The Saint Ouen Cougars (1-3) take the six hour drive Saturday to Thonon to face the Thonon Black Panthers (1-2-1) for the second time this season as the French D1 Elite league enters the second half of the 2024 season.
These two teams faced each other a week ago the Black Panthers making a statement coming out 42-0 winners in Saint-Ouen.
The Black Panthers season has not been ideal for them so far as they currently sit on a 1-2-1 record with a loss to the Flash 31-7 before a matchup with Rouen which saw both teams walk away with 34 points on the board and a draw. They then played to another tie, this time against the Asnieres Molosses, 35-35 before trouncing the Cougars last week. Saint-Ouen opened the season with a 21-12 loss to the Rouen Leopards but rebounded with an impressive 14-13 victory over the La Courneuve Flash. However they followed that up with two straight losses, 41-6 to the Molosses and 42-0 to Thonon.
Thonon quarterback K’Hari Lane (Fayetteville State) who took over from Jose Tabora Jr., has become one of the leading passers in France and has combined with receivers Felix Durand, Leo Sarsteel, and Benjamin Lolomede along with tight end Odel Turnbull to produce one of the top two offenses in the league.
Defensively, the Black Panthers are led by Valentine Roesch and Abedel Bafdile along with talented defensive back Tyron Smile.
The Cougars rely on former ELF star quarterback Donovon Isom but it has been a struggle. Saint Ouen has scored just 32 points in their four games. Still, with receiver Jefferson Aleandre along with Evans Sodatonou and running back Chris Vuombo, the offense will no doubt start to click.
Defensively, head coach Stephane Bago’s squad is led by veteran Omar Small, Adel Outtara, and Lucke Allangba.
On paper, this game looks like a foregone conclusion after the lopsided Thonon win last week in Saint-Ouen. But the Cougars badly need the win to have any chance at all at getting into playoff contention.
