NATCHITOCHES -- After a year-long delay due to Covid-19, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2020 finally was inducted during a ceremony held June 26 at the Natchitoches Event Center. The 11-person class included eight-time Mr. Olympia world bodybuilding champion Ronnie Coleman; Harlem Globetrotter "Sweet" Lou Dunbar; legendary Richwood High School coach Mackie Freeze; New Orleans native Kerry Kittles, a two-time All-America basketball guard at Villanova who averaged 14 points in an eight-year NBA career; Outdoorsman Phil Robertson, recognized internationally as the Duck Commander; Chicago Bears cornerback Charles “Peanut” Tillman, a star at UL Lafayette; and Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters legend Angela Turner, who helped her teams to four straight national championship game appearances including wins in 1981 and 1982. The class also included LSWA Distinguished Service Award winners Robin Fambrough, who has put together a remarkable career as a sports reporter for The Baton Rouge Advocate, and longtime LSU Basketball Sports Information Director Kent Lowe. Shreveport native Tim Brando, the legendary sports broadcaster for ESPN, CBS and other networks, received the inaugural Ambassador Award, given to a Louisianan who extols the virtue of his or her home state.
