Coach looking to bring newcomers up to speed by July
– Breaux Bridge High football coaches are looking to bring a big group of newcomers to the squad up to the level of the returning players by July as the team prepares for its second season under head coach Tyler Pierce.
Unlike last season when the late date of Pierce’s hiring kept the Tigers from being able to get in spring work, Breaux Bridge had spring practice this year. They moved into summer workouts as soon as they could.
“We basically started the first Monday in June,” Pierce said. “We didn’t have a lot of numbers last year, so we have a ton of new faces, and so one of the biggest things was having to hit the ground running.
“It’s about how quick we can get (those new faces) coached up in June, and then in July, that’s when we’ll have more normalcy as a team. The senior leadership and a lot of the guys we have returning is huge because we’re going to go as far as what they know. So the quicker we can get them leveling up to us who’ve been here under the system for a year, that’s huge for us right now.”
Some of the new players weren’t on the team last year but had played as freshmen and sophomores.
“I was such a late hire last year that one of the biggest things was (players) needing to feel me out, but a lot of them wanted to come play,” Pierce said. “They were already asking to play almost the middle of last season.”
The Tigers also are bringing in a large class of about 27 freshmen to the team.
The new players are learning not only how to play and offensive and defensive schemes, they’re also learning how the team goes about its work.
“I’m having a blast because it’s a bunch of blank canvases,” Pierce said. “They don’t know the weight room routine for us, and if they did it’s not the way that we do it now. During the spring we put all of the basic fundamentals in. We had our little checklist, and we checked off more boxes than we didn’t. That’s what is so fun about it right now. It’s a blessing and a curse. By August, I really feel it’ll be a lot like last year. They’ll know it, but is it second nature? That’s the battle that we’ll be fighting.”
Breaux Bridge has been competing in seven- on-seven work at Loreauville High this summer in addition to the summer workouts.
“We’ve seen Loreauville, we’ve seen NISH (New Iberia Senior High), a couple of other teams that we’ll see soon,” Pierce said. “Going over there and letting them see the film of what we’re doing right, what we’re doing wrong, that’s been our biggest thing was just keeping them competing.”
Seven-on-seven intrasquad work against teammates isn’t as helpful, he said, because the players on each side of the ball know the other side’s playbook already.
“It’s been excellent,” he said. “Ups and downs, but the main thing is I just want to make sure we’re maintaining proper technique and that all the details are there. The more that they see and do it, it’ll be second nature before they know it.”
The Tigers lost a big group of nearly 20 seniors from last season’s team, which will be a big hit this year, but Pierce said he likes the small senior group he has this year.
“Baylon Champagne I think was our leading rusher at the end of the year and our leading tackler,” Pierce said. “Shawnee (Lewis) basically was a key cog on defensive. In our secondary, Noah Solomon will be a returning starter. Chase Broussard will be a returning starter. Dakowen Celestine is another guy in the secondary. Cruz Trail, who is probably going to move more inside so we can move Shawnee outside, he started last year.”
Christian Joseph, a returning senior, and Percy Moultrie, who will be a sophomore, started last year on the defensive front. Nose guard Ken’yan Demonter is someone the coaches will ask a lot of this season as well, Pierce said. “These are all guys that saw playing time.”
COOLING DOWN – Players finish off a morning workout by running on the field at Breaux Bridge High School as they get in condition for the upcoming football season that starts this fall. (Chris Landry)
CONDITIONING WORK – Breaux Bridge High football players run during summer workouts held at the school’s football stadium this past week. (Chris Landry)
BBHS
A lot saw action on offense as well, the coach said.
“Isaiah LeBlanc was a receiver who had to play quarterback towards the end of the season (because of injuries),” Pierce said. “He’s getting healthy. He’s having an excellent summer. In 7-on-7 his presence is really being felt as a receiver.”
Caynon Ardoin, who was not on the team last year but who has experience, is slotted in at quarterback. He was a standout on the baseball diamond for the Tigers in the spring.
“He’s a really good baseball player,” Pierce said. “He’s taking the reps at No. 1 (QB) right now. He’s good. He’s just has to get reps. He’s going to be crucial. He’s a senior who we just needed to get a chance. He can spin the ball.”
The Tigers lost a lot of their offensive line players to graduation.
“(Senior) Luke Landry will have to be a big-time leader for us there,” Pierce said. “Christian Joseph played both (offensive line and defensive line) and he’ll have to step in again (on offense) possibly. We do have some new faces who will have to end up there, but they’re not ready just yet.”
Champagne and Lewis return at running back and Arkell Jean-Batiste, who didn’t play last year, is a speedy addition who stood out in track in the spring.
“He’s going to give us a different dynamic at running back, and we can move him to different places,” Pierce said. “Nelson Borel (who was injured last year) is a multi-sport athlete from football to basketball to track, and we’re hoping he can take what Ethan Comb gave us at tight end, that Y-position. He’s got a little bit of a mean streak. He can run, he’s lengthy. We’re hoping we can insert his presence not only offensively but defensively as well.”
The Tigers had a lot of young players who got experience last year because of injuries to more experienced players, Pierce said.
The freshmen will have a chance to contribute as well.
“That’s how we’re going to build depth is through more youth,” Pierce said.
The coach said that the defensive scheme will remain the same. The Tigers will have a new offensive coordinator, but the terminology will remain the same so players don’t have to learn anything new that way.
Because of injuries the team had a lot of different looks last year on offense from the spread to a split back veer to a wildcat offense, but the team won’t have to learn a completely new system this year, the coach said.
“I think one of the biggest things for us is we have to find our identity early,” Pierce said. “I feel we struggled with that last year. This summer it’s important not just to focus on the details and stuff, but finding that mean streak. A lot of that, I think, comes through confidence.”
The coaches are changing the workouts a little bit each time to keep the players on their toes, which has kept it fun for the players.
“I definitely don’t want to do something just because that’s the way it’s always been done,” he said.
