Halfway Home: Shreveport-Bossier’s midseason review: 5 storylines, 5 big games
We’ve reached the midpoint in the 2023 Louisiana high school football season.
The Times takes a look at Shreveport-Bossier City area football teams through the first five weeks and looks ahead to the second half.
5 Hot takes
The Airline Vikings maintain the same magic for the next five weeks that they’ve employed in the first five.
Captain Shreve junior lineman Devin Harper makes a verbal commitment to attend LSU after his senior campaign.
Without Ouachita Christian standing in their way, the Calvary football team advances to the Division III title game to meet St. Charles.
Calvary’s Ethan Sands wins some kind of national award for having the best pancake block of the 2023 football season.
The North DeSoto Griffins set a scoring record by averaging more than 50 points a game for the entire regular season.
Due to parity in District 1-4A from top to bottom, the league championship comes down to the final weekend of the regular season, although this week’s Evangel-Northwood matchup is key.
AUBREY HERMES: Calvary's Aubrey Hermes key in lifting Cavaliers past Westgate
LUKE SPINNEY: Brain tumor surgery hasn’t deterred Haughton’s Luke Spinney from football
DEVIN HARPER: Captain Shreve’s blind side blocker, Devin Harper, does it better than most
7 story lines
Now that the LHSAA principals have put to bed the definition of Select for the time being, what effect will that have on Caddo schools, which are almost all designated Select?
How far will Airline quarterback Ben Taylor surpass the 3,000-yard passing mark before the end of the season?
Captain Shreve running back Jamarlon Otis is on pace to rush for more than 1,700 yards, but can he eclipse the elusive 2,000-yard mark in 2023?
With North DeSoto principal Tammie Phillips becoming the third Northwest Louisiana principal in a little over a year to represent Class 4A on the LHSAA executive committee, what impact will she have?
Who will be the first North Louisiana football recruit to commit to Colorado and coach Deion Sanders?
Airline, North DeSoto, Calvary, Homer and Haynesville seem poised for long playoff runs. Will any additional North Louisiana teams join the fray?
Ruston has the best defense in the state, but the Bearcat offense is suspect. Will they have enough firepower to return to the Superdome?
5 big games that could determine LHSAA playoff seeding
Captain Shreve at Airline, Friday: The Gators need the win to enhance their playoff aspirations, but the Vikings might be too formidable.
North DeSoto at Evangel, Oct. 13: The Eagles have the firepower to make this game a winner for the fans of both schools.
North DeSoto at Northwood, Nov. 2: If the Griffins remain undefeated at this point, the Falcons will be primed for the upset.
Loyola at Calvary, Nov. 3: While on paper the Cavs will be heavily favored the Flyers might see an opening for a surprise if Calvary is looking toward the playoffs.
Haynesville at Homer, Nov. 3: The Battle of Claiborne Parish always has a lot on the line for these two schools located about 20 miles apart. The winner gets the highest seed.
Matchup on our wish list
Airline vs. North DeSoto: Wait. We’ve already seen that one and it was a doozy, won by the Vikings 53-42. Northing wrong with wishing for a repeat.
Calvary vs. Airline: This is the dream matchup that everyone in Shreveport-Bossier City, who love high school football, would like to see.
5 Best coaching jobs
Justin Scogin, Airline (5-0): Anyone who viewed the Viking’s 7-0 run to end the regular season last year as a fluke are rethinking things now.
Rodney Guin, Calvary (5-0): Although he isn’t as spry as he used to be, the former Haughton coach knows a thing or two about putting the right players in the right spot.
David Franklin, Haynesville (5-0): The Tors always have some strange out-of-state matchups early in the season so they’re hard to gauge, but they keep beating every team on their schedule.
Dennis Dunn, North DeSoto (4-1): Aside from an 11-point loss to undefeated Airline to open the season, the Griffins have been destroying opponents for their veteran coach.
Chris Reed, Ringgold (3-2): The first-year head coach has taken a team that was 1-9 last season and made them competitive.
Best moments
Class act: Airline's Tre Jackson was caught on camera by prolific photographer Madison Ruston assisting North DeSoto’s Maurice “Kane” Hampton with leg cramps on the field during the season opener between the two clubs.
Lee Hedges remembered: The initials “LH” were installed on the Captain Shreve helmets this year to honor former Gator coach Lee Hedges, who passed away during the summer.
Worst moment
Seeing time run out on the explosive offensive battles between Airline-North DeSoto and Haughton-Many in the first-half of the season.
Candidate for best hit of the season
Hutch Grace, Calvary: During a kickoff return against Westgate, Grace left the returner with one of the most memorable hits we've seen this season. Grace is a kid who loves playing football and loves delivering the big hit.
5 frontrunners for Caddo/Bossier offensive Player of the Year
Peyton Fulghum, Evangel: The senior has thrown for 1,274 yards and 14 scores in keeping the Eagles atop the District 1-4A standings.
Greg Manning, Benton: Manning already has 724 rushing yards and nine TDs as one of the area’s best runners.
Jamarlon Otis, Captain Shreve: Averaging more than nine yards a carry, Otis has 865 rushing yards and 10 TDs for the 4-1 Gators.
James Simon, Calvary: The highly recruited junior doesn’t get many touches due to the Cavs’ prolific passing attack, but he averages seven yards a carry.
Ben Taylor, Airline: Taylor is ripping up defenses across the area totaling 1,777 yards and 26 TDs already through five games.
Abram Wardell, Calvary: A key reason why the Cavaliers are undefeated, Wardell has completed 96 of 131 passes for 1,470 yards and 14 TDs.
Jimmy Watson covers Shreveport-Bossier area sports. Email him at jwatson@shreveporttimes.com and follow him on Twitter @JimmyWatson6.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: LHSAA football: Midseason review of Shreveport area football teams
