It may not be a battle of ranked 5A teams any longer, nor is it a clash between district undefeated.

But that shouldn’t fool anybody when it comes to Destrehan at East St. John this Friday night.

Their meeting last year was classic in every sense of the word, and ended up deciding the District 6-5A crown (now 5-5A). East St. John (2-3, 1-1) came three years away from pulling off a spectacular comeback on the road, when Antonio Parker made the kind of play that Antonio Parker’s made for Destrehan (6-0, 2-0) over its last 21 games, all wins — an interception in the endzone to clinch the a 31-28 win.

For the second time this season, East St. John will be trying to end a major winning streak. First it was Bastrop (whose streak, incidentally, ended at 49 at the hands of Evangel this past weekend). Now it’s defending 5A champion Destrehan, which hasn’t lost since 2006.

Seldom does a team lose its entire starting slate of skill players to Division I schools, as Destrehan did its quarterback, running back, and two starting receivers. Even more seldom does it recover in time to contend the very next year. Not only is Destrehan contending, it hasn’t had a close call yet, something that wasn’t even true of the championship squad to this point of the season.

Destrehan’s offensive line may be the best in the state. But if you don’t think it is, it may well be because you think its upcoming opponent boasts it. East St. John’s line seems to maul everyone, and I haven’t talked to an opposing coach yet who hasn’t gushed about its effectiveness. ESJ runs at will behind All-State OT Patrick Lewis, and we’ll see plenty of Alex Singleton and Todd Muse runs behind him.

Destrehan doesn’t have a real hole. Its running game is solid, its passing game as good or better than most behind QB Wynrick Smothers and a host of talented receivers. Its defense hasn’t allowed more than 14 points in a game, and in five of them hasn’t allowed more than seven. Even its kicking game is fantastic behind Ryan Rome.

This was also true last year, though, and East St. John gave DHS all they could handle. ESJ is also improved, in my mind, despite the 2-3 record they currently boast.

ESJ is at home, and ESJ desperately needs a win here to stay in 5-5A contention.

And maybe this isn’t the soundest way to pick, but I can’t see a team that talented falling to 2-4.

As tempting as it is for me to just say “Take the Wildcats,” I’ll be a little more specific — with all eyes on Reserve, East St. John gets its biggest win of the season.

The Pick: East St. John 26, Destrehan 23.

Riverside (3-3, 0-2) at Newman (5-1, 1-1) — Newman’s offense. Riverside’s defense. Pick a side. Last season the Greenies had to mount a comeback to win in a shootout at Riverside, a game between two teams with fantastic offenses and inconsistent defenses.

But while Riverside’s lost many of its offensive weapons from a year ago, its defense has grown by leaps and bounds. The numbers over the last two weeks don’t back that up (84 combined to Curtis and St. James), but those are against top tier teams in 2A.

Riverside was playing some very good football before the start to district — its only losses have come to teams ranked in the top 7 of 2A. I expect a bounce back performance, even against Wes Luquette and a strong Newman offensive unit.

The Pick: Riverside 21, Newman 16.

West St. John (2-3, 1-0) at East Iberville (0-4, 0-1). West St. John needed overtime to defeat Jeanerette last week, but I wouldn’t expect this one to be so close. East Iberville has lost each of its games by three touchdowns or more, and the Rams are building some momentum.

The Pick: West St. John 31, East Iberville 0.

St. Charles (5-1, 1-0) at Brusly (4-2, 1-1) — Brusly got a wake up call last week when it was pounded by Lutcher, 66-13. I wouldn’t expect this one to get quite that out of hand, but the Comet defense could slam the door early by forcing a few turnovers.

The Pick: St. Charles 38, Brusly 19.

Dutchtown (6-0, 2-0) at Hahnville (4-2, 1-1) — After watching Dutchtown take down East St. John last week, I’m a believer. Their running game goes three backs deep, and each is pretty explosive. Coach Lou and his Tigers are going to do everything they can to force Dutchtown to beat them through the air, but it may come down to who takes care of the football — something that’s been at times problematic for Hahnville.

The Pick: Dutchtown 27, Hahnville 17.

Lutcher (4-2, 1-1) at. Port Allen (5-0, 1-0) — The Pelicans have yet to lose, and could be one big win away from breaking into the Class 3A top 10 polls. A win over Lutcher would qualify. But I don’t see it — Gavin Webster might not account for six touchdowns as he did a week ago, but he’ll do enough.

The Pick: Lutcher 31, Port Allen 23.

St. James (4-2, 2-0) at Fisher (4-2, 0-1) — St. James will be competing in its third straight road district game. It’ 2-for-2 so far. I’m betting that’ll be 3-for-3 after this week — The Wildcats have been on fire since a loss to Higgins.

The Pick: St. James 40, Fisher 13.