The mascot is the Bearcat, with the school colors being red, white, and gray.[citation needed] Black students were first admitted in 1970.[citation needed] Ruston High School also serves as a memorial to the survivors of the Gulf War.[5]
Athletics
Ruston High athletics competes in the LHSAA. The Bearcats compete in the highest classification in Louisiana (5A) and participates in District 2-5A.
Jimmy Childress - LHSAA Hall of Fame Head Coach, Jimmy Childress (1932-2015), was head coach at Ruston High School for eleven seasons (1979 to 1990).[8] He led his alma mater to a 131–27 (.829) record and four state championships in 1982, 1986, 1988, and 1990.[8] His 1990 team also won a national championship.[8] As a player, he was on the 1947 state championship football team.[8] He was an assistant football coach at Neville High School in Monroe from 1958 to 1972 helping the school to win four state championships and was later head coach at Carroll High School in Monroe in 1973 and at the private Cedar Creek School in Ruston from 1976 to 1978.[8] He also coached at the college level at Northeastern Louisiana University from 1974 to 1976.[8] In 2001, he was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.[8]
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(December 2020)
Rob Shadoin (Class of 1971) -- member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for District 10 in Lincoln and Union parishes since 2012
Michael Brooks (Class of 1982) (born October 2, 1964, in Ruston, Louisiana) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League. He played for Ruston High School, college ball at Louisiana State University (LSU), then professionally with the Denver Broncos, the New York Giants, and the Detroit Lions.
Kyle Williams (Class of 2002) (born June 10, 1983, in Ruston, Louisiana) is a retired American football defensive tackle of the Buffalo Bills in the National Football League. He was drafted in the fifth-round of the 2006 NFL Draft and played his entire 13-year career with the Bills. He is currently the Defensive Coordinator for the Bearcats.
Jack Ramsaur II (attended in the 1970s) Maj. Gen. Jack W. Ramsaur II is the mobilization assistant to the Commander, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.
Isaiah Buggs (Class of 2015) Ranked by Rivals as 2017 #1 Juco player in the nation. Starting Defensive End at the University of Alabama and a 2018 College Football Playoff National Champion. He is currently an American football defensive tackle for the Detroit Lions in the National Football League. He was drafted in the sixth-round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Scotty Thurman (Class of 2013) an American former professional basketball player and current head coach at Little Rock Parkview.
Kenny Wright played football at Ruston High School, Northwestern State University, University of Arkansas, and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 1999. He is currently the Defensive Backs Coach for the Bearcats.
