Division-I Non-Select Preview Notes | LHSAA State Championships

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The LHSAA's annual Prep Classic football state championship event concludes Saturday with Division-II Select, Division-III Select and Division-I Non-Select matchups.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Redzone Louisiana will break down the overall storylines, paths teams took to reach the Superdome, programs' histories and players to watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Division-I Non-Select game will conclude the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 1 Ruston vs. No. 6 Zachary</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final state championship game of 2023 will pit the top-seeded team trying to complete a multi-year mission and end a multi-decade drought against a program that ascended during the past decade into one of the state's elite perennial powers. The Bearcats and Broncos are two of Louisiana's most physical teams and boast some recent playoff history against one another that only adds further spice to the already great matchup.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Paths</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ruston</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— First-round bye</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Westgate, 20-18</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Walker, 56-17</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Mandeville, 28-7</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zachary</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Barbe, 51-14</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Salmen, 49-28</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Destrehan, 35-14</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Beat Dutchtown, 31-28</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Recent Meetings</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bearcats got the best of a semifinal matchup last season, 37-22, to reach the Superdome for the first time since 1998. The teams had previously met in the 2019 quarterfinals, a game the Broncos won on the road, 35-27.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ruston</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 DB [player_tooltip player_id='914207' first='Aidan' last='Anding'], 2025 QB [player_tooltip player_id='710076' first='Joshua' last='Brantley'], 2024 DL [player_tooltip player_id='421520' first='Ahmad' last='Breaux'], 2025 RB [player_tooltip player_id='618676' first='Dylone' last='Brooks'], 2024 DL [player_tooltip player_id='675892' first='Geordan' last='Guidry'], 2025 RB [player_tooltip player_id='710271' first='Jordan' last='Hayes'], 2025 LB [player_tooltip player_id='710083' first='Zheric' last='Hill'], 2027 WR [player_tooltip player_id='469439' first='Ahmad' last='Hudson'], 2024 DB [player_tooltip player_id='902057' first='Nate' last='Johnson'], 2024 DB [player_tooltip player_id='902067' first='Semaj' last='Jones'], 2024 LB [player_tooltip player_id='285613' first='Jadon' last='Mayfield'], 2025 OL [player_tooltip player_id='1221032' first='Sam' last='Nations'], 2024 TE/WR Zhy Scott</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zachary</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 DB [player_tooltip player_id='1221065' first='Stetson' last='Bell'], 2024 OL [player_tooltip player_id='675889' first='Kavion' last='Broussard'], 2025 DB [player_tooltip player_id='1204722' first='Dillan' last='Durand'], 2024 WR/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1202525' first='Tyson' last='George'], 2025 QB [player_tooltip player_id='291087' first='Caleb' last='Gonzales'], 2024 WR/TE [player_tooltip player_id='285194' first='Trey'Dez' last='Green'], 2025 DL [player_tooltip player_id='710277' first='Sean' last='Hamilton'], 2024 QB Hudson Spangler, 2024 RB [player_tooltip player_id='421645' first='Kameron' last='Thomas'], 2024 DB/WR [player_tooltip player_id='139489' first='Luke' last='Wisham']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>State Championship History</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ruston: 8-4</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Wins in 1925, 1941, 1947, 1951, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1990</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Losses in 1944, 1984, 1998, 2022</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zachary: 4-1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Wins in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>— Losses in 1957</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->