By Brandon C. Williams
Editor, The Post Newspaper
Fans of the old Southwest Conference will have an excellent chance to relive memories with some of the greats that made the SWC one of the nation’s premier college football hotbeds.
Former Baylor All-American linebacker and La Marque High School legend James Francis will host the James Francis and Friends All-SWC Golf Classic this Saturday at Southwyck Golf Club in Pearland, an event that will feature Dickinson’s Andre Ware, the 1989 Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Houston, former Baylor All-America and La Marque icon Ron Francis, Texas A&M’s Santana Dotson, Arkansas Barry Foster and Houston’s Lamar Lathon.
“I thought this would be a great time to laugh, reminisce and get together for a pair of great causes,” said Francis.
The event will help TexLouSports and TexasExplosion. Both sites are focused on giving exposure to youth and high school athletes along with providing them travel and lodging for various tournaments and events throughout the Texas-Louisiana area.
“So many of these kids may be able to afford the chance to be seen,” said Francis. “By giving them that chance to be able to play in top competition, it will help them along in the process because you never know who’s watching.”
The golf classic will also include the likes of Ken Hamlin (Arkansas), Rodney Hampton (University of Georgia) and Antowain Smith (Houston) along with a number of other players who played in the SWC.
Francis, who played at Baylor from 1986-89 before being selected 10th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1990 and spending 10 seasons in the NFL, felt the opportunity to reunite his former rivals would also offer a reminder of how talented and competitive the SWC was before its breakup after the 1995 college football season.
“We were part of the best conference in college football,” he said. “Every week, I played against some great talent on some great teams. The thing that made the conference so special was there was a sense of closeness among us. Everyone grew up next to each other and knew each other from various camps we attended. It was a great environment in a little section of the nation since each of the teams were from Texas and Arkansas.
“We didn’t get the kind of TV exposure some of the other conferences may have gotten,” he added. “We had Raycom Sports broadcasting a game or two, but it wasn’t like what’s out there today.”
Francis has praise for La Marque’s new head football coach, Wade Oliphant.
“I wish them and the program the very best,” he said. “I haven’t been out to a game in some time, but I do wish they can get the program back where it once was. Being successful will come down to getting back to the basics, and that starts with these kids being focused in the classroom. It doesn’t matter how great an athlete you are; without a good education, you’re useless.
“I hope they can build the foundation and that this generation of youth can be raised with the same sense of accountability and responsibility that we were raised on,” added Francis, who also added the prospect of making at least one La Marque home game this season.
