FERRIDAY — Services for Donald “Donnie” Lamar Daye, 76, of Baton Rouge, who died Friday, Dec. 25, 2015 at St. Joseph Hospice Hospital in Baton Rouge, will be 10:30 a.m. Monday at First Baptist Church of Ferriday with the Rev. Joseph Champion and Clyde Ray Webber officiating.

Visitation will be from 3 to 5 p.m. today at Young’s Funeral Home in Ferriday.

Burial will be 3 p.m. at Bellevue Memorial Park Cemetery in Opelousas under the direction of Young’s Funeral Home.

Mr. Daye was born on Aug. 29, 1939 in Crossett, Arkansas, the son of Ralph Andrew Daye and Claudia Faust Daye.

Donnie was voted the Concordia Parish All-Time Best Athlete in a poll by the Concordia Sentinel. He ran track in the spring of 1956 before the football season. He won the state title in the 100-yard dash at 10-flat and set a state record in the javelin. Donnie lost only six organized games from pee wee league in the sixth grade through his career at LSU. He was part of four state championship teams at Ferriday High and the first collegiate national championship team at LSU in 1958. He was named All-State and won the Fudickar Trophy as the most valuable player on the Ferriday team. Donnie led the state in scoring as a senior, scoring 23 touchdowns and adding five extra points. He was one of three players who played with the LSU varsity as a sophomore. As a sophomore, Donnie was part of the Go Team and played running back. He was put on the White Team his junior and senior year, being moved from tailback to fullback and playing linebacker on defense. He led the team in tackles as a junior, totaling 50 individual stops. Donnie was named as a captain for LSU’s season-opener with Texas A&M his senior season in 1960. The tigers shut out the Aggies 9-0. He was selected to play in the Blue-Gray game at the end of the season. He had an offer to play for the Dallas Texans in the AFL in 1961. He reached a year-and-a-half at LSU before taking the job as defensive coordinator at New Mexico State. Donnie, who was a business major, then went into the oil field business, and had a successful business career with D&D Drilling Co. for 20 years.

Donnie was preceded in death by his father and his mother, and his brother, William Edward Daye.

He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Penny Dean Daye of Baton Rouge; his sons, Donald Dean Day and his wife, Sheramie, of Opelousas, Daryl Lance Daye and his wife, Kathy, of Natchitoches, and Derek Andrew Daye of Baton Rouge; his brothers, Joseph Lynwood Daye of Dallas, and Jerry Daye and his wife, Becky, of Ferriday; his grandsons, Mitchell Daye and Dayne Daye; his granddaughters, Paige Daye, Kaelin Daye, and Kayla Dugas, and his great-grandsons, Layton Daye and Tyler Daye.

Pallbearers will be Dean Daye, Daryl Daye, Derek Daye, Mitchell Daye, Dayne Daye, Dee Horton and Jesse Horton.

Honorary pallbearers will be the LSU football team from 1957 to 1961.

To leave an online condolence please visit www.youngsfh.com.