Popular Houma restaurant ravaged by flames
January 3, 2017
What I expect out of 2017
January 4, 2017
No one can deny that 2016 was action-packed in the Houma-Thibodaux area – especially in the world of sports.
We saw it all – good stories, bad stories and tragedy.
We crowned champions, sent area athletes to the professional ranks and laid to rest a young man who had his entire future ahead of him.
It wasn’t easy to narrow down, but below are the Top 10 sports stories in the Houma-Thibodaux area for 2015.
Reminisce with us what’s been an amazing sports year – one of the best since I’ve been here.
We can’t wait to see what the next 12 months may bring.
No. 1: Larose native lands position at LSU
The past year wasn’t ideal for LSU football.
The Tigers lost their season opener to Wisconsin, then messed up the clock in a late-game situation, which led to a loss at Auburn, and ultimately, Les Miles’ firing.
Miles’ dismissal sent shockwaves throughout the world of college football – tremors that were heavily felt locally, because of his replacement.
In Miles’ absence, the Tigers tapped Larose native and South Lafourche graduate Ed Orgeron to be the team’s interim head man – a decision that ultimately produced fruits.
Under Orgeron, the Tigers revamped their style, opening practices to public and decreasing the amount of time players worked on the field during school days.
It worked.
The Tigers finished the regular season 5-2 under Orgeron, who parlayed that success into a five-year contract to lead the team into the future.
In his first game as LSU’s official head coach, Orgeron left Tiger fans pleased.
LSU crushed Louisville 29-9 in the Citrus Bowl this past week, taking momentum into the offseason.
No. 2: Gators deal with 2 tragedies during season
The South Terrebonne community suffered a couple great losses during the 2016 calendar year.
Over the summer, the Gators’ world was shook when Andraye Verdin was killed as a passenger in a one-car wreck on the Bourg-Larose Highway — an accident caused by slick roads after a rainstorm.
Verdin, 16, was a standout football player for the Gators – a guy that coach Richard Curlin said was about to be a “breakout star”.
“He was just getting comfortable,” Curlin said. “This is such a shame and is so unfair.”
Unfortunately, the tragedies didn’t stop there for South Terrebonne.
At the end of a tough football season, Gators standout lineman Louis Blanchard was severely injured after falling off a trampoline after school.
In the fall, Blanchard condensed his neck, which temporarily left him paralyzed, and which required multiple surgeries.
Doctors speculated Blanchard could possibly make a full recovery, but weeks later, things took a turn for the worst and he passed away at a New Orleans hospital.
He was 18.
Just weeks before the injury, Blanchard had given a verbal commitment to continue his football career at UL-Monroe.
After his death, locals rallied together to show their respects to the dominant lineman, who ended up winning his third-straight District Defensive MVP Award in 2016.
3. Nicholls undergoes transitioning
It was a busy year for Nicholls State University athletics – especially in the personnel department.
The Colonels replaced several long-time athletic figures in 2016, leaving the department looking totally different to start 2017 as it did a year ago.
In July, longtime Athletic Director Rob Bernardi left the university to pursue an opportunity in the athletic office at Tulane.
Just months before Bernardi’s departure, the school parted ways with longtime men’s basketball coach J.P. Piper, who had spent more than a decade with the team.
Piper wasn’t fired, but the school opted against offering him a contract after his deal expired after the 2015-16 season.
Over the summer, the Colonels also had to replace a successful soccer coach, as Dylan Harrison resigned to take the head coaching position at Trinity, his alma mater.
The Colonels replaced Bernardi with Eastern Kentucky athletic official Matt Roan. They replaced Piper with Clemson assistant coach Richie Riley – the youngest Division-I head coach in college basketball.
They replaced Harrison with veteran coach Mac McBride, who had a successful year.
4. Locals shine on big stages
In 2016, locals showed just how talented they are in the world of sports.
In professional ranks, Thibodaux native Trovon Reed made waves in the NFL, recording interceptions in consecutive weeks to solidify his place with the San Diego Chargers.
Houma native Sumar Leslie also pushed forward in her basketball career, inking a contract with the Werribee Devils in Australia. While she did that, Vandebilt graduate Theresa Plaisance also shined, continuing her career – both in the WNBA and also worldwide.
In pro baseball, Justin Williams shined, establishing himself as a top prospect in the Tampa Bay Rays system.
In college athletics, locals thrived all over the place, and were flawless.
Houma natives Randi Brown and Elijah McGuire each made history at their respective schools and in their respective sports in 2016.
Brown notched 1,000 career points at UNO, while McGuire became UL-Lafayette’s all-time leader in all-purpose yards.
At Nicholls, Vandebilt graduate and Colonels guard Cassidy Barrios had a dominant freshman season, which has spilled into sophomore success.
On the men’s side, E.D. White graduate Ja’Dante Frye eclipsed the 1,000-point barrier for the Colonels, while Vandebilt graduate Lionheart Leslie established himself as one of the best players in the Big West Conference over at Cal-State Fullerton.
On the prep level, several locals are being nationally recruited – a fleet led by Ellender standout Davontavean Martin, Thibodaux athlete Amik Robertson and South Lafourche guard Traya Bruce, among others.
No. 5: Nowlin hired, then let go at South Lafourche
It wasn’t exactly a year for stability at South Lafourche High School.
The Tarpons hired veteran coach Brandon Nowlin in the spring to replace Dennis Skains, who left the school to take the head coaching position at Cecilia.
Nowlin’s tenure never panned out.
His team battled transition and several injuries, limping to a 3-7 season.
Four days after the regular season finished and just 24 hours after Nowlin expressed optimism for 2017 at a booster club meeting, the school abruptly announced that he’d be replaced.
No hire has yet been made.
The school cannot yet take applications because Nowlin hasn’t yet left the school and no one can be hired until a teaching spot is available.
No. 6: Split widens for Louisiana prep sports
The Louisiana High School Athletic Association got even more divided in 2016.
State principals voted in January to expand the state’s football-only public/private split to now include all major sports – a move that ruffled the feathers of private schools around the state so much that studies were done to consider an alternative league.
School officials met again over the summer to discuss new ideas, but each presented plan failed again in favor of the split expansion – by an even wider margin than it did in January.
In 2017, the LHSAA will crown both public and private school champions in several sports for the first time in its history.
No. 7: Turf fields get closer to reality
It was a wet summer in Louisiana, which devastated area playing fields – a now seemingly routine occurrence in the Houma-Thibodaux area.
South Terrebonne High School’s field got it the worst. They played a game against Bonnabel during a driving rain storm, which damaged the field so badly that Ellender had to move its home game the next week to Patterson High School.
Another game between Central Lafourche and Thibodaux High was played in difficult conditions, which coaches speculate led to several sprained ankles and leg injuries during the game.
But help is seemingly on the way – at least in Lafourche.
The Lafourche Parish School Board is asking voters to renew a facilities millage, which they’d then use to put turf on the parish’s three fields.
That vote will come in 2017, but is widely expected to pass, because it is not a new tax for citizens.
No. 8: Area basketball takes off
The Houma-Thibodaux area is becoming somewhat of a haven for quality prep basketball.
Three local boys’ teams made the Elite 8 of the 2015-16 prep basketball playoffs, while others bowed out before that round.
H.L. Bourgeois made the Elite 8 in Class 5A, losing to Natchitoches Central. Central Lafourche also made it, losing to East Ascension in a thriller.
The toughest loss was Ellender, who were defeated on a last-second shot at Bossier – a basket that probably shouldn’t have counted because of a clock malfunction.
On the girls’ side, South Lafourche, Ellender and Houma Christian all made runs, and are expected to again in 2017, as well.
No. 9: Colonels nearly shock the world, but fizzle late
Nicholls was more than 50-point underdog in its season-opening game at Georgia.
They nearly won.
The Colonels continued to make strides in 2016 under second-year coach Tim Rebowe, winning five conference games, including two in overtime.
But the team’s most impressive performance came in a loss. The Colonels battled Georgia tooth and nail for the entire game, falling just 26-24 to the Bulldogs on their home field.
That game set the tone for Nicholls’ entire season and let the rest of the Southland Conference know that the Colonels were a contender.
No. 10: Cardinals stun Terriers in huge playoff upset
Vandebilt had hopes of winning the Division II State Football Championship in 2016, and rightfully so.
The Terriers rolled through the regular season with an 8-2 record – a dominant run that earned the team a high seed in the playoffs.
Once there, it all got derailed.
In the opening round, the Terriers faced rival E.D. White – a team Vandebilt beat 41-7 in the first game of the season.
This time around, it didn’t go the same. Vandebilt struggled to move the ball and E.D. White controlled the clock and the scoreboard, scoring a thrilling upset win. •
No. 1 Ed Orgeron hired at LSU
The past year wasn’t ideal for LSU football.
The Tigers lost their season opener to Wisconsin, then messed up the clock in a late-game situation, which led to a loss at Auburn, and ultimately, Les Miles’ firing.
Miles’ dismissal sent shockwaves throughout the world of college football – tremors that were heavily felt locally, because of his replacement.
In Miles’ absence, the Tigers tapped Larose native and South Lafourche graduate Ed Orgeron to be the team’s interim head man – a decision that ultimately produced fruits.
Under Orgeron, the Tigers revamped their style, opening practices to public and decreasing the amount of time players worked on the field during school days.
It worked.
The Tigers finished the regular season 5-2 under Orgeron, who parlayed that success into a five-year contract to lead the team into the future.
In his first game as LSU’s official head coach, Orgeron left Tiger fans pleased.
LSU crushed Louisville 29-9 in the Citrus Bowl this past week, taking momentum into the offseason.
Follow Casey on Twitter for more.
https://twitter.com/casey_gisclair
