Unstoppable Competition: Catholic League’s Brutal District 9-5A Race Kicks Off

by: Mike Strom // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

The time for talk has passed.

Dire predictions of how grossly competitive the reconfigured District 9-5A Catholic League football race should be have been recorded.

None of the combatants have changed their opinions of what’s expected during the next seven weeks given that four of the eight league members are ranked in the Class 5A state Top Ten of multiple rankings.

“I still think that you’re looking at eight teams that on any given day can probably beat anybody in the state,’’ Rummel coach Nick Monica said. “So, because of that, you’ve got to stay on your ‘A’ game every week. And that’s tough to do. It’s tough to get 15-16-year-old kids to show up at their best for seven straight weeks.’’

Therein lies the challenge, particularly given that the anticipated quality of opposition has not disappointed during the first three weeks of non-district competition.

Karr (2-0) is ranked No. 2, John Curtis (1-1) is No. 4, and St. Augustine (2-1) and Rummel (3-0) are Nos. 8 and 9 respectively in the latest geauxpreps.com Class 5A Top Ten. In the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 5A Top 10 poll, Karr is No. 2 while Curtis, St. Augustine, and Rummel roll in at Nos. 8, 9, and 10.

Brother Martin (3-0) is a third Catholic League unbeaten on the cusp of a Top 10 ranking while Jesuit (2-1) and Warren Easton (2-1) join Curtis and St. Augustine as once-beaten squads.

“We’re in it, now,’’ said Jesuit coach Ryan Manale, who unabashedly said before the season that his Blue Jays are a legitimate Top 25 team regardless of classification. Nothing has changed his opinion of the Blue Jays or the eight-team league.

“The district is unbelievable,’’ Manale said. “All of the teams are among the top 15 to 20 teams in the state in my opinion. The talent (level) is something that’s never been seen before when you add Karr and (Warren) Easton to (John) Curtis and the rest of the Catholic League we had. I think it should be very interesting to see how this league is.

“It’s going to be a battle for survival. I think the last-place team in this league would win a lot of the other districts around the state.’’

Curtis coach J.T. Curtis believes the competition will be so competitive that a district champion isn’t likely to finish undefeated. Last season, Karr repeated as Catholic League champion but was beaten by Curtis and finished just one game ahead of three second-place finishers in Holy Cross, Curtis and Brother Martin.

“You’ve got to love it,’’ Holy Cross coach Scott Wattigny said of the forthcoming competition. “If you want to play against great competition and high (end) talent, then this is the district to be in.’’

District 9-5A’s four openers – three Friday and one Saturday – are expected to supply an early report card on those assessments.

John Curtis and Rummel meet at 7 p.m. Friday in a pairing of state-ranked teams at East Jefferson’s Joseph Yenni Stadium in Metairie while Brother Martin and Jesuit clash at 7 at City Park’s Tad Gormley Stadium and Karr plays host to Holy Cross at 7 at Morris Jeff Stadium in Algiers. Warren Easton and St. Augustine conclude the league schedule with a 7 p.m. Saturday meeting at Tad Gormley Stadium.

“So it’s week 4,’’ St. Augustine coach Robert Valdez said, “but for these next six to seven weeks, New Orleans will be in for a treat when it comes to high school football in the Catholic League.

Here is a look at all four District 9-5A games:

JOHN CURTIS vs. RUMMEL

The host Raiders arguably own the most impressive 3-0 record in the state with victories against Lafayette Christian Academy, University, and Shaw. All three foes were state-ranked at the time.

“Obviously, being 3-0 and beating three ranked teams, we couldn’t be any happier with that,’’ Monica said. “So that’s great news. I still think that we have a ways to go if we want to be one of the top teams. I think there’s some things that we have to improve on. Really just across the board, I just think we need to get better.

“If we want to be at the top of the league and be one of those teams that can make a run in the postseason, I think that we’re just going to have to just keep getting better. We’ve just got to keep pushing forward and turning the page.’’

Senior quarterback Generald Buggage Jr., in his second full season as a starter, directs the Raider’s Pro-style attack that features one of the state’s top running back duos in senior Norman Taylor and sophomore Coryan Hawkins along with an experienced offensive line led by tackle Ja’Mard Jones and center Armando Reyes.

“I thought they would be one of the top teams in the district and their 3-0 record proves that,’’ J.T. Curtis said. “They’ve played really good competition and have won the games. I think it speaks to the experience that they have, especially offensively, with the quarterback, running backs, and offensive line guys who have some experience.

“Their defense has played well. They give up seven points to U-High (in Baton Rouge). That’s a team that obviously beat Catholic last week. So they are playing good competition and they have proven themselves to be just what I thought they would be.’’

John Curtis had an open date last week so the Patriots enter having had two weeks of preparation for the Raiders, who defeated Curtis, 27-21, last season before advancing to the Division I Select state semifinals.

The Patriots expect their top running back, senior A.J. Smith, who missed the team’s 27-7 victory at Northshore two weeks ago due to an ankle injury. But senior linebacker Jeff Curtis is out for possibly the next three to four weeks with a knee injury, J.T. Curtis said.

Curtis’ loss came in a season-opening 27-12 decision against national powerhouse Rabun Gap-Nacouchee School of Rabun Gap, Ga.

“First, any time you play (against) that offense, you’ve got to be disciplined. It’s unique,’’ Monica said of Curtis’ Spread Option. “You don’t see it. And you get three days to prepare for it. Getting your scout squad to assimilate is really challenging.

“But you have to be disciplined in your responsibilities and do all of those little things. So I think that’s the No. 1 thing. And then they’re doing a little bit more defensively. Of course, we’ve got to control the ball a little bit, so that’s always going to fall back on our run game.’’

Plus, “It’s Curtis,’’ Monica said. “They’re going to show up. They’re going to play hard. You’ve got to match that. You’ve got to match their intensity and physicality and you just have to be disciplined in everything that you do.’’

“I wish we were able to play last week, we just couldn’t find an opponent,’’ J.T. Curtis said. “But I thought we made progress from week one to week two. I thought we did some things good.’’

Against Rummel, “We’re going to do the best we can to control the line of scrimmage and take the clock down with us a little bit,’’ J.T. Curtis said. “The more we can keep them off of the field, the better off we’re going to be. So, if we can control the ball and work the clock down in our favor, that will be a benefit to us.

“Overall, I think we made progress (this season) and continue to mature and grow offensively. I think that’s important for us because there are quite a few new guys on offense finding their way and learning each other. So I’ve been relatively pleased.’’

JESUIT vs. BROTHER MARTIN

Brother Martin survived a 34-32 scare from Legacy School of Sport Science of Spring, Texas, last week in a road game played in Port Arthur, Texas, to remain undefeated.

Senior cornerback Kaeden Goodman returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown in the closing minutes to supply the margin of victory with junior linebacker Trent King making an outstanding block to spring Goodman for the touchdown. Junior running back Alex Diaz rushed for four touchdowns to help the Crusaders overcome a 26-14 deficit in the third quarter and three turnovers via interceptions.

“We’re doing some good things,’’ Brother Martin coach Mark Bonis said. “We’re still making mistakes, but it’s early. We still have to grow as a team. In the last couple of games, we’ve proven to be a resilient group of young men.

“You can tell that our guys’ hard work in the summer has paid off. But we’ve got to clean a lot of things up in order to reach our potential. The biggest thing offensively is we’ve got to protect the football. And clean up silly mistakes, being consistent in cleaning up silly mistakes.’’

The Crusaders defeated the Blue Jays, 15-3, last season while earning a No. 4 seed in the Division I Select playoffs, only to exit one-and-done following a bye and 23-0 regional home loss to No. 13 Alexandria. Martin is determined to prove the early departure was an anomaly.

“Jesuit is always a good football team,’’ Bonis said. “They have good players and they’re well-coached. They’re very well-coached on both sides of the ball. They are physical. They fly to the football. They present a whole bunch of problems, they really do. It always seems to be a great football game when we face off. We’re looking forward to the opportunity.

“Every time you get to play is important. Our guys play football year-round. They’re a little crazy, right, because all of these other sports play many, many games. They play games all year long and then our guys work all year round to basically play 10 regular-season games. So it’s another opportunity to play and any time you have the opportunity to strap it up and play, especially on Friday nights, it’s a great opportunity.’’

The Blue Jays ride a two-game winning streak into the contest, having beaten Bonnabel, 38-14, last week after downing state-ranked E.D. White, 22-15, in Thibodaux in week two. The Jays’ loss was a 31-28 nail-biter to Jesuit-Dallas in the opener.

Junior quarterback Taylor Norton has completed 27 of 49 passes for 542 yards and 6 touchdowns while being intercepted once. Junior wide receiver Roman Larre’ has been Norton’s top target with 12 receptions good for 363 yards and 3 touchdowns.

“We’re improving,’’ Manale said. “We’re improving week to week. I think that we’re right where we needed to be with a winning record heading into district. Obviously, we’d like to have that first game back. But that happens early in the season and every team is going to get better.

“We know what we’re about to get into. We’re going to take it one week at a time.

“We played well in the E.D. White game. In the second half I thought was when we came together. I thought we were sloppy at times in the first half and I thought in the second half we came together. And we played pretty well in the week three game (versus Bonnabel). So we’re trending in the right way.

“We’re getting a little better each week. Our kids are working hard. Our coaches are working hard. And we’re proud of where the guys are heading into district.’’

Brother Martin represents a different beast from opponents of the first three weeks.

“They’re well-coached with some senior leadership, some guys that have now played for multiple years, especially in the defensive line, linebacker position, and secondary on the defensive side of the ball,’’ Manale said. “There are a lot of familiar faces from what we’ve been seeing the last couple of years, so I think they have a pretty good senior class.

“Same thing with their offense and with the quarterback (Seth Dazet). He’s developed. You can see his development over the years. I would classify him as a good quarterback. He’s now showing the ability to run the run-pass option game very well and I think they’re going to present challenges that we know they’re going to present. They’re good at what they do.

“On offense, they’re well-coached. They have the players to run the offense that they run. On defense they’re stout. They play a physical brand of ball with good team speed on defense.

Special teams is very similar. They have punt returners and kick returners that just in non-district have returned in both of those categories for scores. So they’re going to present a heck of a challenge. I think they are what I would call a very experienced Catholic League team this year.’’

HOLY CROSS vs. KARR

Holy Cross coach Scott Wattigny cuts right to the point in assessing his 1-2 Tigers after their 9-7 loss at public school rival Chalmette last week.

The state of the union of Tigers football is “not good,’’ Wattigny said. “And not good simply because of the reason that we don’t practice like champions. When we practice like champions, we can play with just about anybody in the state of Louisiana. When we practice like bums, we’re going to get bum results.

“We haven’t been practicing the way that we need to. Now, credit to our kids. After Friday night’s miserable loss (to Chalmette), Saturday morning by far was the best practice I’ve had with them this season and then Monday was by far the best practice they’ve had in the whole year.”

“So if we can continue to stack seconds of great play, (repetitions) of great play, minutes of great play and then get days of great practices, then we’ve got a chance to be as good as we want to be. If not, we’ll be a 1-9 football team. It’s really that simple. And they know. They know exactly how I feel. We’ve got a chance to be a good football team, but we won’t be worth anything unless we change our practice habits.’’

Linebackers Nick DiGerolamo III and Maxwell Landry and cornerback Joshua Brown have been defensive linchpins, Wattigny said.

But the Tigers also must move forward without starting option quarterback Claude Johnson, who sustained a knee injury after six plays against Chalmette and is expected to miss four to six weeks, according to Wattigny. A former running back, Johnson had rushed for 158 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 42-13 victory against De La Salle in week two. Fellow senior Jake Leveque now moves into the QB1 position.

Despite this backdrop, the Tigers are coming off a historic season in which they earned the No. 1 seed in their playoffs bracket for the first time following an 8-2 regular season in which they beat John Curtis, Rummel, St. Augustine in addition to downing arch-rival Jesuit twice by shutout (in the regular season and playoffs).

There also was a 47-17 loss to eventual Catholic League champion Karr, Friday night’s foe.

“I love it,’’ Wattigny said of getting first crack at Karr. “I actually prefer to play them now. Last year it was a one-loss team that wound up winning district. I have them as the favorite to win it, so if you’re going to wind up playing a team that’s probably going to win it, I’d rather play them earlier than play them later.

“And then who’s to say that if we do lose on Friday — which that’s not what we’re trying to do, we’re not going out thinking that we’re losing — but if you do, they’ve still got to go play everybody else. John Curtis beat them, 49-7, last year and there were three teams tied for second place so there were four teams that were first and second in a district that’s as difficult as ever.

“So, to me, a one-loss or two-loss district team does not necessarily mean to me that they’re out of the hunt for being a district champion or second-place finisher. So we’ve got everything in front of us to play for no matter who we’re playing. I’m optimistic about our future if our kids change their practice habits. I’m also realistic about our future if we don’t change practice habits.

“And I’ll say this. Karr as good as they are, Curtis as good as they are, Rummel, Jesuit, Brother Martin, St. Aug, Easton, you name them all, as good as they are, as good as their talent is, as good as their coaches (are), they’re also humans that are 15- to 18-year-olds playing a game.

“You saw the New Orleans Saints have two NFL (players) run into each other (on a 61-yard completion to Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goeddert in the final minutes that set up Saquon Barkley’s winning touchdown run in Sunday’s 15-12 loss to the Eagles).

“Guess what? The ball is oblong for a reason. It doesn’t always bounce the way it’s supposed to and players don’t always show up and play the way they’re supposed to. So, on paper, I’m sure we’re not even close to winning this football game, but that’s OK.

“We weren’t supposed to beat Curtis last year. We found a way to do it. We weren’t supposed to finish in second place in district. We found a way to do it. We weren’t ever the No. 1 seed in 102 years of Holy Cross football, but we found a way to do it. So all (our players) have got to do is practice better to give themselves a chance. If they don’t, you might as well not call again because we’ll be 1-9 and there aren’t any stories worth talking about us. That’s as simple as can be.’’

Karr has proven particularly potent offensively in its 2-0 start. The Cougars blasted Shaw, 48-21, in their opener and downed McDonogh 35, 47-0, last week after having a week two road game to Opelousas canceled by the arrival of Hurricane Francine.

Junior quarterback John Johnson has been outstanding for the Cougars, completing 26 of 44 passes for 422 yards and 8 touchdowns while not being intercepted. Johnson also has carried 13 times for 91 yards and a two-point conversion.

Johnson has plenty of support in stellar wide receivers Taron Francis, Oliver Mitchell, and Daejawn Smith and running back Bryant Sanchez. Francis is an LSU commitment and Mitchell, a Tulane commitment.

The Cougars additionally feature three SEC commitments on defense in tackle Richard Anderson (LSU), safety Aiden Hall (LSU) and end Corey Adams (Ole Miss).

Coach Brice Brown could not be reached for comment despite multiple attempts to reach him.

WARREN EASTON vs. ST. AUGUSTINE

Easton, a perennial Class 4A power, makes its Catholic League debut against one of the district’s marquee teams in St. Augustine on Saturday at Gormley. None of which seems to faze Easton coach Jerry Phillips.

“Whatever game is next on the schedule, that’s the game we’re going to prepare for,’’ Phillips said downplaying any suggestion of Catholic League mystique. “We’re not following everything like that. We’re just focusing on the team in front of us. So I couldn’t tell you what’s going on in District 9-5A. I really don’t (keep up).’’

The Eagles roll in having recorded a 21-0 non-district victory at Slidell in a game Phillips missed due to “family matters.’’ Phillips is back this week after assistant coach Josh Wagner served as interim coach versus Slidell.

Junior running back Thomas Vaughn rushed for 222 yards and two touchdowns via runs of 60 and 11 yards in addition to catching a 25-yard scoring pass from quarterback Carl Reed. Reed totaled 174 yards with his running and passing, completing 7 of 17 passes good for 92 yards and the touchdown to Vaughn. Reed also rushed for 82 yards with a 50-yard run to set up his scoring pass to Vaughn.

“Thomas Vaughn has been playing lights out for us,’’ Phillips said. “Our quarterback Carl Reed has been playing pretty good. Defensively, we’re still trying to figure some things out, but pitching a shutout against Slidell was good. Because Slidell is a pretty good team as well.

“Our guys, we’re just coaching them up, that’s all I can say. They’re getting more and more experience every week. I’ve been saying we have a lot of guys that don’t have a lot of game experience, so weekly they’re getting better and better because they’re getting more and more experience. And that’s all that we can ask of them.’’

St. Augustine represents an exponential upgrade though in the degree of difficulty.

“A lot of people are going to make a big deal out of it, but really for me and for us it’s just the next game on the schedule, the next team,’’ Phillips said. “That’s how we’re going to prepare throughout the week. We’re taking it one day at a time. (St. Augustine is) very talented. But we’re going to prepare and nothing is going to change for us and our preparation will be the same.’’

Conversely, Easton clearly has captured the Purple Knights’ attention and focus.

The Knights sustained their first defeat in a 36-20 loss to national power Cardinal Ritter of St. Louis, Mo., last Friday at Tad Gormley. Cardinal Ritter, a two-time reigning Missouri state champion, won its 32nd straight game.

“Warren Easton is truly bred on physicality and they are a physical football team,’’ Valdez, in his first season in charge of the Purple Knights, said. “They’re physical walking on and off of the bus. They’re very well-coached. They run the ball. They send pressure. They have athletes to cover you man to man.”

“This is a great tune-up segway into district because we have to strap up a little bit. We have to handle that. And then the biggest thing is you have to match and surpass their energy. That’s how they play.

“For us, we’re coming off of a loss. We have to get our mojo back. So you’ll see two teams on Saturday that will try to impose their will. We have to get our mojo back. They want to make sure they let everybody understand that they belong in this district and that they can compete in this district.’’

Sophomore wide receiver Ray’Quan Williams had touchdown receptions of 65 and 28 yards for the Big Purple versus Cardinal Ritter while senior running back Liondell Caston returned the opening kickoff of the second half for St. Aug’s third touchdown. But junior quarterback Vaushon Coulon remains the Knights’ linchpin, Valdez said.

St. Augustine, at least in the early going, has out-paced the seventh-place district finish it received in the preseason, despite losing 5-star defensive tackle Jahkeem Stewart just prior to the season.

Rated as the nation’s top overall prospect for 2026, Stewart resigned from school after practicing on Labor Day in order to transfer to Karr with an eye toward accelerating his graduation into the current 2025 graduating class. That idea subsequently proved to be unattainable, both at Karr or St. Augustine, leaving Stewart ineligible to play this season and still a member of the 2026 recruiting class.

“The biggest thing with us (about the Stewart situation) is life goes on,’’ Valdez said. “Our kids have understood that that life goes on. Our program is how it is. That decision was made by (Stewart) to move on. We just get back in the saddle and it’s next man up.

“Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us. Nobody is going to take it easy on us. We’ve just got to be able to prepare and the kids have to understand that it’s the next man up. Whatever (Stewart) brought to the table, we have to find ways to get other guys to be able to give us that type of production.’’

Junior Ty Dominique, 6-foot-3, 240 pounds, slides inside from end to tackle to replace Stewart with freshman Darren Coates Jr. (6-foot, 195) stepping up from the end rotation into a starter’s role.

“Our kids are resilient,’’ Valdez said. “They have adjusted. Of course, now, everybody smells blood and they’re going to want to scratch where it itches and come straight at us. But we’ll find a way. I tell people all of the time, (Stewart) doesn’t play any offense, so the offensive production is not going to be compromised.’’

Current priority No. 1, Valdez said is that, “Our guys are getting to understand the things that are important to me as a head coach and how we go about conducting our business. We kind of came out a little bit like a (race) horse, we kind of came out a little fast. But they give me great effort. Our practices have been pretty good.

“The biggest thing is that we have to try to find a way to develop consistency. We played a team that was very good, very physical, and bigger than we were last week and I thought we could have done a lot better in the basic fundamentals. That’s what you want to do.

“Sometimes you can schedule wins and hide or obscure your problems. Sometimes you schedule good people who basically show you exactly who you are. So right now going into week 4, there’s a lot of things that we have to fix and correct in order to be able to be consistent. I think that’s what we’re chasing.

“We’re chasing discipline, we’re chasing execution and we’re chasing consistency. Usually, when we do that, we’ve had a formula for success. But we have to continue to chase rigorously those things in that order.’’