Getting that first win of the season really gives teams that extra incentive to repeat the process and come back with another solid victory.
That is definitely the case for the Ville Platte High Bulldogs. With this past Friday’s 18-12 win over the Mamou Demons, the Bulldogs will look to carry that positive energy earned into a tough draw tomorrow night when they host the Iota Bulldogs. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
“It was very satisfying to get that first win, not only for the players but for the coaches as well,” stated Ville Platte High head coach Jorie Randle. “What is even more satisfying is that the win comes against Mamou. The game between the two teams has always been a good rivalry. We know them and respect what they do, just like I believe they respect us and what we do.”
“Trying to motivate a very young team like we have this season after two big losses is tough,” Randle continued. “But, I thought the players did what the game plan called for and they made sure that we came away with a win.”
Offensively, Ville Platte was able to penetrate into Demon territory a couple of times before coming away with a score. However, the execution of the Bulldog offense on the Mamou side of the 50-yard line left something to be desired.
Against Mamou, Ville Platte ran the ball for 171 yards, something they had not been able to do all season long. Although the Bulldogs made their running game known, Randle was still critical of his team’s offensive consistency.
“We fumbled the football inside their 25-yard line on the very first drive, which cannot happen,” said Randle. “On a couple of other drives we killed ourselves with negative plays. We have to become more consistent in making sure that good drives do not stop because of something that we do to ourselves, especially this coming week.”
Defensively, Ville Platte allowed Mamou to penetrate inside their red zone on four different occasions. Nevertheless, the Bulldogs made the plays necessary to keep the Demons out of the end zone when it counted.
“I thought we had a good scheme to defend them coming into the game,” commented Randle. “At times we played it perfectly. They made some adjustments that hurt us a little but I was proud of the way our guys stepped it up and prevented them from crossing the goal line.”
Tomorrow night, Ville Platte will take on an Iota team that owns a 1-3 overall record and an 0-1 district mark. The Bulldogs lost a close game to the Church Point Bears, 22-15, who was predicted to win the district title this season. None of Iota’s three losses have been blowouts, as the Bulldogs have been within a six point average margin against those opponents.
“Iota relies on their passing game to get them down the field,” said Randle. “I would say they throw the ball about 70 percent of the time. They like to throw the short passes, like the quick outs and the short curl routes. They do a very good job of getting yardage after the catch. We are going to have to be very good with our open field tackling this game. We cannot allow them to turn a five to 10 yard route into a 20 or 30 yard gain.”
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Tracey Jagneaux
Sports Editor