Patterson travels to face Catholic High-New Iberia

Patterson went back to the basics this week with Catholic High-New Iberia’s Wing-T waiting on them Friday in New Iberia.
But first, the Lumberjacks had to turn the page on last week’s 38-7 loss at Hahnville.
“We talked to the guys about doing the little things better, just being more consistent on both sides of the ball, because our effort has been good,” Patterson Coach Chad Blanchard said.
Patterson’s offense got off to a fast start last week when quarterback Sirbatian Charles floated a pass into the back of the end zone where standout Nehemiah Augustus leaped over a defender for a 14-yard highlight-reel touchdown with 6:12 remaining in the first quarter.
Augustus setup the score with a 45-yard catch-and-run on the first play of Patterson’s possession. He had four catches for 69 yards and a touchdown in the game and has caught seven passes for 110 yards and a touchdown this season.
“We had a little momentum early with big plays to Nehemiah,” Blanchard said after the game. “But in a football game, there are a lot of things that goes on and you have to keep your momentum and we didn’t. I thought that we had trouble staying on the field offensively, so we couldn’t develop or keep any kind of consistency, which was the biggest thing that hurt us.”
Patterson’s offense had three straight three and outs and five in the game.
Charles was 10-of-20 passing for 126 yards with a touchdown and an interception Friday. For the season, he has completed 22-of-39 passes for 323 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
Patterson (0-2) has had 223 and 225 yards of total offense but has been without two key players. Receiver Mykel Jones, one of the nation’s top college recruits, and Shay Ragas, one of the team’s best athletes, both are out with injuries.
Standout running back Tristen Ausama is also off to a slow start with 30 carries for 93 yards and score.
“You always want to get the running game going, but if not, you have to adjust to what the defense is trying to take away,” Blanchard said. “They can’t take away everything.”
Catholic High (1-1) runs a 3-3 stack defense.
“It’s simply six guys in the box, and they (Catholic) do some moving players around,” Blanchard said. “We just need to be patient, see what the defense is giving us and exploit it, and as the play caller, that goes for me, too.”
Catholic High plays a lot of zone in the secondary, according to Blanchard.
The Panthers offense overcame six fumbles (three lost) in last week’s 24-6 win against Erath, according to The Daily Iberian.
Catholic high was backed up to its own 4-yard line when quarterback Diallo Landry hit Jeremy Touchet for a 96-yard touchdown pass with 7:22 remaining in the first half, The Iberian reported.
Seth Pierre, 18 carries for 102 yards, added a 10-yard touchdown run later in the quarter for a 14-0 halftime lead, the newspaper reported.
Catholic High opened the second half with a 23-yard field goal to take a 17-0 lead, The Iberian reported.
Catholic High received 27 points this week in the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 2A poll. The Panthers are two spots and 27 points behind No. 10 Pickering. Catholic was the runner-up in Division III (Class 2A select) last season.
“They lost a lot from that state runner-up team, but there’s a core group from that team that’s back,” Blanchard said. “Pierre along with DL/OL Zi’Yon Hill and OT Wyatt Richthofen are all standout performers.”
The game may come down to a chess match between Catholic High’s Wing-T and Patterson’s defense.
“They do a good job with the Wing-T,” Blanchard said. “In fact, they’re probably the best Wing-T team in the state. So we went over assignment football, making sure everybody knows what keys they are supposed to be reading.”
The ’Jacks’ defense played well in the first half of Friday’s game but struggled in the second half.
“Our defense was just on the field entirely too long,” Blanchard said. “But as a unit, the defense has been playing pretty well. They never used the 5A thing or size thing as an excuse. I think they will play well Friday.”
Patterson has played two Class 5A teams to open the season.
Kickoff is 7 p.m.