LAPLACE — Coming in to the final week of regular season play, the East St. John Wildcats are on a two-game winning streak and hoping to bring the tally to three.

ESJ (2-7) will host the Central Lafourche Trojans (5-4) Thursday.

East St. John head football coach Alden Foster said defeating Central Lafourche is the Wildcats only hope for making the playoffs.

“I know that if we don’t win this week, the playoffs definitely aren’t an option,” Foster said. “I don’t know what’s going to happen if we do win. It’s not in our control. The only thing we can control is how well we play this week. If we are lucky enough to make it into the playoffs, we’re going to give it our best shot.”

After losing their first seven games of the season, the Wildcats surprised fans with overwhelming victories in their latest games, including a 36-0 shutout last week over Franklin High School (1-8).

“The kids are going with the system and understanding it,” Foster said. “We are playing, overall, as a better team. We are making more plays than we were at the beginning.”

Foster credits his teams’ success to his powerhouse duo of quarterback Marquise Darensbourg and wide receiver Da’Monte Coxie.

“Da’Monte Coxie had a monster game last week,” Foster said. “He had three interceptions and two touchdowns, all in less than three quarters of work. Darensbourg was steady. He gave us four touchdowns. But it was an overall good team effort.”

Foster said the team effort wouldn’t be complete without his defense.

“The main thing is to do what we have been doing and to not give up too many plays,” Foster said. “We have to take it play by play and see how things go. If we can hold them back and not let them get too many plays, we’ll be fine.”

Foster said winning really boosted his players’ morale.

“The guys are feeling real good after winning the last two weeks,” Foster said. “They are starting to play real competitive and they feel good about playing. It’s always better to come back on a Monday after a win than to come back after we lose.”

The morale boost may be just what East St. John needed to complete the season on a high note.

“Central Lafourche is a good team,” Foster said. “They are well coached. We are going to have to make sure we don’t give up anything against them. They are going to play the way a team is supposed to play and they are going to be where they are supposed to be. We are going to have to take advantage of opportunities where we can.

“I think we can win against Central Lafourche. I think we can win every game.”

By Courtney Griggs