MaxPreps is pleased to announce that the
Edna Karr (New Orleans, La.) Cougars have officially been named to the 14th Annual MaxPreps Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard, which is in its fourteenth year honoring football.
This is one of the most prestigious team awards in all of high school sports and it is an exclusive honor reserved for 100 of the top teams nationwide. In order to be eligible, a team must win a state championship and be highly ranked in the MaxPreps National Rankings. For football, only 50 of the country's best are invited and with nearly 17,000 competing varsity teams, this puts the Cougars ahead of 99.9 percent of their opponents!
In order to be eligible, the team not only had to be nationally ranked, but also had to win a state championship. Beating Easton 28-20 in the
Allstate Sugar Bowl LHSAA Class 4A state championship contest on Saturday, December 8 marked the completion of an incredible 15-0 season — and earned Edna Karr an invitation to the Tour of Champions.
Facing a 12-0 first quarter deficit, Edna Karr bounced back by scoring four of the final five touchdowns of the contest to claim its third straight state football title at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. Jahii Howard put the Cougars on the board with an eight-yard run early in the second quarter. Then, Ahmad Antoine gave the champions a 14-12 halftime advantage with a one-yard plunge eight minutes later.
Howard's 17-yard third quarter run put Edna Karr up 21-12 before the runners-up bounced back with a 17-yard pass play. Howard retaliated by reeling in a 31-yard strike from quarterback Leonard Kelly to finish off the scoring. Easton, however, did not lay down. The Eagles threatened to tie the game late, twice. But Joseph Thomas took the ball away from an Easton back after the Eagles drove to the Edna Karr 16. Then, on Easton's next possession, Austin Kent picked off an Eagle pass at the Cougar 21-yard line.
The Cougars threw for 154 yards and strung together 21 first downs to just 109 yards passing and 20 first downs for Easton. The runners-up, however, did rush for 128 yards and out yarded Edna Karr 237-207.
The Cougars opened postseason play with a 34-10 win over Minden. Then, following a 49-13 triumph over Tioga, Edna Karr kicked in the door to the Final Four with a 48-19 victory over Bastrop. The Cougars bumped Neville from state championship contention with a 25-13 semifinal win to set up the championship bout with Easton. Brice Brown's club opened the season with a 33-30 win over St. Paul's. Then, following a 40-0 blanking of Landry-Walker, Edna Karr upended De La Salle 34-7 to open the season at 3-0. The Cougars did not lose a game all year and outscored their competition 539-165. Edna Karr posted four shutouts and held 10 foes to 13 points or less, while scoring a season-high 56 points in a win over Kennedy.
Having won 28 straight games dating back to 2017, Edna Karr set itself up for some rather high rankings come season's end. Not only are the Cougars ranked No. 1 in
MaxPreps' Louisiana Class 4A Rankings, Edna Karr is the fourth best squad in all of
Louisiana. The Cougars are ranked No. 78 in
MaxPreps' National Rankings!
These incredible season achievements have earned the Edna Karr Cougars an invitation to the 14th Annual Tour of Champions. Please join us in the auditorium for a National Signing Day Assembly as we celebrate with the football team, coaching staff, students and fans on Wednesday, February 6 at 10 a.m.
For more information about the Tour of Champions, please visit the
MaxPreps Tour of Champions site.