Eagles to host Cajuns for homecoming, top 10 showdown

Central Catholic and Metairie Park Country Day will meet Friday on the gridiron in a battle of top 10 teams in the latest Louisiana High School Athletic Association Division IV power rankings.
Central Catholic is ranked No. 3 in the latest rankings, while Country Day is No. 7.
In addition to the ramifications the game has for power rankings, Central Catholic coach Tommy Minton said the game is a big one because it’s homecoming.
“You always want to play well for homecoming,” Minton said. “You got a lot of alumni come back and take part in the homecoming activities and you want to represent the program they graduated from well.”
The Eagles, who have battled injuries throughout the season, will be without quarterback Blake Byrne Friday, Minton said.
In his place, Stefano Guarisco will start, Minton said, while he said the coaching staff has worked Tyler O’conn at quarterback as well.
Guarisco, who played the remainder of the first half a week ago as well as the entire second half after Byrne went out in a 17-7 victory against Lafayette Christian, is normally the Eagles’ starting tailback.
A week ago, though, he accounted for both of the Eagles’ touchdowns from the quarterback position with a score each in the second and third quarters.
Guarisco and O’conn both played at quarterback earlier this year when Byrne was out with an injury against Ascension Episcopal.
On the year, Guarisco has carried 200 times for 947 yards and 16 scores.
He also has completed 5 of 14 passes for 89 yards with one interception.
In his lone action against Ascension Episcopal, O’conn completed 5 of 6 passes for 62 yards with one interception.
The Eagles featured a balanced attack among its receivers this season.
Samarick Paul leads the group with 24 catches for 317 yards and five touchdowns, while Jalen Johnson has caught 15 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns. Guarisco has caught 15 passes for 255 yards and three touchdowns, while Matthew Barbier has hauled in 17 passes for 241 yards and one score.
Barbier led the Eagles a week ago with a couple of big catches.
A week ago, Country Day defeated Covenant Christian, 35-14.
Jace Griffin rushed 21 times for 113 yards and scored two touchdowns in the win, while quarterback Morgan Farrell completed 7 of 12 passes for 98 yards and two touchdowns.
Receiver Trey Harrell caught six passes for 104 yards and two scores.
The Cajuns also got a solid contribution from running back Jack White, who rushed for 16 carries for 73 yards and a touchdown.
This season, Griffin has rushed 75 times for 778 yards and 16 touchdowns in the Cajuns’ split-back veer offense.
“(Jase Griffin) is their go-to back. He’s their leading rusher and he runs very hard,” Minton said.
Through the air, Farrell has completed 25 of 51 passes for 679 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions.
The Cajuns’ top target this year has been Harrell, who has hauled in 14 passes for 484 yards and five touchdowns. He is averaging 34.6 yards per reception.
“When they throw the ball, they throw it to (Trey Harrell), who is a really good skill athlete,” Minton said. “He’s also very dangerous in the kick return game. He’s returned two punts and three kickoffs for touchdowns this year, so he is a big-time threat there. He’s someone we definitely got to account for.”
Defensively, the Cajuns mostly line up with a five-man look upfront.
“They try to take the run away from you and force you into throwing the football,” Minton said.
Additional reporting by www.nola.com.