By LEE BRECHEEN, Louisiana Football Magazine

The Shreveport-Bossier area has finished an exciting regular season and as always, will be well represented in the LHSAA football playoffs with nine teams, six playing Friday night in the first round.

I’m here to share my views on what will happen. Let’s get started!

Select Division I

No. 20 Captain Shreve (6-4) will take a long trip to visit a very athletic 13^th seeded Hammond team. I’ve seen both Hammond (7-3) and Shreve both play. This is a contest of speed against speed. I think Hammond has the edge in a close game.

The Tornadoes have a really good defense and can slow down many high powered offenses with their front seven. Captain Shreve senior RB Jamarcea Plater will have a big game because that’s what he does — he is one of the best in the state at his position.

Evangel Christian (8-2) earned a No. 8 seed and a bye. The Eagles will play at home next Friday against the winner of St. Paul’s and Pineville, which should be St. Paul’s out of Covington.

Select Division II

Booker T. Washington has earned the right to host the Lions’ first home playoff game since 2008. This will be the third year in a row BTW has made the playoffs under Gary Cooper and this is his best team yet. The 13^th-seeded Lions (6-4) will meet 20^th seed  Istrouma out of Baton Rouge.

These teams are equal in talent. I have to give the edge to BTW with their talented WR DK Mitchell and young QB Davion Stewart. This tandem will be tough for Istrouma to contain.

Loyola Prep has had a great season with a 9-1 record, a tremendous offense, and is the No. 2 seed. That earned the Flyers a bye Friday. Loyola will play host to the winner of Belaire and Patrick Taylor of New Orleans.

As usual, in Division III Calvary Baptist (9-1) has a bye and will play the winner of Metairie Park Country Day or Pope John Paul II out of Slidell.

Non-Select Division I

Parkway (9-1) slipped to a No. 6 seed after last week’s loss at Evangel will be home against a really talented  27^th seeded Covington team that I had a chance to see in person. This will be a close game.

Covington (6-4) has a lot of team speed and played a tough schedule. Parkway will need a big game from the defense again in what is a difficult matchup for Parkway.  Edge to the Panthers based on homefield advantage at Preston Crownover Stadium. I have Parkway winning in a close game.

In a rematch of a second-round game last year, the roles are flipped when No. 17 Airline (7-3) will travel to New Iberia to play 16^th seeded Westgate (6-4). The Vikings will need a big game from the defense as happened in 2024 in a 42-16 victory over the Tigers.

Westgate is a young team like Airline. Both are strong on offense. I can see a 45-42 game here with a close win by Westgate because the defense they have gives them the edge, and this time they are at home. But the Vikings have WR Kenny Darby and he makes magic happen. The LSU commit needs to have a career game for Airline to ride home happy.

Northwood, the seventh seed as the Class 4A school plays up in Division I, will be home against 26^th seed (a better team than the seed) Barbe from Lake Charles. Airline handled Barbe in Week 1, 56-27, but that was a long time ago.

This is a game where both teams are even in talent and youth. Northwood has an awesome senior class, but there’s also a core of underclassmen making plays for coach Austin Brown.

Expect a lot of points.  I think Northwood should pull this out because of strong special teams with two really good kickers and a bend-but-don’t-break defense. I am impressed with the Falcons’ QB,  Nathan Cervantes, who is just a dadgum gamer, and think he will be the difference in this game.

Non-Select Division II

Bossier is back in the postseason. Coach Gary Smith and staff are building it the right way and the Bearkats have earned the opportunity as a 22^nd seed.

The Bearkats will travel to 11^th-seed West Feliciana, right outside of Baton Rouge. This will be the first playoff game for Bossier since 2021

Montrevell Lewis didn’t want to play quarterback. He wanted to be a receiver, but it became obvious early in the season that he was something special. I’d say – the sophomore has 2,750 yards total offense and has scored 33 touchdowns. running and throwing the football.

Special teams get overlooked, but not unappreciated by coaches, teammate and savvy fans. One of the big reasons they are in the playoffs is kicker  Bryan Tuyizere, who is having a great year.

Bossier is much improved but I see a West Feliciana win here because of their depth, experience and overall team speed and they have some pretty good lineman in the trenches.

Nearby teams of note

Undefeated North DeSoto is top-seeded in Division II Non Select with a bye this week. I like the Griffins’ chances to go a long way and possibly win it all.

North Webster, a really talented team that Christopher Wilson has developed in his second season, goes on the road to Church Point. The Bears are another talented offensive team so this should be a close Non-Select Division II game.

Homer will be at home against a really good Franklin squad in a Non-Select Division IV 16-17 matchup and it will be a tough one to for the Pels to survive.

Haynesville (10-0) has a bye in Non-Select Division IV and looks ready to roll to the Superdome. Logansport (7-3) will host Varnado and  I give Logansport the win. Kevin Magee’s Tigers have weathered early injuries and are peaking at the right time.

In Non-Select Division III, Mansfield (8-2) hosts Winnfield (3-7) and the  Wolverines look good to me. Minden hosts a talented Wossman in Non-Select Division II and the edge to goes to Wossman in a great game.

Contact Lee at lbrecheen@aol.com

(Lee Brecheen is the longtime publisher of Louisiana Football Magazine, covering all of the state’s high school teams each year since 1997.  He’s been tracking high school recruits since 1992. Free content can be found at the website lafootballmagazine.com. Lee hosts a podcast with guests from around the state — The Sports Scouting Report with Lee Brecheen, available on YouTube).

By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports

BATON ROUGE – Someone on Charlotte’s women’s basketball team thought it was a good idea to trash-talk 5th-ranked LSU via social media.

“They took it personal,” Tigers’ head coach Kim Mulkey said. “It fired them up. And if I were a player, I’d be fired up, too.”

LSU treated the visiting 49ers like road kill, with seven players scoring in double figures and Charlotte not scoring a field goal in the second quarter, in a 117-59 beatdown Wednesday night in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

The Tigers (4-0) broke the 100-point mark for the fourth straight time. The school record for most consecutive 100-point games is five, set by the 2022-23 national championship team to open the season.

But even that LSU squad didn’t have what the 2025-26 team has, an abundance of depth which has produced 114.5 points per game with an average victory margin of 59.5.

And here’s the most astonishing stat of all – LSU’s bench is averaging 57.5 points and the starters are averaging 57.

“I’ve been doing this for almost 40 years,” Mulkey said. “I can’t even think about if I’ve ever had balance like that. I probably have never confidently substituted like this, even in non-conference. And what has dictated that is what goes on in practice every day. You show me in practice.

“Our practices are extremely tough, I think, because they’re fighting for playing time. And I tell them, ‘Don’t worry about who’s starting. Make me play you.’ Well, they’re all making me play them.”

South Carolina transfer guard MiLaysia Fulwiley, trotted out her entire arsenal, scoring 22 points and tying her 3-point career high of 5 3-pointers (in six attempts) in just more than 16 minutes off the bench. She finished just shy of her career-high 24 points scored twice for the Gamecocks, including vs. LSU in last season’s SEC Tournament finals.

“I’m a great driver, so I think that opens up my shot,” Fulwiley said. “It’s all about being confident. I’m a very confident player. When it’s (her shot) going in, I just keep letting it fly.”

Six other Tigers scored in double figures. Former Bossier City Parkway High star Mikaylah Williams had 18 points, Flau’Jae Johnson 16 and Amiya Joiner 15. Kate Koval, Grace Knox and ZaKiyah Johnson contributed 10 each.

“I feel like our team is definitely special,” said Koval, a Notre Dame transfer who also had 12 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double. “We truly enjoy each other.

“You can see our chemistry on the court. Everybody eats on this team. Everybody gets a touch. Double the post players, and we’ve got amazing shooters. You stop our shooters and drivers, we’ve got great post players. We all kind of play off of each other.”

The 49ers were relatively competitive in the game’s first five minutes, trailing 17-10. But when Mulkey replaced her entire starting five during a media timeout with 4:41 left in the first quarter, Fulwiley came off the bench and immediately got busy.

In a 19-2 Tigers’ run to close the first quarter with a 36-12 lead, she hit the first two of her game-total five 3-pointers and got an old-fashioned three-point play with a sweeping one-hand drive and a free throw.

Fulwiley hit 3 of 5 3’s in the second quarter, including a buzzer-beater as the first half ended for 62-17 LSU lead.

The Tigers outscored the 49ers 26-5 in the period as Charlotte went 0 for 17 from the field (including 0 of 13 3-pointers).

“I told them (Mulkey’s team at halftime) `You can’t do any better than that, it has to be a record’,” Mulkey said.

LSU returns to the court with a road game at Tulane on Monday.

Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com

Most days passed with an alarming sameness.

Spelling class, reading, math.

Recess. History.

Lunch.

English. A science experiment.

Homework.

Over and over.

But now and then, something glorious would happen, something to make those long elementary school days all seem worthwhile. Because every now and then, some kid would throw up.

We’d talk about it for weeks.

Don’t say you don’t remember. Don’t act as if you’re above it, above remembering one of the most basic experiences of childhood. You might forget the class motto or the words to your alma mater, but it’s difficult to forget the day the guy who sat in front of you threw up on his Keds.

These are the ties that bind.

When it happened at our school, the janitor — ours was one of the kindest men ever to walk on Earth — would amble in with a sack and start sprinkling stuff on the, well, he’d start sprinkling stuff on the pile. We watched this from a distance: there was an imaginary 6-to-8-foot circle drawn around the offending pile, and only our janitor, willing and intrepid, could — or would — enter it.

But here’s my question: What was that stuff he sprinkled? It looked like some kind of thick sawdust to me. Possibly pine shavings. All I know is that

I’ve never seen this product anywhere else. If someone throws up in the rec hall at church camp or even in a hospital, mops and buckets and towels appear.

But no sawdust stuff.

This is evidently a product sold only to and used only by elementary schools. I don’t think there was even a brand name on the bag. The product was wrapped in mystery and remains that way, an unsolved puzzle from elementary school, something you never learn the answer to.

Like pi.

After the ceremonial sprinkling, The Big String Mop for hazardous waste spills such as these would make an appearance along with its faithful sidekick, The Big Rolling Bucket with the vise-like apparatus on it that would squeeze out the mop when you pressed its handle.

I always wondered where they dumped that mop water. In another county, I prayed.

Eventually, the damp spot “where it happened” would dry and some degree of order would be restored. Couldn’t do anything about the smell, though. It lingered, a haunting reminder, an olfactory calling card that would not die until it got good and ready. Two weeks was the minimum, whether they brought in The Big Fan from the auditorium or not. Trying to blow the smell away was like trying to blow an incoming wave back into the ocean.

Like the smell, word spread quickly from classroom to classroom.

“Somebody threw up?” This was always asked not with worry but with anticipation. It was followed by other standards:

“Who?”

“Where?”

“Did they get to go home?”

“Did it GET on anybody?”

And a personal favorite: “What WAS it?”

I admit it’s sad that some of us find an almost silly moment of glee in remembering moments like this from our misspent grade school educations. No everyone has this genetic flaw. So if this story has offended you, please forgive me; you might try sprinkling a little sawdust on it.

Contact Teddy at teddy@latech.edu

NATCHITOCHES — Behind-the-scenes stories recounting the filming of the 1989 box office hit movie “Steel Magnolias,” shot on location in Natchitoches, will be shared Thursday evening at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum at 800 Front Street in Louisiana’s oldest city.

“Steel Magnolias Memories with Tom Whitehead and Friends” from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Natchitoches museum (800 Front Street) includes a reception and panel discussion about 6:45 with audience participation, sharing memories of the beloved classic film with a star-studded cast.

Whitehead, a now-retired journalism professor at Northwestern State University, was the second local person hired by the production company, assisting in logistics and hosting the stars in the cast throughout their stays in Natchitoches.

He will be joined on the panel by other locals who were involved in the production – Bill Brent, Sandra Dickens, Ed Ward – and Shreveport entertainment writer Maggie Martin. 

Tickets at the door are $20 for the public, $10 for NSU students, and free for FLASH members. Enjoy complimentary refreshments during the event.

The event is a fundraiser for FLASH, Friends of Louisiana Sports and History, the local support group for the museum, which is part of the Louisiana State Museum system.

Written by Natchitoches native Robert Harling Jr. and immediately a smash hit on Broadway, “Steel Magnolias”  was adapted for the screen just two years later and featured the breakout performance by future Academy Award-winning actress Julia Roberts, alongside Oscar winners Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine and Olympia Dukakis, superstar entertainer and actress Dolly Parton, and Daryl Hannah, with acclaimed actors Tom Skerritt and Dylan McDermott in key supporting roles.

The comedy/drama continues to resonate four decades later, inspiring thousands of stage adaptations around the world and a 2012 Lifetime Network movie remake, and is treasured for its themes of friendship and reliance and its portrayal of Southern small-town charm.

Harling wrote about the life and 1985 passing of his sister, Susan Harling Robinson, a young mother who died from complications with diabetes. 

After he persuaded TriStar Pictures executives to shoot the movie in Natchitoches, the production was a seminal event for the community, with many locals working behind the scenes and appearing as extras or even with small speaking parts in the film. Its release and reception sparked a stream of visitors to Natchitoches to see the film’s location and soak in the ambiance of the city, a phenomenon that continues today.

For more information or to join FLASH, call the museum at 318-357-2492. It is open to the public Tuesday-Saturday from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. with modest admission prices topping out at $6.

By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports

RUSTON – The Brian Kelly  vs. LSU legal battle is higher stakes, but the lawsuit Conference USA has filed attacking Louisiana Tech could have million-dollar implications.

CUSA has filed a public records suit against the University of Louisiana System, the governing agency for Louisiana Tech, Daniel Libit of Sportico.com reported Tuesday. The move accuses Tech of withholding documents on its 2026 exit to join the Sun Belt Conference, in an effort to collect its annual share of revenue from CUSA.

CUSA’s suit claims deception by Tech to shroud documents that “would undercut the school’s claim to its latest multi-million dollar annual distribution” – believed to be in the range of $5.2 million — received from the conference on June 27.

Tech formally served notice on July 14 it was leaving to join the Sun Belt – a move that was widely speculated and reported over the past six weeks. The officlal Sun Belt invitation was stalled while SBC member Texas State got in position to accept an invitation to join the Pac 12, which finally happened at the end of June.

Some Sun Belt member schools, particularly those in the eastern time zone, were reluctant to invite Tech, and conference leaders needed time before convincing the remaining SBC members that the Ruston institution was the best replacement. But CUSA’s suit claims Tech was poised to leave weeks earlier.

“The fact that Louisiana Tech apparently delayed its notice to CUSA of its intention to leave the conference until July 14, 2025, even though it had already decided to leave sometime before May 27, 2025, resulted in Louisiana Tech improperly receiving a distribution from CUSA as a full member on June 27, 2025,” asserts the CUSA lawsuit.

CUSA’s suit says the notification violated league bylaws that require member to officially state its intention to depart at least 14 months in advance – which CUSA claims would have forced Tech to forfeit the annual distribution of conference revenues based on another bylaw that prohibits departing members from getting a share for two years after they’ve signaled intent to leave.

The suit says Tech wanted to “have its cake and eat it too” and cites a May 27 letter from the university’s president, Jim Henderson, to the ULS board, addressing the interest in the Sun Belt.

CUSA filed a public records request related to Tech’s departure last month and the gloves came off when it officially sued ULS on Nov. 5.

The university released a statement barking back at CUSA.

“We have provided full transparency to CUSA throughout our exit negotiations in written and verbal communications with conference leadership. We fully complied with the public records request.

“The conference movements during the first half of July played out publicly. CUSA seems to be clinging to specious conspiracy theories of their own making. CUSA could have easily made an additional request for clarification instead of wasting the court’s time and its members’ resources.

“We look forward to continuing our negotiations, as this conference move will greatly improve the health and well-being of our student-athletes, a priority dear to everyone trusted to lead in this ever-changing environment of college athletics,” said Tech’s statement made Tuesday.

A Nov. 19 show-cause hearing is scheduled in Louisiana state court.

Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com

JOURNAL SPORTS

The season is done for 10 of our 19 local high school football teams after 10 weeks. The remaining nine enter the LHSAA’s postseason tournaments, four divisions in both Select and Non-Select competition.

Each team has its own story, and there are subplots in every instance.

As coaches take stock of their teams’ regular-season performance, the Shreveport-Bossier Journal Coaches Roundtable question this week was pretty basic: what is the biggest surprise, the most rewarding development or event your team has provided?

DENNY DURON, Evangel – “The most pleasant surprise for me this year has been the leadership that is developed within our team. We are not a rah-rah, hyped-up squad. These kids have bought into hardnose assignment-centered football and it has made all the difference.

“I am so proud of the way they are playing.”

COY BROTHERTON, Parkway – “Faculty members’ kids contributing to big wins.  As a former coach’s kid and brother, I know the pressure you feel sometimes and to see our biggest two wins come on the hands of two Parkway coaches kids is awesome. 

“Peyton Rayner had the fourth-down stop to beat Airline.  His dad is a longtime assistant coach and current assistant principal. 

“We won the Shreve game on a walk-off field goal by Thad Smith, whose mom teaches algebra and coaches cross country.  That’s the biggest surprise and most rewarding part of the season.” 

AUSTIN BROWN, Northwood – “There really haven’t been many surprises. They have been a good group to coach and the seniors have taken ownership of the team. They have really done a good job of leading and as a result, we’ve made progress from day one to now and we’ve had a very good season.”

JOHN SELLA, Loyola – “I’ve been so impressed by our offensive line this year — Ryan Sipes, Johnny Roberts, Ian Wallace, Cade Kirby, and Bennett Lawson.

“None of them were starters on the offensive line for us last year and to be able to mesh so well and be that good up front with five new starters is pretty dang good.”

JUSTIN SCOGIN, Airline – “A few people come to mind when you think about this one, but the Moore brothers to me are a great fit.

“Max, who we moved from O-line to D-line in the spring, has really came into his own at noseguard. His brother Matt started out on offense and had a lot of success before having to be moved to linebacker late in the season.

“Both are great kids that never question what you do —  they just get after it. They’ve had plenty of opportunities to feel slighted, but they’re such good teammates. They do whatever they can to help the team.” 

JEREMY WILBURN, Captain Shreve – “There’s been a collective maturity, accepting ownership of every aspect of what we’re doing, and that’s a significant improvement since last season. When we have things to address, off tape or otherwise, the players correct it. When that begins happening, that’s when the program is heading in the right direction.

‘We’ve had some situations in games when kids have gotten frustrated, and you can hear the players addressing it before the coaches have a chance to get involved. Often it’s been some of our younger guys showing leadership that way. The seniors have been really good at buy-in, and younger guys have gotten on board much sooner than you might expect.

“The team has a collective grit, the ability to take care of business with enthusiasm. Instead of looking at it as, ‘this is another practice we have to get through,’ they’re looking at it as ‘this is another practice where we have an opportunity to get better.’ I can’t speak to that enough. We’ve plowed through a lot of adversity and shown a lot of resiliency, a lot of toughness, and they’ve taken ownership of all of it. That’s what I am most proud of.”

MATTHEW SEWELL, Haughton – “A pleasant surprise for us was our trio of senior skill players. We had three senior receivers/tight ends (Carter Couvillion, CJ Johns, and Jayden Lackey) that had not played much at the varsity level going into this season.

“We didn’t know what kind of production to expect from them, but really needed one of them to step up and make an impact. Turns out all three of them did. They played their tails off each week, blocked extremely well, and combined for 32 receptions for 510 yards and 6 touchdowns.”

“They were all a big part of our success on offense, and all three are great representatives of our program.”

STEPHEN DENNIS, Benton – “Probably the development of our defensive line. We came into the year with a lot of guys that had not played very many varsity snaps, and we ended the year with a two-man rotation at most spots along the D-line that will all be back next year!!

“I am very excited about the future of that position group.” 

By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports

Forget ebbs and flows. Captain Shreve’s football team has experienced the extremes this season, and as the Gators prepare for their playoff visit to Hammond Friday night, they’ve regained their mojo.

That dance away from the brink of total collapse has earned Captain Shreve the Shreveport-Bossier Journal Team of the Week nod.

A month ago, Shreve seemed to be peaking, coming into a visit to Evangel on a four-game win streak in District 1-5A, leaving the Gators level with the Eagles and Parkway’s Panthers, unbeaten in league play.

But a spate of injuries, mostly on defense, weighed heavily as Jeremy Wilburn’s team hit the toughest stretch of the schedule – Evangel, followed by perennial state power Destrehan in a non-district game, with unbeaten Parkway next up.

Evangel blew out Shreve, 71-25. Destrehan rolled at Lee Hedges Stadium, 68-28. Parkway scored on its first two tries to make it 22 consecutive possessions that had been scoring drives against the Gators. The boys in green and gold were on very shaky ground.

Then Shreve’s defense got a stop. Later, another. And another.

“You don’t get to pick your trajectory. You’ve got to take your lumps and grow from there,” said Wilburn, the Gators’ second-year coach. “It doesn’t matter what line of work you’re in, or what sport you’re playing, you’ve got to learn from your mistakes, work with your colleagues or teammates, and become better as a unit, and as individuals.”

The Gators growled. They climbed out of a 15-point fourth-quarter hole and tied the Panthers with four minutes to go. Parkway prevailed on a methodical, but hard-earned, game-closing drive to a last-play field goal for a 45-42 escape.

But it was something of a triumph for Wilburn’s squad.

“Right in the middle of our toughest stretch in the schedule, all of a sudden because of injuries, we had a lot of pups playing. We had 4-5 sophomores on defense playing 90 percent of the snaps at Parkway, and should have walked out of there with a win if we could have executed better on extra points,” he said. “It was a really proud moment for me to see the leaders step up, on the coaching side and the kids buying in to what they were being coached to do.”

Shreve has won its last two, 65-44 over Haughton and 35-27 last Thursday over arch-rival Byrd. The Gators defense slowed down the Yellow Jackets’ running game like no other 1-5A team had in a 35-27 Week 10 victory.

With Jamarcea Plater, Shawn Devers, Gabe Lockett and Kendrick Law fueling the Gators’ offense, led by a rapidly-developing Jackson Gaskin at quarterback, putting up points is Shreve’s forte. Now that the defense has some backbone, the Gators (6-4) are back in gear at playoff time.

Injuries forced a youth movement on defense. Sophomores Zhayden Sessions, Tmon Lemons (linebackers), Derayl Veal and Elijah Turner up front, and Braylon Pickens in the secondary have answered the bell, along with senior defensive back Andrew Sharp.

“They didn’t flinch,” Wilburn said. “Beginning in that Parkway game, in the last three weeks, we’ve developed momentum. There’s nothing like finding out that under the lights on Fridays, good things happen and you realize you can do this job. You believe in what you’re getting told and you’re carrying what you learn from practice reps and from film, and it’s a special moment. You can see the confidence in the eyes of those young kids.”

Offensively, Gaskin’s development has been shockingly good. He wasn’t on the team when preseason began, having stepped away after his freshman season to focus on baseball. But when Shreve suddenly needed a starting QB, he took on the challenge.

“This is a quarterback league, as good as any district in the state in that regard, and he’s really raised his level of play consistently week to week. For not having played football for a few years, to step out there and perform at his level  is remarkable,” said Wilburn.

“He’s a super smart kid, an elite competitor, a guy who loves to work at things. He’s seeing things on tape and in meetings and asking higher-level questions and making suggestions that are very, very insightful.”

An early injury benched big senior offensive tackle Donovan Jones. His younger brother, sophomore Dylan Jones, stepped in.

“He is a special talent who has a great football IQ,” said Wilburn. “He’s asking questions that I’d hear seniors ask when I was coaching college ball. He’s 15, has two years of high school left, and he’s a massive (6-4, 332) kid who has been an absolutely bulldog in the box this year.”

Andre Campbell has played every spot from left to right tackle. The senior “makes all the calls and has been our Mr. Consistent who keeps the O-line together,” said Wilburn.

Two more seniors, Brayden McDuffey and Rashaun Morrison, have shined up front. Showing they belong have been a couple of sophomores: Jeremiah Jordan and Ro-Treyvion Swan. Freshman Tyrone Proby started at center last week.

Despite being tantalized by the long-term potential, Wilburn is most pleased with how his Gators have pulled it back together instead of folding.

“That’s something that we can all take pride in,” he said.

Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com

By PATRICK MEEHAN, Centenary Sports Information Director

This weekend closes the 2025 football season, the second this century for Centenary, just after the Gents basketball team tips off its home schedule at the Gold Dome under first-year coach J.A. Anglin on Friday night.

MEN’S BASKETBALL: The Gents were edged 78-77 by Pfeiffer University last Saturday afternoon in a non-conference contest as part of the Viking Tip-Off Classic inside the Cage Center in Rome, Ga.

Centenary (0-2) fell 77-55 to the Berry College Vikings on Friday night in the season opener for both teams.

Centenary will open its home schedule this Friday night against East Texas Baptist at 7 in the Gold Dome. 

FOOTBALL: With the conclusion of last Saturday’s games, the matchups for the inaugural Southern Collegiate Athletic Association Football Championship weekend have been set and Centenary kicks off the action at 10 a.m. this Saturday.All six of the conference’s football-playing members will assemble in Little Rock at historic War Memorial Stadium to determine the league’s final order of finish, including the 2025 conference championship.

Because Austin College, Centenary and Lyon all finished 1-4 in league play, tiebreakers were needed to determine the lower three seeds. The first seed tiebreaker that provided any differentiation was overall losses and Centenary had one more (seven) than both Lyon and Austin College (six).

Once two teams were remaining, the league’s tiebreaker reverted to head-to-head results and Lyon (1-4 SCAC; 2-6 overall) earned the No. 4 seeding berth in the third-place game by virtue of its 40-28 victory over Austin College on November 1 in Sherman. Third-seeded Hendrix (3-2 SCAC, 5-4 overall) defeated Lyon, 38-21, on October 25 in a game played in Conway, Arkansas.

Opening SCAC Football Championship Weekend is fifth-seeded Austin College (2-6 overall) taking on the No. 6 Gents. (1-7 overall). The ‘Roos picked up their first conference win of the season a week ago at Atkins Field in their comeback 20-10 victory over the Gents.

Capping Saturday’s tripleheader will be top-seeded Texas Lutheran (5-0 SCAC; 6-3 overall) against second-seeded McMurry University (4-1 SCAC; 5-4 overall) with the 2025 conference title on the line. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.

The Bulldogs walked away with a 42-13 victory over the War Hawks two Saturdays ago in a game played in Abilene. The two teams were co-champions of the SCAC last season.
Tickets for Saturday’s games can be purchased by clicking here with both general admission and club level seats available. Any general admission ticket purchase will be honored for all three games.

A club level seat purchase guarantees club level access for the game of your choice, plus general admission access for any of the other two games. There is a limit of 150 club seats for each team. Tickets (general admission and club level) will also be available for purchase on site, as will preferred tailgating slots.

VOLLEYBALL: The Ladies lost a pair of matches last Saturday on the final day of their season, as they were swept 3-0 by LeTourneau and fell 3-1 to Rhodes College inside the Gold Dome.

The Ladies finished their season 3-23 overall and 2-14 in Conference play. 

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: The Ladies held a late lead over Jarvis Christian in a non-conference contest on Monday night at home but the Bulldogs rallied to win 59-52 at the Gold Dome. 

The Ladies (0-2) led by seven points (52-45) with 6:34 remaining, but the Bulldogs (1-3) finished the game on a 14-0 run to seal the comeback win. 

Centenary returns to action on Thursday with another non-conference contest against the Mississippi University for Women Owls (0-2) at noon in Columbus, Miss.

Contact Patrick at pmeehan@centenary.edu

We are entering the season of anticipatory waiting. There is lots of movement in this season. We travel. We welcome out-of-town guests. We hurry to the door when Amazon arrives. Soon the Liturgical churches talk about the waiting of Advent. Lowes, Walmart, and Hobby Lobby have gone all Christmas all the time. They have been anticipatory waiting since September! Before you dive head long into your ritual chaos, I wanted you to ponder Sue Monk Kidd’s When the Heart Waits. She wrote:

“One afternoon as the children watched television and I folded laundry; we heard a terrible thud against the patio door. I turned in time to see blue wings falling to the ground. A bird had flown into the glass.

None of us said a word. We looked at one another and crept to the door. The children followed me outside. I half-expected the bird to be dead, but she wasn’t. She was stunned and her right wing was a little lopsided, but it didn’t look broken—bruised, maybe.

The bird sat perfectly still, her eyes tiny and afraid. She looked so fragile and alone that I sat down beside her. I reached out my little finger and brushed her wing.

A voice came from behind me, “Why doesn’t it fly off, Mama?”

“She’s hurt,” I said. “She just needs to be still.”

We watched her. We watched her stillness. Finally, the children wandered back to the television, satisfied that nothing was going to “happen” for a while. But I couldn’t leave her.

I sat beside her, unable to resist the feeling that we shared something, the two of us. The wounds and the brokenness of life. Crumpled wings. A collision with something harsh and real. I felt like crying for her. For myself. For every broken thing in the world.

That moment taught me that while the postures of stillness within the cocoon are frequently an individual experience, we also need to share our stillness. The bird taught me anew that we’re all in this together, what we need is to sit in one another’s stillness and take up corporate postures of prayer. How wonderful it is when we can be honest and free enough to say to one another, “I need you to wait with me,” or “Would you like to me to wait with you?”

I studied the bird, deeply impressed that she seemed to know instinctively that stillness is healing. I had been learning that too, learning that stillness can be the prayer that transforms us. How much more concentrated our stillness becomes, though, when it’s shared.

The door opened again, “Is she finished being still?”

“No, not yet,” I said, knowing that I was talking as much about myself as the bird. We went on waiting together. Twenty minutes. Thirty. Fifty.

Finally, she finished being still. She cocked her head to one side, lifted her wings and flew. The sight of her flying made me catch my breath. From the corner of my eye I saw her shadow move along the ground and cross over me. Grace is everywhere I thought. Then I picked myself up and went back to folding the laundry.”

For more than six decades, the small island in New York Harbor served as America’s front door. But on November 12, 1954, Ellis Island processed its final immigrant and closed as a federal immigration station, marking the end of an era that had defined the American story.

Since its opening in 1892, more than 12 million immigrants — many from southern and eastern Europe — had passed through its gates. For countless families, Ellis Island represented both hope and hardship, offering a chance at new beginnings in the United States.

By the mid-20th century, immigration laws had changed, and air travel replaced ocean liners as the dominant mode of international arrival. Screening and processing were relocated to U.S. embassies abroad, leaving Ellis Island largely obsolete.

Its final detainee, a Norwegian seaman named Arne Peterssen, departed quietly that November day. The closure signaled a new chapter in U.S. immigration policy, one increasingly focused on regulation rather than mass arrival.

Ellis Island later became a museum and national monument, preserving the stories of millions who entered through its halls. For historians and families tracing their ancestry, the site remains a symbol of the nation’s immigrant roots.

The date — November 12 — continues to stand as a milestone in the evolution of American identity. It reminds the country of its promise to those seeking opportunity, and of the ever-changing definition of what it means to become an A

It’s Veterans Day, when we all should pause to recognize there are heroes walking among us.

Not the heroes we cheer for when they’re wearing jerseys and playing for our favorite teams.

Although some of those qualify as real heroes. I’ll get to that.

It’s especially important today to acknowledge you mingle with heroes on a daily basis around here. In Bossier City, about 6,500 active duty and reservists serve our nation at Barksdale Air Force Base.

Today’s holiday honors them and their brothers and sisters throughout the history of our country — all military veterans who have served or are serving the United States.

Both my grandfathers fought in World War I – one in the Navy (his son graduated from the Naval Academy shortly after World War II) and the other in the Army, in trench warfare in France. My dad flew for the Army Air Force during WWII and the Korean Conflict, fortunately not in combat.

None of them were athletes past their youth. This is a perfect day to celebrate some remarkable competitors for their service to America.

This spotlight should first fall on Trey Prather, a quarterback good enough to start ahead of young Terry Bradshaw at Woodlawn High School, and to sign with LSU. He played some in his first two seasons, but wasn’t the starter, got frustrated, and in 1967, enlisted in the Marines. He was soon in combat in Vietnam, and was killed in action early the next year.

Through the glory days of LSU baseball, local stars like Todd Walker and Hayden Travinski have led the Tigers to College World Series titles after playing their careers at Alex Box Stadium. Perhaps you know about the namesake.

Originally a football player for the Tigers, Box turned to baseball in 1939 due to a shoulder injury. He played right field and batted cleanup. Occasionally, his shoulder would dislocate on a throw but teammates would pull it back in place and he stayed in the lineup.

Box enlisted after the attack on Pearl Harbor thrust America into war. He earned the Distinguished Service Cross for heroic battle conduct in 1942 but a year later was killed and is buried at the North African American Cemetery in Carthage, Tunisia.

You may know the Iowa Hawkeyes football team plays in Kinnick Stadium, named for the 1938 Heisman Trophy winner, Nile Kinnick, who made the ultimate sacrifice in WWII.

A remarkable group of Baseball Hall of Fame members made it through combat in those four horrible years. Yogi Berra took part in the D-Day invasion before he was an 18-time All-Star catcher for the Yankees. Pitcher Bob Feller became the first pro athlete to enlist, two days after Pearl Harbor, and served four years as a gunner. After the war, Feller kept firing and led the America League in strikeouts the next three seasons.

Warren Spahn left the minor leagues to join the Army. He fought at the Battle of the Bulge and earned a Purple Heart before winning 363 games as a Milwaukee Braves pitcher.

Berra’s teammates, infielders Pee Wee Reese and Phil Rizzuto, served in the Navy. Rizzuto fought in the Pacific Theatre for three years, then became an MLB legend.

Knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm played 21 big league seasons after receiving a Purple Heart for being wounded at the Battle of the Bulge.

Perhaps the most prominent ballplayer to serve was Boston Red Sox slugger Ted Williams, who missed seven prime years in the big leagues after he became a naval aviator in the Marine Corps and served during both World War II and the Korean War. When he came home in 1946, “The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived” won his first American League MVP award and played in his only World Series.

He had not seen combat in WWII, but remained a Marine reservist. When war erupted in Korea, he was called up and flew 39 missions, half as the wingman for future astronaut John Glenn. Captain Williams came home in 1953 and played seven more MLB seasons

Pro Football Hall of Famer Chuck Bednarik was a beast for Philadelphia at linebacker and center, leading the Eagles to a 1960 NFL title. He was a gunner on 30 WWII missions and earned the Air Medal, four Oak Leaf Clusters, the European Theater Operations Medal, four Battle Stars and the Good Conduct Medal.

More recently, Bradshaw’s Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls in the 1970s with Rocky Bleier as a halfback. He was drafted by the Steelers in 1968 and by Uncle Sam a year later. Sent to Vietnam, Bleier earned a Purple Heart and Bronze Star after he sustained gunshot and grenade injuries, and was told he’d probably never run again. He did, even stacking up a 1,000-yard season in 1976.

Pro wrestler Jesse “The Body” Ventura served in the Navy (1969-1975) during Vietnam. Boxer Leon Spinks beat Muhammad Ali to win the world heavyweight crown in 1978, two years after he completed a three-year hitch with the Marines.

Cowboys legends Roger Staubach (a tour In Vietnam) and Chad Hennings (two deployments, 45 missions in the Air Force in the Gulf War) came home to help Dallas win a combined five Super Bowls.

Pat Tillman walked away from a multi-million dollar NFL contract to join the Army after 9/11. He lost his life in Afghanistan in 2004.

Former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva served three tours in Afghanistan after attending West Point. He didn’t win a Super Bowl, but he did win a Bronze Star for rescuing fellow soldiers while under enemy fire.

Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente were military veterans before they became MLB icons.

Those names resonate. Today, millions of people who we’ve never heard of deserve equal respect for their selfless service.

Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com

JOURNAL SPORTS

Coaches are infinitely more interested in the LHSAA’s power point rankings, but there’s no denying the prestige of being included in a Louisiana Sports Writers Association top 10 prep football poll.

Especially the one at the end of the regular season. From this point forward on the field, the five classifications are split into four divisions for playoff competition and there’s Select and Non-Select brackets for each, determined by the power points.

But the LSWA stops now; its polling ends with the results of Week 10 games, reflecting what went on in district races and non-district contests over the past three months.

The LSWA poll is voted on by 11 sports media members from around the state who cover high school football.

Loyola’s 9-1 record and its closing 28-27 win over Northwood vaulted the Flyers into the Class 4A poll. Northwood received votes.

Calvary, after winning its 70^th consecutive district game to cap a 9-1 season with the only loss to 5A’s No. 10 team, Neville, edged up a spot in the 2A poll.

Evangel’s big win over previously unbeaten Parkway gave the Eagles a lift in the 5A poll. Parkway and Airline also got voting support.

The final regular-season rankings:

Class 5A

School (1^st place votes), W-L, poll points, previous week’s ranking

1. Karr (11), 10-0,132,1

2. St. Augustine, 8-1,108,T2

3. Ruston, 8-2,105, 6

4. John Curtis, 7-2, 84, T2

5. Catholic-Baton Rouge, 8-2, 81, 7

6. West Monroe, 7-3, 67, 4

7. Alexandria Senior High, 8-2, 65, 5

8. Evangel Christian, 8-2, 56, 9

9. Destrehan, 8-2, 52, 8

10. Neville, 7-3, 39, NR

Others receiving votes: Central 23, Denham Springs 9, Acadiana 7, Ouachita 5, Parkway 4, Zachary 2, Archbishop Rummel 7, Thibodaux 2, Brother Martin 2, Southside 2, Airline 1, Hahnville 1, St. Paul’s 1, Terrebonne 1.

Class 4A

1. North DeSoto (9), 10-0, 129, 1

2. Teurlings Catholic (2), 10-0, 122, 2

3. Plaquemine, 9-1, 101, 3

4. Iowa, 10-0, 94, 4

5. St. Thomas More, 7-3, 88, 5

6. Franklin Parish, 8-2, 83, 6

7. St. Charles, 9-1, 73, 7

8. E.D. White, 7-3, 38, NR

9. Loyola Prep, 9-1, 28, NR

10. Belle Chasse, 9-1, 25, NR

Others receiving votes: Franklinton 20, Vandebilt Catholic 20, Lakeshore 12, Archbishop Shaw 8, Tioga 7, Brusly 4, Northwood-Shreveport 3, Cecilia 2, Westgate 2.

Class 3A

1. Jewel Sumner (9), 10-0, 127, 1

2. University (2), 8-2, 116, 2

3. St. James, 8-2, 102, 3

4. Madison Prep, 8-2, 100, 4

5. Sterlington, 8-2, 90, 5

6. Jena, 9-1, 75, 6

7. Erath, 10-0, 73, 7

8. Bunkie, 9-1, 60, 8

9. Lake Charles Prep, 8-2, 44, 9

10. Church Point, 8-2, 27, NR

Others receiving votes: Jennings 12, Marksville 12, Amite 8, Northwest 6, L.B. Landry 3, John F. Kennedy 2, De La Salle 2.

Class 2A

1. Lafayette Christian Academy (10), 9-1, 131, 1

2. Dunham (1), 9-1,120, 3

3. Calvary Baptist, 9-1, 110, 4

4. Notre Dame, 8-2, 86, 6

5. Oak Grove, 8-2, 83, 9

6. Ouachita Christian, 9-1, 75, 2

7. Kinder, 10-0, 55 , 7

8. Catholic-New Iberia, 8-2,  52,8

9. Lafayette Renaissance Charter, 8-2, 36,10

10. Newman, 6-2, 34, NR

Others receiving votes: South Plaquemines 25, Mangham 23, Loreauville 17, Ferriday 4, Mansfield 2, East Feliciana 1, Union Parish 1, Vinton 1.

Class 1A

1. Haynesville (11),10-0, 132, 1

2. Hamilton Christian, 9-0, 114, 2

3. Riverside Academy, 9-1, 113, 3

4. Covenant Christian, 8-2, 94, 4

5. Westminster-Opelousas, 10-0, 86, 5

6. Jeanerette, 9-1, 77, 6

7. Ascension Catholic, 8-2, 55, T8

8. Southern Lab, 6-4, 52, T8

9. Ascension Episcopal, 9-1, 44, 7

10. Catholic-Pointe Coupee, 8-2, 27, NR

Others receiving votes: Logansport 17, Kentwood 17, St. Edmund 16, North Iberville 10, Sacred Heart-Ville Platte 2, Elton 1, Jonesboro-Hodge 1.

By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports

BATON ROUGE – Ever since LSU interim football coach Frank Wilson yanked starting quarterback Garrett Nussmeier in favor of backup Michael Van Buren Jr. midway through the third quarter of the Tigers’ 20-9 Saturday night loss at Alabama, a lingering question emerged.

Who will Wilson name the starter for the Tigers’ upcoming Saturday 11:45 a.m. home game vs. Arkansas in the annual “Battle for the Golden Boot?”

“I don’t think it’s just a clear separation where one is beyond the other,” Wilson said diplomatically at Monday’s weekly in-season press conference. “We’ll need both of them. I know we’ll use both of them in this game.”

So, which quarterback gets dibs in practice working with the first team before Wilson names a starter later in the week?

“I thought Garrett did well enough at times (at Alabama) to still be in position to be the starter as we embark on this weekend,” Wilson said.” So when we, when we go to corrections and practice, he’ll be the first guy that goes in.”

It seems light years ago that Nussmeier was a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate. Riding the wave of the second-best passing season (4.042 yards) in school history last year, Nussmeier bypassed the NFL Draft and returned this season as a fifth-year senior.

But his “mystery” preseason lower torso injury that didn’t heal until after the Tigers’ first open date leading into their sixth game sent LSU’s offense into a downward spiral.

It has yet to recover because of a now-injured offensive line that wasn’t that effective when everyone was healthy.

Nussmeier’s current stats through nine games (194 of 288 for 1,927 yards, 12 TDs, 5 interceptions) pale in comparison to his nine-game numbers from a year ago (235 of 475 for 2,866 yards, 21 TDs, 11 interceptions).

His early injury, paired with some of the worst offensive line play in LSU history, has completely derailed an offense currently ranked 99^th nationally in scoring offense (23.7 ppg), 103^rd in total offense (341.8 ypg), and 125^th in rushing offense (101 ypg).

If LSU maintains those numbers the rest of the year, it would be the lowest scoring and lowest rushing offense totals since Gerry DiNardo’s final season as the Tigers’ head coach in 1999 when LSU averaged 20.3 points and an all-time school low 82.5 rushing yards.

This season’s lack of offensive improvement led to the firing of fourth-year head coach Brian Kelly and second-year offensive coordinator Joe Sloan after LSU lost 49-25 to No. 3 Texas A&M on Oct. 25.

Nussmeier, 15-8 as LSU’s starting QB, has started 23 straight games. But after the first seven series of failing to get LSU in the end zone (despite completing 18 of 21 passes for 121 yards) vs. Alabama, he was benched.

The drastically more mobile Van Buren, who started eight games last season as a true freshman for Mississippi State, handled LSU’s last four series against the Crimson Tide.

He had his moments, completing 5 of 11 passes for 45 yards and had a nice 9-yard escape from a collapsing pass pocket.

But he also couldn’t produce a TD either, cementing LSU’s lowest scoring and total offense (232 yards) of the season.

“They both brought something to the table that helped this team to go up and down the field,” Wilson said of Nussmeier and Van Buren. Both have things that they need to continue to work on as well.”

Here’s Wilson on other topics:

On Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green

“He may be the best one, and we faced some really good ones (dual-threat SEC quarterbacks in all due respect. He’s 6-6, athletic, a legit 4.4 (40-yard dash time) guy. Almost at times, he looks like he’s gliding because of his gait. They’ve been behind against opponents and rallied back because of his unique skill set to both run and throw the ball.”

On the status of injured LSU linebacker Whit Weeks, who has missed the last two games with a bruised ankle bone

“I’m uncertain right now, probably hopeful, without using the medical term doubtful or whatever, but he’s in great spirits. He’s eager. He wants to be back out there, but we won’t put him out there until he can protect himself and play at the level that allows him to be elite.”

KNOW YOUR ENEMY

LSU (5-4 overall, 2-4 SEC) vs Arkansas (2-7, 0-5 SEC), Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Saturday, 11:45 a.m. (SEC Network)

Last game for Razorbacks: Lost at home 38-35 to Mississippi State on Nov. 1. The Bulldogs rallied from a 14-point deficit with 13:43 left in the game. State scored on its last three drives, covering 75, 43, and 69 yards to overcome the deficit. Arkansas lost a total of 15 yards on its final three possessions.

Series record and last meeting: LSU leads 45-23-2. Last season in Fayetteville, Tigers’ QB Garrett Nussmeier threw for 224 yards and RB Caden Durham ran for 101 yards and three TDs in a 34-10 Tigers’ victory.

Arkansas head coach: Interim Bobby Petrino (137-75 in 17 ½ seasons, 34-17 and 0-4 at Arkansas in two stints covering 5 ½ seasons.

THIS AND THAT

Early betting line: LSU by 6 ½

Betting tip: Arkansas is 3-4 vs. LSU the week after LSU plays Alabama

Number of Louisiana natives on Arkansas roster: 4

Number of Arkansas natives on LSU roster: 1

Number of transfers on the Arkansas roster from 4-year schools: 45 players from 39 schools.

ARKANSAS PLAYERS TO WATCH

QB Taylen Green Jr. (171 of 274 for 2,379 passing yards, 19 TDs, 8 interceptions, 649 rushing yards and 6 TDs on 107 carries), RB Mike Washington (828 rushing yards and 6 TDs on 127 carries), WR O’Mega Blake (50 catches for 661 yards) and 4 TDs, LB Xavian Sorey (64 tackles, 4½ TFL, 2½ sacks), DE Quincy Rhodes Jr. (37 tackles, 14 TFL, 8½ sacks), PK Scott Starzyk 10 of 12 FG, 39 of 39 PATs, P Devin Bale (23 for 45.8 ypk, 1 touchback, 7 fair catches, 9 inside the 20, 7 50 yards plus)

DID YOU KNOW. . .

The LSU-Arkansas series has been played in six cities – Baton Rouge, Shreveport, Fayetteville, Little Rock, Dallas and Memphis.

Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com

By T. SCOTT BOATRIGHT, Lincoln Parish Journal

GRAMBLING — The Southwestern Athletic Conference announced Monday that 18 Grambling State University football players have been suspended for at least one game and that GSU will be fined $40,000 as a result of Saturday’s brawl delaying the start of the second half of the Tigers’ home game against Bethune Cookman.

The brawl erupted as the Tigers were coming down the downhill ramp from their locker room onto the turf on their sideline. At least two Wildcats walked through the Grambling team, causing tempers to flare. After four or five minutes of scuffling with punches thrown, followed by another 10-15 minutes for the referees to regain control. Officials ejected 10 players, five from each team, before the third quarter kicked off.

Nine players from Bethune Cookman were also suspended for at least one game, bringing the total number of suspensions to 27. Three of those suspensions were announced to be for two games due to the severity of those players’ actions, but the names of the suspended players have not yet been announced by either university or the SWAC Office.

Grambling (7-3, 4-2) plays at Alcorn State Saturday before wrapping up the season in the Bayou Classic against Southern Nov. 29.

“We’re extremely disappointed by the events that transpired during halftime of the Bethune-Cookman at Grambling State football game,” said SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland. “Acts of that nature have zero place in the Southwestern Athletic Conference and intercollegiate athletics.”

“The Conference Office has and will continue to enforce a zero-tolerance policy for all acts deemed to be unsportsmanlike and contrary to the high standard of good sportsmanship we expect from all individuals associated with the athletics programs within our league.”  

GSU Athletics Director Trayvean Scott addressed local media beginning coach Mickey Joseph’s weekly press conference inside the Eddie G. Robinson Stadium Support Facility on Monday morning.

“I lead this department, so I have to issue an apology to all of the Grambling State University family, all of our stakeholders and distinguished alumni,” Scott said. “Obviously that is not who we are. Not going into some of the events that unfolded — led to it — I want to assure you that we’ve got a quality group of young men who reacted based on some of those unfortunate circumstances. That is not an excuse. We accept full responsibility.

“The fine portion of it we will more than likely appeal, and even some of the severities of some of the suspensions we will also more than likely appeal one or more of those.”

Scott’s remarks were made before the SWAC announced the suspensions and fines at 2 p.m. CT.

“Obviously we’ve got two games left and in certain situation where we’ve maybe got a senior who’s suspended for those last two games, obviously working in coordination and conjunction with the Southwestern Athletic Conference and being able to review what they reviewed, we’ll be able to articulate a valid argument for some relief there. We haven’t gotten those videos yet, but we’ll take a look individually and make a decision at that time.”

Scott also talked about the backlash that came following Joseph’s comments to the press following Saturday’s game, when he said his team would meet disrespect with disrespect.

“I think you’ve got to consider circumstances,” Scott said. “You also have to consider that in the heat of battle in a contested game, contested it was, you also have to understand Coach Joseph. One thing that I’ve never heard is Coach Joseph say, and of course I’ve gotten calls, texts and emails and personal conversions, I never heard Coach Joseph say he meant disrespect with fighting.

“In having conversations with him the last couple of days, I think the sentiment is that he’s not condoning fighting. My personal thought there is that I don’t think you necessarily meet disrespect with disrespect. We shouldn’t tolerate disrespect is a way I think to address it. 

“Again, not speaking for the other team or program, but that wasn’t their first, second or third time being involved in a situation like this. And so, while we were able to recover and eventually win the game, it’s going to cost us moving forward because we reacted to what they’ve become privy to now doing on a regular basis.”

Scott went on to say he believes disrespect can be overcome by continuing to display characteristics of a G-Man.

“Being high character and understanding what putting on that helmet and walking down that hill means,” Scott said about those characteristics. “But you also have to understand these men and the legacy this school has been built on. And so, when certain things happen — disrespect of our logo, disrespect of our brand — it causes a reaction that maybe we need to start having some conversations with our guys about. Because it should never end in violence. 

“That’s my thought on it. I probably won’t comment more on it. But Coach Joseph is fine, we’ve had a conversation with (GSU president Dr. Martin Lemelle, Jr.) and the leadership on our campus. I’ve had a conversation with Commissioner McClelland in the (SWAC) Commissioner’s Office and we’re ready to put this behind us and move forward.”

Joseph didn’t talk about the incident during his GSU press conference, but around an hour later, before beginning his segment of Monday’s SWAC video press conference, he donned glasses to read a prepared statement, saying he would do that but would be unable to answer any further questions about the situation.

“The disrespect comment I made was never meant to condone violence or unsportsmanlike behavior,” Joseph said as he read. “The moment doesn’t reflect who we are at Grambling and we take full accountability of maintaining the integrity of the game and remain committed to learning from this incident and moving forward in the right spirit, remembering cool heads prevail and calm is a superpower.”

NO UPDATE ON TEASETT:  As Scott spoke during the GSU press conference Monday morning, he also mentioned injured GSU quarterback C’zavian Teasett, who remains hospitalized in Las Vegas after being seriously hurt during Grambling’s win over Jackson State on Oct. 25.

After being tackled late in that game, Teasett remained face down and motionless on the field as GSU medical personnel rushed to his aid. Almost immediately after getting to Teasett, those personnel signaled for more help and equipment.

Eventually Teasett was strapped to a backboard and put into an ambulance that had driven out to the middle of the field and transported directly to a nearby hospital where he remains more than two weeks later.

“We continue to pray for C’za,” Scott said. “We’re in contact with C’za and his family daily. We won’t be making any more comments on the C’za Teasett situation or family as well.”

Contact Scott at tscottboatright@gmail.com

Peter wanted to be a writer. His father, Nathaniel, was an author. His grandfather Robert was a humorist and co-founder of the Algonquin Round Table, an informal group of writers, critics, and actors who met for daily lunches at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City. Writing seemed to be in Peter’s genetic makeup.

After earning a degree in English from Harvard in June 1961, Peter received a student grant which allowed him to spend the next year traveling the world and making notes about his experiences. Upon his return, he served a six-month stint in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, but his passion was writing. In 1963, Peter began working as a reporter for The Washington Post and soon thereafter began working as the radio and television editor for Newsweek magazine.

It was far from the writer’s dream that Peter had envisioned, but he was earning a living. In the summer of 1963, 23-year-old Peter joined other tourists on a tour of the White House. He purchased the $1 White House guidebook that first lady Jacqueline Kennedy had organized.

During the tour, Peter got the idea for a children’s book in which a little girl visits the White House on her birthday. She smuggles her kitten onto the tour, but it escapes, causes all sorts of chaos, and she ends up face-to-face with President Kennedy. During the writing process, Peter decided the mischief was more befitting a boy and his puppy than a girl and her kitten. In the book, the boy, Jonathan, eludes guards and ignores the numerous roped off areas as he chases his puppy, Tiger, through the Blue Room, the Red Room, the State Dining Room, the Lincoln bedroom, through the garden on the White House lawn, and ends up in the Oval Office where he finds President Kennedy scratching Tiger’s ears. “You’re—you’re the president,” Jonathan gasped. “And you must be Jonathan,” President Kennedy replied. “You—you know me?” President Kennedy responded with a chuckle, “Everyone in the White House knows you now.”

President Kennedy never saw Peter’s book. He was assassinated on November 22, 1963, just two months before the book was published. In her first public document as first lady, “Lady Bird” Johnson wrote the foreword for Peter’s book on White House stationary. She ended the foreword with this invitation to young readers: “My husband and I hope one day soon you will come to visit the White House in person.”

The book went on sale in February 1964. Six months later, Peter published his travel memoir entitled “Time and a Ticket.” His books sold well but failed to provide Peter with the financial security necessary for him to focus solely on writing books.

Peter worked for Newsweek until 1967 when he was hired as “a (very) junior” speechwriter for President Lyndon Johnson. When President Johnson’s term ended in January 1967, Peter was determined to build a career as a freelance writer. He wrote stories for newspapers and magazines such as National Geographic, LIFE, The New Yorker, and pitched book ideas to publishers. In 1974, Peter published what was advertised as “a novel of relentless terror.” The book was such a big hit that Peter was hired to co-author a screenplay based on the book.

Peter, who wrote the popular children’s book about the White House, who was a speech writer for President Lyndon Johnson, is Peter Benchley, mostly known for his “superthriller” shark tale “Jaws.”

Sources:

1. The Boston Globe, June 15, 1961, p.12.

2. The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Kentucky), January 5, 1964, p.50.

3. The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, Ohio), June 27, 1964, p.9.

4. Peter Benchley, “Jaws, (New York, Doubleday, 1974).

By JOHN JAMES MARSHALL, Journal Sports

These are the decisions that NFL and college coaches make throughout the course of a season.

There’s only one difference: High school football coaches don’t make millions of dollars to make those decisions. And you don’t see a whole lot of college coaches grading Civics tests during their workday.

Friday night at Messmer Stadium, Northwood coach Austin Brown had a decision to make.

A few minutes later, Loyola coach John Sella had a decision to make.

Both knew their decision could be the difference in whether their team won or lost in the crucial game between two 8-1 teams.

They each made a call and didn’t bother to second guess themselves. All they could do was hope for the best.

One of the decisions worked out and one of them didn’t as Loyola beat Northwood 28-27 in a game that was as close as the score indicated, which is why the decisions of Brown and Sella were even more significant.

All season, the Falcons and Flyers have been involved in ridiculously one-sided games. The closest margin of victory Northwood has had all season was 34 points. Loyola’s average margin of victory in its eight wins had been 38.1 points.

Not a lot of game-altering decisions to be made in games like that.

With a little more than three minutes remaining in this game and the Falcons trailing by a point, Brown’s team was staring at fourth-and-goal from the 6-yard line. There was much to consider as Northwood called time out to talk it over. The man-up inclination would be to go for the touchdown, especially since the Flyers would still have three minutes to try to answer.

However, Brown knew that when you have a chance to take the lead late in the game, that’s the button to push. He sent his field goal team on to the field. However, the 23-yard attempt was wide right and the Flyers still had the lead.

But could they hold it?

Loyola’s running game, which came in averaging 161 yards per game, had mostly been stuffed all night long, due in large part to Falcons’ defensive tackle Braylon Levy who had been borderline-unblockable for most of the night.

After the missed field goal, the Flyers picked up a first down to make Northwood use its remaining timeouts but still faced a third-and-6 at its own 36 with 1:48 to go. Pass? Run? Both had a large risk/reward factor attached.

As he huddled with his team, Sella took one of those options off the table. “We were not going to throw it,” he said.

But that didn’t mean the Flyers couldn’t give the appearance that they might. Running up the middle was not going to be an option, so the Flyers came up with another tactic.

The play call was a running play all the way, but quarterback Bryce Restovich rolled to his left to make it look as if it was a roll-out pass play. When he saw the Falcon linebackers drop to cover, he made a quick cut inside the block of left tackle Ryan Sipes and picked up the first down easily.

Actually, very easily because Restovich ended up gaining 48 yards on the play.

Two kneel downs and it was over.

But what might have changed the game more than anything else was the fingertip of Loyola junior Brock Geter.

With 1:17 left before halftime, Northwood took a 20-14 lead on a 12-yard run by Kyran Johnson and lined up for the extra point. All season, Geter had been coming excruciatingly close to blocking an extra point. He didn’t get much more than a fingertip on this one, but “Block” Geter’s deflection had implications throughout the second half.

The Flyers were able to score on the second play of the third quarter on a 50-yard pass from Restovich to Ty Walsworth and Cooper Varnadore’s extra point put Loyola ahead instead of tying the score.

On Northwood’s final touchdown, the Falcons wanted to go for two with 1:33 to go in the third quarter, but an illegal procedure penalty forced them to kick instead.

Neither team would score again.

As offensive-minded as both teams had been all season, the defenses for both played a significant role. When Northwood had 1^st-and-goal on its final drive, the Loyola defense allowed only three yards on three plays.

Senior linebacker Hayden Horton was in on all three tackles, which shouldn’t be much of a surprise since he had 23 tackles and an interception in the game.

“That was a big stop,” Horton said. “They kept running it over and over again but we know our guys and we know what we can do.”

“People who have played Loyola told me they are more physical than you think they are,” Brown said. “They toughened up when they needed to and not just on that last possession. Hats off to their defense.”

Restovich completed 21 of 36 for 292 yards and was the leading rusher with 80 yards. Charlie McKenzie caught nine passes for 96 yards.

Northwood’s strong rushing attack (321 yards) was led by Johnson with 148 yards and John Sneed with 144.

With the win, the Flyers are the No. 2 seed in the Select Division II playoffs and will have a first-round bye. The Falcons are the No. 7 seed in the Non-Select Division I bracket and will play host to 26^th-seeded Barbe (5-5).

Contact JJ at johnjamesmarshall@yahoo.com

By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports

Pop Houston.

Seems like every Evangel storyline revolves around the Eagles’ spectacular junior quarterback, deservedly so, and Friday’s District 1-5A championship showdown with unbeaten Parkway fit that criteria.

He threw for 278 yards and two touchdowns, ran for 74 more and another TD. Played a pivotal role in Evangel’s typical scoreboard stuffing, as ECA rang up 55 points.

But it was the Evangel defense that was dominant in the Eagles’ resounding 55-27 triumph at Rodney Duron Stadium, completing a revival of a championship tradition for one of the modern era’s most successful high school programs in Louisiana.

It had been a while, since 2018, that Evangel claimed a 1-5A title. The Eagles swooned early this decade, and when they rejoined the district before last season, needed a late-season surge to reach the playoffs with a 5-5 record.

Friday, they completed an 8-2 regular season that was two plays away from perfect. Evangel fell 33-32 in the opening week at state power Neville on a failed two-point conversion and a failed field goal. In their other non-district outing, a week before the Parkway contest, 2A’s top team, Lafayette Christian, forced a goalline fumble in the final seconds to hold off the Eagles 24-22.

“How much fun is this?” asked Evangel coach Denny Duron. “I don’t remember the last time (the Eagles won 1-5A). There’s nothing quite like watching these guys grow into champions. It’s a great day on Broadacres Road.”

It was rooted up front, with the Eagles defense making every yard tough for a Parkway offense that has routinely lined up in a power package much like the “tush push” formation all season and simply bulled downfield.

Not Friday night, after the first half. The game shifted on the goalline, when Parkway moved 79 yards to the Eagles’ 1 on 12 plays, poised to cut into a 34-20 deficit shortly before halftime – then went nowhere on four downs.

Evangel, with the hypercharged offense, turned the game with a goalline stand. Things weren’t the same afterward.

“I don’t know if we won it, but we at least tied, when it came to physicality,” said Duron. “I don’t want to take anything away from Parkway – they’re leaving the field with a better record (9-1) than ours – but we are physical, and we practice to be physical.

“Our defense was just great tonight,” he said. “(Parkway) had 20 at half, and they scored seven afterward. Those guys have athletes, and they are so well coached.”

Duron understated his defense’s effectiveness. The Panthers, averaging 52 points, didn’t score in the final three quarters.

Parkway did post 223 rushing yards (124 by Braxxton Black, another 81 from Damian Dalcaldacal), and quarterback Kaleb Williams threw for 222, but after completing nearly 70 percent of his passes this season, was harassed into 11 for 28 accuracy and was sacked several times, netting a minus 7 yards on 13 carries.

“The four guys in the middle and the two linebackers, we knew it would be tough to run the ball,” said Parkway coach Coy Brotherton. “We had a little success last year doing it (in a 40-35 loss) but we thought we might could get an advantage there, but we found out early on we had to change things up … they made it tough on us.”

One of the Evangel linebackers, Damari Drake, also pounded away on offense, rushing for 232 yards on just 13 carries, including touchdowns of 57, 5 and 50 yards.

Houston’s TD passes went for 64 (to DeMarkus Evans), 22 (Johnny Casey Jr.) and 21 yards (Charley Abraham).

Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com

JOURNAL SPORTS

Three local high school football teams play at home in the opening round of the LHSAA playoffs while Evangel, Calvary and Loyola earned first-round byes as the postseason pairings were unveiled Sunday with nine Shreveport-Bossier squads involved.

Booker T. Washington, Northwood and Parkway earned home games this week.

Airline, Captain Shreve, and Bossier will be on the road.

Local teams in the playoff pairings:

NON-SELECT

Division I

No. 27 Covington (6-4) at No. 6 Parkway (9-1)

No. 26 Barbe (5-5) at No. 7 Northwood (8-2)

No. 17 Airline (7-3) at No. 16 Westgate (6-4)

Division II

No. 22 Bossier (4-6) at No. 11 West Feliciana (6-4)

SELECT

Division I

No. 8 Evangel (8-2), bye

No. 20 Captain Shreve (6-4) at No. 13 Hammond (7-3)

Division II

No. 2 Loyola (9-1), bye

No. 20 Istrouma (5-5) at No. 13 Booker T. Washington (6-4)

Division III

No. 6 Calvary, bye