Football Powerhouses Collide: Acadiana, John Curtis Set for Epic Playoff Duel
by: Mike Strom // GeauxPreps.com Contributor
Here are four words rarely associated in the same sentence: “John Curtis football’’ and “underdog.’’
But that’s exactly where the 28-time state champions find themselves heading into Friday night’s Division I Select regional playoff game against the formidable Acadiana Wreckin’ Rams.
The Patriots (5-5) enter with a .500 record and owning a No. 19 seed following a disappointing 4-5 regular season that was plagued by turnovers and concluded with three consecutive defeats and four losses overall in District 9-5A Catholic League play. A state champion as recently as two years ago, the Patriots were buoyed by a 21-13 bi-district victory against fellow Catholic League rival and No. 14 seed Brother Martin last week.
Six-time state champion Acadiana, on the other hand, enters the 7 p.m. kickoff at Bill Dotson Stadium Ted Davidson Field rested and riding an impressive nine-game winning streak powered by a high-scoring offense that has factored mightily in the 9-1 Rams earning a No. 3 seed and first-round bye.
The John Curtis-Acadiana winner advances to face the winner between No. 11 Jesuit and No. 6 Teurlings Catholic in the state quarterfinals.
“I guess underdog would be an accurate description of where we are,’’ John Curtis coach J.T. Curtis said candidly. “But we’re going to have to respond to that and we’re going to have to play to our capabilities. I think, if we do that, we’ll have a chance to win the ballgame. I really do.
“If we can play up to our capabilities and not turn the ball over, we’ll have a chance to be in the game and get it in the fourth quarter and see what happens from there.’’
Though unfamiliar, John Curtis’ current positioning represents a direct reflection of a brutal schedule that only got harder once Catholic League play commenced. The Patriots dropped four games to teams — Karr, Rummel, St. Augustine, and Jesuit – that earned four of the top 11 seeds in Division I select topped by No. 1 Karr and No. 5 Rummel.
Certainly, facing a quality opponent such as Acadiana so early, in the second round of the playoffs, represents another contributing factor to Curtis’ underdog role.
The District 3-5A champions from Lafayette, a state finalist last season, have ripped off nine consecutive wins since sustaining a season-opening 35-27 loss at reigning Division I Non-Select state champion Ruston more than two months ago. The last seven of those victories have involved some pinball-type numbers with the Rams averaging 44.7 points while allowing 6.8 for a differential of more than six touchdowns per outing.
Acadiana has scored 51, 59, 43, 55, 48, 45, and 62 points respectively in its last seven games as quarterback Caden DiBetta and company have incorporated a potent passing attack into the splitback veer arsenal for which the Rams are renowned.
Photo courtesy of Ricky Aube Photography.
“This is really a team that they have kind of built toward for at least a year,’’ said Curtis. “They’ve got 17 returning starters from last year that played in the state championship (game). Obviously, they’re playing with a lot of confidence. They really have not been challenged throughout the season since Ruston.
The last seven wins have been “complete blowouts,’’ Curtis said. “And, again, they have an explosive offense. They’ve always been and continue to be a football team that runs the football very physically and tries to dominate the line of scrimmage. This year and really toward the latter part of last year they’ve opened up more (offensively). They’re throwing the ball.
“They’ve got a quarterback who can make things happen with his feet and with his arm. He does a really good job of scrambling and keeping the play open so that he can make throws down the field. And, if he doesn’t like that, he’ll tuck it and run. He’s had as much success running it as he has throwing it.
“So they’ve kind of opened up their offense so that you can’t really zero in on one thing. And, if you do, they’re going to hurt you with the pass as they have done against teams that we’ve been able to see on tape.
“Defensively, they run pretty well, too. They’ve got guys who can run. You haven’t seen very many teams make big plays against them. But, again, it’s going to come down to the consistency of you staying within yourself and trying to pick up first downs and not get worried if you don’t break long plays for touchdowns. It’s going to be hard to break long plays against them for touchdowns because they run so well.’’
J.T. Curtis and the Patriots would know, having played and defeated the Rams as recently as last season in a 28-0 decision recorded in Metairie in Week 7.
“We’ve played physical teams who run the football so that won’t be new to us,’’ Curtis said. “We’ve played in a district that has skill players. So the key is that we know they’re going to make some plays, we’ve just got to try to limit the big ones. That’s what they’ve really hurt people with, just big plays. Quick-strike touchdowns. And, before you know it, you’re down in the ballgame.’’
The Rams got on one of those rolls after losing to Curtis last season, winning their next six games to advance to the state finals where third-seeded Catholic of Baton Rouge recorded a 55-31 victory in the LHSAA Allstate Sugar Bowl Prep Classic in the Caesars Superdome. It was the fourth state final to which McCullough has directed the Rams in his seven seasons as head coach.
“At the end of the day, everybody is zero and zero when you get in the playoffs,’’ said Acadiana coach Matt McCullough, who directed the Rams to their last two state titles in 2020 and 2019 during his current seven-year stint. “Last year we were the 8 seed and beat the 1 seed (Holy Cross, 28-14) in the quarters and the 5 seed (Karr, 30-24) in the semifinals. So you’ve got to go out there and play.
“Curtis is capable of winning big games. They’ve won a bunch over the years. Our guys understand that. They’re probably one of the better teams we’ve played in a while (this season). Comparable to Southside and St. Thomas More. So we’ve got to be ready to play.
“They beat us last year. We went over there and didn’t play very well. They played really well. So our guys understand that. We’ve got to continue (to understand) that and go out there and play.’’
DiBetta, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound senior, has passed for 1,412 yards and 20 touchdowns while being intercepted once in addition to rushing for 489 yards and four TDs. The Ram’s three-year starter moved past his coach, McCullough, midway through this season to become the Lafayette Parish school’s career passing leader and enters with 3,919 career passing yards.
There is no shortage of dangerous skill players surrounding DiBetta.
Running backs Jonah Gauthier and Tayden Collins have rushed for 901 and 701 yards respectively while scoring 12 and 10 touchdowns via 94 and 87 carries. Gauthier, the Rams’ lead back, missed four games earlier in the season due to a turf toe injury but is healthy and ready. Collins also has caught 3 passes good for 130 yards and another 2 touchdowns.
The Rams also feature two talented wide receivers and a tight end that provide DiBetta with multiple options playing behind a front line led by right tackle Jayden Lawrence and guard Braxton Scriber.
Senior Russell Babineaux, a UL commitment, and sophomore Collin DiBetta, younger brother of the quarterback, have caught 24 and 22 passes respectively as wideouts good for 589 and 506 yards and 8 and 7 touchdowns. Senior tight end Jaydon Bessard, another potential college prospect, has nine receptions good for 232 yards and 3 TDs.
Defensively, the Rams are led by junior tackle Darryus McKinley and six senior starters that include strong safety Keeman Thibodeaux, weakside linebacker Dajon Francis, star linebacker Keldrick Francis, cornerback Dalyn Lewis, free safety Braylon Noel and tackles Jayden Carmouche and Vallen Charles.
The younger brother of current LSU freshman defensive lineman Dominic McKinley, Darryus is a five-star prospect for 2026 while Lewis the cornerback is a returning All-State selection and Noel is a Grambling State commitment.
Acadiana’s defense, known as the Terrible Turks, has pitched two shutouts and allowed no more than 10 points in any of its last seven victories including a 7-0 run through District 3-5A. The Rams had allowed 63 points in their first two games.
“I think we’ve played well,’’ McCullough said. “I think we’ve done a good job as the year went on in preparing on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Last week during the bye, I think we did a good job of working on some stuff that we have to get better at, but we’ve got to continue to do that. We’ve had a couple of pretty good days of practice so far, so we’ve just got to continue to keep preparing and getting ourselves ready to go.
“Of course, John Curtis is a good football team. Curtis is always a sound and good football team. We’ve played well. But we always strive for perfection to continue to get better and I think our guys have done a good job this week of getting ourselves ready to play. But this is playoff time and we’ve got to be ready to come out and play for every game.’’
Senior quarterback Reggie Johnson directs a Curtis offense that features a running back by committee approach coming off of a strong performance against Brother Martin.
Photo courtesy of April Pix.
In his first season as a starter, Johnson appears to have found his stride at quarterback while attempting to replace a graduated three-year starter in Dagan Bruno, who is now at Tulane. Johnson has accounted for 1,129 yards and 10 touchdowns with his running and passing while completing 45 of 101 passes (44.6 percent) good for 643 yards and 5 TDs with two interceptions. Johnson also leads the team in rushing and touchdowns with 486 yards and 5 TDs via 101 carries.
Against Brother Martin, the 5-foot-9, 180-pound Johnson was responsible for 179 of John Curtis’ 369 yards with his passing and running in addition to accounting for two of the offense’s three touchdowns. Johnson completed 7 of 11 passes for 142 yards with a 29-yard touchdown to junior running back Jacobi Boudreaux and rushed 10 times for 37 yards with an 11-yard scoring run.
“We got Reggie out of the pocket a little bit. We got him on the corner and it opened up things for him,’’ Curtis said. “It’s opened up some opportunities for us. Of course, (Acadiana has) seen that, too, so I’m sure they’ll try to adjust.
“But, again, when you’re having to defend against the pass and the run, it helps you to be able to run the football or throw it depending on how (the opponent) decide(s) they want to play. And we need that again.
“We’ve got to eliminate turnovers. We cannot turn the ball over against this team and create poor field position. They’ve got a good kicking game. The kickoff guy is in the end zone about 90 percent of the time. So you’re going to start deep in your territory.
“You’ve got to try to pick up first downs so that if they do stop you when you do punt it, you’re going to have a chance to have them on their side of the 40 or the 30 rather than the 50. That’s going to be a key. Moving the ball, picking up first downs will allow you to help with field position. Because field position, no matter who you’re playing, is huge. It’ll be big in this game, too.’’
Boudreaux and senior Anthony “A.J.’’ Smith rank second and third behind Johnson in rushing with 440 and 418 yards respectively gained via 71 and 77 carries. Each has rushed for 3 touchdowns. Junior Nate Alario and senior Jack Corcoran have rushed for 397 and 232 yards respectively via 37 and 62 carries with 3 and 1 touchdowns scored.
Senior Xavier Brown is John Curtis’ top receiving threat with 20 receptions good for 281 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Defense continues to be the Patriots’ strong suit with a host of defenders racing one another to the football.
Defensive tackle Logan Barnes has recorded 63 tackles with 8 tackles for losses and a team-leading 5 sacks while end Tyree Gordon has 41 tackles, 7 tackles for losses, and 4 sacks. Linebackers Hayden Delatte, Jeffrey Curtis, Lane LeCron, and Benjamin Barron have registered 79, 77, 46, and 37 tackles respectively, with Jeffrey Curtis adding 10 tackles for losses, LeCron 7 tackles for losses and 4 sacks and Barron 4 sacks and 3 tackles for losses. Delatte leads the defense in tackles.
Safeties Marc Canzoneri and Jason Curtis have recorded 62 and 54 tackles respectively with Canzoneri getting 2 tackles for losses and Curtis one.
Cornerback Trey Brown and Xavier Brown at safety share the team lead with three interceptions each, with Trey Brown additionally contributing 8 passes defended. The Patriots have intercepted nine passes in total.
“(John Curtis) lost some guys on offense from last year, but I think they’ve improved throughout the year and they’ve gotten better,’’ McCullough said in dismissing any suggestion that Curtis is an underdog. “They had a three-year starting quarterback last year. They had three running backs that had played for a while, a couple of receivers, and some offensive linemen. So they were extremely explosive on offense.
“I think early in the year they struggled a little bit, but they’ve improved greatly with a new starter at quarterback. I thought they played pretty well against Brother Martin last week. The backs are running hard. They’re doing a pretty good job up front.
“Defensively, they have about six or seven guys back so they’re pretty similar on defense. And then, offensively, I think they’ve improved a bunch as the year went on.’’
As for his team, McCullough said, “We have to be able to execute our offense and make the plays when they’re there. Then, defensively, we have to be able to line up and play good sound football, assignment football, and not give up the big play.’’
Playing sound defense, likewise, is imperative for the visiting Patriots.
“We’ve got to be able to do that again,’’ Curtis said. “If we can limit big plays and not allow them to just pound the ball down the field, then I think we’ll have a chance to be in the ballgame. We will be in the ballgame. But, if either one of those two things go awry, it’s going to be tough.
“Look, if they smell the blood in the water, they’re going to run it. They’re just going to keep running it. The key is can we get some stops and force them into some passing situations. And again, the quarterback will scramble and make first downs. So it’s a well-balanced offense. But our defense has played well and we’ve got to hopefully do that again.’’
Finally, Curtis said, “If you know about their team, they feel like as a team that this is a legitimate chance for them to win a state championship. Because, again, they played for it last year. They return 17 (starters). They feel real good about where they are. So we’re going to have to step up to that challenge.’’
“This is as good as we’ve been since 2020,’’ McCullough said earlier this season referring to the Rams’ last state champions. “If we continue to prepare the right way, we can compete with anybody.
“We expect to win. That’s always going to be the expectations at Acadiana. So it is what it is. We just want to keep up the tradition and keep up the ability to compete at a high level.’’