The Ville Platte High Bulldogs will look to flush away their 24-20 hard fought loss to the Mamou Demons last week when they travel to Iota tomorrow night to take on the Acadia Parish version of the Bulldogs in a key District 5-3A district match-up.
Game time between Ville Platte (2-4, 0-1) and Iota (5-1, 0-1) is set for 7 p.m.
“We just have to stop shooting ourselves in the foot,” stated Ville Platte head coach Jorie Randle. “This is the second week in a row that we have control of the game and just let it slip away. I told the players that I know we have the talent to make this a special season, but we cannot continue to let teams back into games. Right now, we are in a position where we are going to have to beat somebody that we are not supposed to if we want a playoff spot.”
The loss to Mamou did put a big dent in the playoff positioning of the Bulldogs. According to Louisiana Sportsline, a website that is pretty much in line with the LHSAA in terms of power ratings, Ville Platte dropped from No. 29 to No. 44 after the defeat this past Friday night.
That means Ville Platte will need to pick up some key wins over the next four games if they hope to be in the post-season.
One factor that may keep the Bulldogs in the race is their fruitful running game. Over the past two games, Ville Platte has rushed for 504 yards, mostly behind the effective running of quarterback Terrian Roy and running back Jahmal Byers.
“No dout our offense must continue to be good, especially in the run game, if we want to make a run over the next four games,” said Randle. “One thing we as coaches are going to have to be more conscious of is making sure that we keep a constant rotation going on offense and defense. We did not do that against Mamou and it cost us in the end.”
In order for Ville Platte to stay on a playoff track, it must take down an Iota team that, up until this past week, was on a roll. The Bulldogs started the year 5-0 before falling to Church Point this past Friday and have outscored their opponents by a 22.4 point margin.
“Iota is a well-coached team that has a number of talented players,” commented Randle. “They will come into the game trying to establish the run. We have to be able to shut down their running game and make them as one-dimensional as we can.”
September 13, 2026
