Buzz is around Mamou in playoff trip to Winnfield

By: RHETT MANUEL Sports Editor MAMOU – For the first time in over a decade, there is real buzz surrounding Mamou Green Demon football. After a loss on Friday night to Northwest, Mamou was in wait-and-see mode to determine its fate in the Division III non-select bracket. Fortune was on its side, and Mamou qualified for the playoffs for the first time in over a decade as the No. 27-seed in the 28-team bracket. Its reward? A trip to No. 6-seeded Winnfield tomorrow night. It’s bigger than the opponent for Mamou, however. This could potentially work as a catalyst for future years. But for now it’s a different environment around Green Demon football, a school that has turned out Division I college athletes in the past like running back Robert Walker and wide receiver Laterryl Savoy. “Everybody seems to be excited,” Mamou head coach Dwight Collins said. “The players we had that were out, they’re excited to be back and playing another week when we didn’t know if we would. The coaches and the city and everyone I’ve spoken to, the messages we’ve received in supporting the team. “They’re hoping we have some success in the playoffs.” Mamou’s maiden journey into the postseason under Collins will not come easy. They’ll play the Winnfield Tigers, who qualified as the No. 6-seed in the bracket. Winnfield was a force in the Class 2A regular season, finishing with an 8-2 mark. While it is a new opponent, the Tigers will not present concepts that are unfamiliar to Mamou. “We had East Beauregard, Northwest and Church Point who showed us the wing-T stuff,” Collins said. “And we saw Oakdale who does a lot of veer stuff.” Winnfield will bring its own twist on those familiar concepts. “(Winnfield does) a veer option with a double-wing formation,” Collins said. “They’re just a lot of things they do scheme-wise running the ball that puts a lot of pressure on a defense. You can’t get comfortable, because they’ll pull up and throw the ball. “This is one of those teams: they’re well-coached, they don’t make mistakes, and they have athletes to back all that up.” Getting stops is one part of the game, but Mamou will need to score points to pull off the upset. It’s an area where Collins is comfortable with his team producing. “With us getting everybody back, we should be O.K. and be able to execute these plays. We’ll see. “It’s also touch-and-go in situations like this.”