Coach Harold Waguespack "Father of St. James High School Athletics (1930 Team Picture)
St. James High School Head Coaching Records (1930-2019)
|
Year(s)
|
Head Coach
|
W
|
L
|
T
|
%
|
GAMES
|
YEARS
|
|
2016-2020
|
Robert Valdez
|
47
|
16
|
0
|
75
|
63
|
5
|
|
2013-2015
|
Dwayne Jenkins
|
24
|
16
|
0
|
60
|
40
|
3
|
|
2011-2012
|
James Bell
|
0
|
19
|
0
|
0
|
19
|
2
|
|
1992-2010
|
Rick Gaille
|
170
|
72
|
0
|
70
|
242
|
19
|
|
1990-1991
|
Bill Holmes
|
3
|
17
|
0
|
15
|
20
|
2
|
|
1981-1989
|
Allen Hymel
|
59
|
40
|
0
|
60
|
99
|
9
|
|
1970-1980
|
Jimmy Waguespack
|
80
|
37
|
2
|
68
|
117
|
11
|
|
1963-1969
|
John Boughton
|
48
|
13
|
7
|
79
|
68
|
6
|
|
1963
|
Calvin Daigle
|
0
|
6
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
1
|
|
1961-1962
|
Glenn Brady
|
17
|
5
|
0
|
77
|
22
|
2
|
|
1957-1960
|
Leo Bossier
|
35
|
8
|
2
|
81
|
43
|
4
|
|
1930-1956
|
Harold Waguespack
|
|
|
|
|
26
|
The man who became known as the “Father of St. James Football”, Prof. Harold Waguespack, joined the faculty in 1925, the year before Principal Bourgeois died. He learned the game of football at Jefferson College in Convent, where he played halfback and guard.
Upon his arrival at St. James High, Prof. Harold organized a varsity basketball team. With no indoor facilities, the team practiced and even played against other schools on dirt or muddy, rutted courts.
On one memorable occasion 90 years ago, Prof. Harold called a student convocation at which he explained the significance of having a mascot and colors that would become of symbolic value to the school and its teams. The students submitted several choices. Voting resulted in the Wildcat mascot and the colors of Black and Gold.
A few months later, in 1930, Prof. Harold organized and coached a football team. Only two of the boys had ever before witnessed an official football game. Prof. Harold held scrimmages and practices in the school’s back yard. With no available full-size football fields, the team played games at 2 o’clock on Sunday afternoons at Waguespack Park in Vacherie, located near Laura Plantation. Their travel was made easier on newly graveled roads. In cold weather, parents and fans watched the game from their vehicles. The Wildcats won the Class B district football championship four times during the first six seasons. Prof. Harold’s 1937 team won the South Louisiana Class B Championship.
“Lynx rufus” or Bobcat,
species of Louisiana Wildcat: Prof. Harold Waguespack, “Father of St.
James Athletics”, called a student meeting nearly a century ago at which
he explained the significance of having a mascot and colors that would
become of symbolic to the school and its teams. The students submitted
several choices ultimately resulting in the Wildcat mascot and the
colors Black and Gold. Wildcat teams have always represented its
mascot’s qualities very well. St. James athletes are traditionally very
quick, almost stealth like and are always ready to pounce on the
opponent. Wildcat species found in the United States include the puma,
bobcat, jaguarundi and ocelot.
The Bobcat species is named for its short tail, these wildcats are
common in Louisiana, but most people will never see the solitary,
secretive creature. The bobcat inhabits wooded areas and are incredible
hunters of rabbit, squirrel, rodents and snakes. Bobcats are so quick,
they are considered stealth and can pounce on prey from a distance of 10
feet. The wildcat sports a muscular frame and its hind legs are longer
than its front legs. Large paws make these wildcats great climbers,
capable of gripping with their front and back paws. With a grey to brown
coat, black tipped ears, and whiskered face, the bobcat is believed to
have evolved from its cousin the lynx. Black bobcats have been sighted
and captured in Louisiana, but are extremely rare. Bobcats mark their
territory by clawing prominent trees in the area. They create numerous
places of shelter, including a main den, and several secondary shelters
such as hollowed out logs and brush piles.
Did you know? Because bobcats are so elusive, most states guess at the
actual number of bobcats in the wild. Bobcats go back around 1.8 million
years ago. Bobcats are hunted for sport and fur. Possessing or selling
bobcats and exotic animals is illegal in Louisiana because once they
become comfortable with humans, they cannot be reintroduced to the wild.
#Wildcat #Bobcat #Stealth #Pounce #THDE #ClawsUp #ProfHaroldWaguespack #StJamesWildcats #LouisianaWildcat
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