Righting the ship

Coming into the 2016 season the Sacred Heart Trojans knew that they would face some of the toughest competition in the state, especially with the caliber of teams in District 5-2A play.
The last three games have shown that to be the truest of statements, as Sacred Heart has dropped all three of those games to fall to 4-3 on the year and 1-3 in district play.
Righting the ship is a priority for the Trojans if they hope to break into the top 16 teams in the Division III power rankings and secure a spot in the post-season.
Sacred Heart will have that very opportunity tomorrow night as they host the West St. Mary Wolfpack in a critical game for the Trojans. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
“We definitely need to get back into the win column if we want to have a shot of making the playoffs,” stated Sacred Heart head coach Josh Harper. “I really feel if we win the remaining games we are supposed to that we will be in the playoffs. But, it starts here Friday night. We have to take care of business against West St. Mary first.”
The last three weeks the Trojan offense had lost its identity that carried it through the first four games, namely by running the ball. A majority of the Sacred Heart yardage has come from the passing game, as the Trojans only have 81 yards on the ground compared to 366 yards through the air.
While it is important that the passing game has to be a part of a team’s offensive success, head coach Josh Harper knows that if the Trojans are to make any move into the playoffs and beyond they must regain their once dominant run game.
“It has been tough for us to run the ball lately just from the simple fact that we have lost some starting linemen to injury,” said Harper. “Having to change up the offensive front from one week to the next has really cut down on the continuity we had at the beginning of the season. We will have to do that again this week because we lost another starter Friday night against Loreauville.”
On the flip side, the Sacred Heart defense has also faced their own struggles. In the last 10 quarters of play, the Trojans have given up 85 points and over 600 yards of total offense.
“We have played some really good offensive teams over the past few weeks, there is no doubt about it,” commented Harper. “Our defensive unit has gone out and played as well they could have. We just are outsized up front.
But, one thing is for sure, we have not shown any type of letdown. We are still playing as hard as we were at the start of the year.”
The good news for Sacred Heart is that they have ran the gauntlet of District 5-2A and have some very favorable games in the final part of their schedule, including tomorrow night’s contest against West St. Mary.
The Wolfpack come into Soileau/Landry field with an overall record of 1-5 and a district record of 1-3, with their only win coming against Jeanerette.
West St. Mary averages 10 points a game on offense and have been held to six or fewer points in four of their six games. The Wolfpack give up 43 points per game on defense. However, in their defense, West St. Mary’s opponents have a combined record of 34-8 and three of their opponents are undefeated on the season.
“They have played a really tough schedule,” said Harper. “One thing about West St. Mary is that they do not back down from anyone. They do not get intimidated. It will be a dog fight for us. They remind me so much of Jeanerette. They have a ton of speed and can break it at any time. Hopefully we can limit the number of big plays.”