Lutcher finds motivation in early-season loss

• Published: Dec 4, 2008 - UPDATED: 7:15 a.m.

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There is no formula to determine what motivates a high school football team. Yet Lutcher High coach Tim Detillier was still looking for one earlier this season.

Detillier wondered if this year’s team understood there are no guarantees, even for Lutcher, which has recent Class 3A state titles in 2003 and 2006 to its credit.

All the Bulldogs needed was a reality check that came with a 28-26 loss to rival St. Charles Catholic to open the District 9-3A schedule.

“After that loss to St. Charles, we had a team meeting and we were very blunt about it,” Detillier said. “We needed to take it one game at a time and we needed to win every game.

“At that point, we had two losses. I told them we were not guaranteed a spot in the playoffs or any more wins. They responded and you had more and more guys who really bought into the team concept. There’s been a sense of urgency that I didn’t see before.”

While winning is a tonic that cures the ills for most teams, losing has provided the perfect motivation for the Bulldogs, who host Cecilia (10-2) at 7 p.m. Friday. From a 3-2 beginning, Lutcher (10-2) has won seven straight games to advance to the Class 3A semifinals.

Everyone expected this to be a year of transition for Lutcher, which graduated quarterback Blaine Gautier, a three-year starter and a University of Louisiana at Lafayette signee.

He wondered if they were spoiled by past success. Would they have the patience to learn and get past the losses?

The answer was a resounding yes with new quarterback Gavin Webster leading the way. Webster leads Lutcher with 1,467 passing yards and 15 touchdowns to go along with 1,016 rushing yards and 21 TDs.

Daniel Taylor adds 771 rushing yards and 13 TDs. Jarvis Landry (46 catches, 707 yards, eight TDs) leads the receiving corps that features four players with 12 or more catches.

“The thing I tell people is that other than the fact that they’re both left-handed, run the same offense and love to win, Gavin and Blaine are different players,” Detillier said. “Whereas Blaine was more elusive, Gavin is more likely to try and run over people. It took a while for us to adjust.”

As the Bulldogs adjusted on offense, the defense picked up the slack.