Livingston Collegiate hires Devon Francois as football coach

Livingston Collegiate has tapped into a proven assistant coach from outstanding programs as its new head football coach.

Athletic director Yusuf Young has announced the hiring of Devon Francois to run the Wolves program.

“Devon stood out with everybody,” Young said. “He’s hungry, passionate and he knows New Orleans East. There’s a lot talent in the East and he has the ability to tap into it. We made the right hire. We had over 50 guys apply from all over the state. His background was superb. He was ready to be a head coach. We found the right guy.”

Livingston went 4-4 in 2019 but did not compete last year during the pandemic, opting out.

Francois coached at Southern Arkansas (2015-16) before playing professional football oversees for two years.

Francois started a first-year program at Jefferson-RISE Charter school for two years before coaching at St. Augustine for two years. Francois then coached at Booker T. Washington under Wayne Reese Jr. Francois coached at Sophie B. Wright most recently with Kenneth Dorsey before taking the job at Livingston.

The Wolves compete in District 11-4A, along with Carver, Ben Franklin, John F. Kennedy, McMain, Warren Easton.

“One of the biggest reasons I accepted the job is because of Mr. Young and our principal, Evan Stout,” Francois said. “There is great leadership here.”

There are elements in place necessary to succeed with the Wolves.

“Livingston has a solid foundation and I believe they are doing great things in the school and the community,” Francois said. “It was a great opportunity. It will be challenging in a tough district. We are looking forward to competing. We understand the challenge. We believe if we put kids in the correct positions and we are mentally focused, we can be successful.”

Livingston has not played football since 2019 which presents a hurdle to clear for Francois.

“Right now, the biggest struggle is numbers,” Francois said. “We are contacting kids that we will be playing. We have a list of having 40 kids and we have to get them used to structure. Opting out last year set the program back. It’s all about getting them engaged once again but we feel we can.”

At a school just six years young, the enrollment is solid but it is tough competing with bigger schools.

“We are not really a 4A school but had to play up,” Young said. “We’ll play this season in 4A and await reclassification in 2022. We will build a program that can compete. I think we both look at the challenges as opportunities. Devon is a smart man and will do an excellent job.”

Francois has hit the ground running.

“We got started this week with kids working out and trying to build relationships,” Francois said. “That is our focus. I am extremely humble and grateful for the opportunity to build a great program in New Orleans East and touching the community. The biggest thing for me and for staff is to have our student-athletes have success in the classroom and in the community.”