In this 4th week of high school football, there was a showdown between the LaSalle Tigers and the Block Bears in Jonesville, LA. It was Block’s homecoming and with a larger senior class, the Bears were looking to get payback from last year’s 50-30 loss from when the Tigers scheduled them for their own homecoming game in 2024.
Things did not go according to plan however, and the only Tigers from Louisiana that got a win this past Saturday were from Olla not Baton Rouge. The Tigers relied on the ground game again and played solid defense against a very athletic Bear team that was a threat to score anytime they got open space.
On the opening kickoff, Block fumbled the ball but still managed to recover it, and their luck would continue after going three and out. A line drive punt went straight to the gunner for LaSalle’s Daniel Stowe, and when he went to catch it (who can blame him, it’s every high school athlete’s dream to return a punt) it bounced off his chest and Block recovered the ball.
The Bears drove down the field quickly and were looking to cap off a tone-setting first drive, but on a jet sweep, senior captain Tuff Street poked the ball out and LaSalle recovered the ball at their own 9-yard line. In a contest where points would be tough to come by this proved to be an important stop. Both teams would be held scoreless in what was one of the quickest quarters I’ve ever seen.
In the 2nd quarter, the Bears turned it over on downs at the Tiger 40-yard line and that is exactly where Street took it to the house from on a well-blocked 60-yard designed QB run. He also took in the 2-point conversion to make the score 8-0.
Following that, the Tigers kicker Mason Lee recovered his own onside kick, the likes of which hasn’t been seen since Pat McAfee did against the Texans in his kicker days!
The rest of the quarter however wasn’t as action packed as both defenses played great ball. Caiden Finley got a drive-stopping interception, and the Tigers had a 20-yard TD pass called back right before the half to keep it 8-0 at the break.
To start the 3rd quarter, the Tigers went back to the tried and true 1-2 punch of Street and King. The read option worked wonders after a couple broken tackles, and Street rattled off another long run from 44 yards out and got it down to the 1-yard line.
From there King’s power running did the heavy lifting and ran it in, doing the same on the two-point conversion to make the score 16-0.
Defense remained prominent as the score would stay the same entering the 4th quarter. Block’s air attack showed promise, but the pass rush forced the Bears’ QB to roll out and throw into coverage more times than not and the Tigers’ run game would continue to drain the clock; but timely blitzes and talented edge rushers caused their drives to stall out.
In the 4th, the hits were coming harder from both sides and both teams traded interceptions. Street lost a deep pass to Block but would get an interception of his own playing safety on the very next play of the game.
In a change of play pace to start the drive, a jet sweep to Alex Richmond caught the Bears off guard and Richmond took it to the house for a 41yard TD run. The 2-point try was no good, leaving the score 22-0. The Bears with a newfound sense of urgency found some success through the air.
The big play came late in the 4th as wide receiver #8 for Block made an impressive catch then sideline tight rope run for a big 60-yard touchdown. The Bears converted the 2-point conversion as well. That would be all the scoring done; however, the momentum came too little too late as the Tigers beat their former district rival with a final score of 22-8.
The team and coaches are happy to come out of there with the win. Coach Johnson had this to say about his young team: “I’m proud of the fight and tenacity of our kids throughout that game, and I’m proud that they didn’t let any adversity get to them”.
This week is homecoming week for the LaSalle Tigers, so please come out and support the boys as they try to make it four in a row against the Pickering Red Devils!
