Boquet remains at H.L. Bourgeois

The future of coach Randy Boquet and the H.L. Bourgeois football team was shrouded in ambiguity following an unspecified dispute that surfaced after a Friday pep rally.

But after a weekend of controversy and speculation, Boquet emerged from a closed meeting with school administrators Monday morning and reported that he will remain head football coach of the Braves.

&#8220I am pleased to announce that we have come up with a solution that I feel is going to allow H.L. Bourgeois to win,” said Boquet as he stood alongside Principal Nason Authement and Terrebonne Public Schools Superintendent Ed Richard. &#8220All details will be coming out soon, but I think we’ve come up with a solution that all parties will benefit from. My integrity is intact, the relationship of this school is intact and this team is intact.”

The announcement elicited applause from a throng of parents who filled the H.L. Bourgeois lobby main office to show their support.

&#8220I’m thrilled that the coach is back on the team,” said Darlene Parker, mother of senior offensive tackle Joshua Verret. &#8220It’s the best move. Our kids will get to continue their season, and that’s the most important thing.”

The meeting between Boquet and school officials was spurred by an incident between Boquet and two of his players at a team meeting on Thursday.

Terrebonne Parish School Board member Greg Harding was called by the father of two varsity players whom the father believes were unjustly removed from the team.

Harding took the allegations to Authement.

&#8220What I did wasn’t anything unusual from what I’ve done in the past – whether it dealt with white players, black players, males or females,” Harding explained. &#8220I received a phone call about some allegations that had happened on campus with his sons, and he (the father) felt it wasn’t right, and I took them to the principal. And that’s all I can to do with it.”

Following the Friday pep rally, Verret and his teammates received word that their coach had been fired. Several players submitted their jerseys as a sign indicating they would quit the team.

&#8220The kids were frantic,” Parker said. &#8220They were devastated and so upset. We’re not clear on whether or not he actually got fired.”

Boquet was on the sidelines during Friday’s game against Higgins, but starting quarterback Evan Ingram and tight end Wayne Ingram, both brothers, were out of the lineup.

&#8220At no particular point in time were we ever trying to get the coach fired,” Harding said. &#8220I just wanted to find out what the reason was for kicking the kids off of the team. Was it justifiable or not?”

Even though details remain scant, Parker was happy with the outcome of the meeting.

&#8220We still don’t have all of the answers, and hopefully we will get them soon, but for now I’m really pleased that coach Boquet is our head coach,” she said.

Contributing writer Matt McGehee added to this report.