Tommy Joe Eagles (April 3, 1949 – July 30, 1994) was the head
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
coach of the
Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...
Bulldogs
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Auburn
Tigers
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...
from 1989 to 1994. He was head coach of the
University of New Orleans
The University of New Orleans (UNO) is a public research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is a member of the University of Louisiana System and the Urban 13 association. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High rese ...
men's basketball team, but died before he ever coached a game there due to a heart attack he suffered during a recruiting trip on July 30, 1994. Before his coaching stint at Louisiana Tech, Eagles served as head coach at Cedar Creek High School in Ruston and Simsboro High School in Simsboro, both in Lincoln Parish.
Each year, Louisiana Tech University presents the Tommy Joe Eagles Award to the member of the Louisiana Tech Men's Basketball team who shows the best all-around combination of work ethic, academic ability, character, and attitude. Past recipients include Brian Martin (2004) and Shawn Oliverson (2010). Auburn University presents the Paul Lambert/Tommy Joe Eagles Memorial Trophy for Leadership, the most prestigious award of the men's basketball program, at the end of each season. Past recipients include current Auburn Assistant Coach Wes Flanigan (1996, 1997) and Daymeon Fishback (2000).
Eagles played basketball and graduated in 1967 from Doyline High School in Doyline in south
Webster Parish
Webster Parish (French: ''Paroisse de Webster'') is a parish located in the northwestern section of the U.S. state of Louisiana.
The seat of the parish is Minden.
As of the 2010 census, the Webster Parish population was 41,207. In 2018, the p ...
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
. He was one of three children of the late Edward P. and Juanita W. Eagles. His siblings were M. E. "Bo" Eagles, a businessman from
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, and Anita E. Darbonne of Minden.Obituary of Juanita W. Eagles, ''
Minden Press-Herald
Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the greatest town between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district (''Kreis'') of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Det ...