By BRET H. MCCORMICK, Journal Sports
Thomas Bachman doesn’t want the focus to be on him tonight – or any Friday night, for that matter.
But he knew the spotlight might come.
After Bachman guided Alexandria Senior High to a 42-16 win over Neville, wrapping up the first unbeaten regular season in ASH history and locking up the No. 2 seed for the Trojans in the Division I Select playoffs, he started looking at power rankings and possible matchups for his team after its first-round bye.
Looming as a possibility was Evangel Christian Academy, the school where Bachman won three state championships, rewrote the receiving record book and became the Class 5A Offensive Player of the Year in 2001.
The Eagles were a national powerhouse during Bachman’s days at the Shreveport private school, where they won state titles in 1998, 1999 and 2001.
One of the all-time greatest receivers at a school known for throwing the ball all over the field, Bachman caught 96 passes for 1,453 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior and finished his career with 221 receptions for 3,489 yards and 49 TDs before signing with Texas Tech.
Bachman said he’s not sure how he will feel tonight when he looks across the field and sees Evangel’s signature “e” logo on helmets, but he said he and the ASH coaching staff have approached this week the same as any other game.
“Ultimately, you’ve just got to coach,” Bachman said. “That’s what you’ve always done. You prepare. Obviously, I’m very familiar with the uniform and the name, and it’s played a tremendous role in my life and shaped who I am and the foundation it laid for me. I’ve got nothing but good feelings (for Evangel). I’m very appreciative. The older I get, the more I appreciate all I was exposed to by the men and the experience of Evangel, and that will always be true.”
Denny Duron, Evangel’s head coach, said he’s not worried about coaching against someone like Bachman, whom he’s known for more than half of Bachman’s life. The challenge is Bachman’s coaching acumen and the Trojans’ talent.
“It’s only difficult because he is a great football coach,” said Duron, who was Evangel’s offensive coordinator during Bachman’s playing days. “That’s the difficult part. Thomas has done an amazing job at ASH, and he’s done an amazing job everywhere he’s been.”
Evangel won 11 state championships in the 14-year span between 1993 and 2006, but the Eagles have just one state title since 2010 and haven’t won a title in the past eight years.
However, they are back in the spotlight this year behind one of the top quarterback prospects in the nation, sophomore Peyton “Pop” Houston, a dangerous threat with both his right arm and his legs.
Houston leads the state in passing this year, throwing for 4,234 yards and 37 touchdowns while completing more than 70% of his passes and throwing only three interceptions in 414 attempts. He threw for a national-record 814 yards and eight TDs in a 77-76 single overtime loss to Captain Shreve Oct. 10.
“We have had a lot of great quarterbacks through the years and they’ve all been different, and Pop is different as well,” Duron said. “He is uber-talented, No. 1. He can run, and he can throw. But he also is undoubtedly the hardest-working young athlete I’ve ever been around in my life – and that would be any sport in any era. This guy just never stops.”
The Eagles (6-5), who are seeded 18th, avenged their Captain Shreve loss last week with a 58-48 first-round upset that was led by Houston’s 389 passing yards and four touchdowns.
Houston spreads the ball around as the Eagles have four receivers with 500 or more receiving yards, including junior Johnny Casey, one of the state’s leaders with 57 receptions for 1,158 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Houston is also the Eagles’ leading rusher on the season with 717 yards and seven touchdowns. Senior Josh Isaac Jr. has rushed for 614 yards and six touchdowns, while junior Damari “Dae Dae” Drake, who plays both ways and capped the Captain Shreve victory with a pick-six, has a team-high 11 rushing TDs.
“He’s just so resilient,” Duron said of Houston. “He feels no pressure. He loves playing this game, and for him it’s always just walking out there on that field and knowing that he’s well-prepared. That’s who Pop is.”
“Not only can he scramble, he’s extremely accurate on the move,” Bachman said. “The athleticism, the speed, but he also delivers the ball on the move when the scramble drill’s happening, when his guys are moving with him. He can deliver the ball to all areas of the field on the move. That’s a lot of space to have to be accountable for defensively.”
Evangel’s high-powered offense has scored 50 or more points in five games this season and is averaging 44 points per game, but the Eagles travel to face a Trojan squad that has scored 40 or more points in every game this season and has one of the most balanced offenses in the state.
While Bachman cut his teeth as a player and assistant in explosive passing offenses, his Trojan offenses have used the spread to set up the run. This year’s ASH team is no different, led by senior LSU commitment JT Lindsey, who has rushed for 1,726 yards and 23 touchdowns.
The Trojans’ two sophomore quarterbacks, Karsen Sellers and Max Gassiott, have combined to complete 70% of their passes for 2,114 yards with 32 TDs and only two interceptions. Senior Darius Washington is the team’s leading receiver with 50 receptions for 769 yards and 14 touchdowns.
Defensively, ASH’s success begins in the middle with junior linebacker Xzavier White, who leads the team with 136 tackles and 11.5 tackles for loss, but the Trojans have young playmakers at every level of the defense and are playing their best ball heading into the playoffs.
“They’re big and fast and strong and well-coached,” Duron said of the Trojans. “We have a challenge on every hand on Friday night. We’re looking forward to playing. Our kids are just so resilient. They’re excited about the experience.”
Bachman said the Trojans’ roster is full of players who are hungry to accomplish things never done before in program history. They finished the regular season unbeaten. They won the District 2-5A championship. Now they are four wins away from the first state football title in school history.
Bachman said the Trojans can’t get ahead of themselves, and they must tackle the challenge that is before them immediately. Friday night, that is Evangel Christian Academy.
“You have to control what you can control,” Bachman said. “That’s what you need to happen. … You’ve got to find a way to capitalize on the breaks you do get and find a way to overcome the things that go against you.”