Leading The Way: U-High’s No. 1 Team Led By The Play of Experienced, Cohesive Offensive Line
by: William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor
It certainly wasn’t by design when University Center Jarvis Brookshire recently found himself stranded after practice and needed help with his car. Not long thereafter fellow offensive lineman Preston Jones provided a lift, summoning his father who had antifreeze to help Brookshire vehicle’s engine turn over and return home.
“You can’t make that up,” Brookshire said. “You can’t build that type of connection anywhere else.”
Brookshire and Jones are part of this year’s close connection among University High’s offensive line. They are two of three offensive linemen, coupled with two other juniors, who have helped catapult the Cubs atop both the GeauxPreps Top 10 and LSWA Class 3A polls.
U-High (6-1, 3-0) travels to arch-rival Parkview Baptist (4-3, 2-1) in a key District 6-3A contest at 7 p.m. Friday. The Cubs are considered one of the district favorites and among the top teams in the race to win this year’s Division II select state championship in December.
They’ve had a sturdy, experienced foundation in which to build this season around.
Three-year starter at left tackle John Hebert, a Navy commitment, helps anchor that unit with Jones, also a three-year starter and Nicholls State commitment, along with Brookshire in his first full season as the starting center. They’ve been joined by an experienced tandem of juniors in right guard Lawson Guidry and right tackle Lamar Brown.
“They’re doing a really good job,” U-High football coach Andy Martin said. “We knew coming in, we felt that would be the strength of our team and they’ve lived up to that. They’ve done a good job of not only opening holes for the running backs but also protecting (quarterback) Emile (Picarella). It’s a really good group to coach. They bring a lot of leadership to the team.”
They also bring plenty of size – a group that averages 6-foot-3 ½ and 268 pounds – but also flourish because of the relationship that’s been fostered off the field.
Hebert and Brown were both first team members on the 2023 All-District 6-3A team with Hebert garnering mention on The Advocate’s All-Metro team and Louisiana Football Coaches’ Class 3A All-State squad. Brown was an honorable mention choice on the LSWA’s Class 3A All-State team.
“We’re friends outside of the football field,” Hebert said. “I hang out with Preston and Jarvis a bunch. As a group, we’ll always find time to hang out and just get closer.”
The chemistry they bring to the field is undeniable and non-verbal communication enables them to execute with a simple glance or nod.
“They’re my brothers,” Brookshire said. “I grew up with all of them and getting to watch us all go off and play in college is a dream of mine.”
Hebert said the group regularly meets between classes, has lunch together, and away from the field will attend LSU home or spend time amongst each other.
“We all know what we’re doing,” Hebert said in the course of a game. “We can follow the call. We know we can lead.”
They’ve also been interchangeable at different stages of their career, playing different positions on the offensive line, to keep U-High’s up-tempo offense humming along.
Martin said when Jones suffered a broken finger in last year’s jamboree and missed some time, Brookshire started seven games at left guard. Lawson also made seven starts and three players (Hebert, Jones, and Brown) are starting in their third season.
“He’s the epitome of consistency,” Martin said of Hebert. “He’s a hard worker. With him going to the Naval Academy, you know the type of work ethic and mentality he has. Every day he comes in, he’s consistent. He’s a great leader for us. He’s not as vocal as some of the other guys. He leads a lot by example.”
Hebert, who has started 33 consecutive games, remembers a short learning curve when he stepped into his current position in 2022 after U-High graduated its entire starting offensive line.
“We were kind of thrown into the position,” said Hebert, who holds a 4.08 weighted GPA and has scored 28 on the ACT. “When they (seniors) left everyone looked to us to hold it down. Being put in that position, and essentially having to grow up fast, really helped for my development.”
Hebert and Jones literally grew up on U-High’s campus, attending the school since kindergarten. They’ve meshed with Brookshire, Guidry, and Brown under offensive line coach William Seals to form another solid group.
Their versatility lends itself to offensive coordinator Aaron Vice’s philosophy in the running game, where power and counterplays are prevalent. The Cubs can also execute in the quick game where the success of the screen pass is reliant on athletic offensive linemen making their block on the defensive end and getting downfield to block.
“That’s been a goal since my freshman year,” Hebert said of U-High’s no-huddle approach. “We wanted a quick, fast offense. As soon as you can get the defense on its toes, they can’t stop you. Over the summer we do conditioning and run 110s. This past summer our o-line did not miss a single 110. We got all of them in time. That showed how quick our offense can move.”
Martin praised Brookshire’s ability to communicate the calls and protections for the offensive line and his capacity to consistently handle shotgun snaps to Picarella.
“I’m like the facilitator, the leader,” said Brookshire, who played some center into the 2022 postseason. “I make sure we’re on the same page. If we do the wrong thing together the play won’t succeed. If we all do the same thing there’s no way anyone will be able to stop us.
“All of our players on the O-line are very mature,” Brookshire season. “Coach Seals keeps us level-headed about everything we’re doing, the steps we have to take. We watch film together as a family.”
Brookshire, who has drawn college interest from Northwestern State and Southern, has been in his natural position, the one he began playing since Pee-Wee football.
“I was too young, so I started late,” he said. “When I got there, they put me at center, and have played that position since I was 5. Snapping the ball was never an issue for me. Once you have it, you have it. You don’t lose it.”
Brown is the more heralded member of the group. He’s already regarded as a five-star prospect by most major recruiting services who rank him as the state’s No. 1 player in 2026 and the nation’s top offensive tackle.
When they’re at their best U-High features a balanced attack that’s produced 34.4 points per game.
“When we go against a defense that are run stoppers, we’re just going to throw the ball,” Brookshire said. “Or they’re going to have to prove that they’re real run-stoppers. They’re going to have to show us. When it gets to that point I’m going to choose my team every time.”
Since a 1-1 start, the Cubs ignited their current five-game winning streak with a 27-21 victory over reigning Class 1 select state champion Catholic High.
They’ve averaged 45 points a game with a running game behind Sage Ingram (52-329, 2 TDs) and Corbin Odell (58-232, 3 TDs) averaging 145 yards per contest.
“As a senior class we talked in the locker room before the game,” Hebert said of the Catholic game. “We knew that it was kind of a do-or-die. We knew we needed to win that game in order to pick up the rest of our season just because we started it off slow.”
Brookshire said the matchup with Catholic came with far-reaching effects.
“We talked about the standard we wanted to set and the memory and a legacy we wanted to leave at U-High,” he said. “What we started off doing, wasn’t it? We knew if we wanted to play and compete in Week 14, we had to buckle down and start listening and communicating with everyone. Nobody’s above the group is what we’re taught. We all started getting on the same page again and it all started going in the right direction and turning.”