2026 pass-catchers among eye-catchers at LA NG7 Jambalaya Jam

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A Louisiana-heavy field of teams met in Shreveport for the second annual Louisiana NG7 Jambalaya Jam 7-on-7 tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And the event featured a slew of eye-catching performances ranging from some of the state's top prospects to under-the-radar and up-and-coming players of all ages.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Redzone Louisiana will spotlight more than two dozen student-athletes this week broken down by position groups and recruiting cycles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's a look at seven rising senior pass-catchers who were among the standouts in 18U action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='710967' first='Chantz' last='Babineaux'] — 6-0, 185 ATH — Carencro</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>To paraphrase one of the Louisianimals' coaches Sunday, "Tell him to throw the ball to [player_tooltip player_id='710967' first='Chantz' last='Babineaux'], because that's the guy making plays," as clean catches proved tough for many receivers during the steady rain. Babineaux was one of several players on this list and the defensive eye-catchers list who actually excelled on both sides of the ball during the tournament. But even with his big plays to break up opponents' passes, the Carencro star stood out most consistently as one of the top receivers in the event.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1757592' first='Malique' last='Credit'] — 5-8, 145 WR/ATH — Franklin Parish</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of three Franklin Parish standouts to earn recognitions on our lists coming out of the weekend, the rising senior received an Offensive MVP trophy for his performance consistently stepping up in timely moments for title-winning Team Heru Raw. Credit is an under-the-radar prospect after missing time this fall to injury, but proved himself invaluable during the weekend. His combination of toughness and leap allow him to play a bit bigger than his stature, and he's shows signs of being a crafty route-runner who does a nice job of creating late separation and catching everything thrown his direction.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1237613' first='Kenny' last='Darby'] — 6-1, 175 WR — Airline</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Some of the highlights and headlines coming out of the weekend include Darby's impressive showing at cornerback during bracket action Sunday. But that novelty and display of all-around athleticism was just a fraction of the overall weekend on which the 2026 LSU commitment was an absolutely nightmare for opposing defenders to try to contain at his natural position at wide receiver. Darby got himself open at every level to keep the chains moving when necessary in addition to his array of big-play receptions deep downfield, over defenders and making nice adjustments in the air. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='710968' first='Nathan' last='Green'] — 6-2, 195 ATH — Huntington</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The highly ranked two-way prospect joked early in pool play that his Team Heru Rare coaches must not realize yet he plays offense as all his early reps came at defensive back. But when Green did start getting his series on the other side of the ball, there was no mistaking his pass-catching ability as he torched his way downfield for one deep touchdowns after another. Also notably, Green is now attending Huntington </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1757515' first='Kervin' last='Johnson Jr.'] — 6-3, 190 WR — Tioga</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tioga standout may have sparked the most exclamations of "Who's THAT!?" as the tournament got rolling Saturday and he seemed to provide one highlight-reel catch after another out-leaping defenders, using his body well to create additional advantages in the air and strongly securing the ball through contact. McNeese State recently extended his first scholarship offer, but Johnson is an intriguing less-heralded prospect to monitor as spring and summer action continues to ramp up.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='283987' first='Roderick' last='Tezeno Jr.'] — 6-2, 175 WR/DB — Opelousas Catholic</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Opelousas Catholic star was very much in the mix of the top three or four candidates for to performer of the entire event with his two-way play highlighted my one-handed catches on both sides of the ball. Tezeno is a long, speedy pass-catcher who consistently beat defenders downfield on vertical routes, but also showed his ability to slice free on intermediate routes, make catches in stride and run by defenders for additional yardage. And, when his 4th Quarter Mentality team was on defense, he was excited to remind people of his potential there as he served as a rangy safety who could quickly cover huge ground and snatch takeaways.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Khris Thomas — 6-2, 180 WR — Dunham</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Johnson appeared to be the headliner of the JackBoyz, but Thomas provided a nice balance as another big target with good speed on the other side of the field. "KT" had a solid junior season for his Tigers and should have a chance to build on that heading into senior year as part of a Dunham offense returning with a lot of stability among its offensive skill players.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->