St. Martinville – St. Martinville played well enough to garner a win on Friday but the Tigers’ offense couldn’t get anything going in an 18-6 home loss to Northside Friday night.
The Tigers fell to 2-3 on the football season while Northside netted its first win to improve to 1-4.
“We couldn’t really get going offensively, with Northside being very aggressive on the D-line and the linebackers filled holes pretty well against us,” SMSH coach James Dartez said. “Our quarterback (Christian Gedward) was a little banged up. That hampered his mobility so we couldn’t get the quarterback run game going. We were just kind of out of sync offensively. Defense played well enough for us to win the football game.”
A big punt return around the middle of the third quarter swung the game in Northside’s favor, Dartez said.
“Northside played well on the defensive side of the ball,” Dartez said. “We didn’t have the running game going. That’s been an issue for us here and there throughout the season with our young offensive line. It kind of bit us (Friday) night. It’s one of those things you’ve got to take with a young team, but we’re going to get better.”
Defensively, St. Martinville stayed in the game most of the night.
“Hats off to the defense,” Dartez said. “They held up as long as they could. Offensively we weren’t in a rhythm. We couldn’t get anything going. We kind of left our defense out there to dry.”
Dartez said Gedward’s health will be evaluated this week as the Tigers prepare for Woodlawn (Baton Rouge) at home.
“We’re going to hold him out for most of the week from contact drills,” the coach said. “We’re going to see how he progresses throughout the week. But I told the kids right when I took the job, I care about them more as young men than as football players. If there’s any hesitation, we’re not going to play the kids (who are injured).”
Offensive consistency is the main thing the Tigers will work on in practice this week, Dartez said, especially with four freshmen starting on the offensive line.
“From a coaching perspective, not from a results perspective, those guys are coming along just fine,” Dartez said. “Me and my coaches laugh and talk about it — they were 13 years old when we first got there. We’ve had a couple of birthdays since then. But we’re dealing with a bunch of 13-, 14-year-old kids. To see where they’ve come from June to now is amazing. They help out with the middle school football games. But they were teammates with those kids last year. What we’re asking of them and what they’re facing on Friday night, and the progression that they’ve had, we’re totally set. Like I tell people, they’d better get us now because the future of St. Martinville football is going to be a problem.”
Woodlawn (3-2) has won two straight games, beating Belaire and Donaldsonville. The Panthers also beat Brusly in week 2 with losses to St. Amant and Denham Springs in the first and third games of the year.
“I’m expecting to see a well-coached ball club,” Dartez said. “I know coach (Tramon) Douglas over there played for my mentor at Grambling State University. I know he comes from great coaching stock. He knows what he’s doing, so I’m expecting a well-coached, very wellprepared football team.”
