A large wildfire in Beauregard Parish that blanketed Southwest Louisiana with smoke has forced one high school football jamboree to move while others are playing as planned but keeping an eye out for potential changes.

The fire raging between Singer and Merryville forced the Panthers to cut practice short on Tuesday and to pull out of a three-way jamboree they had planned to host against East Beauregard and South Beauregard.

Merryville head coach Bart Coody said his players were disappointed, but added that safety is the priority. Both Merryville and Singer convened virtual school on Wednesday and today.

“It is a game we all love, but it is a game,” Coody said. “We have students displaced.

“It is very chaotic right now. They took us off the field (Tuesday) at 3:45 p.m. and sent the kids home. We haven’t been able to go back. We could see the smoke from the practice field. They were bummed. Right now our plan is to have our first regular-season game at home (Aug. 31) against North Central.

“Our fire department, national guard, forestry department — we have a lot of people out there trying to get it out before it gets too many people’s homes.”

East Beauregard and South Beauregard will play each other at 6:30 p.m. today at East Beauregard High School.

Sam Houston is hosting the three-team jamboree and will play 2022 non-select Division II semifinalist Iowa and regional finalist Jennings.

“We get to see two totally different teams, and it is good to get two looks going into Week 1,” Sam Houston head coach Chad Davis said. “We want to see a little bit better execution than last Thursday.”

Davis said there are no changes to the jamboree yet.

“We are just playing it by ear,” Davis said. “The afternoons have been fine.

“The temperatures have been fine. We had a lot of smoke early this (Wednesday) morning, but the wind changed directions and blew it all out of here.”

Sulphur High will host the area’s largest jamboree, the two-day event at Matt Walker Memorial Stadium. It will feature seven teams with new head coaches, including the host Tors.

“We look forward to people coming out and watching some football,” Sulphur head coach Cody Gueringer said. “I want to watch everybody.