Louisiana High School Football Division I Semifinal Update 2015

Written by Charlie Beuttel 
Twitter: @charlie_cds3 

There are four teams remaining in the Louisiana Division I playoffs as the semifinals kick off this Friday night. In the quarterfinals, the two top seeds, Archbishop Rummel (44-14) and Evangel Christian (42-7) won in blowout fashion, John Curtis got past St. Paul’s 37-30, and Catholic-Baton Rouge squeaked past Brother Martin, 49-48.

The four teams still alive will provide fans with two exciting games as only two teams will get the opportunity to play for the state title on December 4th in the Superdome in New Orleans.

John Curtis Patriots (8-2) at Archbishop Rummel Raiders (10-1)
The Patriots met the Raiders Oct. 31th with Archbishop Rummel escaping with a 21-14 win. This time the stakes are higher as a trip to the state championship game is on the line so both teams will be focused and determined to play their best game of the season thus far.

The schools are only six miles apart so fans of both schools will able to travel to cheer on their team adding to a wild playoff atmosphere.

The Patriots offense scores 31.5 points a game and rely heavily on their rushing attack. Devon Benn is the team’s leading rusher and one of the leaders of this offense. Benn (5’9”, 190 pounds) had 154 yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns in the quarterfinal game against St. Paul’s.

The offensive line is led by one of the top recruits in the state, offensive tackle Willie Allen (6’7”, 300 pounds). Allen currently has 28 college offers including Alabama, LSU, and Notre Dame.

John Curtis’ defense gives up an average of 19 points a game this year. The leaders of the defense are senior linebackers Tariq Pierce (5’11”, 220 pounds) and Nate Evans (6’2”, 225 pounds). Pierce returned an interception for a touchdown last week and both players have the leadership and talent to come up with big plays at any point in a game.

Rummel is scoring 36 points a game this season with the leader of the offense being senior quarterback Chase Fourcade (6’0”, 180 pounds). Fourcade set a school record for passing yards in game last week throwing for 361 yards, three touchdowns, and completed 20-of-27 passes. Another offensive weapon is senior wide receiver David Hensley (5’10”, 170 pounds) who had 100 receiving yards and two touchdowns last week.

The Raiders give up 14 points a game and only one opponent has scored over 20 points against them this season. Two star players on this defense include senior defensive tackle Robert Hudgins (5’10”, 220 pounds) and junior linebacker Shahid Reece (6’0”, 220 pounds). Hudgins had two sacks last week while Reece had an interception.

Catholic-Baton Rouge Bears (8-3) at Evangel Christian Academy Eagles (9-2)
The Bears will take the 250 mile and almost four hour trip up I-49 from Baton Rouge to Shreveport to take on the Eagles.

Catholic is scoring 34 points per game this season and put 49 points up in their quarterfinal win against Brother Martin. The leader of this offense is dual-threat senior quarterback Ian Brian (6’1”, 195 pounds). Brian posted 115 rushing yards, 271 passing yards, and four total touchdowns last week. Another offensive weapon is junior athlete Clyde Edwards-Helaire (5’8”, 196) who had 168 total yards of offense and two scores in the first half last week before missing time in the second half due to an injury.

The Bears’ defense gives up 22 points a game but gave up 48 in their quarterfinal win last week. This unit is led by their great defensive linemen senior KJ Wilson (6’0”, 245) and juniors Trey Square (6’3”, 230 pounds) and Aaron Moffitt (6’4”, 240 pounds). Moffitt is already drawing interest from Division-I schools like LSU and TCU and has one offer from Nicholls State.

Evangel’s explosive offense scores 38 points a game and scored 42 in their blowout win over Holy Cross last week. The Eagles have been led all season by junior quarterback Connor Curry (6’2″, 180 pounds). Curry has thrown for 1,615 yards and 19 touchdowns this year.

Two offense weapons for Evangel are senior running back Jamarquez Mims (5’10”, 195 pounds) and junior wide receiver Tanner Ash (6’2″, 180 pounds). Mims has run for 1,156 yards and 13 touchdowns and Ash has 609 receiving yards and has caught eight touchdown passes.

The Eagles only give up on average 11 points a game and gave up just seven to Holy Cross last week. One of the stars of this great defensive line is sophomore Davin Cotton (6’3″, 290 pounds). The linebackers are led by Jeremias Houston (6’5″, 237 pounds) and A.C. Gilliam. Evangel’s secondary is led by junior cornerback Orlando Puryear.

This defensive unit is fun to watch as they all play well together and you never know who will step to make big plays.

The two semifinal games will be exciting to watch as two teams will be one step closer on achieving their goal of winning a state championship.

Photo credit: Kyle EnCar, theneworleansadvocate.com; John Curtis RB Devon Benn