One of the most prolific tenures in Louisiana high school basketball history is officially over. Scotlandville’s Carlos Sample announced his decision to resign as the Hornets boys basketball coach Friday morning.
Sample led the Hornets to 14 consecutive title games on the LHSAA’s highest level, Class 5A/Division I, a feat no other boys coach, including those with more wins, has matched.
The Hornets (32-4) lost 57-54 to District 4-5A rival Catholic High in the Division I select title game played in Lake Charles last Saturday. Sample ends his career at Scotlandville with 8 state championships and 6 runner-up finishes.
“This was a process … it’s been about a year in the half,” Sample said. “And they say timing is everything and for me, it was time. Sometimes in life you reach a point where you need a new challenge.
“My family is definitely on board with this. At that point, I am not sure what my next step will be. There are possibilities out there; I am just not sure which path I will take.”
Sample, 54, won 85 percent of his games (482-83) during his 16-year tenure at Scotlandville. His string of title-game appearances began in 2010 in Lafayette. The Hornets won their first title in 2012, beating rival McKinley in a game played in Ruston.
After one season as head coach at Livonia, he moved to his alma mater, Istrouma, for nine seasons. Sample’s overall record is 676-198, giving him an overall winning percentage of 77 percent. His teams won 12 district titles and 10 East Baton Rouge Parish tournament titles.
The team concept was a big part of Sample’s coaching. He never gave out individual awards to players other than academic awards. The Hornets also earned the moniker, “The Program.” Sample also serves as the school’s athletic director.
“There are two guys I can honestly say that I have been around who have the ability to have their kids do exactly what they want them to do,” Madison Prep coach Jeff Jones said.
“And that’s Carlos Sample and Harvey Adger (Glen Oaks coach). Their teams don’t make a lot of mistakes and they are extremely detail-oriented. When I started at Madison Prep, I patterned a lot of stuff I did after those two.
“One thing about Carlos, you have to respect what he did. You look at the great players he’s had at Scotlandville, starting with J.J. Thomas, Pancake (Thomas), (Brian) Bridgewater, Damian Jones and Javonte Smart, nothing has changed. The program has sustainability and there things they all do, like play tough defense.”
Before he got into coaching, Sample was a star player at Istrouma and Southern University. Jehovah-Jireh coach Dirk Ricks, Sample’s teammate at Istrouma and later a coaching rival, offers his assessment.
“Carlos was definitely a great player but as a coach he has been even greater,” Ricks said. “Over the last 25 years, he has been a success whereever he has coached.
“What he has done puts him among the elite coaches, along with the Charles Smiths, the Harvey Adgers and the coach (Joel) Hawkins of the world. He’s one of the best.”
In his official statement, Sample called coaching at Scotlandville an honor and a privilege, adding, “This opportunity I’ve been afforded over the years to pour into the lives of young men has truly been unmeasurable. I would like to thank everyone for the support I’ve received over the years from administration, district, fans, alumni, parents and players.”
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