Nowlin ‘humbled’ to be Tarpons coach

Ledora Guidry

May 17, 2016

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May 17, 2016

South Lafourche High School has picked its new football coach.

School officials confirmed to The Times last week that the Tarpons will hire Livonia offensive coordinator Brandon Nowlin to fill the vacancy created when outgoing coach Dennis Skains left the school last month to take the same position at Cecilia High School.

The South Lafourche job will be Nowlin’s second shot at being a head coach in District 7-4A. He served as Morgan City’s head coach from 2010-12, helping lead the Tigers to one of their most successful three-year runs in decades.

Nowlin was chosen after a two-week search, which netted 17 total candidates — a list that contained coaches from across the country. Other listed finalists for the job were Tarpons special teams coordinator William Hawkins, Lutcher special teams coordinator Troy Borne and Higgins head coach Craig LaBorde.

Nowlin said he’s excited to get to Galliano and lead a program that he thinks has all of the tools to succeed at the highest level.

“My family and I feel extremely excited and blessed to be joining the South Lafourche High School community as their new head football coach,” Nowlin said. “The tradition, passion and community of South Lafourche football was something that we really wanted to be a part of and want to continue

to build upon.”

“Coach Nowlin is big on building relationships with players, coaches, faculty and the community,” Tarpons Athletic Director Brian Callais added. “He has coached on the high school and college level. He has experience as a coordinator and as a head coach. I think this is the perfect fit for both Coach Nowlin and the South Lafourche High School football program.”

In Nowlin, the Tarpons are getting a coach who is young in age, but who, like Callais mentioned, has lots of experience at multiple levels.

Nowlin was 11-18 in his career as the head coach at Morgan City, but his successes there are deeper than the numbers might indicate. While at the St. Mary Parish public school, Nowlin turned the Tigers from a perennial last-place team into a program that was on the heels of the playoffs.

In his final two seasons with Morgan City, the Tigers were 9-10 overall, including a 5-5 season in 2011 — the team’s first .500 season since the 1990s.

In that 2011 season, Nowlin was named the Houma Times Coach of the Year Award — an honor he nearly replicated in 2012 when he finished as the award’s runner-up.

Since Nowlin’s departure, Morgan City football hasn’t replicated the same success, posting just a 6-24 record in three seasons.

After leaving the Tigers, Nowlin coached from 2013-14 at Nicholls, helping oversee the Colonels tight ends and defensive line.

The Colonels job was Nowlin’s second stint in the Southland Conference. From 2008-2010, he was the tight end/H-backs coach with Central Arkansas — helping lead the Bears to the Southland Conference title in 2008.

During Nowlin’s three seasons with the Bears, UCA averaged more than 35 points per game — near the tops in the Football Championship Subdivision. Nowlin also coached All-American tight end Marquez Branson with the Bears — a standout who went on to enjoy a career in the NFL.

Before coaching at Central Arkansas, Nowlin was a standout offensive player who walked on at LSU and played for then-Tigers coach Nick Saban.

Last year at Livonia, Nowlin also had success, coaching the team’s offense to more than 30 points per game, despite one of the toughest districts in Louisiana.

The coach said he’s grateful to the people at Livonia, touting that he learned about the game during his lone season with the team.

“It was a great experience being there this past season,” Nowlin said. “I have to thank the administration, faculty, staff and especially the players there.”

With South Lafourche, Nowlin will be inheriting a team with a lot of offensive talent.

The Tarpons return starting quarterback Jaydon Cheramie — an All-District caliber performer who completed 74-of-141 passes for 1,024 yards and 11 touchdowns last season, while also rushing for 743 yards and 12 scores.

South Lafourche’s offense also brings back rising junior halfback Corbin Allen — a standout halfback who is arguably the best returning player in District 7-4A.

Allen rushed 210 times for 1,255 yards with 12 touchdowns in his sophomore campaign in 2015.

He also caught 18 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown.

Nowlin said he’s watched the Tarpons on film briefly last season while scouting Plaquemine — a team he faced at Livonia.

During that film study, Nowlin said he was impressed with the talent and coaching the Tarpons had — a foundation he thinks will allow the team to be successful in the future.

The coach said he wants to return South Lafourche to its pinnacle as an annual contender, something he believes will come during his tenure.

“Our expectations will always be to develop our student-athletes better than anyone else in the country,” Nowlin said. “We want to win a district championship, make the state playoffs and compete for a state championship — every year. I firmly believe if you build champions, championships will soon follow.”

‘(We) feel extremely excited and blessed…’