Christmas just got a whole lot brighter for Brian Bertrand.

The 1992 Riverside Academy graduate went and married himself a St. Charles Catholic graduate (the former Denise Simoneaux). And over the last few months he has earned at least a year’s worth of bragging rights thanks to his alma mater’s two victories over the Comets on the football field.

Riverside defeated St. Charles 35-3 in the regular season, then took a 35-14 victory over the Comets in last week’s Division III select semifinals to earn the team a trip to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Now if the Rebels, who are the No. 1 seed in the bracket, can just knock off No. 3 Notre Dame to win their first Louisiana High School Athletic Association title on Friday, Bertrand will have even more to brag about. It is Riverside’s first trip to the state finals since 2000. The Rebels have never won an LHSAA state title but have been runners-up three times — in 1993, 1998 and 2000. They also won eight titles in the defunct Louisiana Independent Schools Association through the 1970s and 1980s.

“I am so excited,” said Bertrand, who is the Unit Commander for the St. John Parish Young Marines.

He also is one of dozens of Riverside graduates who joined in a 21st Century version of trash talking with St. Charles graduates by posting a photo of himself in his very old letterman’s jacket on his Facebook page. “This has just been glorious for me. I get to walk into family gatherings with a smile on my face.”

Bertrand’s former teammate Ryan Cashio, now the owner of Cajun Grill and Catering in LaPlace, is excited for Friday’s game as well. His son Hayden is a sophomore on the team and dad serves as one of the ball boys on the sideline during the games.

“I’m very excited for the players and everyone in the organization,” Cashio said. “They worked so hard every day.”

But, Cashio said, not everyone saw this trip coming.

“When we first looked at the schedule, we were like ‘Coach, what are you doing?’” Cashio said. “Hahnville, Ehret, Parkview Baptist? To see it all come together, it’s been great.”

Also celebrating the Rebels’ return to the Dome is Gail Black, who is a “charter member” of the school. She was in the first class to attend the school when it opened in 1970.

“My association with the school goes back 44 years,” Black said. “You could say I’m enthusiastic.”

Black remembers the LISA championships that were exciting for the students but were dismissed by some.

“They always said we never played anybody,” Black said.  “That’s all we ever heard.”

Black said, sadly, she will be unable to attend Friday afternoon’s game due to her work commitments at Rose Lynn Funeral Home in Lutcher.

“The last time I went because I had a grandson in the band and he played on the field,” Black said. “It feels like it was yesterday. But it’s been 15 years. I never thought I’d see it again in my lifetime.”

By Lori Lyons