Bobcats brace for Ville Platte

VILLE PLATTE – Usually cats and dogs don’t like each other, but it has been 19 years since these two teams clawed on the football field.
The last time the Bobcats and Bulldogs faced each other, Eunice won 31-0 in 1996.
“We are ready for district,” Eunice head coach Paul Trosclair said of the run that includes five four teams ranked in the LHSAA power rankings Top 32.
The Bobcats (4-1) are presently ranked No. 4, followed by No. 5 Port Barre (4-1), No. 11 Church Point (4-1), No. 20 Pine Prairie (3-2) and No. 29 Northwest (4-1).
“It is good that we have so many teams doing well,” Trosclair said of the district. “We are accustomed to facing good competition.”
Ville Platte (3-2) opened the season with a 30-0 win over Mamou before dropping back-to-back games against Basile (7-0) and Lafayette Christian (36-6).
The Bulldogs rebounded with wins over North Central (36-14) and Opelousas (13-7).
“They run the ball well,” Trosclair said of the Bulldogs. “They have a pretty good offensive line.”
Against North Central, the Bulldogs had 269 yards of total offense, led by Daylon Jones (112 yards on 23 carries, 2 TDs) and Terez Alfred (12 carries for 90 yards, TD) who also scored on a 70-yard kickoff return.
Last week against OHS, the Bulldogs rolled up 294 yards of total offense as Jones added 179 yards on 31 carries, including a 10-yard touchdown run.
Against the Tigers, Alfred completed 4-of-8 passes for 103 yards, aided by a 35 yard scoring strike to Jaishan Doucet.
“It is good to see Ville Platte back on our district schedule,” Trosclair said. “The short trip to Ville Platte allows our fans to follow us.”
Trosclair said their non-district schedule that included four Class 4-A teams should prepare them for the district challenge.
The Bobcats opened the year with a 48-0 win over 4-A Opelousas and a 44-28 victory over 3-A Jennings.
Eunice also grabbed wins over 4-A teams St. Martinville (40-18) and Rayne (19-7).
The Bobcats’ only loss on the season came against undefeated 4-A Crowley, 34-10.
“We practice hard,” he said. “There is no fooling around - the team wants to get better.”
The Bobcat offense was balanced against Rayne with 205 yard rushing and 203 yards passing.
“We discovered in the spring that we have some pretty good receivers,” Trosclair said. “Alex (Richard) has been very accurate with his passes so we can both run and throw the ball.”
Richard has completed 53-of-83 passes for 868 yards with eight touchdowns and two interceptions.
Nick Powell has 476 yards rushing on 76 carries with six touchdowns for the Bobcats.
Travis Godfrey leads the Bobcats with 303 yards on 17 catches with five touchdowns.
Terryl Poullard has 22 receptions for 271 yards and a touchdown.