For the seniors

A season filled with injuries and learning curves will play itself out this Friday night for the Sacred Heart Trojans (2-7, 1-5) as they host the Delcambre Panthers (2-7, 2-4) for homecoming. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
Sacred Heart has had an uphill climb for most of the season for a number of reasons.
First and foremost is the fact that head coach Josh Harper was not hired until late July. This meant that he and his staff were behind the eight ball when it came to implementing the offensive and defensive scheme. Also, the player/coach relationship was late getting off of the ground.
Secondly, the Trojans have faced a plethora of injuries that has decimated their ranks. The number of players available have dwindled down to 36; most of those underclassmen that had not played a down before.
Lastly, Sacred Heart is in arguably the toughest district in the state, regardless of class. The Trojans have had to battle against established, playoff tested teams like Notre Dame, Catholic of New Iberia, Opelousas Catholic and Loreauville.
“We have had to replace ten or more starters throughout the course of this season,” said Harper. “It has been one form of adversity or another. But, our seniors continue to lead. I just hope that we can win for the senior’s last game, especially because of homecoming. These group of seniors will be remembered for their leadership and their ability to guide this program in a positive direction for the underclassmen.”
Yet, for all of the hardship that Sacred Heart has had to face this past season, a number of shining lights have brightly pierced through the fog of adversity.
The Trojans still continue to play with that “Do or Die” attitude that exemplifies the school motto. Also, because underclassman has had to take on a bigger role in game situations, that experience brings forth a bright future for Sacred Heart football.
“One thing for sure, we continue to play with effort,” stated Harper. “Regardless if we are outmanned or not our players continue to fight. At times, we have had to start five freshmen on defense. It’s like they are sophomores now.”
In order for the Trojans to end on a winning note, and to send the senior football players out with one last victory, Sacred Heart must pull out all the stops against a Delcambre team that is a mirror image of themselves in terms of overall records.
Delcambre has had a rough go of it in 2015. The Panthers’ only two wins have come against a winless Jeanerette team and against Catholic of New Iberia because of a forfeit. Catholic was forced to forfeit four games due to an ineligible player.
Delcambre comes into the game giving up 25.3 points per game; a fact that may bode well for the Trojans and their run game.
“I think that both teams are evenly matched,” said Harper. “We are almost identical to each other in the fact that we both like to run the ball. I am hoping that the run game that we were efficient at towards the beginning of the year will gives us an advantage over them.