The Southside Sharks are 4-1 to start the 2023 season. Head Coach Josh Fontenot is a big reason for that.
The former Crowley High coach who has built the Sharks program into a contender in Class 5A has done it with discipline, work ethic, and a flexbone offense that has been very hard to defend.
Fresh off the best year in the school’s young history, Fontenot and his coaching staff have the Southside Sharks rolling once again, with their homecoming matchup against Comeaux right around the corner.
QUESTION: Coach, you told me during the pregame show that you didn’t want turnovers. Your team gave up two tonight but neither one of them ended up costing you.
ANSWER: “I think the defense really played well, the first time I’ve seen us play loose all year and with confidence and played freely. We have to quit turning it over in critical times I mean we got them down and we give them life. The offense honestly had two bad plays and those were the two fumbles but this is gonna hurt us it’s gonna cost us.
Q: Vernel Joseph was absolutely fantastic Friday night. What can you say about his performance?
A: Oh man, I don’t know that I’ve ever coached a kid that has deserved the success more than Vernel. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve coached a lot of great kids, but Vernel has just been a special kid all the way through. He had a rough junior year and he dedicated himself to getting better and it shows. He absolutely deserves all the success he’s getting.
Q: How important was it for your team that you were able to get your backups on the field tonight and get them varsity playing experience?
A: They deserve it. You know, those guys get beat on all week and they get to play their JV game but it’s different on Friday night and these are players, if we ever, knock on wood, get an injury, some of those guys are crucial players so it’s always good to give them a reward.
Q: What did you see from Babre’s true freshman quarterback, Je’Landon Gray?
A: He is going to be phenomenal. I mean, it’s moving fast for him right now. You know, he’s a kid, right? He probably Shouldn’t be out there but he’s impressive, really is and I think they do some good things with him. He’s scary. He’s gonna be a scary one to defend in the future.
Q: Obviously you guys want to celebrate this win, but what are your early thoughts on your matchup with Comeaux?
A: The biggest thing is that the worst word I can think of a for high school football coach is homecoming. So if we can fight off those distractions, clean up our errors, and stop turning the ball over I think it’ll be fine.