Less than three weeks after losing one head football coach, Parkway (Bossier City, La.) gained another when it went into neighboring Arkansas to tab Chris Hill for its top spot.
Hill has spent 14 of 19 years coaching in Arkansas, where he guided Ashtown (Ark.) to a 10-2 record and a playoff berth last season. Hill replaces Jim Gatlin, who resigned last month after becoming the school’s winningest coach with an eight-year record of 45-40 and five consecutive playoff appearances. Hill plans to remain at Parkway as a teacher.
"He fit all the qualities of the head coach we were looking for," Parkway principal Nichole Bourgeois said of Hill, who also has coached in Alabama and Tennessee. "He's really respected by his peers for his professional knowledge, accomplishments and work ethic. He projects the image of integrity and class. We like the whole package."
Hill said he runs a spread offense and has had eight all-state quarterbacks. Hill guided Morrilton (Morrilton, Ark.) to the Arkansas Class 5A state final in 2005. Hill grew up in Morrilton and graduated from Harding University in Searcy, Ark.
He was one of 11 people to interview for the job, Bourgeois said.
"We're just looking to build on the success they've had in the past," Hill said. "We'll try to keep it going. The possibilities are endless with the growing enrollment."
Catholic of New Iberia lands former pro
After spending a year as a professional safety with the Jacksonville Jaguars of the NFL and the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League, Michael Desormeaux will begin his coaching career as an assistant at Catholic (New Iberia, La.).
Desormeaux will work with the quarterbacks at his alma mater. In addition, he will be in charge of powerlifiting and the weight room for football.
"This is a very special opportunity for me and to be honest something I never anticipated to happen," Desormeaux said. "It's a thrill to be back at my old school as a coach. The kids are great, and I really enjoy being around them."
Desormeaux was a multi-sport standout in football, baseball, basketball and track at Catholic before quarterbacking the Louisiana-Lafayette football team. In playing at ULL from 2005-2008, Desormeaux finished third in career rushing yards (2,843), fourth in career total offensive years (6,736) and sixth in career passing yards (3,893).
In addition to quarterback, Desormeaux played wide receiver and defensive back and on special teams for ULL.
Memphis gets another commitment
As a former LSU assistant, first-year Memphis coach Larry Porter gained an appreciation for Louisiana prep athletes,which was reflected in the fact that five Louisianans were in his 2010 recruiting class.
With the recent verbal commitment of St. Augustine (New Orleans, La.) wide receiver Marc Edwards, Porter has continued to dip into the Bayou State. Two of his first four 2011 commitments are from Louisiana, with Clinton (La.) quarterback Stevie Douglas being the other.
Edwards is a 6-foot-1, 195-pounder with 4.5 speed in the 40-yard dash. He caught eight touchdown passes in three games this summer to earn Most Valuable Player honors in the Red Bull Game Breakers 7-on-7 Championship Tournament, which the Purple Knights won in Dallas.
Edwards attended Memphis’ football camp in June and followed that with participation in a Tulane camp in Thibodaux. Edwards is already academically qualified with a 22 on his ACT and a 3.2 grade point. In choosing Memphis, Edwards rejected offers from Tulane and Tulsa. Arkansas, Mississippi State, Southern Mississippi, Kansas and Kansas State also had expressed interest.
Elsewhere throughout the state, South Plaquemines (Port Sulphur, La.) linebacker Beau Fitte chose Louisiana Tech and Dutchtown (Geismar, La.) quarterback Leon Blouin picked Tulane.
The 6-2, 215-pound Fitte is a three-time Class 1A All-State selection with 4.5 speed in the 40. He also had offers from Memphis and Tulane but opted for the Bulldogs. Fitte’s brother Kyle, lettered as a Louisiana Tech running back in 2009 after earning All-State honors at South Plaquemine. Fitte is the second South Plaquemines player to commit with wide receiver Bradley Sylve already having announced that he will attend Alabama.
As for Blouin, he committed to Tulane after taking an unofficial visit to the New Orleans school. The 6-foot, 200-pound Blouin threw for more than 500 yards in his first year as a starter last season. Blouin also is an outfielder for the Dutchtown baseball team and plans to major in mechanical engineering at Tulane.
Basketball: McKinley loses coach
McKinley (Baton Rouge, La.) is in the market for a boys basketball coach and athletic director after Chauncey Moore resigned from both positions. In his seven years as head basketball coach, Moore’s most notable alumnus was former LSU standout Tyrus Thomas of the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats.
"Chauncey did a good job for us during the time he was here," McKinley Principal Armond Brown said. "We thank him for that."
Moore graduated from Northeast in 1989 and became an assistant at Glen Oaks (Baton Rouge, La.) in the mid-1990s when it won three boys state titles. He was an assistant on two Capitol (Baton Rouge, La.) teams that won girls state championships and spent one year as the West Feliciana (St. Francisville, La.) head coach and one year as the Baker head coach.
Softball: Four receive honors
St. Amant (La.) teammates Melanie Parker and Kandace Boudreaux were among four Louisianans to make the National Fastpitch Coaches Association South Regional and All-American softball teams.
Parker, an outfielder, made the second team, and Boudreaux, a second baseman, earned honorable mention. Emily Rousseau, a pitcher and at-large choice from Evangel Christian Academy (Shreveport, La.), led the state contingent with her first-team selection. Parkview Baptist's (Baton Rouge, La.) Jacee Bledsoe, a shortstop and at-large pick, made the second team.
