![The Sporting News High School Football Game of the Week: No. 18 American Heritage [FL] at No. 19 Edna Karr [LA] image](https://library.sportingnews.com/styles/crop_style_16_9_mobile_webp/s3/2025-08/Top%2025%20Preseason%20Logo.png.webp?itok=_OnQOW9j)
The Caesars Superdome has hosted a lot of big events during its 50 years of operation.
Friday will be no exception.
No. 19 Edna Karr (La.) will host No. 18 American Heritage (Fla.) at 8:30 p.m. in the second game of a doubleheader -- following two other top Louisiana teams Archbishop Rummel and University Lab.
The teams were supposed to play at Karr's home stadium at Behrman Stadium in 2020 and 2021, but those games were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Ida. respectively.
But as they say, the third time is the charm. And what a charm it is for fans of high school football.
Karr is fresh off a 35-0 win over LHSAA Division II select state champion Archbishop Shaw. The Cougars were locked into a scoreless deadlock after one quarter, but cruised in the second half.
American Heritage lost to Chaminade-Madonna, 28-24, after leading 24-14 through three quarters. Patriot quarterback Dia Bell passed for 325 yards and three touchdowns, but was stopped on a potential game-clinching play at the one-yard line with 7:30 left.
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No. 18 American Heritage [Plantation, FL] Patriots at No. 19 Edna Karr [New Orleans, LA] Cougars
LAST WEEK'S GAME OF THE WEEK No. 3 St. John Bosco [Bellflower, CA] Braves 21, No. 4 St. Frances Academy [Baltimore, MD] Panthers 14
Friday, September 12, 2025
Caesars Superdome | 8:30 p.m. CST local (9:30 p.m. EST)
TV/Streaming: TBD
Local Media Coverage: Miami Herald High School Sports | NOLA.com/Times-Picayune High School Sports
School Athletics Websites: American Heritage Athletics | Edna Karr Athletics
School Social Media: American Heritage Patriots Football on X.com @ahspatfootball | Edna Karr Football on X.com @karrfootball
The Background
Edna Karr is no stranger to playing big games inside the Caesars Superdome -- winning seven state championships and playing for six others in the venue. However, this will be the first time it has played in the Dome during the regular season and it comes in one of the biggest regular season games in program history.
The Cougars' last played an out-of-state opponent in 2011, so this is a perfect opportunity for them to not only show why they are the top team in Louisiana, but also show why they are one of the best in the nation.
American Heritage was one quarter away from a victory against Chaminade-Madonna, but now finds itself hitting the reset button after a tough loss. The Patriots might be out of the national championship picture, but they can still play for some pride and to remain in the rankings.
Both schools are defending state champions, with Karr winning Division I select in the LHSAA and American Heritage winning Class 4A in the FHSAA.
Top Recruits
- American Heritage has 10 players ranked by 247Sports.com -- beginning with Bell being No. 2 in Florida and No. 10 in the nation. Bell, a Texas commit, has accounted for 638 yards and four touchdowns this season and seems to be fully recovered from a lower leg injury that kept him out of the Patriots' last three games of the playoffs. Receivers Brandon Bennett (Florida State) and Jeffar Jean-Noel (Georgia Tech) are also ranked in the top 100 for Florida.
- Edna Karr has seven seniors ranked by 247Sports.com with Richard Anderson and Aiden Hall being top 10 recruits in the state and LSU commits. At 6-foot-3 and 340 pounds, Anderson (ranked No. 63 in the nation by 247Sports) has the size to be a run-stuffing nose guard, but the skills to be a pass rusher. Hall, Hayward Howard Jr. (Texas) and Maurice Williams (Colorado) will make things hard for Bell to get in a rhythm with his receivers. John Johnson had a modest start to the 2025 season with 176 total yards and a touchdown, but he is a returning 3,000-yard passer.
When American Heritage has the ball ...
Bell will likely be the best quarterback that Edna Karr has seen all year. Bell has five career 300-yard passing games and last season, he accounted for 3,158 yards and 34 touchdowns in just 11 games. A part of that is because of a good receiving corps of Bennett, Jean-Noel and Jamar Denson. Denson is off to an amazing start with 20 catches for 334 yards and two touchdowns in the first two games.
Dating back to the start of last year's playoffs, the Karr defense has given up just 47 points -- an average of 9.4 points per game. Anderson can stuff the run and the pass as a nose tackle after making 44 tackles, 10 sacks and 18 quarterback hurries last season. The Cougar secondary is also solid as Hall intercepted four passes last year.
When Edna Karr has the ball ...
Johnson was the maestro of Karr's offense last season -- accounting for 4,301 yards and 50 touchdowns. While he lost his leading receivers TaRon Francis and Daejawn Smith, he gained another big play guy in Destrehan transfer Greg Wilfred. Leon Noil is a solid blocker that can protect Johnson's blind side.
Rodarion Tellez will look to speed up Johnson and make him uncomfortable in the pocket. After leading the Patriots with 11 sacks in 2024, he has two in the first two games this year. Linebackers Kymani Morales and Dylan Bennett are tackling machines that each topped 100 tackles last season. American Heritage also has a good secondary with Amare Nugent ranking No. 25 on 247Sports's list of Florida 2027 recruits.
Keys to the game
Edna Karr wins if its defense continues to play lights out. Karr wore down Archbishop Shaw as the game progressed and did not allow a first down in the second half. The Cougars have three SEC commits in Anderson (LSU), Hall (LSU) and Howard Jr. (Texas) and they can match up with American Heritage's speedy offense. Karr can score points in bunches, but defense wins championships.
American Heritage wins if it does not suffer another fourth quarter collapse. The Patriots did everything right against Chaminade-Madonna and was a yard away from coming away with a win, but a fourth down stop from the 1-yard line led to the game-winning drive. If Bell has another big game, American Heritage can come away from New Orleans with the win.
Looking Ahead
American Heritage's loss to Chaminade-Madonna does take some of the sails out of this one in the national championship chase, but it is still a good litmus test for both teams' state championship defenses.
Karr plays McDonogh 35 in Week 3 for its final non-district game before playing its perennial Catholic League gauntlet. The Cougars are not out of the national title picture at No. 19, but they do have their work cut out for them as the teams ahead of them have built up their resumes.
American Heritage has another tough game against in-state foe Miami Central next week before opening District 15-4A play at Plantation. The Patriots can ill afford another loss for their national championship hopes.
Series history
This is the first meeting between the two schools.
This will be Karr's first out-of-state opponent since 2011, when it lost 36-6 to Arlington-Bowie (Texas) in the Kirk Herbstreit Classic at AT&T Stadium. Dating back to 2002, the Cougars are 0-2 against out-of-state opponents.
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