LHS Sports Hall of Fame 2025
The Leesville High School Alumni Association is proud to announce George Smith and Richard Schwartz as the 2025 inductees into the Leesville High School Alumni Association Sports Hall of Fame. Smith and Schwartz were high school teammates, and later coaches and educators, coaching together for a time at LHS. Not only were they successful athletes, but they have both created legacies that are forever important at Leesville High School. This year’s induction marks the first time two teammates have been inducted into the hall at the same time. Richard and George join Kevin Mawae, Eddie Fuller, Richard Reese, Ted Paris, Robert Gaines, Terry Holt, Grant Westerchil, Holly Wentz, Demond Mallet, TB Porter, Greg Fontenot, Foster Thomas, Nikita Wilson, Keith Zinger, Cecil Collins, and Faye Jean West in the LHS Hall of Fame.
You can read their individual stories in the posts that accompany this announcement. Congratulations, George and Richard!
George Smith
2025 LHS Alumni Sports Hall of Fame Inductee
George Smith, a 1962 graduate, was a highly accomplished football player at LHS and at Tulane University. George also ran track (lettering for three years). He held the record in the 440-yard dash (now the 400 meter). While playing football for the Cats as a senior, George was a unanimous All-District and All-Southwest player in 1961, gaining over 1,000 yards and scoring 13 touchdowns as a running back. Upon his departure from LHS, George was second in all-time rushing yards.
He was a well-rounded honor student who served as president of the student body and was selected for Pelican Boys State.
George earned a scholarship to play at the collegiate level with Tulane University (at that time in the SEC). While at Tulane, George earned three varsity letters for the Green Wave. During his career, he picked up over 700 yards rushing and scored three touchdowns. He was named Tulane’s Most Valuable Back as a senior in 1965.
After graduation he returned to Leesville, where he began a career as a civics teacher and coach. He coached football, baseball, and track at LHS and was an assistant coach when the Cats won the State Track Title in 1978.
Upon retirement from LHS George taught at ULM for three years and at NSU- Fort Polk for 17 years. He retired from education in 2021. He has been married to Linda Smith for the past 21years. When asked about retirement, George commented, “I enjoyed teaching and coaching. Working with young people brought me a lot of satisfaction . . . but in retirement there’s no sweat.”
Richard Schwartz
2025 LHS Alumni Sports Hall of Fame Inductee
Richard Schwartz graduated in 1964 as one of the most decorated all-around Wampus Cats in Leesville High School history. In his senior year he earned All-District Honors in football, basketball, and track. During the 1963-64 season, Richard had the greatest single season of any LHS basketball player in history; he averaged 29.3 points per game (with no 3 point line), a record that stands to this day. He earned All-State honors in his senior year and All-District in his junior and senior years.
Also during his senior year, he led the Wampus Cat football team to the LHSAA State Playoffs for the first time. During that year, Richard was named All-District as a receiver (end), but he was a multi-purpose offensive threat, often being called on by Coach Ted Paris to run the ball and to pass, as well. During the first Cat playoff game ever, Richard accounted for two of the Cats three scores—tossing long touchdown passes to flanker John Martinez. Like George Smith, Schwartz was active in student government. He also competed for LHS at the Literary Rally and was a Top 10 Student academically in the class of ’64.
After completing his degree at LSU, Richard returned to Leesville where he began a life-long career in public education, starting as a geometry teacher at LHS. He was an assistant coach at LHS from 1969-1975 and was the head football coach at LHS from 1976-78. As head coach he inherited a team that had gone 0-10 in 1975, but he turned the program around and in just two years, put the squad on a winning track with a 6-4 record, missing the LHSAA State Playoffs by a single game.
Richard later became the Principal at Evans High School and moved on to become the Superintendent of Vernon Parish Schools for six years. Richard retired from education in 2002.
Living beside Anacoco Lake has allowed him to pursue some of his favorite activities, fishing, boating, and hunting, about which he stated, “ I grew up enjoying outdoor activities and have continued to do so throughout my adult life.”
Richard and his wife, the former Tandy Bell, recently celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary. They have two daughters, Jennifer Mount and Kelly Dillon; five grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.