This past weekend, the Gridiron Football crew went up to Monroe, Louisiana for the biggest jamboree in the state of Louisiana in the 20th annual running of Bayou Jamb held at ULM’s Malone Stadium. A two-day football kickoff extravaganza featured eight of the best football teams in North Louisiana. Check out our recap featuring analysis, stats, and highlights from each of the eight games below! Special thanks to Cameron Cerniglia for the stats!
Ouachita Christian 28, St. Frederick 7
The Ouachita Christian Eagles look like they are going to be in the running for another state championship under Steven Fitzhugh in Division IV Select. Senior running back Jude Turner was the player of the game for the Eagles as he was the team’s bell cow rushing for 115 yards and three touchdowns on 11 carries. While Turner was the standout, junior quarterback Tristan Raymond showcased his playmaking ability in his own right as he completed five passes for 75 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another 36 yards. Raymond’s leading target was Luke Edwards, who caught two passes for 50 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles’ offense was humming early scoring touchdowns on four of its first five drives.
While it was a rough first half for the St. Frederick Warriors, the team did settle a little bit in the second half with a late touchdown when senior quarterback Michael Malloy threw a 15 yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Stephen Austin. Austin was named St. Frederick’s Most Valuable Player finishing with three catches for 34 yards and the touchdown. The Warriors had opportunities to add more scores but fumbled the ball once near the goal line and Ouachita Christian LB Brock Ables stuffed running back Aiden Cain on fourth down and goal. The Eagles will open the regular season against Haynesville on Friday on the road while the Warriors will start off the season against Delta Charter at home.
Mangham 35, Delhi Charter 0
Just falling short in the Division IV Non-Select Championship a season ago against Haynesville, the Mangham Dragons enter the 2026 season as one of the favorites to not only go back to the Dome but to win it all. Head Coach Scott Wilcher and the Dragons were in midseason form at Bayou Jamb against Delhi Charter. Returning starting quarterback Colby Casey was efficient completing all four of his passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns as he was the game’s Most Valuable Player. Ty Wilcher caught one touchdown while playmaking wide receiver KJ Mitchell, who is the son of former Alabama standout Kenny Bell, caught a touchdown from 53 yards out and ran for a touchdown from five yards out in the same game. Running backs Kylan Goods and Cade Poland accounted for the other two touchdowns in the game. While the offense scored five touchdowns and accumulated 215 yards of total offense, the defense was just as impressive led by Gridiron Football All-American invitee Maddox Williams as the Gators had -19 yards rushing and did not sniff the end zone.
Although shut out, there was some promise in the passing game for the Delhi Charter Gators. Quarterback Till Ian completed 7 of 12 passes for 80 yards with most of those passes either going to senior wide receiver Carter Tayven or tight end Allen Myron. Both are going to be weapons for the Gators this season. Tayven was named the Gators’ Most Valuable Player finishing with three grabs for 40 yards. The Dragons will kickoff the season against Jena on the road in a much-anticipated matchup while the Gators will start their season against Cedar Creek at home.
Neville 27, West Monroe 0
The headlining matchup of the first night was between two North Louisiana heavyweight powers in Neville and West Monroe. The atmosphere in Malone Stadium was one of like a big college football game, but that night belonged to the Neville Tigers.
From start to finish, the Tigers controlled the temp of the jamboree outgaining the Rebels 257 to 63 total yards of offense. Senior quarterback and ULM commit Parker Robinson showed why he is a veteran and one of the best quarterbacks in the state as he was in command of the offense completing 10/16 passes for 125 yards and had two quarterback sneaks for touchdowns. All of the Tigers’ drives were at least seven plays long and ended with either a touchdown or a field goal. Rivers Sorrell made two field goals including one from 45 yards out to give the Tigers a 13-0 halftime lead. The other touchdown scored came late in the ball came on an eight-yard touchdown run from Kayden Gray.
The Rebels’ offense could only muster two first downs in the jamboree against a tough Neville Tigers defense. The first two drives ended in turnovers as the Tigers recovered a fumble while Dan Evans intercepted a Brady Guillot pass. Both Guillot and Kenneth King rotated at quarterback in the game, but it did not matter against the Tigers’ defense the entire night. For Neville, Kayden Jones was named the Player of the Game after having an impact as a rusher and as a receiver finishing with six carries for 23 yards and five catches for 37 yards. West Monroe’s Luke Vallery was named the Player of the Game after having two catches for 30 yards.
It was a statement jamboree win for Neville and they will hope to carry on that momentum against Ruston in one of the big headlining games of the week. West Monroe will look to bounce back against Evangel Christian Academy.
Jonesboro-Hodge 14, Beekman Charter 14
While the first day of Bayou Jamb action had three blowouts, day two started off with a tight battle between the Jonesboro Hodge Tigers and the Beekman Charter Tigers.
The Beekman Charter Tigers started off strong going on a 10 play scoring drive resulting in a four yard touchdown run from Trenton West to give them a 6-0 lead. Jonesboro Hodge responded with a deep drive themselves, but turned the ball over on downs near the goal line. Because of that, the Jonesboro Hodge defensive front was able to generate a push and force a safety from Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game invitee Dylan Hayes to pull within four at 6-2.
Jonesboro Hodge took the lead at 8-6 when sophomore QB King Campbell fired a 11 yard touchdown strike to Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game invitee Tysen Burks over the middle. They would take that score to the half. Jonesboro Hodge started the second half much like how they finished the first going down the field and scoring another touchdown as Levi Martin punched the ball in from two yards out to extend their lead at 14-6. Beekman Charter responded with another 10 play scoring drive as Jeremy Spivey found a wide open Elaythan Armstrong for a 27-yard touchdown. Beekman Charter would tie the game as Spivey found West for the two-point conversion to have the game deadlocked at 14.
Both teams would exchange fumbles and would not score the rest of the way as the two pairs of Tigers tied at 14. There was a lot to like from both teams as Jonesboro Hodge found success in the running game and Beekman Charter found success in the passing game. Levi Martin was Jonesboro’s Player of the Game after finishing with 14 carries for 87 yards and a touchdown. Jeremy Spivey was Beekman Charter’s Player of the Game completing 4 of 5 passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Both teams had chances to capitalize on turnover and big plays, but could not cash in.
Head Coach Terrance Blankenship and the Jonesboro Hodge Tigers will kickoff their season against Lakeside on the road while Greg Hill and the Beekman Charter Tigers will start their season against Buckeye at home.
Richwood 2, Rayville 0
The second matchup of the second day was a defensive slugfest as both Richwood and Rayville struggled to move the football. There was some sloppy play offensively between the Rams and the Hornets, but both defenses played well too.
At the end of the first half, neither team scored to go into the locker room. Much of the second half was the same. Richwood was finally able to get a drive going leaning on their running game, but the drive would fizzle out as the Rams turned the football over on downs. However, with the Rams driving near the goal line, it put the Hornets deep in the back of the end zone. Ever so fittingly, it was defensive coordinator James Taylor’s defense that provided the winning two points with a safety as junior defensive end Christopher Qualls knocked the football out of the end zone. Richwood tried to add a late touchdown to extend their lead, but time ran out giving the Rams a 2-0 victory.
Qualls was named Richwood’s Player of the Game after making the game winning play on defense and also having two catches for 25 yards on offense while Rayville’s offensive/defensive lineman Jayden Williams was named their Player of the Game. Zacci Haley and Jarvis Walker shared quarterback reps for the Rams. Sophomore Alonzo Sullivan led the Rams with 53 yards rushing on 11 carries. The Rams’ defense was phenomenal in the game giving up only 25 yards of total offense.
The Richwood Rams will start the season on the road against General Trass while the Rayville Hornets will start the season at home against Bastrop.
Jena 24, Oak Grove 12
The Jena Giants and the Oak Grove Tigers are two teams with high expectations for the upcoming season. The Giants, under head coach Jay Roark, had an impressive jamboree outing against one of the best programs in North Louisiana in the Tigers led by Ryan Gregory.
The Giants’ smashmouth running attack came to play. Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game invitee Daniel Hatcher showed why he is one of the state’s most underrated running backs. The power runner showed off his open field speed on a 38-yard rushing touchdown to give the Giants the lead. A successful two-point conversion run from Jonas Jenkins made it 8-0. Oak Grove did bounce back scoring on a seven-play touchdown drive resulting in a five-yard run from Patrick Hill. The Tigers could not convert on the two point conversion as they trailed 8-6. The Giants hit another big explosive run play on the following series as Kaeden Kittlin busted out a 68 yard touchdown run to extend the lead at 16-6 thanks to a Hatcher two point conversion.
In the second half, Hatcher scored his second touchdown of the game to give Jena a 24-6 lead. The Oak Grove Tigers cut the lead back to 12 as Bryson Reeves completed a 20 yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Washington but could not pull within closer to that.
Jena made a statement why the Giants should be in the thick of another championship run thanks to the three headed monster backfield of Jenkins, Kittlin, and Hatcher. The three combined for 194 yards and three touchdowns on the ground led by Kittlin, who was named Jena’s Most Outstanding Player with 7 carries for 100 yards and one touchdown. Hatcher finished with 64 yards and two touchdowns on six carries. Gridiron Football Elite Camp Top Performer Hunter Poole looked like he is going to be a special offensive lineman for this program with a lot of those big plays going to his side.
Oak Grove struggled to stop the run but showed some promise offensively. Bryson Reeves was named their Player of the Game after completing 9 of 15 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for another 106 yards on six carries. He and wide receiver Jeremiah Washington give the Tigers’ ground game a passing threat as the two connected three times for 94 yards and a touchdown.
Jay Roark and the Jena Giants have a highly anticipated Week 1 game against Mangham while Ryan Gregory and the Oak Grove Tigers start their season off against West Ouachita.
Ouachita Parish 30, West Ouachita 0
The defending Division I Non-Select State Champion Ouachita Parish Lions kicked off the Leonard Caesar era with a dominant 30-0 shutout victory over the West Ouachita Chiefs in Bayou Jamb.
Offensively, the Lions could do whatever they wanted while the Chiefs’ offense could not run the football against a quick and feisty Lions defensive front. Junior QB Lester Watts was the Lions’ Player of the Game as he was efficient completing 8 of 14 passes for 67 yards and two touchdowns with one going to Miguel Mondragon and the other going to Tim Henderson. The Lions also had six different players run the football showcasing their depth at the position including Carter McClinton, who ran for a touchdown for the Lions. To top it all off, Charles Dade had a punt return for a touchdown for the last score.
The Chiefs struggled to run the football, which is their bread and butter as the Lions held West Ouachita to only 22 yards rushing on 14 attempts. The Chiefs hit one play over 20 yards and that was the only pass completion from Nolan White to junior tight end Josiah Toston. Junior offensive/defensive lineman Taylor Martin was named the Chiefs’ Player of the Game.
The West Ouachita Chiefs open the season against the Oak Grove Tigers while the Ouachita Parish Lions open up the season against the C.E. Byrd Yellow Jackets.
Ruston 49, Evangel Christian Academy 14
The grand finale of Bayou Jamb featured plenty of star power at Bayou Jamb featuring perhaps the best high school football team in Louisiana entering the 2026 season in Ruston against the Evangel Christian Academy Eagles led by star LSU quarterback commit Peyton “Pop” Houston. There certainly were going to be some fireworks and the night did not disappoint in that regard.
The Ruston Bearcats’ offense was clicking on all cylinders whether it was through the air or on the ground. Louisiana Tech quarterback commit Sam Hartwell did not throw the ball much, but he definitely took advantage every time he dropped back to throw completing all five of his passes for 104 yards and two touchdowns. Baylor wide receiver commit Josiah Morgan was on the receiving end of three of those passes as he finished with 87 yards including a 33-yard catch and run touchdown. LSU tight end commit Ahmad Hudson had one target in the game, but the 6’7 tight end took full advantage of it catching one in the end zone from eight yards out. While the passing game was dynamic, it was not the biggest takeaway of the night as it was four-star 2028 running back Dalen Powell, who finished with a remarkable 209 yards rushing and three touchdowns on just 10 carries in half a game. Powell was named Ruston’s player of the game. Add in rushing touchdowns from Kohl Gray and David DeMoss, the Bearcats scored 49 points and accounted for nearly 350 yards of total offense.
Evangel Christian Academy 2027 QB and LSU commit Peyton “Pop” Houston was going to make his fair share of plays in the game and he did. The future Tiger completed 18 of 30 passes for 257 yards and a touchdown while also adding a 26 yard touchdown on the ground. He also did a great job of spreading the football around hitting eight different receivers throughout the night. Houston was named Evangel’s player of the game. His two big play receivers were junior Cardelrio “Pooh” Coleman and Derrick Berry. Both combined to have 9 receptions for 157 yards and a touchdown between the two. There was also a good chess match between two LSU commits in Houston and Jayden Anding. After nearly picking off Houston one time, he picked him off on his second attempt as Houston was throwing across the middle of the field.
To cap off the 20th year anniversary of Bayou Jamb, the matchup between Ruston and Evangel was the highest combined score in history of 63 points. Ruston will have a huge matchup against the team that had their big statement win Friday night in Neville while Evangel Christian Academy will look to bounce back against another team that is looking to do the same thing in West Monroe.