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Untitled 2
A Tiger Died Last Week
A Tiger died
last week. This one had a name –
they all have names……….Stokes, Walker, Farr, Powell, Parker, Carter, Newman,
Wyatt, Poisso, Keen, Thompson, Daughtry, Dennis Shell.
A Tiger died and because of that the Tiger Den is a little bit empty.
That space will be filled by other Tigers – they always come.
When a Tiger dies that loss is felt; for a little while anyway……sometimes
for a long while.
I pity the Tiger
fan who goes for wins alone. I pity
the Tiger fan who has not filled himself with pride and appreciation for being a
part of something that is bigger than him/her self.
For to be a Tiger fan is to be connected to a program and to appreciate
all that have contributed to building the Tiger program through coaching,
playing, cheering, dancing and managing.
To be a Tiger fan is to appreciate the effort.
A Tiger invests him/herself and in doing
so, with the right attitude, the dividends come back tenfold.
When you have experienced
the Tiger football program like Dennis Shell you achieve the full effect of what
it is to be a Tiger. He put on the pads
(for a short time), he wrote about it, he filmed it, he cheered it on, he saw it
through the eyes of a student, family member and a fan.
He contributed time, money and yes, prayer. Dennis lived with a pride of
Tigers. He married one (a
homecoming queen), he fathered two (a musician and a Toy Tiger) and he was
grandfather to an assortment of Tigers. About
all he didn’t do was call the plays, but he had opinions about that too – he had
opinions about a lot of things.
Dennis Shell saw the program lose two championship games, but he also saw the
program win one. He was just as
proud of each of those teams….but then he loved
all Tiger teams because that is the
kind of Tiger fan (and person) he was.
Football is all
about relationships – mothers and fathers watching sons; fans urging on players;
grandmothers and grandfathers admiring, no reveling in their grandbabies;
coaches teaching, preparing and training young men.
Relationships are built on communication, encouragement, support,
affection, joy and hurt. That is
why when something goes awry in the program (a loss, an error, a death) those
closest to the program feel it.
It’s the way we are made – we are made to feel.
A Tiger died
last week and the Tiger Den is a little empty.
That space will be filled by other Tigers, but nothing can really replace
the Tiger that is no longer here with us.
That empty space is reserved for them and them alone.
The Den, however, is big…..real big.
There is room for other Tigers.
That is the cycle of the program – coaches replace coaches, players
replace players, new fans are added; the program grows.
Still, we miss the Tigers who we don’t watch, sit by, cheer with,
reminisce with. They all have names
– Lasyone, Brazzell, Harrell, Dawson,
Scott, Shephard, Iverstine, Grigg and on and on.
They are not with us, or so we think.
They helped build the program.
They all left a part of themselves behind.
We just think they are not with us.
They are here with us when we remember that.
It is up to us…..they are waiting. We
are never alone and we are never really that far away from them.
We sometimes distance ourselves from them but they are always there.
Tigers never really leave, for, as one great Tiger often said, “Once a Tiger,
Always a Tiger” – Shirley Jackson, father-in-law of Dennis Shell.
New Page 2
Sports Web sites
keep team's fans, alumni informed
By Will Tubbs
wtubbs@thetowntalk.com
(318) 487-6367
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Jimmy Touchet hasn't played football for the Alexandria
Senior High Trojans since the early 90's. He doesn't even live
in Central Louisiana.
Yet, this married father of two has continued to be a major
part of the program in his own, unique way.
Since 2000, Touchet has been the driving force behind the ASH
football Web site, one of the few football sites for local high
school football teams.
"It's kind of my hobby," Touchet said. "It's my way of
helping the kids out."
Touchet's site, like those of Holy Savior Menard, Leesville,
Winnfield and Bunkie, offers more than just scores.
Players, parents, fans, alumni and the occasional scout can
get everything from highlight films to news articles to photo
galleries.
Some sites feature in-depth histories of the program and
player profiles.
Fred Ruggles, the offensive line coach at Menard who runs the
team's site, has begun to offer tape-delayed gamecasts complete
with multiple-camera shots and game commentary.
It's a task that takes Ruggles and his team of assistants
upwards of eight hours every Saturday to accomplish.
"I'll do anything I can do to help these young men," Ruggles
said. "It might help some of them get noticed by a college
scout. Even for the ones who don't get to play in college, when
they get older, they'll have something to hold onto."
Touchet, who plans to offer live gamecasts of Trojans games,
said it is not uncommon for scouts to consult team Web sites in
their search for talent.
"ASH is a program that's had a lot of high-profile athletes,"
Touchet said. "I get requests from all over the country for
information, and I get a lot of calls from recruiters who are
trying to find that next Chris Brown or Craig Nall."
While scouts are welcome visitors to these sites, the target
audience consists of players, both past and present, and
lifetime fans who wish to keep up with their team.
At the ASH and Winnfield sites, a detailed history of the
program, including lifetime statistics for the programs'
all-time greats, has proven popular among former players.
Eddie Jenkins, who started the Winnfield Web site with
statistics and history he compiled in anticipation of a book,
said some of his site's most loyal visitors are former players
who want to see how their numbers stack up against players from
other generations.
"That's the really great part about the site," Jenkins said.
"These former players will challenge my information. Sometimes
they're right, but usually, I'm able to defend my findings. ...
That's the thrill for me. I'm able to put this information out
there as a sort of group-edit effort."
The efforts of Jenkins, Touchet, Ruggles and other site
coordinators, all of whom receive no compensation for their
efforts, have not gone unnoticed by current players and coaches.
"It's great recognition for this program and this school,"
ASH coach Butch Stoker said. "Any alumnist, anywhere in the
country, can keep up with what's going on and it's just good
exposure for our players. It's a big deal for us and it's a good
deal."
James LeGlue, a senior center at Menard, has been equally
impressed by Ruggles' site.
"It makes you feel like you're part of something special,
like you're in a college program," LeGlue said. "All of your
college and pro teams have their own Web sites with stats and
highlights. It makes you feel like you're in a big-time program.
It's cool to know that we have a coach who cares that much about
us."
Perhaps students at places like Menard and Leesville, where
Wampus Cats coach Terence Williams runs the team site, should
feel somewhat special.
High school team sites, at least those that feature video,
detailed histories and player statistics, are somewhat rare in
Central Louisiana, a situation Jenkins attributed to the amount
of work it takes to develop an in-depth site.
"If someone wanted to do a little site with just the scores,
it could be done in no time and for very little money," Jenkins
said. "But if you are going to have a site with all the
historical information, someone is going to have to be willing
to do the research and invest their time in it.
"I'm a 'wannabe' sports information director. That's my hobby
and I know it's kind of a weird one that not too many people are
interested in."
Originally published October 19,
2007
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Will Tubbs/The Town
Talk
Alexandria Senior High football players A.J.
Million (left), Jonathan Thomas (middle) and
Caleb Lonsberry (right), all seniors, look at
the Trojan football Web site that was developed
by ASH alumnus Jimmy Touchet.
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TEAM SITE PROFILES |
ASH Trojans
Address:
www.ashtrojanathletics.com
(all sports),
www.ashtrojanfootball.com
(football site)
Site editor: Jimmy Touchet (both
sites)
Connection to program: Touchet
played wide receiver for the
Trojans from 1988-91, earning
two letters
Site features: History of the
program, profiles of all-time
great players, season-by-season
results, game results from 2007,
music and videos.
Site history: Touchet’s original
site, which was powered by
eteamz.com, was started in 2000.
Since then, the site has
undergone several
transformations. Touchet
currently runs two sites, one
for football and one for all
Trojan athletics. Both sites are
powered by OnlineSports.com.
Bunkie Panthers
Address:
www.mightybunkiepanthers.com
(all sports)
Site editors: Mike Turner and
Kobe East
Connection to program: Work at
the discretion of the Bunkie
Booster Club and Bunkie High
Site features: Photos, news,
game summaries, coach’s
comments.
Site history: This is the first
year of the site’s existence.
The site is powered by S.A.S.
Sports.
Leesville Wampus Cats
Address:
www.leaguelineup.com/wampuscatfootball
(football only)
Site editor: Terence Williams
Connection to program: Coach of
the football team
Site features: Game results,
team announcements, news,
rosters
Site history: This is the first
year of the site’s existence.
The site is powered by
LeagueLineup.
Menard Eagles
Address:
www.menardeagles.org (all
sports)
Site editor: Fred Ruggles
Connection to program: Offensive
line coach at Menard
Site features: Gamecasts,
highlight films, player
profiles, news, game results,
team devotionals
Site history: This is the first
year of the site’s existence.
The site is powered by
AutoThemes.
Winnfield Tigers
Address:
www.winnfieldtigerfootball.com
Site editor: Eddie Jenkins
Connection to program: Jenkins
was a member of the 1971
Winnfield team that played for a
state championship.
Site features: In-depth team
history, history of the
Jonesboro-Hodge rivalry, career
statistical leaders, profiles on
current and former coaches,
profiles of Winnfield’s all-time
great players.
Site history: Jenkins developed
the site three years ago. Before
that, he devoted more than 20
years of his life to compiling a
complete history of Winnfield
football. Jenkins perused the
archives of The Town Talk, The
(Shreveport) Times, The (Monroe)
News-Star and Winn Parish
Enterprise to find every final
score for every Winnfield Tiger
game dating back to the 1920’s.
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