Mayors of Central, St. George Start Tradition: Central vs. Woodlawn HS

Central Mayor Wade Evans and St. George Mayor Dustin Yates put it all on the line Friday, Oct. 10 when Central High faced off against Woodlawn High in a district game at Panther Stadium in the City of St. George.

At stake was The Mayors Cup. The winning school will be able to display the trophy for the coming year, as a symbol of the supremacy of one city over the other.

Unfortunately, Central won 38-21 but Woodlawn was ahead for much of the game and made it an exciting contest. 

Yates and Evans said something else was at stake — claims to The Sliver that connects the City of St. George to the City of Central.

The Sliver is a narrow piece of land, mostly the west side of the Amite River, and has no population.  It was part of the incorporation of St. George and was included intentionally.  Who knows when it might come in handy, such as if the two cities ever want to do something unexpected, such as form their own parish if East Baton Rouge ever falls apart!

The new rivalry was announced at a news conference held at Dearman’s, 7633 Jefferson Hwy. On hand were Woodlawn principal Dr. John Jenkins, AD Marcus Randall, and head coach Tramon Douglas. The Wildcats were represented by Tanna McClure of Central High.

Mayor Evans was pretty sure his Central Wildcats, the defending State Champions, would handily defeat Woodlawn. However, the Panthers put up a good fight.

Watching the game on the sidelines were Evans, Yates, and Mayor-President Sid Edwards.

Central and Woodlawn have a long history of playing each other, going back to the 1950’s.  Both were rural schools on the outskirts of Baton Rouge with much in common.

The City of Central incorporated in 2005, and the City of St. George incorporated in 2024.  They are the two newest cities in the state.

The two cities are both organized on a privatized model with a private, non-profit organization, IBTS, providing services.

Head coach for Central High School is David Simoneaux.  

           — Woody Jenkins