HE LEARNED THE VALUE OF HARD WORK AND PERSEVERANCE AT AN EARLY AGE.
had its share of obstacles and controversy. In 2009, former UCLA basketball player Ed O’ Bannon, former Rutgers football player Ryan Hart and former Nebraska and Arizona State football player Sam Keller filed lawsuits against the NCAA, Electronic Arts and Collegiate Licensing Company. The suits claimed likenesses and characteristics of college athletes were being used by EA in video games without permission or compensation to the athletes. Both suits also alleged the NCAA was aware of the practice.
ollege sports video games continued to be released until 2014 before halting due to the litigation. That same year, the case was settled for $ 60 million. As part of the settlement, gaming companies still cannot use a college athlete’ s likeness or individual characteristics, so IMV will use community names and other generic features for their game.
Louis was one of the players who took part in the suit, and he understands the line between marketing collegiate athletes and paying them is a delicate one.
“ At the end of the day, nobody wants to pay the players,” he said.“ If you pay players, it’ s against the rules. I think gaming companies feel defeated; they don’ t want to deal with the NCAA … it’ s a( complicated) scenario.”
The oldest of three siblings, Louis grew up in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, a small country town near Lafayette. He learned the value of hard work and
perseverance at an early age. Unlike many of his peers, he was fortunate to have both parents in the household. His father, Kennedy, played college basketball at Louisiana Tech. His mother, Redell, worked for the school system.
“ I always had my mother there to instill education in me, and I had my father to push me through sports,” Louis explained.“ They taught me the mentality I had to have and how to be humble. I was brought up in the church, so I have faith in my abilities and in God, what strengths and weaknesses he’ s given me, and how I can use that to my advantage.”
Louis played football, baseball, basketball and ran track as a kid. Following his freshman year at Breaux Bridge High, his father advised him to focus on one sport, so he chose football.
Toward the end of his sophomore season, Louis tore an ACL in practice.
It was especially bad timing since an LSU scout just happened to be in attendance. He was forced to sit out his junior year, a critical time for players hoping to be noticed by college recruiters. No offers came.
“ That’ s when my faith really kicked in,” he recalled.“ I had one year left to accomplish my dreams, and by the grace of God, I was able to.”
As a running back, Louis rushed for 293 yards and a touchdown in his senior season. He also had 37 solo tackles, two sacks and an interception at linebacker. Scout. com ranked him 111th in its final 2012 Southeast Top 150, and he was named to ESPN’ s All- Louisiana Team. Several offers came his way, including LSU, the school he’ d always wanted to attend.
he excitement of playing for a powerhouse SEC school eventually faded. Louis worked hard in practice, but playing time was difficult to come by. Discouragement began to set in, but Louis’ s faith and encouragement from his parents and fiancé, Raigyne Moncrief, kept him from giving up.
“ If it wasn’ t for them, I don’ t know where I’ d be,” he said.“ My junior year, I wanted to enter my name in the( NFL) draft early. I knew I wasn’ t going to get picked up, but I had in my mind I was going to try out for a team and say I gave it all I had. But my parents encouraged me to stick it out.”
He did, earning a degree in sports administration. In four seasons, he
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