It is difficult, if not impossible, to find a Hall of Fame class that appeals to everyone. The 2026 Louisiana High School Sports Hall of Fame class offers an exception.
This 10-member class includes a ground-breaking broadcaster, an innovator who championed the addition of a sport, three basketball standouts, a multi-sport star who played in the NFL, and four distinguished coaches.
“Every year I say this class is awesome and it can’t get any better than this,” LHSAA Assistant Executive Director Karen Hoyt said. “There’s diversity … you’ve got star athletes, great coaches and contributors who have been so important to high school sports. I think we’ve got every area covered. This is an amazing class … probably the best we’ve had since I’ve been part of this committee.”
The late Ed Daniels, a New Orleans broadcaster who incorporated high school sports into decades of work, and contributor Ricky Bourgeois, who convinced the LHSAA to add bowling, epitomize the class scheduled to be inducted April 20.
Patrick Surtain Sr. was a two-sport star at Edna Karr before moving on to the NFL. D.J. Augustin of Brother Martin, Southern Lab’s Quianna Chaney, and Alexis Rack of Franklin were basketball stars.
Two coaches who won 200 games—Baton Rouge’s Sid Edwards and Paul Trosclair of Eunice—are the football coaches honored. Waterproof girls basketball coach Gladys Edwards and Holy Savior Menard track/cross country coach Wally Smith complete the class.
Ed Daniels was a three-time winner of the Louisiana Sportscaster of the Year award and already is in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame. He began at WGNO-TV in the early 1990s and launched his Friday Night Football show in 1991. He co-founded the Allstate Sugar Bowl national prep basketball tournament.
Ricky Bourgeois lobbied the LHSAA to add bowling to its list of sports in 2002 and has served as the bowling director since its inception.
Patrick Surtain Sr. helped establish Edna Karr as a statewide power in football and basketball, earning All-State honors in both sports. Surtain played 11 NFL seasons, earning All-Pro honors twice and playing in three Pro Bowls.
D.J. Augustin, Quianna Chaney, and Alexis Rack led their respective teams to multiple LHSAA titles as players. Augustin led Brother Martin to two Class 5A titles before moving to Houston in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as a senior. A point guard, Augustin was a McDonald’s and Parade All-American, starred at Texas, and played for multiple NBA teams during a 20-year career.
Chaney helped the Southern Lab girls win three Class 1A titles as a player and was Louisiana’s Miss Basketball in 2004 before attending LSU, where she was part of four Final Four teams. Chaney also had a 10-year professional career that included stints in the WNBA and overseas and compiled a 102-35 record as head coach of the Kittens, winning three more LHSAA titles.
Rack led Franklin to two Class 3A titles and was Louisiana’s Miss Basketball 2006. She starred at Mississippi State and played professionally in the WNBA and overseas.
Gladys Edwards won 820 games in a career that began before integration, coaching at Tensas Rosenwald for six years and 20 years at Waterproof. She also was the first female assistant for an LHSAA boys Top 24 team in 1992. Edwards’ teams won six state titles.
Sid Edwards, now mayor-president of Baton Rouge, compiled a football record of 203-91 in 27 seasons at five schools. He won two LHSAA titles at Redemptorist—Class 3A in 2002 and 4A in 2003.
Paul Trosclair compiled a record of 247-108 during a 30-year career that included 24 seasons at Eunice. He won a Class 3A title in 2018 with runner-up finishes in 1997 and 1998.
Wally Smith coached boys and girls track and cross country at Holy Savior Menard for 32 years. He led Menard teams to 13 LHSAA championship teams and 11 runner-up finishers in cross country, along with one girls track team title.
2026 Louisiana High School Sports Hall of Fame Class Bios
D.J. Augustin – Brother Martin, Athlete
- 2002-06 Boys Basketball
- McDonalds and Parade All-American
- 2,249 career points in three seasons
- Led team to 5A titles in 2004, 2005
- All-American at Texas
- Played 20 NBA seasons
Richard Bourgeois – Contributor
- Lobbied to make bowling an LHSAA sport in 1999
- LHSAA Bowling Director since 2002
- LHSAA Distinguished Service Award, 2018
- 1971 Broadmoor graduate
Quianna Chaney – Southern Lab, Athlete
- 1999-2004, Girls Basketball
- 2,181 career points
- Led team to 1A titles in 2002, 2003, 2004
- Louisiana’s Miss Basketball, 2004
- All-SEC at LSU, played in four Final Fours
- Played professionally in WNBA and overseas
- 101-32 record as SLHS coach, three LHSAA titles
Ed Daniels – Contributor
- Media, Sports Director WGNO-New Orleans
- Louisiana Sportscaster of the Year, 1997, 2014, 2018
- Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, 2025 (posthumously)
- Created Friday Night Football Show in 1991
- Co-hosted The Tailgaters Show, 1995-2023
- 1975 Archbishop Rummel graduate
Gladys Hamlin Edwards – Waterproof, Coach
- Girls Basketball, 1964-70 at Tensas-Rosenwald; 1970-90 at Waterproof
- 820-175 career record
- State titles in 1966, 1967, 1970, 1971, 1975, 1976
- Two runner-up finishes
- State Coach of Year 1971, 1975, 1976
Emile “Sid” Edwards – Football Coach
- Stints at Redemptorist, Holy Savior Menard, Jesuit, Central, Istrouma
- 203-91 record
- 2002 Class 3A title, 2003 Class 4A title at Redemptorist
- State Coach of Year 2002, 2003
- Also coached Redemptorist to 2003 Boys Basketball title (121-39 record)
Alexis Rack – Franklin High, Athlete
- 2003-06 Girls Basketball
- Louisiana’s Miss Basketball, 2006
- 2,846 career points
- Led Franklin to Class 3A titles in 2004, 2005
- All-SEC at Mississippi State
- Played professionally in WNBA and overseas
Wally Smith – Holy Savior Menard, Coach
- Cross Country/Track & Field, 1988-2020
- 13 LHSAA cross country titles (11 girls, 2 boys)
- 11 runner-up finishes in girls/boys cross country
- 44 top-four LHSAA finishes in girls/boys cross country
- LHSAA girls track outdoor title in 2013
Patrick Surtain Sr. – Edna Karr, Athlete
- Football, Basketball, 1991-94
- All-State in basketball 1992-94; All-State in football 1993-94
- Led Karr to 1993 Class 3A football title
- Conference Defensive Player of Year, Southern Miss, 1997
- Played 11 NFL seasons with Dolphins, Chiefs
- All-Pro in 2002, 2003; Pro Bowl 2002-04
Paul Trosclair – Eunice, Coach
- Football, 247-108 record, 27 playoff appearances
- Won 208 games at Eunice
- Class 3A title in 2018; runner-up 1997, 1998
- State Coach of Year 1997, 1998, 2018
- Coached LHSAA baseball runner-up Abbeville in 1984
