Another step forward

MAMOU – The Mamou Demons remained undefeated in District 5-3A play for the first time in over 10 years as they rolled past the Pine Prairie Panthers 35-6 in their homecoming win Friday night.
With the victory over the Panthers, Mamou improved to 4-3 on the season and 2-0 in district play. The Demons will travel to Prairie Rhonde to take on the Northwest Raiders this Friday night in another district contest.
Pine Prairie dropped to 0-7 on the year and 0-2 in district competition with the loss. The Panthers host the Iota Bulldogs Friday night.
“This win keeps us on track of our goal of making the playoffs,” stated Mamou head coach Dwight Collins after the game. “Right now, we have to continue to focus on controlling our own destiny and hope to get help from other teams that we have played this season. We just have to stay consistent and stay on the right track toward improving every time we hit the field.”
Known for their slow starts most of the season, Mamou made a concerted effort to reverse that trend against the Panthers. However, on the first drive of the night, the Demons wound up turning the ball over on downs after taking the ball down to the Pine Prairie 32-yard line.
The Panthers took over possession but were unable to do anything at all with the football. In fact, Pine Prairie actually lost yardage on its first drive of the night and was forced to punt the ball back to Mamou.
The Demons took over with excellent field position at their 48-yard line following the kick. Utilizing the ground game, Mamou drove the ball down to the Pine Prairie six-yard line in eight plays.
On second and goal, running back Jalon Bradley powered his way in to the end zone, giving the Demons their first points of the night. The extra point off of the foot of Tanner Atchinson was good, and, with 6:40 to go in the first quarter, Mamou led 7-0.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Panther’s deep man, Elijah George, allowed the ball to go over his head and was forced to pick it up at the two-yard line. George was only able to reach the 10-yard line before he was brought down.
Still, Pine Prairie mounted a semi-decent drive to get out of the shadow of their goal line, eventually reaching the Mamou 46-yard line. Unfortunately for the Panthers they were forced to punt the ball back to the Demons.
Mamou took over at its 21-yard line after the kick and moved it all the way to the Panther 13-yard line in five plays. On play number six of the drive, quarterback Daylon Ardoin floated a ball into the end zone that was picked off by Pine Prairie’s Chase Freeman, killing a solid Demon drive.
The Panthers could not do very much with their next possession, as they faced a third and nine situation on their 21-yard line. The very next play, Mamou’s Kaden Serie stepped in front of a Branson Fontenot pass and picked the ball out of the air, bringing it in for the apparent score. However, the Demons were flagged for a personal foul, bringing the ball back to the Panther 28-yard line.
Nevertheless, it did not take Mamou long to capitalize on the Pine Prairie mistake, as the Demons needed only two plays to pick up their second touchdown of the evening. On first down, Bradley sprinted up the middle for 24 yards and followed that with a four yard run into the end zone.
The extra point attempt was blocked, making it a 13-0 game in favor of the Demons with 9:05 to go in the second quarter.
Another stalled drive by the Panthers ensued, forcing Pine Prairie to give the ball right back to Mamou. On the punt return, the Demons were able to get the ball to the Panther 38-yard line, setting up another drive inside of Pine Prairie territory.
Three plays later, Bradley had his third touchdown of the night when he plunged in from one yard out. Ardoin tacked on the two-point run, pushing the Demon lead to 21-0 with 6:30 to go before half.
The Panthers were finally able to get some good field position when they brought the ensuing kickoff up to the Mamou 47-yard line. But, just as before, Pine Prairie was unable to make a dent in the Demon defense, as they were forced to punt the ball away once more.
With the ball resting at its 23 yard line following the punt, Mamou’s Kyrian Green took the jet sweep hand off on first down and raced 77 yards down the sideline for the Demon score. Bradley added the two-point run and Mamou headed into the locker room with a 29-0 lead.
The second half did not produce much in the way of scoring for either team, as the game clock held running time the entire third and fourth quarters.
The Demons did manage to get on the board once more in the third quarter when Ardoin went untouched into the end zone from eight yards out. The two-point pass failed, giving Mamou the 35-0 lead with 8:02 to go in the period.
The Panthers shining moment came late in the fourth quarter. Starting at the Demon 42-yard line, Pine Prairie drove the ball to the 15-yard line in seven plays.
On first down, George busted around the right end and sprinted his way in to the end zone for the lone Panther score. The extra points was good from Jacob Miller, and, with 3:35 left in the contest, the score was cut down to 35-6 in favor of the Demons.
Payton Vidrine finished the night with 105 yards on six carries to lead the Demons. Green ended the game with 95 yards on five rushing attempts. There were no passing yards for Mamou on five attempts.
“I tell you what, I am very proud of the way our team did not quit the whole night,” said Pine Prairie head coach Yves Prince. “The first quarter we really came out and played and executed the game plan. But, once they got a lead on us, I think we let up and that allowed them to take an even bigger lead. We are just so young right now and are still learning.”