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Longtime Lafayette coach, Bobby Banna, dies

Posted at 3:08 PM, Jul 30, 2018
and last updated 2018-07-30 16:08:30-04

Robert Lee Banna, who served as an assistant football coach at UL and head coach at Catholic High New Iberia, Fatima and Comeaux high schools, has died. 

Banna was 84. Services will be held at Holy Cross Catholic Church on Wednesday, August 1 with visitation from 11 am to time of mass at 1pm. A reception celebrating his life will be held in the Calais Center. Pallbearers will be Larry Aillet, Gary Dunn, Jeff Whitehurst, Patrick Dunn, Gus Whitehurst, and Rob Vines. Honorary pallbearers will be all the fine men he coached throughout his career. The family requests that in lieu of flowers donations be made in Coach’s name to Cathedral-Carmel School.

According to his obituary, Banna became the assistant football coach at Catholic High in New Iberia in 1959, and w hile there, he was part of the first State Championship team of the Catholic High Panthers’ program. In 1968, he took a job at USL as offensive line coach and head baseball coach. During his tenure as offensive line coach, USL received its first post-game invitation to participate in the Grantland Rice Bowl. As the head baseball coach, his team tied for the Gulf States Conference championship, and he received the Coach of the Year honor in 1970.

He left USL in 1976 and became head football coach at Fatima High School. He continued his coaching career in the public schools of Lafayette. He served as an assistant coach at Acadiana High and as head football coach at Comeaux High. He retired in 1997 after thirty-five years of coaching.

After he retired, he became a marshal at the Wetlands Golf Course. He is survived by his wife, three daughters and six grandchildren. 

To read his full obituary, click here