NEW ORLEANS (June 8, 2026) – The Allstate Sugar Bowl has announced the finalists for the 2025-26
James J. Corbett Awards and for the
Louisiana Collegiate Coach of the Year. The Corbett Awards, which have been presented since 1967, recognize the top male and female athletes (not in the professional ranks) in the state of Louisiana. The top college coach award has been presented since 1961. Both honors are selected by the New Orleans Sports Awards Committee.
The winners, as selected by the committee, will be announced at the
Allstate Sugar Bowl Sports Awards Banquet presented by LCMC Health on June 24.
In addition, fans now have the opportunity to visit the Allstate Sugar Bowl website to make their own selections for the best of the best in the state. Voting will close on Friday, June 12. The fan choices will be announced at the same time as the official committee selections.
Louisiana Sports Awards Finalists, 2025-26
Louisiana Collegiate Coach of the Year Finalists:
Jay Clark (LSU Gymnastics) – Clark directed the LSU gymnastics team to a national runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships. The Tigers posted their second highest team score in an NCAA final in program history, and fourth overall, with their 198.0750 on Saturday. No. 2 LSU narrowly fell to No. 1 Oklahoma's 198.1625. It's the fourth second place finish in program history and LSU's best finish to a season since winning the national championship in 2024. A strong championship showing was highlighted by sophomore Kailin Chio hitting a perfect 10.000 score on vault, the first at an NCAA Championship since 2023 and the first for an LSU gymnast at the championship. The Tigers' best rotation of the meet was on bars, where they scored an NCAA Championship program-record 49.6125. Two Tigers took home three individual titles. Konnor McClain took home a share of the bars title with her 9.9500 as well as the beam with another 9.9500. She finishes the year with eight individual titles. Chio's perfect 10.000 on vault was the 44th and final event title this season, bringing her final title tally to 44 in one season, the fourth highest total for an LSU gymnast in a single season.
Rick Fremin (Southeastern Softball) – Fremin, in his 11th year at the helm of Southeastern softball, was named the Southland Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Lions to the league's regular season championship. Fremin, who has been named Louisiana Coach of the Year each of the past two seasons and headed the 2025 Gulf Region Coaching Staff of the Year, adds his first SLC Coach of the Year award to his trophy case. The Belle Chasse native has led the Lions to 40 or more wins in each of the past five seasons and has helped SLU crack the top 25 in both the NFCA and Softball America polls for the first time in program history. This year's Southeastern team won all nine SLC series in 2026, sweeping six. Despite losing in the SLC Tournament, Southeastern (46-14) was selected to an NCAA Regional for the third straight year. The Lions are the first Southland Conference school to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament since former league member Texas State in 2003. SLU, earned the No. 2 seed in the regional, but fell to Belmont and USC Upstate to end its season.
Jon Sumrall (Tulane Football) – Sumrall posted an 11-3 record in 2025, including a 34-21 victory over North Texas in the American Conference Championship for the program's second conference title in four years. Among his 11 wins this season were a pair of victories over Power 4 opponents in Northwestern (BIG) and Duke (ACC), the Green Wave's most over Power 4 opponents since 1988. The team earned the No. 11 seed in the College Football Playoff and was ranked in both the Associated Press Poll (No. 17) and the USA Today Coaches Poll (No. 18). After winning the American Conference Championship, Tulane advanced to the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history as the program battled on the road before falling at No. 6 seed Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss. Besides being the first-ever playoff appearance, the Green Wave are also the first team to ever make the playoffs from the state of Louisiana in the 12-team format.
Jeff Willis (LSU Eunice Baseball) – Willis directed the Bengals to the NJCAA/Region 23 Tournament Championship and the NJCAA South District Championship as they posted a 47-13 record and advanced to the NJCAA Division I World Series for the first time after winning eight at the NJCAA Division II level. After losing 14-6 in the first game of the South District Championship, the Bengals posted a convincing 19-5 victory in game two and clinched the title with an 8-6 decision. LSU Eunice fell to Miami Dade in the first game of the NJCAA World Series, 11-3, but then the bats came to life in a 14-7 victory over Wabash Valley on May 26. The Bengals were eliminated by Blinn College in game three of the World Series.
Corbett Award Female Finalists:
Tashina Alase (Southern Track & Field) – Alase turned in a historic performance at the SWAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She blazed to the conference title in the women's 100-meter hurdles in a SWAC-record time of 12.64 seconds. The mark moved Alase to No. 1 in the NCAA this season and No. 8 in the world in 2026, cementing her status as one of the premier hurdlers in collegiate track and field. She followed that by posting a time of 12.74 seconds at the NCAA Regional on May 30 to become the first Lady Jaguar to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships (her semifinal race is at 7:08 p.m. on June 20) since 1994. At the SWAC Outdoor Championships, Alase later added more points for Southern with a third-place finish in the women's 200 meters after clocking 23.62. During the indoor season, the Minnesota native broke the school record in the 60-meter hurdles in three consecutive meets, highlighted by a blazing 8.04 in the preliminaries at the Southwestern Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. She returned in the finals to capture gold with a meet-record time of 8.17. She was the only non-Power 4 athlete to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 60-meter hurdles and she finished in 12th place overall. Alase is the first Southern athlete to qualify for both the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships during the same season.
Kailin Chio (LSU Gymnastics) – Chio, a sophomore from Henderson, Nev., earned eight All-America honors in 2026 and helped lead LSU to an NCAA national runner-up finish with only their second 198+ finals score in school history. She became the first Tiger in school history to score a perfect 10.00 at nationals. In 2026, Chio was named the SEC Gymnast of the Year and Region One Gymnast of the Year. She finished her sophomore season with 13 perfect scores, the most by any LSU gymnast in a single season and the second most 10s in a single season by any NCAA Gymnast since 2019. She had 44 event wins on the year, the third most in school history in a single season. She now owns 67 titles in her career, with her 14 on vault this season being the most in a single season, her 11 in the all-around being the second-most, and 11 on beam matching the program record. Chio ranked No. 1 in the all-around for four consecutive weeks during the regular season and held the No. 1 spot in the nation on vault and beam. She was the 2026 SEC Champion in the all-around and vault while posting 9.900+ on all four events. She became the first NCAA gymnast to earn a perfect 30.000 when only competing in three events on March 13.
Flau'jae Johnson (LSU Basketball) – Johnson, a native of Savannah, Ga., was named the Louisiana Women's Basketball Player of the Year, an All-American, and an All-SEC honoree this past season. She played and started in all 35 games the Tigers played and was LSU's second-leading scorer, averaging 14.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.3 steals per contest. Johnson scored in double digits 27 times including nine outings with 20-plus points. Johnson finished her career, with all four years at LSU, a rarity in the transfer portal era, as one of 14 active players in the 2025-26 season to have 2,000-plus points while in college. For her efforts, she earned a spot on the Third Team for All-America lists published by the Associated Press and USBWA and was a finalist for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, which is given to the nation's top shooting guard. Johnson was also selected to the All-SEC First Team for the second straight season.
Leah Varisco (Sacred Heart Cross Country/Track/Basketball/Soccer) – Varisco may have the busiest schedule of anybody in New Orleans – not just high school athletes. The Sacred Heart senior was a cross country and track standout in the fall and spring, and in the winter, she starred for BOTH the basketball and soccer teams. Amazingly, she was named the team MVP in all four sports in which she participated. In basketball, she was the team's starting point guard and averaged 13.5 points and six assists per game as she led her team to the No. 3 seed in the Division III playoffs where they reached the state semifinals. A two-time LSWA Class 3A all-state selection, she keyed the first-ever state title for Sacred Heart basketball in 2025 and is the only player in school history to score over 1,000 career points. She also accounted for 45 percent of Sacred Heart soccer's points through goals scored or assists as it reached the Division III semifinals in 2026, and she scored a goal in a 2-1 semifinal loss to Parkview Baptist. In cross country, she finished third at the LHSAA Division II state championship, posting a time of 19:08.9 over the three-mile course to lead Sacred Heart to a second-place team finish. "(Varisco) has had a really good impact," Sacred Heart basketball coach Courtney Ward said. "Being able to balance the multiple sports, she's the definition of what Sacred Heart is. Being able to give girls the opportunity to do multiple things, balance it and excel academically. She encompasses all of those things." At the Class 3A LHSAA Outdoor Track Championships in May, Varisco earned third-place finishes in both the 1,600-meter run (5:25.63) and the 3,200-meter run (11:52.74) while helping her school collect third place in the 4x800 meter relay.
Edna Karr took the field with seven college-signed players on defense, but none carried a larger impact than defensive tackle Richard Anderson. The LSU signee impacted the game no matter how opposing teams tried the slow the five-star player listed by several recruiting websites as the No. 1 defensive lineman in the country for the 2026 signing class. The Times-Picayune selected the 6-foot-4, 330-pound Anderson as the New Orleans All-Metro large schools defensive player of the year for his efforts during a state championship season that he finished with 53 total tackles, 22 for loss, 10 sacks and one interception return for a touchdown. Anderson played with impressive quickness for a player his size, commonly slashing his way into the backfield to disrupt plays. Opposing teams tried various methods to slow him. Some double- and triple-teamed him. Others, like Evangel Christian in a state quarterfinal, ran plays out of a swinging gate formation the entire first half to spread the defensive playmakers across the width of the field. The Louisiana Sports Writers Association twice selected Anderson to the Class 5A all-state team over the past two seasons, listing him as the 5A outstanding player selection as a senior. He earned the Warrick Dunn Award in February as the top junior or senior football player in Louisiana.
Mansoor Delane (LSU Football) – The senior cornerback was named a first-team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America. The honor makes Delane just the 14th unanimous All-American at LSU, with first-team honors from all five major teams: Associated Press, Walter Camp, The Sporting News, American Football Coaches Association and FWAA. A total of 13 players nationally were named unanimous first-team All-Americans this season. A transfer from Virginia Tech, Delane immediately made his presence felt on the LSU defense with an interception and three passes defended in the season opener at Clemson. Delane would go on to tally 45 tackles and lead the Southeastern Conference in passes defended (13) and passes broken up (11). Delane started 11 games, playing most of the season with an abdominal injury. Despite that, he was a lockdown corner, not allowing a passing touchdown and being targeted only 9.8% of the time. Opponents had a completion percentage of 37.1% on passes thrown in Delane's direction. In 358 snaps, he allowed just 13 receptions for 147 yards and six first downs. Delane helped LSU lead the SEC in pass efficiency defense. The Tigers were also the only unit in the conference to have more interceptions (17) than touchdowns allowed (10), the fewest surrendered by LSU since 2016 (nine).
Lane Fenske (LSU Eunice Baseball) – Lane Fenske had a historic first year on the Cajun Prairie, tying the single season wins mark with his 15-0 record, which was also the second most in the nation this season. Fenske led the Bengals with a 3.19 earned run average while tossing four complete games. The Catholic-New Iberia product struck out 98 batters, finishing 13th nationally and ranking 12th all-time in LSU Eunice single season history. He would shine bright in the postseason, posting a 2-0 record with 3.15 ERA, recording 21 strikeouts and 7 walks in three starts. Fenske totaled 10 strikeouts in a Region 23 Tournament win over Delgado on May 9, hurled seven innings with seven punch outs in a Game Two win over Shelton State in the South District Series, and toss six strong innings in a no decision against Miami Dade in LSUE's JUCO World Series opener. His 93 innings pitched also ranked second in the nation.
Easton Royal (Brother Martin Football/Track & Field) – Royal, considered the No. 1 wide receiver in the nation in the Class of 2027, had a sensational junior season for the Crusader football team. He earned first-team all-state and all-metro honors after recording 59 catches for 1,219 receiving yards to go with 219 rushing yards. His 20 total touchdowns included 15 on receptions, three on rushes, one on a punt return and one on a TD pass on a trick play. He opened the 2026 season by leading the Crusaders to four straight wins as he was named the Sugar Bowl Athlete of the Month for September. His biggest game came on Sept. 12 when he had nine receptions for 254 yards and three touchdowns in a 37-27 win over St. Paul's – his TD catches went for 11 yards, 73 yards, and 81 yards and he also threw for a six-yard touchdown. Brother Martin fell in the second round of the playoffs to close the 2025 season with a 7-5 record. He capped off his 2025-26 year by winning the state championship in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.17 seconds to break the composite state record that had stood since 1980. The 5-11, 205-pounder also won the 200-meter dash and anchored the winning 4x100 relay team. Earlier in the month, Royal posted a 10.2 in the 100 meters and helped the Crusaders set a school record at 41.34 seconds in the 4x100 relay.
The 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 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 athlete in the New Orleans area each month as well as a range of annual awards – the honors enter their 70th year in 2026.
The
Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 29 national champions, 114 Hall of Fame players, 55 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 92-year history. 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 $2.6 billion into the local economy in the last decade.
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