Photo Courtesy of John Curtis Athletics.
The John Curtis Christian School football team was selected as the Allstate Sugar Bowl’s Greater New Orleans Boys’ Prep Team of the Year for 2012-13. The Greater New Orleans Sports Awards Committee, sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, selects annual award winners in a variety of categories; it also selects Amateur Athletes of the Month and each year’s Hall of Fame class.
Curtis continued its amazing run of dominance in Louisiana prep football, registering its second consecutive undefeated season and its state-record 25th state title. In addition, the Patriots became the first to be recognized as consensus national champions. Curtis was ranked No. 1 in seven of the nine polls. After a resounding 33-3 win over the Florida defending champion in the Allstate Sugar Bowl Prep Showcase, Curtis rolled through the season, extending its current winning streak to 28 games. This was the highest scoring team in Curtis history, leading by an average of more than 40 points by halftime and substituting liberally. The offense, including reserves, averaged a touchdown every 5.8 plays. In the five playoff games, Curtis scored 38 times in 41 possessions (36 TDs and 2 field goals). For the entire 14-game season, the defense allowed just three touchdowns and scored three of their own while recording seven shutouts.
The Greater New Orleans Sports Awards Committee began in 1957 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. 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 Greater New Orleans area each month – the honors enter their 64th year in 2020. To be eligible, an athlete must be a native of the greater New Orleans area or must compete for a team in the metropolitan region.
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 28 national champions, 102 Hall of Fame players, 52 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 89-year history. The 90th Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Semifinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2024. 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 nearly $2.4 billion into the local economy in the last decade.
-www.AllstateSugarBowl.org-
