Class 5A State Championship: Acadiana vs Alexandria
by Hunter Bower // GeauxPreps.com Owner
No. 1 Acadiana (10-1) vs. No. 6 Alexandria (7-1)
Wednesday, Dec. 30 | 6 p.m. | Harry “Rags” Turpin Stadium | Northwestern State University | Natchitoches, Louisiana | Cloudy, 65 degrees, Wind: SSE 5MPH
Live Stats | Watch – NFHS Network ($) | Radio Stream (Acadiana) | Radio Stream (Alexandria)
Acadiana Preview:
Head Coach: Matt McCullough
State Championships: 2006, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2019
Last Finals Appearance: 2019 (beat Destrehan, 8-3)
Road To Natchitoches:
- Round One: Beat No. 32 Covington, 44-7
- Round Two: Beat No. 16 East Ascension, 42-14
- Quarterfinals: Beat No. 8 Mandeville, 21-0
- Semi-Finals: Beat No. 5 Destrehan, 23-0
The Skinny:
• Acadiana looks to win consecutive state championships in the state’s highest classification for only the fifth time since Class 5A was created in 1991.
• The Wreckin’ Rams are searching for their sixth state title in program history and fourth in six years.
• The defending champions played one of the toughest regular season schedules in recent memory with victories over programs such as Lafayette Christian, John Curtis, Ruston. Their opponent’s combined record totaled 46 wins and 19 losses.
• Head coach Matt McCullough is looking for his second title in just three seasons as the leader of the Rams program.
Alexandria Preview:
Head Coach: Thomas Bachman
State Championships: None
Last Finals Appearance: First Appearance
Road To Natchitoches:
- Round One: Beat No. 27 Slidell, 35-0
- Round Two: Beat No. 11 Haughton, 38-6
- Quarterfinals: Beat No. 3 Zachary, 31-28
- Semi-Finals: Beat No. 10 West Monroe, 33-17
The Skinny:
• Alexandria could make history Wednesday when it plays its first state championship in school history. The Trojans are looking to become the first Rapides Parish team to win a football state title since Pineville in 1960.
• ASH is led by Thomas Bachman, who is no stranger to playing and winning state title games. Bachman was a part of the Evangel Eagle dynasty back in the 90’s that captured six championships in 10 years.
• The Trojans only played four regular season games due to issues with COVID-19 in parts of the state. However, ASH played like it had played 10 regular season games in the playoffs with convincing victories over former state champions Zachary and West Monroe.
Distance To Turpin Stadium: Acadiana (151 miles), Alexandria (61 miles)