Cecilia uncommitted 2025 QB/RB Diesel Solari driven by comeback from major injury last season

Solari made return in Bulldogs' season opener with strong performance in decisive road win

ST. MARTINVILLE, Louisiana - Just after 7 p.m. on Friday, the football soared end over end, high above St. Martinville's turf field. 

Waiting near an end zone, perhaps a tad impatiently, was Cecilia High School's Diesel Solari. His eagerness to touch the ball was understandable, as this was Solari's first live action since an ACL tear in Week 5 last year against Crowley.

The 5-foot-8, 175-pounder is as versatile as they come.

His projected college position is tailback or receiver. He's been a starter at either tailback or quarterback since his freshman year at Cecilia, a Class 4A perennial playoff program.

SBLive Louisiana Top 25 football rankings: Warren Easton jumps to No. 5 after defeating Ruston 

Solari cracked the starting lineup as a freshman tailback. During the regular season, Bulldogs' coach Dennis Skains moved him to quarterback for several weeks while senior Alex Soileau recovered from an injury.

Skains might have been a nervous wreck watching his star quarterback prepare to return the kickoff. Any apprehension on the part of Skains was trumped by his trusted offensive coordinator, Clint Harrison, who pushed the idea of Solari on special teams.

"It was Coach Harrison," Solari said. "He felt comfortable with me back there. I 100% agreed."

Solari gathered in the ball at his own 4-yard line, then proceeded to thread his way through traffic all the way to the end zone for a touchdown on his first post-injury snap.

When asked to describe what he saw unfold on the return, Solari hesitated. "I don't remember," he said. "I'd have to go back and watch the tape."

What he does remember - and what flooded his thoughts not only seconds before the kickoff, but for weeks and months - was the symphony of doubt from skeptics.

"People were saying I wasn't going to be the same after the injury," he said. "They said our team was going down.

"Before the kickoff, I was thinking, 'I gotta house it. I have to prove a point.'"

Solari continued to hammer home his point last Friday, rushing for just under 100 yards on 11 carries while completing 7-of-9 passes for 97 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.

The Bulldogs (1-0) raced to a 35-0 lead over a good St. Martinville team that was fresh off a jamboree defeat of Southside, a 2022 Division I non-select quarterfinalist. Cecilia went on to win, 49-27.

Louisiana high school football: Here are the top 25 games to watch for in 2023

Solari didn't go down right away when he absorbed the hit in the Crowley game. How tough is he? He bounced off the would-be tackler and scored on the fateful play.

He didn't learn of the severity of his injury until a trip to the doctor the next week.

"I cried in the doctor's office," he said. "I had a lot of emotions - from angry to sad."

The rehab was brutal. Three to four days a week of therapy followed.

"It was painful," he said.

Louisiana high school football: Here are the top quarterbacks for the 2023 season 

To no one's surprise, Solari threw himself into his rehab with the same ferocity that earned him a starting spot as a freshman.

Grambling State, which offered him a scholarship the summer before his sophomore year, has stayed in contact. Tulane, Miami and Southern Miss are interested.

Solari said his dream school is Oregon, where he could venture "far from home and experience the rest of the country."

That's on the back burner for now.

Solari and the Bulldogs have business to attend to, starting this Friday at home against Southside.

Photo of Cecilia's Diesel Solari (left) by Brad Kemp, The Acadiana Advocate