Fueled for Another Title Run? Cecilia’s Diesel Solari Carries High Hopes into Senior Season

by: William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

It was a historic night when Cecilia advanced to the Division II non-select state championship game in dominant fashion.

The Bulldogs were headed back to the Caeser’s Superdome in New Orleans for the first time since 1995 with a 55-18 semifinal victory over Northwest, riding a signature performance from electric junior quarterback Diesel Solari.

Solari was at his dazzling best, accounting for five touchdowns, which included three rushing scores, a passing TD, and an interception return for another TD. 

By the time he returned home that same evening and climbed into bed, Solari sobbed uncontrollably. His emotions ran rampant, the thought of turning in such a memorable performance more than a year after suffering a torn ACL, and doing it in front of what he’s described as the best fans in Louisiana. 

“I just looked at the ceiling and started crying,” Solari said. “Everybody doubted me when I tore my ACL, and we hadn’t been to the dome since 1995. That was a special feeling. Tears of joy came down. To take these fans with us was crazy.”

A week later when Cecilia faced District 5-4A foe Opelousas in a rematch for the state championship, Solari said Cecilia was a ghost town where seemingly everyone was in New Orleans to watch the Bulldogs play for their first state title in 28 years. 

The end result, a 26-13 defeat, wasn’t what Solari wanted for his school or hometown faithful, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort on the Bulldogs’ part. 

“I love our fans,” Solari said. “They only bring us up. If your head’s down, they’ll pick you up. I have so much love for Cecilia fans. I love them so much.”

The love affair between the football-crazed town in St. Martin Parish, and its star player developed over the past three years, has experienced plenty of highs and the lowest of lows, the latter taking place when Solari suffered a knee injury that sidelined him after the fourth week of the 2022 season.

Solari admitted to having to deal with more than surgery and a difficult rehabilitation process, but the mental anguish that was prevalent for a standout player. For the first time in his athletic career, athletics were stripped away and the thought of even playing again, much less at the form that had started to attract attention from college recruiters, was cloudy at best.

“When he got injured, he went through a dark period,” Cecilia football coach Dennis Skains, now in his ninth season. “When the thing that you define yourself by is football, and it’s taken away from you, that’s hard for a teenager to process that. … To be able to still function properly.”

Solari credited an older family member, Kavion Martin, for serving as a driving force when he was at his lowest point.

“I wondered if I would be able to run or cut like myself again,” Solari said. “Would I be able to play football or any sport that I liked? When I was in bed watching TV and not putting in work, Kavion would grab me and take me outside and put the ladders down. He wouldn’t let me lay down.”

The First Bout With Adversity

The 5-foot-7, 185-pound Solari always believed his was indestructible, that he could either outrun or pinball his way through defenders, get back up, and head to the team’s huddle or sideline.

Cecilia was off to a 2-1 start two seasons ago when Solari shook off a would-be tackler and managed to get into the end zone. He reached the sideline in discomfort, tried straightening his knee, and fell to the ground in obvious pain.

He knew something was terribly wrong. 

“It’s a mentality I have,” he said. “I didn’t think injuries could really hold me back. I had played with sprained ankles and hurt ankles before. I didn’t think I could get hurt. When I felt something in my knee pop, I felt that I could come back the next play. I told the coaches I was good and tried to go back on the field and I just fell. I knew what it was.”

The first major injury of Solari’s career threatened to change the trajectory of his career, which began with a starting assignment in Cecilia’s backfield as a freshman. An injury to the team’s starting quarterback – Alex Soileau – fast-tracked Solari’s career, placing him from a starter at running back into the lead role of Skains’ spread offense. 

“Of our two (projected starting) tailbacks, one got hurt in the spring, and the other was hurt in the (fall) scrimmage,” Skains said. “He became our starting tailback after the jamboree. We started him both ways (also at defensive back) as a freshman. I hate playing freshmen and I hate starting sophomores. It just tells you what he was.”

Cecilia went on to an 8-4 record, falling to North DeSoto in state regionals.

“Once Alex got hurt, that opened my eyes,” Solari said. “Coach Skains and (assistant) coach (Clint) Harrison called my name to play quarterback. It was like, ‘Oh wow, I’m just a freshman.’ Then I started getting comfortable with it because I knew all the plays from junior high. That was a special moment at the time. I had to grow up. That was my chance at that time.”

Despite his first bout of adversity, Solari tried to remain a bright light on the team’s sideline, offering support and picking up teammates. It was his only way of feeling connected to the team, and his own hardship notwithstanding wanted to remain a positive influence. 

“I could have cared less if I was playing,” he said. “I just wanted to show my guys that I was there. I wanted to pick their heads up when they were down because when my head was down, they were there for me. I wasn’t playing anymore, but I wanted them to get the dub (victory). I was there for every game. That was my motivation for next year.”

Added Skains:

“I was proud of that team,” he said. “We just kept winning after having every opportunity to quit.” 

Leading the Bulldogs to the Superdome

Cecilia’s greatest season in nearly three decades was a testament to a team committed to a common goal. The Bulldogs went 12-2 and steamrolled their way through the playoffs until the state final against Opelousas, a team that it defeated 25-22 seven weeks earlier. 

Not only had the team apparently answered their critics, but a year after a state regional exit, Cecilia was back and better than ever with running back Brent Gordon (a UL-Lafayette commitment) and a healthy Solari leading the way for an offense that produced 10 games of 40-plus points – highlighted by a 70-30 regional victory over Iota.

Solari officially announced his return in last season’s opener against with a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in a 49-27 victory against arch-rival St. Martinville. 

“I got cleared to play right when the season started,” Solari said. “The rehab motivated me, and they (physical therapists) knew me from Cecilia football, and they talked to me. They told me some things that I had to think about. That’s when I made up my mind, ‘Let’s go, I have to make it’. The first time they let me practice is when everything was behind me.

“I heard a lot of negativity about coming back from my knee injury, but I tried not to pay a lot of attention to it,” Solari said. “I never worked that hard before. I wanted it badly, and I just showed people with my actions. I was surprised at myself (kickoff return for a TD against St. Martinville). I was shocked … Like I still could play. But it wasn’t enough.”

Cecilia lost a back-and-forth tussle with Southside (49-46) before reeling off eight straight wins to close out the regular season, including a Week 8 win (25-22) over Opelousas to claim the District 5-4A championship.

Solari had become a human highlight reel, exceeding the advanced notoriety that accompanied him from Cecilia’s middle school. He wasn’t exactly a well-kept secret when he arrived, but his impact on the Bulldogs was felt both offensively, defensively, and on special teams. 

Fans didn’t want to miss a play and Solari gave them plenty to cheer about, becoming a thrill-a-minute performer.

The bigger the moment, the better Solari performed. In another intense rivalry game with Breaux Bridge, he helped Cecilia to a 49-12 victory with a five-touchdown effort that included three scores in the first seven minutes of the game – a span that included a return of the opening kickoff 92 yards for a score.

“I enjoy it, and special teams are very important,” said Solari, who had a 26.7-yard average and three touchdowns on kickoff returns. “Some teams don’t think special teams are a part of the game. It wins games and that’s why we take it so seriously. Vision is something I’ve been working on my whole life. It’s also about quickness and having a sense when somebody’s coming toward me, even if I don’t see them from behind. My balance and speed are also gifts that I have.”

Solari rushed for a career-high 341 yards and six touchdowns and passed for another score and added a two-point conversion, in Cecilia’s Division II state regional victory over Iota. The Bulldogs eliminated Jennings (38-14) a week later before hosting Northwest with an opportunity to erase their 28-year absence from the Superdome.

Solari obliged, combining for 270 total yards and five touchdowns, and the Bulldogs weren’t to be denied in their 37-point semifinal romp.

Solari totaled 173 yards and threw for a 6-yard TD in the final against Opelousas in the state title game.

He was selected as the Class 4A first-team athlete, combing for 3,552 all-purpose yards and 55 touchdowns, including 181 carries for 1,597 yards and 33 TDs. He also passed for 1,501 yards (107 of 163) and 19 TDs to go with 17 kickoff returns for 454 yards and 3 scores.

“It’s big to have him back and it’s big for him to be back,” Skains said. “To put all of that on his shoulders would be unfair. Diesel’s a big part of what we do and there’s no denying that. There’s also a lot of good football players on this team. We have some pretty good coaches that help out as well.

“Making it to the dome has been a goal from when Diesel was in fourth grade,” Skains said. “That’s something we’ve been trying to do, and we feel it’s something we’re always in the mix to do, but obviously he was a big part of doing it last year. Hopefully, we’ll do it again in the future. He’ll always be a big part of us taking that step to get there.”

Anticipation of a Season Filled with High Expectations

Solari’s style and grace have stirred debates among locals about the greatest runners in Cecilia history, a position the Bulldogs have been well versed in for years. 

The comparisons from Solari to former Cecilia great Jamaican Dartez, who helped the Bulldogs to a pair of Class 3A state runner-up finishes in 1992-93, are the most common parallels among the school’s most passionate fans.

Skains, who played at nearby Teurlings Catholic, also rattles off such standouts at Raymond Calais and Marcus Wiltz.

“Coaches on the staff that played with him, and saw him play, have compared him to any of the other backs that have come through and there’s been some really good ones to come through,” Skains said of Solari. “Most of the great ones have traits that are a little different. He (Solari) has a thing about him. He gets this look in his eye where he’s not going to be tackled on a play.”

As the story goes Solari said his mother was driving by a local service station when she saw a sign for diesel fuel – hence the origin of his first name.

“My family was athletic and fast,” Solari said. “She felt like I would be special and named me Diesel.”

Whether the grade’s led, unleaded, or diesel, Solari has been the right ingredient to fuel Cecilia’s state championship hopes once again. The Bulldogs, who return seven offensive starters, carry such hopes into the 2024 season that begins Sept. 6 at home against St. Martinville.

“I’m excited,” Solari said. “I’m really blessed because some people don’t get to play their senior year because of injury. I got hurt my sophomore year and God let me shine my junior year. Anything can happen. I can’t speak too fast. It’s very exciting to go out and play your senior year.

“We know what we really need to do like last year, but better,” Solari said. “No days off, so slacking at practice. We know what we need to do to get back to where we were last year.”

Solari wants to provide one final push to get Cecilia across the finish line. He’s still eager to show college recruiters he’s worthy of playing on Saturdays where Grambling State was the lone school to offer a scholarship before his injury. 

His decorated career, which includes last year’s first-team all-state selection, includes 5,783 all-purpose yards and 80 touchdowns – in 2 ½ seasons.

“People in the NFL get paid to play something they love,” Solari said. “That’s what I want to do in my life. I want to get paid for something I love. Some people have to wake up at 3 in the morning and go to work. Oh no, that’s not for me.”

Solari has been balanced at quarterback over his career – rushing 347 times for 2,686 yards and 50 TDs: passing for 2,419 yards (159 of 238) and 27 TDs.

Under first-year quarterbacks coach Sonny Charpentier, Skains’ former coach at Teurlings, Solari is expected to continue to improve as a passer and thus, enhance his team’s chances at reaching its ultimate goal.

“He’s played every position except offensive line,” Skains said of Solari. “He’s obviously a freak athlete. I tell people all the time that I’d like to take credit for it, but he was born with something. I’ve never coached a kid like him who does the things that he does. Pound for pound, he’s the best kid I’ve ever coached.”