NEW ORLEANS (June 25, 2024) – Scott O'Brien, the state championship winning coach of the Archbishop Chapelle softball team, and Jonathon Orillion, the coach of the state champion Jesuit High School wrestling team, have been selected as the Allstate Sugar Bowl's Prep Coaches of the Year.
 
The New Orleans Sports Awards Committee, sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, has selected annual award winners in a variety of categories since 1958; it also selects Amateur Athletes of the Month and each year's Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame class. Overall, 31 individuals and two teams will be honored for their achievements at the 2023-24 Allstate Sugar Bowl's Awards Banquet on August 3. Honorees are currently being announced, wrapping up with the Corbett Awards for the top male and female amateur athletes in the state on July 8 and 9.
 
O'Brien directed the Chipmunks to their first softball state championship with an impressive run through the LHSAA Division I Select state tournament bracket. Fifth-seeded Chapelle took down No. 12 Woodlawn (15-0) in the regional, then stopped No. 4 Mt. Carmel (5-3) in the quarterfinals. The semifinals were a showdown with No. 1 St. Thomas More, which eliminated the Chipmunks in last year's semifinals – this time around Chapelle posted a 3-2 victory in extra innings. The state championship game was a showdown with No. 2 John Curtis, a team that had consistently beaten the Chipmunks in recent years, and Chapelle (23-7) again took care of business, winning 2-1. Star pitcher Kayla Giardina led the team, with her bat as well as her arm, throughout the tournament and was named the Most Outstanding Player. It was just the second trip to a state championship game for the Chipmunks – they lost in the finals in 2004.
 
"Don't focus on the results, focus on the process," O'Brien said after earning the first state title for Chapelle softball. "That's what we were preaching. It's truly a story about talent plus hard work, overcoming, and perseverance. This trophy is very difficult to get; I'm honored and proud of [the team's] process and what they did. It was amazing."
 
Orillion, in his third year as the head coach at Jesuit, directed the Blue Jays to their second consecutive state title. Jesuit dominated the state championships with three individual winners among eight weight-class finalists, helping it finish 45 1/2 points ahead of runner-up Holy Cross. The 2001 Jesuit graduate was an assistant when the Blue Jays finished sixth at the state tournament in 2021. In three seasons as head coach since then, Jesuit was a state runner-up in 2022, won the state title by four points in 2023, and then turned in this year's dominant performance. This year's Jesuit championships came from Bodi Harris (120 pounds), Jackson Calderaro (215 pounds), and Spencer Lanosga (285 pounds). The Blue Jays had 13 top-6 finishers and advanced eight wrestlers to the finals.
 
"We're just trying to get better every day," Orillion said after Jesuit won its second straight state title. We set the goal to come back in here and repeat; and to get the job done and have everything come together like it did, it's a good feeling. I'm proud of the guys; they take a lot of pride in fighting for our school and fighting for each other."
 
The Sports Awards Committee has recognized outstanding high school coaches since 1962. O'Brien is the first Chapelle coach to be honored by the Sugar Bowl while Orillion becomes the second straight Jesuit coach to earn the recognition.
 
The Sugar Bowl also conducted a fan vote for its annual awards and the Coach of the Year winners were Jessica Chatellier (Dominican Volleyball) for girls' teams and Michael Odom (St. Martin's Episcopal Basketball) for boys' teams. Chatellier led Dominican to its fourth straight LHSAA Division I state championship with a thrilling four-set triumph over No. 2 Mount Carmel. After leading St. Martin's to the state semifinals in 2023, Odom took the Saints a step further this year as they advanced to the state championship game for the first time in program history.
 
In addition to O'Brien and Chatellier, the finalists for the New Orleans Girls' Prep Coach of the Year honor were Rebekka Bonnaffee (Archbishop Hannan Volleyball) and Eric Smith (Warren Easton Track & Field). Bonnaffee directed Hannan to a 46-3 overall record, the top seed in the LHSAA Division III state tournament, and its third state title in the last four years. Smith guided his team to the LHSAA Class 4A Outdoor Track & Field Championship in May – it's the first time in 25 years that a New Orleans public school has captured a Louisiana state track and field championship.
 
The other finalists for New Orleans Boys' Prep Coach of the Year were Tiffany Hill (Pope John Paul II Swimming) and Tom Taylor (Ponchatoula Basketball). Hill, in her first year as the head coach of the Pope John Paul II boys' and girls' swimming teams, directed the boys to their fourth straight LHSAA Division IV state championship despite having just seven boys competing. Taylor led Ponchatoula, a school that had not reached the boys basketball state semifinals since 1970, to its second straight state championship.
 
The Allstate Sugar Bowl will continue announcing its annual awards tomorrow (Wednesday) with the Outstanding Male and Female Amateur Athletes from New Orleans.
 
Jimmy Collins Special Awards: Kyle Blankenship, LSU Shreveport Basketball
Outstanding Girls' Prep Coach of the Year, New Orleans: Scott O'Brien, Archbishop Chapelle Softball
Outstanding Boys' Prep Coach of the Year, New Orleans: Jonathon Orillion, Jesuit Wrestling
Outstanding Female Amateur Athlete, New Orleans: June 26 (Wednesday)
Outstanding Male Amateur Athlete, New Orleans: June 26 (Wednesday)
Outstanding Boys' Prep Team, New Orleans: June 27 (Thursday)
Outstanding Girls' Prep Team, New Orleans: June 27 (Thursday)
Outstanding Collegiate Coach, Louisiana: June 28 (Friday)
Corbett Award – Female: July 8 (Monday)
Corbett Award – Male: July 9 (Tuesday)
 
Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2024:
Chris Duhon, Basketball, Salmen HS/Duke/NBA, 1997-2013
Jahri Evans, Football, New Orleans Saints, 2006-17
Matt Forté, Football, Slidell HS/Tulane/NFL, 2000-17
Carmen Jones, Basketball, McMain Magnet HS/Tulane, 1982-90
Paul Thompson, Basketball, Tulane/NBA/Europe, 1979-99
 
The Greater New Orleans Sports Awards Committee came together when James Collins spearheaded a group of sports journalists to form a sports awards committee to immortalize local sports history. For 13 years, the Committee honored local athletes each month and a variety of annual award winners. In 1970, the Sugar Bowl stepped in to sponsor and revitalize the Committee, leading to the creation of the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 1971, honoring 10 legends from the Crescent City in its first induction class. While adding the responsibility of selecting Hall of Famers, the Committee has continued to recognize the top amateur athlete in the New Orleans area each month as well as a range of annual awards – the honors enter their 68th year in 2024.
 
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 29 national champions, 107 Hall of Fame players, 52 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 90-year history. The 91st Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Quarterfinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2025. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests over $1 million into the community through the hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards, scholarships and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2.5 billion into the local economy in the last decade.