Eye-catchers from Ragin’ Cajuns 7v7 tournament | Defense

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Twenty-five talented high school teams from all over the state of Louisiana visited Lafayette this weekend for the Ragin Cajuns' annual 7-on-7 tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the second straight year, St. Augustine brought the victory and bragging rights back to New Orleans. But the event was loaded with standout performances across the board.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are more than 20 eye-catchers on defense from 10 different teams, including the top four finishers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Note: With 25 times playing on five different fields in quick succession, Prep Redzone Louisiana was not able to see every team and saw most teams for a single matchup. "Eye-catchers" lists are not intended to be complete, comprehensive "top performers" lists.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>ST. AUGUSTINE PURPLE KNIGHTS</strong> (champions)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As with the event-winning Purple Knights' offense, a long list of players stepped up throughout the run. But rising senior corner <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1335970' first='Frederick' last='Lewis']</strong> and safeties <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401948' first='Clinton' last='Hill Jr.']</strong>, a rising junior, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1356115' first='Khylin' last='Wilson']</strong>, a rising sophomore, stood out during our four games watching the team as they seemed constantly in good position, closing fast on passes thrown their direction and </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>ST. JAMES WILDCATS</strong> (runners-up)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wildcats' list of defensive standouts was similarly long with corners <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='914096' first='Garry' last='White']</strong>, a rising senior, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='934578' first='Jye' last='Blain']</strong>, a rising sophomore, being two of the top players at the position to help lead the way. A pair of linebackers in rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='914127' first='Chaidyn' last='Parker']</strong> and rising junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='920681' first='Nolan' last='Zenon']</strong> who might be more comfortable this fall playing physically at and behind the line of scrimmage held their own dropping back in coverage — including a Zenon interception in the end zone during bracket play off a <strong>Kimon Mitchell</strong> deflection.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>ST. THOMAS MORE COUGARS</strong> (semifinalists)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rising senior cornerback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='914125' first='Gavin' last='Duplechin']</strong> made several plays in the Cougars' two games Prep Redzone Louisiana caught, including an interception in pool play against Edna Karr — a game in which rising senior linebacker <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1336809' first='Reed' last='Dupuis']</strong> also snatched a pick near the goal line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CALVARY BAPTIST CAVALIERS </strong>(semifinalists)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As mentioned in the offensive playmakers article, the reigning Division-III Select champions were short-handed on defense and weathered through some ups and downs on that side of the ball. But some of the flashes by 2028 corner<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1372176' first='Trey' last='McDaniel']</strong>, a long athlete who swatted away multiple passes his direction, were among the notable defensive takeaways for hoping to reload and repeat.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CECILIA BULLDOGS</strong> (quarterfinalists)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='913904' first='Brent' last='Gordon Jr.']</strong> earned a mention in the article on offensive standouts, but the new Ragin' Cajuns commitment also looked the part of one of the best defenders in the event with the ground he covered and consistent plays on the ball. And rising sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='406748' first='Franky' last='Frank Jr.']</strong>, trusted to lock down the far corner, consistently did so against stout competition.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>EDNA KARR COUGARS</strong> (quarterfinalists)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A couple familiar leaders and playmakers in safety <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401932' first='Aiden' last='Hall']</strong> and linebacker/safety <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='291158' first='Arsenio' last='Bolds Jr.']</strong> again stood out in the middle of the field for the Cougars' defense, and a newer face in rising sophomore linebacker/safety <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1240838' first='Jamichael' last='Quinn']</strong> caught our attention with an interception to seal the pool-play victory against St. Thomas More.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>RIVERDALE REBELS </strong>(bracket qualifier)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rising sophomore safety <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='710973' first='Dwain' last='Swilley']</strong> helped highlight the Rebels' defense, flying around the middle of the field and making several plays —&nbsp;both deflected passes and quick stops on underneath passes — during their game against Dunham.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>LAFAYETTE CHRISTIAN KNIGHTS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two-way standout <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1224578' first='Calvin' last='Parker']</strong> snatched an interception right off the bat to start the event and set a tone for the Knights' defense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>EAST ASCENSION SPARTANS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rising senior defensive back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='710774' first='Ernest' last='Mitchell']</strong> showed great anticipation and range on the back end of the defense, including an interception near the sideline and goal line in a pool-play matchup with Warren Easton.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>ERATH BOBCATS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rising junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1348449' first='Cade' last='Francis']</strong> secured an interception that helped close a win against Comeaux, and rising sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1356124' first='Ayden' last='Tallmore']</strong> played well at corner and caught a goal-line pass out of the slot.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->