Seeing the parking lot behind Prather Coliseum filled with buses, vans and cars doesn't just mean it's a Demon football game.
For two days in the middle of November each year, it's time for the Louisiana High School Athletic Association's Cross Country Championships at the Walter Ledet Track Complex.
It's an incredible boost for the local and area economy and a wonderful way to get hundreds of high school kids and their families and friends on our beautiful campus.
Kudos to coach Leon Johnson and his staff for the inspiration to host this event many years ago. Funny, just last week I encountered two students who independently mentioned their first visits to NSU were for the cross country meet, and once they saw what NSU had to offer, they got very interested and eventually wound up here.
It's always fun for our office to host the media from around the state. One of our favorites, the Baton Rouge Advocate's Robin Fambrough, is ill this year so our graduate assistant, Adam Jonson, pinch hit for her. It was great to visit with Pierce Huff of the Times-Picayune again this year -- he loves his trips to Natchitoches and stays at Maison Louisiane bed and breakfast. He was headed down to get some fried green tomatoes at The Landing Restaurant before rolling toward New Orleans tomorrow morning.
It's good to see new LHSAA commissioner Kenny Henderson, former Ruston High School principal, back here again. He's been around frequently in past years cheering the Bearcats, who are usually among the 5A leaders.
Longtime LHSAA administrators Mac Chauvin and Mitch Small are old pals and great storytellers, not to mention tireless workers. The Mueschmeche father-and-son photography family, John and Rob, work the event every year. They love eating downtown at Mama's Restaurant.
Today, an older visitor attending the meet wondered into our office wanting to know if we had any records of indoor track meets held in Prather Coliseum. We told him all those records went up in smoke in the 1981 fire that destroyed Bullard Hall, home of the sports information office and news bureau.
He talked about running on a wooden track in the coliseum, and also attending the NAIA national gymnastics meets in the arena, mentioning that ABC Television's "Wide World of Sports" covered those meets.
Doug Ireland, SID
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