When the season began, the Vinton Lions were out to prove that 2013 was no fluke.

And when their bus pulled out of Winnfield High School last Friday night, everyone knew they were right. With a 20-14 overtime win over the Tigers, the Lions (8-4) placed themselves back into the Class 2A state quarterfinals for the second consecutive season.

“We knew it would be hard to do what last year’s team did, but coming into the season one of our goals was to still be playing on Thanksgiving,” head coach Tarius Davis said. “It is great to spend Thanksgiving week together again and I think it has our program moving in the right direction.”

The No. 11 seed Lions will host No. 3 Sterlington (9-3) Friday night.

The victory over the Tigers, as sweet as it was, tasted even sweeter for Vinton which had been ousted from the quarterfinals round last year in Winnfield. A win last season would have pushed the Lions through to the semifinals where they would have gotten a rematch with District 4-2A foe and eventual state champion Kinder.

“It was awesome for our kids, our program and our community,” Davis said. “After our first-round game we were tracking the scores and as soon as someone said that we were going back to Winnfield our locker room erupted. Our kids were excited to get a chance to go back because they felt like we had left some plays out on the field in a tough loss last year.”

This season they enter the quarterfinals with the same stakes likely on the line, but with a trip to Winnfield already out of the way.

In Davis’ tenure the Lions have proven that the program is making a turnaround. In the 10 seasons prior to the back-to-back quarterfinal appearances, the Lions had one winning season, when they reached the quarterfinals in 2006. It was a down period after the program had flourished in the ’90s.

“I guess it’s just an indication of the direction the program is headed,” Davis said. “When we came in four years ago we knew there was some work to do, but we hit the ground running and the kids bought in from day one. This is sort of a culmination of four years of hard work from everyone and being back in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year is huge.”

While he seldom saw the field, senior running back James McMillon made his return against Winnfield after missing more than half the season due to a knee injury. McMillon, an American Press All-Southwest Louisiana selection in 2013, was a major playmaker in last year’s quarterfinal run.

“He came back to practice for the first round of the playoffs, but we didn’t play him in that game. Then he got about five touches last week in Winnfield,” Davis said. “We are glad to get him back, but we are still trying to break him in slow so he will be a game-time decision this week.

“The guys that have filled in for him since he went down — James Planchard, Dakota Marcantel, Keyshawn Bias and Dalen Guillory — have done an awesome job. They don’t have that big-play speed that McMillon does, but they are great at grinding 3 and 4 yards out at a time and blocking in the backfield.”

One name that hasn’t been absent from the stat sheet in a long time is Anfernee Dixon. The all-state defensive back has exploded at wide receiver this season. Through 12 games he has caught 51 passes for 1,025 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also has five interceptions despite most teams avoiding his side of the field. The senior has scored a touchdown in 31 of his last 33 games.

“(Anfernee) does it all for us; he is a great player,” Davis said. “He is one of those players that is a real pleasure to coach; he is a true competitor. When it comes time to play you know he is going to makes plays no matter who is lined up across from him.

“He is now the all-time leading receiver in school history. He has played for us since day one his freshman year and with him it is a situation that once he is gone you know no one can replace him. We have some young guys who are hoping can fill those shoes, but they are some really big shoes to fill.”(Kirk Meche/Special to the American Press)

Kirk Meche