Lafayette Christian was banking on its defense being a strength early on in the season.
And rightfully so, considering the experience the Knights returned on that side of the football.
In time, the Knights were confident the offense would become a strength once it gelled.
What coach Matt Standiford didn’t foresee was his team becoming elite on special teams.
“I’m going to be honest, I was hoping that we would be solid enough to flip the field on punts,” said Standiford, whose Knights host Loreauville at 7 p.m. Friday. “Wyatt (Whitney) is one of the better punters in our area and I think he showed that throughout his season last year.
“This year, I was honestly just hoping we would be adequate enough to not get us beat. But his group has exceeded my expectations. It has been a collective effort and I’m super, super proud of those guys.”
Whitney is averaging 35.3 yards per punt and has downed four of his 18 punts inside the 20 with a long punt of 50 yards.
Jude Fairchild is 3 of 4 on field goals with a career long of 34 yards and is 19 of 23 on extra-point tries.
Maybe the biggest plus for the Knights has come punt and kickoff returns.
LCA (5-2) has returned four kicks for touchdowns — two punt returns by Caine Veillon and kickoff returns by Sky Ryan Alexander and Kaden Ledet.
The Knights also have blocked five punts — one returned for a touchdown by Braylon Lemaire — and one blocked field goal.
“It’s been a collective effort from all the coaches,” Standiford said. “The guys have really bought in and that’s been a game-changer for us, especially as of late. So our special teams has been a bright spot for us.”
Standiford said the Knights’ dominance in special teams isn’t something that has happened by chance.
“We have meetings every Monday during lunch,” he said. “We watch film as a group, just like we do on offense and defense. We try to put as much time into it as possible because we understand the impact that it makes on a Friday night.
“On our kickoff team, we have only one starting defensive guy that runs down on it. So, the other dudes — who are capable of playing for us — have found a spot to be able to bring something to the table.”
Standiford credited long snapper Aiden Fa Kouri, Major Derouen and Tyler Cook for being vital parts of the unit.
“Aiden has really stepped into our long snapping role on field goals and PATs,” he said. “Ironically, the one game he missed is the one game we had a bad snap. He’s actually leading our group in tackles on special teams. Then you have guys like Major and Tyler, who are backups on their respective sides of the ball.
“But they put their egos aside and have been some of our best special teams guys. They understand that they can change the game without the ball in their hands or they can change the game without playing every single snap on defense. It has been a really selfless group.”
Standiford said he hopes his special team’s unit continues to be as special on Friday.
“Special teams is going to be a huge factor in this game,” Standiford said. “That’s one area that we have seen on film. I think there’s some things we can exploit. We have to see if we’re up to the task.
“They kick some onside kicks, and they do some different things with their group, so we have to make sure we’re prepared. I wouldn’t be surprised if special teams is the difference in the game.”
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