Patterson travels to Abbeville Friday for district play

Patterson needed a late touchdown to turn back North Vermilion 28-21 last week in the District 8-3A opener.
The Lumberjacks resume district play Friday at Abbeville.
Despite the win in its league opener, Patterson Coach Ryan Stewart said he wasn’t happy with his team’s performance.
“We didn’t play with the energy and passion we’ve shown in other games,” Stewart said. “I had to get on them pretty good at halftime.”
North Vermilion and Patterson went to the half tied at 7.
However, Drew Lucas took the second-half kickoff into Patriots’ territory before Dontre Nicholas took a handoff and darted 49-yards for a touchdown for a 14-7 Patterson lead with 11:15 remaining in the third quarter.
“I told the offensive line that they needed to give Dajon (Richard) a little crease, and he came out and scored,” Stewart said last week.
But the back-and-fourth affair continued, when North Vermilion running back Malik Criner ripped off a 49-yard scoring run with 8:45 remaining in the third to tie the game at 14.
Criner added an 11-yard score with 5 seconds remaining in the third quarter to give North Vermilion a 21-14 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Patterson answered when Richard completed a pass to Irving Celestine along the sideline, and he raced 65-yards for the score with just 3:39 left in the game. However, the Lumberjacks missed the point-after attempt, so North Vermilion clung to a 21-20 lead.
Patterson shocked North Vermilion with an onside kick that the ‘Jacks’ recovered at North Vermilion 43.
Patterson (3-3, 1-0) marched down to the goal line, and Richard capped the drive and the win with a 1-yard touchdown run. Richard also added a two-point conversion for the eventual 28-21 final. The junior was 5-of-10 passing for 139 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried 17 times for 112 yards and a score.
This season, Richard has completed 12 of 30 passes for 220 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. The standout also has rushed for 591 yards on 80 carries with six scores.
Randy Paul Jr. leads the Patterson pass game as he has completed 37 of 59 passes for 598 yards with seven touchdowns and a pick in limited action under center.
Dontre Nicholas was the ’Jacks’ leading rusher last week with 20 carries for 117 and a score. The senior has carried 124 times for 706 yards and seven touchdowns this season to lead the ’Jacks’ rushers.
Nicholas led the receivers a week ago with two catches for 43 yards, while Ayden LeBlanc, Lucas and Celestine had one catch each. LeBlanc and Celestine both had touchdown catches.
The leading receivers this season are Richard with 11 receptions for 322 yards and five touchdowns, Celestine with 14 catches for 230 yards and three scores and Kai Schexnayder with eight receptions for 100 yards.
Patterson totaled 395 yards (139 passing and 256 rushing), while North Vermilion had 256 total yards (71 passing and 185 rushing).
“I want to see that excitement and passion from the opening kickoff,” Stewart said. “I know we will never quit. We’re a scrappy bunch. We just need to play complete games at this point in the season.”
Abbeville (2-4, 0-1) lost to Kaplan 51-12 last week.
“They’re a Wing-T team, and they run the option game out of it,” Stewart said. “They have some good athletes who can hurt you if you don’t tackle well.”
Quarterback Chad Celestine has completed 24 of 67 passes for 300 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He ran for 122 yards and a score against Kaplan last week.
The Wildcats’ leading rushers are Tavian Menard with 55 carries for 233 yards and two touchdowns and Tavis Briggs with 42 carries for 225 yards and two scores.
Channing Spears is the Wildcats’ top receiver with nine grabs for 120 yards and a touchdown.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Additional reporting by The Abbeville Meridional.