Junior Lee Hedges (November 2, 1929 – July 9, 2023) was an American high school football coach.

[2][3][4] His 1973 team at Captain Shreve was, as of the 2021 season, the last Shreveport-Bossier public school squad to win a state football championship.

Hedges was head coach for three Shreveport public high school teams -- Byrd Yellow Jackets (1956–59), Woodlawn Knights (1960–65), and Captain Shreve Gators (1967–84).

The most prominent of the athletes Hedges coached was quarterback Terry Bradshaw, the four-time Super Bowl champion with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pro Football Hall of Fame selection.

He was a first-year starter on Hedges' 1965 Woodlawn High School team that reached the state championship game.

[2][5] Hedges' record might have been more impressive if not for two seasons in which he started programs at brand-new schools.

He worked with young tennis players at various country clubs and organizations in Shreveport, such as Pierremont Oaks, until he was into his eighties.

He was a quarterback for a time at LSU, then switched to running back and was part of the "Cinderella" 1949 Tigers team that won its last six games and took an 8–2 record into the Sugar Bowl, a 35–0 loss to undefeated and No.

2-ranked University of Oklahoma (coached by Bud Wilkinson, quarterbacked by Darrell Royal).

[2]After a stint in the United States Army,[6] he finished work on his degree and in 1954 helped coach the LSU freshmen in football.

He then began his coaching career at Fair Park High School as an assistant to Homer Prendergast in 1955.

That Fair Park team went to the state championship game and lost to Istrouma of Baton Rouge, led by running back Billy Cannon.

[5] The next season, 1956, Hedges became head coach at Byrd at age 26[6] and his first team also went to the state title game.

[5] After four years at Byrd (23–19–3 record),[8] he moved to Woodlawn, then the newly established school in the southwest part of Shreveport.

The team's 9–2 regular season, district title and state playoff berth earned Hedges several "Coach of the Year" honors.

[8] His quarterbacks included Billy Laird, second-team All-State choice, then a star at Louisiana Tech and later a prominent college and high school coach; Trey Prather, an All-State choice who played at LSU for two years; and Bradshaw.

[6] At the time, a dozen former Woodlawn players had gone on to play at Tech, where Hedges also taught physical education for the academic year 1966–67.

[9] Hedges, in turn, returned to Shreveport to become the head coach at Captain Shreve High School, which opened in fall 1967.

[6] In 18 seasons at Captain Shreve, Hedges' teams had a 146–52–4 (.733) record, with eight district championships (the first in 1970, the fourth year of the program).

Coach Hedges made you appreciate the mental part of the game, and it became a whole different relationship for me.