Acadiana vs. Lafayette Christian: Top Performers

The high school football season kicked off with a pair of reigning state champions in a crosstown battle between two of not only Lafayette’s, but Louisiana’s top teams. Class 5A Acadiana and Division III Lafayette Christian each boast a slew of talented college prospects currently led by Rams defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id="63579" first="Cameron" last="George"] and Knights athlete [player_tooltip player_id="63550" first="Sage" last="Ryan"] for the 2021 class. And each roster will produce several players to the next level for years to come. Here are 18 of the most notable names from the matchup, broken up by class. <strong>2021 Recruiting Class</strong> <strong><img class="size-medium wp-image-61275 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/10/Screen-Shot-2020-10-12-at-8.22.16-PM-300x163.png" alt="[player_tooltip player_id="63579" first="Cameron" last="George"] Acadiana DE" width="300" height="163" />[player_tooltip player_id="63579" first="Cameron" last="George"] — 6-2, 245 DE — Acadiana</strong> The Louisiana (Lafayette) commitment headlines Acadiana’s impressive defense once again. He already had success winning physical battles up front in his pursuit of opposing passers, and now he’s added 15-20 pounds to help add more force in the trenches, while maintaining his quickness to the passer and screens, as he showed on multiple occasions Friday. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="63685" first="Caleb" last="Arceneaux"] — 5-11, 206 LB — Acadiana</strong> The taller of a pair of Acadiana linebackers on this list, the senior set the tone early with an interception on Lafayette Christian’s first possession he returned a long way to set up a touchdown run that stood as the game’s only points until the final minute. As physical as the Rams’ front seven is known for being in the box, Arceneaux has shown his ability to make plays in coverage. And Friday was a great start to senior year in that regard. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="63747" first="Derreck" last="Bercier"] Jr. — 5-10, 210 LB — Acadiana</strong> The Rams’ senior linebacker is a tackle machine, in the box or in coverage, who would be hearing more college attention if he was a bit taller than his 5-foot-10 frame. He was all over the field Friday, as tends to be the case. <strong>Tyvin Zeno — 5-8, 178 RB — Acadiana</strong> The small, but physical running back showed off his balance on Acadiana’s go-ahead touchdown run on which he made a quick cut inside the containing rover and broke three tackles on his way to the goal line.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span> <strong><img class="size-medium wp-image-61276 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3799-300x240.jpg" alt="[player_tooltip player_id="63550" first="Sage" last="Ryan"] Lafayette Christian ATH" width="300" height="240" />[player_tooltip player_id="63550" first="Sage" last="Ryan"] — 5-11, 190 ATH — Lafayette Christian</strong> The LSU, Alabama and Clemson target was slowed Friday by one of the state’s best defenses that prioritized containing him and forcing his younger teammates to make the plays and then cramps that sidelined him much of the second half. Ryan spent most of his time on offense, although the bigger question in college appears to be whether he will play cornerback or safety. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="63708" first="Anthony" last="Richard Jr."] — 6-0, 180 DB — Lafayette Christian</strong> The senior in Lafayette Christian’s talented secondary that features a pair of junior stars, Richard showed his willing physicality against a run-dominant Acadiana team, but also made the most of a rare passing attempt before halftime to intercept a ball in the end zone. <strong>Sean-Charles Ned — 6-4, 230 DE — Lafayette Christian</strong> At 6-foot-4, 230 pounds, Sean-Charles Ned came up with a trio of big stops in the second half, shedding blockers, flowing to the ball-carrier and wrapping up for the loss or quick stop. He looks lean enough currently to continue to bulk up that verified weight and potentially be an intriguing defensive end or tight end prospect. <strong>2022 Recruiting Class</strong> <strong>Walter Bob — 6-4, 230 DE — Acadiana</strong> With Lafayette Christian mindful of George on one side of the defense, his junior teammate Walter Bob rose to the occasion to make several plays in the backfield and near the line of scrimmage in the shutout. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound defensive end might be one of Louisiana’s top prospects for the 2022 class. <strong>Kaden Anderson — 6-2, 190 DE — Acadiana</strong> The shorter, stouter of Acadiana’s 2022 defensive linemen on this list, the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Anderson similarly made his presence felt, including a big sack on which his used his hands and feet to swiftly shed his blocker and disrupt the play almost immediately. <strong>Jerimiah Brown — 5-11, 190 ATH — Acadiana</strong> The quick, 5-foot-11 190-pound athlete showed off some of his athleticism throughout the game at quarterbacks, including the Rams’ game-icing touchdown in the final minute. Some miscommunication appeared to doom the play as the Arkansas target turned to hand the ball off, but found only a wave of defenders. But Brown turned, made a cut, broke a tackle, spun and accelerated his way off through the entire Knight’s defense for a 13-yard score. <strong>Drai Anthony — 5-11, 190 DB — Acadiana</strong> The junior cornerback made one big play for the Acadiana defense after another late as Lafayette Christian took to the air to try to overcome its deficit, including a pair of takeaways at the end to set up one touchdown and directly score another. <strong>Darian Riggs — 5-9, 170 ATH — Lafayette Christian</strong> With Acadiana focused on taking away Ryan, junior athlete Darian Riggs became Lafayette Christian’s biggest go-to. The 5-foot-9, 170-pound playmaker was involved as both a rusher and a receiver and moved the Knights into the red zone twice on big plays before the bigger Rams were able to clamp down and preserve the eventual shutout. <strong>Fitzgerald West — 6-2, 230 DT  — Lafayette Christian</strong> The big man in the middle of Lafayette Christian’s defensive line was important to holding Acadiana to just seven points for 47 minutes. The Rams averaged almost 50 points per game last regular season with their powerful veer running attack. And the 6-foot-2, 320-pound tackle was a big part of keeping well shy of that success. <strong><img class="size-medium wp-image-61359 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/10/IMG_3251-300x252.jpg" alt="Jordan Allen Lafayette Christian" width="300" height="252" />Jordan Allen — 5-11, 180 DB — Lafayette Christian</strong> The 5-foot-11, 180-pound cornerback is the taller, longer of the two best friends headlining Lafayette Christian’s secondary for 2022. This matchup wasn’t one to best showcase Allen’s talent in coverage. But he has the look of one of Louisiana’s top cornerback prospects for the next recruiting cycle. <strong>Brylan Green — 5-9, 160 DB — Lafayette Christian</strong> The 5-foot-9, 160-pound defensive back, already with several college offers, worked at safety and made plays all over the field. The Knights also utilized Green on offense trailing late to show off some of his pass-catching ability, as well. <strong>Masey Lewis — 6-4, 240 DE — Lafayette Christian</strong> Listed at 6-foot-4, 240 pounds, the junior pass-rusher drew eye-test attention right off the bat and was able to use that for a couple big stops near the line of scrimmage when Acadiana tried running to his side of the line. Lafayette Christian also tried to look his way on a late jump ball that a leaping defensive back re-directed just enough to force the incompletion. <strong>2023 Recruiting Class</strong> <strong>Keven Williams — 5-9, 170 RB — Acadiana</strong> The quick 5-foot-9, 170-pound running back became Acadiana’s biggest threat with a couple of more explosive runs on which he was able to shed a blocker or two in the box and quickly accelerate through a Lafayette Christian secondary that features multiple Division-I prospects. The sophomore finished with 116 yards on just nine attempts. <strong>2024 Recruiting Class</strong> <strong>Ju’Juan Johnson — 5-9, 165 ATH — Lafayette Christian</strong> The 5-foot-9 freshman athlete was called into action at quarterback a bit more quickly than Lafayette Christian might have preferred when quarterback Ryan Roberts exited with an apparently injury. The Acadiana defense was a tall task, as it tends to be for even more experienced players, but Johnson kept battling and came up with a few flashes along the way.