Billy Wayne Montgomery (July 7, 1937 – April 2025), also known as Coach Montgomery, was an American educator who represented the Bossier City-based District 9 in the

Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (; ) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 representatives, each of whom represents approximately 4 ...

from 1988–2008. He was elected as a Democrat, but he switched affiliation to the Republican Party on October 3, 2006. On August 6, 2016, Montgomery and four others were inducted into the

Ark-La-Tex The Ark-La-Tex (a portmanteau of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas; also stylized as Arklatex or ArkLaTex) is a socio-economic region where the Southern United States, Southern U.S. states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Texas join together. ...

Sports Museum of Champions at the

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...

Convention Center. Since its opening in 2007 through 2015, 132 persons had already been selected for this honor. Inducted with Montgomery are Ray Germany, a

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs basketball The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs basketball program, nicknamed the Dunkin' Dogs, represents intercollegiate men's basketball at Louisiana Tech University. The program competes in Conference USA in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n in 1959 and 1960 who resides in Haughton; Mickey Slaughter, a former

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

and Louisiana Tech

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach; hot air balloonist Bill Bussey, a dentist from

Longview, Texas Longview is a city in, and county seat of, Gregg County, Texas, United States. Longview is located in East Texas, where Interstate 20 and U.S. Highway system, U.S. highways U.S. Route 80, 80 and U.S. Route 259, 259 converge just north of the Sabi ...

, and the professional golf

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is a companion to the player, providing both practical support and strategic guidance on the course. Caddies are responsible for carrying the player’s bag, managing clubs, and assisting with basic course maintena ...

Freddie C. Burns Sr., an African-American from Shreveport, who for thirty-eight years was associated with

Hal Sutton Hal Evan Sutton (born April 28, 1958) is an American professional golfer, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions, who achieved 14 victories on the PGA Tour, including the 1983 PGA Championship (a major championship) and the 1983 and 2000 ...

Background

Montgomery graduated from Provencal High School in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. He received a bachelors in 1959 and masters degree from

Northwestern State College Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSULA) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Johnson and Alexandria. It is a part of the U ...

. He also studied at

Louisiana Tech University Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public university, public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and Carnegie Classification of Institu ...

, Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge and the

Northeast Louisiana University The University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM) is a public university in Monroe, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System. History ULM opened in 1931 as Ouachita Parish Junior College. Three years later it becam ...

. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

from 1959 to 1964. Montgomery died in April 2025, at the age of 87.

Career

Montgomery was the head coach at

Haughton High School Haughton High School is a public high school in Haughton, Louisiana, United States that enrolls 1,159 students from grades 9–12. The school received an "A" rating by the Louisiana Department of Education. It is administered by Bossier Parish S ...

from 1960 to 1969. During his coaching tenure, his teams twice won the state basketball championship. He was an assistant principal from 1970 to 1982 and a principal from 1982 to 1988. He was a legislative proponent of the expansion of Bossier Parish Community College. In recognition of his contributions, BPCC dedicated its gymnasium in his honor in November 2018. According to the college statement, "The Coach Billy Montgomery Gymnasium stands as a daily reminder of his dedication to education, community, and opportunity. According to the college statement, his legacy lives on in the experiences of the students who learn here, the faculty and staff who serve them, and the college’s continued mission to empower future generations." After leaving the legislature in 2008, he served as legislative liaison for the Bossier Parish Policy Jury, a position from which he retired in 2021.

References

Sources

Profile page for the Louisiana House of Representatives 2004 – 2008
*"TenLeastWanted.com, Louisiana Pro-Life Alliance, 721 Government Street, Suite 103-120, Baton Rouge, LA 70802. {{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, Billy 1937 births 2025 deaths Educators from Louisiana High school basketball coaches in the United States Politicians from Bossier City, Louisiana Politicians from Natchitoches, Louisiana Northwestern State University alumni Louisiana Tech University alumni Republican Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives United States Army soldiers People from Haughton, Louisiana Assemblies of God people Louisiana State University alumni 20th-century members of the Louisiana State Legislature 21st-century members of the Louisiana State Legislature