Taking Shape: In Second Season Under Matt Desormeaux, Catholic-New Iberia Showing Signs of Team with Big Aspirations

by: William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

Catholic High of New Iberia football coach Matt Desormeaux went into halftime of last week’s game with his trailing 14-7 to Notre Dame.

Desormeaux felt good about his plan of attack going into the non-district matchup against two of the state’s top Class 2A teams, but the Pioneers’ experience and aggressive defensive line deterred quarterback Luke Landry and his cast of playmaking wide receivers from getting to a rhythm.

“I felt I put our offensive line in a bad situation the first half,” Desormeaux said. “We did a lot of dropback stuff which takes a lot of time to develop, and we don’t have an experienced offensive line. Notre Dame is known for being good up front and physical. I didn’t put us in the best position in the first half.”

Desormeaux changed the pace, calling on Landry to get the ball out of his hand quicker and to his receiving corps of Jaiden Mitchell, Joseph LeBlanc, and Gavin Roy, and the result proved more to his liking with Catholic taking a 42-28 victory.

Photo Courtesy: Alex Viator

The Panthers (3-1) extended their winning streak to three games and rose to No. 6 in both the GeauxPreps.com Class 2A top 10 rankings along with the LSWA. They host Lake Charles College Prep (1-3) to conclude non-district play before opening District 7-2A play in two weeks at Franklin.

“We talked about it being a 48-minute game,” Desormeaux said. “It’s Notre Dame. They’re going to be physical; they’re going to play to and through the whistle every play. It’s something we challenged our kids with all week. That we had to go out and match their physicality, battle with them for 48 minutes. It was going to hurt, we’re going to be sore, and our guys did that. I was very pleased.”

Landry, a three-year starter, completed 15 of 26 passes for 311 yards and five touchdowns, three of which went to different receivers. Mitchell averaged 31.2 yards per catch with five receptions for 156 yards and two touchdowns. LeBlanc followed with four catches for 32 yards and a TD with Roy making two grabs for 64 yards and a score.

The Panthers, who outscored the Pioneers 35-7 in the second half, amassed 411 total yards. Landry fueled his team’s second-half surge with TD passes to Mitchell, Roy, and LeBlanc that resulted in a 28-14 lead, and Lewis’ 63-scoring run countered a Notre Dame touchdown. Mitchell totaled 272 all-purpose yards including 116 return yards on kickoffs and punts.

“Luke and the receivers did a great job if protection would break down on scramble drills,” Desormeaux said. “In the second half, I knew we had to get the ball out quick and that’s what we did. We did a lot of quick-game stuff, put the ball in our athletes’ hands, and let them make plays.”

Photo Courtesy: Alex Viator

Returning Home with a Different Mission

Desormeaux is in his second season at his alma mater, returning to the New Iberia school to begin his administrative career as the school’s assistant principal.

The former CHS assistant for three years under Keith Menard went on to launch his head coaching career at nearby Ascension Episcopal in Youngsville. He guided the Blue Gators to a record of 55-14 and a Division IV select state championship in 2016 when Southern Lab forfeited the title.

“I wasn’t looking to get out of coaching,” Desormeaux, whose younger brother Michael is the head coach at UL-Lafayette. “I’d gone back and gotten my master’s (Education and Leadership) and thought about moving up eventually. The assistant principal’s job came open at Catholic High and because I was a graduate, I felt I had a chance to move into the assistant principal’s position or a lower-level administrative role. I applied and it ended up working out. When I came the plan wasn’t to coach anymore. It wasn’t as though I was trying to get out of coaching. I didn’t think it was going to be an option.”

With Desormeaux on board in 2022 to principal Kyle Bourque, then head coach Scott Wattigny approached Desormeaux about the possibility of joining his staff. Several weeks into the new school year, they met again and Desormeaux became a part-time member of the staff.

“It’s been working well,” he said. “There have been some rough days, some busy days. It’s been good.”

When Wattigny opted to resign and take the Holy Cross head coaching position, Desormeaux applied and with the approval of both his wife and Bourque, took the job and led the Panthers to an 8-3 record that included a 7-3 loss to Lake Charles College Prep in the regional round of the Division III select state playoffs.

It was the most wins for Catholic since a 9-3 finish in the 2019 season that included an appearance in the Division III select state semifinals against St. Charles Catholic.

“I was very pleased with the season that we had,” Desormeaux said. “I was obviously disappointed with the way it ended. Offensively we didn’t play very well that game. Our defense played lights out. The Week 1 loss (26-14) to VC (Vermilion Catholic) last year, we didn’t prepare very well as a team, hydrationally and nutritionally. I felt we didn’t play very good (in a 30-17 loss) against Ascension (Episcopal), and I put a lot of that on me as a coach. Against Lake Charles Prep, we moved the ball and got to the 20-yard line and kind of sputtered. We’d make a mistake and didn’t finish drives.”

Pieces in Place for a Successful Season

With the return of Landry, who passed for 1,830 yards and 19 touchdowns in 2023, the Panthers had a centerpiece to their multiple-spread offense.

“He’s definitely the key,” Desormeaux said. “He reads defenses really well and distributes the ball to multiple guys. He’s a great player. It definitely helps having the supporting cast that he has with Jaiden, Joe LeBlanc, Gavin Roy, and our two backs Tristan Lewis and Owen Morris.

Photo Courtesy: Alex Viator

“We have some pretty good skill players that are experienced,” he said. “They’ve gone out and made really big plays the last three to four years. They have chemistry having grown up playing together. They know each other really well and hang out on weekends, and that makes a huge difference.”

Landry has increased his career passing total to 3,891 yards and 43 touchdowns on 282 of 479 passing. He’s completed 44 of 70 passes this season for 771 yards with 12 TDs and no interceptions.

Mitchell, who came into the year with 53 career receptions for 410 yards and 12 TDs, is tied for the team lead in catches with LeBlanc with 11 for 288 yards and a team-high six touchdowns. LeBlanc has 103 yards worth of receptions and 2 TDs, while Roy has four catches for 105 yards and 2 scores.

Lewis is the team’s leading rusher with 28 carries for 248 yards (8.9 yards per carry) and 4 TDs to go along with five receptions for 108 yards and a TD.

Desormeaux felt because of heavy losses to both the interior fronts in the ’23 graduation class, two of the central questions surrounding this year’s team would be the offensive and defensive lines.

With the return of senior offensive tackle Roan Judice, Desormeaux believed he had a leader that younger players could follow.

“Those guys have stepped up,” he said. “They’re still learning, getting better each week. We’re going to have some growing pains which we had against VC (14-10 setback) and first half against Notre Dame.”

The Panthers had a pair of pillars at linebacker in which to unleash a new 3-4 defensive scheme that’s accentuated the play of seniors Bennett Woodring and JD Hidalgo. Defensive back Chris Green was another senior with experience to anchor the back of the defense which has recorded five interceptions this season.

“This year the senior class is heavy in skill players,” said Desormeaux, whose defense is under the direction of defensive coordinator Henry Ohrenberger. “We talked as a staff and felt like we had more linebacker-type players, more depth there than we had in the defensive line. We felt for our guys the 3-4 would be a better option and so far, it’s been great for us. Coach O has done a great job of preparing week in and week out and getting the kids ready to go.”

Hidalgo has averaged eight tackles a game with 32 stops and 3 ½ tackles for loss, followed by junior defensive tackle Michael Bertrand (16 tackles, 3 ½ TFLs), sophomore linebacker Michael Haik (16 tackles, 3 TFLs), senior linebacker Jack Romero (16 tackles, 3 TFLs) and senior linebacker Maxwell Chauvin (15 tackles).

Against Notre Dame, Hidalgo led the way with 13 tackles and a TFL and junior Xavier Ledet added seven tackles. Morris and Layton Mitchell each added key interceptions in the team’s first win over the Pioneers since 2019, Desormeaux said.

LeBlanc also punted twice for a 43-yard average and placekicker Bennett Boudreaux made six extra points and booted three of his seven kickoffs for touchdowns, giving him 13 on the season.

“We feel like our strength is our linebackers and defensive backs,” Desormeaux said. “Bennett and JD have played lights out. They also played H-Back/fullback on offense. Guys like junior Izaac Andre, Maxwell Chauvin, Jack Romero, and Michael Haik have done a really good job, too.”

Trending in the Right Direction

In the second season under Desormeaux, Catholic has shown the ability to persevere. For the second straight year, the Panthers endured a season-opening loss to Vermilion Catholic in difficult conditions for an offense that depends on the passing game.

“Maturity of our team,” Desormeaux said of one of this team’s glaring traits. “We lost a tight one in conditions that probably wasn’t the most favorable thing for what we do offensively. Defense did a great job of holding them to 14 points with the (VC quarterback Jonathan) Dartez kid, who is a phenomenal player. The kids responded. We talked about it being easier to learn from your mistakes after a win than a loss, but you have to learn either way.”

The second week of the season tested the team’s mettle when a scheduled game against Central Catholic of Morgan City was scrapped by Hurricane Francine.

Instead, the Panthers picked up a game with Class 4A Comeaux and behind Landry’s 260-yard, 3-TD effort, rolled to a 56-6 demolition of the Spartans.

“It was a cluster,” Desormeaux said the rollercoaster week. “We had a game canceled and picked another one on Saturday. The maturity of kids is working. To handle those changes, that adversity, and still play good football.”

That impromptu meeting helped kick-start what’s evolved into a three-game winning streak and more importantly projects Catholic High as a contender in the District 7-2A race, and a team to watch for in the Division III select state playoffs.

“I feel like our kids have done everything we’ve asked,” Desormeaux said. “They’re gelling together. One of the things I’ve pushed for was our team to be positive influences for each other. If someone makes a mistake lift them up, don’t beat them down. It’s the coaches’ job to make the negative corrections. I feel our guys have done a good job with that.”


Featured Image Courtesy of Catholic High Athletics on Facebook