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LAPLACE — Back-to-back state titles will be a tough act to follow for St. Charles Catholic’s football team. Head coach Wayne Stein said the expectations never change, regardless of whether the season ends with championship rings.

“We are going to push our kids to act like champions,” Stein said. “You can’t control winning a championship, but the standards are not going to change. Our kids expect to be there in the end with an opportunity to play in that last game.”

St. Charles Catholic lost some important pieces from last year — including Ayden Authement, Davon Stirgus, Samare Scott and Kason Gilbert.

“About 75% of our offense graduated, but we do return seven guys who started in the state championship on offense and seven on defense,” Stein said. “We have some other guys returning who were on the state championship team but didn’t start. I would call us an experienced group, just not a very deep group.”

Three-year starter Brandon Kragle will be a big part of the offense at tight end. Jackson Monica will be back in action at fullback, and 6’5” wide receiver Daniel Joseph is expected to have another great year.

On the offensive line, the Comets will return junior left guard Matthew Lang, senior center Caleb Houston, senior right guard Dillon Duley, and senior right tackle Aiden Ocmond. Sophomore Jacques Vicknair will be positioned at left tackle, and Aidan Lowry will have a role in multiple positions.

Brady St. Pierre will take on the quarterback role, a position he filled for five games last season while Ayden Authement fought off injury. St. Pierre also played three games at safety and another four games at wide receiver.

Rounding out the offense will be Noah Tucker, Skylar Edwards and senior transfer Jeremiah Wills.

The Comets’ strength lies in the front six on the defensive side. In the front four, St. Charles Catholic returns Jaden Breaux, Matt Loupe, Shane Zimmerman and Hudson Heltz. The experienced linebacker corps will feature seniors Andrew Bosco and Kyle Cannon. Meanwhile, the secondary will be a mixed bag of experience. Reshawn Hilaire returns, along with Kayden Cambre and Brayden Bertucci, who played a lot of snaps last year. Also returning are seniors Logan Barrios and Caden Foster, as well as sophomore Prystyn Cambre.

The regular season begins against Archbishop Shaw week one and defending champion Lutcher in week two. Next on the schedule are Teurlings Catholic and De La Salle, two teams that have recently appeared in the semifinals. The week five opponent, Vandebilt Catholic, made it to the quarterfinals last year. Two strong 3A opponents, Abbeville and St. Martinville, are on the schedule for weeks six and seven before St. Charles Catholic leaps into its district schedule against Dr. King Charter, Country Day and Newman.

“It’s a meat grinder of a schedule,” Stein said. “There is no rest. It exposes you a bit as far as depth is concerned. Staying healthy is definitely the key for us to have a chance to compete in the end.”