An O that can go: Undefeated Barbe lighting up scoreboard with great frequency
by William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor
Barbe football coach Dennis Owens is grateful for two things: an explosive offense with players that are not concerned with who gets top billing.
“We’ve got a lot of mouths to feed,” said Owens, now in his fourth season as head coach. “The kids are unselfish. They make it easy.”
A year after making a run to the Division I nonselect state quarterfinals, Barbe is back and better with a perfect 3-0 start heading into Friday’s home game with Lafayette High (3-0) for the start of District 3-5A play.
The Buccaneers have reached such a level of performance with an offense that averages 46 points and generates 456 yards a game.
Senior quarterback Jelandon Gray, an Old Dominion commitment, has passed for nearly 4,000 career yards and 54 touchdowns, while senior running back Jordin Griffin, an LSU baseball pledge, has gone over 2,000 yards rushing in his career following a breakthrough junior season.
Wide receiver Sawyer Kuypers, the third member of the team’s talented triumvirate, provides a solid down-the-field threat and a target for Gray on the outside. The 6-foot-2, 210-pounder’s another player bound to play at the next level with seven to eight scholarship offers.
“We do a lot of power, power read with him (Griffin) and Jelandon,” Owen said of his spread system. “We try to make as hard as we can on people. We speed it up when we can, slow it down when we want. It depends on the team we’re playing. We signal everything in, and he’ll (Gray) call it to the offense. He calls the protections for the pass plays.”
Barbe’s offense got better during the offseason with the addition of wide receivers from neighboring schools with Fischer Willis of St. Louis and Chris Rideaux of Hamilton Christian joining forces with Kuypers to give the Buccaneers additional firepower.
“You can’t just double one on defense, because hopefully they’ll make you pay for it,” Owens said.
The Barbe-Lafayette High matchup is part of a district that may feature greater balance than in years past. District 3-5A staple Acadiana (3-0) is the only team ranked at No. 7 in the Class 5A poll, but the Wreckin’ Rams are one of four undefeated teams, including Barbe and Lafayette, with district newcomer St. Thomas More at 2-1.
“Lafayette’s going to be a challenge with a Lamar commit at running back (Comeaux transfer Jaden Celestine), and Dartmouth commit at quarterback (Richard Saunier),” Owens said. “Sam Houston has a great, huge offensive lineman (Notre Dame commitment Albert Semien) and Sulphur is undefeated. There’s no freebies.”
Gray is the most experienced member of the group, having stepped into his first varsity competition as a freshman.
Barbe was set to rely on a senior quarterback for the 2023 season when he suffered a torn ACL in the jamboree.
“He was 14 years old for the first couple of games,” Owens said. “We threw him in the fire, and we’ve been riding him ever since. He’s a competitor. He has gotten bigger, faster, and stronger each year, and obviously he’s more comfortable with the offense each year. We can expand things and do different things.”
Gray’s ability as a true dual-threat quarterback puts tremendous pressure on defenses to account for his running skills.
The Buccaneers went 6-5 in each of Gray’s first two seasons and advanced to the playoffs, where they lost to Zachary and Covington, respectively, in the first round.
As Gray continued to evolve, he exploded in 2025 with career highs in total yards (3,181) and touchdowns (47). He completed 63.1% of his passes (130 of 206) for 2,316 yards, 32 touchdowns and five interceptions, and added 1,501 yards and 15 TDs on 147 carries.
Gray recorded games of more than 300 total yards four times, including a career-best 456 yards and seven touchdowns in a 70-65 setback to Lake Charles College Prep. He was 13 of 19 passing with 291 yards and five TDs, adding 165 yards and 2 TDs on 13 attempts.
Owens said Gray’s game-breaking ability can be attributed to his speed where he’s run sub-22 seconds in the 200 meters. He also showed toughness, not allowing a painful hip pointer late in the season to slow him down.
“He’s just a competitor along with being a great athlete,” Owens said. “He’s got a great arm.”
Barbe showed its mettle during the second half of its season, bouncing back from a three-game losing streak to Carencro, Southside and Acadiana, and closed the regular season with four successive wins over New Iberia, Lafayette, Sulphur and Sam Houston.
The Bucs did so with an electric offense that averaged 44.2 points and scored 40-plus points in 10 games, including 70 and 65.
Griffin’s return from an injury gave Barbe’s offense an instant jolt of energy that carried into the playoffs.
He went on a five-game tear, bridging the latter half of the regular season with the team’s first two state playoff wins over Northwood and West Monroe.
Griffin returned to torch Sulphur and Sam Houton in the final two games of the regular season with 277 yards and a career-best 315-yard effort and six touchdowns.
He was just getting started.
Griffin remained in a zone in a 49-21 first-round playoff win over Northwood, scoring another six touchdowns in a 267-yard effort. He followed that with 249 yards and three touchdowns in a 42-35 upset of West Monroe.
However, on his final carry of that game, Griffin suffered a thigh bruise which kept him out of practice the following week in preparation for Neville in the quarterfinal round.
On his first rushing attempt, Griffin went backward and suffered a broken toe that led to a deflating 42-0 setback.
Griffin rushed for 1,281 yards with 18 touchdowns over a five-game span until the Neville game. He wound up with 1,463 yards on 97 carries – a 15.1-yards-per-carry average – and 22 touchdowns. He also caught 19 passes for 299 yards and three TDs.
“He didn’t really get going until Week 7 and 8,” Owens said. “Once he got going it kind of changed the dynamic of the offense and what we were doing.”
Kuypers became Gray’s top target with 55 receptions for 1,010 yards and four touchdowns.
He enjoyed a 10-catch, 187-yard effort with three touchdowns in the team’s 63-42 loss to Carencro. He scored three times in the team’s 55-10 win over Sulphur, catching five passes for 51 yards.
Owens attributed some of his defensive struggles a year ago – allowing 38 points per game – to a unit that had its share of inexperience. The Bucs also faced a difficult schedule that contributed to their 1-5 start with eight to nine new faces in the starting lineup.
“We had some growing pains early,” he said. “It took a while for them to get going. They got better throughout the year and got to the point where they were helping.”
Barbe returned its top two tacklers, senior linebacker Bo Armstrong (114 tackles, 30 TFLs) and senior safety Dedrick Tillman (93 tackles, 6 TFLs). Sophomore cornerback Terrius Lemons led the Bucs with five interceptions a year ago.
The Bucs, who also had to replace a slot receiver and tight end, had the peace of mind in bringing back four of their starting offensive linemen with junior center Dandre Dugas (6-3, 325), sophomore left tackle Peyton Holmes, sophomore right guard Ulises Prado and senior right tackle Kyle Wilkinson.
“Almost everyone we have has varsity experience from last year,” Owens said.
For the first time in three years, Barbe won its season opener with a 42-15 triumph against reigning Division II nonselect state champion Iowa.
Gray passed for 151 yards and four touchdowns, Griffin rushed for 132 yards and a score, and Kuypers caught two of Gray’s touchdowns with five grabs for 82 yards.
The Bucs led 28-15 at halftime and gained separation in the second half by shutting out the Yellow Jackets, 14-0. Rideau (4-41, TD) and Willis (3-14) each made their presence felt in their first game with their new school.
Owens said it wasn’t uncommon to see a lot of Griffin during the summer. One of the nation’s top center fielders, Griffin spent a good portion of the time competing in showcase events in California, North Carolina, Maryland, Georgia and Florida.
He also competed for a spot with one of USA Baseball’s age-group teams and took batting practice in a Major League Baseball stadium.
“He’s all over the country,” he said. “He was spread out all over. He made three practices for football.”
Griffin, the team’s leading rusher this year with 541 yards on 46 carries (11.8 yards per carry) and 8 TDs, has several offers to play both football and baseball at Ole Miss, UL, McNeese State and Old Dominion.
The Bucs defeated St. Louis (47-0) and Cecilia (48-19) with the help of their ‘Big 3’.
Gray threw for 172 yards and 4 TDs against St. Louis, with Kuypers catching two of those TDs on four catches for 91 yards.
Griffin’s 206 yards and 3 TDs keyed his team’s 284-yard rushing effort over St. Louis. He delivered a second straight 200-yard game with 203 yards and 4 TDs on 19 attempts in a game Barbe built a 48-13 third-quarter lead over Cecilia en route to a 48-19 victory.
Gray passed for 203 yards and 3 TDs, with Kuypers leading the way with two more TDs, catching six passes for 52 yards.
For the season, Gray has completed 38 of 55 passes for 526 yards with 11 TDs and no interceptions. He’s also rushed 26 times for 200 yards and another score.
Kuypers, who has scholarship offers from Kent State, McNeese, Old Dominion, Portland State, Sacramento State and Southeastern Louisiana, leads the Bucs with 15 catches for 225 yards and 6 TDs with contributions from both Rideau (9-108, 2 TDs) and Willis (6-105, 2 TDs).
“Willis was St. Louis’ best player and has come in and taken over the X position and done well,” Owens said. “Rideau has offers from Grambling and McNeese. We try and make it as difficult on people as we can. You really can’t double anybody.
“We take what they give us,” said Owens, who was previously the team’s offensive coordinator for four years. “We’re going to be aggressive. We’ll try and take advantage of mismatches, or what they’re doing, and see if we can exploit it. It’s good to have the talent we do, and we can make adjustments.”