Month: July 2023
Bossier Sheriff warns against phone scams circulating the area
Bossier Sheriff Julian Whittington is warning citizens about several phone scams that are circulating the area. Several citizens in our area have fallen victim to these scams which are being investigated by Bossier Sheriff’s Office detectives. In each case, the victim is told by the scammer that they owe money and that they must go to a local store and purchase a Green Dot or similar type card to be used to pay the debt or fine.
Detectives would like to remind the public that law enforcement agencies will not call you on the phone and request money in any form. If you receive a call from someone who says they are a law enforcement officer and ask for money, do not fall for this scam no matter how legitimate it may seem.
If you have fallen victim to one of these scams, please call the Bossier Sheriff’s Office Criminal Division at (318)965-3418.
Shreveport Police Department holds backpack giveaway
Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith and members of the Shreveport Police Department conducted a backpack giveaway in anticipation of the upcoming school year.
City of Shreveport offers eligible residents video doorbells to help combat crime
The City of Shreveport is undertaking grassroots community efforts to help its citizens combat crime within their neighborhoods and homes. As a part of Operation Safe Neighborhoods, the City of Shreveport is offering its residents equipment designed to give homeowners and law enforcement additional tools to assist with public and personal safety.
Equipment includes one video doorbell, installation, and a one-year subscription to security monitoring services. Applications are limited to one per household.
Eligible program participants must:
Reside within the city limits.
Register with the City of Shreveport’s Real Time Crime Center.
Provide a copy of a driver’s license or identification card.
Must not already own a video doorbell.
For questions about this program contact City of Shreveport: Community Development at (318) 673-5900.
Program applications may be submitted online at shreveportla.seamlessdocs.com/f/OperationSafeNeigh or by printing and hand-delivering to the City Council Office, located at 505 Travis St. (4th Floor).
City of Shreveport Employee Spotlight: Glenda Thomas
This week’s employee spotlight recipient is Glenda Thomas. She has been a dedicated employee for 42 years. She is a caring individual who loves helping other people and her co-workers describes her as a team player.
A man, 40 yards, a clock, and a most unusual challenge
It has long been my contention that I am faster than future baseball Hall of Famer Albert Pujols. He’s now retired, but in the last couple of years of his career, I’d watch him waddle down to first base – barely even picking his feet up – and think that even though I am 20 years older, I have to be faster than that.
I’m not in the greatest shape, but I do regularly exercise and have been known to pick up the pace at more than just a light jog for someone who is a 60-something. And when I do, I’m usually thinking “there’s no way Albert Pujols can run this fast.”
If only there were a way to prove it …
One day, I noticed the Loyola football team was going through summer drills and had automatic timers set up to determine 40-yard clockings. What if I timed myself and translated that data into the speed from home to first? Baseball analytics are now such that you can find just about any speed you want, so getting Albert’s speed shouldn’t be a problem.
But what about my speed? What was a reasonable expectation about my 40 time? What could I be happy with?
The answer, I figured, had to be between 5.5 and 7.0. Having no idea what Pujols could run it in, I settled on a goal of 6.0 seconds in the 40 and see if that would prove anything.
However, I still had to weigh the risks of running the 40 on hot artificial turf in running shoes — and not just the physical risks. There was an entire football team that was looking for a good laugh.
After almost as much stretching as deliberation, I decided to give it a shot. In 6.0 seconds (hopefully) it would all be over with.
Because it was automatically timed, I wouldn’t have to worry about a slow reaction at the start. When I started, the clock would start. I had on workout clothing, so that wasn’t going to be a hinderance. There was basically no wind.
I gave it one last do-I-really-want-to-do this, got in a stance (no starting blocks) and took off.
This I hadn’t planned on: For each 10 yards of the 40-yard run, I had a different thought. I don’t know what Usain Bolt thinks about, but it’s fair to say that it’s probably not the same things I thought about on my “sprint.”
First 10 yards: I was relieved that I didn’t fall down. As long as I stayed vertical, I could probably keep the laughter to a minimum.
Second 10 yards: I was realizing that the shoes didn’t seem to have much grip. I never felt like I was getting a solid foot on the turf.
Third 10 yards: Isn’t this the part of a sprint where guys pull up and immediately grab their hammy like they’ve been shot in the leg? Man, I hope that doesn’t happen.
Final 10 yards: Finally, a rational runner thought – finish strong and run all the way through. And that these were 10 yards that Albert Pujols never has to run going only 90 feet from home to first base.
I was surprised that I wasn’t winded in the least, but even as I was crossing the line, I was already thinking that I felt like I could have run faster. Had I done better than 6.0? I wasn’t sure.
Thankfully, the clock was hidden from all observers, so I couldn’t just look and get the result. I had to ask.
“Six point one,” the assistant football coach said.
Sure, I wished I had cracked 6.0, but I wasn’t crushed. It was respectable (for someone my age) and I was emboldened when a player said “We’ve got guys on our team that can’t run that fast.”
Yes!
Now it was time to do the computation, so bear with me. My speed of 6.1 equates to 16.36 miles per hour. But baseball measures speed in feet per second and that translates to 23.99 fps.
At age 42, Albert Pujols was timed at 23.2 fps – about seven inches faster. However, he’s only running 90 feet; I ran 120. It is reasonable to think that I slowed down the last 10 yards of my timed run.
I’d probably feel a whole lot better about the whole thing if it weren’t for that 703 home run advantage he has over me.
Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com
Will youth be served at State Amateur?
By JOHN JAMES MARSHALL, Journal Sports
On the day Burke Alford was born, Eddie Lyons was already old enough to play on golf’s senior tour.
And yet there they were on Wednesday as they played a practice round together in preparation for this week’s Louisiana State Amateur, which begins today at Southern Trace Country Club.
It’s the perfect example of an event that takes all types.
There is the 70-year-old Lyons, the 1991 State Am champion, first played in this event in 1972 – almost even before Alford’s parents were born. That year it was played at Shreveport Country Club, which doesn’t even exist anymore.
The 20-year-old Alford, who just finished his second year on the UL-Lafayette golf team after graduating from Loyola College Prep, is playing in this event for the second time. Actually, Alford is trying to finish his first State Am after getting DQ’d last year following a mix-up on the back nine in the second round after it looking like he was on his way to making the cut.
But if you think the 50 years difference in their ages for Lyons and Alford would make for an unlikely pairing for a practice round, think again. It’s a learning opportunity for both.
“These kids hit it 40 yards past me … I can hit it 280 (off the tee),” Lyons said. “It’s just a different game now from what I am used to. But I get a look at what I am up against.”
“He’s obviously played in a lot of these events, so I’m just looking to kind of pick his brain on how he plays,” Alford said. “I like to see why he plays certain shots on certain holes and see what his perspective is.”
Alford had better get as much information as he can. “This is it for me,” Lyons said. “I still love to compete and I still get that feeling on the first tee. But I wouldn’t be even be playing (this year) if it wasn’t for it being at Southern Trace.”
“I’ve got a couple of years of amateur golf under my belt and this is a tournament at home so there’s a little bit of an advantage,” Alford said. “The first couple of days I’m just trying to put myself in position and hopefully on the weekend, I can try to be in it.”
This will be the sixth time for Southern Trace to host the event, but the first since a major renovation two years ago. That played a role in the State Am getting back to Shreveport for the first time since 2013, according to Jacob Oaks, the director of championship operations for the Louisiana Golf Association.
“That was a huge deal for us (for selection),” Oaks said. “First of all, they did an amazing job. It’s incredible what they did and it’s in almost perfect condition. If you played it a lot in the past, I don’t think you’d notice too much difference. Except for the greens. They are fair, but they really provide a good test. It’s going to be a treat for the players.”
Lyons, a member at Southern Trace, agrees with that assessment.
“It will be interesting because of the renovations,” said Lyons, who last played in the State Am in 2019 and made the cut at age 67. “The greens are fast and they are hard to read. It takes a while to pick up on what putts are going to do.”
There is a wide variety of participants in the 144-man field – including two former NFL players (Kyle Williams and Billy Joe Tolliver) – but Lyons thinks the winner after four rounds will come from the under-25 age category.
Winners typically haven’t typically come from the host city (though Shreveport’s Eric Ricard won in 2013, the last time it was played at Southern Trace).
If you add heredity into the mix of age and location, Shreveport’s Holden Webb should feel pretty good about his chances. The first-year LSU golfer (and a 2022 graduate of Loyola) is the son of Craig Webb, who finished second at Southern Trace in 1992 and went on to win in 1994 and 1999.
“He doesn’t talk much about it,” Webb said of his father’s success at the State Am.
“Everyone is always there to win,” Webb said. “I think that’s a given. I’m just going to try to stay in the present with each shot and just take it step by step and just try to let the results take care of themselves. But this is my first State Am, so I really don’t know what it’s going to be like.”
And if he drives back home with the 104th State Am crown, his father might well remind him that he’s still one behind in their Webb household.
Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com
Time at receiver positions Gallman for QB success this fall
By LEE BRECHEEN, Louisiana Football Magazine/TV
There’s a strong tradition of playing quarterback for one of the biggest and most successful football programs in north Louisiana every year – C.E. Byrd High School.
Some of the Yellow Jackets’ previous QBs own legend status – such as the late David Woodley, an LSU and Miami Dolphins star; Arnaz Battle was a stud at Notre Dame and reached the NFL, and others going much farther back in one of the most tradition-rich programs in Louisiana. Last year’s starter, Lake Lambert, did a great job as a four-year guy playing in a state championship game and making game-breaking plays for Byrd.
Stepping in for Lambert at starting QB is J.D. Gallman, who is not the size of the players mentioned above (just 5-10, 160), but he is cut from the same cloth in talent, leadership. He is a really good athlete who played mostly receiver until now.
I think J.D. has a chance to become a WR/slot in college if someone will give him a chance to play that poiotion. He has really good feet and hands, and knows the game. It’s a skill set that can make him factor at a FCS or Division II or III program. I have seen many 5-10, 160 pound players go on to become great slot WRs, beginning as walk-ons and growing into leaders of college programs. Wes Welker comes to mind at Texas Tech, where he became a All American with a long NFL career. Shreveport’s Trent Taylor came out of Evangel Christian at 5-8, 165, had a great career at Louisiana Tech and is in the NFL with Cincinnati.
I asked Gallman how he thought playing WR has helped him with playing QB now.
“This comes down to taking care of blocks, speed of the game, and the atmosphere,” he said. “It really helps me for this year because I know what it takes and I know how blocks will be made for the creases and alleys to run in.”
J.D. grew up with the eyes of Texas on him.
“I grew up liking Texas because of my dad. My middle name, Young, is because of Vince Young, the national champion QB for the Longhorns,” he said. “I also grew up liking Oregon because they have always just had a spark and I love their uniforms. I also like to watch Clemson because they have a great program and I love the way coach Dabo Sweeney coaches and pushes his players.”
Part of being recruited is traveling the summer camp circuit and Gallman has done it.
“I’ve been to a number of camps. Harding University was probably one of the best ever. At Stephen F. Austin, I loved my time there and it was full of competition. My time at ULM was cut short due to weather, but we got some good work in. Louisiana Tech’s camp was a lot competing and having fun within the Ark-La-Tex. The coaches there are legit. At Centenary, I thought the college was extraordinary. They have great coaches and will push you 110 percent. I will be going back to Arkansas Monticello soon; I think it’s an amazing place.”
Byrd offensive coordinator Wade Leone, a former Northwestern State Demon, is sold on his QB.
“J.D. Gallman is the IT of Byrd HS this year. He has backed up one of the most successful QBs in Byrd’s storied history. He has watched three years of our offense against the best in the state. He’s a phenomenal leader of this team and school.
“Some words that pop out are love, caring, teacher, coach, teammate, son, friend, I think a college like Northwestern needs a J.D. Gallman. He’s a person NSU needs in the locker room,” said Leone.
Gallman values his coaches.
“Our head coach, Stacy Ballew, is a great man. He definitely pushes us to be the best we can be. He always tells us to be better today than we were yesterday and that has made a impact on me. He always makes sure we are OK and supplies us with the best equipment, even a protein shake vending machine.
“My QB coach, Wade Leone, I can’t tell you how much he has impacted my life. He is one of the hardest-nosed coaches I’ve ever encountered,” said Gallman. “I will always remember everything he’s taught me because not only does it translate to football, but life. One of his favorite sayings is ‘it all relates.’
“He has taught me how to never get complacent. I will always remember the talks in his class. One day he made us write paragraphs about why we do what we do every day and what is the purpose. But when he told me why he does what he does I wanted to cry. It hit me so hard and had such an impact on me.”
Tidbits about J.D. Gallman:
He loves to hunt and fish, and loves the gym.
“I am on the Byrd fishing team. This past year we won anglers of the year, with one first place and three seconds, and we finished fourth overall in the state tournament,” he said.
With a very impressive 4.6 GPA, Gallman has his eyes on a career, and a specific college major.
“I want to major in kinesiology or exercise and sports medicine. I plan on becoming either a human anatomy teacher and a football coach, or an athletic trainer for a football team and also coach, if possible.”
Byrd has plenty of in-city rivals, and Gallman has his favorite across the Red River.
“I enjoy playing Parkway because on my dad’s side of our family, three uncles plus my dad graduated from there, and some of their kids have, too. On my mom’s side, two uncles and one aunt went there.”
His father played nose guard at Parkway. His mother was a hurdler at Bellevue West High in Omaha, Nebraska.
Lee Brecheen has operated Louisiana Football Magazine for over 30 years and is one of the state’s foremost experts on high school football and especially recruiting. Based in Baton Rouge, Lee travels statewide to watch practices and games and has broken down film and tape since the late 1980s. He has converted the printed product to an online website (Lafootballmagazine.com) that will preview every high school and college football program in the state before kickoff this fall. Lee also hosts a football-centric TV show on YouTube, The Sports Scouting Report, on weekdays.
Contact Lee at lbrecheen@aol.com
British Open provides toughest major test for Sam Burns
JOURNAL SPORTS
The final major of the 2023 professional golf season, the British Open, is the one that fits Sam Burns’ game the least.
But other than one freakish hole last week, a weird triple-bogey triggered by an apparently embedded ball in a trap, the Shreveport native was very competitive on the way to a 19th-place finish at the Genesis Scottish Open.
Burns, a Calvary Baptist product and former LSU All-American, played his first round in the 151st Open Championship early today at Royal Liverpool.
Burns teed off at 1:47 a.m. CT, paired with Sepp Straka and Chris Kirk. Early round live stream coverage of the event began at 12:30 a.m., and will again Friday when Burns’ group has an afternoon tee time in England, one that translates to a more reasonable 7:48 a.m. CT first shot.
The 72-hole event will be televised on NBC and USA Network and streamed on Peacock. Burns hopes to celebrate his 27th birthday with a good finish on Sunday in Hoylake, England.
Burns, who now lives in Choudrant and plays out of Squire Creek Country Club there, is making his third appearance at The Open. Last year at St. Andrews, Burns finished 42nd overall with a 72-hole score of 6-under 282. He closed with a 64 last year in what tied for the lowest round on the final day.
Burns made his Open debut in 2021 at Royal St. George’s where he finished 76th.
The Open is the final leg of the professional grand slam. Burns, who has five career PGA Tour victories, tied for 29th at the Masters in April and then missed the cut at the PGA Championship in May. In his last grand slam outing at the U.S. Open, Burns tied for 32nd at 3-over 283.
Burns is 17th in the Official World Golf Rankings, 16th in the FedEx Cup standings on the PGA Tour. A good performance this weekend should essentially lock up his first berth on the USA Ryder Cup team this fall.
His career winnings of $21.2 million since joining the PGA Tour in 2019 includes a $3.5 million winner’s check from this spring’s World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play event in Austin, Texas, in March as the biggest chunk in $6.7 won on the tour this season.
During his LSU career, Burns earned Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year honors in 2017 as well as being named the SEC Player of the Year that season. He turned pro following his sophomore season in 2017 after setting the LSU mark for single-season stroke average (70.05).
Humphries handles a different kind of pressure, shines on world stage
JOURNAL SPORTS
MONROE – Stan Humphries led the ULM football team to the 1987 Division I-AA national championship and steered the San Diego Chargers to their only Super Bowl appearance, so coping with pressure is routine to the 58-year-old former Southwood High School standout.
Nowadays he’s most comfortable playing golf and coaching the Ouachita Christian School girls basketball team – although he admits the intensity of leading OCS to a state championship a couple of seasons ago was as taxing as anything he’s done, mostly because there was a limit to what he could control.
Now he’s added another successful walk on a sports high wire – charging to a tie for fourth in a world golf championship.
Last week, Humphries emerged from 168 qualifiers and charged to a tie for fourth in the Royal & Ancient British Senior Amateur Championship at Woodhall Spa, England.
He long since found his comfort zone taking snaps in the NFL, but admitted to KNOE-TV’s Aaron Dietrich that his latest experience was spine-tingling.
“I can play in front of 100,000 with a football in my hand and feel comfortable, but to get up on that first tee and hear the announcer call out your name, it is nerve racking,” he said.
Humphries mounted his charge with a 2-under-par 71 in the second round over Woodhall Spa’s Hotchkin Course to go with an opening 73, 1-over, on the Bracken Course. He was sitting on 1-under total just three shots off the lead when he finished his second round.
With a final total score of 291, Humphries finished at an even par for the championship, securing his prominent place on the leaderboard.
“There’s no doubt I exceeded where I thought I could go,” he said. “I thought I could make the cut (top 50 of 168 golfers).
“To finish birdie-birdie and get up to a tie for fourth, it’s a great accomplishment for me. It is that competitive spirit and that stuff you miss from football.”
Next month, he will try to again qualify for the U.S. Senior Amateur, after earlier missing by just one shot earning a spot in the U.S. Senior Open this summer. His performance last week earned an invitation to next year’s R&A Senior Am.
The 2009 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame inductee spends plenty of time honing his game, until school starts and the OCS gym beckons.
“It keeps going until it’s time to put up the clubs and get back to coaching girls basketball,” he told Dietrich, looking forward to his 19th season on the bench, including a few as an assistant coach at ULM.
LSU’s Byrd didn’t look or act the part of an ace until he took the mound
NOTE — This is part of a series of stories profiling the 12-person Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2023, who will be inducted to culminate three days of festivities in Natchitoches July 27-29. For tickets and more information, visit LaSportsHall.com or call 318-238-4255.
By JOE MACALUSO, Written for the LSWA
It’s late summer 1988, and the latest crop of freshmen were stepping onto the LSU campus. A handful among them had elected to spend most of their next few years inside Alex Box Stadium.
Among them was a tallish, thin, blond-headed, wide-eyed kid from Kentucky, a youngster who, when he wore black-rimmed glasses, looked more like he was destined to become a professor than most anything else, and certainly not a record-setting pitcher on a record-setting team.
Paul Byrd, 6-foot-1, 170 pounds, Louisville, Kentucky, throws right, St. Xavier High School.
That was the most anybody knew, except soon-to-be-legendary LSU coach Skip Bertman knew more, something his teammates found out long before Byrd’s first pitch in the 1989 season.
Paul Byrd was intelligent, more cerebral than most baseball players – and talented.
“He was super smart,” Bertman said. “He had a good fastball, and a wonderful breaking ball, not one I taught him, a breaking ball he brought with him. Paul was one of the best competitors we’ve ever put on the mound.”
After a strong freshman season for a College World Series team, Byrd stepped up his role – 10 starts among 21 appearances – and established a pattern for what would be a record-setting 1990 season — one, Bertman said, was one of the most significant in LSU baseball history.
As foreign as it is in today’s game, Byrd was asked to be a starter and reliever in 1990, a season when he went 17-6, and earned an invitation to the USA Training Camp.
His catcher as a freshman, current Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco, understood that record’s significance, especially now that he’s a long-tenured, College World Series-winning head coach.
“When Paul won 17 games, he answered all the questions,” Bianco said. “Winning 17 games in college baseball season is unheard of, and it’s a record never to be broken.
“Paul had several relief appearances as well as starts, and kids just don’t do that nowadays. That was the beginning of the legend of what became Paul Byrd.”
While his 19 starts that season topped the team, it was the 10 relief appearances that verified Bianco’s “legend” statement. In nearly 28 relief innings, Byrd gave up 19 hits (all singles), allowed 1 earned run with 34 strikeouts and 9 walks.
There was more, like those legendary, two one-run duels with Southern Cal in the 1990 NCAA Regional at Alex Box Stadium, wins that launched a second-straight trip to Omaha and the CWS.
A year later, Byrd and the Tigers made the third in a row the charm. Byrd’s 4-3 win over Oklahoma got LSU to the NCAA South Region finals, and his start in a 19-8 win over Florida shot his team into the winner-take-all, one-game showdown in what turned out to be a 6-3 victory over Wichita State that gave LSU its first national baseball championship.
So, for a kid who was a Babe Ruth World Series MVP; pitched and played two other positions in high school; was the 1987 U.S. Baseball Federation Amateur Junior Player of the Year; an All-Academic SEC star; had a 1-0 record for Team USA and a spot on the 1990 Bronze Medal Goodwill Games team; and College World Series champion, it was time to turn the page.
In his wake were 31 wins against 11 losses, 7 complete games, 2 saves and 2 shutouts in LSU’s three-seasons’ 164-54 record.
That CWS title spurred Byrd into a 14-year big-league career, one that ended Oct. 3, 2009 with a three-inning, 3-hit performance for Cleveland just days shy of his 39th birthday. By then, he had been named to the 1999 National League All-Star team, had led the American League in complete games (2002) and was that league’s shutouts leader in 2007.
He had survived a scare with shoulder and arm injuries in 2000 and 2003, and had pitched for 19 different teams in the majors and minors.
“I watched him reinvent himself,” said 1989 LSU teammate and Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame pitcher Ben McDonald. “He struggled at times like a lot of other guys did, but he came up with a different wind-up, an old-school delivery with a lot of deception.
“That takes a lot of talent to change what you know about the game and how to pitch, lots of talent,” McDonald continued. “When you look back on Paul’s career, 109 wins is a lot, and when the average big leaguer plays three years, his 14 years means Paul had a great career.”
Paul Byrd was more.
His baseball-playing peers voted him the “Nicest Guy in Baseball” and baseball writers honored him with the “Steve Olin Tim Crews Good Guy” Award, all a carryover from what his former LSU teammates knew about him.
Much more: Byrd won three Emmys (his latest coming earlier this year with Bally Sports) for his on-air Fox Sports work as a broadcaster, and added a 2021 Emmy for being the “Most Outstanding On Air Personality.”
And, more: his book “Free Byrd: The Power of a Liberated Life,” made him a best-selling author, and went hand-in-hand with founding Byrdhouse Ministries.
Byrd’s devotion to family became evident earlier this year when he decided to take the year off from broadcasting Atlanta Braves games: his wife, Kym, was fighting for her life.
His statement to Braves fans: “…thanks for all the love and questions as to why I won’t be back this year. Almost lost my wife Kym to a medical issue this offseason. So grateful to say that she is on the road to recovery and getting better each day.”
While he and his wife haven’t strayed far from his Georgia home in the last months, Kym Byrd said she is ready to make the trip to Natchitoches for the induction ceremonies.
“Today, and just because Coach Bertman wanted me at LSU, it lives with me now. I found my faith at LSU, walked away with a girl from New Orleans and fundamentally changed my life with our two sons and Kym, and made lifelong friends.
“I love those guys, love the people at LSU. We care about each other, and I have brothers who’ll be close forever,” Byrd said. “Kym and I are deeply touched, and it shows the magnitude of what the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame means to me and my family.”
Tipping generously pays off when summertime fishing
The weather has started to heat up here in the middle of July and for the bass fisherman, he knows that some of the day’s most exciting and often best action occurs at the break of day.
There is something about being on the water this time of year while all is quiet with a growing glow in the east as he casts a topwater lure next to the trunk of a cypress or willow.
When the twitch of the lure results in an explosive strike, it just about doesn’t get any better than this. Once the day brightens, the early morning action usually slows and the average bass angler heads home for the air conditioning once old Sol peaks over the cypresses.
For anglers who want to extend their bass fishing experience longer, the search is on for one lure to keep the bites coming, even after daytime temperatures rise. The Wobblehead meets all the characteristics of just such a lure.
This rather non-descript device features a slender curved slab of metal with a single hook onto which is attached a plain straight tail six-inch plastic worm. Incidentally, there is no lure easier to retrieve than a Wobblehead; you simply cast it out and bring it back in a rather boring straight retrieve. However, there is nothing boring when a big bass gulps down the bait.
The curved metal body of the Wobblehead gives the lure its name; it wobbles side to side and gives the plastic worm tail an enticing swimming motion which resembles a favorite food for a foraging bass, a small swimming snake. Remember the last time you saw a snake swimming across the water? That’s the exact image you get when you reel in a Wobblehead.
These lures are especially effective when fished next to moss beds, where bass lurk out of the glare of the scorching sun waiting for something good to eat to pass by. A small snake slowly wagging overhead is often too much to pass up.
Cast out a Wobblehead in the heat this summer next to a patch of weeds and hang on. The results could leave you feeling “cool.”
Bream fishermen can still do their thing with these fighters even in the heat of summer. Both bluegills and chinquapins can be caught even though the spawn is over and they have moved from their shallow spawning beds.
One of the most productive bream fishing forays I ever experienced was one sweltering day several years ago when Eddie Halbrook took me to Grand Bayou Lake near Coushatta where we caught at least 50 big chinquapins fishing cold worms on the bottom on an 8-foot deep flat.
If you’re a crappie fishermen, here’s something you may want to try to improve your summertime catch of tasty slabs.
If you want the best service from your waiter at a favorite restaurant, let it be known that you’re a generous “tipper.” You’re more than likely to find him eager and willing to be at your service. Keep this truth in mind the next time you head for the lake after summertime crappie. If you’re a good “tipper,” the crappie just might be much more cooperative.
Tipping explained means that you add something to your crappie jig to make it more enticing. Some anglers regularly tip their jigs with small shiners while others prefer commercial pea-sized niblets, grass shrimp or wax worms.
One of the best times to go for crappie during the heat of summer is to stay indoors during the hottest part of the day and head for the lake at night. A bucket of shiners dangled beneath the lights around a pier or off the side of the boat will attract shiners or shad which attracts the crappie. It can be a bunch of fun and you won’t even need sunscreen.
Whether it’s bass, bream or crappie, you can still get your string stretched even in the middle of summer.
Contact Glynn at glynnharris37@gmail.com
LSHOF Round Table Luncheon July 29 will provide up-close, memorable moments
The “youngest” event during next weekend’s Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Induction Celebration is the most exclusive, yet casual, opportunity for the public to enjoy hearing from the Class of 2023 inductees.
It’s the LSHOF Round Table Luncheon on Saturday, July 29, at noon in The Venue at 530 Front Street in Natchitoches. There’s still time to be among the 200 guests for the fifth annual Round Table Luncheon presented by the Tiger Athletic Foundation.
Registration is available for that event and all other activities during the Induction Celebration beginning next Thursday, July 27, by visiting LaSportsHall.com, or by calling 318-238-4255.
Festivities begin next Thursday evening at 5 with the free of charge La Capitol Federal Credit Union Welcome Reception open to all, no registration necessary, at the Hall of Fame museum facing the traffic circle at 800 Front Street.
Next Saturday’s Round Table Luncheon starts with tremendous Louisiana cuisine and quickly kicks into gear with Fox Sports announcer (and 2020 LSHOF inductee) Tim Brando interviewing small groups of inductees on stage in a very informal and fast-moving setting.
While there are some logical pairings for the interviews, like former Chicago Bears players Wendell Davis and Matt Forte, and former LSU baseball teammates and much more accomplished coaches Paul Mainieri and M.L. Woodruff, other groups will fall together in fun and unpredictable fashion.
Two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning will certainly be an entertaining interview for Brando. .Manning created the faux character Chad Powers and took part in a hysterical tryout for Penn State football last summer. He also shares the platform with his older brother Peyton in the popular and off-the-wall “ManningCast” on ESPN2 during Monday Night Football games, and is in a new beer commercial with Snoop Dogg. It will be interesting to see who shares the spotlight with Eli.
Former Texas Rangers manager and current Atlanta Braves third base coach Ron Washington is one of the more beloved and funny people in Major League Baseball. He was a prominent character in the award-winning major motion picture “Moneyball”—which earned Brad Pitt an Academy Award nomination — chronicling the success of the Oakland Athletics due to groundbreaking use of analytics in the early 1990s, while he was third base coach with the A’s.
Washington could be paired with LSU pitching great Paul Byrd, who had a 14-year MLB career and has since become a colorful member of the Braves’ TV announcing crew.
Duke All-American and WNBA All-Star Alana Beard might be matched up with Walter Davis, the two-time USA Track and Field Olympian who was a basketball star at Beau Chene High School near his hometown of Arnaudville. Beard has local roots, with her parents from Cloutierville and Bermuda, and plenty of relatives still in south Natchitoches Parish along Cane River.
A poignant scene at the 2019 luncheon unfolded before the program when Peyton Manning stopped by to greet LSU legend Johnny Robinson, who was inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame two months later.
It all combines to provide a memorable 90 minutes with guests in close proximity to the living legends.
The Hall of Fame Round Table Luncheon shapes up as a highly entertaining opportunity for guests to have a up-close-and-personal experience and be entertained and well fed in a casual setting.
Shreveport City Council to hold Public Safety meeting on July 25
The Shreveport City Council is having a Public Safety Committee Meeting on Tuesday, July 25 at 1pm in Government Chambers, first floor of Government Plaza (505 Travis St.) regarding the state of public safety in the City of Shreveport.
SPAR to hold Unity Youth Basketball Day, Register by July 26
The Shreveport Public Assembly and Recreation Department’s 2nd Annual Unity Youth Basketball Day will be held on Saturday, Aug. 5 at Valencia Park. Registration is free. The deadline to register is Wednesday, July 26. Visit a SPAR Recreation Center to register in person or do it online at https://bit.ly/43DalWF.
3 ON 3 TOURNAMENT:
Youth Divisions
Elementary (10U Only)
Middle School
High School
*Spots are limited*
Single elimination
Youth Divisions
Elementary (10U Only)
Middle School
High School
*Spots are limited*
Single elimination
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Wednesday, July 26
CONTESTS:
On-site sign up for adults and youth:
3 Point
Free Throw
Hak Court Shot
On-site sign up for adults and youth:
3 Point
Free Throw
Hak Court Shot
Notice of Death – July 19, 2023
Richard Desmond Liles
February 7, 1960 — July 17, 2023
Visitation: Thursday, July 20, 2023, 5 pm at Rose Neath Funeral Home, Shreveport-Marshall.
Service: Friday, July 21, 2023, 11 am at St. Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, Shreveport.
Benjamin Edward West II
July 23, 1946 — July 14, 2023
Visitation: Thursday, July 20, 2023, 5 pm at Rose Neath Funeral Home, Shreveport Southside.
Service: Friday, July 21, 2023, 10 am at Rose Neath Funeral Home, Shreveport Southside.
Junior William West
July 12, 1926 — July 10, 2023
Service: Friday, July 21, 2023, 11 am at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Zwolle.
Stephen Patrick Jones
March 9, 1969 — July 7, 2023
Service: Friday, July 21, 2023, 1 pm at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Shreveport.
Raymond Leslie Cline Jr.
May 11, 1943 — April 13, 2023
Service: Saturday, July 22, 2023, 11 am at Asbury United Methodist Church, Bossier City.
Joan Grace Hassell
December 25, 1930 — July 18, 2023
Visitation: Saturday, July 22, 2023, 9 am at Rose Neath Funeral Home, Bossier City.
Service: Saturday, July 22, 2023, 10 am at Rose Neath Funeral Home, Bossier City.
Shawney Ray West
October 26, 1946 – July 1, 2023
Service: Saturday, July 29, 2023, 2 pm at Ellerbe Road Methodist Church.
The Shreveport-Bossier Journal publishes paid obituaries – unlimited words and a photo, as well as unlimited access – $90. Contact your funeral provider or SBJNewsLa@gmail.com . Must be paid in advance of publication. (Notice of Death shown above are FREE of charge. You may email them to SBJNewsLa@gmail.com)
July 19, 2023
New Principal Spotlight: Afiya Code
The Bossier Parish School District is shining a spotlight on Afiya Code, the newly appointed principal at Greenacres Middle School.
Code is originally from Bastrop and graduated from LSU-Baton Rouge with a degree in Mass Communications.
“I wanted to be a television news anchor,” she shared. “I am entering my 24th year in education. I started my teaching career in Morehouse Parish. I taught first grade for one year before moving to Bossier, then
taught nine years in Caddo Parish at Linear Middle School, Caddo Middle Career and Technology School (formerly Hollywood Middle) and Turner Elementary/ Middle School. After leaving Caddo, I taught 7th grade ELA for three years at Greenacres Middle. In 2012, I became the Curriculum Coach for Rusheon Middle School, followed by the ELA Curriculum Coordinator grades 6th-8th. Most recently, I have been serving as an Assistant Principal at Cope Middle School.”
A Little Lagniappe:
Hobbies – Going out to eat with friends and family and shopping
Favorite Food – Boiled, Grilled, or Fried Shrimp
Bucket list – Take a trip to Paris, France to see the Eiffel Tower
Confused to a Tee
Good thing I’m elderly because it is evident as of two weekends ago when I went to my first ever T-Ball tournament that I could not afford to have a child today.
Not an athletic one, anyway.
This was the Dixie Baseball Regional Tournament (I think) at Tinsley Park in Bossier. For T-Ball. An All-Star Tournament. We now have all-star tournaments for 6- and 7-year-olds even though the ball is hit off a tee and there are no pitchers. This has been going on a good while; I’d just never seen it.
I knew the doings were big when I parked and could not hear any baseball things. That’s how far away the parks were and everyone had gotten there a lot earlier than I had. I like to walk, so no complaint there; just trying to convey how many people were parked here on this Saturday evening. It was like the cast party for Gone With The Wind.
The first sign of trouble was a nice lady walking toward me. She handed me a wrist band. “Here, I’ll save you 10 bucks,” she said and handed me the band. “I was in there five minutes.”
Mister Teddy did not know it cost money to watch T-Ball.
And now I have an idea how much money it costs to play T-Ball, or at least be the guardian of a person who plays T-Ball.
It’s a lot.
Jerseys. Colors. Full uniforms with “Saline” or “Ruston” or “Bossier” across the front. Dozens of teams. “Olla” and … is there a team from “Greater Olla” here? Seems everyone else in Louisiana is.
The winners are traveling to the Dixie World Series in Center, Texas this weekend, and if you’re going to that, best leave now because traffic will not be a walk in the park. (If you’re interested in sponsoring, Hospitality Tents are only $200 a day and the Team Dinner/Opening Ceremonies are just $1,500. This is a big jump from 30 years ago when T-Ball was a YMCA T-shirt and a cap and your cleanest dirty shorts, and when the “regular season” was over, you met at Johnny’s Pizza.)
It took less than five minutes for me to figure out two things.
One, the gear required. Full uniforms. Battery-operated fans. (Could have used those back in the day.) Bat bags. And a clever invention—a wagon. Most everyone had these fold-up wagons, and in them were chairs for Mee Maw and Pee Paw, coolers, fans, bat bags, and sometimes a baby.
And two, most everyone I saw was sweating, but also smiling. It wasn’t my scene, but then again, none of these people wanted to be on the No. 7 tee box with me. They pay for a wagon, I pay for a pitching wedge. Different strokes … Same feeling of fun.
The little team I went to support came in 14th out of 16 teams, I think, but they all looked happy as little dudes on Christmas morning.
Things change. Used to, “travel ball” was one trip each summer out of town for a two-day tournament so my guys could experience a hotel and be together for a weekend. Then it was wiffle ball in the parking lot at night. Low overhead, high return. It was a different time, I guess.
Today, if they were grading, I’d make an F in T-Ball.
Things change, but still … when was the last time you saw boys and girls riding bikes with their baseball gloves hooked to the handlebars, or playing pickup baseball at a park or wiffle in the yard? Something in my old soul always thought that would be timeless. At least it’s still free.
Contact Teddy at teddy@latech.edu or Twitter @MamaLuvsManning
Swearing-in ceremony for newly hired deputies
Bossier Sheriff Julian Whittington administered the Oath of Affirmation in a swearing-in ceremony for three new deputies that have joined the Bossier Sheriff’s Office team.
The swearing-in ceremony for newly hired Deputies Kole Ackerson, Andrew Cox, and Gaige Davis was held in the Sheriff’s Conference Room in the Bossier Sheriff Command Center on Monday morning.
Sheriff Whittington told the new deputies, “You have made a great choice by joining an outstanding team and I welcome you to the Bossier Sheriff’s Office.”
All three deputies will begin their careers at one of the BSO correctional facilities.
If you are seeking a career that offers excitement in the workplace and allows you to make a difference in your community, then the Bossier Sheriff’s Office is the place for you. To apply to be a deputy, applicants must be 21 years of age. However, the Bossier Sheriff’s Office does offer a corrections officer position that requires the applicant to be 18 years of age.
To start the process of becoming a member of the Bossier Sheriff’s Office, call the Human Resources Department to schedule a test today. You can reach them by calling (318)965-3459.
Shreveport man pleads guilty to vehicular manslaughter
A Shreveport man charged with vehicular manslaughter and possession with intent to distribute marijuana pleaded guilty to the more serious manslaughter charge in Caddo District Court.
Dontavius R. Alexander, 26, pleaded guilty before District Judge Chris Victory Thursday, July 13, 2023, for his driving that led to the death of 32-year-old Steve Johnson on November 9, 2021.
On that date, Alexander drove north in the southbound lanes of Mansfield Road, running head-on into Johnson’s vehicle. Witnesses reported that Alexander crossed lanes at speeds exceeding 90 mph, leading to the collision. Multiple witnesses attempted to correct Alexander by flashing their lights, using emergency lights and reporting him to law enforcement. Marijuana was recovered in Alexander’s vehicle and his blood-alcohol level was .22.
Judge Victory sentenced Alexander to 15 years in prison at hard labor. Due to his blood-alcohol level, Alexander’s offense was designated as a crime of violence, with at least five years of his sentence to be served without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.
Alexander was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Victoria Washington. He was defended by Gregory Johnson.
The case was docket No. 386206.
Man jailed for possessing and distributing child porn
Caddo Parish Sheriff’s detectives arrested a Shreveport man for possessing and distributing child pornography, said Sheriff Steve Prator.
Robert Randall Reinhart, 58, of the 8100 block of Paula Kay Place in Shreveport, was arrested on July 14 for possessing hundreds of images depicting child sexual abuse.
Detectives with the Caddo Sheriff’s Cyber Crimes Unit executed a search warrant at Reinhart’s home and seized several digital storage devices. Detectives discovered 266 files of child pornography during a digital forensic examination of his cellphone. Some of the files had been distributed on the Internet.
Reinhart was arrested and charged with 266 counts of Possession and Distribution of Child Pornography.
He was booked into the Caddo Correctional Center. No bond has been set.
Reinhart’s case remains under investigation by Sheriff’s Det. Thomas Lites. The Caddo Sheriff’s Office continues to aggressively investigate child sexual abuse cases with the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office. They encourage anyone with information regarding this crime or other crimes against children to contact the Caddo Sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Department at 318-681-0700.
Great music, food, family fun at free Hall of Fame Rockin’ River Fest Friday, July 28
Quick quiz on what might happen Friday evening, July 28, in Natchitoches at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame’s Rockin’ River Fest, free to everybody on the beautiful downtown Rue Beauport stage:
Two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning might croon a tune after he’s introduced
Former LSU baseball coach Paul Maineri could dance a jig as he did after steering the Tigers to a 2009 College World Series crown
Rockin’ Dopsie & The Zydeco Twisters will have everybody in a deep Louisiana musical groove
Shreveport native Alana Beard, whose family hails from Cane River country, may water ski to the stage
All of the above, and who knows what else?
Anything is possible during the riverfront concert, which runs from 6 p.m. to 10:30. One of the highlights: at 9 o’clock, the Hall’s impressive Class of 2023, headlined by Manning, Mainieri and Beard, and presenting a very distinct LSU flavor, will be introduced on stage, and celebrated with a 10-minute fireworks show set to sports-themed music over Cane River Lake.
And yes, you read correctly. It’s free. There will be food and beverage vendors on the riverfront, and of course, Front Street’s always fun watering holes/restaurants are just a few steps away.
It’s family friendly. A free interactive kids zone presented by Louisiana Propane Dealers will include basketball, football, golf and science games for all ages to enjoy.
If you want to beat the summer heat and enjoy a tasty collection of Louisiana foods and specialty refreshments, you can visit LaSportsHall.com to snap up a few of the fast-disappearing $100 tickets to the VIP Taste of Tailgating presented by Hancock Whitney.
That party runs from 7-10 p.m. in the air-conditioned comfort of Mama’s Oyster House and Blues Room that will provide exclusive access to the 12-member 2023 Induction Class.
Rockin’ Dopsie Jr. & the Zydeco Twisters are back as the headline act, just as they were when Eli’s big brother Peyton was in the Class of 2019. Dopsie has played the White House to the Jazz Fest, boogied with James Brown and John Fogerty, and wowed crowds all over, described as “Mick Jagger of the marsh” and note “a party seems to break out whenever and wherever Dopsie and his band show up.”
The opening act is Jason Ashley & The Hot Sauce Band, featuring the Alexandria native and regional country music star playing hits from yesterday and today, putting on shows popular around the Gulf Coast and all the way to Nashville.
The trio of Manning, Mainieri and Beard headline the 2023 inductees. Mainieri is one of five representing the Tigers of LSU, joined by Shreveport native and NFL receiver Wendell Davis, 14-year Major League Baseball pitcher Paul Byrd, two-time USA Olympic jumper Walter Davis and former baseball player M.L. Woodruff, going in on the strength of coaching 11 state champions at Parkview Baptist.
Beard was one of the brightest stars in women’s basketball at Duke and in the WNBA after an incredible high school career at Southwood in Shreveport. Tulane star Matt Forte became a Pro Bowl running back for the Chicago Bears. Walter Imahara won almost three dozen national weightlifting gold medals while competing into his late 60s. New Orleans native Ron Washington managed the Texas Rangers to two World Series, then won it all as the third base coach for the Atlanta Braves in 2021, and remains in that role at age 71.
Acclaimed south Louisiana sports journalists Bruce Brown and Lori Lyons round out the Class of 2023.
Join the fun and celebrate some of Louisiana’s sports greats, for free, on Friday evening, July 28, in downtown Natchitoches. For information on all of the events during the July 27-29 Class of 2023 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Induction Celebration, visit LaSportsHall.com or call 318-238-4255.
Shreveporter is over the top down under
By TONY TAGLAVORE, Journal Sports
There are only 65 people traveling with the United States Women’s Soccer FIFA World Cup team.
A Shreveport native is one of them.
Lindsay Gosslee Langford, who graduated from Captain Shreve High School in 2000, is Team USA’s dietician and sports scientist. She is in New Zealand, as the red-white-and-blue prepare to begin World Cup play Friday. Action will also take place in Australia, with Sydney hosting the finals August 20.
“It’s a wild feeling to try and step back and fully realize the depth of what I have the privilege to do,” Langford told the Shreveport-Bossier Journal from Auckland, where it was 11:30 the next morning, and 59 degrees. “The tasks I have to accomplish each day are my main focus, but I’ve definitely had some moments of sitting down in my hotel room with the USA crest taped on our room walls. It’s everywhere, even down to the coffee bar. You get your coffee served with the USA soccer crest on top.”
Even though Langford — who lives in Indiana with her husband and two sons — has been working with USA Soccer for a while, it wasn’t a given she would make the trip.
“There are a limited amount of people (in the delegation) who are approved. It did come down to the last few months to see if it was approved. The plan was always to come, but there never was any confirmation until the last six to eight weeks.”
Langford, who studied nutrition and dietetics at Louisiana Tech and the University of Alabama, is responsible for what the 23 players eat during their (hopefully) seven-week stay.
“I build the menu and oversee all food service. We have a chef we brought with us, who fully executes the menu. But it is something I design, based on the training loads and the actual training calendar. If it’s a practice day or a game day, the menu would vary pretty drastically, depending on the demands of training that day.”
When it comes time to dine, Langford and the rest of the traveling party don’t have to worry about waiting in line with other hotel guests. They are the only hotel guests in what Langford described as “a five-star hotel.”
“Even the lights are placed in a certain color, depending on the time of day. If we want to promote recovery and sleep, the lights change to different colors. If we want to promote more energy, and more daylight and activation, the lights in the room change to a different color. It’s down to a science.”
And so is making sure each player is in her best physical condition.
“A lot of emphasis is on the recovery side of things for each individual player, based on morning screenings they do. It’s in-depth. The high-performance team has done a really great job, and I kind of ride their coattails.
“Each morning, the players fill out a wellness questionnaire. They run through some morning tests, seeing how their body is feeling — anything from sleep, to muscle aches and pains. That really determines what recovery modalities we are going to use for them during the day.”
Should Team USA win its third straight World Cup, and fifth overall, emotions will be flowing. But Langford is already emotional — her voice cracking when asked what it would be like to be a part of history.
“It’s funny to get emotional about that question just in an interview. I can’t imagine. It would be pretty cool. I’m hopeful,” she said.
Contact Tony at SBJTonyT@gmail.com