Chalmette looks to build on district championship, playoff win

It was a special season for Chalmette in 2021 when the Owls claimed the District 8-5A championship, dethroning perennial champion John Ehret.

Then, Chalmette edged Haughton 21-20 in a playoff-opening thriller before falling to West Monroe. The playoff victory was the first since 2004 for the Owls.

Jason Tucker, Chalmette Class of 1993, is in his 16th year at his alma mater. He is the winningest coach in school history.

The Owls must replace some key starters, including running back Emanuel Williams, center Stayge Bertucci and linebacker Raymond Thompson.

Chalmette should be fine on offense.

Leading the way are senior running backs Kyron Angeletti (6-0, 190), Kai Williams (5-8, 144), and Jaden Bouie (6-0, 223).

Junior H-Back Troy Sino (5-8, 255) returns as well, as does senior tight end Lexton Abdo (6-0, 190). The second tight end is junior Robert Collins (6-1, 202).

At wide receiver, there are a trio of new starters, including sophomore Jaden Williams (5-9, 155), junior Rayone Russell (6-1, 158) and senior Ty Abadie (5-7, 157).

Massive junior Brendon Hebert (6-3, 335) is a returning starter at tackle while junior Keyon Wilson (6-3, 293) is good at the other tackle spot. Huge senior center Ethan West (6-0, 354) also returns. The guards are new starters in junior Josh Brockhaus (5-11, 200) and junior Xander Davis (5-9, 208).

While the Owls should be solid with a good running game, the real challenge will be on defense, where Chalmette must replace 10 starters from a year ago.

Defensively Chalmette will be led by senior linebacker Kenny McCreary (6-0, 179) and junior cornerback Jahari Banks (6-0, 145).

The new starters on the defensive line are junior Clarence Major (6-0, 237) and huge senior Javen Hulbert (6-0, 374) at the tackle positions and senior Brandt Peterson (5-11, 233) and junior Zander Wolfe (6-0, 201) at the end spots.

The other linebackers include senior Devin Jones (5-9, 180) and junior Ashton Clark (5-11, 203).

Joining Banks at cornerback is senior Earl Watson 5-10, 137) while the safeties include junior Elijah Dubose (5-10, 168), senior Tydick Martin (5-8, 140) and junior Ricky Smith (6-0, 161).

Junior Brandon Ramirez (5-10, 180) will handle kicking and punting duties.

The schedule opens in interesting fashion as the Owls travel to former St. Bernard Parish neighbor Archbishop Hannan, now on the north shore. After another trip to Lakeshore, the Owls head to Tad Gormley Stadium to take on rival Holy Cross. Another trip to Patterson precedes a home game with Bogalusa.

District 8-5A play begins at Bobby Nuss Stadium against East Jefferson on October 7 before a road game in Metairie against Grace King. The Owls then host Ehret in a showdown before entertaining Bonnabel. The regular season ends at West Jefferson.

There is no doubt that Chalmette will be formidable again with a good running game. The opportunity to repeat as district champion and to make a playoff appearance and run is contingent on a young defense coming of age.

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