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Spotlight on Former Athlete: Glenn Davis Lafleur, Football 1966-69When freshman Glenn Lafleur played in his first football game at USL in 1966, he sustained a season-ending injury in the 24-0 victory over Louisiana College. In the Spring on 1967, he injured his ankle while high jumping in a physical education class and faced extensive rehabilitation if he was to return to the game he loved in the Fall. As a youngster, Glenn had muscular problems which puzzled his doctors for some time and resulted in him not playing organized football until he became a high school freshman. He started at defensive end in his first year of football and lettered for four years at Ville Platte High School. His team earned a 9-0-1 record his senior year, but were not declared district champions because of lack of a minimum number of league games. Click here for Glenn’s profile and learn why he chose to attend USL and not some of the other colleges and universities who were recruiting him. http://athleticnetwork.net/site.php?pageID=55&profID=10541 Learn how he was elevated to a starting linebacker postion and how it affected his play over the next three years. "Prides of Acadiana" by Bruce Brown (1980) contains the following language which typifies Glenn’s character and determination to work through pain to be successful: "He remained on the second unit until the final day of drills, when Edney was clipped and tore up his knee. So LaFleur was a starter as a sophomore, on the way to three straight All-Conference honors in the Gulf States Conference, second team Little All-America as a junior and first team Little All-America as a senior." "Then LaFleur was clipped himself in a 9-0 win at Southeastern, and tore ligaments in his ankle. The answer for a player like LaFleur was to simply keep his ailing ankle in a bucket of ice for the rest of the season each time he came off the field." "That bout with the ankle was further evidence of courage already displayed in an earlier 1967 game with Lamar, in which LaFleur and Cardinal fullback Tom Smiley met head-to-head for most of the contest." "He broke my nose in the first quarter, but I wouldn’t stay out" LaFleur said. "I told them to put it back. No sooner did I get back but he broke it again. I didn’t know where I was after that." "Where LaFleur was in the middle of the Lamar attack most of the night, despite a 13-14 loss. He zeroed in on opposing runners twenty-five times in that game, a game which established his character and his mode of operation for the rest of his career." The torn ligaments in Glenn’s ankle continued to present problems, so each time he came off the field, he placed it in a bucket of ice. His foot was placed in a cast after the season and the following Summer, surgery was performed where a foot muscle replaced the ligament. While former football greats, such as Christian Cagle (Spotlight May 2008) and Alvin Dark (Spotlight January 2008), had acheived notoriety, that recognition came about because of their outstanding offensive skills. Glenn moved to a different drum beat and his strengths were on the other side of the line – on defense. Glenn was a three time All-GSC performer (1967-69), making him the first footballer named to that distinction, and the first USL football player ever to be chosen Little All-America for two consecutive seasons. He was honored in 1969 to be named to the Associated Press team. Click here for a review of the honors reaped by the 1969 players: http://athleticnetwork.net/picpopup.php?piclibID=5635 Glenn is shown below (1968) delivering his patented tackle.
Glenn is pictured below with the other 1969 senior football players and Coach Russ Faulkinberry.
1969 Seniors- Row 1-Coach Faulkinberry, Jim Kemp, Dickey Mart, Larry Mitchell. Row 2-Terry Mitchell, Gerald Dugas, George Roussel, Jay Cormier, Baron Babineaux, Glenn LaFleur, Jim Barton. Glenn is pictured below with the 1968 Football Team and Coaches (click here to view enlarged picture): http://athleticnetwork.net/picpopup.php?piclibID=7422 (click on reverse arrow in upper left corner to return to the story).
Glenn and wife Jean Thompson Lafleur are pictured below: (click here to view enlarged picture:) http://athleticnetwork.net/picpopup.php?piclibID=9117 (click on reverse arrow in upper left corner to return to the story).
Please click here for additional information on Glenn’s family: When Glenn updated his profile on October 28, 2008, this is what he wrote: "I have retired from coaching and am now a Principal at Pine Prairie High School for the past two years & have been in the public school system for the past 38 years. I still reside in Ville Platte, LA. and still love to hunt & fish, I also have three grown children of my own & my present wife, Jean has two grown children. Between Jean & me we have seven grandchildren & five of them attend school at Sacred Heart Elementary here in Ville Platte. Every Homecoming for ULL it brings back memories of my four years of college there and "great memories of my football years and accomplishments". When I attend some Homecomings at ULL, I always see friends that were there when I was there and also some of my former football buddies & people that remember me from my football career. It really means a lot to me when they introduce themselves and start talking about football "back when". ULL & the city of Lafayette are part of my family then and always will be. Posted October 29, 2008 Our rich athletic traditions were intrusted to the vision, hope, loyalty and dedicated of these former athletes and we will forever owe them a debt of sincere gratitude. May God Bless each of them and their families. Anyone with information, materials, pictures, memorabilia, etc., of the university’s former athletic program participants in is requested to contact Ed Dugas at athleticnetwork@louisiana.edu Thank you. The Photo Gallery Link located on the left side of the home page at http://www.athleticnetwork.net contains over 8,000 pictures of former and current athletes and support groups. Just click on photo gallery and when the menu appears, click on the sport or support group you wish to view. The years of pictures posted for that team or group will appear and you may click on the year you wish to view. One click on a thumbnail picture or narrative and it is enlarged; a click on the enlarged photo and it reverts back to the thumbnail. The Athletic Network seeks to post pictures of each team and support group for each year they represented the university.
The stories of the 2008 honorees are still included in the News Page and may be viewed by clicking on "more news" at the bottom right of the News Box, scrolling down, clicking on the title of the story. Those spotlight features which are no longer shown in the News Page, have been moved to the Lagniappe Link of the "History of UL Athletics" located on the left side of the home page.
The Spotlight on Former Athletes announcement has also been placed in the profile of each honoree, excluding the pictures.
The 2009 honorees in the Athletic Network "Spotlight on Former Athletes" include: January – Tim Thompson Men’s Basketball 1957-61. February – Gene Bacque Baseball 1956 & 57. March – Dr. Louis "Lou" Bowers Track & Field 1955, Tennis 1956-58, Wrestling Coach 1964-66. April – Dr. Carter Lomax, Jr. Tennis 1974-76. May – Johnny Morris, Jr. Football 1927-29,Men’s Basketball 1927-30,Track & Field 1928-30, Golf 1927-28, Coaches 1947-49 . June – S.L.I.I. Athletic Pioneers I August – 1912 – A Special Year – First L’Acadien September – Glenn Davis Lafleur Football 1966-69. Ed Dugas, Coordinator
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