Farmers present tough road contest for Bulldogs

Any time you have to go on the road in the opening round of the playoffs it is going to be tough. However, here and there upsets are pulled off and things happen. The Bulldogs of Ville Platte High (3-6) earned the 30th seed in the Class 3A playoffs and have to make a long trip north to meet the third seed, Union Parish High.
The Farmers (9-1) won District 2-3A and will host tomorrow night’s opening round game. Union Parish is primarily made up of the former Farmerville High School, which was always a football power.
Union’s only loss of the season came to Class 1A power Haynesville in week two. Since then, the Farmers have been on an eight-game win streak. They are coming off of a dramatic, late-game 33-24 win over Richwood Rams.
Ville Platte had a shot to win last week’s hard-fought game against Northwest, but the turnover bug kept that from happening. Despite falling behind, the Bulldogs found a way to keep it close. This week, it will be crucial to make the most of every opportunity to get points and not turnover the football if the Bulldogs are going to have a shot at pulling off the upset.
Farmerville, now Union Parish, has always been known for hard-hitting linebackers and defensive backs that come on blitzes from deep in the secondary. That will be something a little different for senior quarterback and Grambling commitment Isaiah Thomas. The Farmers are limiting teams to less than two touchdowns a game. Their defense is their flagship. The VPHS offensive line has to come together and protect Thomas and be physical. Union as a team has 17 sacks this year and 11 interceptions.
For the Bulldogs, a big key to victory is to be physical with the home team and weather the initial storm. Union will play smash mouth football and hit hard from start to finish. It is crucial the Bulldogs do the same.
On offense, Union will run the ball mostly behind Desmond Turner, a sophomore. Turner has 1,169 yards on 157 carries this season. Quarterback Jamarius Williams will also do a lot of moving of the football. The senior has carried the ball 88 times for 1,046 yards this season. In the air, Williams has connected for 760 yards over 10 games. Of those yards and completions, he has hit DeAnder Elliot for 626 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Ville Platte collected under 300 yards of total offense against Northwest. While, that was not bad, only 125 came from running the ball. Jermarcus Jones had another 100 yards and Thomas threw for 168 yards. Tulane committed Kendall Ardoin caught for 78 yards against the Raiders. His performance and ability to make plays could be the key to an upset tomorrow night.