LCCP plans to stay longer this go

After a regular season that produced a school record for wins and a first-ever district football title, the Lake Charles College Prep Trailblazers are looking to embark on the program’s first long playoff run.

The Blazers (9-1) are the sixth seed in Class 3A and open at home against No. 27 Erath (4-6) Friday night at Cougar Stadium. The Blazers made one postseason appearance, winning a first-round game in Class 1A in 2016 before losing in the second round.

Steady growth over the regular season has head coach Erick Franklin thinking his team will stick around longer this year. Franklin said chemistry and attention to detail have helped the Blazers rebound from a 2-8 season.

"I think my team has made the biggest improvements on their assignments and playing as a team," he said. "I think our biggest strengths right now are our balance on offense and how physical our defense is."

The Blazers spread the ball around with Orenthal Lewis (772 yards, 13 TDs) and D’Marcus Miller (578 yds., 4 TDs) splitting the carries and Glynn Johnson (560 yds., 10 TDs) and Solomon Lewis (379 yds., 5 TDs) leading the receiving corps.

Erath has won four of its last five games after starting the season 0-5. The lone loss in the second half of the regular season was a 28-14 setback at the hands of No. 3 seed Kaplan. Junior quarterback Luke LeBlanc set a single-season school record for passing yards, topping the 1,500-yard mark.

"They are a very talented team that plays very hard," Franklin said of the Bobcats.

The Blazers and top seed Iota (10-0) are the lone area 3A teams staying at home this week. The Bulldogs open against No. 32 KIPP Renaissance (3-7), which edged Sci Academy 12-9 last week to get the last postseason berth.

<strong>Class 4A</strong>

Undefeated Leesville is the No. 6 seed and will host No. 27 Woodlawn-Shreveport (5-5), which won three of its last four to reach the postseason.