We asked the Lafayette Parish to vote and the sports community showed up to vote for the first Daily Advertiser Athlete of the Week of the 2024-25 school year, Teurlings Catholic's Doug E Viltz. In an online poll that closed on Friday, Viltz received over 50% of votes cast for a total of 6,869 votes.

The senior running back earned this honor after carrying the Rebels on his back to a big-time win over Opelousas in Week 1 of the season. He rushed for 107 yards finding the endzone twice leading his team's offense in battle on the ground with the Tigers.

Viltz also played a key role on special teams taking a kickoff return for 60 yards to put Teurlings Catholic in scoring position. His relentless running helped the Rebels beat the Tigers 21-14. This kind of workload is nothing new for him as he played a key role for the Rebels in his junior year despite missing six games due to injury.

He finished the short season rushing for 327 yards on 66 carries, catching for 42 yards and six total touchdowns. As a kickoff returner, he racked up nearly 200 return yards. The 5-foot-8 and 160-pounder will look to continue to lead his team's backfield as they face Sam Houston for their Week 2 matchup.

Editor's Note: Anyone can nominate an athlete of the week for every sport. Nominate next week’s ballot through email. Readers can email nominations to sports reporter Shannon Belt at sbelt@recordnet.com. Please include the player's stats and a photo if possible.

Original story: The Daily Advertiser is looking to highlight the talented prep athletes in Lafayette, Acadiana, St. Landry, St. Martin and Iberia parishes. To do that, we are bringing back Athlete of the Week. To start, we have selected six athletes who had top performances in their respective sports from Sept. 1-8.

The athlete that receives the most number of votes will be highlighted as the Daily Advertiser’s Athlete of the Week. Voting will close at noon on Friday.

See below for details on how you can become part of this.

(Players listed in alphabetical order)

Brea Bailey, girls volleyball, Lafayette: Bailey led the Lions to their second win of the 2024 season on Sept. 5, sweeping Comeaux 3-0. The senior outside hitter had a team-high seven kills with a 47% kill rate.

Brooklyn Blanchard, girls volleyball, Teurlings Catholic: The Rebels are off to a solid start, winning both of their games so far this season thanks to Blanchard. She finished Sept. 5’s match vs Assumption with seven kills and digs helping her team win 2-1.

Brian Broussard Jr., football, St. Thomas More: Broussard was an impact player in St. Thomas More’s season opener vs Carencro on Sept. 6. He racked up four interceptions in the game, leading the Cougars defense and helping them snag a 21-20 victory.

REQUIRED READING: St. Thomas More football snags 5 interceptions in Week 1 victory over Carencro

REQUIRED READING: 'A die hard Red Devils fan': Port Barre football plays its first season without Lil Craig

Magnolia Henrich, cross country, Westminster Christian Academy: At the St. Michael's Bayou Boogie cross country meet on Sept. 7, Henrich had a solid outing. The sophomore runner finished in the top 50 of the girls three-mile varsity race.

Jack Medus, football, Notre Dame: The Pios were in a dogfight against Southside in their first game of the season on Sept. 6. Luckily for them, Medus came through rushing for two touchdowns to help his team escape with a 21-20 victory.

Doug Viltz, football, Teurlings Catholic: With Viltz leading the ground game, the Rebels shocked Opelousas to kick off the 2024 season with a 21-14 victory. The senior running back rushed for two touchdowns to lead his team’s scoring.

Editor's note: Anyone can nominate an athlete of the week for every sport. Nominate next week's ballot through email. Readers can email nominations to sports reporter Shannon Belt at sbelt@gannett.com. Please include a player's statistics and a photo if possible.

All high school varsity players from Lafayette, Acadiana, St. Landry, St. Martin, and Iberia parishes are eligible to be placed on the ballot. Nominations must be received by Monday morning following that week's games for consideration.

Shannon Belt covers high school sports and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow her high school and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ShannonBelt3. Got questions regarding HS/UL athletics? Send them to Shannon Belt at sbelt@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Record: See who won the first Daily Advertiser Athlete of the Week (Sept. 1-8)