• By ROBIN FAMBROUGH
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Nov 20, 2009 - Page: 1C

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Football coaches and fans have different ways of viewing the Louisiana High School Athletic Association’s power ratings. Tonight’s Class 5A regional-round playoff games provide  an example.

Catholic High (9-2), seeded 11th, travels to Lafayette to take on No. 27 Comeaux (6-5). Fourth-seeded Central High (10-1) hosts No. 13 Ouachita Parish (8-3).

Based on the power-rating-based seedings, fans might consider Central and Catholic to be heavy favorites going into the 7 p.m. games.
Catholic coach Dale Weiner and Central coach Sid Edwards have a different view.

“To be honest with you, a seeding is just a number,”  Weiner said. “I’m sure there are people out there who think this should be an easy game because Comeaux is a No. 27 seed.

“But I’ve got news for them … it isn’t. We’re both 1-0 in the playoffs now, and the next loss will be the end of the season for somebody. That’s really all you need to know.”

Edwards is just as emphatic, saying, “I think we’re really meeting our match this week. We’ve played defenses that are good in one area but not another. I think Ouachita has the whole package.”

Skeptics might dismiss these comments as “coach speak,” but the numbers suggest there is plenty of validity to what the coaches are saying.

Quarterback Will Briscoe has completed 158 of 227 passes for 2,601 yards and 34 touchdowns with only two interceptions. Briscoe’s twin brother, Wes, leads the corps of receivers with 38 catches for 1,036 yards and 18 TDs.

Shedrick Davis (39-585, eight TDs) and Jae Cutno (37-579, three TDs) are other notables in the prolific offense that has benefited from the emergence of McKenzie Price, who has 483  yards rushing and eight TDs.

The Ouachita defense had nine sacks in its 27-13 win over West Jefferson last week. 

Though Ouachita rushed for 248 yards last week, the Lions are what Edwards calls a two-headed monster. Quentin Wheeler has 1,256 passing yards and 669 rushing yards.

“Ouachita has shown they are capable of running it or throwing it,” Edwards said. “The poison of choice the last two weeks has been old-fashioned power running.

“Our defense has to get some stops. Last week New Iberia had a 16-play drive on us. We can’t afford to do that against these guys.”