May 20, 2021
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TODAY’S COLUMNS:
Scott assesses the New Orleans Pelicans
Dennis shares the conversation he had with 2 veteran coaches
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THE WIZARDRY OF OS
I was pretty harsh on the hire of Stan Van Gundy by David Griffin. I think Van Gundy is a good NBA head coach, but my problem was the process.
The process took too long heading into a shortened season. Steve Nash was hired on September 4. Thom Thibodeau was hired by the Knicks on July 30! The Sixers hired Doc Rivers on October 1, and Tyronn Lue replaced Doc for the Clippers on October 15! Yet it took Griffin and the Pelicans until October 21 to settle on Van Gundy after firing Gentry on August 15.
Players reported to camp on December 1st to get ready to play the first game on December 22. I complained about the process when it was happening, and I am repeating it now, mostly because Van Gundy referenced the short amount of time getting ready for the season in many interviews over the course of the season.
Looking back on the season, contrary to the narrative from many people, I think Van Gundy and his staff did a pretty good job. Ball, Hayes, and Williamson improved dramatically over the course of the season. Players are developing.
The Pelicans scored 8,251 points and gave up 8,272 points. That is a stat that usually earns a much better record than 31-41. Clearly, the Pelicans played a ton of close games. With a young team, the Pelicans played with consistent effort from game to game even though they had a terrible habit of historically inconsistent performances from one quarter to the next.
A year ago, Shaq had a segment on Inside the NBA where his point was overshadowed by his initial quote. He said, “Coaching has nothing to do with it” in reference to winning and losing in the NBA. Kenny and Charles jumped all over him. But as Shaq clarified himself, he came around to a point I agree with 100%. In the NBA, the most significant impact of coaching is from game to game, series to series, and overall mentality. But, players win games at the end, not x’s and o’s. The Pelicans do not have those players or the chemistry to win close games.
I can listen to an argument that Van Gundy waited too long at the end of games before getting Zion in the game or that Bledsoe played too much at the end of games. I can also assure you that Eric Spoelstra knows that Tyler Jerro, Jimmy Butler, and Duncan Robinson make his end of the game strategy look really good even when things do not go according to plan. That credit goes to Pat Riley for putting together a team that has great chemistry and puts the defense in a bind when it tries to help on a great 1 on 1 player like Butler.
David Griffin is going to have a very challenging job this off season. The Pelicans have a roster that pays Steven Adams, James Johnson, Eric Bledsoe, and Brandon Ingram more money than the rest of the roster put together. Yet, none of those four highly paid players complement the best player on the roster, Zion, at the end of the game.
Ingram and Zion are poor defensive players. You put them with Steven Adams and you cannot defend the three point line which has to be a top priority at the end of a close game. Offensively, Ball, Ingram, and Bledsoe are decent shooters over the course of the game, but their shot breaks down in crunch time. Only Zion forces the defense to help or makes the defense pay if it does not help. Ingram can create a shot for himself, but not anyone else.
The good news is Kira Lewis has the athleticism to defend and break down the defense. But, he must learn to shoot better or he is another player the defense will help off of when Zion has the ball late. The Bucks should be the model for the Pels. Milwaukee’s second best player is Khris Middleton who is one of the best shooters in the league. It is a formula that has worked for the Nuggets as well. An inside presence like Jokic, needs an outside presence like Jamal Murray. Ingram is not the sidekick that Zion needs, and Zion is the dominant player the Pels must keep.
None of this is a put down to Brandon Ingram. By all reports, he is a good person, a hard worker, and he is a good player. Yet, basketball is all about chemistry, and his talents do not fit with Zion’s game
Van Gundy took a lot of heat this year, but it is Giffin’s job to put together a cohesive roster, and he has yet to do that in Zion’s two years in the league. Griffin was praised for his trade with the Lakers giving the Pels a boatload of draft picks. Griffin must select players in the draft or use those picks to trade for players that are ready to transition and contribute to this team making a playoff run in the next two years. No more projects.
In the last two weeks of the season, it was apparent this team would not make the play-in tournament. Last year, they fell short of another great opportunity to play in the postseason because of the creation of The Bubble. In the past, only the top 8 teams made the playoffs. It is as if the NBA has begged for the Pelicans to make the playoffs and they refuse. The reality is the Pelicans finished 11th in the West, and the last month of the season was just playing out the string.
Something better change quickly, because the Pels are on the brink of wasting another draft lottery miracle.
HEY REF
This week I’m trying to keep things short and to the point so there can be some focus on the continued problems of getting coaches and officials to work together in order to make Friday nights much more enjoyable. As some who read my column are very much aware of for most of the past year or so I’ve been meeting with coaches and officials (that aren’t afraid of the LHSAA) to get their insight into the huge problem facing their programs, kids, schools and parents when playing any game(s) in which Baton Rouge officials make up the crew on the field. It hurts to no end to hear these horror stories since I broke into the business of working high school games as a member of the Baton Rouge Association.
This past week I felt honored to be able to sit down with a couple of “old” football coaches and listen to them tell a few of their favorite war stories. Most of the stories hadn’t changed since the last time they told ‘em. But some of the stories never swayed and mostly stayed close to the truth since I’d either been on the field working the game or had secured a VHS tape of the game. Yes, you read that right games were recorded on VHS tapes. Back some twenty to thirty years ago I found most coaches in the Baton Rouge area were more than happy to share a tape since they felt it was one way of “learning” us officials how to do our jobs as the coaches wanted us to do our jobs.
I knew this impromptu meeting wouldn’t last long so when I saw my chance I had to ask them the one question I’ve been asking coaches for more than ten years now “What in your opinion is the overall major reason for the decline or lack of respect between coaches and officials on Friday nights”? Before I could finish asking my question I was asked “do you mean the things not being addressed”?
To be honest I didn’t expect any of the coaches to answer me with a question so I just hurriedly answered “yes, what do y’all think is the 800 pound gorilla that nobody seems to want to acknowledge and confirm that there certainly is a problem between coaches and the officials on any given Friday night”. As they hesitated I repeated that under no conditions will I ever name names, etc. and it felt like an eternity before one coach that I’ve known nearly 30 years piped up and said “the year before I retired we were one game ahead in district with just one game to go. My quarterback rolled out and threw a pass downfield to a wide open kid that caught it and he wasn’t going to be touched. As I’m watching this clinching TD I see one last player that could get to him. But my guy zigged and wasn’t going to be caught when that last kid dove at him, reached out, grabbed the facemask then jerked my guy down. The ball comes out as his neck was almost turned all the way around. I hear whistles being blown and waited for at least two flags to be thrown but the guy watching all this happen says it’s a fumble and we don’t get the ball or a penalty. I was told as was my entire staff that my player fumbled! Not one member of the crew called the facemask”.
He continued “I had to get all my coaches calmed down and off the field before I could ask for a conference with the white hat”. He didn’t want to talk to me and he just asked the guy who called it a fumble what happened and then signals that we’re now gonna be on defense. I asked my side official to tell the ref I had to talk to him BEFORE the ball goes over. He did but I’m told by the official covering deep plays to “get off the field or he was going to flag me”!
He added “I then tried to keep control and begged him to send the white hat over to my sideline so I could ask what was going on and why no facemask was called”. Instead of hustling over to my sideline the white hat did his best Sunday afternoon stroll then tells me “there’s nothing he can do since he was so far away and none of the other officials saw a facemask”. Then all of a sudden the umpire walks over to me and says “Hey coach, we’ve got to get the game going it’s getting late”! “I’ll never forget that guy, I went ballistic, he was on the other end of the field and he says we’ve got to get the game restarted? I found out this guy was only in his third year and he was working a district title game? There’s something very wrong with this whole situation”.
I agree with this coach because there are severe problems with how this association is run and it sickens me to think that all that hard work that so many of us dedicated officials put into not only making the Baton Rouge Association the best in the state but keeping it there for all those years. He continued that he feels today’s officials have no respect for the coaches. And I know many officials that fit that description just as I know many coaches don’t have an ounce of respect for the officials. To me the lack of common respect between coaches and officials at the high school level statewide has spoiled the atmosphere on Friday nights.
When I restarted my officiating career I noticed this common dislike among coaches and officials was as real as it can be. I made a motion at a meeting to invite coaches to sit down and explain what they feel is needed and what they feel has been lost in getting and keeping good officials. To my horror my motion failed as one member got up and said “Coaches are only looking for somebody to cheat for them. We don’t need ‘em in our meetings”!
If ever there was a need that isn’t being taken advantage of it’s the one between high school coaches and the officials that should work together each and every Friday night. When coaches and officials move up to the professional ranks I can agree with that fellow official in some cases but we must always remember that high school sports, coaches and players are out there because they love the game and working together to make the game and the players better should be top priority! Better players make for better games, that’s just common knowledge and anytime you keep from improving whether a coach, official or player you’re cheating the game itself that we all seem to love. Its past time for everyone involved in high school sports to work together and not against each other.
Let me end by saying “Coach, I know I didn’t get every word correct but the lesson should be easy for everyone to understand, the loss of respect between coaches and officials is getting wider each season. We just need to stop trying to ignore the problem, admit the problem is very real and understand nobody wins when coaches go their way while officials believe there’s nothing they can learn from coaches. A huge “THANK YOU, Coach” for your approval to quote you in my column, its coaches like you that we so desperately need.
But what I’m really wanting to do is get some officials that have enough courage (BA**S) to “open up” and go on the record to focus on how bad things are in the realm of being a high school football official in Baton Rouge. But too many have told me they fear retribution from this assignment secretary as he’s known to hold a grudge and either will not give them a game or will put them on clocks to prove if you cross him there’s a huge price to pay. They know they can’t go to Old Hammond Highway and lodge a complaint since the rumor is this assignment secretary does free legal work for the LHSAA and Eddie doesn’t want to chance losing that and other “FREE-BEES”
Till next week…
Before I get to the real story for this week I’d like to and I feel I must “TOOT MY OWN HORN” so to speak. Seems congress and the NCAA are in actual talks on when and how much will the NCAA be paying their athletes. And as everyone knows this writer has since the very first day said it was unfair to put the entire burden on players to perform at the highest level yet they don’t receive a paycheck. That seems headed to be distant history as pressure has finally overtaken the greed of all the university presidents, coaches, athletic depts. and so on.
As we’re all very well aware the vast majority of football and basketball players under the NCAA banner come from poor households. For too long the argument from the “other” side would always pipe up and claim players are getting a “free” education. That was so untrue and false that all I can counter with is to say the facts are that many player’s families can’t afford to buy books needed for classroom work. Many NCAA basketball programs have allowed newly hired coaches the “right” to kick kids out of school by forfeiting their scholarships.
Case in point were three players at Kentucky that were dropped from the team because newly hired John Calipari wanted “HIS OWN” players and not so called leftovers from the previous staff. So, let’s all hope and pray the end of what I’ve labeled as modern day slavery is over within the NCAA. Now you can expect ticket prices to escalate at an alarming rate to make up for that part of the pie that’ll translate to employee paychecks. I don’t see any university president to give up a couple million dollars because the school has to pay what’s been due for decades!!
So, let’s get to what really matters here in Louisiana. It’s football season! Let me clarify that remark; IT’s HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL SEASON! All the schools should’ve already gotten their pads ready. Just have to dust off a few spider webs here and there. Lockers won’t be this clean till Christmas so players enjoy them while you can. Soon it’ll be time to clean and store the pads away. Many coaches have already been studying films from last year trying to find that one key addition to bring his program one step closer to being crowned a State Champion! Plays are being refined. Equipment has been taken out of storage. Yes, that time of year is once again upon us.
Players are starting to get “the itch”. Doctors are bracing for the influx of young men needing physicals. The smell of fresh cut grass hangs over all practice fields. It is the time of year when every player, coach and fan begins to dream of a championship season.
It’s the supposed time of year when a young man’s whatever turns, etc., etc. In other words: SPRING HAS SPRUNG! Can it actually be that time of year again? Not really but so much attention is given the NFL Draft and all the moves by teams trying to improve from last year campaign that it feels as though we’re just a commercial away from a full 12 month football season in the U. S.
This is football season beginning anew. Here in Louisiana every high school program has a trip to New Orleans “penciled in” come the first part of December. Many future college and professional players will return in the next few years continuing their own professional careers.
Seems everyone that’ll be fighting for a championship ring has a routine to follow to insure a successful campaign. Forget how last year’s campaign ended since fans should also be clearing their heads of “what went wrong” and replace it with “what can be done”. Coaches and teams work all year long on ironing out the kinks and so should the fans.
Now rather than later should be the true fan’s cheer. “Now” as in learning the rules should be all consuming. Just as voters need to be well informed so should all fans no matter the sport. There are slight differences in rule interoperations and enforcement of penalties. If you are a true fan then you should challenge yourself to learn the proper rulings of the game/games you are a fan.
Visit just about any high school and/or university and most of them will be hosting intra-squad games and full contact scrimmages which then of course lead to the grand final; The Spring Game. This is the best it gets, starting with a clean slate, all teams back to 0 – 0 and we’re all in first place!! But this year I’d like to put some early attention to two rules all football fans need to be aware of pertain to pass interference and spearing. In its simplest definition the rulebook states that goes something like - if a player HINDERS another player’s right to secure a loose ball then it is a penalty, yatta – yatta
The key words are hinder, right and LOOSE.
Whenever a LEGAL forward pass crosses the line of scrimmage ALL defensive players and all offensive players that line up in an eligible position and have the proper numbering are eligible to go downfield and secure the loose ball.
No matter which side a player lined up on; all opposing players cannot intentionally interfere with another player’s right to catch a loose ball. There will be times when two opposing players will go after the pass and one will bump the other. It’s solely the official’s responsibility to rule (interpret) a player’s intention.
Many times fans will see players trip over one another while attempting to catch a pass. Many times this action is not intentional. I’ve had times when a player will be “burnt” by another and all the defensive player can do is trip the receiver. And as we all know the defensive coach will argue it was accidental but when you hear “I ain’t lettin’ you get one tonight” it’s pretty concrete what the defensive player is saying. And yes we hear that and more on basically; every down and/or play.
Here’s a perfect example of what I’m talking about; a FEW years back I was working a game between Capitol and Broadmoor at Memorial Stadium. The coaches were Rusty Price and the late Roman Bates. I’m feeling kinda lucky that I’ve been able to keep Coach Bates mostly quiet the entire first half until… … Broadmoor had a minute or so left for them to try and get some type of score before intermission. The first two downs were short, quick outs less than 10 yards downfield. I think they completed one but the next fell incomplete because I stopped the clock with less than a minute to play.
So, we (the crew) had a good feeling Rusty was going to let one go deep wanting that 6 points. I get two players lined up on my side of the ball when they broke the huddle. In those days we worked a four man crew on Friday nights so I knew it was going to be time to make a sprint to the endzone. I looked at the defense and only one man was deep on my side and I just waited for Coach Bates to call a timeout but the player was so shocked he didn’t have help that he just kept his eyes on those two wideouts.
No time out was called and my receivers crossed with the inside guy going deep which was expected so I expected something to my side. And BOY! Did I get something! The defender was toast as the receiver was almost past him and nothing but a wide open field lay ahead. Then IT HAPPENED! As the offensive player cut to go deep the defensive back couldn’t cover him because he was in “no-man’s” land (between both receivers) so he stuck his foot out and KICKED the receiver going deep which of course caused him to fall flat on his face.
And I knew what was going to happen when Coach Bates saw my yellow hankie on the field. He did what you’d expect and made a big scene, jumping up and down claiming it wasn’t intentional and they just tripped. I laughed of course, under my breath since Coach Bates was a very well respected coach and I’d worked some of his games before and he knew me from years past. Needless to say he wasn’t happy at the flag but he got happy when they held Broadmoor and nobody scored before halftime.
And you can bet he followed me all the way off the field complaining at my call. The crew knew we’d catch HELL before the second half kickoff and they all agreed the first TWO ROUNDS were going to be on me after the game. I waited for Coach Bates to come “see” me at the dressing room door as they sprinted for the field to get ready for the kickoff. I looked him straight in the eyes and waited for him to “unload” there so the fans wouldn’t get riled up if this would be done on the field where all could see.
Then the miracle happened! Coach Bates came right up to me and said “I’d never have the B*LLS to make that kinda of a call”! As we walked to his side of the field he told me at the break his kid said without a doubt he’d been beaten and all he could hope for was to trip the receiver. We shook hands; he said jokingly great call “BUT DON’T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN”!
It’s those types of moments that make you respect a coach and vise-versa.
Let’s take a quick second to talk about a subject I just hate! The action I find very alarming and one that doesn’t get called enough is “spearing”. Spearing is defined as “leading with the crown of the helmet, to intentionally drive into an opposing player; to punish an opponent”. I cannot begin to explain how officials, players and coaches differ in their definition/comprehension of this most horrendous of fouls.
In its simplest interpretation (High School and College), spearing is ANYTIME one player, leading with the helmet, contacts an opposing player. I teach each and every time a player is seen lowering his head, THROW THE FLAG! “If ever you might be wrong on calling a foul, this is the time to be wrong”.
There can’t be and there is no room for debate on calling this foul. We as officials must not sway one way or the other when we see a player lead with the helmet to make contact on an opposing player. I NEVER DEBATE THIS FOUL! Call it every time you see it. I’ve thrown more players out of a game for this infraction than all other fouls combined.
Many times I’ve seen a player attempt to hurt an opposing player with a hard shot in the back and then not be able to get off the ground. That loud “click” is one you never forget once you hear it. It’s always followed by a load, high shriek sound that signals someone won’t be able to walk off the field without the help of someone from the sidelines.
Football is a severe contact game that has no room for anyone wanting to intentionally hurt an opponent. One night a linebacker kept taunting the other team with “come my way, I’ll F**K you up!” Well, after repeated warnings, there was a massive pileup on the far sidelines. I had to mark the ball and stayed on the field. The ambulance was called upon to load an injured player. As we were getting the teams back into their respective huddles one of the offensive players stood next to me and said “Hey, ref, you won’t have to worry about that guy anymore tonight, I F**KED him up”!
I got the tape of the game and looked to see what had happened. This one player had made two late hits and one was severe enough for fifteen yards. Five or six plays later, I could see him just standing next to the pile, out of bounds when a flash goes by and hits him on the side of his legs, bending one into an “L” shape. He suffered a dislocated knee and a broken leg.
Images such as that one haunt officials FOR THE REST OF THEIR CAREERS. There’s no room for such behavior. Officials should never allow “cheap” play. Coaches should never teach this type of action. It’s sad but it’s taught day in and day out in today’s game. I tell the young guys “Let them boo you! Our prime mission is for the safety of all players. If you can keep just one injury from happening that night; you did your job”.
Till next week… …
Press Release
by
Jim Spring
The year 2020 marked the tenth anniversary of the Denham Springs High School Athletic Hall of Fame (HOF) since its inception in 2011, though celebration of this feat was postponed until now due to the Corona virus pandemic. Then school Principal Kelly Jones and Athletic Director Dru Nettles tasked J. W. “Pee Wee” Day, Butch Wax, Robert Graves, and Jim Spring—all DSHS alumni and former Yellow Jacket athletes—to form a Steering Committee to establish criteria, procedures, and a timeline that would bring into existence the Hall of Fame.
The Steering Committee believed that such an elite athletic fraternity could become a community treasure. The city has only one high school, thus enabling the public to rally around its flagship scholastic institution. Community support for the organization has been outstanding, benefited by generous exposure in The Livingston Parish News through the years.
The Committee embraced the notion of hosting a formal HOF induction banquet each year instead of pursuing a more minimalist approach that would involve little fanfare, such as the informal introduction of members during a sporting event. Held annually at Forrest Grove Plantation each September, the popular banquet has become one of the most anticipated events on the city’s social calendar. The affair is made possible through the gracious support of title sponsor Hood Dental Care and, before that, Sport-N-Center.
In 2011, one hundred and fourteen years after the school’s founding, leaders created this prestigious Hall of Fame—now a decade old—to celebrate its rich sports tradition and to honor its many sports heroes.
The four-member Steering Committee, which provided structure and gave birth to the institution, was then absorbed by an 11-member Selection Committee that meets each spring to review nominations and vote on that year’s class by secret ballot. School officials have striven to protect the integrity of the selection process, understanding that holding the community’s trust is essential to the credibility and long-term success of the Hall of Fame. To that end, DSHS relies solely upon the public to submit all nominations.
Though DSHS has become the second largest high school in the state since its founding in 1897, for the most part it was considered a small country school. Thus, all the more remarkable that it has produced such a surprising number of heralded sports figures. Among its alumni are five prep All-Americans, seven collegiate All-Americans, four professional athletes, an Olympian, an NFL team president, and a Golden Spikes Award winner (college baseball’s equivalent to the Heisman Trophy).
Notable athletic achievements are state championships in baseball, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls softball, and girls bowling. The 1972 Yellow Jacket football team came close to a state title, earning runner-up laurels in a fierce match versus Hahnville that ended in a 26-26 tie, losing the game–-and the title—on first downs in an era before overtime play was part of the game.
One additional achievement, evidence of its solid reputation built over the past decade, is the HOF’s assistance to six other high schools seeking guidance in establishing such an institution on their campuses.
Member Demographics
Currently the Hall of Fame has enshrined 73 sports greats, an average of eight per class, with pending inductions of another six whose installations were delayed until September of 2021 due to the pandemic. Another such postponement occurred when The Great Flood of 2016 caused a deferment that year as well. In an effort to jumpstart the long overdue recognition of Yellow Jacket greats, the first two classes (2011, 2012) were expanded to no more than 15 each. Subsequent classes are limited to no more than eight each, although depending upon the size and quality of the nominee pool, the number varies from year to year.
Of the total membership, 20 are deceased including 11 whose inductions were posthumous. Though all the inductees lived in Denham Springs during their high school years, their life journeys have taken some to other states—Texas, Mississippi, South Carolina, Virginia, New York, Arizona, and Washington—and one to a foreign country. Katrina Hibbert, an exchange student from Australia who led the Lady Jackets basketball team to a storybook 37-0 season and a Class 5A state title in 1996, has since returned to live Down Under.
Fifty-four of the 58 members inducted thus far in the “Athlete” category earned All State honors or were State Champions in individual sports such as tennis or track and field. Some received this distinction more than once and some in more than one sport. Ten coaches and only five supporters have been so honored, rounding out the 73 members. The Yellow Jackets’ only three-sport, first team All State honoree—and thus considered the most well-rounded athlete in school history—is Cecil Harris who was lauded in basketball, baseball, and track and field during the 1960s.
While Cecil Harris may have been our most well rounded athlete, Ben McDonald is arguably the most celebrated and well known as a two-sport, two-time prep All State selection, a two-time collegiate All-American at LSU, winner of the prestigious NCAA Golden Spikes Award, a #1 draft pick in Major League Baseball, a gold medal Olympian, and an ESPN sports analyst.
On the other hand, Tasmin Mitchell is arguably the most heralded and decorated, having been a rare four-time prep All State choice (three-time MVP), a two-time prep All-American on three different teams (Parade, McDonald’s, EA Sports), the Grasshoops National Prep Freshman Player of the Year, a Louisiana Mr. Basketball selectee, Louisiana Gatorade Player of the Year, a collegiate Freshman All-American at LSU, and a current LSU men’s assistant basketball coach.
Not to be overshadowed in state and national honors is 2006 DSHS graduate Regena Jackson, easily the most decorated female athlete in school history. A two-time prep All State basketball star for the Lady Jackets, she became a two-time NAIA All-American at Belhaven College where she was one of three NAIA National Player of the Year finalists her senior year. Averaging 24 points per game, Jackson led the nation as the NAIA National Scoring Leader as a senior. Her jersey is prominently displayed in the Ring of Honor at the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee.
In addition to their athletic achievements, many Hall of Fame members were campus leaders as well. All State basketball stars Donald Ray Hood and Eddie Joe Jones, the latter who went on to become an NFL President with the New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins, displayed exceptional leadership ability by serving as DSHS Class Presidents all four years of high school. Selected as Mr. DSHS during their senior years were Hall of Famers Pee Wee Day, Butch Wax, Jim Kemp, Sam Digirolamo, and Jeff Harris. Honored as Miss DSHS was All State basketball and track star, Nancy Davis McConnell.
The many family ties represented among HOF members may suggest that good genes play a role in creating great athletes. Fathers and sons Cecil and Jeff Harris, along with Van Foster Jr. and Van Foster III echo that sentiment, as do fathers and daughters George Meadors and Sarah Meadors Mestepey, plus Tony and Lisa Dugas. All State basketball players Sammy Dixon Hannaman and Nikki Dixon Leader are sisters, while Joey Chustz and Jamie Chustz-Felder are brother and sister. Brothers Cecil and Raymond Harris, A. E. and Lathan Sutton, and Rogers and Randy Pope are further examples. Prep football All-American Kelvin Robinson and his basketball star cousin, Drexel Robinson, also share family bonds.
Of all those inducted into the Hall of Fame, only two athletes have been honored to perform in the prestigious LHSAA All Star Game in two different sports. All State football and baseball great, Glenn Glass, participated in those two sports. All State basketball and softball star, Lisa Dugas, displayed her talent on the court and on the diamond. At the collegiate level, the only Yellow Jackets to earn All SEC laurels are Katrina Hibbert, Russ Johnson, Ben McDonald, Tasmin Mitchell, and Shannon Roubique. Hibbert was a three-time, first team All SEC basketball player at LSU. Roubique was a three-time, first team All SEC football player at Auburn.
Dual HOF Members
Before the DSHS Athletic Hall of Fame was established, the school was represented in the LHSAA Sports Hall of Fame by three legendary coaches and one legendary athlete. Louis “Loodie” Carlisle was the first successful Jacket football coach of the modern era, enjoying a 66-31-9 record. Having won a Class 2A state championship in 1964 while coaching at Assumption High of Napoleonville, he led DSHS to a Class 3A state runner-up finish to Hahnville in 1972. His teams won three district titles and made 11 playoff appearances. Carlisle was named District Coach of the Year four times.
Former DSHS student-athlete-coach-athletic director-principal Butch Wax was the winningest football coach in school annals with a 152-84-2 career record, earning five district titles and making 19 post season appearances with four quarterfinal finishes. He coached regular season undefeated teams in 1978 and 1983, plus one 12-win season, two 11-win seasons, and five 9-win seasons. Wax was selected District Coach of the Year five times.
Basketball mentor, Alton Leggette, was a fiery coach and masterful tactician who brought excellence to the DSHS boys basketball program after winning the Class C State Championship at Holden in 1963, building a remarkable 251-44 record in six seasons with the Rockets. His Jacket teams enjoyed a 247-111 record, winning one district title and making three playoff appearances. Widely respected within the coaching community, he was named Mr. Louisiana Basketball in 1990 and received the SLU Legends in Coaching Award in 1999. During his career, Leggette was selected District Coach of the Year four times, Parish Coach of the Year six times, and Class C State Coach of the Year in 1963.
The Jackets’ final member and only athlete in the LHSAA Sports Hall of Fame is Ben McDonald—superstar athlete at the high school, collegiate, professional, and Olympic levels. In addition to receiving college baseball’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy as a senior at LSU, he was also named National College Player of the Year by Sporting News, Baseball America, and ESPN in his junior year. He was a major league pitcher with the Baltimore Orioles for seven seasons and the Milwaukee Brewers for two before retiring after three shoulder surgeries. McDonald is also a member of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in Natchitoches and the National College Baseball Hall of Fame located on the Texas Tech campus in Lubbock, Texas.
Two-time National Prep All-American tennis sensation, Jana Garrison Orillion, and National Prep All-American football star, Kelvin Robinson, have been nominated to the LHSAA Sports Hall of Fame but not yet selected. Robinson was the first high school All-American at DSHS in any sport.
Community Support
Throughout the HOF’s ten years as the seat of athletic excellence in the community, local businesses and individual Jacket fans have been charitable with their support. During the first year when the annual banquet, though well attended, lost about $300 because of associated expenses, Pee Wee Day recommended that local sponsors be solicited to underwrite the cost of plaques. It is the custom to present inductees with a handsome keepsake plaque made of walnut with an 8X10 space to insert a photograph of the individual. A separate metal and acrylic plaque bearing an etched likeness of the inductee is displayed in the Hall of Fame. The two plaques, which cost a total of $400 annually are made by A-1 Awards, Inc. in Indianapolis. Thus, they represent an expense of $3,200 for, say, an eight member Hall of Fame class. The goodwill of local sponsors now absorbs this significant expense.
In 2014 Stacy Phipps of Sport-N-Center was approached about becoming the first HOF title sponsor that would largely underwrite the expense of the catered banquet. Following a generous five-year run as title sponsor, Sport-N-Center handed the mantle to Dr. Ed Hood of Hood Dental Care which is beginning its third year in that distinguished role. The benevolent spirit of these two community leaders and former DSHS student-athletes cannot be overstated.
The Great Flood of 2016 caused the postponement of the annual banquet that year as well as the relocation of the Hall of Fame itself. When floodwaters wrecked the former display area in Hornsby gym, Big Mike’s Sports Bar & Grill became the new home in 2019. The former site at DSHS offered limited public access since it was located on a closed campus. The new site offered by Mike O’Neal provides unlimited access seven days a week during restaurant hours. Local carpenter and handyman John Olivier created the handsome display, while local painter Lionel Kabel provided the attractive signage.
Yellow Jacket Firsts
A number of Hall of Fame members were groundbreaking pioneers in DSHS athletics and the first to achieve some sports-related milestone. Rex Wilkinson is believed to be the first All State athlete on the first state championship team in school history (1923). He is also believed to be the first to play men’s basketball at LSU. Longtime DSHS principal of 35 years, Grady Hornsby, changed the school’s mascot from Tomcats to Yellow Jackets and adopted purple and gold as the school colors in 1930. He also coached the first 11-man football team from 1930-1933.
Bert Barnett, a two-sport All State honoree in basketball and track (1946), was the first to receive a full athletic scholarship in these sports at LSU. Universally considered the Yellow Jackets’ first great football player, Randy Rushing was a two-time All State running back (1957, 1958), boasting a 13-yards per carry average with 1,873 yards as a junior and 1,862 yards as a senior. He was also the first DSHS thinclad to break the 10-second barrier in the 100-yard dash with a 9.9 second record that still stands.
Tom Kelly is believed to be the first to play football at LSU, as a walk-on freshman quarterback in 1960, and also the first to play four years of college football (LSU, USL). Les O’Neal, an All State pitcher, was the first to sign a four-year athletic scholarship to play baseball at the college level (USL) in 1961, eventually earning All Gulf States Conference selection (twice) and Conference Player of the Year. In 1963 Jim Spring became the first to receive a four-year athletic scholarship to play football at an SEC university (Tulane). Slammin’ Sam Digirolamo was a 1968 All State linebacker and the first to sign a four-year athletic scholarship to play football at LSU.
During the era of school integration, Drexel Robinson was the first black athlete at DSHS to earn a four-year athletic scholarship in any sport at the collegiate level. In 1973 he signed to play basketball at Louisiana College where he was honored as team captain three times and MVP twice. He would later be inducted into the Louisiana College Sports Hall of Fame. Rene Moseley Severio, a two-sport All State choice in basketball and track, was the first female athlete to receive an athletic scholarship in any sport to a four-year college (Northeast Louisiana) in 1980. She was also the first to win an individual State Championship in track in any event, as a record-setting long distance runner with a time of 5:14 in the mile.
Jana Garrison Orillion shocked the tennis world as the first girl in Louisiana to win four consecutive high school State Championships (1983-1986). She became a tennis superstar as the first two-time National Prep All-American (1985, 1986) in school history, boasting a career record of 65-1. Considered the first great female softball player at DSHS, Shannon Covington Fuentes was a two-time All State pitcher with a 78-3 career record and a 50-game winning streak. She led the Lady Jackets to state titles in 1986 and 1987.
A two-sport All State star in football (1985) and baseball (1986), Glenn Glass was the first running back to break the single season rushing mark of 2,000 yards (2,036) and the first to rush for over 4,000 career yards (4,016), along with 39 career touchdowns. Laurin Byars Garrison is the only DSHS coach in any sport to be directly involved in winning four state championships (1986, 1987, 1998, 2000), while also securing four state runner-up finishes. As an assistant coach and co-head coach, her softball teams amassed a superb 479-123 career record.
Nikki Dixon Leader is the only Yellow Jacket in school history with the distinction of being an All State athlete (basketball/1964) and a two-time State Championship coach (softball/1986,1987). She was also named District Coach of the Year in girls basketball eight consecutive seasons. One-year Australian exchange student and All State basketball player, Katrina Hibbert, led the Lady Jackets to a state title in 1996 and, after a sterling career at LSU, became the first (and only) DSHS female athlete drafted into the WNBA (Seattle Storm) to play professional basketball. In 1999 Joey Chustz became the first (and only) Jacket in school history to be drafted into the NFL (Jacksonville Jaguars) and play professional football, having been an All State pick at DSHS and All-America honoree at Louisiana Tech.
HOF Banquet
The annual banquet at Forrest Grove is a dignified yet fun event that is well supported by the community. Crowds typically exceed 200 attendees with a record turnout of 276 in 2017. Shortly before the new members are introduced, deceased members are acknowledged individually with the clanging of a bell as their name is announced and their photo displayed. The most anticipated happening of the banquet is the videotaped interview of each inductee, displayed on three large screens. The interviews provide a delightful mix of humor, nostalgia, little-known sports tales, and great storytelling.
Orchestrating all the moving parts of the banquet agenda is the Emcee who must be organized, likeable, verbally facile, and sometimes humorous. During the past decade, Hall of Fame emcees have included these local personalities—Pee Wee Day, Randy Smith, Doug Hughes, and Kelly Jones—all DSHS alumni who have each made the event memorable. Only once has the banquet been headlined by a guest speaker, in 2018, when popular LSU men’s basketball coach Will Wade filled the room with laughter, inside basketball nuggets, and colorful recruiting stories.
Perhaps a bit old fashioned—yet jubilant in this setting on this nostalgic evening—the banquet concludes as the crowd is invited to give a rousing, pride-filled rendition of the school’s alma mater.
The DSHS Athletic Hall of Fame has earned a reputation for integrity, for being well organized, for its classy banquet. Thanks to the support of the Denham Springs community, the dedication of volunteers, and a pool of quality nominees, your Hall of Fame is well positioned for continued excellence in future decades.
Prep All-Americans Collegiate All-Americans Professional Athletes
Kelvin Robinson Ben McDonald Ben McDonald
Jana Garrison Orillion Russ Johnson Russ Johnson
Ryan Byrd Joey Chustz Katrina Hibbert
Tasmin Mitchell Tasmin Mitchell Joey Chustz
Cade Doughty Regena Jackson
Travis Swaggerty
Abby O’Donohgue
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DENHAM SPRINGS HS FOOTBALL RADIO BROADCASTS ARE A JON FINE PRODUCTION ON FAMILY RADIO, 91.9 FM, BATON ROUGE and JonFineProductions.com.
JON IS THE OWNER OF AN EBAY STORE. ArrestedDevelopmentMediaGuides, SELLS SPORTS PUBLICATIONS. YOU CAN LINK TO IT BY VISITING JonFineProductions.com.
JON IS PROUD TO WORK AS A MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE FOR SPORTSRADIO-1310-KEZM-SULPHUR/LAKE CHARLES.