Warriors’ years of hope, perseverance reaps reward

    The Bible is full of verses pertaining to perseverance. Galatians 6:9 is a personal favorite: “Let us not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
    On a Saturday at the Superdome, East Jefferson’s Warriors had finally reaped their harvest. Their championship celebration was ironically in the Saints’ locker room.
    The Warriors, a first-time entrant in the State Farm Classic, had played the second half with a comfort level that was very much like those in black-and-gold uniforms who usually occupy this space.
    As he walked into the dressing room, with his MVP award in hand, quarterback Eugene Wells sat in the corner of the room, only a few cubicles down from the space usually occupied by Drew Brees. Wells just looked at the news camera and smiled.
    Minutes earlier, Wells was on the Superdome carpet crying tears of his joy. His Warriors had won the 4A championship with a 38-28 win over the vaunted Edna Karr Cougars.
    The Cougars, making a fourth consecutive trip to the 4A championship game, were disappointed favorites. If anyone knew how they felt, it was East Jefferson. For three consecutive seasons, the Warriors lost as the favorite, at home, in the first round of the playoffs.
    The past two seasons, as the 12th seed, East Jeff lost first-round playoff games to Alexandria and McDonogh 35.
    2012 was supposed to be different. In the regular season, East Jefferson defensive end Sean Harry sacked St. Aug quarterback Toi Jackson on fourth down to preserve one of the biggest wins in school history. But, weeks later, the season had ended abruptly, again. Wells was on the sideline, the tears and the dismay covering his face.
    This year, in the semifinals, before a rather sparse home crowd, the Warriors beat Neville,18-15. They won with outstanding defense, an opportunistic offense and a field goal on the game’s final play.
    Eight days and three quarters later, the harvest finally happened. Wells scrambled and found running back Ronald Green wide open for a touchdown that jump-started the greatest fourth quarter in school history.
    Minutes later, in the celebration, the joy and the love overflowed. Head coach Nick Saltaformaggio prayed the Lord’s Prayer with his team. He told them he loved them, they in unison, said they loved him.
    Assistant coach George Ryan thanked the players. “I waited 43 years for this,” said Ryan.
    Assistant coach Marc Martin said now that the state title was checked off his bucket list, “the good Lord can take me.” Martin called the championship the greatest moment “for the rest of my life.”
    Saltaformaggio told his players to thank the large contingent of East Jefferson fans who cheered the team in the championship game.
    East Jefferson graduate J.T. Curtis brought his “once a Warrior, always a Warrior” T-shirt to our final Friday Night Football show of the season. East Jefferson’s football team had persevered.
    Ed Daniels is sports director of ABC26 WGNO. He can be reached at [email protected].