By RYAN ARENA
L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Larry Dauterive chuckled as he recounted his early coaching days.
“Who’d have thunk it, back in 1968 when I started off, that it was even possible,” he said.
“The ‘it’ that the former East St. John head football coach is referring to is his impending induction into the 2014 class of the Louisiana High School Athletic Association/Louisiana High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
Dauterive, now retired from the coaching ranks, spent 49 total years on the sidelines, 28 as a head coach. He will be part of a class that includes Welsh High’s Marion Dutton Wall, Woodlawn High of Shreveport’s A.L. Williams, Vidalia High’s Dalton “Dee” Faircloth, Buckeye’s C.G. “Corky” Yates, Jennings High’s Danny Ray Miller, St. Amant’s Leah Michelle Heintze and Sarepta High’s James R. Boyett. With the addition of the eight inductees, the LHSAA-LHSCA Hall of Fame ranks will grow to a total of 267 members.
He tallied a sterling record of 228-85-1 as a head coach for eight different schools. Dauterive led teams to five undefeated regular seasons — including East St. John in 2006 — four state semifinals and one championship game.
“I was blessed to have put together that record. But you never do it alone,” said Dauterive. “When you talk about a lot of those years at the 5A level especially, you need some great athletes and coaches around you.”
He earned a reputation for being a rebuilder of programs. Dauterive took over winless teams on four separate occasions, each time leading them to significant improvement.
“One thing I’m very proud of, I feel like I left each place in better shape than it was when I arrived,” he said.
While today, the high school game is full of shotgun spread offenses that showcase the passing game, it wasn’t always like that. Once upon a time, the prep game was all about smash mouth, run-first offensive attacks.
But even in his younger days, Dauterive was self-admittedly infatuated with the downfield pass, a tendency he developed as he found himself gravitating to broadcasts of the pass-heavy Canadian Football League — where Dauterive himself would coach for a year.
“Sometimes I feel a little like a trailblazer in that regard,” he said. “I made my reputation in the passing game. You’ve got to have a philosophy and play to it. Back in the day, there weren’t but three or four TV stations. I’d watch the CFL over the NFL in a lot of cases. It was a three-down league, so you needed to get a first down in two downs or you were punting.’
‘Then, the Dallas Cowboys were a favorite of mine in the NFL, and I was fascinated with all of the things Tom Landry would do with them, the shifts, finding matchups.”
Dauterive coached a number of great athletes through his career, but perhaps the greatest came in his tenure at East St. John. Quarterback Ryan Perrilloux, wide receiver D’haquille Williams, offensive lineman Patrick Lewis and quarterback/cornerback Darion Monroe were among the best to play for him —three signed Division I scholarships while Auburn commitment Williams will likely become the fourth this signing day.
Perrilloux, in particular, became a star under Dauterive’s tutelage, drawing national acclaim for a prep career that ended with a 5,000 total yard, 67 total touchdown senior season.
“You could never call a bad play with him on the field,” said Dauterive. “His ability was unmatched.”
While the 228 victories are a number he is proud of, another number stands out more in his mind: the 106 players that signed collegiate scholarships. Sixty-four of those came during his tenure at East St. John.
“That’s the thing I’m proudest of. It means everything to me,” said Dauterive. “106 kids got to go on and earn a tuition-free college education. That first Wednesday of February (National Signing Day) was my favorite of all, just to see the expression on their faces.”
Does he ever miss the sideline?
“Every Friday night,” he said. “But now, when the games are over, I can go to bed at peace. I don’t have to worry about third and 15 anymore.”
Dauterive credited three primary mentors in the coaching profession for helping establish his voyage on the right path: Faize Mahfouz, Phil Stoma and Bob Mahfouz.
They helped spur him onto a Hall of Fame career. The induction ceremony-banquet is set for Jan. 29 at 6:30 p.m. at the Crown Plaza in Baton Rouge. The ceremony will be held in conjunction with the LHSAA’s annual convention, which will take place Jan. 29–31, 2014.
Tickets can be purchased through www.lhsaa.org.