LHSAA State Championships Top Performers: St. Thomas More vs. LCA

St. Thomas More coach Jim Hightower said he had never in his long, legendary career seen another game quite like the rollercoaster against crosstown rival Lafayette Christian.   And when the dust finally settled on the 100-point track meet of a Division-II select state championship, his Cougars had managed two touchdowns in the final minute to stun the Knights, 52-48, at the finish line.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-embed-handler wp-block-embed-embed-handler wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/embed/A-nSOj6VGGk </div></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='285278' first='Sam' last='Altmann'] (6-3, 185 QB | 2024)   The young quarterback had to out-battle fellow junior [player_tooltip player_id='139260' first='Will' last='Taylor'] for the opportunity and challenge to succeed LSU signee Walker Howard at the helm of the Cougars' offense. And the learning process and occasional growing pains continued their way onto the huge stage and spotlight of the Caesars Superdome as he admitted some nervousness through the first two or three quarters that showed up in some misplaced or mistimed passes.   But with St. Thomas More's season on the line and the second half winding on, Altmann settled down, shook back and fired some of the most impressive passes of the entire Prep Classic state championship weekend, including the 54-yard, game-winning rope to Connor Stelly in the final seconds. He finished 21-for-38 for 352 yards and a record-tying six touchdowns.   [player_tooltip player_id='404521' first='Christian' last='McNees'] (6-1, 190 WR | 2023)   The underrated athlete, the seeming successor to former star Jack Bech, led the St. Thomas More receivers once again to close out his high school career, but on an afternoon on which he and teammates Tanner Hornback and Connor Stelly each hauled in two touchdowns from Altmann. McNeese finished with 227 yards and both his scores coming in the fourth-quarter to keep the Cougars on the heels of Lafayette Christian, down just a field goal.   Tyler Collins (5-9, 170 DB | 2023)   The contest will certainly be remembered more for its wild finish and offensive fireworks than for anything on the defensive side of the football. But a few defenders did come up with timely plays that were critical to their teams' success. Collins provided St. Thomas More a couple of those, flying across the field from seemingly out of nowhere to snatch a first-quarter interception and then sneaking a hand across the football in the third quarter to turn a long LCA run into a forced fumble.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-embed-handler wp-block-embed-embed-handler wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/embed/fEpI3C2h9Dw </div></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='139261' first='Ju'Juan' last='Johnson'] (6-0, 175 ATH | 2024)   Win or lose, the Knights' junior quarterback put on one of the great individual performances with a record 586 total yards and five touchdowns. Johnson, the LSU defensive back target, completed 21 of his 34 passes for 341 yards and three touchdowns and ran 33 times for another 245 yards and two scores, battling his way through physical play and jarring hits to keep carrying the load for Lafayette Christian — on multiple occasions overpowering the attempted tacklers and seemingly giving them the worse of the contact.   [player_tooltip player_id='285654' first='Melvin' last='Hills III'] (6-4, 270 DL | 2024)   The big college defensive line prospect was a handful up front for the Lafayette Christian defensive line, helping stuff some runs up the middle and getting his way upfield and into the backfield for some disruptive plays behind the line, including a hit on Altmann that helped force an interception to Knights linebacker Sam Taylor.   Dudley Jackson (5-10, 180 RB | 2023)   Johnson put on a show with his own running and passing to [player_tooltip player_id='144893' first='Trae' last='Grogan'], [player_tooltip player_id='276373' first='Alonzo' last='Ryes'] and company, but his senior running back had a career day for himself as a critical complement in the backfield. Jackson finished with 157 yards and 41- and 58-yard breakaway touchdowns rushing, as well as a 16-yard reception.

St. Thomas More coach Jim Hightower said he had never in his long, legendary career seen another game quite like the rollercoaster against crosstown rival Lafayette Christian.