On Friday, December 1st, Acadiana Rams drove to New Orleans for this head-to-head semifinal matchup with Edna Karr Cougars in their home stadium, Morris F.X. Jeff, Sr. Park. With a 6:30 kickoff, these two teams were going at it to have a chance to play next week in the state championship game. With Acadiana winning the contest, they will be facing Catholic High on Saturday, December 9th, for the championship game located in the Superdome, in New Orleans.
This first half of this game was a defensive showdown, allowing only one total score. This score came after the Rams stopped the Cougars on a fourth and goal turning the ball over. This Rams offense proceeded to march the ball down the field, ending the drive on a 39-yard run by Zeke Hypolite. This was followed by a successful two-point conversion.
On the first drive of the second half, Edna Karr would respond. The Cougars would be the ball down the field until finally, they were in the red zone. Quarterback for the Cougars, John Johnson, made an amazing scramble outside of the pocket to gain more time before finding and throwing a dot to wide receiver Oliver Mitchell in the endzone for six. Responding with a two-point conversion attempt of their own, Bryant Sanchez was given the handoff and broke the planes tying the game 8-8 in the third quarter.
The Rams on their next drive would be up to some trickery. After having a huge return, the Rams were looking at a three-and-out with their punting unit out on the field. A surprise to everyone, in their own territory, Acadiana would do a direct snap to Shamarius Harris who would run through the linemen, going for 65 yards untouched and another score for the Rams. After another two-point conversion, the Rams would be in the lead by eight again 16-8 with time winding down in the third.
This lead, however, would not last that long as John Johnson and the Cougars quickly moved down the field, scoring again within the next minute and a half. John Johnson would have another touchdown throw to add to this game’s stats. This time the pass was caught by Tyrone Wilson in the back corner of the endzone. Taron Francis would be responsible for catching the two-point conversion pass to tie the game up again. This would be the last score of the third quarter. Both teams tied up at 16-16.
While the clock was winding down in the third quarter, the Ram offense was moving down the field. The start of the fourth would be among us and the rain from the sky would start falling around the same time. This would lead to the Rams being in a spot to score on the first play of the last quarter. Zeke Hypolite would rush for a 21-yard touchdown, his second touchdown of the night. This time, however, Acadiana would go the safe method and kick a PAT, putting them in the lead 23-16.
On the next drive with the rain coming down, Karr’s quarterback would throw a game-changing interception to Russell Babineaux, who would return it for a pick-six. The Rams, now up two possessions in the fourth, were looking like the momentum was on their side and nothing could stop them from heading to state.
Edna Karr would score one last time before this contest was over. After the pick-six, the Cougars offense only had one thing on their mind, score as soon as possible. This is a mission they completed. John Johnson would contribute tremendously to this drive. The duel-threat quarterback would keep the option play in Acadiana territory and run with ease for the touchdown, doing the same thing for the two-point conversion. With about seven minutes left in the game, it looked like there was a chance for a comeback.
This however would not be the case, with the offense never getting another chance on the field, with Rams runningbacks rushing for first down after first down until the clock ran to zero. With the contest ending 30-24, Acadiana rushed onto the field to celebrate and shake the hands of their opponents. They look to keep up this momentum when they face Catholic High in the championship game this week.
