Football coaches often say a key to postseason success is getting hot at the right time.

It would be difficult to find a team in LHSAA Class 2A with more sizzle right now than Ferriday High School.

Ronald Williams threw for three touchdowns, and Milak Hampton capped off the scoring barrage with a late 60-yard touchdown run as Ferriday ran past Northeast High School 44-24 in the opening round of the LHSAA playoffs.

“We came out and we played hard,” Ferriday coach Dwight Woods said. “Offensively, we were able to do everything we wanted to do. We knew if we could run the ball, we could do some other things, and we were able to control the clock. So those were things we were looking for.”

The win is the third impressive victory in a row for the Trojans, who defeated Mangham and Ouachita Christian the previous two outings.

“We think we’re clicking and we’re where we want to be,” Woods said. “We take our hats off to Northeast, they played hard the entire game. Our kids and their resiliency, and these coaches getting the kids ready and pre

pared … these kids, and the parents … we hope to get a chance to keep going and keep doing it.”

The highlight of Williams’ touchdown tosses came early in the fourth when senior wide receiver Carlos Collins leapt up and over a Vikings defender to haul in a 40-yard touchdown.

“That was a big play,” Williams said. “Big-time players make big-time plays.”

The scoring strike was not only impressive but also came at a pivotal point after Northeast narrowed the margin 30-16 following a double-pass for 69 yards and a score.

“We saw we had an opportunity, we told him he was going to get open and just make the catch,” Woods said. “He went up and made an outstanding catch. Just that catch alone swung the momentum back around. The kids got pumped again and got fired up and ready to go.”

In addition to his three scoring throws, Williams passed for 97 yards and ran for 65 more.

Ferriday (8-3) outgained Northeast (4-8) for the game 334-315.

The Trojans ran for 237 yards total, with Hampton tallying 79 yards, and Dominique Jackson had 82 yards. Hampton scored two touchdowns for the game.

“We’ve been practicing hard,” Williams said. “Everything starts in practice. Practice makes perfect. We came out and started out early. We played hard, and we played fast.”

Despite missing standout interior defensive lineman Dare Rosenthal, the Trojans defense rose to the playoff occasion. The Trojans tallied five sacks while also forcing three turnovers.

“We knew we had some big-time guys up front,” Woods said. “We knew we could bring pressure. They’ve done a great job all year; we’ve just been battling injuries all year. They came through; they got the opportunity to play. They wanted to show what they could do, and they stepped up big.”

Dantrieze Scott and Lewis Matthews each hauled in touchdown grabs for the Trojans.

On defense, Scott had multiple tackles for loss and also recorded a sack. Matthews and came away with a fumble recovery, and T.J. Swanson had an interception.

Ferriday will travel next to face Loreauville High School, which beat Bunkie 44-14.