Raymond Fontenot played football under the guidance of Coach Faize Mahfouz during the Bobcat seasons of 1951-1953. Fontenot, a center, was named Honorable Mention All-State in 1953.
Fontenot now joins Mahfouz as a member of the Eunice High School Sports Hall of Fame, joining previous inductees Dana Jenkins, Joe Nagata, and Leonard Matt.
Fontenot earned his spot as both a player and an administrator, having served as Eunice High principal for 27 years.
Fontenot was appointed as principal in 1971 and played a leading role in the success and development of Eunice High School Sports.
Fontenot’s impact on Eunice High athletics included his support of starting a baseball team and naming Clarence Merricks the head coach.
The team went 5-9 in regular season play, but defeated Menard in a Bi-District game, advancing the team to take on Minden, the defending 3A state champion on the road.
The Bobcats defeated Minden 3-2 and advanced to the 3A semifinals against Morgan City but lost by a 5-3 margin.
Morgan City went on to win the state championship.
Merricks would later lead the Bobcats to a state title in 1979, guiding the team to a 4-3 victory over Pineville and earning state Coach of the Year honors.
Merricks ended his stint as baseball coach in 1993 with 255 victories.
Fontenot’s other major coaching hire came in 1979 when he named Johnny Bourque as head football coach and athletic director.
Bourque would lead the Bobcat football team to a state title 16-13 victory over Jennings in 1982 at the Superdome.
Fontenot continued to make athletics a major part of Eunice High, including successful sports such as softball, tennis, and track.
He was appointed as St. Landry Parish School Superintendent in 1992 and served until he retired in 1995.
Fontenot, died May 18, 2011, at 77 years old.
He was born on June 18, 1933 in Eunice to Edith and Adras Fontenot.
He was married to the former Blanche Blalock, and they had two sons, John Jerome and David Grant.
Fontenot was a 1959 graduate from the SLI (now University of Louisiana – Lafayette), and went on to obtain advanced degrees in the field of education from Louisiana State University.
He was a veteran, having served in the U.S. Army during peace time in the 1950s and 1960s.
After his retirement from the school system, Ramon, as he was known to his friends, studied and travelled to World War II sites throughout the world, becoming an avid historian of this period