At 6’6, 240 pounds, Laramie Guidry is a towering defensive end and in fact one of the best in South Louisiana for the 2024 class while also having a 3.4 GPA and a 25 on his ACT in the classroom. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana native has had plenty of success rushing off the edge for one of the best defensive lines in the state last season in the Dunham Tigers as he helped lead the team to their first state championship appearance since 2004 by having 25.5 tackles, 16 sacks, seven TFLs, 13 QB hurries, a forced fumble, and seven pass deflections with two resulting in interceptions. The 2nd Team All-District selection also had the game clinching sack against U-High in the Division III Select Semifinals to send the Tigers to the Superdome.
“It was a great experience that I won’t probably ever forget. That is one of the best teams Dunham will ever see and we came together as a family to accomplish our goal we had set in the summer. It also helped to have a three-star defensive end like Jake Rizzo to compete with day to day.”
Now, he is trying to accomplish those same goals for the team that he helped defeat in the semifinals as Guidry has transferred to U-High for his senior season. Guidry is excited for the opportunity to add his talents to an already talented U-High Cub football team that has high expectations to compete for a state championship in 2023.
“I am loving U-High and I am very excited for the season ahead. With multiple DI talented players on defensive and offensive side, I see no reason why we can’t win state this year. My impression is that this program’s foundation is hard work and I can see that day to day. That’s the type of stuff that isn’t easily noticed being from another school like Dunham.”
The defense is especially going to be very strong as the unit is led by talented players like LB Keylan Moses, LB Harry Beacham, safety Marcus Dawson, LB Alec Haynes, OL/DL Lamar Brown, and now Guidry just to name a few.
“As mentioned earlier, we have at least one of not multiple major DI talent at all levels from our D line to linebackers to our secondary. I think that any team that we will face will definitely have their hands tied trying to score.”
Offensive linemen definitely have their hands full in trying to block the long, quick, and twitchy defensive end that resembles his game to a lot of today’s top NFL defensive ends.
“I definitely watch a lot of film on guys like Micah Parsons and Nick Bosa. They are the best at what I do so I try to take in what I see them do for sure.”
Guidry takes those moves that he learns from the pros and tries to add them to already his natural athleticism and God given size.
“My biggest strength is my pass rushing, specifically my speed in that area of the game.”
The first year U-High Cub has been tough to block given already that he has posted double digit sacks this past season on an already loaded defensive line filled with college prospects. This season, Guidry looks to take those sack numbers to the next level after working on even more moves this offseason.
“I need to improve my initial punch off the line. I have been hitting the weight room hard, constantly increasing speed off the ball and punch off the ball. If I can improve those, it will make my game a lot more well-rounded.”
“I want to definitely have anything over 16 sacks as that was my total for the season last year, but I also want to up my tackles and work to help on inside run a lot more.”
Getting bigger and stronger, Guidry showed off his improved self at the Gridiron Football Elite Camp at Rayville High School in Rayville, Louisiana. There, he dominated at the camp and was almost unblockable because of his quickness and length. At the end of the Gridiron Football Elite Camp Series, he was ranked as the number two performer towards the end of the spring.
“I had a great camp and came with confidence that I was going to dominate. It gave me a great lead into camp season with competitive 1on1s and drills.”
The dominant pass rusher was rewarded with an invitation to play in this year’s Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game at the end of the camp.
“It means a lot. Hopefully, I can go in there and dominate like the camp in Rayville and get more attention.”
There have already been a lot of eyes on the All-District performer as he has received offers from Central Arkansas and Marshall.
“Both those conversations went similar. They liked my speed off the ball and the way I give my all every play. Those are definitely two great offers to start with as they’re both DI and come from competitive conferences.”
It is only the beginning for his recruitment as he has received interest from schools like Georgetown, Army, Southeastern, Tulane, Stephen F. Austin, and Louisiana Tech. Not to mention, Guidry is still pretty new to the game and is only getting better.
“This will only be like my second or third year playing football seriously as my main sport. I used to be big into baseball, and then I made the switch to basketball and now, I’m at football.”
Having a basketball background has significantly helped the 6’6 prospect in making a clean transition to football.
“Basketball definitely helps me with my pass rush moves and my speed off the ball. Both of those were huge aspects of basketball for me, and they have translated. The flexibility required for basketball has also been beneficial for my football career as well.”
Laramie Guidry has now put his focus on football and is becoming one of the top defensive players in the Baton Rouge area. After dominating in our camp and then receiving two DI offers, the sky is only the limit like how many similar players to his skill set have also started off doing.
“Definitely give a player like me a chance even if his weight or strength is iffy, those things can and will be improved with time if the player works like he wants it. We can see edge rushers and long defensive ends starting to make headway into the highest levels of college football and even the NFL. These types of players can do a lot of damage under the right defense and coaching.”
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