By JOHN JAMES MARSHALL, Journal Sports
They came to a remote farm in Bienville Parish from all over the country for yet another reunion. It wasn’t the first time they have done it, but there’s no doubt that this was unlike any of the ones before.
The gathering didn’t really have a title nor was there much of an agenda. Nor was there need for one. It was a celebration, but you’d have a hard time getting a large group of men in their late 50s to use that term.
They were once baseball players, some from the days of the Bossier Dixie program and the others from the four-year run of excellence that the Loyola baseball teams enjoyed. And there was significant overlap between the two, so this was very much an everybody-knew-everybody event.
There’s no telling how long it had been since any of them swung a bat or threw a ball, but that hadn’t dulled the memories – and especially the stories – that were brought out on this sunshine, let’s-play-two type of day in April.
“Absolutely incredible,” said Andy Davis, an All-State outfielder for Loyola who went on to star at Northeast Louisiana (now UL-Monroe). “You get busy with life and sometimes you lose contact with people. I’ve seen people here that I haven’t seen in 40 years who have meant so much to me.”
“This is a brotherhood,” said John LeBlanc, who was All-State at Loyola in 1984. “It’s like we haven’t missed a day. It’s awesome.”
Dozens of former baseball players and coaches made their way to a barn/workspace on land owned by the Montgomery Family. Twins Matt and Mike Montgomery played in Bossier Dixie and later went on to star at Loyola. Putting an event like this together was truly a labor of love, said Matt Montgomery.
“It’s about passion,” he said. “I love everyone who came here and I love Loyola. That makes it easy.”
No formal invitation was necessary. Just a few phone calls and emails and wait to see who showed up. But there was something different about this year’s gathering. And every single person present knew exactly what that was.
For the first time, former coach Jim Wells was in attendance. Strangely enough, Wells never played baseball at Jesuit (now Loyola) but began coaching in Bossier Dixie after graduating from Northwestern State, where he was a manager on Herbie Smith’s baseball team. He was hired as baseball coach for the Flyers in 1983 and immediately turned the program around, reaching the state finals twice (1983, 1986) in his four years.
After three years as an assistant for Skip Bertman at LSU, Wells went on to turn around baseball programs at Northwestern and Alabama, where he made three appearances in the College World Series. His 817-411 record (.655) in 20 seasons carried him into the 2024 induction class for the American Baseball Coaches’ Hall of Fame.
Still, Wells will be quick to tell you, “The best years I ever had and enjoyed were the years I was coaching at the high school and junior high levels.”
There were other coaches in attendance as well, both from Bossier Dixie and Loyola, but on this day, Wells, who turned 70 in March, was the unquestioned star of the show. There were a few snacks and beverages and the occasional look through old scrapbooks, but soon everyone gathered in a circle to tell their favorite story of those days gone by. The central theme in almost every story was Jim Wells-based.
“We were able to recognize each other, which was amazing,” Wells said with a laugh. “But these guys are so close and made it so special. It’s very meaningful.”
No matter what their connection was to Wells, everyone wanted a moment or two. And a story or two.
Or three.
“Everybody has their own special Wells story,” LeBlanc said. “Some you can tell, some you can’t tell.”
It was all laughs and giggles as they gathered to tell stories in the covered barn area, but there was a deep sense of appreciation for Wells’ influence that was felt by everyone.
“I knew Coach Wells back when I played as a kid at Walbrook Park (in Bossier),” says Robbie Kemper, who was LeBlanc’s teammate on the ’84 team and was also an All-State selection. “Just the discipline, the commitment to excellence … you don’t realize how important that is when you are at a young age and how that carries with you, even now that I’m 59 years old.”
“Coach Wells groomed us as baseball players from Dixie Boys all the way to Loyola,” said Montgomery, an All-District catcher on the ’86 team that went to the state finals. “Hard work and winning are the common bond. Coach Wells was tough on us and so were the other coaches from back then who are here today. But they got greatness out of us.”
“Coach Wells means the world to me,” Davis said. “I loved playing baseball growing up and then I found someone who was more intense and loved the game more than I did. Everything I accomplished in the game, I look back and say there’s no way I would have done it without Coach Wells’ help and support.”
“I’ve heard about this (kind of event) from other folks, but I have never been around something like this and I told them I’m coming this year,” Wells said. “It’s one of the most special days I’ve ever had. It really is.”
Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com
