BATON ROUGE- Head Coach Lester Ricard returns for this second season with the Walker Wildcasts, looking to improve on last year's 6-5 record.

16 total starters return for Walker this season, including 9 on defense. Safety BJ Lockhart leads the defense that Coach Ricard believes is the strength of this team.

"We move so well on defense man. We've got a plethora of speed. Defense is really flying around," said Ricard.

On offense, the team will have experience at the wide receiver position. Coah Ricard hopes to see his signal callers take advantage in 2018.

"I'd like to see us make gradual growths at the quarterback position. We've got three guys that played a lot of playing time for us, between Ethan McMasters, Landon Adams and Christian Ard," said Ricard. "I'm hoping those guys can take the next step in our program and really catapult us to second round, third round, fourth round, and even championship level football program."

BATON ROUGE- Coach Daniel Luquet has some reworking to do after losing 10 of 11 starters on defense and 7 of 11 on offense.

Of those returning, wide receivers Bryson Reaser and Tyrell Smith bring some experience to the offense. As for who will be throwing to them, brothers Jude and Josh Serio are competing for the starting job.

Luquet will try to build on last year's 6-5 campaign, even while dealing with lots of inexperience on the roster.

"It's not so much the experience. It's that you can't build experience without playing on Friday nights. I can talk about it. I can show you film, but until you experience Friday night football. We've got 4 or 5 guys that have experienced it and a bunch of guys that have just seen it," said coach Daniel Luquet. "If that's my one area of concern, then I feel like my coaching staff is going to have us in the situation and I can always lean on my kicking game which is the best in the state."

BATON ROUGE- Following a 8-3 campaign in 2017, Plaquemine Head Coach Paul Distefano is tasked with trying to find a quarterback in to lead his offense.

With both Dontavious Wicks and Tre Leblanc taking equal reps this spring, the quarterback job hasn't seen much separation.

As for who will be protecting the starter, Distefano believes his offensive line will be the strength of his team as he returns everyone up front.

"We don't have that star power that we've had in the past but that's okay," said Distefano. "We have a solid offensive line. They're all 5'11" to 6' 1. They're all very good high school football players. We're excited about the fact that the learning curve for the offensive line is ahead of the rest of the team.

That experienced offensive line will have to open up holes for returning running backs Melvin Mclay and
Earl Young.

On the defensive side, the team will be implementing a 3-4 defense, taking advantage of 4 year starters O'Darious Jackson and Zane Bouvay.

BATON ROUGE, LA - After missing the 3A playoffs for the first time since 2010, the Brusly Panthers enter 2018 with 12 returning starters including quarterback Nick Penell who seems poised for a breakout season. 

With a year of growing pains now in the rear view, head coach Hoff Schooler is hoping year two at the helm produces more wins on Friday nights. 

"Last year Nick Penell (quarterback) takes the starting job in August and before that he'd never played football," said Schooler. "So, it was a learning curve every week for him. Now he's got that starting experience, some good and some bad. He's got film to learn from."

Offensively the Panthers return six starters, including several key players at the skill positions.

"I think you have a good group of running backs coming back and receivers that really gives us a chance to spread the ball around and get a lot of guys involved," said Schooler. 

On the defensive side, six starters return with a strength easily recognized on the back end. Brusly returns each corner and safety Grant Watts as well as both inside linebackers.

This year Brusly will be tested right out of the gates opening with the Sugar Cane Classic on Friday, August 31, against rival Port Allen.