William Stewart Powers Jr.
June 10, 2014
Veteran coach hosting camp
June 11, 2014
When a family produces one elite athlete, it’s probably just luck or a stroke of fortuitous fate.
But when it happens two, three and even four or more times? That’s when a legacy is born.
Such is the case for the Domangue family of Houma – a talented batch of young men and women that historically have excelled to the highest levels at all of their respective sports.
It all started in the 1990s when Uncle Richie Cunningham took his kicking talents westward and became an elite placekicker for the Dallas Cowboys. He remains the first Houma-based kicker to compete at the NFL ranks.
Today, that tradition of success lives on with the talented boot of Cunningham’s nephew and Nicholls State kicker Ryan Domangue, who was coached by his father Ricky and his brother Bryant – two talented mentors in their own right who know the ins and outs of the kicking craft. Adjacent on the family tree isn’t a kicker, but a baseball standout. That would be Vandebilt product and LSU pitcher Brady Domangue who just got done with his first season as a reliable bullpen hand for the Tigers – a career that could carry the pitcher into the professional ranks.
“We’re blessed,” Ricky Domangue mentions when talking about his children and immediate relatives. “We have a lot of talented young boys and girls in our family. They push one another, but more importantly than that, I think they all truly love the sports they compete in. That makes it a lot better because obviously if you love something, you’re going to want to work hard at it and continue to get better at what you’re doing.”
But perusing down the family tree, once sees that the younger generation of Domangues is blossoming with fruit that could potentially be the next stalwarts of the family’s athletic legacy for the future years – young aspiring athletes that are already making their marks on the youth sports in which they play.
Meet Peyton Domangue – Ryan’s little brother and Ricky Domangue’s 11-year-old son.
Like the majority of the Domangue boys, young Peyton can already kick a football through the uprights. He said that he’s already made a 25-yard field goal. Peyton adds to that by stating that he can make extra points with regularity – something that not even all high school kickers can put on their resumes.
“I like to kick. I want to keep getting better at it as I get older and older,” Peyton said. “It’s something that’s fun and it’s something that the people in my family do, so I definitely want to stay with it.”
The youngster said that he plans to attend camps to polish his football skills, adding that it’s his goal to be a successful kicker at the high school or even possibly the collegiate level someday.
But for the youngest Domangue, kicking is possibly the second sport on the athletic resume. That’s because Peyton said that he “loves” the sport of baseball – a sport that the youngster has excelled at throughout the earliest stages of his career.
On the youth baseball diamonds throughout Terrebonne Parish, the young Domangue is annually one of the top players in the league, both as a hitter and as a pitcher.
“I love Babe Ruth,” Peyton said with a smile when asked who his best baseball player was.
“Babe Ruth?” big brother Ryan says back with a smile. “Couldn’t you have come up with a newer player than that?”
“I just like the way that he plays,” Peyton said back with a shrug, showing that he’s a true historian of the game.
In the batter’s box, the youngest Domangue is a patient hitter with a polished, mechanically sound swing. He’s quick on the base paths and he can field many positions very well.
But on the mound is where he may be the most potent. Peyton said he has five-to-six pitches in his repertoire – all of which can keep a batter off balance throughout a game.
Peyton said his fastball reaches close to 60-65 mph (a number that has grown every year as his young arm has matured). He also owns a curveball, a slider and a changeup that opponents describe as very deceptive.
Peyton plays travel ball for the Fury, and throughout the summer the boys have had success, taking home either first place trophies or runner-up finishes in most-all of their tournaments.
The boys will compete in the World Series later this month, which will be played in Florida.
“I love baseball,” Peyton said. “I just like so much about it. I like to hit. I like to pitch. It’s just something that I can do with my friends. That’s my favorite sport.”
But while young Peyton Domangue keeps working on his slider and his curveball, his big sister works toward her goal to become a kicker at Houma Christian.
Taylor Domangue is a student at the Houma-based private school. Like her little brother, Taylor competes in a variety of sports, including softball, soccer and volleyball.
The young girl owns a leg, and she has the accolades the prove it. Taylor competed in the regional punt, pass and kick competition last year and won first place. From there, she was given the honor of competing in the state punt, pass and kick, where she finished second.
“Being around my brothers really taught me about sports and really taught me about what is needed to succeed in athletes,” Taylor said. “I enjoy competing, and I hope to keep getting better in everything that I do.”
Father Ricky Domangue said that he knows a talented kicker when he sees one, and he believes that Taylor could play football if she chooses to do so in the future.
He said that Houma Christian coaches have already told him that they’d support her endeavors and would keep her on the team if she’s good enough to compete at the varsity level.
“She can do it,” the father said. “She has a good enough leg. I know she can do it.”
Like Peyton, Taylor Domangue will spend the rest of the summer busy, working on competing at her various sports so that she can continue to grow.
What the future holds for young Peyton and young Taylor? That remains to be seen.
But with a former NFL kicker for an uncle, a college kicker for a brother and an LSU pitcher for a close cousin, it’s pretty safe to say that the Domangues have a ton of athletic talent in their DNA.
And judging by what’s coming up in the next generation, it’s safe to assume again that this athletic tree has still more fruit to bear as the legacy continues into the future.
“Everyone in my family plays sports,” Peyton said. “That’s why I will, too. That’s what we love to do.”
Houma native and 11-year-old Peyton Domangue winds up and fires a pitch during a warmup session at a Houma field this week. The young standout is proving to be the next athletic success story in the talent-rich Domangue family that already consists of former NFL kicker Richie Cunningham, LSU pitcher Brady Domangue and Nicholls kicker Ryan Domangue.
