Louisiana LookBack: Top takeaways from Week 7 of high school football

Longtime John Curtis Christian mentor getting closer to becoming nation's all-time winningest coach

SBLive Louisiana is continuing its new weekly statewide recap called Louisiana Lookback. 

Now, with the second half of the regular season under way, here is a quick look at some of the interesting developments that took place over the weekend.

1. Curtis Closing In On Record

J.T. Curtis Jr., the longtime coach at John Curtis Christian, is only three victories away from becoming the nation's all-time winningest coach. Even though John Curtis Christian's opponent on Friday, the Acadiana Rams, were scoring at the fastest clip in the state, it was hard to fathom the Patriots losing a third straight game, and they didn't.

The Patriots pitched a 28-0 shutout of the Rams to improve to 4-2. With that non-district clash of veer offenses complete, it's back to Catholic League action for John Curtis, which faces St. Augustine, Brother Martin and Edna Karr to conclude the regular season.

What makes undefeated Calvary Baptist's high-octane offense tick?

2. Bears Claw Back

Catholic-Baton Rouge and Central-BR squared off in a memorable District 4-5A contest. Last year's Catholic coach, David Simoneaux, is now at Central. That fact alone adds a heavy dose of intrigue.

The game lived up to the hype, too. Central (5-2, 1-1) led by as many as 10 points, but the Bears (5-2, 2-0) bounced back to earn a 42-38 win, according to Robin Fambrough of the Baton Rouge Advocate.

3. Edge of '17'

Loreauville reeled off 17 unanswered points to claim a 31-28 District 8-2A win vs. Franklin. Loreauville (5-2, 2-0), which trailed 28-14 at halftime, got a 17-yard field goal from Logan Templet and two long passing TDs from quarterback Hayden Benoit.

Four of the junior's nine completions went for TDs - 13 yards to Elil Theodile, 21 yards to Kylon Polk, 67 yards to Joshua Polk and 63 yards to Gavin Judice.

4. Tigers Finally Tamed

Holy Cross suffered its first loss, a 22-19 setback to Brother Martin at Tad Gormley Stadium in New Orleans. The Crusaders (5-2, 2-1 District 9-5A) rushed for 241 yards on 41 carries, according to Chris Dabe of nola.com.

Senior tailback Jordan West rushed for 135 yards and two TDs. Treshaun Ware scored the winning TD and tacked on a two-point conversion.

5. Knights Golden

Lafayette Christian beat District 4-4A rival Teurlings Catholic, 62-3, in a Thursday night battle of north Lafayette squads that met in the 2022 Division II select semifinals. The Knights (6-1, 2-0) intercepted five passes.

LSU commit Ju'Juan Johnson threw four TD passes - three to TJ Marzell. The Rebels (5-2, 1-1), who were coming off an impressive 38-14 defeat of Westgate, will try to regroup and stage a road upset of St. Thomas More (7-0, 2-0).

6. Destrehan Continues Dominance

Destrehan earned its 21st consecutive win, the state's longest streak, with a 38-7 rout of Terrebonne (5-2, 2-1 District 7-5A). The Wildcats (7-0, 4-0) have allowed a total of 39 points. Hahnville, which lost 47-11 to Destrehan, is the only foe to score in double-digits.

Destrehan faces Sulphur (2-5) in a non-district game this week. East St. John (7-0, 4-0) visits the Wildcats in Week 9.

7. Soaring Shaw

Archbishop Shaw won its fifth straight game, a 41-15 defeat of Belle Chasse. The Eagles (5-2, 2-0 District 10-4A) began the season with a 17-10 loss to undefeated St. Charles Catholic and a 21-14 loss at Houston (Texas) Kinkaid, which has a 6-2 record.

The winning streak began with a 43-28 defeat of hated rival Archbishop Rummel. The Eagles host undefeated Class 5A Carencro in Week 10.

8. Well 'Dunn'

North DeSoto toppled Evangel Christian, 38-28, in a District 1-4A game with major storylines. North DeSoto coach Dennis Dunn was at the helm during Evangel Christian's rise to national prominence during his tenure at the Shreveport school, which included a 1999 national championship.

Evangel Christian founder and current head coach Denny Duron hired Dunn to coach the Eagles. The Griffins (6-1, 4-0) finished as 2022 Division II non-select runner-up to Lutcher.

9. Fair 'Haven'

For the second straight year, Dunham dominated District 6-2A rival Episcopal. Freshman quarterback Elijah Haven rushed for four TDs in the first half of the Tigers' 55-28 road win, according to Charles Salzer of the Baton Rouge Advocate.

Haven also passed for 225 yards with a TD and two interceptions. Dunham (5-2, 2-0), which was Division III select runner-up to St. Charles Catholic, beat Episcopal by a 42-0 margin last year.

10. Eagles Grounded

Ouachita Christian, the No. 1 team in the LSWA Class 1A rankings, lost for the first time this year. Arkansas Class 4A school Harding Academy (7-0) beat the Eagles, 31-14. OCS was limited to 41 yards rushing on 37 carries, according to Jake Martin of the Ouachita Citizen.

The reigning Division IV select champion Eagles (6-1) have only lost two games in two years. Class 5A Ouachita Parish defeated the Eagles during the 2022 regular season. OCS avenged that loss with a 48-14 drubbing of the Lions in Week 5.

Harding Academy was the Eagles' second tough interstate matchup. In Week 1, OCS beat Dallas (Texas) Christian, 17-14. That was Dallas Christian's only loss. The Chargers are 7-1 and have won 43 of their last 47 games.

Photo of John Curtis Christian coach J.T. Curtis Jr. (right) along with Patriots players Dagan Bruno (left) and Justin Horne (left) by Buck Ringgold 

-- Mike Coppage | @SBLiveLA