By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

It was billed as a battle of Class 5A titans as No. 4 John Ehret visited No. 3 Destrehan on Friday night. The accompanying hype was there, as was the atmosphere.

And the Wildcats handled it all — like champions.

Destrehan scored 35 unanswered points before Ehret got on the scoreboard late in the fourth quarter, and outgained the Patriots 287 to 114 in a 35-6 win at Destrehan.

Ehret (3-1) brought some of the areas top offensive talent to the Wildcats’ field, but none could get on track. Quarterback Rico Jones was held without a completion in the first half and finished 8-for-21 with 114 passing yards and a touchdown. Highly touted running back DeAnte Triplett finished with 10 yards on nine carries.

The key to the win came in the trenches, said Destrehan Coach Stephen Robicheaux.

“Our defensive line put a lot of pressure on (Jones), and it caused him to play less than his ‘A-game’,” said Robicheaux.

Conversely, the DHS offensive line – a veteran unit consisting of Kurt Hebert, Kyle Wagner, Blaine Wagner, Ashton Duhe and Bobby Gorman –  kept the heat off of Wildcats’ quarterback Wynrick Smothers.

“No matter how many skill players you have, you need those guys up front,” Robicheaux said. “We watched their defense all week on film, and we were scared to death at how well they blitz. But our guys up front, they all did a great job picking up the blitz.”

The Wildcats (4-0) have beaten opponents with a balanced offensive attack all season long, and Friday was no exception.

Quarterback Wynrick Smothers was 11-for-17 with 150 yards and two touchdowns through the air. Meanwhile, Destrehan rushed for 169 yards, including 75 by Henry Lenox and 43 by Myron Smith.

Smith added two touchdowns, including the first of the game. That came early in the second quarter, a 9-yard run that made it 7-0.

Kyron King doubled the Wildcats advantage when we hauled in a 12-yard scoring pass from Smothers, then added to it again with a 13-yard endzone reception in the third quarter. King led all receivers with five catches for 95 yards.

Smith’s 14-yard run in the third quarter made it 28-0, and Smothers capped Destrehan off with a 13-yard touchdown rush in the fourth to make it 35-0.

Destrehan started many of its drives with great field position, and Ehret crossed the Wildcats’ 50 only once.

Robicheaux said he never would have dreamed the final score to be what it was.

“We’ve got a friend at the school, a little guy who’s a big sports fan, and he told me we’d win it 32-0. I teased him all week about that. I thought he was crazy,” Robicheaux said. “In football, that’s how it goes sometimes. You just get on a roll.”