JOURNAL STAFF
Evangel and Loyola open the state football playoffs at home tonight, but Green Oaks takes a long drive to New Orleans.
Select Division II
20-Istrouma (4-5) at 13-Evangel (6-4)
Where: Rodney Duron Field
Series: First meeting
Last week: Istrouma lost to Brusly 34-13; Evangel beat BTW 49-0
Rankings: Evangel is 8th in Shreveport-Bossier Journal Top 10 poll
Radio: none
Notables: The No. 13-seed Eagles’ last playoff victory came with an 84-20 road destruction of E.D. White in 2019 … Istrouma, the No. 20 seed, has lost two straight playoff games by a total of 111-19 (41-0 to Belle Chasse in 2021, 70-19 to Edna Carr in 2020) … The winner of this game advances to travel to play No. 4 seed E.D. White in a Select Division II second-round game … WR Parker Fulghum finished the regular season with 879 receiving yards, which ranked 14th in the state.
Select Division III
22-St. Thomas Aquinas (3-7) at 11-Loyola Prep (5-4)
Where: Messmer Stadium
Series: First meeting
Last week: St. Thomas Aquinas beat Springfield 67-14; Loyola lost to Calvary 45-0
Rankings: none
Radio: none
Notables: Leading receiver John Carmody played briefly last week after being out since Week 6 with an injury … After a streak of losing eight straight first-round playoff games, the Flyers have won two of the last three … This will be the sixth straight year Loyola has played a fellow Catholic-based school in the playoffs … Linebacker Gray Deason now has 106 tackles — the sixth straight year for a Flyer to reach 100 tackles … Grayson Hutchins had 13 tackles last week, marking the first time Deason has not led the team in tackles in a game … Loyola is coming off the worst total offense performance (33 yards) since 2009.
24-Green Oaks (2-8) at 9-Country Day (5-5)
Where: Metairie, Louisiana
Series: First meeting
Last week: Green Oaks lost to Lakeside 42-36; Country Day beat M.L. King Charter 42-19
Rankings: none
Radio: none
Notables: The Giants will be trying to end a seven-game losing streak when they travel to Metairie to take on the Cajuns in the first round of the Select Division III playoffs … Green Oaks is coming off of a nail-biting loss to Lakeside last week (42-36 in 3OT) … “We had the lead most of the game (by 2 TDs in the second half) and let it slip on the last play of regulation,” said Giants’ coach Chadwick Lewis. “We have to learn quickly from it if we want to advance to the second round” … The Giants are coming off of an impressive defensive performance as Delarrious Marshall and Corzavion Tucker each had interception returns for scores … Offensively, Green Oaks had its best performance so far with Marshall adding a TD run and 2-point conversion and quarterback Tovoras Lee scoring 2 TDs (one rushing, one passing) … While Green Oaks is hoping to get a player back (hamstring), the Giants should be relatively injury-free … Country Day is coming off of a 42-19 victory over King Charter in the regular-season finale … “They are a very disciplined team,” Lewis said of the Cajuns. “It’s a game we can compete in, but they aren’t going to give us the game” … While the Giants are working to “clean up silly things,” Lewis said preparation for the playoff game will be much the same … “Nothing changes our routine really,” said Lewis, “except making sure we are packed on Thursday before we leave practice.”
