The sport of high school football is filled with opportunities. A player has the opportunity in the off season to prepare himself physically for the season. Players have the opportunity in practice to prepare themselves for a game. Each play is an opportunity, as is each game and each season. Take a short view or a long view, opportunities abound in football.

I like the response I got one time when I asked a young man why he played football. This young man was finishing his senior season. He had never started a game, had only played in a few games, yet just like his teammates who were starters, he went through every off-season, spring, summer and regular season practice and he did that ever year of his high school career. His response to me was, "I had the opportunity to be a part of something bigger than myself." He took advantage of an opportunity. One definition of opportunity is "an event with an uncertain, yet positive possible outcome." For the young man I mentioned above the "positive outcome" was being a part of team.

There are many ways to define success in high school football. For the young man above, just being on the team made it all worthwhile. While winning is only one way to define success, this article is about Louisiana high school football teams that made it to the LHSAA state title game in football and won. More specifically, this article is about those teams with the highest winning percentage in LHSAA sanctioned state title games.

Using the definition I have used above, I feel compelled to say that I resist the notion that playing in a state championship game and winning is the only way to achieve a "positive outcome." It is far better to have played in a state title game (regardless of the outcome) than to never even have that opportunity. Again, there are many ways to define success…..this is but one of them.

I will start this with schools that have had one shot at winning a state title and capitalized. There are 19 schools in Louisiana that have played in only one state championship game and won it. So, their winning percentage in state title games is 1.000%. These schools cover the range from the lowest class to the highest class and span the entire history of Louisiana high school football from the 1930s to the 2000s. Several of these schools no longer exist, so for them they ceased the only opportunity given to them.

The schools that have played in one title game and won it include the following: Catholic (New Iberia), Columbia, East St. John, Elton, Farmerville, Fortier, Gilbert, Greensburg, Hammond, Holy Name, Kenner, Logansport, Natchitoches-Central, Pineville, Ridgewood Prep, South Terrebonne, Tara, West Jefferson and W. O. Boston (Lake Charles). If this seems like a menial accomplishment let's put this in context.

There are 63 schools that have made a title game appearance and never brought home the championship trophy. More importantly, there are hundreds of schools that have never even competed in a title game. There are 123 schools that have won state titles in football and these 20 make up part of that select group.

Right off the bat common sense will tell you that it is harder to maintain that 1.000% winning percentage the more state title games you play in. However, five schools have been given the chance to take home the title more than once and capitalized each time; or, in the case of these schools, both times. The following five schools have played in two title games and won both: John Ehret, Landry (Lake Charles), Parkview Baptist, South Plaquemine and Vinton.

One school has been to three title games and won all three times. That school is Salmen High School out of Slidell. That was accomplished with back to back wins in 1994 and 1995. Salmen's titles in those two years came against John Curtis (12-7 in 1996) and Leesville (39-7 in 1995). In 2000 Salmen again defeated John Curtis in the state title game; this time by a 31-29 margin. That gave Salmen three wins in three attempts.

There are thirteen schools that have a winning percentage of .667% in state title games. Eleven of those thirteen schools competed in three games and won two. Those schools include: Baker, Baton Rouge, Buras, Crowley, E. D. White (Thibodaux), Kinder, Lockport, Morgan City, South Lafourche, Springhill and St. Martinville.

Two schools top the list of schools with a winning percentage of .667% in state title games. Amite High School has competed in six title games and won four of those. The Neville Tigers of Monroe have a winning percentage of .667% in the twelve state title games they played in, which means they won eight of those twelve games. Again, don't lose sight of the opportunity to play in 12 title games. I can provide the names of 167 schools that have played in fewer than 12 playoff games and don't even know the names of schools that competed in football and never even played in a single playoff game.

Five schools have a winning percentages of .750 or higher in state title games. Four of those schools won three of the four title games they played in. Those schools are Ascension Catholic, Clinton, Ouachita Christian and St. Augustine .... major accomplishment all. The other school with a winning percentage of .750% in title games competed in 12 title games and won 9 of those; that school being the Tallulah Trojans. All of those title game appearances by Tallulah came between 1932 and 1969, a period of time when just making the playoffs was a testimony to a school's strength. Putting aside winning percentages for a moment, how about laying claim to 9 state titles. Don't lose sight of how huge that is because only three high schools in Louisiana have won more state titles in football than Tallulah.

John Curtis has competed in 29 title games, which is more than any school in Louisiana. When John Curtis reaches a title game they have won almost 8 out of 10 times because their winning percentage in title games is .793% (23 wins out of 29 opportunities). Their 23 wins are more than double that of anyone else in Louisiana except Haynesville, who has won 14. Given the opportunity, John Curtis has capitalized.

There are six high schools with winning percentages of .800% or higher. Destrahan sits right at .800% with their four wins in five state title game appearances, including the last two 5A state titles. Istrouma (Baton Rouge) won all six of the title games they competed in during the 1950s, plus 3 of 5 others they have competed in for a title game record of 11 wins and 2 losses. That is a .818% winning percentage in title games. At one stretch Istrouma won titles in 9 straight title game appearances (not consecutive years). That is the longest such string of titles by any one school.

Minden has competed in six title games and the only one they lost was the first LHSAA sanctioned title game, which was played in 1921. In that contest Warren Easton defeated Minden 7-0. Minden won the other five title games they competed in, with those coming in 1938, 1954, 1956, 1963 and 1980. Since 1993 Evangel has competed in 13 title games and has won all but two of those. Evangel won the first eight title games they played in, which is the second most consecutive wins in title games (not consecutive years) by Louisiana schools, trailing only Istrouma. Evangel's only two losses in state title games have come against schools included in the top eight for highest winning percentage in title games.

One of those games came this past December when John Curtis defeated Evangel 35-14. The other loss came in 2003 in a 41-35 loss to one of two schools with the highest winning percentage in title games for schools that have played in more than three title games. That school is Hahnville High School, who has won six of the seven title games they played in for a winning percentage of .857. Tied with Hahnville with the same number of wins in the same number of title game appearances is Lutcher High School. Is it just a coincidence that those two schools are separated by only 30 miles (and that is not "as the crow flies")?

Hahnville won the first five times they reached the title game, with wins over Tallulah (19-7 in 1949), Central Lafourche (14-7 in 1968), Denham Springs (26-26 tie, but Hahnville won by having 16 first downs to Denham Springs' 13 in 1972), Broadmoor (37-22 in 1992) and Ouachita (36-28 in 1994). Hahnville's lone title game loss came in a 35-7 loss to Neville in 1995. Hahnville won their sixth title in the aforementioned 2003 game against Evangel.

Lutcher lost the first title game they played in when Destrehan defeated them by a 21-0 margin in 1973. Lutcher has won the next six title games they have played in. Lutcher won three of their titles in the nine-year span between 1975 and 1983 with wins over Rayne (29-13 in 1975), Haughton (12-7 in 1978) and Wossman (21-7 in 1983). Lutcher has won three of the last six Class 3A titles, starting with their 15-7 win over Notre Dame in 2003, followed by their 27-7 win over Independence in 2006 and culminating with their 17-0 win over Notre Dame this past December.

Highest Winning Percentage in State Title Games 1.0 Salmen (3 of 3),
The following are 2 for 2: John Ehret, Landry, Parkview Baptist, S. Plaquemine and Vinton.
The following are 1 for 1: Catholic (New Iberia), Columbia, East St. John, Elton, Farmerville, Fortier, Gilbert, Greensburg, Hammond, Holy Name , Kenner, Logansport, Natchitoches-Central, Pineville, Ridgewood Prep, South Terrebonne, Tara, West Jefferson and W. O. Boston.

.857 - Hahnville, Lutcher (both 6 of 7)
.846 - Evangel (11 of 13)
.833 - Minden (5 of 6)
.818 - Istrouma (9 of 11)
.800 - Destrahan (4 of 5)
.793 - John Curtis (23 of 29)
.750 - Tallulah (9 of 12). The following are 3 of 4) Ascension Catholic, Clinton, Ouachita Christian, St. Augustine,

Highest Winning Percentage in State Title Games (min. 4 games played)
.857 - Hahnville, Lutcher (both 6 of 7)
.846 - Evangel (11 of 13)
.833 - Minden (5 of 6)
.818 - Istrouma (9 of 11)
.800 - Destrehan (4 of 5)
.793 - John Curtis (23 of 29)
.750 - Tallulah (9 of 12). The following are 3 of 4) Ascension Catholic, Clinton, Ouachita Christian, St. Augustine,

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