by Doug Ireland
Menard High School graduate, Ronnie Rantz, spent his teenage years in Alexandria, having relocated from where he grew up in New Orleans.
Now, many years later, he’s making an impact back in these parts, primarily in Natchitoches, as he steers the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Foundation that is in the midst of hosting an unprecedented two Induction Celebrations in two months.
Rantz, who lives in Denham Springs, is nearly taking up residence in Natchitoches this summer. The LSHOF Class of 2020 inductions were pandemic-delayed last year but went off with a bang June 24-26. Not far ahead: the Class of 2021 enshrinement festivities August 26-28, including the BOM Bowling Bash at Four Seasons Bowling Center in Alexandria.
For a rundown of all the events in late August, and a recap of those at the end of June, visit LaSportsHall.com.
When it wraps up, 22 state sports luminaries will have been welcomed into the Hall of Fame as focal figures in festivities managed by Rantz and the LSHOF team.
Seven events, involving thousands of people (most of them at the Rockin’ River Fest free concert presented by Rapides Regional Medical Center, on the banks of Cane River Lake in downtown Natty), filled up a fast moving slate.
Rantz took over as LSHOF Foundation CEO/President in September 2016. He didn’t step into a floundering situation at all – the Hall was better off than ever, with a sparkling three-year-old state museum in Natchitoches and a classy Induction Celebration framework in place.
But, like LSU baseball coaching legend Skip Bertman did with a large lefty from Cenla, Rantz applied some polish, panache, and punch to the agenda for induction, ramping it up to levels that seemed more suited for Broadway or Vegas than Natchitoches. In short, he added a WOW factor that elevated the experience for all involved, from fans on the hillside at the concert to Peyton Manning telling his local security man, Steve Pezant, he wanted to bring his wife Ashley back for another visit.
Rantz grew up in Cenla – literally. Rantz was a standout left-handed pitcher at Menard and in Dixie Boys and Dixie Majors baseball as he sprouted tall and broad. It helped him be a playmaking tight end and defensive lineman for the Eagles’ football team, but his left arm and smarts made him an even better baseball prospect, good enough to earn a scholarship to play for the LSU Tigers.
A full scholarship, pretty rare in college baseball. Rantz actually may have outflanked Bertman in the negotiating process, but Skip soon turned the tables and gave Ronnie a nickname that stuck – Jumbo.
Turned out the 6-foot-5 lefty was hefty and couldn’t fit into any of the Tigers’ uniform pants, until he accidentally pulled on a pair Bertman wore – jumbo sized.
No coincidence in the late 1990s, when Rantz developed the first sustained live TV coverage of LSU baseball, his production company and affiliated stations were dubbed the Jumbo Sports Network.
After helping LSU win College World Series national championships in 1991 and 1993, earning all-Southeastern Conference Tournament honors once, Rantz made a run into minor league baseball. When that flamed out, his business ventures in marketing began and not too long after, JSN’s television coverage expanded the brand of Tiger baseball around the state.
Jumbo Sports branched into TV production of prep and college sports, and Rantz developed a marketing business. His many ventures and broad network were part of the appeal for the LSHOF Foundation search committee hiring new leadership after the 2016 inductions – a hiring that has worked out spectacularly well for the Foundation and for Louisiana’s sports fans.
