by Brother Neal Golden, S.C. ’57 CJ
Because of hurricane Zeta, we’re catching up on two Crusader victories before previewing Friday night’s game.
Brother Martin ended Rummel’s 15-game winning streak with a stirring 26-23 victory at East Jefferson Stadium Saturday, October 24. The Crusaders dominated the first half, scoring touchdowns on three of their first four possessions to build a 20-8 halftime lead. When Martin scored the first touchdown of the second half to extend the lead to 18 points, the victory seemed well in hand. But Coach Mark Bonis was not surprised that the defending state Division I champions fought back. “They have a great program. Their kids believe they can win in any circumstance. They have established a championship mindset. We knew they would fight to the very end.”
Sparked by three touchdowns by RB Logan Diggs, a Notre Dame commitment, the Raiders forced the Crusaders to recover an onside kick in the last minute to preserve the hard-earned victory.
The hurricane interfered with preparation for last Saturday’s district game against Shaw. “Over the weekend prior to the hurricane, we figured what days the archdiocese would say we couldn’t practice. So we adjusted our schedule to do more earlier in the week. We basically swapped the Monday and Wednesday practices.”
The Crusaders started strong against the Eagles, forging a 26-7 halftime lead. But Shaw scored touchdowns on the first two plays of the second half to cut the lead to just five points. Michael Jackson returned the kickoff 95 yards for a score. On the ensuing kickoff, Corey Reed punched the ball out, scooped it, and returned 30 yards for another seven points to make it 26-21 just 29 seconds into the period.
The Crusaders regained some momentum with a 29-yard field goal by Leyton Liuzza ’23. After Dakota Berns recovered a Shaw fumble, QB Garrett Mmahat ’22 hit sophomore Torey Lambert ’23 for a 41-yard touchdown. Lambert added a 3-yard touchdown run and Clayton Lonardo ’23 zipped 18 yards into the end zone to make the final score 48-21 as the Crusaders’ second team played most of the final period.
“Special teams hurt us again,” says Coach Bonis. “We still haven’t put together all three phases in any game yet. We didn’t know what to expect from Shaw because of a lack of games they played. We figured out after their opening touchdown drive what they were trying to do and made adjustments. We missed three tackles on the kickoff return to start the second half. Then we didn’t maintain ball security on the ensuing kickoff. We learned from our mistakes. But in the same breath, the two plays also hinder the development of our program. We were disappointed that we lost a quarter of valuable varsity reps for our underclassmen, guys we will depend on to help us make a deep run in the playoffs.”
Ranked #2 in 5A in the state, the 5-0 Crusaders now prepare for a non-district game against Terrebonne at Tad Gormley Stadium at 7:00 p.m. Friday night. “This is a tough matchup for us. They have two losses – Destrehan and Hahnville, both explosive teams. Offensively, Jaylin Lucas, #12, poses some matchup threats for us. He is a receiver, a running back, and plays quarterback in the Wildcat formation. They do everything they can to get the ball in his hands. It will be a challenge for our young defense.
“They are big upfront on defense. They have a 380 pound nose guard. Next to him is Maason Smith, #94, a 6’5” 300 pound senior. He’s the best I’ve ever seen play at that position. They move him around. He plays inside and outside. They pose a challenge for us in protection to get the ball downfield for explosive plays. We have to play well in all three phases. This is one of the biggest games we’ve played in seven years. It’s our last dress rehearsal prior to the last district games and the start of the playoffs.”
