Playoff Top Performers: Westgate vs. Edna Karr

Football coaches and players and professional wrestlers alike have long shared the phrase, "To be the man, you’ve got to beat the man." And Westgate epitomized that mantra Friday with a 27-20 semifinal defeat of perennial powerhouse Edna Karr that shocked not only the Cougars, but much of Louisiana. The Tigers had been 0-3 in previous semifinals and hadn’t made such a deep run since 2010. Meanwhile, Karr had reached six straight state championship games and 10 in the past 11 years, including four straight titles from 2016 to 2019 and another in 2012. But, as much as those histories increasingly underscored Friday’s significance as the battle drew toward its conclusion, none of it proved enough to factor into the outcome between the lines. Westgate came out of the gates lights-out defensively to help excite its large contingent of fans that made the nearly three-hour trip from New Iberia to the west bank of New Orleans. The Tigers took a 10-0 lead thanks in no small part to some pivotal shortened fields and, though missing opportunities to further stretch their advantage, held off the Cougars’ comeback attempts and forced one final game-sealing fumble in the final seconds. Here were a dozen of the most notable individual performances — eight for Westgate and four for Edna Karr — for one of Louisiana’s most thrilling and significant semifinal matchups. <strong>WESTGATE</strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="136664" first="Steven" last="Antoine"] (2022)</strong> <strong>5-8, 190 RB</strong> The "Baby Bus" was rolling full steam ahead with every opportunity to provide a bowling bowl of physical rushing presence to the Tigers’ backfield. In addition to using his power to convert short-yardage situations, Antoine provided multiple runs of closer to 10 yards on which he broke tackles and ran over defenders for notable yards after context. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="136525" first="Jordan" last="Doucet"] (2022)</strong> <strong>5-9, 150 WR/ATH</strong> The senior moved from wide receiver, where he projects to play at Southeastern Louisiana, to quarterback when teammate Brennon Landry suffered an injury. His quickness gave the Karr defense fits, as he gashed big gains on both designed and improvised runs, and he distributed the ball well to Landry, Amaaz Eugene and [player_tooltip player_id="129057" first="Danny" last="Lewis"] for big plays downfield, including a touchdown to Eugene on a decisive, quick and well-placed RPO in the first quarter. <strong>Amaaz Eugene (2023)</strong> <strong>5-8, 165 WR</strong> The quick, speedy weapon pass-catcher was a go-to for Doucet in all four quarters, including the first-quarter touchdown and two or three key conversions in the second half. <strong>Brennon Landry (2022)</strong> <strong>5-10, 170 ATH</strong> Landry didn’t have as many catches as Eugene, but provided one of the plays of the game with his Tigers clinging to a 4-point lead in the fourth quarter. Doucet heaved a throw down the right sideline on second-and-18, and Landry elevated over a defender to haul in the 30-yard grab and maintain possession despite aggravating his shoulder on the hard fall. The play helped continue the drive and set up <strong>Dylan Bourque</strong>’s second field goal to stretch the lead to seven. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="129057" first="Danny" last="Lewis"] (2022)</strong> <strong>6-5, 225 TE/ATH</strong> On a couple key plays during the evening, Doucet was able to rely on his biggest target, the versatile and sure-handed security blanket committed to Cincinnati. The combination of size and athleticism that Lewis possesses posed problems for smaller defensive backs, including a third-quarter catch despite pass interference. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="136624" first="Zyion" last="Madison"] (2022)</strong> <strong>6-0, 205 LB</strong> The senior linebacker may have been the most dominant player on the field literally from start to finish, with two or three of his many tackles for loss coming on the game’s opening drive and then his game-sealing fumble recovery in the final seconds. Madison had double-digit tackles, at least three sacks and a pair of fumble recoveries. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138303" first="Derek" last="Williams"] (2023)</strong> <strong>6-2, 185 DB</strong> The highly recruited junior safety made his presence felt in all three phases Friday, including a blocked extra point just before halftime, a long return on the ensuing kickoff and a pair of touchdowns runs in the fourth quarter: a powerful, spinning run through and off contact inside the 5-yard line and then a 34-yard scamper. <strong>EDNA KARR</strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="128242" first="Aaron" last="Anderson"] (2022)</strong> <strong>5-10, 180 WR</strong> The Alabama commitment continued to prove himself among the top few players in the state every week this season. When the Cougars were struggling to find an offensive spark, they found Anderson on quick screens and slants that he was able to turn into longer gains with his quickness and balance. And on a fourth down in the second quarter or with time running out late, there was little question where junior quarterback A.J. Samuel was heading with the ball. Anderson rewarded that confidence on each occasion with a touchdown reception. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="136484" first="Jaylin" last="Lucas"] (2022)</strong> <strong>5-9, 160 ATH</strong> The speedy Tulane commitment showed flashes of his quick feet and ridiculous top gear on three or four runs and a long return. Particularly after fellow senior Jawin Newman exited with an injury, Lucas became a critical piece of what offensive success Edna Karr was able to find against Westgate’s stout and stingy defensive performance. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="187067" first="Jaden" last="Newton"] (2022)</strong> <strong>6-1, 210 LB</strong> For the success that the Tigers had, the Karr defense played well more often than not and held its visitors to 10 points into the fourth quarter. And the success up front of players such as <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="136584" first="Kells" last="Bush"]</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="136577" first="Tygee" last="Hill"]</strong>, Newton and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138390" first="Jonathan" last="Bax"]</strong> was crucial. The Cougars got after Doucet and company and made Westgate earn their success and scoring, even often against shortened fields to start. And Newton also did a particularly good job of using his wingspan to disrupt passing lanes on plays on which he couldn’t get to the quarterback. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138313" first="Ryan" last="Robinson"] (2023)</strong> <strong>6-0, 170 DB</strong> Despite some of the mismatches provided by Westgate’s receiving weapons, Robinson was able to come up with two of the biggest plays for an Edna Karr secondary that had its share to help keep the team in the game. The junior leader snatches a pair of interceptions in the red zone in the first half to help end promising Tigers drives. Teammates <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138319" first="Michael" last="Richard"]</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138322" first="Roshad" last="Gonzalez"]</strong> each added pivotal break-ups, as well, with Richard’s helping jar loose a pass that would otherwise have been a definite touchdown.