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| Centenary (La.) got a lot of football under its belt last season, but now they take the field in games which count. Centenary athletics file photo |
By Brian Lester
D3sports.com
All Centenary head coach Byron Dawson had a couple of years ago was the ability to show potential football players what the program would look like when it finally got off the ground for its first NCAA Division III season.
“That first year, it was just me with a briefcase, with pictures of what was going to be as far as the practice field, the game field, the uniforms,” Dawson said. “All I had was a vision to sell them.”
The vision is now reality, and this Saturday, the Gents will play football for the first time in a game that counts, taking on Hendrix in their opener. The team played a provisional season last year.
Sophomore linebacker Devon Strickland, a team captain, can’t wait to get started.
“It’s exciting,” Strickland said. “Last year was kind of nerve-wracking being a brand new team. Now that we have guys back and a year under our belts, it’s exciting, and I know a lot of people around here are excited, too.”
It was announced in 2021 that football would return to Centenary, and Saturday’s game will be the culmination of nearly three years of building, dreaming and preparing for the school’s first football season in nearly 80 years. The Gents last played in 1947.
“The last two years have been a great joy and a great challenge,” Dawson said. “The joy is the support of our leadership, including athletic director David Orr, and our community. The challenge has been trying to get the student athletes to buy into it and trust a new program. We sold it as being a part of something new, something special, something unique.”
Centenary has a great history, complete with winning seasons, conference titles and a star like Carl Hubard, the only person who is in the Pro Football and Pro Baseball Hall of Fames.
But telling that to student-athletes doesn’t quite work as a relatable recruiting pitch.
“It has a rich football history, but it’s all pre-World War II. It’s not like the kids can relate to that,” Dawson said. “The No. 1 thing I could sell was myself. My experience as a coach, as a player and the opportunity to go to a very prestigious school and play this great game in a great city.”
Dawson is a Shreveport guy. He played high school ball here and was a four-year starter at LSU under Nick Saban.
When he was offered the job at Centenary in 2022, he couldn’t pass it up.
“To come back home and bring college football back here, it’s a great opportunity. I’ve been living the dream,” Dawson said.
The team played 10 games in 2023, fashioning a 9-1 mark, but none of the facilities available to the team now were in existence then.
Now, there is a new practice facility, a new locker room, new offices for the coaches, a video scoreboard and new entrance way to the stadium. The finishing touches are being put on a team meeting room.
“It’s astounding,” Strickland said. “I remember when I first got recruited, Coach Dawson was always talking about it. To see it grow up out of nothing from when we started. To see it sprout up and get done in a year’s time is insane.”
Dawson said the progress sets the stage for growth.
“We have the tools we need to grow,” Dawson said. “We’re starting to see the fruits of all of our labor. So much went on to make this all happen. It was a constant production, and it’s been very cool to watch it all develop before our eyes.”
The program has come a long way. Dawson remembers back to 2022 when there were very few players around.
“We had a handful of guys that showed up. They worked out. They lifted. But we didn’t have any games,” Dawson said. “Those guys are my foundation players and I tip my hat to them for the commitment they made when there wasn’t even a season.”
Last year, as the Gents dominated the competition during its provisional year, Dawson said the culture was established.
“It was about setting the culture,” Dawson said. “This is what football looks like for our program. This is how we play, who we are and how we carry ourselves.”
Dawson applauds the players for the work they have put in, and can’t thank those around him enough for ensuring the players are the best athletes and students possible.
“I feel like I have great support with my coaching staff, the professors and the administration,” Dawson said. “Every dream needs a team, and all these people have come together to make sure our players are not just athletes, but that they are complete student athletes in every area, from athletics to academics. That makes a difference for a program on and off the field.”
As a native to the area, Dawson has gotten the sense that the community is strongly behind the rebirth of the Centenary program.
And Dawson wants to make sure that support is recognized, which is why the team will have ‘Shreveport’ on the front of its jerseys.
“To me it’s about honoring the community. Shreveport is a great city to bring the great game of college football to. It’s something the city has wanted,” Dawson said. “We decided to put the city on our jerseys because that’s our heart, and this program is about unity and community. We want to have that connection to the city of Shreveport.”
Strickland knows that connection well as the city is his hometown. It makes being at Centenary that much more special.
“We’ve been working towards something and knowing we’d get there eventually,” Strickland said. “Now that we are here on that level, it’s neat knowing we get the chance to do something special and make history.”
Dawson is asked what it’s going to be like for him when he’s on the sideline Saturday for the game against the Warriors. The feeling he expects to have is a relatable one.
“Christmas morning, man,” Dawson said. “Christmas morning as a kid. I’m just so excited, so anxious. To have it all come together and be here, it’s going to be a proud moment. We know we have a great challenge with Hendrix. That’s a well-coached program. We have to bring our 'A' game.”
