East Jefferson starts over under Glover

It was a tumultuous year for East Jefferson football in 2022. The Warriors changed coaches in the middle of the season and changed coaches again after the season.

Now, East Jefferson will have a fourth head coach in three years as Brian Glover enters the fray.

Glover did a solid job at Grace King in a very difficult situation. The school closed at the end of the 2022-23 school year.

East Jefferson was smart to pick up the hard working, enthusiastic Glover, who has coached in very tough situations in his 12-year career.

“The transition from Grace King has been pretty smooth,” Glover said. “Things happened so fast. It took a while to get my feet settled in but everyone was good to me in the process. We were welcomed. Things are going well. It took a little while to get to know the kids without having the benefit of a spring.”

While East Jefferson is not a powerhouse, there is tradition for winning from which to draw.

It was just 10 years ago that Nick Saltaformaggio led the Warriors to the Class 4A state championship.

The Warriors were close to being a winner last year, even in the midst of the turmoil, going 5-5, reaching the Select Division I playoffs and losing to Scotlandville.

East Jefferson lost two games by three points each.

“Our scrimmage with West St. John and Westminster Christian was a good learning experience,” Glover said. “We play John Curtis Friday night in jamboree action at the Shrine on Airline at 5:30 p.m. That will be a good measuring stick for us.”

The Warriors will field many new starters this season, with eight starters back from last season, including four on each side of the ball.

East Jefferson must replace several players who graduated, including quarterback Jalen Guillard and running back James Lee.

Offensively, the new quarterback is junior Gavin Bester (6-1, 180) while the new running back is sophomore Rodney Trimont (5-9, 175).

“We have a lot of kids who will be gaining their first year of experience,” Glover said. “We graduated a lot of productive players from last year. We are starting new. Gavin is a first-year, first-time quarterback. He is a very intelligent player. He still has some to learn and is working on leadership skills but he has the physical tools. Trimont has great skill, just not great experience, but we are excited to see what he can do.”

A pair of wide receivers return, including senior Henry Lee Jr. (6-1, 180) and David Johnson (5-11, 170). The new starters are juniors Dorrian Hollins (6-5, 200) and A’kyree Harris (5-9, 155).

“Our receiver group is the most experienced group we have with Lee, Johnson and Hollins,” Glover said. “They played last year and have ability. We have to figure out ways to get the ball in their hands in space, as quickly as possible, to allow them to make plays.”

Up front, two starters are back, led by senior left tackle Lamar Smith (6-1, 250) and junior right guard Zion Washington (6-0, 285). The left guard is Daman Mills (5-11, 300), the right tackle is junior Josue Martinez (5-10, 215) and freshman center Samuel Spetslotis (5-10, 230).

“The offensive line is anchored by Smith,” Glover said. “Washington is a returning starter and he is solid. They are good players. The other three are new and we have a pair of freshmen we are counting on. They are all intelligent.”

The defensive line returns junior Mehki Chambliss (5-11, 250) at tackle. He is joined by senior left end Jamerson Lee (6-0, 180) and junior right end Dorrian Hollins (6-5, 200). The nose guard is sophomore De’juan Thomas (5-8, 260).

“I feel our defensive line is a good unit and we expect good things out of Chambliss,” Glover said. “Hollins plays some end and he has size and athleticism and will cause matchup issues for opponents.”

Middle linebacker Dylan Navarre (5-11, 210) returns to start and he is joined by new starters in junior Louie Dawson (5-9, 170) on the strong side and junior rover Dajon Bates (5-11, 180).

“Dylan is the leader of our defense, calling all the signals for us,” Glover said. “He is skilled, physical, smart and likes to run to the ball.”

The secondary has experience with returning starters in Johnson at cornerback and Lee at free safety. Junior Chris Filmore (5-8. 170) is the right corner while sophomore Brennan Moses (5-8, 165) is the strong safety. Daijon Bates is another prominent player.

“We are leaning on Lee and he is very good covering the field sideline to sideline,” Glover said. “We expect good thinks out of Dajan Bates as our rover.”

Senior Kevin Velasquez (5-8, 165) returns as the kicker and he will also handle punting duties.

The season opens at home against Kenner Discovery before road games at Pearl River, Haynes Academy and Central. The final non-district game is against Higgins.

“We are very familiar with Kenner Discovery from my time at Grace King,” Glover said. “Pearl River is a new opponent and that is a very well coached team. Haynes is another team we played at Grace King. Coach Ben Powell does a great job. Central will be a huge test for us with a new coaching staff. We are familiar with Higgins having played them when they were in our district.”

District 8-5A play begins at home against Chalmette. Road games with Bonnabel and West Jefferson follow before the district play concludes at home against John Ehret. The final regular season game is home against The Willow School.

“I believe every program in our league has improved,” Glover said. “I feel it will be very tight. John Ehret and Chalmette have been at the top of the league annually. West Jefferson is a dangerous program with great athletes. BJ Cohen has done a very good job improving Bonnabel annually. We needed a tenth game so we were able to agree with The Willow School as both of us had open dates the final week of the season.”

The key to success is players acclimating to another new coach but one who figures to provide stability to the program, along with new starters acclimating themselves to being solid contributors.

“I believe this group can go as far as it wants,” Glover said. “We are trying to change the culture issues from a tough year on the young men last year. We are establishing on the foundation of working, competing and focusing on ourselves, doing things consistently day in and day out. If we do that, we will pretty good. I am excited about the talent at East Jefferson and feel this program can grow into what it was a decade ago.”

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