Renewed attitude

LEBEAU -- The Ville Platte Bulldogs ruined the Hurricanes’ Homecoming, dispatching North Central, 53-12, here Friday evening.
Ville Platte scored on four straight possessions in the first half to blow the game open before halftime. In the second half, the Bulldogs scored on three of their first four possessions and added a defensive touchdown to seal the win.
With the victory, the ’Dogs ended a two-game skid and evened out their season record to 2-2. Next week, Ville Platte travels to Eunice to tangle with the 1-3 St. Ed’s Blue Jays.
North Central, who remains winless on the season, will face another Bulldog team when it travels to Springhill.
Ville Platte skipper Jorie Randle was very pleased with his team’s response to the early losing streak.
“This past week, the team set out some team goals for this week’s game,” Randle said. “I’m happy to report that we accomplished those goals. This will give us confidence on the back half of the schedule.”
Although Randle didn’t elaborate exactly what those goals were, he did hint that they had to do with attitude and execution.
“We wanted to come out and play with intensity,” he said. “Our guys knew that they had to step up their effort and to play through to the end.
“It was a little rough at the beginning,” he continued, “but the team showed a desire to walk off the field winners. And they fulfilled that desire.”
The renewed attitude to giving extra effort and filling in where needed paid off for the Bulldogs against North Central on both sides of the ball.
Offensively, Ville Platte rushed for 236 yards and five touchdowns. Senior tailback Jahmal Byers led the way, churning out 132 yards and two scores on just 16 carries. Quarterback Terrian Roy added 73 yards and two more touchdowns. Montique Goudy, who gave relief to Byers, also picked up a touchdown.
In addition to the rushing yards, Byers also had a 77-yard touchdown catch. Roberts also caught a 19-yard touchdown.
Defensively, except for three plays, the Bulldogs showed a toughness and determination that stymied the Hurricane offense. Ville Platte stuffed North Central for -50 yards rushing on the evening.
The ’Dogs’ defense also snagged three interceptions and recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. One of the interceptions would have scored a touchdown, except for a penalty that nullified the score.
The Hurricanes were only able to generate any offense on three big pass plays, two at the beginning of the game and one just before halftime. Those three plays accounted for 131 yards and two scores.
North Central head coach Jacobi Thierry was pleased with his team’s effort, but he was upset with the officiating.
The game started out great for the Hurricanes. The Bulldogs stalled on their first drive, and a 24-yard punt gave North Central great field position.
The Hurricanes took to the air right away, hitting a 47-yard pass on the first play. Two plays later, quarterback Nikembe Johnson hit Ju’wan Milburn for a 14-yard touchdown pass. The two- point try failed, but North Central had an early 6-0 lead on a Bulldog team that seemed lifeless.
After going back-and-forth for much of the first quarter, Ville Platte finally came to life. Byers sneaked out of the backfield on a wheel route, and Roy hit him on the sideline. Byers raced 77 yards to pay dirt. Roy added a two-point run to give the Bulldogs a lead that they never relinquished.
The Bulldog defense forced a punt on the next series, and the offense scored on a methodical 67-yard drive, capped by a 19-yard touchdown from Roy to Roberts. Placekicker Jacolin
Roberts, replacing Bias, nailed the extra point, and the Bulldogs led 15-6 just moments into the second quarter.
Later that period, Ville Platte scored on a 20-yard Byers run and on a three-yard Roy jaunt. Jacolin Roberts made one point-after-try, but a bad snap messed up the other one. With less than two minutes to go in the half, the Bulldogs had a 28-6 lead.
To the its credit, North Central didn’t simply roll over. Looking at their Homecoming Court lined up for halftime festivities, the Hurricanes went for all the marbles, and Johnson hit Jalen Wilson on a swing pass. Wilson hit the sideline with speed, racing 70 yards for the score. The two-point conversion failed, but North Central closed the gap, 28-12.
The Hurricanes started out on offense to start the third quarter, but the Bulldog defense was ready to shut them down. Korrin Coward picked off Johnson for the first of the three Bulldog interceptions, ending the drive.
Two series later, Ville Platte scored again, this time on a 16-yard Byers run off the left tackle. The two-point conversion failed, but the Bulldogs led 34-12.
Once again, the Bulldog defense ended the Hurricane’s drive with an interception. This time, Byers was the thief, and he returned the ball down to the 25-yardline. Four plays later, Roy kept the ball on a ten-yard scamper to pay dirt. Roberts hit the PAT, and Ville Platte led, 41-12.
For the third time in the third quarter, Ville Platte intercepted North Central. This time, it was
Kyle Williams, who picked off Johnson. Kyle raced nearly 50 yards to the end zone. However, a penalty for blocking in the back called off the touchdown. Still, the Bulldogs were able to capitalize on the turnover. Two plays later Montique Goudy, who was subbing for Byers, scored on a ten-yard run. The PAT failed, and Ville Platte led, 47- 12.
With the defense coming up big series-after-series in the second half, it was only fitting that the ’Dogs’ should get a defensive score to cap off the evening. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, North Central had a bad snap that rolled into the endzone. Kyle Williams jumped on the ball before it rolled out of bounds, and Ville Platte added another touchdown to its total. The PAT was no good, and the scoring was set, 53-12.