Noted scribe Bill Shakespeare, who some believe covered Man United in the 16^th century, wrote it and many of us hacks since have adapted it.

“Now is the winter of our discontent …”

It’s hardly winter in the 318, but compared to the weeks-long oven we’re finally escaping, it’s not far off. My brother Monty, who turned 61 Sunday and presumably is wiser for it, said it feels like fall now. Next Saturday, it will be.

Owner of three degrees from Louisiana Tech, each in a different discipline, he’s smarter than the average bear, or in this case, older brother. Among his many talents – forestry, computer programming, nursing – he evaded exposure to Shakespeare. I did not. Woe is me? Well, that was first biblical. Back to Bill.

Discontent? Plenty to go around checking on the football on display to date at Grambling, Louisiana Tech and Northwestern State.

Not so much for Centenary, but they’re not officially started yet. The fledgling Gents held their own early in scrimmages against established Division III programs Millsaps and East Texas Baptist, and have toyed with a couple of similar start-up programs in full exhibition games over the past couple Saturdays.

It foreshadows a dramatic uptick along Kings Highway next fall when the games count. It’s already a nice enrollment spike for Centenary, which was the real purpose of restarting football for the first time since before any of us knew where Pearl Harbor was.

“The dogs bark at me as I halt before them …”

It feels that way at Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs won their opener in the final minute over Conference USA visitor FIU. But they lost Saturday night, after a thrilling rally in the closing minutes, when the leaky Tech defense could not stop just departed CUSA pal North Texas.

That was the fourth one-possession loss in Sonny Cumbie’s first 15 games in Ruston. Two of them came in overtime.

“Oh, I am fortune’s fool!”

That one’s not just for unkind cuts bumming Bulldogs. It’s as grim as the end of Romeo and Juliet along Chaplin’s Lake on the NSU campus.

An 0-3 start was plausible. FCS teams on average win one of every 20 matchups with FBS foes, and the Demons opened at UL-Lafayette and Tech. They were not embarrassed either time. Not particularly close, but far from hopeless or inept.

The home opener against another ancient rival, Stephen F. Austin, looked to be on even footing. It quickly wasn’t. The Lumberjacks looked Paul Bunyan-esque ripping open a 21-0 lead seven minutes in – not that they did a lot on their own to that point, but the Demons made it easy.

This was not the same competitive level that Northwestern carried through its first two games. Not that Brad Laird’s team didn’t play hard, but it performed poorly, and after the 41-7 rotten egg was laid, he tersely sounded just as he did following last year’s 47-21 thrashing from Grambling at Independence Stadium.

In the best-timed open date imaginable, Laird will be taking roll to see who can be counted on.

“Everyone’s got to look in the mirror, coaches included, and make sure everybody’s doing their job. We’ll make sure those who are going to stay doing their job will be with us moving forward,” he said.

The Demons did find their footing last fall, and went into the last two weeks playing for at least a share of the Southland Conference title and a playoff berth. Didn’t get either, but did get hope for 2023. Current status, though:

“Have no delight to pass away the time, unless to spy my shadow in the sun …”

Over at Grambling, throw out the understandable massacre in the visit to pick up $780,000 and showcase the World Famed Tiger Marching Band at LSU. An opening loss against Howard, and Saturday’s less than impressive cruise by designated win Florida Memorial, left Hue Jackson pondering the G-Men’s defense.

“I am determined to prove a villain…”

Grambling gave up 445 yards of offense, 233 rushing, and 22 points to the NAIA’s Lions of Florida Memorial — a program that resumed football after a 64-year hiatus in 2021, going 6-21 since.

“Dive, thoughts, down to my soul …”

The Tigers start Southwestern Athletic Conference play this Saturday. Good news? It’s at home in Eddie Robinson Memorial Stadium. Better? It’s against Texas Southern, 0-3 after a 59-7 beatdown at Rice.

If the G-Men don’t get that one, then Jackson couldn’t be blamed for taking quite a few sips of his own branded tequila, Grand Leyenda – he’s a partner and Chief Strategic Officer. “The tequila takes on golden hue … “ is really, truly a promotional line from the brand’s website. I kid you not.

A parting piece of insight from The Bard, for Bulldogs, Demons and Tigers: 

“It is not in the stars to hold our destiny, but in ourselves.”

September games don’t define a season. Hopefully. 

Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com

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JOURNAL SPORTS 

Updated high school football standings through three weeks of the regular season.

Football standings
DISTRICT 1-5A	All
Airline	3-0
Parkway	3-0
Captain Shreve	2-1
Haughton	2-1
Benton	1-2
Natchitoches Central	1-2
Byrd	0-3
Southwood	0-3
DISTRICT 1-4A	All
BTW	2-1
Huntington	2-1
North DeSoto	2-1
Woodlawn	2-1
Bossier	1-2
Evangel	1-2
Minden	0-3
Northwood	0-3
DISTRICT 1-2A	All
Calvary	3-0
D’Arbonne Woods	3-0
Lakeside	2-1
Green Oaks	1-2
North Caddo	1-2
Loyola	0-3
DISTRICT 1-1A	All
Arcadia	3-0
Glenbrook	3-0
Haynesville	3-0
Homer	2-1
Ringgold	2-1
Magnolia	0-3
Plain Dealing	0-3

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By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports

STARKVILLE, Miss.— You can’t say LSU head football coach Brian Kelly doesn’t think of just about every detail.

Kelly, concerned about Saturday’s 11 a.m. kickoff in his 14^th-ranked Tigers’ SEC opener at Mississippi State, took every measure to make sure his team was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after a bus ride to Davis-Wade Stadium from its hotel in Tupelo.

So, 20 minutes from the stadium as prearranged, LSU team buses pulled just off Mississippi Highway 45 south into the parking lot of Cannon Chevrolet Buick GMC of West Point.

“When I looked at the trip as being over an hour (from the hotel), I didn’t want the team to fall asleep on the bus,” Kelly said. “We pulled the buses in and did a substitution drill and light stretching. It was only about 10 minutes. It got them (the players) up, it got them alert. Then we watched our pregame video in the locker room instead of the hotel just to get the guys an edge.”

Final score: LSU 41, Mississippi State 14.

“I think it worked pretty good,” Kelly said of the car dealership idea.

“Pretty good” translated into 530 total offensive yards for the Tigers (2-1 overall, 1-0 SEC West) and an LSU defense that limited MSU to 201 yards with most of those coming in the fourth quarter after Kelly flooded the field with subs.

LSU senior quarterback Jayden Daniels certainly seemed wide awake. He completed his first 13 passes, finished 30 of 34 for 362 passing yards and two TDs and ran for a team-leading 64 yards and two rushing TDs. Kelly called it Daniels’ best performance as a Tiger.

“It just felt good to go out there and give my guys a chance,” Daniels said, “and then check down when the defense gives me the checkdown. “I don’t always have to run, just stay patient in the pocket and let my guys around me make plays.”

At the front of that line was LSU junior receiver Malik Nabers. The one-time Mississippi State commit caught all 13 passes thrown to him for 239 yards and two TDs on perfectly-placed corner route dimes from Daniels.

“We wanted to come out here early in the morning and start fast,” Nabers said.

And that applied to both sides of the ball.

Despite missing injured starting linebacker Omar Speights, last-minute scratch safety Greg Brooks (a medical emergency, according to Kelly) and hobbled defensive end Ovie Oghoufo, LSU’s defense dismantled State’s offense early and often.

The Tigers had four sacks, seven tackles for loss, four pass breakups and four QB hurries.

If you ask MSU senior quarterback Will Rogers, struggling mightily in first-year head coach Zach Arnett’s new offensive scheme which is totally opposite of previous head the late Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense, LSU’s pass rush was in his face all day.

Freshman linebacker Whit Weeks, getting his first start, had a team-high eight tackles. Sophomore linebacker Harold Perkins Jr., who looked lost the first two games playing more as an inside linebacker, had two sacks as he returned to last season’s role as a free-floating Tasmanian Devil.

“We were all having fun out there flying around,” LSU junior linebacker Greg Penn III. “That’s how defense should be played. We went out there and brought a lot of physicality.

That’s because last Tuesday, Kelly ordered a full-contact practice. No more thud tackling. Find, seek and destroy, even if he’s your teammate.

“(Defensive tackle) Mason Smith came up to me after that practice and thanked me,” Kelly said.

Mississippi State won Saturday’s pregame coin toss and elected to receive, hoping to jumpstart an offense struggling to convert to Arnett’s new scheme.

The Bulldogs’ offense went nowhere, gaining 7 yards in 16 plays on their first five possessions as LSU’s defensive line unnerved MSU QB Rogers on just about every one of his snaps.

“Credit Coach Kelly and that football team,” said Arnett, whose team fell to 2-1 overall and 0-1 in the SEC West. said. “They came out and played faster from the jump. They dominated the football game. I did a poor job evaluating where we were as a football team,”

Daniels, who had superb protection (he held the ball nine seconds on one play before completing), sliced and diced State’s young secondary.

Here are LSU’s first five possessions:

• A 14-play, 77-yard drive with Daniels completing 9 of 9 throws for 53 yards. LSU settled for a 22-yard Damian Ramos field goal for a 3-0 lead after a fourth-and-goal false start by Tigers’ tackle Will Campbell nullified a 1-yard Logan Diggs’ TD plunge.
• A 4-play 70-yard march in which Daniels hit 5 of 5 passes for 62 yards, including his 26-yard TD strike to Nabers for a 10-0 advantage after the first of five Ramos’ extra points.
• An 8-play, 63-yard march with Daniels completing 4 of 5 passes for 61 yards and a 4th-and-77 33-yard TD dagger to Nabers for a 17-0 cushion.
• After being forced to punt on its fourth possession for the first time since the fourth quarter of its season-opening loss to Florida State, LSU went 66 yards on 6 plays for Josh Williams’ 1-yard TD dive. The only pass Daniels had to throw was his 48-yard completion to Nabers on the first play of the possession.

With LSU leading 24-0 with 3:23 left in the first half, State’s offense finally awakened from its slumber. Running back Jo’quavious Marks opened the drive with a 52-yard run when a Tigers’ secondary defender missed a tackle. MSU eventually finished a 72-yard, 6-play drive on wide receiver Lideatrick Griffin’s 9-yard TD run with 50 seconds left in the first half.

Sporting a 17-point lead at halftime and receiving the ball to start the second half, LSU’s mission was to keep its foot offensively on the accelerator and on State’s neck defensively.

Mission accomplished as LSU took another needed step in recovering from its 45-24 season-opening loss to Florida State when the Tigers were outscored 31-7 by the Seminoles. Against the Bulldogs, LSU scored 17 points on its first three possessions of the second half, which pleased Kelly as the Tigers headed home for a Saturday night off.

“The way we presented it to our guys is `let’s get in, let’s treat this like a business trip and let’s be the first back in Baton Rouge to enjoy a Saturday night’,” Kelly said.

“Our team needed to play an SEC opponent and play four quarters the right way. We needed this game to validate who we were. Our guys feel really good about themselves. They knew what they had. They needed to go out and prove it, based upon the bad taste left in their mouth the way they played in the second half against Florida State.”

Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com

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JOURNAL SPORTS

LSU 41, MISSISSIPPPI STATE 14

Score by quarters

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
LSU	10	14	10	7	— 41
MSU	0	7	0	7	— 14

Scoring summary 

LSU – Damian Ramos 22 field goal, 14 plays, 77 yards, 7:12 

LSU – Malik Nabers 26 pass from Jayden Daniels (Ramos kick), 4 plays, 70 yards, 1:50 

LSU – Nabers 33 pass from Daniels (Ramos kick), 6 plays, 63 yards, 3:15 

LSU – Josh Williams 1 run (Ramos kick), 6 plays, 66 yards, 2:45 

MSU – Lideatrick Griffin 9 run (Kyle Ferrie kick), 6 plays, 72 yards, 2:27 

LSU – Ramos 41 field goal, 11 plays, 53 yads, 4:19 

LSU – Daniels 5 run (Ramos kick), 5 plays, 63 yards, 2:31 

LSU – Daniels 1 run (Ramos kick), 12 plays, 75 yards, 5:08 

MSU – Antonio Harmon 4 pass from Mike Wright (Ferrie kick), 10 plays, 5 yards, 4:19 

TEAM STATISTICS 

 

	LSU	MSU
FIRST DOWNS	27	10
Rush	9	4
Pass	15	6
Penalty	3	0
TOTAL YARDS	530	201
Total plays	76	50
Avg. per play	7.0	4.0
RUSHING YARDS	163	94
Total rushes	39	21
Avg. per rush	4.2	4.5
PASSING YARDS	367	107
Comp-Att	31-37	12-29
Comp. Pct.	84%	41%
Interceptions	0	0
Punts-Avg.	2-38.5	7-43.1
Inside 20	0	2
Penalties-yards	6-50	4-41
Fumbles – lost	0-0	0-0
Red Zone attempts	4-4	2-2
Red Zone pts.	24	14
3rd down conv.	9-16	3-13
4th down conv.	2-2	2-3
Possession Time	38:39	21:21

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS 

RUSHING 

LSU – J. Daniels 15-64, 2 TDs; Logan Diggs 9-41; Kaleb Jackson 5-19, J. Williams 4-17, 1 TD; Noah Cain 3-15; John Emery 3-7. 

MSU – Jo’quavious Marks 8-75; L. Griffin 3-24, 1 TD; Jeffery Pittman 2-10, Mike Wright 1-5; Seth Davis 1-3; Zavion Thomas 1-2, Will Rogers 5-minue-25. 

PASSING 

LSU – Daniels 30-34-0-361, 2 TDs; Garrett Nussmeier 1-3-0-6. 

MSU – Rogers 11-28-0-103; Wright 1-1-0-4, 1 TD0. 

RECEIVING 

LSU – Nabers 13-239, 2 TDs; Brian Thomas 7-60; L. Diggs 3-30; K. Jackson 2-15; Chris Hilton 2-9; J. Williams 1-13; M Markway 1-5; Aaron Anderson 1-minus-1; J. Emery 1-minus-3. 

MSU – L. Griffin 4-16; Z. Thomas 3-52; Justin Robinson 2-23; S. Davis 1-13; Harmon 1-4, 1 TD; Marks 1-minus-1.  

TACKLES 

LSU – Whit Weeks 2-6—8; Andre Sam 4-0—4; Harold Perkins Jr. 2-2—4; Mekhi Wingo 2-1—3; Sage Ryan 201003; Greg Penn III 1-2—3; Zy Alexnader 0-3—3; Bradyn Swinson 0-3—3; Major Burs 1-1—2; Ryan Yaites 101002; Maason Smith 1-1—2; West Weeks 0-2—2; Javien Toviano 0-2—2; Sai’vion Jones 1-0—1; Denver Harris 1-0—1; Paris Shand 1-0—1; Jordan Jefferson 0-1—1; Jalen Lee 0-1—1; Laterrance Welch 0-1–1.  

MSU – Jett Johnson 3-11—14; Nathaniel Watson 1-12—13; DeCarlos Nicholson 5-5—10; Decamerion Richardson 5-3—8; Marcus Banks 4-3—7; Shawn Person JR. 3-3—6; Nathan Pickering 1-4—5; Deonte Anderson 1-4—5; J.P. Purvis 0-5—5; De’Monte Russell 1-3—4; Corey Ellington 1-3—4; Jaden Crumedy 2-1—3; Isaac Smith 0-3—3; Hunter Washington 1-1—2; Eric Taylor 0-2—2; DeShawn Page 0-2—2; Zakari Tillman 0-2—2; Esaias Furdge 1-0—1; Brice Pollock 1-0—1; Chris Keys 0-1—1; Jordan Davis 0-1—1; Gavin Nelson 0-1—1. 

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By JOHN JAMES MARSHALL, Journal Sports

They call games like Saturday’s Soul Bowl a “defensive struggle,” but it wasn’t the defenses doing the struggling.

However, there was plenty of struggling going on in BTW’s 12-6 win over Green Oaks in the traditional battle at Leonard C. Barnes Stadium.

“It wasn’t pretty,” said Lions’ coach Gary Cooper in a quote that might be a candidate for understatement of the year, “but it’s a win.”

Mostly the two teams were struggling to remember the snap count. Struggling to keep offensive linemen from going down field on pass plays. Struggling to not have illegal blocks.

Both teams had players spending much of the second half struggling to get up as play after play after play was disrupted with cramping issues.

Plus, there was a referee struggling to decide whether the final Green Oaks play was an incomplete pass or a touchdown in the back of the end zone … so he called both. (Eventually, it was ruled a touchdown.)

You might also have to struggle to find any ice in the general area of Milam Street after the Lions dumped bucket after bucket on the coaching staff as the clock headed toward 0:00.

Not insignificantly, there were also two groups that didn’t struggle – the bands for both schools both during the game and especially at halftime. This is the Soul Bowl, and you’d better bet that aspect of the game matters just as much as the final score.

Maybe a little too much at times.

It was hard not to get caught up in all that comes with the Soul Bowl. An $18 admission. Almost as many people outside the gates as inside. Tailgating around the BTW campus all day. The expected social media back-and-forth in the days leading up to the game.

“There were so many distractions for the kids,” Cooper said. “Sometimes they get carried away with it. But for our school and our community, this is very big.”

What was also big was a fourth-quarter interception return of 20 yards by linebacker Andrew Houston with 2:47 to play to make it 12-0.

Up until that point, the only score had come on a 5-yard run by Frank Gafford with 36 seconds left in the first quarter.

But as both teams battled through their own mistakes, you never knew when the next big play was coming. Two plays after BTW had been stopped on fourth-and-two at the 20, Houston’s pick basically ended it.

“All I saw was green (grass),” Houston said. “We had been waiting on that play and the coaches had put us in the right position. When we saw it, we just had to execute.”

“Our defense played lights out all night long,” Cooper said. “The kids played with high intensity and high energy all night.”

After Houston’s interception TD, what followed was perhaps the longest 2:47 in the history of football with penalties (of course), more cramps and confusion. Highlighting that confusion was a fourth down pass from Green Oaks’ Tovoras Lee to Delarrious Dorsey in the end zone in which the back judge signaled incompletion and touchdown all the same motion, as if he were bringing in an airplane to the gate.

The BTW coaches didn’t know if the next snap was for another play or the two-point conversion.

By then, though, there were only 12 seconds remaining and the ice buckets were flowing all along the Lions’ sideline as BTW climbed to 2-1.

It was too little, too late for the Giants (1-2).

“We came out a little flat and had some turnovers that hurt us,” said first-year coach James Bradford. “But I’m proud of my defense. Once again, we didn’t give up any points and we are still trying to find our identity. A game of this magnitude, the extra is going to be a part of it. We did a lot of things that kept stealing the momentum. Offensively, we are going to change some things and fit what we can do.”

Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com

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JOURNAL SPORTS

Class 5A

1. John Curtis (2-0) beat Santaluces, FL, 55-21

2. Destrehan (3-0) beat East Ascension, 21-7

3. Edna Karr (3-0) beat Warren Easton, 48-14

4. Zachary (2-0) beat St. Augustine, 17-7

5. Catholic-BR (1-2) lost to University Lab, 31-30

6. Ruston (2-1) beat Cabot, AR, 28-17

7. St. Augustine (2-1) lost to Zachary, 17-7

8. Carencro (3-0) beat Southside, 19-14

9. West Monroe (3-0) beat Delhi Charter, 44-8

10. Acadiana (2-1) beat New Iberia, 56-7

Others receiving votes: Brother Martin (2-1) lost to St. Thomas More, 41-7, Airline (3-0) beat Northwood-Shreveport, 48-14, Southside (2-1) lost to Carencro, 19-14, East St. John (3-0) beat L.B. Landry, 59-0, Mandeville (2-1) lost to Walker, 40-29, Archbishop Rummel (1-2) lost to Archbishop Shaw, 43-28, Dutchtown (3-0) beat Covington, 38-0.

Class 4A

1. St. Thomas More (3-0) beat Brother Martin, 41-7

2. Lafayette Christian (3-0) beat Jesuit, 51-18

3. Warren Easton (2-1) lost to Edna Karr, 48-14

4. Neville (3-0) beat Huntington, 50-20

5. Westgate (3-0) beat Evangel , 34-12

6. North DeSoto (2-1) beat Loyola Prep, 55-3

7. Teurlings Catholic (2-1) lost to St. Charles, 48-20

8. Lutcher (1-1) did not play

9. West Feliciana (2-1) beat McKinley, 30-28

10. Evangel (1-2) lost to Westgate, 34-12

Others receiving votes: De La Salle (1-2) lost to St. Paul’s, 14-6, Leesville (2-1) beat Iowa, 30-13, Archbishop Shaw (1-2) beat Archbishop Rummel, 43-28, Cecilia (2-1) beat Northside, 45-0, Vandebilt Catholic (2-1) beat Belle Chasse, 16-7, Opelousas (2-1) beat Lake Charles Prep, 34-6, Huntington (2-1) lost to Neville, 50-20, Pearl River (2-1) lost to Pine, 48-0, Tioga (3-0) beat Pineville, 35-0.

Class 3A

1. University (2-1) beat Catholic-Baton Rouge, 31-30

2. St. James (2-1) beat Thibodaux, 24-14

3. E.D. White (3-0) beat Assumption, 41-13

4. Sterlington (2-1) beat Oak Grove, 42-35 (OT)

5. Madison Prep (2-1) beat Scotlandville, 35-6

6. Union Parish (1-2) lost to Captain Shreve, 34-20

7. John F. Kennedy (2-1) lost to St. Amant, 20-14

8. St. Louis (2-1) lost to Vidor, TX, 21-17

9. Lake Charles Prep (1-2) lost to Opelousas, 34-6

10. Iowa (1-2) lost Leesville, 30-13

Others receiving votes: Jena (3-0) beat St. Frederick, 30-0, Parkview Baptist (2-1) beat Brusly, 27-0, Amite (1-1) did not play, Bogalusa (2-1) beat Salmen, 39-20, Carroll (3-0) beat Southwood, 38-16, Iota (2-1) beat Crowley, 52-7.

Class 2A

1. Calvary (3-0) beat C.E. Byrd, 42-21

2. St. Charles (3-0) beat Teurlings Catholic, 48-20

3. Newman (3-0) beat Benton, 37-27

4.Oak Grove (1-2) lost to Sterlington, 42-35 (OT)

5. Notre Dame (2-1) beat Comeaux, 41-12

6. Dunham (2-1) beat M.L. King Charter, 57-20

7. Many (2-1) beat Haughton, 45-42 (2OT)

8. Episcopal-BR (2-1) beat Country Day, 35-0

9. Loreauville (2-1) lost to Vermilion Catholic, 27-21

10. Northlake Christian (3-0) beat Varnado, 41-0

Others receiving votes: Mangham (0-3) lost to Caldwell Parish, 40-28, Rosepine (1-2) lost to Kinder, 34-0, East Feliciana (1-2) lost to Kentwood, 39-6, South Plaquemines (1-2) lost to Jewel Sumner, 26-18, Ascension Episcopal (2-1) beat Patterson, 40-6, Catholic-New Iberia (2-1) beat Erath, 25-23, Grand Lake (2-1) beat Pickering, 47-0, Oakdale (3-0) beat Ville Platte, 25-20.

Class 1A

1. Ouachita Christian (3-0) beat Mansfield, 31-6

2. Kentwood (3-0) beat East Feliciana, 39-6

3. Vermilion Catholic (3-0) beat Loreauville, 27-21

4. Southern Lab (1-1) did not play

5. Homer (2-1) beat General Trass, 55-38

6. St. Martin’s (3-0) beat Riverdale, 58-28

7. Riverside Academy (2-1) beat Central Catholic, 43-0

8. Haynesville (3-0) beat Junction City, AR, 51-20

9. Ascension Catholic (3-0) beat Archbishop Hannan, 42-16

10. St. Frederick (1-2) lost to Jena, 30-0

Others receiving votes: St. Mary’s (3-0) beat Menard, 26-13, Glenbrook Academy (3-0) beat Delta Charter, 55-32, Logansport (2-1) beat Peabody, 34-6.

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JOURNAL SPORTS

RUSTON — On a night where Louisiana Tech struggled to do much right, the Bulldogs almost pulled a rabbit out of a hat.

Almost.

Noah Rauschenberg’s 31-yard field goal with just three seconds remaining lifted North Texas to a 40-37 win over Louisiana Tech Saturday night at Joe Aillet Stadium.

It was the end to a roller coaster night for both teams in a game that saw the Mean Green never trail, build a 17-point fourth quarter lead, see Tech rally to tie it in the final 90 seconds, and then ultimately respond by driving into position to kick the game-winning field goal.

Tech (2-2) suffered injury after injury and ultimately a heart-breaking loss.

 “I know our guys really fought hard down by 17 points,” said Tech head coach Cumbie. “They didn’t stop. They didn’t lose belief and they continued to fight and make plays all the way to the end. We just couldn’t get them off the field on third down.

“And I just made, you know, really some critical coaching decisions in terms of kicking the field goal versus going for it. And it really hurt us. So that is about as sickening a feeling as you can have for our team and for our program right now. Our kids played hard and it’s a football game that we really we should have won.“

North Texas dominated time of possession in the first half, building a 13-0 lead and taking a 23-14 advantage into the halftime locker room. Although in many ways the Bulldogs were fortunate to not be down more than nine, Tech also had an opportunity late in the second quarter to have all the momentum.

After Hank Bachmeier hit Smoke Harris for a 19-yard TD pass with just over a minute to play before halftime, the Bulldogs appeared poised to get the football back with a chance to take the lead. However, North Texas QB Chandler Rogers completed a 29-yard pass on third down and seven and then drove the Mean Green the remaining 56 yards to paydirt to push the lead back to 23-14.

It was a sign of things to come.

“You got to give credit to their quarterback,” said Cumbie. “He put the ball in a couple of tight spots on third downs and made some good throws at the end of the first half. He was accurate throwing the football. He did a good job.”

Rogers completed 24-of-41 passes for 313 yards and one score and used his arm and his feet to consistently convert third downs for the Mean Green. North Texas was 13-of-20 on third and fourth downs in the game as the Bulldogs defense couldn’t get off the field, including on the final drive.

Trailing 37-20 with less than seven minutes to play and Bachmeier sidelined with a shoulder injury, sophomore Jack Turner drove the Bulldogs down the field and scored on a one-yard QB keeper with 6:27 remaining to close the cap to 37-27.

After the Bulldogs forced only the second punt of the night, Turner and Co. drove down the field and Jacob Barnes kicked a 30-yard field goal with 1:32 remaining to make it 37-30.

Tech’s special teams then came up with a big play, recovering the onside kick at the Bulldogs 47-yard line.

Three plays later, Turner hit Harris in the flat and Harris made numerous Mean Green defenders miss on a 36-yard TD pass and catch. Buck Buchanon’s extra point tied the game at 37-37 with 1:04 to play.

Following the kickoff, North Texas marched 61 yards on nine plays, highlighted by a 24-yard pass and catch and a 21-yard run to set up the 31-yard game-winning field goal.

Tyre Shelton rushed for 152 yards and a TD on 16 carries for the Bulldogs. Harris caught four passes for 77 yards and two scores while Cyrus Allen added 82 yards and one score.

The Bulldogs defense had been solid through the first three games but struggled all night, allowing 313 yards through the air and 249 yards on the ground. North Texas totaled 32 first downs and ran 88 offensive plays.

Myles Heard totaled 14 tackles and Cecil Singleton added 11 tackles for Tech, which visits Nebraska next Saturday.

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JOURNAL SPORTS

NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State football team was looking for a fast start in Saturday night’s home opener against former Southland Conference rival Stephen F. Austin.

Instead, it was the visiting Lumberjacks who broke quickly from the gate, cashing in NSU mistakes for a three-score lead less than seven minutes into the game and setting the tone for a surprising 41-7 romp at Turpin Stadium.

“There were a lot of things that we went through this week ahead of kickoff that we need to do better – coaches and players,” a terse sixth-year head coach Brad Laird said. “The big play we gave up the third play of the game – that was something we talked about avoiding. That has hurt us the first two weeks. The next two possessions we had turnovers offensively that turned into points. No matter who you play, you can’t overcome that.”

Stephen F. Austin (2-1) needed six plays to traverse 75 yards on the game’s opening possession – 58 of them coming on a third-down run from Jerrell Wimbley that turned a third and five at the SFA 30 into a first and 10 at the NSU 12.

Three plays later, SFA quarterback Brian Maurer capped the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run. 

The Lumberjacks doubled their lead four plays later after a fumbled punt snap – for the second straight week — that Amad Murray returned 25 yards for a touchdown.

The fumble was part of a six-turnover game that saw Northwestern State (0-3) lose the turnover battle 6-1.

Stephen F. Austin converted the six turnovers into 24 points, including a 53-yard touchdown pass from Maurer to running back Anthony Williams, who had a 103-yard receiving day to complement Wimbley’s 115 yards on the ground.

“Everyone’s got to look in the mirror, coaches included, and make sure everybody’s doing their job,” Laird said. “We’ll make sure those who are going to stay doing their job will be with us moving forward.”

Down 21-0, the Demon defense kept NSU’s pulse going by holding the Lumberjacks off the scoreboard for three consecutive drives bridging the first and second quarter.

The NSU offense, however, was unable to convert as it committed four turnovers and punted four times on its eight first-half drives.

Northwestern avoided the shutout when Quaterius Hawkins found Jaren Mitchell for a 20-yard touchdown pass with 14:37 to play in the game.

It was Hawkins’ first touchdown pass as a Demon and Mitchell’s first scoring grab at Northwestern State. Hawkins, a Grambling transfer, entered the game twice after starter Tyler Vander Waal exited because of injuries.

“I got a better feel for it this week, got a little more comfortable in the pocket,” said Hawkins, who went 7-for-19 passing in his most extensive playing time as a Demon. “We had a couple of miscommunications and a lot of turnovers. We kept shooting ourselves in the foot.”

The Demons enter their bye week and host Eastern Illinois on Sept. 30, then start Southland play next month. Vander Waal’s status will be a key storyline next week as his second injury, to his throwing shoulder, appeared to be significant.

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By T. SCOTT BOATRIGHT, Lincoln Parish Journal

GRAMBLING — A winning total on the home scoreboard is always a beautiful thing.

But sometimes the scenic route isn’t the way a team gets there. Sometimes the road to a win can be a bit rocky at times, not always pretty.

That’s the way Grambling State head coach Hue Jackson felt after watching his Tigers earn their first win of the season after defeating Florida Memorial 58-22 Saturday afternoon at Eddie G. Robinson Stadium.

“I’m excited for our staff and for our players,” Jackson said. “We love to win. There’s no question about it, we won’t trade a win for anything. 

“But this game still just showed us some things we just have to get better at, and that’s what I told the team in the locker room. I gave them all the congratulations for the win, but we’ve got a lot of work to get to where we want to go.

“We’re not a finished project by any stretch of the imagination, and we shouldn’t be. But I also understand that there’s some glaring things that we need to fix, and we need to fix them quickly.”

Florida Memorial actually lit up the scoreboard first on a 23-yard field goal at the 4:37 mark of the opening stanza and kept things tight for much of the first half, pulling within a touchdown of the Tigers at 16-9 (the Lions’ extra point kick attempt was blocked) with 5:32 remaining in the second quarter.

Grambling’s first two touchdowns came on a 25-yard scoring strike from quarterback Myles Crawley to receiver Javon Robinson followed by a four-yard plunge to paydirt by running back Keilon Elder.

Slowly, but surely, the G-Men grabbed control, taking a 23-9 lead into the locker room at halftime after Crawley connected with Chance Williams on a 18-yard touchdown pass with 1:31 left in the second quarter.

Grambling went up 30-9 only 2:51 into the second half as linebacker Lewis Matthews returned an interception 32 yards to score.

Then Grambling answered an FMU TD with four straight of its own, starting with a 67-yard pass from Crawley to Tylon Williams, who looked like he would be knocked out of bounds for a short gain but instead somehow kept his balance and stayed inbounds, sprinting down the right sideline for a score.

The Tigers followed with three straight scoring scampers — a two-yarder by Floyd Chalk, an 18-yarder by Dajon Richard and a nine-yarder by backup quarterback Julian Calvez, who spent most of last season as GSU’s starting signal caller.

Despite ending up on the losing side of the scoreboard, Florida Memorial outgained the Tigers, totaling 445 yards of offense compared to 405 for GSU.

Jackson wasn’t surprised by FMU’s high-octane offense, but was concerned to see the Lions total 233 yards on the ground.

“They’ve scored on everybody,” Jackson said. “They’ve scored on every team they’ve played. Every game they’ve played has been high-scoring games. What I was disappointed in was how they rushed the ball. We’ve got to get better at stopping the run.

Crawley connected on 14-of-yards for 220 yards and three scores, but Jackson said he was left wanting more.

“I thought — and he’ll be the first to tell you, that I thought he was a little inconsistent out there today,” Jackson said of the junior transfer quarterback. “I thought there were some things he did well. He threw a few touchdowns. When you don’t turn it over, that gives us a chance to win.

“But the consistency wasn’t there. Because I know how good he could be, I expect a little more.”

Crawley understood and agreed with Jackson’s assessment.

“I ain’t going to lie, I didn’t feel like I was myself really today,” Crawley said. “Like I told my guys, Personally, I didn’t prep enough, you know what I’m saying, for this game to be at my best potential. I don’t think I played that well even though the score says what it says. But we’re going to get better day in and day out.”

“It’s easy fixes, and it’ll be fixed by next week.”

Tylon Williams broke the century mark in receiving yards for Grambling, hauling in three passes for 102 yards and his score.

Grambling opens Southwestern Athletic Conference play next Saturday at home with Texas Southern, which stands at 0-3 after falling 59-7 at Rice.

Contact Scott at tscottboatright@gmail.com

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NATCHITOCHES — Legendary singer/songwriter Jim Croce’s story ended in Natchitoches almost exactly 50 years ago.

His legacy and music will be celebrated Monday evening in the City of LIghts at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum.

He wrote and performed such iconic hits as “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown,” “Time in a Bottle,” “Operator,” “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim,” “Photographs and Memories,” “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song,” and “I Got a Name.”

Croce played what turned out to be his final concert at Northwestern State’s Prather Coliseum on Sept. 20, 1973. He and five others perished shortly afterwards in a plane crash at the Natchitoches airport.

“Photographs and Memories: A Tribute to Jim Croce” will include local musician Billy O’Con playing some of Croce’s greatest hits, the screening of an 18-minute NSU student-produced 2022 documentary film called “The Night the Music Died,” a panel discussion with audience involvement on Croce, his final day and his 42-minute last concert at Prather Coliseum.

Those attending will also be able to enjoy the first-ever viewing of a four-minute movie trailer introducing the soon-to-premiere “Jim Croce” feature film, which includes at-home footage of the singer with his family, in-depth interviews and comments about him from iconic musicians Kenny Loggins, Jim Messina and Randy Newman. The film is a Hollywood production of Dardan Entertainment, directed and produced by former Natchitoches resident Robert Langpaap.

“Photographs and Memories” is hosted by Friends of Louisiana Sports and History (FLASH), the local support group for the museum.

The event begins with a reception at 5:30, when the museum doors open. The program starts at 6:15 and should finish about 7:30.

The first 50 students in the door will be admitted free. Students will be treated to free pizza.

Patrons will be able to enjoy refreshments and appetizers during the reception, with Croce music playing in the background.

Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for seniors, military families, first responders and students who aren’t among the early 50 arrivals. The program is free for current FLASH members.

Tickets and FLASH memberships will be on sale at the door payable by Venmo, cash or check.

For information, visit the FLASH Facebook page or call the museum at 318-357-2492.

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NATCHITOCHES — Legendary singer/songwriter Jim Croce’s story ended in Natchitoches almost exactly 50 years ago.

His legacy and music will be celebrated Monday evening in the City of LIghts at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum.

He wrote and performed such iconic hits as “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown,” “Time in a Bottle,” “Operator,” “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim,” “Photographs and Memories,” “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song,” and “I Got a Name.”

Croce played what turned out to be his final concert at Northwestern State’s Prather Coliseum on Sept. 20, 1973. He and five others perished shortly afterwards in a plane crash at the Natchitoches airport.

“Photographs and Memories: A Tribute to Jim Croce” will include local musician Billy O’Con playing some of Croce’s greatest hits, the screening of an 18-minute NSU student-produced 2022 documentary film called “The Night the Music Died,” a panel discussion with audience involvement on Croce, his final day and his 42-minute last concert at Prather Coliseum.

Those attending will also be able to enjoy the first-ever viewing of a four-minute movie trailer introducing the soon-to-premiere “Jim Croce” feature film, which includes at-home footage of the singer with his family, in-depth interviews and comments about him from iconic musicians Kenny Loggins, Jim Messina and Randy Newman. The film is a Hollywood production of Dardan Entertainment, directed and produced by former Natchitoches resident Robert Langpaap.

“Photographs and Memories” is hosted by Friends of Louisiana Sports and History (FLASH), the local support group for the museum.

The event begins with a reception at 5:30, when the museum doors open. The program starts at 6:15 and should finish about 7:30.

The first 50 students in the door will be admitted free. Students will be treated to free pizza.

Patrons will be able to enjoy refreshments and appetizers during the reception, with Croce music playing in the background.

Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for seniors, military families, first responders and students who aren’t among the early 50 arrivals. The program is free for current FLASH members.

Tickets and FLASH memberships will be on sale at the door payable by Venmo, cash or check.

For information, visit the FLASH Facebook page or call the museum at 318-357-2492.

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By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Head coaches like to say no two seasons are alike, that his year’s team identity is or will be different than last year’s.

That might be eventually true for 14th-ranked LSU, yet the 2023 Tigers find themselves in the same position as the 2022 Tigers were last year.

A disappointing season-opening loss to Florida State, followed by steamrolling an extremely overmatched SWAC team to regain a bit of positivity, yet still not having a true picture of who they really are as SEC play begins.

Last season in Tiger Stadium, LSU spotted Mississippi State a 13-0 late in the second quarter before outscoring MSU 31-3 the rest of the way in a 31-16 SEC opener. It jumpstarted a stretch in which the Tigers won eight of their next nine games including five of six in the SEC to clinch the league’s West Division title.

There’s hope that LSU (1-1) can follow the path today starting here in Davis-Wade Stadium against the Bulldogs (2-0) in an 11 a.m. SEC lid-lifter for both teams.

“We made a great deal of improvement in just the way we think,” LSU second-year head coach Brian Kelly said of the Tigers’ 72-10 beatdown of Southern last Saturday following a 45-24 Sept. 3 loss to Florida State. “To me, the most important thing was thinking the right way about how to play for four quarters.

“Now we got to take that against an SEC opponent in terms of the technical, the tactical. All of those things now are going to be on display. When you miss a tackle in space (against an SEC opponent) it’s probably going to go for a touchdown, not a 35-yard run. That’s the next challenge for us as we go into SEC play.”

Certainly, the Tigers’ offense is far more advanced than it was last year at this time when Jayden Daniels was still in the infant stages as LSU’s starting quarterback. Daniels didn’t get comfortable with his receivers and the Tigers’ playcallers didn’t get a feel for Daniels until halfway in the season.

Daniels, who sat out the second half of last Saturday’s blowout of Grambling, is averaging 354.8 yards total offense with 6 TDs (all passes). It’s 125 more yards than he averaged a year ago after two games.

While he’s operating the offense smoother than last season – as it should be for the Arizona State transfer making his 17th LSU start – the Tigers’ rushing attack needs to show a leap of improvement against a quality Mississippi State defense.

LSU overwhelmed Grambling with 302 rushing yards on 48 carries and five TDs. Notre Dame transfer Logan Diggs, healed from a hamstring injury, ran for 115 yards and a TD in his Tigers’ debut. Freshman Kaleb Jackson added 62 yards and 2 TDs.

“We’ve got a lot of backs,” said Kelly, who welcomes back senior John Emery Jr. to the rotation after he missed the first two games presumably because of academics. “We’re going to go with the guy that is feeling it and seeing it and ripping off some big plays.

“There’s going to be times they’re (MSU’s defense) going to stunt, have line movements and make it difficult to run. We’ve got to be patient with our running game. We just can’t abandon the running game.”

Zach Arnett, MSU’s defensive coordinator last season, was named the Bulldogs’ head coach after Mike Leach died unexpectedly early last December.

While Arnett has made a drastic change from Leach’s Air Raid offense to a conventional balanced run/pass attack, State’s defense still has a heavy Arnett influence.

Dating back to last season, Mississippi State has recorded a takeaway in seven straight games. State had four takeaways on the first four possessions against Arizona in last Saturday’s 31-24 overtime win in Starkville. Last season, the Bulldogs earned a takeaway in 12 of their 13 games.

State’s defense revolves around linebackers Jett Johnson and Nathaniel Watson. Through two games, the duo has already combined for 35 tackles, 3½ sacks, three interceptions, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

“Those guys have seen a lot of football,” Arnett said. “When there are times we shift stress in our defensive game plan, we give them harder assignments than maybe some of our other guys. We know they have played a lot of football and they can handle that burden.”

No one has been affected more by Arnett’s move to a new offense than MSU senior quarterback Will Rogers.

In his 32 starts under Leach, Rogers averaged 34.7 pass completions and 49 pass attempts per game. Under Arnett in two starts, he’s averaged 14.5 completions and 23 attempts.

Kelly believes Rogers will eventually thrive in the new offense.

“They want to run the football, that’s the change in their offensive structure,” Kelly said, “but it’s set up to use play action to take (passing) shots downfield. “I think it’s really going to suit him (Rogers). He’s extremely accurate. He’s smart. He takes care of the football.” 

GO FIGURE 

1: Pass reception needed by MSU running back Jo’Quavious Marks to become the school’s all-time reception leader. He currently has 199 career catches. 

4: First-year tight ends for the Tigers will all play vs. MSU because starting Tigers’ TE Mason Taylor is questionable with an injury. 

9: LSU offensive players this season have scored at least one TD 

13: Straight wins for LSU when it rushes for 200 yards or more 

20: Consecutive games for LSU receiver Malik Nabers with at least one reception

Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com

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By JERRY BYRD, Journal Sports

The education of Airline quarterback Ben Taylor graduated to a Master level course Friday night at M.D. Ray Field as the junior quarterback led the Vikings to a dominating 48-14 over Northwood. 

The No. 1 team in the Shreveport-Bossier Journal’s Top 10 poll continued stacking up scores with an offense that’s been in gear since Taylor and his receivers began to synch up about this time last season. The Vikings (3-0) soared into a commanding lead by halftime.

At one point in that stretch, Airline head coach Justin Scogin called a play and as soon as he called it, realized it was not what he wanted. Taylor instinctively realized his mentor’s mistake and was able to get the Vikings into a good play.

“It’s always nice when the quarterback starts making you right,” Scogin said. “For the last year and three games, I’ve been trying to call plays to get him in good situations and make him feel comfortable. Tonight, there was a point where I called a play and thought, ‘this is a bad call.’ He waited. He was patient and threw it to the next guy.

“It’s a process because you work so hard with these guys to take the next step. I think that’s 15 touchdowns in three games, so I think it’s safe to say he has taken the next step.”

Taylor was perfect on his first 11 passes of the night. His first incomplete pass of the game came with 9:00 to go in the first half, and wasn’t a bad throw. Taylor rolled right looking for a wide receiver in the end zone. After not finding an open receiver, he threw the ball away.

On the next play, with the ball at the Northwood six, Taylor completed his fourth touchdown pass of the first half,  locating Tre’ Jackson.

Taylor’s first TD throw was to Bryson Broom from 17 yards out on a post route.

Northwood answered with an 11-play, 81-yard drive which ended with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Hutson Hearon to Tucker McCabe. 

There was some strange connection between Taylor and Broom. The pair combined for a touchdown on every odd numbered drive in the first half as Airline built an overwhelming 41-7 lead.

On the third series, Taylor found Broom all alone in the south end zone on a second and goal from the Northwood 13. 

Airline’s fifth drive of the night ended with a Taylor-Broom touchdown pass for 13 yards which capped a 15- play, 99-yard drive. 

Taylor finished the night with 20 completions on 23 attempts for 259 yards — including five touchdowns. 

“It’s the same thing,” Taylor said. “Last year, they came out and beat us. This year, we are more advanced with our offense. We know what we are doing. We are able to execute what we do on offense. The defense played a great game too.”

“We lost one of our good players and he is out, so we have to move some guys around, (playing) positions they aren’t comfortable with, and the kids step up,” Scogin said. “Jarvis Davis did a great job. Bryson Broom did a great job. Tre’ as always. Bob Patterson. Peyton Cooper. Evan Wendrock. They all did a great job.”

Airline’s only score in the second half came on a 29-yard pick six by corner Jeremiah Boudreaux. 

“I was just watching,” Boudreaux said. “I knew they were going to test us. They hadn’t really done too much over the course of the game. Our coach said be ready for anything. As soon as I saw he threw my way, I knew it.”

It was Airline’s second pick six. On the first play of the second quarter, Braylon Jackson swiped a Northwood pass and took it in 30 yards for a touchdown. 

Airline kicker Preston Doerner was good on six of seven extra points. 

The Vikings will host Benton in a District 1-5A opener next Thursday night, as Airline begins defense of its 2022 league title.

Northwood, 0-3, will visit Independence Stadium facing Huntington to begin District 1-4A play on Friday night.

Contact Jerry at sbjjerrybyrd@gmail.com

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JOURNAL SPORTS

HAUGHTON — Many did what Haughton could not Friday.

The Bucs had three shots at a game-winning field goal, but a 53-yarder was blocked at the end of  regulation and a pair of 22-yard attempts sailed wide in each overtime.

But when Many kicker Deacon Lafollette lined up his 33-yard field goal at the end of double overtime, Lafollette made sure that the Tigers (2-1, ranked seventh in Class 2A) would snatch their second straight victory against Haughton.

Lafollette’s field goal lifted Many to a 45-42 win on the road. Last year in Many, the eventual unbeaten state champions pounded the Bucs 35-3.

It was a physical battle Friday night between the pines.

Haughton quarterback Christian Turner left the game in the fourth quarter with an injury, relegating the Bucs (2-1) to a ground attack in their final few drives.

Haughton’s defense dug in its heels in the first overtime, stuffing Jeremiah James on fourth-and-inches on the goal line.

But the Bucs’ 22-yard attempt that could have ended the game pushed wide, sending the contest to double overtime.

Haughton had another crack at a 22-yard field goal in double overtime after Many halted Haughton’s drive, but again, the attempt missed wide.

The Bucs defense stood tall again on Many’s double overtime possession, and a holding penalty backed up Lafollette’s field goal.

Haughton built an early 21-7 lead with two consecutive scores, including one Turner touchdown pass.

But the Tigers came roaring back with three straight touchdowns to snatch a 28-21 edge.

Haughton tied the score late in the second quarter at 28-28.

Many struck first in the second half on a James touchdown scamper, but Haughton had an answer to knot the score at 35-35.

The Bucs lost their third fumble of the night in the fourth quarter, but the defense held tight on fourth-down stop near the 10-yard line.

Haughton took its final lead of the night to go up 42-35 with 10 minutes remaining before another James touchdown run, covering 18 yards, tied the score once again with 4:11 left  and eventually forced overtime.

Parkway 51, Bossier 0: The Panthers’ shutout streak extends to two games as Parkway dominated Bossier to move to 3-0 on the season.

One week after blanking Red River 33-0, Parkway hung another zero on the scoreboard with a suffocating defensive performance against the Bearkats (1-2).

The only difference Friday was the offense got off to a quick start, leading 23-0 in the second quarter and never looking back.

“We swarmed to the ball – it was a team effort tonight,” said Parkway coach Coy Brotherton, whose Panthers are off to a 3-0 start for the second straight season. “We finally played well to start the game.

“We threw the ball well tonight but also scored 16 points on defense.”

Quarterback Kaleb Williams started the scoring with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Lewis.

Antonio Gladney scored the next two offensive touchdowns with a 30-yard run and a 36-yard touchdown catch from Williams.

But Parkway’s defense and special teams got in on the scoring action, recording a safety and a Carmaro Mayo 64-yard kick return touchdown.

The defense scored again on a Khalid Inniss 46-yard fumble return.

Parkway’s young guns saw action as Phat Mayweather and Chase Crowder each rushed for late scores.

Lakeside 51, Plain Dealing 20: The Lions scored their first points of the season Friday, but it wasn’t enough to knock off Lakeside.

The Warriors (2-1) built a 43-6 lead in the first half before the Lions scored two of the final three touchdowns.

Tyrese Kimble scored two of Plain Dealing’s three touchdowns, running back a kick return before scoring a rushing touchdown in the third quarter.

Aaron Reddix reached the end zone in the second half as well.

“It’s important that we scored tonight, and our younger kids are fighting hard and haven’t given up,” said Plain Dealing coach Clint Walker.

Plain Dealing will attempt to snap its 17-game losing streak when the Lions head to Ringgold to kick off district play next Friday.

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JOURNAL STAFF  

Captain Shreve quarterback Brodie Savage got his first start of the season and provided a spark the Gators needed in a 34-20 defeat of Class 3A No. 6 Union Parish Friday night at Independence Stadium.  

Savage passed for 234 yards and three touchdowns and led his team to two fourth-quarter scores after the visiting Farmers had tied the game 20-20.  

“I can’t say enough about Brodie Savage and how he led the offense in his first start,” said Shreve head coach Adam Kirby on the Tim Fletcher Friday Football Frenzy Show on 710 KEEL. “He was very poised and distributed the ball very well and our receivers made great plays and (Jamarlon) Otis did what Otis does.” 

Jordan Wiggins caught eight passes for 135 yards and both fourth quarter scores. Otis led the rushing attack with 94 yards on 16 carries and two scores. 

The Gators (2-1) took a 20-6 first half lead when Savage hit Keaton Flowers for a 37-yard score and Otis scored on runs of 5 and 1 yards. 

The Farmers (1-2) got a score just before halftime to trail 20-14. Jy’marion Island (33 carries, 210 yards) capped a 16-play drive to score from the 2 on the second play of the fourth quarter to tie the game 20-20. 

Shreve answered with a Wiggins 24-yard kickoff return to the Gator 39 and finished off 4-play drive with a 32-yard touchdown reception. 

“We go down and score to make it 27-20 and our defense came back with a huge stop and we put the game away with another good pass to Jordan Wiggins,” said Kirby. 

The Gators got good field position after forcing the punt. Otis started the drive with an 18-yard run and Wiggins finished it with a diving, finger-tip catch for a 38-yard score. 

WESTGATE 34, EVANGEL 12: At Westgate, a delayed kickoff and slow start by both teams ended with the No. 5 ranked Tigers pulling away in the fourth quarter for the non-district win. 

Trailing 6-0 at the half the 10^th-ranked Eagles got their first score when Tyreek Robinson returned a kickoff 95 yards after Westgate had taken a 14-0 lead early in the third quarter.  

Evangel’s offense began to click and a Damari Drake 10-yard touchdown run pulled the Eagles to within 14-12. The 2-point conversion pass was batted down by Westgate to keep the 2-point lead.  

That was as close as the Eagles could manage as miscues hurt and the Tigers’ Tavias Gordon came up with some big runs to salt the game away.  

Westgate scored to start the fourth quarter when Evangel snapped the ball over the punter’s head and a Tiger scooped it up and scored. Gordon then took off on a 65-yard scoring dash.

Evangel falls to 1-2 after the loss and will host Bossier next. 

EAST IBERVILLE 52, MAGNOLIA 8: At Magnolia, the Mariners dropped their home opener in a battle of winless teams. They will open District 1-1A with a trip to Homer next Friday.

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JOURNAL SPORTS

COUSHATTA – Thedrick Harris can see the toughness his Woodlawn Knights are developing. It paid off Friday night on the road in a 38-28 triumph at Red River.

The Knights (2-1) scored twice early to take the upper hand, and never trailed, although the Bulldogs closed within four points in the closing minutes.

But a strong pass rush kept the Bulldogs (1-2) off balance, and Shadrick Jones’ interception return touchdown iced it.

“It was a really hard-fought battle,” said Harris. “Red River is a very tough, hard-hitting, physical team. They run that Wing-T, grinding it out on the ground, and they kept the ball quite a bit.

“We had to make some adjustments on defense versus their run game, but once we got them in a situation where they had to pass, we were able to pressure the passer and they couldn’t come back.”

Quintin Wilson’s rushing production was pivotal for the Knights. Always impactful Brandon Henderson had two long receiving touchdowns and made an interception. Quarterback Isaiah Kennedy was the Woodlawn catalyst, as usual.

And their toughness, said Harris, was decisive.

“Two years ago when I got here, we would have folded in that situation, we would have given it up. But our defense stiffened tonight, our offense moved the ball, got first downs with big runs and big passes when we needed them. When we needed big plays, we got ‘em.”

Woodlawn and Booker T. Washington tangle next Friday.

NEVILLE 50, HUNTINGTON 20:  Class 4A’s No. 4 team didn’t toy with the visiting Raiders as it might appear, but Neville cashed in Huntington mistakes after halftime to break up a tight battle of 2-0 teams in Monroe at storied Bill Ruple Stadium.

The Tigers scored five seconds before the half to carry a 13-0 advantage into the third period. Early in that quarter, Neville collected 16 points from Huntington gaffes and took control.

“We were one play away in the first half from going in down 6-0. Up until that five-second mark before halftime,” said Raiders’ coach Stephen Dennis, “I’m feeling pretty good, because we were getting the second-half kickoff.”

But in the opening minutes of the third quarter, things went haywire for Huntington (2-1). Neville (3-0) notched a pick six TD on a botched screen, then recorded a safety on the next possession, part of a 16-0 burst early after halftime into a 29-0 advantage.  Struggles without their starting deep snapper also resulted in some of Huntington’s second-half decay.

“Stuff you can’t do and beat good teams,” said Dennis. “We’ve got to own what we did good, and what we did bad. When you’re playing a team as good as they are, you’re gonna get a report card at the end of the game. You can’t not look at it. The good thing is, it’s not our final report card.”

Some Raiders got good marks.

“The defensive line and inside linebackers played really well. Especially in the first half, we were really physical up front, and did a good job controlling the line of scrimmage,” said Dennis.

Marcus Willis ran for two touchdowns and Kam Davis added another on the ground. But it wasn’t enough to seriously contend against a perennial 4A powerhouse.

“We’re still learning how to do the little things right, and we didn’t do enough of them tonight,” said Dennis.

The Raiders open District 1-4A competition next Friday against Northwood at Independence Stadium.

NORTH CADDO 62, BOLTON 0:  The best number for first-year Titans coach Chase Thompson Friday night was 43. He dressed out 43 players, and all got to play for a while in the romp over the beleaguered Bears (0-3) from Alexandria.

North Caddo (1-2) left no doubt from the opening kickoff, returning it nearly all the way, down to the Bolton 10. The Titans rocketed by the 40-point mark with time left in the first period and a running clock went into effect.

“We eliminated the penalties from last week, and we got out to a real hot start,” said Thompson. “It happened fast. After the kickoff return to open the game, we never looked back.

“We threw the ball deep, we had big runs. It was all working tonight,” he said.

Quarterback Mason Jackson played just in the first half, when he threw for over 200 yards, hitting three early bombs. It wasn’t just what he did, but how he did it that pleased Thompson.

“Very good manager of the offense this week. Last week he was a little too nervous, but this week he let it fly and it looked real good,” his coach said.

Other offensive stalwarts were running back Tray Morris and slot receiver Chancellor Washington who was a running and receiving dynamo.

What pleased Thompson the most about the team’s progress? “Seeing the vertical passing game come to life. We hit multiple receivers for long gains. It was good to see 5-6 different players with receptions and it was good to see everybody get involved.”

The most fun, he said, was savoring success and shaking off the frustration of the first two games. “The kids were excited. It’s a lot of weight lifted off our shoulders to get that goose egg in the win column off our shoulders.”

North Caddo goes to Neville next week, then hosts West Ouachita before district play begins for the Titans.

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JOURNAL SPORTS 

CITY/SBJ TEAMS

Airline 48, Northwood 14 

Captain Shreve 34, Union Parish 20 

East Iberville 52, Magnolia Charter 8 

Lakeside 51, Plain Dealing 20 

Neville 50, Huntington 20 

Many 45, Haughton 42, 2OT 

North Caddo 62, Bolton 0 

North DeSoto 55, Loyola 3 

Parkway 51, Bossier 0 

Westgate 34, Evangel 12 

Woodlawn 38, Red River 28 

AREA 

ASH 56, Natchitoches Central 14 

Bunkie 54, Jonesboro-Hodge 12 

Conway (Ark.) 49, Ouachita 14 

Glenbrook 55, Delta Charter 32 

Haynesville 51, Junction City (Ark.) 20 

Homer 55, General Trass 38 

Jena 30, St. Frederick 0 

Lakeview 58, Northwood-Lena 12 

Logansport 34, Peabody 6 

North Webster 28, Minden 21 

Ouachita Christian 31, Mansfield 6 

Ringgold 50, Tensas 14 

Ruston 28, Cabot (Arkansas) 17 

St. Mary’s 26, Menard 13 

Sterlington 42, Oak Grove 35, OT 

Tioga 35, Pineville 0 

West Ouachita 17, Richwood 6 

West Monroe 44, Delhi Charter 8 

Winnfield 20, Cedar Creek 0 

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JOURNAL SPORTS  

Green Oaks will host Booker T. Washington in the 50th annual “Soul Bowl” this afternoon at BTW’s Leonard C. Barnes Stadium. Kickoff is 5 p.m.

Both teams are 1-1 on the season. The Lions enter the game after a big 52-6 win over Bolton on the road while Green Oaks had the week off after having to forfeit last week’s game with Carroll, following a 12-6 overtime victory in Week 1 over Southwood.

The Giants claimed last year’s game 28-6 for their only win on the season. Green Oaks has won five of the last six in the spirited series.

BTW (1-1) vs. GREEN OAKS (1-1), Leonard C. Barnes Stadium  

Series: BTW 27-22  

Last year: Green Oaks won 28-6  

Last week: Green Oaks forfeited to Carroll; BTW beat Bolton 52-6  

Rankings: none  

Power rankings: Green Oaks is No. 8 (Select Div. III); BTW is No. 21 (Select Div. II)  

Radio: none  

Notable: BTW QB Brian French accounted for five touchdowns, three passing and two rushing in last week’s win at Bolton … Linebacker Andrew Houston returned a fumble for the game’s first score … The Giants had to forfeit last week’s game at Carroll after their players left the bench in the season opening overtime win over Southwood … the game pits rivals led by new head coaches, Gary Cooper at BTW and James Bradford Jr. for Green Oaks … today’s tailgating scene is likely to be as good as it gets in area high school football this season.

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NATCHITOCHES – The answer to the problem is Bigfoot.

Or maybe, it’s a totem pole. Or just a very big log, inscribed with school logos.

But that’s not really the solution in the “Chief Caddo” controversy swirling around the Northwestern State-Stephen F. Austin football rivalry to be renewed this evening at Turpin Stadium.

The problem, for shocked supporters including a horde of angry former Northwestern State players and alumni, is two-fold: 1) sorting through the why’s and who’s behind the sudden Wednesday announcement of the cancellation of the 62-year-old trophy tradition, and 2) what now?

The 7-foot-6, 320-pound wooden Indian statue, claimed by the winner of each football matchup between the schools, stands somewhere in storage on the SFA campus in Nacogdoches, its future unknown. Not long ago it was proudly displayed in the Lumberjacks’ athletic fieldhouse, and was relocated to their basketball arena when Northwestern visited.

But now it’s statue-non grata. Both university presidents issued a statement Wednesday formally shelving the “Chief” because of sensitivity to understandable concerns from some Native Americans, and outlining a vague path about “ongoing discussions about how best to commemorate this nearly century-old rivalry.”

What was left unsaid was exactly when the decision was reached, who was consulted to make it (obviously not players, coaches and alumni who were invested in the tradition for decades, from the widespread firestorm on social media and over coffee or cocktails), and any timeline to move forward with purpose.

When and who was involved is at best cryptic. It didn’t happen when Dr. Chris Maggio was NSU’s president, despite a polite but firm November 2020 letter of complaint to both schools requesting the end of the trophy exchange – not the tradition — from the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma chairwoman Tamara M. French.  It didn’t happen after an April 2021 resolution passed by the NSU Student Government Association later endorsed by the Faculty Senate.

Then the axe was grinding. After many years of shreds of occasional complaints to officials at NSU and SFA, in the aftermath of the social upheaval movement in the summer of 2020, the letter from French was followed a few months later by the SGA and Faculty Senate resolutions – not university policy, just their recommendations, but worthy of note.

Maggio surprisingly retired late that spring, and current NSU president Dr. Marcus Jones took over Nov. 8, 2021. At some point after that, apparently in conjunction with leadership across Toledo Bend, a decision was made. Unpopular, to be sure. But only a small circle of people knew, and whoever did used the ostrich approach. 

It wasn’t announced. Not when the Demons’ 2023 schedule was released with SFA on it. Not by SFA, whose football coach, Colby Carthel, made it clear Thursday what he thinks of the situation.

“There were rumors they (NSU) were going to turn him into wood chips or whatever for lawn landscaping, but that wasn’t going to happen on our watch,” he told Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel reporter Nathan Hague. “So he is secured out of public sight and will not be played for again, unfortunately for a lot of folks.”

All summer long, NSU fans inquired about the presumed upcoming “Battle for Chief Caddo” – after all, it was a fixture for decades — but got no answers. Finally with game day near, a five-sentence statement from the presidents confirmed the Chief was DOA.

“The main issue ex-players have with this decision is the fact it feels like it was done in the dark,” said a Facebook post by former NSU receiver and SFA assistant coach David Groman, a leader in the “Demon Brothers” support group of former players.

“It would have been nice, as an ex-NSU player and an ex-SFA coach, to be able to let the Caddo Nation know the honor and respect we had for the Chief. To let them know we never recognized this as a ‘cigar store Indian.’

“We would have heard from them the objections they have with the representation of the Chief. Maybe we could have come to an agreement to change … him, a better visual representation. Maybe not,” Groman wrote Thursday. “Maybe they could have heard the respect in our voices. Maybe not.

“I can say it was an honor to fight for Chief Caddo, but I can not say I was honoring Caddo Nation if they didn’t feel the same.”

Why this justifiable, albeit painful move wasn’t made public just after the 2023 schedule was released is puzzling and disappointing. That would have allowed months for a new trophy to be developed, one that did the same things the Chief Caddo trophy was created to do – recognize the historic relationship between the two oldest communities in their respective states, and the Native American influence that made their existence possible.

Saturday’s game could have been a celebration of a new tradition. Now the teams don’t meet until 2025. That leaves plenty of time for deliberation – and hopefully this time, collaboration past a small circle. Build some buy-in. Develop a wonderful new tradition. Fold in service activities by both schools to involve and benefit nearby Native Americans. Add some educational components. And a nice, new prize – hopefully one that is still the biggest in all the sports world. Why change that?

The “antiquated” Chief, thought to be reasonably historically accurate when Logansport wood carver Harold Green developed him in 1960-61, was due for an upgrade. Our society has made much progress since then. There are no longer two water fountains or segregated schools. Women and minorities have greatly enhanced standing in today’s America. It’s not perfect. It never will be, but it can always be better. Maybe over the long haul, this change helps, after it understandably inflamed angry emotions from blindsided Demons and Lumberjacks this week.

There’s one more twist. The Chief probably isn’t SFA’s to keep. Former Demons center Tyler Rapp points out the 2019 Lumberjacks had to forfeit nine games, including their 32-20 NSU win, because of rampant academic compliance shortcomings. SFA had to remove basketball conference championship banners, NCAA Tournament marks and other tokens of competitive success from that period.

Even the SFA record book cites results were vacated by the NCAA Committee on Infractions. So the Chief might have one more journey back to Louisiana, if justice prevails – if somebody will, as the NSU fight song ends, “fight for dear ole Demon land.” 

Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com

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JOURNAL SPORTS

NATCHITOCHES – For 35 seasons from 1984-2019, Northwestern State and Stephen F. Austin football fans could mark their calendars for a November date with each other with many of those games falling in the high-stakes category.

Nearly four years since they last met, the Demons will host the Lumberjacks this evening at 6 o’clock in NSU’s home opener, marking the earliest meeting between the teams since a 27-21 Northwestern State victory on Sept. 15, 1979. The game will air on ESPN+ with Patrick Netherton (play-by-play), three-time NSU All-American linebacker Gary Reasons (analyst) and Tyler Moody (sideline reporter) calling the action.

“For so long, that game was the last game of the season and usually there were some implications, whether it was conference titles or playoff opportunities,” sixth-year head coach and former NSU quarterback Brad Laird said. “This team will not need any more motivation to play their first home game, but it’s something special to bring back a team you had that rivalry with and be able to play them again.”

Northwestern (0-2) and Stephen F. Austin (1-1) have not met since a 32-20 Lumberjacks’ win on Nov. 21, 2019, in the final Southland Conference matchup between the teams. SFA later forfeited the contest due to NCAA academic eligibility violations.

The rivalry resumes for the Demons’ home opener – which comes in Week 3 or later for the third straight season.

“It’s an opportunity – every day is an opportunity,” said senior linebacker Jaeden “Buck” Ward, Northwestern’s leading tackler. “What’s special is we get to play in front of our home crowd, play on the field we practice on every day. You finally get that moment to shine in front of your home fans.”

Like all but three players on the NSU roster – offensive lineman Jordan Cooper, linebacker Jared Pedraza and punter Scotty Roblow – Ward was not in Natchitoches for the most recent meeting with the Lumberjacks.

However, one of the players who somewhat paved a trail for Ward to assume his current starting position was.

Ward is the third different former Trinity Valley Community College linebacker to man a starting spot on the NSU defense since 2018 – following Blake Stephenson and Ward’s former NSU teammate Race Moser.

“One, that’s a good program,” Laird said of Trinity Valley. “That started with (former Trinity Valley head coach and NSU offensive coordinator) coach (Brad) Smiley and the success they had and has continued through the years. You know what you get from a player who comes from Trinity Valley – he works hard and will be a great teammate. Those two things, Buck has done during his time at Northwestern.”

Ward worked his way back from an early-season knee injury in 2022 to become a consistent contributor down the stretch of this past season.

As the Demons enter Week 3 of the 2023 season, they are searching for that type of consistency on both sides of the ball.

“Consistency was our No. 1 key to victory (at Louisiana Tech),” Laird said. “We continue to strive for it in all three phases in order for our team to take that next step.”

The good news for Laird and the Demons is they get to do so at home after playing the first two weeks of the season on the road.

That fact alone has upped the ante for the Demon players this week.

“We’re all excited, especially not to have to get on a bus and travel,” said senior wide receiver Jaren Mitchell, who set his NSU career highs in receptions (4) and receiving yards (60) at Louisiana Tech this past week.

“There’s nothing like playing in front of our home crowd. When we’re able to prepare and be in our own environment, it’s an edge we’ll have in our favor.”

NSU welcomes in an SFA team that has split its first two games – a 48-30 loss at Troy on Sept. 2 and a 38-10 win against Alcorn in Nacogdoches last Saturday.

The game will air on ESPN+ with Patrick Netherton (play-by-play), three-time NSU All-American linebacker Gary Reasons (analyst) and Tyler Moody (sideline reporter) calling the action.

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North Texas (0-2), which left Conference USA in the offseason to move over to the American Athletic Conference,  has lost 58-21 to Cal and 46-39 at FIU. 

A Tech win tonight matches the win total for the Bulldogs in each of the past two seasons, both three-win campaigns. 

The Bulldogs have two non-conference games remaining (tonight, and at Nebraska next Saturday) before resuming Conference USA action in early October at UTEP. 

“The opportunity to play an opponent like North Texas at home is exciting, and we have to try and continue to build on the momentum that we had last week,” said second-year head coach Sonny Cumbie, whose team pushed away at the end of the first half and took control a week ago. “We want to be a consistent team and that is what we are striving for is improvement and consistency. 

“We are not trying to keep our eyes on the win-loss record or the future or who we are playing and what is coming up next. It is about our effort and the ability to get better. Our focus has been to improve every single day.” 

The Bulldogs have shown the ability to pass to win (over 300 yards vs. FIU) and the ability to run the football to win (over 300 yards vs. Northwestern State). And North Texas (0-2) has struggled at times to stop both in losses to Cal and FIU. 

First-year Mean Green head coach Eric Morris has been impressed with what he has seen on film from Tech, especially a Bulldog defense that has allowed its fewest total yards through the first three games in more than two decades. The Bulldogs also rank 10th nationally in passes defended through three games. 

“I think they are a lot better on defense this year as opposed to last year,” said Morris. “I am a history guy. And looking at this in the course of history, we are 1-4 against them in the last five games. This is a team that has every bit of our attention. I have played against their defensive coordinator (Scott Power) before when he was at Stephen F. Austin, and he does a phenomenal job. I think they have some really good players on the back end. 

“On the offensive end they have been able to establish a running game and be pretty efficient. I think they are explosive at wide out. They have experience on the offensive line. Anytime you go to Ruston … it’s always been a challenging place to play. We will have our hands full.” 

The Bulldogs will try to contain two North Texas quarterbacks in former ULM starter Chandler Rogers and Stone Earle, who have both seen significant playing time in both games this year. Earle has thrown four interceptions in just 39 pass attempts while Rogers is more of a duel threat QB. 

“It is a challenge,” said Cumbie. “They are both good players. They have the ability to extend plays, probably Chandler a little bit more than Stone. We have to have an idea of what they are trying to do in their quarterback run game. That element of it will be there. With Stone it will be more of a scramble mode. 

“They have some really talented receivers and their running backs had some success against us last year. Their receivers are very fast so our corners and secondary will have our hands full. Whoever they play at quarterback we will have a good plan for it and will be prepared for both.” 

The contest can be heard on the LA Tech Sports Network on 107.5 FM and the LA Tech Athletics app with Malcolm Butler (pxp), Teddy Allen (analyst) and Jerry Byrd (sideline) providing the call of the game.  It will also be on ESPN+. 

Tech leads the all-time series against North Texas 13-8, including a 6-3 mark in Ruston. However, the Mean Green won 47-27 in Denton in last season’s meeting.

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