Matt Vines

STONEWALL — North DeSoto football coach Dennis Dunn called reports that Opelousas High will have to forfeit its 2023 Division II Non-Select state championship “unfortunate.”

The Louisiana High School Athletics Association penalized the Tigers for multiple offenses, according to a report by sports website By-U Sports and confirmed by other state media outlets.

Opelousas, which beat North DeSoto in the semifinals, topped Cecilia in the state championship game.

“If this is true, it is unfortunate for our kids, the Cecilia kids and the eligible players at Opelousas,” Dunn said. “All of us would like to see championships determined on the field legally.”

The LHSAA doesn’t publicly announce penalties anymore, but reports indicate that Opelousas will have to forfeit all of its wins this season along with its state title.

A Facebook comment made by Jacobian Ardoin, whose profile says he’s the Opelousas strength and conditioning coach, indicated that Cecilia turned Opelousas into the LHSAA over a freshman player that didn’t play. Ardoin’s comment went on to say that the Cecilia report was untrue.

Opelousas was celebrating its first-ever football state championship.