By BRET H. MCCORMICK, Journal Sports
One Rapides Parish football team is playing for a district championship tonight, while three others face games with major playoff implications.
Menard hosts Oakdale for its homecoming game tonight, and a win will give the Eagles (5-3, 3-0) the District 4-2A championship. A loss likely will mean a three-way tie between Menard, Oakdale and Avoyelles.
“If you can’t get up for this game, then there’s not any game that you’re gonna get up for,” Menard coach David Perkins said on his Eagles Nest Coaches Show Wednesday night. “They’re focused, and they’re ready.”
“You don’t get this opportunity very often, and it’s been awhile since we’ve won it – 13 years since we’ve won it,” Menard defensive coordinator Thomas Scully said.
Alexandria Senior High, Peabody and Tioga all have a chance to stay in the race for district titles and also battle for better playoff positioning and a possible first-round bye in the postseason.
ASH (5-3, 2-1 District 2-5A) welcomes perennial 2-5A powerhouse West Monroe (7-1, 3-0) to Butch Stoker Stadium tonight with a chance to grab firm control of second place in district and stay alive to clinch a share of the district championship.
Peabody travels to The Reservation to face Tioga. Both teams lost on the road against Neville, but the winner tonight will have the inside track to finish second in District 2-4A.
The Trojans are 0-10 against West Monroe during the regular season since joining District 2-5A in 2013, but they have been much more competitive in recent years. They have lost by an average of 11 points the past three seasons and actually defeated the Rebels 31-17 in the 2020 Class 5A semifinals before finishing as state runner-up.
ASH coach Thomas Bachman said this matchup is the type of game that players should relish.
“I certainly hope there’s an energy and an excitement for a big ball game,” Bachman said.
ASH started the season 0-2 but has won five of its last six games – with the only loss coming on the road against undefeated Ruston, 35-28.
Junior JT Lindsey is approaching 1,000 rushing yards on the season and has scored 15 touchdowns, while senior Ty Feaster has shown continued improvement in his first year as the Trojans’ quarterback. Feaster has completed over 60 percent of his passes on the season for 1,408 yards and 19 touchdowns.
During its five victories, the ASH defense has given up 14 or fewer points in every game. West Monroe, meanwhile, has scored at least 31 points in its three district games since suffering its only loss to the season against Zachary in Week 5.
The Rebels are led by senior quarterback Hayden Federico and the senior receiving duo of David Moore and Grant Edmondson.
The Trojans enter the contest at No. 12 in the LHSAA’s official Division I Select power ratings, while West Monroe sits seventh in the Division I Non-Select power ratings.
The top eight teams in the Select brackets get first-round byes, so the Trojans could possibly move into one of those spots with wins over West Monroe tonight and West Ouachita next week.
“All we can control is what we can control,” Bachman said. “We have a lot to play for. We have a lot of good football left to play.”
Peabody (6-2, 1-1 District 2-4A) and Tioga (6-2, 1-1) both enter tonight’s contest ranked No. 8 in their respective playoff races – Tioga in Division I Select and Peabody in Division II Select.
Tonight’s winner will be in great shape for a first-round bye, while the loser of tonight’s game will need some help to avoid playing the first week of the playoffs.
This matchup features two contrasting styles. The Warhorses bring an explosive offense that has scored 40 or more points in four of their past five games. Tioga, meanwhile, features a ball-control offense and a stingy defense that has three shutouts on the season.
Peabody’s offense features a steady trigger-man in junior Larry Roberts III who has two of the better receivers in Central Louisiana in junior TJ Hullaby and senior Dartavin Depass. Depass also will take snaps in the backfield along with senior Nate Francis to form one of the top running-back duos in Rapides Parish.
The strength of Tioga’s defense lies in its secondary, particularly at safety with seniors Ja’Corian Norris and Josh Loyd. Norris, who also plays receiver and is the top kick returner in the parish, has returned four interceptions and three kickoffs for touchdowns this season.
The other games on the slate tonight in Rapides Parish feature Pineville (2-6, 0-3) hosting West Ouachita in District 2-5A and Buckeye (5-3, 2-1) welcoming Marksville and Bolton (0-8, 0-3) hosting Bunkie in District 2-3A.
Thursday, Northwood-Lena got 128 rushing yards and two total touchdowns from sophomore quarterback A.J. Butler, but the Gators fell to 1-8 after a 52-14 loss at LaSalle.