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Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in the LaGrange Daily News’ football magazine, Pigskin, which is available now.

It is the dawn of a new era for Lafayette Christian’s football team. The Cougars will be transitioning from 8-man to 9-man football this season which brings with it enormous challenges.

“We will have a whole new playbook, a whole new system. We’ve been working on it back in the spring and then we’ve met over the summer a couple of times as coaches to figure everything out,” Pike said. “The good news is we’re all on the same place and everyone in the league will have to make adjustments.”

The adjustments will have to be both big and small. The big change for LCS will not just be the number of players on the field, but also the width of the field itself. Under the new rules, the field will be the same width as an 11-man field (53.3 yards) instead of the 40-yard wide field that they had grown accustomed to playing 8-man football.

With just one extra player to cover 13.3 more yards of field before the boundaries may lead to some high-scoring games that more closely resemble basketball scores.

“I think what we might just see like ridiculous scores. Especially if it’s like two teams that are pretty quick,” Pike said. “There’s gonna be so much field to cover and only one extra guy to help cover it.”

Through this all, Pike hopes that low-scoring hard-nosed football games, like the Cougars’ 22-16 win over Praise Academy late last season and their 12-2 playoff loss to Central Christain, don’t go away.

“I don’t think we will have games like that this coming season and I like those kinds of games where you have to fight for every yard and every point. 

“I think where they’re going to put themselves into is that they are going to end up with a bunch of trash games. Games where one team wins 80-10 because teams will not be able to rely on strong defenses like they have in the past, but we’ll see.”

The Cougars had found their groove under Pike in eight-man football. The team made a state semifinal appearance in 2022 and went 7-3 last year with a banged-up roster down the stretch.

“We had kind of settled into a good spot with eight-man, you know, and we were doing pretty well and had a good understanding of what we and other teams wanted to do,” LCS coach Jarred Pike said. “The team is excited to take on the challenge and, and I’m interested to see how it all plays out.”

The expectations for the program remain high. With reigning region champions Sherwood moving up to 11-man football, Pike feels like now is a perfect opportunity to set the standard high for the Cougars as they transition to 9-man football.

“I think we as a team should be looking for that top spot in the region,” he said. “It’s not just me, the team, is putting expectations on themselves. Eli (Carroll) wants a state championship and he’s been talking to the team and telling them what we’re going to have to do to make a deep run and I think we can win our region and make a deep run if the guys come together and we work out some of the issues from spring.”

QUARTERBACK:

The Cougars will have some stability in this position as David Karvelas returns to the fold after starting all but one game a season ago for the Cougars. It was his first season with the team, but his strong arm and other baseball attributes made it a seamless transition to the gridiron.

“He came in and did really well for us in his first year and he has been working really hard to get better and I feel like he will be more relaxed this year,” Pike said. 

“I’m excited to see what he can do for us.”

Karvelas, now a senior, will look to take full command of the offense this season. He threw for 999 yards and 10 touchdowns and finished as the team’s second-leading rusher with 643 yards as a junior. 

The LCS coaching staff is challenging Karvelas to be even better in year two as a starter.

“I’ve kind of challenged him and told him that he needs to take control of this team and take control of these guys in the huddle. He’s got to be like the general out there, the commander,” Pike said. “I think the new system we’re trying to implement will suit him. He will be able to run a little bit more and spread things out and go a little faster and kind of wear teams down. So we just gotta learn everything and put it into play.”

RUNNING BACK:

This is the position that will likely see the biggest step back as the team lost its two lead running backs from last season, Ephraim Snyder and Brandon Davenport. Snyder, who earned a chance to play at Berry College this fall, was a bellcow for the Cougars, racking up 1845 yards and 14 touchdowns as a senior and earning GAPPS All-State honors for the second straight season. Simply put, Snyder is one of the best players to ever suit up for the Cougars and will be extremely hard to replace not just because of his skills, but because of his leadership. 

“Ephraim was such a huge part of our offense, so other guys are going to have to step up and do a lot more for us this year than they have in the past,” Pike said. “Instead of just lining up and running the ball, we’re gonna do some spread the ball, run outside or do some option plays.”

Expect a running back-by-committee approach this season.

“Connor Hudson is gonna be a big deal. He’s quick and shifty, but he’s not very big,” Pike said. “Cody Batistini might be an option and Noah Childree played some running back for us last year too.”

Childree, a senior, will be the team’s leading returning rusher. He had 169 yards rushing a season ago. Hudson had 15 carries last season and will see an expanded role across the board on offense, With the flexibility of the offense all of these players will likely see time at wide receiver as well.

While the Cougars have a plethora of talent to put on the field, Pike does believe the team lacks a little punch in the backfield.

“The piece we’re really missing it’s kind of like a power back., somebody big that can go out there when you need a yard,” Pike said. 

WIDE RECEIVER/TIGHT END:

Noah Childree and Connor Hudson will be a couple of players who will find themselves playing in multiple roles on offense, including at wide receiver. 

The name to watch at wide receiver will likely be Johnathan Ross. The junior was second on the team in receiving yards and first in receptions as a junior and the expectations are that a big senior season is in store.

“We are hoping and expecting a big year from Johnathan,” Pike said. “This will be his time to be the no. 1 receiver for us.”

Batistini, a junior, will also be one of the players that will slot in out wide and in the backfield on occasion.

Eli Carroll was an all-state defensive end last season but will have to chip in some on offense as a tight end this season.

“He’s gotten even bigger and he’s going to have to play some offense this season just because he has to. We don’t have the luxury of having depth,” Pike said.

One name that is a bit of an unknown right now, but could play a big role as a skilled position player on offense is junior Landon Childree.

“And he did really good in the spring. We played like a 7v7 tournament this summer and he did really well in that, so I’m hoping he can help us out too,” Pike said.

OFFENSIVE LINE:

Junior center Liam Carroll will be the leader in the trenches on offense for the Cougars this season.

“He’s put some weight on. He’s gotten bigger, and he’s been working out. He’s gonna be our guy in the trenches, and he’s smart and has a high football IQ so whatever you throw at him, he just he understands it,” Pike said.

Jonathan May will be starting at one of the guard spots. He burst onto the scene last year as a freshman, earning a starting nod in year one.

“He is a short little stocky dude that is a bit like a bull,” Pike said.

The other offensive line spot is completely up for grabs with a starter likely not being named until the opening week of the season. Pike calls it a rotating guard spot at the moment.

DEFENSIVE LINE: 

With Snyder graduated, the must-see player at Lafayette Christian is now an All-State defensive end. Eli Carroll broke onto the scene as a sophomore, racking up he tallied 60 tackles, 14 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 3 blocked punts. Carroll’s 14 sacks are a school record for a single season.

“Our goal for him is basically to shut down his whole side of the field,” Pike said. “He’s a great player. He’s got great instincts. He’s strong. He’s mean. And so I’m hoping for big things from him.”

Liam Carroll could be pulling double duty and playing at defensive end this season. 

The team is still looking for a replacement for defensive tackle Damoni Whitfield, who graduated earlier this year. 

“He might not have got a lot of tackles, but they were two or three guys blocking him every time you know, which freed everybody else up. So we don’t have like that’s big, that big force in the middle,” Pike said. 

Jonathan May will likely be playing both sides of the ball and will slide in wherever he is needed on the defensive line.

LINEBACKER:

The Lafayette Christian linebacking core will consist of a lot of rangy coverage guys rather than a downhill hard-hitter like in years past. 

Senior Noah Childree was the team’s leading tackler last season and will be the leader on defense alonside Johnathan Ross, who will serve as a linebacker/safety hybrid. 

“Our guys out there will come in and hit but it’s not gonna be a game-changing whack ’em and knock his helmet off tackle but we have guys that will hit you in the knee wrap you up and tackle you.”

Freshman Wyatt Jeffcoat could figure into the equation at linebacker as well.

SECONDARY

Jonathan Ross was an absolute ballhawk for the Cougars last season, picking off four passes and will see his fair share of time at safety.

Connor Hudson registered an interception last year and will be moved all around on defense. 

Cody Bastinini had a breakout season at cornerback last season, picking off three passes. The junior will be expected to make a big impact there once again in 2024. 

“I think our secondary will be pretty lockdown this year, but the issue which is the same issue we had last year is that these teams we play are usually a little bigger and they can just kind of run on us and just kind of ground and pound and with all the meat they have and we can’t really do anything about that,” Pike said.

SPECIAL TEAMS:

Jonathan Ross will take on kicking and punting duties again this year. The Cougars regularly go for two-point conversions but could see a change in philosophy as they transition to a new playing style in 9-man football. 

Liam Carroll, the team’s starting center, will also serve as the team’s long snapper.