With 14 starters back, don't sleep on D'Iberville: 2020 high school football preview

Here is an inside look at the 2020 D'Iberville Warriors football team.

D'IBERVILLE TEAM PAGE | 2020 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Head coach:

Larry Dolan (2nd year, 9-3 overall)

Key players:

QB Dwight Williams

RB Justice Davis

DB Raymond Lias

Last year:

9-3 (6-1 in 4-6A)

2020 Outlook:

If you’re looking for a dark horse to come out of the south in 6A, you could do a lot worse than D’Iberville.

The Warriors return 14 starters off last year’s squad, which finished 9-3 overall and lost just one game in region play to Gulfport.

Second-year coach Larry Dolan said he knew D’Iberville was capable of sustained success, and that’s part of the reason why he left his coordinator position at Oak Grove to take the helm of the program last February.

“We have a ton of potential,” Dolan said. “We have seven starters back on both sides of the ball, but it’s like I told the guys the other day, that may look good on paper, but it doesn’t mean anything until you step onto the field and show that you’ve improved.”

Dolan said he feels like his squad has had a solid summer, with most of the guys he’s relying on as starters taking part in 100 percent of the conditioning program.

That’s part of the reason why some prognosticators have pegged the Warriors as favorites to take Region 4 in 2020.

The other is that while other teams on the coast are replacing key starters at quarterback and other leadership positions, D’Iberville returns most of its weapons.

That list starts with quarterback Dwight Williams, who is looking to build on a solid year in which he threw for 1,188 yards and seven touchdowns with just three interceptions. Williams is fairly accurate, having completed 67 of 109 passes (61.5 percent) as a junior.

“He’s worked really hard this offseason,” Dolan said. “This time last year, he was not our starter. We made the move and put him under center two games into the season, and he’s just gotten better with every game. This summer, he’s put on a little weight and he’s really studied hard.”

Once the season gets going, Williams will have some weapons with which to work. Running backs Justice Davis and Jordan Walley are back after combining for 737 yards and 11 touchdowns as juniors.

Senior receiver Kenneth Irving has spent a ton of time working with Williams in the off-season, and could be the top receiving threat. Sophomore Colton Deshazo has moved from receiver to tight end, where he should be able to provide another pass-catching option, especially in Dolan’s play-action-heavy offensive scheme.

Up front, D’Iberville returns four starters - sophomore Robert Cook and juniors Luke Butler, Dalton Creel and Brent Simpson.

“We feel like we’re solid up front,” Dolan said. “And we have enough weapons where you can’t just key on one guy and it doesn’t have to be the Dwight Williams show.”

On defense, the Warriors return more than a few key pieces.

Senior Gabe Borsarge and junior Kam Williams are back at the defensive end positions after recording 3.5 sacks apiece last year. Seniors Jasean Carroll and Scotty Gonsoulin make up a tandem of interior linemen who combined for 90 tackles in 2019.

At the second level, it gets even better. Junior middle linebacker Manny Duplessis may be the team’s most improved player after making 22 tackles as a sophomore. On the outside, Ray Lias was the team’s leading tackler with 94 stops last year. He and fellow senior Amarion Fells (50 total tackles last year) will likely cause opposing offenses a lot of trouble.

Walley, the tailback who doubles as a corner, will fill one of the starting roles in the secondary. Lias will see some time at safety as well as linebacker, and senior Dante Taylor and junior Caleb Williams are both primed for big seasons.

“Our starting 22 is going to be really solid,” Dolan said. “There’s a little bit of drop off once you put that second group in, but everyone has worked hard this offseason to get better, and we’re hoping we can find the right guys to give us some depth.”

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