By: NSUDemons.com
NATCHITOCHES – Two colorful Cajuns, former Northwestern State football teammates Bobby Hebert and Ed Orgeron, will be in the spotlight May 18-19 as the Demons Unlimited Foundation hosts the third annual "Legends Dinner and Golf Scramble" presented by Superior's Steakhouse at Bossier City's Horseshoe Casino and Hotel and Shreveport's Southern Trace Country Club. Linebacker Gordon Boogaerts (who played at NSU from 1970-72) and cornerback Kevin Lewis (1985-88) will be joined in the Legends lineup by Hebert, the former New Orleans Saints quarterback who played for the Demons from 1978-82, and Orgeron, the former Southern Cal and Ole Miss head coach. Hebert and Orgeron were teammates in high school (South Lafourche) and college.
Boogaerts, Hebert, Lewis and Orgeron all were among the Top 100 Demon Football Players chosen in 2007 to celebrate the centennial year of the program.
The four NSU greats will participate in a roundtable discussion and storytelling session at the Horseshoe's Riverdome on Sunday evening, May 18. The golf scramble at Southern Trace follows on Monday morning. There is the possibility of sellouts for both, based on ticket sales and entries through the end of April.
"This event, which benefits the Demons Unlimited Foundation initiatives to provide scholarship assistance and other support services to nearly 375 Division I student-athletes, has been very well received for the past two years," said
Adam Jonson, NSU's associate athletic director and executive director of the Demons Unlimited Foundation. "We're excited to continue the growth of the event and create an exclusive opportunity to interact with the 'heroes' of NSU Athletics."
The Sunday evening (May 18) festivities in the Horseshoe's Riverdome begin at 6 p.m. with dinner and drinks followed by a panel discussion from the 2014 Legends. The Monday morning golf tournament at Southern Trace begins with an 8 a.m. registration and breakfast with a 9 a.m. shotgun start for the 18-hole scramble.
Event sponsorships, reserved tables and golf team entries are available, and all available spots are expected to be filled. Sponsorships begin as low as $100 for a golf tee sign and range up to $2,500 for a "Silver Package." Dinner-only tickets are $50. A golf foursome entry fee is $600, with individual entries $150. All golf tournament participants receive a Sunday Legends Dinner ticket.
Reserved tables for the Legends Dinner are $375. Reserved tables include eight dinner tickets, preferred location with table signage and recognition in the event program. A "Bronze Package" sponsorship comes with one reserved table, one golf foursome and one tee box sign for $1,000. The "Silver Package" comes with an additional reserved dinner table and tee box sign as well as access to the VIP hospitality room on Sunday night and lodging at the Horseshoe Hotel.
A special Legends weekend Horseshoe Hotel room rate of $75 is available. Jonson can provide participants with the event code to obtain the discounted rate.
For more information, please contact Jonson at 318-357-5251 or
jonsona@nsula.edu. Additional information is also available at
www.nsudemons.com/LegendsEvent.
A Shreveport native, Boogaerts was All-Louisiana in 1971 and 1972, and a three-year starter at linebacker. Outstanding against the run and noted as a hard hitter, Boogaerts – who wore No. 99 – made a school-record 33 tackles against Louisiana Tech as a senior. He was enshrined in the Graduate N Club Hall of Fame in 1998.
Hebert is a Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame member best known as the first winning quarterback in New Orleans Saints history and now a wildly-popular radio talk show host in New Orleans. He was a standout quarterback for the Demons from 1979-82.
A 14-year pro quarterback, with 11 NFL seasons in New Orleans and Atlanta, Hebert was a 1993 Pro Bowl selection. His years with the Saints (1985-92) resulted in the first playoff appearances and division championships for the club. Hebert's No. 12 Demon jersey is one of five retired by the school after he set single-game, season and career passing and total offense records.
Lewis, just 5-foot-7 and under 150 pounds when he arrived at Northwestern from New Orleans, had to persuade Demon coaches to allow him to walk on at cornerback. He went on to reach the NFL. Lewis became an All-America cornerback with 13 pass breakups for the 1988 Southland Conference champion Demons. He played for the Arizona Cardinals in 1989 and the San Francisco 49ers from 1990-92.
Orgeron has become one of college football's more dynamic personalities and highly-successful recruiters, most recently earning acclaim for a remarkable job as interim head coach at Southern Cal last season. He and Hebert helped South Lafourche High School to the 1977 Class 4A state championship and were Demon teammates in 1980-82.
A standout defensive end and tackle for the Demons from 1980-83, Orgeron made 121 tackles, including 17 for lost yardage, in his final two seasons. He was the first recipient of the Joe Delaney Leadership Award for Defense in 1983, awarded to the permanent team captain elected by his teammates. His recruiting and coaching has been a big factor in national championships won at Miami and Southern Cal and he had three seasons as head coach at Ole Miss.