A team that finished fifth in its district just won a state championship.
I write that with great admiration for the Ouachita Parish Lions, who captured the Non-Select Division I state title Saturday by beating No. 1 Ruston 21-20 at the LHSAA’s Prep Classic in the Superdome.
They completed the most unlikely championship run since power rankings began in 1999, according to some research by the Monroe-based K104 Friday Night Scoreboard Show gang. Ouachita was seeded 14th in a 28-team field and beat teams seeded 1, 2, 3, 6 (Parkway) and 19.
In 2010, Acadiana did even better as a 27 seed, upsetting seeds 2, 3, 4, 9 and 11. But the catch: the Wreckin’ Rams were seeded so low because they had to forfeit three games. They also got to play the second-round and quarterfinal games at home; the Lions opened on the east edge of Monroe and then traveled to Destrehan, Bossier City and crosstown to Neville to get to New Orleans.
Great respect to coach Benjy Lewis and his boys. Their four District 2-5A losses were (in order) 21-14 at Ruston, 39-25 at West Monroe, 38-37 at home to Neville, and 28-21 at ASH in the first four of their five 2-5A games.
Before that, they were 5-0 including a 33-22 win over eventual Non-Select Division II champ Sterlington, and a 42-14 romp over Franklin Parish, not to overlook a season-opening 37-19 homefield dispatch of Captain Shreve.
In the playoffs, their five wins were by a combined 19 points: 24-21 at home over St. Amant, 21-19 at No. 3 Destrehan, 28-22 at No. 6 Parkway, 14-7 at No. 2 Neville and the comeback from 10 points down in the second half to stun Ruston. One point, and two yards (369 for the Lions, 367 for the Bearcats) was the margin.
Credit Ouachita Citizen sports editor Jake Martin for this headline before the Lions rode west on I-20 to Parkway: “Don’t let Ouachita get hot” topped his column that week.
They did.
“Championships aren’t won in comfortable situations,” said Lewis after Saturday afternoon’s triumph.
Coy Brotherton and his Panthers can at least say they lost to the state champs. But they also know they were that close to ending their run. Ouachita scored on an 18-yard pick six, and punched out a fumble into the end zone for a touchback, instead of a Parkway touchdown.
Ouachita made those plays, and many others, in its most unlikely glory ride. The Lions earned the crown, their first since 1989. They were 5-6 a year ago. But they had a bunch of seniors, a dream, a work ethic, and probably, a rabbit’s foot.
I am not a fan of any system that leaves the door open for a fifth-place team with one district win to make the playoffs, just like I detest all-district teams with most of the starters in the district on them.
But give the Lions their due.
And give poor Gustavo Rivera a break.
He’s the offensive lineman from Archbishop Shaw whose too-quick celebration opened the door for the stunning finish to the Select Division II championship game Friday night. After what he thought was the last snap in the waning seconds as his Eagles seemed to be running out the clock on a 21-20 victory over St. Charles Catholic, Rivera yanked off his helmet as he ran through the right side of the defensive front toward the Shaw bench, and joyously tossed the headgear into the air.
You could see Shaw coaches on the sideline recoil in fear of the reaction – as the helmet came down, a flag sailed up, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that gave St. Charles back its last time out, allowing the Comets to force a punt, which appeared shanked left.
Moments before, with 35 seconds left, St. Charles had moved within 21-20 on a TD at the end of a super-clutch 11-play, 82-yard drive — but usually reliable kicker Tyler Milioto’s extra point hooked left of the upright.
Talk about the agony of defeat – or, de feet.
But Rivera’s gaffe helped pave the way for the Comets to soar. Milioto got a chance to try a 44-yarder with five seconds left and he boomed it straight through.
They’ll play a lot of Prep Classics and a championship game may ever end any stranger.
Speaking of headlines, a pal who declined credit came up with this previously unpublished gem:
“The Shaw Shank Redemption.”
Postscript: the next day, Milioto played his first soccer game of the year for the Comets.
He scored four goals.
Not a bad weekend’s work.
Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com