SCRIMMAGE 4

Once isn’t enough for the Acadiana Christian School football team.

The Lions, who are coming off their first ACEL state championship game appearance, are determined to make it back. They built on the 2023 momentum with five weeks of spring practice and a Navy vs. White intrasquad game.

“We had a really nice crowd,” coach Carroll Olivier said. “It was an amazing, really competitive spring game. The strength of this team is the buy-in. We practiced three times a week in the spring, and everybody who was supposed to be there was there.”

The Lions have taken steps each year under Olivier, who will be in his third season at the school. This was the first full-contact scrimmage following spring training during his tenure.

“We’re changing some things up on offense,” he said. “We have a lot of questions after losing some seniors. Our goal is to be 50/50 running and passing. We want to get the ball to (receivers) Neal Osburn and Jonas Peltier in space, and we want to rely on the strength and power of Malaki Coon.”

Coon, who was third on the team in rushing last year behind Ty Olivier and Kaleb Broussard, is a 5-foot-10, 200-pound junior. Layne Hebert and Brandon Judice, the second and third-leading receivers in 2023, are battling for the starting quarterback position.

The two combined to complete 3 of 3 passes for 86 yards in mop-up duty last season. They also combined to catch 25 passes for nearly 600 yards and 10 touchdowns. Osburn averaged 35.2 yards per catch.

“Brandon is a coach’s kid who does everything right,” Olivier said. “He throws the ball really well. Layne is really athletic. He has the ‘it’ factor and wants the ball.”

Jude Wilder, Noah Odell and Silas Johnson all had impressive showings in the spring. Wilder, a 6-foot-3, 230-pound senior, ranked second on the team last year with 41 tackles. Odell had a sack in the spring game, while Johnson returned an interception for a touchdown.

Osburn, a state champion sprinter, gives Olivier elite speed on the perimeter.

The following players received awards: Outstanding Spring Player: Malaki Coon; Mighty Lion Award: Kaleb Broussard and Jude Wilder; Newcomer Award: Silas Johnson; Courage and Compassion Award: Jonas Peltier; Hustle Hard Award: Neal Osburn; Leadership Award: Brandon Judice.