Droddy’s 5 TDs, defense propel Trojans to win
By: RHETT MANUEL
Sports Editor
VILLE PLATTE – For all the talk of the Sacred Heart Trojans and the adversity they’ve faced all season, they quite literally had to weather the storm Friday night in the opening round of the Division IV select football playoffs.
The storm came in the form of an hour-and-a-half lightning delay that could’ve potentially killed any early momentum the No. 14-seeded Sacred Heart was building.
Instead, Sacred Heart once again rode the back of senior quarterback Hayden Droddy and a stout defensive effort on its way to a 32-8 win over No. 19-seeded Covenant Christian at Soileau-Landry Field.
Droddy put in another day at the office, finishing with 167 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 19 carries while adding a 36-yard touchdown pass.
“I can’t say enough about (Droddy),” Harper said. “He’s taken this team on his back all year offensively with the injuries we’ve had. He’s taken that moment and it amazes you every Friday with how he plays and what he does.
“I’m glad I’ve gotten the opportunity to coach him for four years.”
Droddy propelled Sacred Heart (8-3) to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter thanks to a seven-yard touchdown run and a 36-yard touchdown pass to Briggs Ardoin before a lightning delay brought the action to a screeching halt.
Play stopped with 3:05 left in the first quarter and didn’t resume until an hour and a half later when the culprit thunderstorm finally moved out of the area.
“It was weird,” Harper said. “You’re coming out, you’re up 14-0 and you don’t want to change a lot. You want to keep doing what you’re doing. But, on their end, they go in and start changing things.
“It took us a while to adjust to what they were doing defensively (after the delay.)”
That delay, however, had no bearing on the Trojans defense, which outside of a third quarter Covenant Christian 44-yard touchdown run pitched a shutout.
“The defense stepped up,” Harper said. “We had a tough week of practice; just not very clean in terms of (understanding) assignments. We had our walkthrough Thursday and challenged them to step up tonight. I think they did that.”
Much of that weight of stepping up fell on the shoulders of senior Campbell Earles.
“As much as we talk about Droddy offensively, you have to tip your hat to (Earles) defensively. He’s been the one solid guy for us all year on that end. He played for 10 weeks. He played through injuries; you could always rely on him to make plays. He’s a tough kid. and a joy to coach.
“Just watching him mature has been awesome.”
Earles made sure momentum was fully back in Sacred Heart’s corner when he intercepted a pass and returned it to the Covenant Christian 21-yard line.
Droddy took the zone rad 21-yards to the end zone on the next play to give Sacred Heart a 26-0 lead with 8:50 left in the third quarter.
The Trojans now must make what feels like an annual visit to Ouachita Christian next Friday for a spot in the Division IV quarterfinals.
“Out of 10 years, they’ve made six state championship games and won three,” Harper said. “Our backs are against the wall. But, we’re going to play our brand of football and whatever happens, happens.”