Heavy NSU presence in presentations at state high school coaches clinic
There was a strong Northwestern State Demons presence at this week’s Louisiana High School Coaches Association convention and clinic in Baton Rouge, gathering hundreds of coaches from around the state.
The annual event provides a robust schedule of clinic activity and presentations over two days. Some is sport-specific, and other sessions are more broad in subject matter.
Five coaches with Northwestern ties, including new Lady Demon basketball coach Alan Frey, led clinic sessions.
Former Demon basketball coach Mike McConathy, his former assistant coach Jeff Moore, N Club Hall of Fame point guard Tyrone Mitchell and former NSU football player and assistant coach Ed Orgeron, back at LSU on Lane Kiffin’s staff but best known for leading LSU as head coach to the 2019 national championship, all participated in presentations.
Another NSU alumnus, Natchitoches Central principal Micah Coleman, is prominent in state high school athletic administration as one of the two Class 5A representatives on the LHSAA Executive Committee that oversees all high school sports policies and procedures.
Moore was the headline presenter for a basketball session Tuesday and wrapped it up with remarks by McConathy, recently inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame as the winningest college basketball coach in state history after 23 seasons at NSU and 16 more previously at Bossier Parish Community College.
“When I was working for Coach, when he had a clinic presentation, he always involved his assistants. It gave us great experience and provided the audience with different voices,” said Moore, who is about to begin his second season as head coach at Bossier Parish CC. “When I was invited to present this summer, I called Coach and asked him if he would wrap up the session. I knew those coaches would be completely impressed and they were.”
Mitchell, the head coach at Xavier in New Orleans, presented on “Transition Defense.” He is one of the greatest point guards in Demon history and helped NSU win consecutive Southland Conference championships in 2005 and 2006, along with the NCAA Tournament win over No. 15-ranked, regionally No. 3 seed Iowa Hawkeyes. The New Iberia native has been head coach at Xavier for two seasons after a long run as an assistant coach for the Gold Rush.
Frey was hired this spring at NSU after a long career as an assistant at Tulane under longtime coach Lisa Stockton. LSU coach Kim Mulkey avidly endorsed Frey’s hiring. Frey was the only college women’s basketball coach to speak at the clinic.
Orgeron played for coaches A.L. Williams and Sam Goodwin on the defensive line for the Demons. Goodwin gave him his first coaching job, launching one of the more remarkable careers in the modern era of college football. Orgeron spoke passionately about Goodwin at the legendary coach’s memorial service in Turpin Stadium this spring.