WHAT I THINK I KNOW: Game Week 1

I went to two games this past week, Shaw vs. Rummel and Curtis vs. Mandevillle.

I'll start with the Thursday opener, which pitted Rummel at Shaw in Hoss Memtsas. I didn’t think this game would be played, what with the heavy lighting strikes that plagued the area in the early evening.

But the only thing that actually struck was Ramaad Robinson, who was downright electric against the Raiders. He threw for 198 yards and a touchdown on 8 of 11 passing. That’s not bad for a first-time starter. The boy is going to make waves in this state if he keeps that up.

Shaw’s defense, as well, was impressive. The unit shut down Rummel for the most part, and I’ve got to tell you, I think Rummel is going to be one heck of a team by the end of the season. If not for some ill-timed turnovers and penalties, the game would have been a lot closer.

I expect both teams will be representing the area pretty well come playoff time.

Rummel has good coaching and can overcome the early-season jitters that appeared Thursday night. This is a team, albeit with some losses due to graduation, that went to the Class 5A semifinals a year ago.

Shaw also has good coaching, and the mixing of offensive plays throughout the game was darn near brilliant. Not only did the Eagles keep Rummel off balance, they kept me off balance.

Then there’s Curtis’ game against Mandeville. In a way, I was impressed with both teams.

I’ll start by saying this: I’m not overly impressed with Curtis as compared to everything I had heard prior to watching it in a game-situation for the first time. What I am impressed with − and this is key − is that the Patriots, despite all of the losses from a year ago, found a way to win at a tough facility against a good team.

Curtis will do nothing but get better. The defense looked solid, and opponents are going to have a tough time eating up a lot of yards against the unit. Mandeville gained only 184 total yards, and Curtis recorded three interceptions by three different players.

The offense − the 11 guys Curtis is known for − didn’t blow me away. Blaine LeBlanc is a solid running back, and is going to cause problems for offenses. Matt Saucier can certainly lead the team to win after win. And I understand the Curtis’ offense is extremely tough to stop for a high school team.

But I just wasn’t overly impressed with the play on the field. But I’ll say it again: This Curtis team is going to be tough to deal with if it can go into a place like Mandeville and win despite playing less than perfect football. I expect another Class 2A title run from these guys.

As for Mandeville, head coach Guy LeCompte is probably still wondering what happened. The Skippers played well enough on defense to win. It’s not like Curtis drove the length of the field every time to score.

The problem for Mandeville came on offense, where penalties and mental mistakes cost it a chance at beating the three-time defending 2A champions. The Skippers had a promising 13-play drive wiped out by an interception. Same with a six-play drive as well as an eight-play drive. Mandeville’s only points came when the scored a field goal after gaining possession of the ball on the Patriots’ 38.

Nevertheless, I think Mandeville will get better. The mistakes will be corrected, and by the end of the LeCompte might be thanking his team for going through a game like the one Friday against Curtis. No one likes to lose, but if the net result is an early correction of problems, few people are going to complain