we are good enough to be deserving of a playoff spot.” Follow assistant sports editor Eric Narcisse on Twitter @tdanarcisse.
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