MEH: Thursday’s opening round of the BMW Championship was an up-and-down day for Calvary Baptist alumnus Sam Burns.
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
ST. LOUIS – In his summer-long run on the PGA Tour, Shreveport native Sam Burns has overcome slow starts. For example, he was 1-over through 18 holes at the U.S. Open, and roared back to be runner-up. At the British Open, he was 3-over after the first round, and finished third.
Thursday’s opening 1-over 71 at the 50-man BMW Championship isn’t the desired start in the second event of the three-round FedEx Cup playoffs, but it’s hardly a significant stumble. Especially when the Choudrant resident is already assured of advancing to next week’s 30-player Tour Championship thanks to his No. 6 ranking in the FedEx Cup points race coming into this week’s play.
Burns is coming off a third-place tie in the playoff opener, the FedEx St. Jude Championship last week in Memphis. The runaway winner there, Scottie Scheffler, shot 2-over 72 Thursday. Burns is tied for 37th among the 50 qualifiers and Scheffler is tied for 44th entering today’s second round.
He hit 14 of 18 greens in regulation and nine of 14 fairways, averaging 338 yards on his drives, sixth in the field. But he had the worst average shots gained on approach, minus 2.88 shots, ranking 50 out of 50 players. His season average is 31st on tour, plus .392.
In Thursday’s round, Burns was 1-under until the last two holes, when he bogeyed the par-5 17th and the par-4 18th.
He started the day with an 18-foot birdie putt on the par-4 first hole but double bogeyed the par-4 second. After a 15-footer on the par-3 sixth got him back to even for the round, Burns bogeyed the par-4 10th and slipped back to 1-over.
He hit a 108-yard approach on the par-4 14th to three feet for a birdie to get back to even, then moved to 1-under with a 14-foot birdie on the 229-yard par-3 16th, but wasn’t able to sustain the momentum.
Burns and his playing partner, Wyndham Clark, tee off at 1:33 today at Bellerive Country Club. Golf Channel coverage begins at 2 o’clock. Clark is among five players atop the leaderboard at 6-under, including Rory McIlroy.
All 50 players continue into the weekend. Golf Channel will carry Saturday and Sunday play from noon-2 p.m., with CBS picking up the rest of the afternoon action.
MAKING A POINT: Third-year Northwestern State football coach Blaine McCorkle made a high-energy presentation Thursday at the Independence Bowl/NSU Kickoff Luncheon in Shreveport. (Journal photo by DOUG IRELAND)
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
Northwestern State football coach Blaine McCorkle is not about to take anything for granted.
The general assumption is that next Thursday’s season opener at Turpin Stadium against Louisiana Christian isn’t comparable with the Demons’ next outing, a Sept. 5 visit to face another historic rival, Louisiana Tech.
First things first, McCorkle said Thursday in a media session prior to the annual Independence Bowl/NSU Kickoff Luncheon at Superior’s Steakhouse.
“We’ve won one game in three years,” said McCorkle. “There is no next week. We’ve got to play this one first.”
After rebuilding a moribund Division III Belhaven program into a conference champion in his first six years as a head coach, former LSU player McCorkle has an appreciation for the lower levels of college sports. LCU is an NAIA program, one that previously competed in Division III earlier this century, but that doesn’t mean the Wildcats won’t present challenges for the Demons, who restarted from scratch when McCorkle arrived in December 2023.
“It’s a different game from level to level, there’s no question about that. But what I’ll say about LC is they’re a good football team.
“They’ve won their conference championship two of the last three years for a reason. They know what they’re doing, they’ve got a good plan, and they’ve got some really, really good players. You watch their skill positions on both sides and those kids could play for a lot of people at a lot of levels,” he said.
“By no means do we think we’re going to roll the ball out there and win the game because we’re at a higher level. Last year McNeese beat us worse (50-7) than they beat LC (54-9). We’re playing a good team. I honestly think next Thursday night will be a really good football game.”
McCorkle said the best indication of his team’s improvement going into this season is the level of competition in practice.
“Every position on the field … has some guys who have started significant games in the last two years who are now twos and threes. That’s a good thing,” he said. “That means we have competition and we’re better.”
The most apparent improvement, he said, is on the offensive line and in the secondary.
“I think those will be the most drastically different. Last year we talked about how much better our offensive line was from Year 1 to Year 2, and I think they are (again) from Year 2 to Year 3. That’s true as well in the secondary. This is the first year we’ve brought in a handful of transfers there, because we had to get the culture right before we could do that. There will be new faces in both places.”
The Demons got a familiar face back last weekend thanks to the ongoing series of court rulings providing a fifth year of eligibility for players whose careers began in 2022. Landry Huddleston, who was a standout for McCorkle at Belhaven and followed him to Natchitoches, met the revised standard and adds a high-energy special teams performer along with second-team depth at linebacker.
“He was such a crowd favorite in our locker room. As soon as talk began about the ’22 guys getting their fifth year, our players started asking, ‘What about Hud? What about Hud?’ We got clearance and when he showed up, there was lot of fun in that room,” said McCorkle.
The Demons and Wildcats haven’t played football since the Pineville institution dropped the sport after the 1968 season. LCU revived the program in 2000 and a quarter century later, the old Gulf States Conference rivals will finally collide again.
“I think there’s value in it. You play in-state schools and it gives kids a chance to play against high school rivals, and you get a good crowd,” said McCorkle. “It’s good for LC, it’s good for us, and it’s good for north Louisiana.”
By PATRICK MEEHAN, Centenary Assistant AD for Strategic Communications
The 2026-27 Centenary athletics season is just weeks away and tickets for all Centenary athletics Fall home events are on sale now via the official Centenary athletics website, GoCentenary.com.
Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance and come cheer the Ladies and Gents in person this Fall and throughout the athletics year. Football tickets went on sale in July and now tickets for men’s soccer, women’s soccer, and volleyball are also on sale.
Tickets can be purchased now at the following links:
Centenary’s regular season athletics year begins on Monday, Aug. 31 with the volleyball team taking on Wiley in a non-conference match set for noon in Marshall, Texas.
The first home event is set for Tuesday, Sept. 1 as the women’s soccer team welcomes Belhaven University to Atkins Field for a non-conference match at 6 o’clock.
SOFTBALL ACADEMIC HONORS: Eleven Ladies earned Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete honors for the 2025-26 academic year.
A total of 8,852 collegiate student-athletes captured Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete honors for the 2025-26 academic year and 2,493 NCAA Division III student-athletes earned a 3.5 grade-point average or higher.
The eleven Ladies recognized were seniors River Boultinghouse, Emma Crow, Morgan Dawson, Abigail Hodgson, Alexis Roach, Laine Sullivan and Jaeden Thrasher; juniors Hilary Pillaro and Noelle Sandmann; and sophomores Kaitlynn Alello and Taylor Crawford.
SCAC FALL SPORTS PRESEASON POLLS: The Centenary football team was picked to finish third in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference this season in the preseason poll and tallied 18 points in voting by coaches.
Men’s soccer waspicked to finish eighth. Women’s soccer drew a ninth-place projection. Volleyball waspicked to finish 10th.
MEN’S SOCCER PROMOTES BROCATO: Former Gents star Sam Brocato has been promoted to full-time assistant coach from his current position of volunteer assistant, Director of Athletics and Recreation David Orr announced.
Brocato, a former standout goalkeeper for the Gents, will team with first-year head coach Joe O’Sullivan to guide the Gents for the 2026 season. Brocato, a Leesville native, played in 20 career matches with 15 starts over his three seasons with the Maroon and White.
Brocato finished as the team leader in saves (55) in his 12 matches played last season and also posted three shutouts to lead the conference. He was ninth in save percentage (.688), sixth in total saves, and third (4.58) in saves per game. He was named the SCAC Defensive Player of the Week once last season.
He was an excellent student, a member of the Dean’s List and named to the SCAC Student-Athlete Academic Honor Roll. Brocato served as president of Centenary’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and in 2025 he received the “Houla Award” at the annual end-of-the-year Athletics banquet.
STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING COACH NAMED: Calvin Brown has been named the Head of Strength and Conditioning for the Centenary athletic department.
Brown enters his fourth year with the Centenary football program as the linebackers coach and will oversee and guide strength and conditioning for all 21 sports.
Brown has been a part of the football staff since the 2023 independent exhibition season where the Gents recorded a 9-1 record in their first year back on the gridiron since the late 1940s.
The Gents open their season on Sept. 5 against Westgate Christian at home with kickoff set for 6 p.m. in the first of five games played at Atkins Field. Centenary is scheduled to play nine regular-season games – five at home and four on the road.
SCAC MEDIA DAYS CONTINUING: The conference is staging its 15th annual media days event that kicked off Wednesday.
Throughout an eight-day stretch wrapping up next Thursday, conference head coaches in the sports of men’s cross country, women’s cross country, football, men’s soccer, women’s soccer and volleyball will be interviewed by the conference office and asked to discuss their respective team’s upcoming season.
Interviews will be posted daily on the SCAC YouTube page. Student-athletes and fans are encouraged to interact throughout the entire week of the event using the hashtag #SCACMD.
(Editor’s Note: Who is “more elementary” on the first day of school, the first-time parent or the first-time student? Can still remember a certain day 60 years ago and another one like it 30 years ago. I am 0-for-2 … flunked the first day of first grade TWICE.)
Remember that kid who cried on the first day of first grade?
Remember how he clutched his father’s clothing, how he begged for mercy, how he screamed bloody murder and pleaded he would do ANYTHING if he could just go home?
Remember? Any thought of saving himself embarrassment was long gone now because this was IT and he didn’t care.
Forget pride. Forget being cool. Forget any hopes of the class presidency.
Remember that kid?
That kid was me.
Loser. Wimp. Doofus.
I was That Kid Who Cried. The only one. My classmates forgave me the noise I made and the angst I caused, but they never forgot. Many school grades later, long after we’d memorized the helping verbs and learned the presidents, one of them would whisper as we were standing in line at the pencil sharpener, “Hey, ’member that first day of school when you cried and all?”
Branded.
I had dropped out of kindergarten the previous October — workload just too demanding — so I didn’t know anybody that September day when they made us gather in the elementary school cafeteria. Some kids were alone, some were with parents, and strangely, they all seemed relatively happy.
Not me. I sat with my dad, close, praying with fear and trembling. There was more water on my face than there was Vitalis on his head, which was substantial.
A man in front of everybody read lists of names, and rows of children lined up behind teachers, sheep being led to the slaughter. I think the breaking point for me was when I heard my name. I had tried hard not to cry, but at that point, I just don’t think I could help it. It got so bad, I think the principal, Mr. Rozier, considered calling in the National Guard.
I was physically led to Mrs. Bobbie Cook’s classroom where my dad promised he’d come back in a couple of hours to check on me. Here, I was left for dead.
Boyd Flowers looked at me and I know what he was thinking: “I hope I don’t have to sit by that kid.” David Collins looked at me; I could read his mind: “You’re a loser.”
It was bad.
Mrs. Bobbie saved me. She gave us these mimeographed pictures to color, a picture of a little mimeographed boy and a little mimeographed girls walking to a little mimeographed schoolhouse by a mimeographed tree.
I started coloring and things were OK. I don’t know what it was. Mrs. Bobbie, maybe. The colors. Addiction to the smell of the mimeograph. The threat of a beating at the first-grade hands of Boyd Flowers and David Collins.
Whatever. I can see my dad’s head sticking in the doorway at mid-morning, the Vitalis and straight part of his black hair still pitching a shutout. And I can feel me waving him off, telling him it was OK.
Now I know that long-ago day was probably harder on my dad than it was on me, (for the hair products if for no other reason).
I wonder if he cried too. He was only 27, much younger than I was Monday when, 30 years after my first day of school, I took my son to his first day.
One of us didn’t come close to crying. One of us did.
Loser. Wimp. Doofus.
But then, I do that once every 30 years, just like clockwork. Should be used to it by now.
ELITE IN ORANGE: Syracuse great Joe Morris shouldered the load for the Orangemen in the 1979 Independence Bowl and ranks among the program’s all-time running backs alongside Jim Brown, Larry Csonka, Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis and Floyd Little. (Photo courtesy Syracuse Athletics)
JOURNAL SPORTS
Some of football’s greatest running backs have lined up for the Syracuse Orangemen, and one of that program’s all-time heroes put on a show in Shreveport’s bowl game.
Joe Morris is being spotlighted as Number 17 on the Independence Bowl’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, chosen by a local media panel. The game’s top 50 players in the first 49 years of the contest were selected this summer and are being announced in the run-up to the 50th Anniversary I-Bowl Dec. 22.
Morris has spent 46 years in the Independence Bowl’s record book as one of its all-time leading rushers.
Morris, named 1979 Offensive Player of the Game in Syracuse’s 31-7 victory over McNeese State, is still third on the bowl’s list for most rushing carries in a game (33). He rushed for 155 yards on those 33 totes, holding the record for the most rushing yards in a single Independence Bowl until 1995. He remained in the top five of individual rushing performances until 2013, and his 155 rushing yards currently rank eighth all-time in a single Independence Bowl.
Playing at Syracuse after a few all-time greats, including Jim Brown and Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis, Morris made his stamp on the program in his four years in upstate New York. He broke the 1,000-yard rushing mark three of his four seasons.
The 1979 Independence Bowl season, his sophomore year, was his best season for the Orange – rushing for 1,372 yards and seven touchdowns. He was named first-team All-East that season. He was also named second-team All-East in 1981, when he rushed for 1,194 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Morris, a four-year starter for the Orange, set the Syracuse record for career rushing yards with 4,229. His No. 47 is also one of eight numbers the program has retired.
Despite standing just 5-foot-7, he was selected in the second round of the 1982 NFL Draft and became an integral piece of some great New York Giants squads in the 1980s under Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells. After limited carries in his first couple of years in the NFL, Morris averaged 1,021 rushing yards per season between 1984 and 1988 as the Giants emerged as championship contenders.
Morris’ best two seasons came back-to-back in 1985 and 1986, as he made both Pro Bowl appearances of his career. He compiled 1,336 rushing yards and a league-leading 21 rushing touchdowns in 1985, and in 1986, he had the most rushing yards of his career with 1,516. He was named first-team All-Pro.
The shining moment of Morris’ professional career was winning Super Bowl XXI in the 1986-87 season. He was stellar in the postseason that year, rushing for 313 yards in three playoff games. He had 67 rushing yards, 20 receiving yards and a touchdown in the Giants’ Super Bowl victory over the Denver Broncos.
Morris is a member of the New York Giants Ring of Honor and was named the 38th greatest New York Giant of all time.
Another player on the Independence Bowl’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, No. 16, will be announced next Monday. Players will be revealed individually every week, with No. 1 being announced on Monday, December 7.
Players already unveiled on the Independence Bowl’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team:
No. 18 – Ray Childress (DT, Texas A&M, 1981); No. 19 – Sidney Rice (WR, South Carolina, 2005);
RUSTON — As Louisiana Tech Athletics begins its first season back in the Sun Belt Conference, the Bulldogs and ULM’s Warhawks have collaborated to launch the Radiance Technologies I-20 Showdown Rivalry Series.
This year-long all-sports championship sprung from the renewal of one of the state’s longest-standing collegiate football rivalries.
Presented by Radiance Technologies, the Rivalry Series will unite competition across 12 varsity sports into a single season-long championship, with the Bulldogs, Lady Techsters and Warhawks competing throughout the academic year for annual bragging rights and the inaugural Radiance Technologies I-20 Showdown Rivalry Series title.
Separated by 35 miles along Interstate 20, Louisiana Tech and ULM have competed against one another for generations. While the two institutions have continued to meet in several sports in recent years, Louisiana Tech’s return to the Sun Belt Conference restores annual conference competition across much of the athletic calendar. It brings the football rivalry back for the first time in more than 25 years.
“We are excited to formalize this long-standing rivalry,” said Vice President and Director of Athletics Ryan Ivey. “Since athletics started on both of our campuses, we have seen some incredible individual achievements, contests, and finishes. As we begin this new chapter together in the Sun Belt Conference, this series allows us to elevate a rivalry that matters to our student-athletes, alumni, and communities while creating meaningful engagement across all our sports.
“We are grateful to Radiance Technologies for sharing our vision and investing in a partnership that will celebrate competition, strengthen regional connections, and create something our fans can rally around year after year.”
“I think this rivalry is special for our region and having a partner like Radiance Technologies involved only amplifies that,” said S.J. Tuohy, ULM Director of Athletics. “Radiance does so much not only for North Louisiana, but our country as a whole. As for the series itself, I love that it brings together student-athletes from different sports to compete together for a trophy and I’m excited to watch them get going this fall.”
The series is made possible through the support of title sponsor Radiance Technologies, an employee-owned technology company led by Louisiana Tech alumnus and Chief Executive Officer Bill Bailey.
“Radiance is thrilled to be part of the renewal of the historic rivalry between Louisiana Tech and ULM,” said Bailey. “We also believe in giving back; that is why we are investing in this storied series. As Radiance’s presence in North Louisiana continues to grow, our contributions to the community will grow as well.”
Each of the 12 eligible varsity sports carries equal value in determining the annual champion. From football Saturdays and basketball doubleheaders to conference championships in cross country, golf, and track & field, every result contributes toward the overall standings.
To ensure competitive balance, only sports sponsored by both institutions at the varsity level are included in the annual standings. Sports sponsored by only one institution will not count toward the championship.
The annual championship includes competition in the following 12 varsity sports:
Head-to-Head Competition
Football (single game)
Men’s Basketball (season series)
Women’s Basketball (season series)
Baseball (season series)
Softball (season series)
Volleyball (season series)
Women’s Soccer (single match)
Conference Finish Competition
Men’s Cross Country
Women’s Cross Country
Men’s Golf
Men’s Track & Field (combined indoor/outdoor conference finish)
Women’s Track & Field (combined indoor/outdoor conference finish)
Each sport is worth one point toward the annual standings.
Every sport is valued equally.
The winner of each sport earns one point.
Sports ending in a tie award one-half point to each institution.
The first institution to earn 6.5 points clinches the annual series championship.
If the annual standings finish tied, the winner of the football game will be declared the overall Rivalry Series champion.
Standings will be updated on both schools’ athletic websites throughout the competitive calendar.
BOM Bank is proud to continue supporting the Shreveport Farmers’ Market! The Shreveport Farmers’ Market, supported by the Red River Revel, plays an important role in strengthening our local food system by promoting independent farmers, ranchers, and food producers. The market encourages sustainability while fostering a greater connection between our community and the people who grow and produce our food. We’re honored to support a program that brings people together and helps our local communities thrive. Pictured left to right: BOM’s Chris Robinson, Logan Lewis, and BOM’s Drew Baker.
We have finally landed on the perfect situation to illustrate just how out of control college football truly is. Oh sure, we’ve known it for quite a while, but the Jayden Daniels/LSU cage match has brought it all home.
Finally, we have an issue in which everyone is to blame.
How about if you are LSU: You everybody worked up over a big pile from the transfer portal that (you hope) will fill in some major gaps and you hired a new coach who perfectly fits the description of what you are looking for. It wouldn’t be LSU if there wasn’t national championship talk in August, but the excitement level is probably higher in August, 2026, than it was in August, 2019, so you never know.
And then you get a newsbomb dropped off late on a Wednesday night. The representatives of Daniels, a former Heisman Trophy winner and quarterback of the Washington Commanders, have given a cease-and-desist letter to LSU over his NIL rights as well as use of his jersey number (5), which someone else is wearing this year. And by the way, we expect to have that Heisman Trophy returned pronto.
As stupefying as all of that seems, it fits right in on the path that we’ve been travelling. Can you really say you are surprised?
All parties involved should be forced to cease and desist. Granted, there are various levels of ridiculousness at play, so this is not a one-size-fits-all blame game.
Daniels, of course, is at the top of the list. What are we doing here, my man? What can you possibly hope to gain from this? All you have done is hack off a fan base that adored you as well as making yourself look petty, narcissistic and ungrateful. Nobody made you go to LSU; if you had gone to New Mexico State – it’s just a guess here – but you probably weren’t going to win the Heisman. So simply being at LSU had inherent value. Deal with it.
Not sure what to think about D.J. Pickett, who (apparently) is going to wear No. 5 this year because he says he’s worn that number “all my life.” News flash, D.J. – you didn’t wear it last year and things turned out OK. You could have worn 57 ½ while playing defensive back during 2025 and still been one of the best freshman DBs in the country. But you want/need to wear it because it was promised to you by a coach who isn’t there anymore.
Which brings us to Brian Kelly, erstwhile head coach of the Fighting Tigers. We all know that Brian will do anything to try to get a recruit – remember the hard-to-look-at videos with the recruit who went somewhere else? – and apparently he promised Pickett that he could wear No. 5. Of course, LSU (contractually) promised Kelly he would be the coach for 10 years and we all know how that turned out.
And then there is Lane Kiffin. You didn’t think there as going to be a controversy and he wouldn’t be involved, did you? I’m guessing this wasn’t on Kiffin’s list of Issues To Solve when he took over as head coach, but he can’t pass the buck here. Brian Kelly’s promise isn’t Lane Kiffin’s promise. Kiffin didn’t have to give No. 5 to Pickett. I understand that he’d rather hack off Jayden Daniels, who is out of eligibility, rather than a stud defensive back who could (but won’t) be at LSU for four more years. Unlike Pickett, Daniels isn’t going to help LSU win any games this year.
But pettiness aside, here’s a simple solution: STOP DOING THIS. Not just LSU … everyone. At every level. The Boston Celtics have retired 24 jersey numbers. The New York Yankees don’t a single-digit jersey number available.
You want to honor a former player or coach? Display their number in the building or stadium. But don’t “retire” it.
The NBA’s Tim Hardaway Jr. had to ask Tim Hardaway Sr. if he could wear No. 10 this year when he plays for the Miami Heat. Dad balked (yay!) then unbalked (boo).
When you see the number at a game, it will have the same sentimentality that it would if a walk-on fifth-string tight end is wearing it.
Same goes for statues, which have gotten even more ridiculous in the who-gets-one debate. How’d that work out for Penn State and Joe Paterno?
The key thing to keep in mind here is this one word – August. That makes it fertile ground for controversies like this.
It’ll go away in time. It always does. Until someone unretires it.
It isn’t new news, but when it was officially announced Thursday by the City of Shreveport, officials delivered confirmation of a Friday night high school football doubleheader to be streamed on ESPN+.
Pairings were set this spring for a two-night, six-team prep football season kickoff event at Independence Stadium, built around spotlighting two of the nation’s top Class of 2027 quarterbacks in the Friday night doubleheader. The six participating teams combined for a 56-15 record last season.
Thursday’s announcement provided the Sept. 3-4 showcase with a name — the Stars & Stripes Border Classic – and revealed the two Friday matchups will be carried on sports’ most prominent streaming platform.
Thursday’s 7 p.m. matchup is local – Class 2A powerhouse Calvary Baptist (12-2 in 2025) meeting Huntington (3-7), which is eager to raise its status in District 1-5A under second-year coach John Simon.
With ESPN+ coverage, Friday’s games will involve the top two teams from last year’s 1-5A race, champion Evangel Christian (9-3) and runner-up Parkway (11-2), both state quarterfinalists in 2025.
Making it noteworthy for a widespread audience are the two highly-recruited quarterbacks taking the field, one in each game: Evangel’s Peyton “Pop” Houston, an LSU commit, and Dunham School’s Elijah Haven, pledged to Alabama.
There are more Class of 2027 talents in the two-day event, among them Parkway receiver Gary Burney (committed to LSU) and Calvary receiver Braylun Huglon (heading to Colorado State).
Parkway kicks off the Sept. 4 action at 5 p.m., hosting Class 2A stalwart Dunham (13-1 last year), which beat Calvary for the Select Division III state title last Dec. 11 34-17 behind a spectacular performance by Haven.
Evangel will renew a I-20 rivalry with West Monroe in an 8 o’clock contest. The schools had a series of epic meetings years ago, and each made noise last season – the Eagles with a District 1-5A championship and run to the quarterfinals, and the Rebels (8-4) by beating eventual state champion Ouachita and 2024 state finalist Alexandria Senior High.
The local matchup Thursday is a repeat of a 45-35 homefield win by Calvary over Huntington last Oct. 24
“This is exactly the type of event we envisioned as part of Shreveport’s America 250 celebration,” said Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux. “The Stars & Stripes Border Classic not only brings outstanding student-athletes and exciting competition to Independence Stadium, but it also showcases our city to a national audience. We are proud to welcome these teams, their families and football fans while highlighting Shreveport as a premier destination for championship sporting events.”
Independence Stadium, which is operated by Shreveport Parks and Recreation, hosts local high school football weekly each fall but hasn’t had a spotlight event with appealing regional matchups since the demise of the Battle on the Border series after 2022 following 11 years.
“The Stars & Stripes Border Classic represents everything SPAR strives to create, first-class events that bring our community together while introducing visitors to everything Shreveport has to offer,” said SPAR Director Shelly Ragle. “Having ESPN livestream Friday’s games is an incredible opportunity to shine a national spotlight on our city, Independence Stadium and these outstanding student-athletes. Whether you’re a lifelong football fan or simply looking for a great family event, this is a weekend you won’t want to miss.”
Evangel coach Denny Duron is eager to return his team to Independence Stadium against West Monroe.
“It is an absolutely amazing opportunity for our Evangel Christian Eagles to play in Independence Stadium, especially squaring off against the powerhouse West Monroe Rebels,” he said. “The last time the Eagles played the Rebels in Independence Stadium was in 2003. The crowd exceeded 30,000.”
Dunham coach Neil Weiner cited the history of Independence Stadium and the caliber of programs participating. Weiner and Parkway coach Coy Brotherton initially scheduled their Week 1 matchup and the venue and scope of the opening weekend meeting quickly expanded.
“We are excited for our team and school to play in an event like this,” Weiner said. “It’s pretty special to think that some of the best QBs in the history of the game have played in that stadium. Elijah and Pop will certainly be big attractions and could be remembered the same way, but Parkway-Dunham and West Monroe-Evangel all have great programs and will feature great players. It’s a special night for Louisiana high school football.”
Additional information regarding tickets, parking, stadium policies and game-day activities will be announced as the event approaches, city officials said.
SOLID START: Sam Burns carded four birdies and just one bogey Thursday at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in his first competitive round in a month.
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
MEMPHIS – It looked a lot worse than it was, which is a testament to how good Sam Burns is at course management.
Overcoming an erratic driver, the Shreveport native shot 3-under par 67 Thursday in the opening round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the beginning of the three-week-long FedEx Cup Playoffs. He is tied for 13th in the 69-man field, with five players, headlined by Jordan Speith, sharing the lead at 5-under.
That doesn’t sound bad at all for Burns, a Calvary Baptist alumnus who played his first competitive round in four weeks, since his second-place finish at the British Open.
It wasn’t the razor-sharp play that has been the norm for him for the past four months, however. Burns missed eight of 14 fairways and barely evaded two water hazards with drives, ranking 46th in the field in driving accuracy.
But he recovered very well. The two-time LSU All-American, now a Choudrant resident, tied for third in greens in regulation (13 of 18), carding four birdies until closing with a bogey 5 on the 18th hole, the toughest for the field Thursday at TPC Southwind.
The 30-year-old got under par on the par-5 third hole with a 17-foot birdie putt. He closed the front nine getting to 2-under, sinking a 7-footer on the par 4. He birdied two more par 4s on the back nine, nailing a 20-footer on 13 and a 9-footer on 16.
But his wayward driver finally put him in an untenable position off the final tee, when he was inches away from going into the water hazard. He had to pitch out sideways and couldn’t convert a 21-foot par putt.
This season, although it’s not by a big margin, Thursday rounds have been the least effective for Burns. He’s shaved a half-stroke or better off his Round 1 average of 69.7 afterward.
The TPC Southwind layout plays to his performance all year. There are 14 par-4 holes on the par 70 course. Burns ranks second on the Tour with his 3.95 scoring average on par-4s this season.
He and playing partner Xander Schauffele (also 3-under) tee off today at 9:25 with TV coverage on ESPN+ and ESPN. Weekend coverage will be on CBS.
BOM Bank is proud to sponsor the 11U Louisiana Hitmen baseball team! Their mission goes beyond the game by developing young athletes through discipline, structure, community service, and leadership—both on and off the field. We’re honored to support a program that is shaping the next generation of leaders while helping these players grow their love for the game. Pictured are Griffin Sibley, BOM’s Bre Brown, Chad Darnell, and Landry Darnell.
Sports fans 40 years old or less remember Don Nelson as the NBA’s second-winningest coach, a big man who wore wild neckties — my favorite was when he went through his “ties that looked like a dead fish” period, the gills and head touching his belt buckle — a large man who basically looked like your oversized uncle who’d lucked into great sideline seats for the Bucks-Sixers game.
Dallas Mavericks fans, who are now pulling for their rookie head coach Dusty May, a bona fide whiz and former Louisiana Tech assistant who most recently led Michigan to the NCAA men’s basketball title, remember the fun-loving, good-natured Nelson as the coach who corralled both Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash and turned the late-1990s Mavs into winners; Nowitzki was MVP of the Finals in 2011, the franchise’s sole championship.
But guys 20 years older those fans in their 40’s and 20 years younger than Nelson, who passed away this week at age 86, remember the NBA great as a workmanlike sixth man on the Boston Celtics teams of our youth. Boston won five titles with Nelson on the roster back in the 1960s and early 1970s when we HAD to have the NBA.
Repeat: guys my age HAD to have it. The Kansas City Kings and Tiny Archibald versus Wes Unseld and the Baltimore Bullets on a Sunday afternoon in the wintertime was necessary as oxygen to get you from football to baseball season.
And what glorious fun it was. Youth of today will find it hard to believe but there was a time when the game was played most of the time with 10 guys no more than 18 feet from the basket, give or take. Watching good NBA teams was like watching good music, seamless and graceful, occasional power, no wasted motion. Glorious, is what it was.
Best of all was a Celtics Sunday. Preferably a Celtics-Sixers or Celtics-Lakers Sunday, must-see TV through the 1980s. But the 1970s was about a guy like Nelson, a son of Middle America, a former Iowa star, a role player who shot one-handed free throws, probably because he was holding a doobie in his free hand. (And this is before we knew what a doobie was.)
When a gentleman like Nelson dies, a guy who’d long ago retired to Hawaii to raise coffee and flowers and cannabis and, by all accounts, was a loveable and huggable guy in his elder years, when a guy like that passes, the sports fan like me misses him less as an athlete and more as you’d miss the passing of a favorite entertainer, like Andy Griffith or Merle Haggard or Johnny Carson.
He was a wonderful player. The Celtics retired his No. 19 jersey a long, long time ago. But it was the way he played that made barely athletic guys like me love him. The “put me in coach” mentality, the one-handed free throws, the dirty blonde hair sweaty like heavy Iowa corn silk. Nothing fancy, just titles and, once the smoke had cleared, his jersey hanging in the rafters.
It was a much different time and a way different game. Nelson and John Havlicek. Paul Westphal. Paul Silas. The first time I’d ever heard of bone spurs was when Jo Jo White had to miss some games. Hurt me.
Oh goodness: just remembered Don Chaney of Baton Rouge, a Louisiana Sports Hall of Famer since 1991, and the great Dave Cowens, who was sort of like a faster, red-haired Don Nelson.
That the fire-breathing Tom Heinsohn was the coach just made it better. (By fire-breathing, we mean it semi-literally: Heinsohn was a two-pack-a-day guy back when it was common for the team bus and locker room to be filled with cigarette smoke. Like we’ve said: much different time, way different game.)
Memories of youth stay with you for different reasons. Who knows why we remember what we remember? But something about Don Nelson, who looked like he sang baritone in the choir on Sunday mornings, then would go out and get you 14 and 7 boards in the church league game on Tuesday nights at the local rec, will always stick with me. He’ll never know or could never have known that. But I do.
He and his hoop friends brought me and thousands of others my age a lot of joy. Still do. Always will.
BACK TO THE 318: Kim Mulkey’s LSU Tigers, with Parkway products Mikaylah Williams and Chloe Larry, will play at Northwestern State Sunday, Dec. 6 in their second north Louisiana outing in three seasons. (Photo by KRISTEN YOUNG, LSU Athletics)
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
NATCHITOCHES – The 100th Natchitoches Christmas Festival picked up star power Tuesday.
Kim Mulkey and her LSU women’s basketball team, including Bossier City-Parkway products Mikaylah Williams and Chloe Larry, are visiting the City of Lights to play at Northwestern State – where Williams’ mother played.
NSU welcomes LSU to Prather Coliseum on Sunday afternoon, Dec. 6 – the day following the annual Christmas Festival parade and the biggest fireworks show of the season.
It is the first time the Lady Demons have hosted LSU since 1983-84. The Tigers will be the first power conference opponent to come to Natchitoches since Alabama in the 1997-98 season.
The game will surely sell out Prather Coliseum, which has a listed capacity of 3,400 but has accommodated crowds near 4,000 by using extended seating at the north end of the arena. Ticket plans will be announced later, NSU officials said.
Two years ago, Mulkey brought Williams and the Tigers to the Brookshire Grocery Arena in Bossier CIty for a game against Grambling, attracting a crowd announced at 8,299 fans.
Williams, a three-year All-SEC guard, is the daughter of former Northwestern player LaTonya Perry, a productive Lady Demon forward from 2002-05. She was part of a 2004 Southland Conference regular-season and tournament championship team that played in the NCAA Tournament.
Both schools announced their full schedules Tuesday. Undoubtedly LSU’s Dec. 20 collision with UConn in Nashville drew most of the nation’s attention and is top billing on a tougher-than-usual non-conference slate for the Tigers, but the visit to Northwestern has regional appeal.
The matchup resulted from Mulkey’s friendship with new Northwestern coach Alan Frey.
Mulkey endorsed Frey, a longtime Tulane assistant who also had deep ties into south Louisiana AAU basketball network, for the Northwestern job after Anna Nimz departed NSU for North Alabama in March.
The LSU contest is the highlight of a difficult non-conference schedule for Northwestern, one that sees it face three SEC opponents and a Big 12 foe, and also includes rekindling a long dormant neighborhood series with Louisiana Tech. Former NSU coach Brooke Stoehr, who led the Lady Demons to a pair of NCAA Tournaments and a CIT berth, left to take over the Tech program after the 2016 postseason.
“This non-conference schedule is an absolute celebration of Natchitoches and north Louisiana basketball, and it will challenge our team from day one,” Frey said. “Bringing a powerhouse like LSU right here to our community is a historic milestone, and we want to truly thank Kim Mulkey for her commitment to keeping elite matchups inside our state borders and bringing her team to Prather Coliseum.”
The LSU contest is the last of three NSU games against SEC foes. Northwestern goes to Arkansas on Nov. 6 and visits Oklahoma on Nov. 19.
The Lady Demons visit the Lady Techsters on Nov. 12 in the first meeting since a 69-57 victory by the Stoehr-coached NSU team early in the 2014-15 season in Natchitoches. Tech drubbed Northwestern 77-40 a year earlier in Ruston in Stoehr’s second season in Natchitoches.
Another interesting contest follows four days later when LSU Shreveport, an NAIA power, visits Prather Coliseum on Nov. 16. NSU will host UL Lafayette Nov. 27.
“Having UL Lafayette visit gives our local fans another high-stakes Louisiana battle right on our home floor,” Frey said. “When you combine that premier home slate with a grueling, historic North Louisiana rivalry game over at Louisiana Tech, followed by relentless road environments at Arkansas, Oklahoma State, and Oklahoma, we have built a true gauntlet.
“This schedule is intentionally designed to ignite the passion of basketball fans across our region and perfectly prepare our squad to compete for a Southland Conference championship.”
LSU’s non-conference schedule also includes neutral site games against North Carolina State and Villanova, and a visit to North Carolina. The Tigers have 17 home games at the Maravich Assembly Center.
By PATRICK MEEHAN, Centenary Assistant AD for Communications
The CentenaryGents will begin preseason practice next week in preparation for their fourth season under coach Byron Dawson rekindling a long-dormant program.
Centenary will open on Sept. 5 against Westgate Christian at home with kickoff set for 6 p.m. in the first of five games played at Atkins Field next to the Gold Dome.
The Gents are scheduled to play nine regular-season games, four on the road. Centenary will play its first two games at home as the Maroon and White will face Millsaps College on Sept. 12 before traveling to Marshall Sept. 19 to meet East Texas Baptist University.
Single game tickets for the 2026 Centenary football season are now on sale and available for purchase online.
Fans can visit the link below to purchase tickets.
Ticket prices include $15 for a general admission single-game ticket (13 and older), $5 for child
ren 12 and under, and season tickets ranging from $200 for premier seating to $70 for general admission. Children’s season tickets are $20.
The Gents hadn’t played football for eight decades before launching the modern-day program three years ago with an exhibition season.
VOLLEYBALL SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED: The Ladies are set to play 22 regular-season matches under the leadership of first-year head coach Claire Hiler.
The season opener is Monday, Aug. 31 on the road at Wiley for a non-conference match in Marshall, Texas. Centenary will play its first five matches on the road before its home opener on Thursday, Sept. 17 against Jarvis Christian at 6 p.m. in the Gold Dome.
The Ladies play just six home matches and 16 road/neutral matches along with 14 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference matches and eight non-conference matches.
Centenary will also face Jarvis Christian on the road on Sept. 3 before playing three matches on Sept. 11-12 in Jackson, Miss. in the annual Millsaps College Volleyball Invitational. The Ladies’ other non-conference matches are Oct. 6 at East Texas Baptist and versus Southern Arkansas on Oct. 20 in the Gold Dome.
Centenary’s home conference matches are Sept. 25 against Austin College, Oct. 16 against the University of the Ozarks, Oct. 17 versus Hendrix College, and its regular-season finale against LeTourneau on Saturday, Nov. 7 for Senior Day.
The 2026 SCAC Tournament is Nov. 13-14 in Longview, Texas and hosted by LeTourneau.
WOMEN’S SOCCER ACADEMIC HONORS: TheUnited Soccer Coaches announced the College Team Academic Award winners, recognized for exemplary performance in the classroom during the 2025-26 academic year. A total of 777 soccer teams (326 men, 451 women) posted a team grade point average of 3.0 or higher, thereby earning the United Soccer Coaches Team Academic Award for the 2025-26 academic year. Of that total, 175 schools had both their men’s and women’s programs recognized.
The Centenary women’s soccer program excelled in the classroom, boasting a team GPA of 3.50. An impressive 21 Ladies made the SCAC Student-Athlete Academic Honor Roll for the 2025 fall term and three were named to the 2025-26 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District® Women’s Soccer Team.
The Ladies open their season on Tuesday, Sept. 1 against Belhaven in a 6 o’clock match at Atkins Field under the leadership of first-year head coach Merlinn Campagna.
When a head coach has been with a program for a few years, there’s not much difference between, let’s say, Year 5 and Year 6. Routines have been established. There’s very little getting-to-know to be done. It may not be rinse/repeat, but it’s pretty close.
But from Year 1 to Year 2? Now that’s a different story.
And it’s one that John Simon has no trouble living and telling.
For the second-year Huntington head coach, it all comes down to … gardening?
“Before you plant a garden, if you haven’t tilled that ground and got things right, I don’t care what you put in that ground, it’s not going to grow right,” he says. “You have to have the right environment in order for the culture to grow.”
To do that Simon wasn’t worried about how to install a weak side blitz or a route tree during the off-season. It’s been about things off the field instead.
“We focused on our environment, we’ve cleaned up a lot of things and right now, we’ve got a championship mindset,” he says. “That doesn’t mean we’re going to win a championship, but our mindset and our approach every day in everything that we do is to be on the level of a champion.”
A tangible sign of that happened this week as the Raiders unveiled a new weight room and locker room floor.
“That was definitely needed,” says Simon. “We’re giving the kids some things for them to have pride in. I’m excited about where we are. I’m excited about these kids and how they’re embracing the challenge. I’m excited about the pride that we’ve instilled in the program.”
The facilities upgrade is just one of those pride points for the Raiders, who were 3-7 and finished with four losses in Simon’s first season.
“You sign up to coach football, but you don’t realize that you’re more of a general manager,” he says. “You’re a fundraiser. The disciplinary issues, and the needs that the kids may have, you’re a counselor as well.”
In the off-season Simon has had a chance to look over all aspects of the program. Starting at the top.
“I had to do a better job of reevaluating my duties, my job, my staff and freeing myself up to be able to support the kids better,” says Simon. “We don’t have the luxury of having 10 full-time coaches or the luxury of having coaches all in your building, all in the athletic period, so you’re pulled in a lot of different capacities. I’m excited about the changes that we’ve made as it relates to the program. I’m excited about the pride that we’ve instilled in them and with our structure and organization, plus the facilities.”
Simon will admit that the outlook looks brighter for the Raiders this year – 18 returning starters and 30 seniors – but a successful doesn’t live year-to-year.
“This is a critical year for us in our program because of the talent that we have returning in the leadership and the skill set that we have in this year’s class,” he says. “I got 30 seniors, so I’m not concerned about what we’re going to do in between the lines. I’m not concerned about these guys tackling and running hard. We know we’re going to do that. We just had to get the infrastructure of everything else in place.”
Put it this way: John Simon feels a lot better about John Simon than he did before his first game Huntington coach 11 months ago.
“Without a question, I definitely do,” he says. “But it’s got to be visible. The city of Shreveport has really come out, the Huntington alumni have really come out and supported us. When we come into the game you’re not going to be able to say, ‘That school is lacking.’ We’re going to have the fireworks. We’re going to have the flags. We’re going to have a tunnel. We’re going to have some excitement and some energy for our kids because they deserve it. Not just on senior night.
“Every night’s going to be senior night when you come see Huntington football.”
BOUNCE BACK TIME: Leadoff man and centerfielder Cole Snell and the Bossier Phillies must work through the losers’ bracket to make a third straight American Legion World Series appearance.
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
GASTONIA, N.C. – The simple things weren’t simple Thursday for the Bossier Phillies in their opening game of the American Legion Baseball Mid-South Regional, so they’ll have breakfast at the ballpark today.
Bossier (18-3) will have to battle through the loser’s bracket to make a third straight regional title for a third consecutive World Series berth. After an error-prone 5-1 loss to Bryant (Ark.), the Phillies play at 9:30 EDT this morning against Columbia (Tenn.), which fell 5-2 to Tupelo (Miss.) in the Thursday morning tournament opener.
The double-elimination bracket runs through Sunday. Bossier coach Dane Peavy has faith his team can get that far but it’s going to require a return to form after committing five errors and getting only three hits.
“We’ve been in this position before,” he said. “I think our guys were just stunned by what happened. They expected to come out and things would flow our way, but we ran into some adversity and didn’t bounce back. Hopefully we get started better and we’ll be clicking on all cylinders.”
Tanner Webb will take the mound this morning after throwing 6 2/3 innings of 1-hit ball July 13 in a state tournament win.
“We have our work cut out for us in the morning,” said Peavy after a Waffle House supper late Thursday. “I feel pretty good with Tanner on the mound. He gives us our best shot to bounce back, and then hopefully we take it one game at a time from there.”
The Phillies committed five errors and the Black Sox scored three unearned runs, including a throwing error by pitcher Bud Burns allowing Bryant a 2-0 lead after three innings.
“Bud threw well (scattering eight hits, only one for extra bases), and was a victim of his own circumstances. Had bases loaded with no outs twice, got out of it the first time, but the second time he fielded a (two-out, bases-full) squibber and just threw it over the first baseman’s head.
“We did a good job to come right back and get a run, but couldn’t get more out of that (fourth) inning and we didn’t find a way to score again,” said Peavy.
Brody Turnipseed led off Bossier’s fourth with a walk and a stolen base. He scampered to third on a bad throw by the catcher, then scored on a sacrifice fly from Jackson Waller. The Phillies stranded a runner at second base, and managed only two singles afterward and never got into scoring position.
Bryant’s outfield positioning paid off, said Peavy.
“Their defensive approach is play very deep in the outfield and take away the doubles, all the gap shots. We hit 4-5 that I thought were pretty good but they got over and caught them, and they made a couple nice plays in the infield.
“It wasn’t falling for us, but at the same time our approaches weren’t very good. We didn’t gee and haw like we usually do, and we floundered from that point forward,” he said.
Bossier Parish Community College baseball finished the 2026 season with a 27-23 record and sent eight players to Division I programs, continuing the program’s steady rise with the leadership of head coach Bobby Gilliam.
In nine seasons under Gilliam, the Cavaliers have recorded 252 wins, six winning seasons, five playoff appearances, and the program’s first conference championship in 25 years (2025). More than 60 BPCC players have advanced to the Division I level during that span.
Pitching coach and recruiting coordinator Andrew Mercer has played a key role in bringing much of this talent to campus. In his six seasons as pitching coach, the staff has produced two Region 14 Pitchers of the Year — Zach Saint Pierre (2022) and Garett Blanchard (2025).
“Recruiting is the lifeblood of any program, and Andrew’s work ethic, eye for talent, connections, and ability to develop relationships with the players is elite,” Gilliam said.
The Cavaliers hit .292 as a team in 2026 and ranked second in Region 14 North with 63 home runs.
Bryant Bowen, a former Captain Shreve standout, 2015 Shreveport Times Player of the Year, and three-year starter at Southern Miss, joined the staff in 2026. Bowen also started at catcher for the University of South Carolina as a graduate transfer during the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
“Bryant has added depth to how we prepare hitters and the approach we have as a team,” Gilliam said. “We have always hit the ball well here and produced hitters who are ready to contribute at the Division I level, but our walks were up and the strikeouts were down last season. I think that had a lot to do with the details Bryant preached to the hitters.”
The 2026 season also marked a program milestone. Tyrus Hall, a member of the 2025 BPCC team, became the first Cavalier to reach the College World Series since former Haughton High and Arkansas Razorback standout TJ Forrest. Hall started at third base for West Virginia and earned All-Tournament Team honors in Omaha.
Eight 2026 Cavaliers joined NCAA Division I programs this summer.
• Trent Lape is bound for the Ragin’ Cajuns of UL Lafayette after striking out 29 in 27 innings and posting a 6.18 ERA this spring.
• Ben McKinnon will compete against Lape in Sun Belt Conference action for Louisiana Tech. A first-team All-Conference selection in 2025, McKinnon finished his BPCC career with pitching stats of 95 innings, 101 strikeouts, a 3.68 ERA, and a 9-4 record.
• Gianluca Montanaro is off to Belmont University in Nashville. A second-team All-Conference catcher for BPCC, he hit .339 with 10 home runs, 11 doubles, and 42 RBI.
• Bryson Pierce is headed to the Southland Conference, going to perennial contender Northwestern State in Natchitoches after making second-team All-Conference for the Cavs. He batted .385 with 9 doubles, 3 home runs, and 26 RBI and also pitched 21 innings with 28 strikeouts.
• Jacob Polleto is going north to the University of Southern Indiana, which plays in the Ohio Valley Conference. This spring, he hit .291 with 3 home runs and 22 RBI.
• Chase Randall will be another BPCC product in the SLC, heading to San Antonio to play at the University of the Incarnate Word. This spring, he worked 24 innings, notching 26 strikeouts and recording 8 saves and a 4.13 ERA.
• Jackson Reifel will be his teammate at UIW. He recorded an 8-2 record and a 5.26 ERA across 49 innings for BPCC.
• James Reina will play in the Southland at Stephen F. Austin. An honorable mention All-Conference selection, Reina hit .327 with 10 doubles, 10 home runs, 36 RBI, and 17 stolen bases.
Three more Cavaliers signed with nearby smaller colleges.
• Brandon Levy is staying local going to NAIA power LSUS. He was second-team All-Conference this spring after he hit .382 with 8 doubles, 3 home runs, and 24 RBI. He also got work on the mound, pitching 25 career innings, posting 27 strikeouts and 4 saves.
• Cole Patrick will play in Arkadelphia for the Division II Henderson State Reddies. He had a 2-1 record with a 5.11 ERA in 24 innings this spring.
• Mason Sanders is also headed to the Pilots. This spring, he batted .278 with 7 doubles, 8 home runs, and 26 RBI.
The Cavaliers continue to build a strong pipeline while competing at a high level in the region. With another group of signees, proven player development, and a winning season complete, BPCC baseball remains one of the most productive junior-college programs in the area.
Tacky question: What do you call a skeleton with long blonde hair in a closet?
That would be your Champion of the 1963 Hide-and-Seek Invitational Tournament.
See? It’s almost like a joke.
We should be able to get away with a blonde “joke” here since I was as a blonde, nappy-headed youth. Plus I was awesome at hide-and-seek, mainly because no one wanted to find me and everyone wanted to hide from me.
Not the point though. The point is that there are some things you cannot replicate on a computer or television screen with a computer game. A game like hide-and-seek, which you can play inside if it’s bad weather but outside all the time.
Is that still a thing? Hide-and-seek? I never hear recaps about great hide-and-seek games like I used to. That tells me something is up. And it’s not someone’s rear end, which is sitting on a sofa shooting cartoon lasers at cartoon warriors and prehistoric or futuristic animals.
What we might need to do is get off and up out. As in off the butt and out of doors. It’s happening outside. For wiffle ball and a swingset, if nothing else.
This is not meant to sound like the ramblings of an old dude. I did not grow up with an outhouse as the toilet. Didn’t have to quit school after third grade to help support the family. Didn’t walk five miles to school, uphill both ways. (I rode a bus two miles and Myron Ford let me change gears sometimes; it’s been a charmed life.)
But I don’t see little kids playing outside as much as I used to. Outside is where it’s at. You can’t play tag inside. Not with any success. You can’t swim in a lake inside. Can’t fly a kite inside.
It’s hot? Sure. Get conditioned. You can always duck back inside the AC, an advantage your great-grandparents and many of your grandparents didn’t have.
My friend Magic Man (“Shake and Bake!”) took his children to Colorado to visit their maternal grandma this summer. Grandma, he said, is not ready to be on the “Hoarders” TV show — not yet — but her domain does represent an organized chaos. Included in the 8-tracks and Life magazines is every board-type game Magic Man’s wife played when she was little.
Included in the stack of Clue and Battleship and Rook cards was Twister. Remember Twister? Big red, yellow, green, and blue dots. Spaced in a rectangle. You spin the spin thing and the spin thing lands on “Left Hand, Blue” or “Right Foot, Green,” and you aim to put your required or called-for appendage onto the color. You and the people you are playing with get contorted pretzel-like, and the last one standing, so to speak, is the winner, winner, chicken dinner.
Classic.
Magic Man’s three children, not one of them yet threatening double digits, had seen such a thing. They had watched movies and played with little computers on the drive up — what can you do, stuck there in the modern back seat? But once they discovered Twister, new ballgame. Hours of fun. Without a control pad. Or electricity.
Magic Man even took a shot. He had to stretch a limb on about his third spin and felt like someone had shot him in the thigh. You generally don’t pull a muscle while playing X-Box. So there are some risks in old-school games.
The risks are worth it. My point is — and Twister is surely another game you can play inside or, as Magic Man’s kids did, on the back porch — we’ve got to get up and move around. There are fun things to do outside involving bikes and water sprinklers that today’s children won’t be exposed to if we don’t spread the love.
“But summer’s over.” WHAT?! This is north Louisiana. Summer is never really over. Unless ice is on the ground, get the kids outside.
If they buy into it, remember to tell them that if they play hide-and-seek and no one has found them inside of a calendar day, it’s best to come on out. They win. Even if they’re blonde.
BATON ROUGE – As LSU opens its preseason football practice today under head savior Lane Kiffin, let’s rewind how we got here.
Three quarterback injuries.
July 31, 2025: On the second day of preseason practice LSU senior starting QB Garrett Nussmeier suddenly has a stabbing pain in his abdomen. Team doctors never precisely diagnose the injury. He is a shell of his 2024 version that made him a 2025 Heisman Trophy candidate. The Tigers’ offense is toothless. Head coach Brian Kelly is fired after the eighth game, a 49-25 home loss to Texas A&M. Nussmeier plays one more game (vs. Alabama) and then is shut down for the season. Tests at the NFL combine in February revealed a cyst on Nusssmeir’s spine was pressing against a nerve to cause the persistent oblique pain.
Sept. 6, 2025: In his second college start, Ole Miss sophomore QB Austin Simmons suffered an ankle injury on a third-down carry with 6:32 left to play in Game 2 at Kentucky. Then-Ole Miss coach Kiffin subs in senior Trinidad Chambliss, a late summer portal find from Division 2 national championship team Ferris State. Chambliss proceeds to burn down the SEC. He starts the next 13 games, leads the Rebs to a 13-2 record and to the CFP semifinals totaling 4,464 offensive yards (more than LSU’s season total) and 30 TDs. Kiffin leaves Ole Miss and is announced as LSU’s coach on Nov. 30. Simmons never starts again and transfers to Missouri almost seven months on Jan. 6. A friendly Mississippi state judge grants Chambliss a preliminary injunction allowing to return to Ole Miss for a sixth college season.
Sept 20, 2025: Arizona State sophomore starting quarterback Sam Leavitt, who was the 2024 Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year when he led ASU to the 2024 Big 12 title and to College Football Playoffs, suffers a Lisfranc injury of his right mid-foot vs. Baylor. He battles through pain for four weeks, starting in three games, before undergoing surgery on Halloween. He enters the transfer portal on Jan. 2 and signs with LSU on Jan. 12.
So what if:
•Nussmeier stays healthy, LSU finishes 9-3 or 10-2 in the regular season and Kelly isn’t fired.
•Simmons returns from injury, isn’t as effective as Chambliss, Ole Miss finishes 8-4 and Kiffin isn’t a wanted commodity.
•Leavitt stays healthy, has another great year and enters the NFL Draft.
Instead, LSU now has a $13 million per year head coach armed with a $40 million plus NIL cash bag the size of a Mexican drug cartel, and a $5 million starting QB (less than Chambliss’ new deal) who missed all of spring practice still recovering from last October’s trick or treat surgery. And Brian Kelly was hired by CBS as an analyst who will be on a sound loop repeating the phrase “technical and tactical” to the point it will become a drinking game for viewers.
Kiffin has roughly 21 preseason practices (including two scrimmages) and four walk-throughs before his team featuring 59 new players (43 transfers, 16 freshmen) takes the field for a Sept. 5 opener vs. Clemson in Tiger Stadium.
There is no learning curve. In the first four games, Games 3 and 4 are against 2025 playoff teams (Ole Miss, Texas A&M). Three of the last four are against playoff teams from the last two years (Alabama 2025, Texas (2024/2025) and Tennessee (2024).
Playing a Power 4 Conference team in the opener is not unusual for LSU. It’s the only team in the FBS that has done it for the past six seasons.
Kiffin’s openers have been store-bought from the cupcake rack.
His last four openers at Ole Miss – Troy, Mercer, Furman and Georgia State – were unmerciful beatdowns. The Rebels went 4-0 by a combined score of 240-24.
His first LSU signing class features the best portal buys in the nation. Colorado left tackle Jordan Seaton is a massive blind protector. The Tigers’ top six receivers are portal pass grabbers. Five of LSU’s front seven defensive players are all Power 4 transfers with impressive resumes. Boise State free safety Ty Benefield is a heat-seeking missile.
“This ain’t no like first-year build thing,” Ole Miss transfer defensive end Prince Umanmielen said during the Tigers’ spring practice. “This ain’t the place we try and go all the way. We try and go all the way. That’s our mindset right now.”
Yet for all the talent galore, reaching the playoffs or falling short rests on the shoulders of Leavitt, the highest paid player on the team.
Obviously, quarterbacks are the heartbeat of most teams. But in Kiffin’s Speedy Gonzales-fast tempo, they’re even more important.
The QB has to process everything quicker, from getting the playcalls from the coaching booth to reading defenses and making adjustments.
“Our offense is very much pushed by the quarterback because of the tempo of it,” Kiffin said.
In some respects, Leavitt is an unknown commodity. His freshman year was fabulous, Last season was a washout.
Yes, he has played good competition. But in the only games he played against an SEC opponent — a home and home against Mississippi State the last two seasons – his combined stats (244 total offense yards, one TD pass, two interceptions, two TD runs) are vastly underwhelming.
Leavitt said recently the reason he came to LSU (besides the obvious payday) was to be developed.
Kiffin is one of college football’s premier offensive minds, a quarterback whisperer. Chambliss says Kiffin sees “things on film other people don’t see.”
In his six seasons at Ole Miss, Kiffin’s primary starting QBs (Matt Corral 2020-2021, Jaxson Dart 2022-23-24 and Chambliss 2025) averaged a combined 405.9 total offense. yards and 29.7 TDs (passing and rushing each season).
It’s a high bar that has been set. For LSU to have any chance of a 9-3 record or better, Leavitt must flirt with those numbers.
He’s going to have a better first (and possibly only) season with the Tigers than LSU’s eventual Heisman Trophy QBs Joe Burrow (2019) and Jayden Daniels (2023) did in 2018 and 2022 respectively.
MAKING THE CALLS: Trey Giglio, who coordinates the Shreveport High School Officials Association, made a pitch for new recruits and reviewed a handful of rules changes for the upcoming football season at Tuesday’s media day event. (Journal photo by DOUG IRELAND)
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
Dozens of standout high school football players from 38 north Louisiana programs were delighted as they participated in Tuesday’s Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl High School Media Day.
They relished the spotlight, nearly all donning their game jerseys, flanking their coaches at tables in four hour-long interview sessions in the south end zone Club Level room at Independence Stadium.
Southwood coach De’Aumante Johnson and his players, Jayden Carter and Nyangadzai Jenya, were dressed to the nines, sporting snazzy suits. Johnson, a former Grambling player, said he follows the example of legendary Tigers coach Eddie Robinson to dress to impress for media day sessions.
They impressed.
So did all the student-athletes, fielding a range of questions from media and posing for photos, while taking opportunities to visit with peers and future opponents.
As the teams gear up for scrimmages, jamborees and at least, their regular-season schedules beginning on the Sept. 4 weekend, administrators at the event made a pitch for more adults to get involved – as game officials.
Trey Giglio, who leads the Shreveport High School Officials Association, and Lee Sanders, who oversees officiating for the Louisiana High School Athletic Association, used turns at the podium in a lunchtime media session to explain the continuing need to recruit people willing to enforce the rules of the game.
The Shreveport-based officiating group serves 35-40 local and area schools, said Giglio.
Statewide last fall, there were about 300 varsity football teams, involving around 15-20,000 players, said Sanders. A total of 1,193 people served as LHSAA certified football officials last season – and more are needed. Crews often have to double up their weekly assignments and games get shifted off Friday nights to assure full complements of officials are available for every contest.
Of those nearly 1,200 officials last year, Sanders said a high percentage were rookies.
“Right at 20 percent of them had never officiated before. No coach anywhere in this state has a roster where only 20 percent of his players had never played before at any level,” he said. “The No. 1 challenge facing high school football, really any sport in any community, is the number of trained, qualified and available officials to serve the student-athletes and schools.”
Giglio, who is a referee locally, said there are good reasons to get involved.
“Maybe it’s someone looking for extra income, or a hobby. Someone who wants to stay close to the game. Someone looking to stay athletic and in shape after they get out of school. All of those are great reasons to go into officiating high school football,” he said.
But they just don’t park at the stadium on game night, pull on their officials gear and whistles, and line up for kickoff.
“There is a lot that goes into it. Weekly training videos, in-person meetings, preseason training and testing,” said Giglio. “In the Shreveport association, we just concluded two on-field training sessions at Bossier High School where we brought officials in, fine-tuned mechanics, looked at everything they do.”
Local training began July 1, he said.
Every official is required to post an 85 percent score on an annual August rules test. They must attend an LHSAA training session before each season and attend a sanctioned clinic once every two years.
Careers begin at junior varsity and freshman games, a proving ground for aspiring officials, he said.
Sanders ticked off four points of emphasis for game officials.
“Professionalism – The most complaints we see in the state office have nothing to do with call accuracy or mechanics. It’s usually questionable professionalism.
“Communication with coaches. Not all coaches are the same. Sports are emotional, and communication with a coach is a powerful tool that helps an official.
“Call accuracy. Whether calling something a foul, or not calling something a foul, we just want to get it right. We also want to learn from and grow when we make mistakes.
“The fourth is simply be a good person, whether it’s with the crew you are working with, the young people that you share a Friday night field with, and the broad range of people you encounter.”
His closing pitch:
“If you want to be known as being professional, accurate, and a great person to be around, you can get trained and doors can open for opportunities for you.”
GONE TOO SOON: Renowned Louisiana-born jockey Robby Albarado retired from racing in 2021, but continued to contribute to championship victories. (Photo courtesy WHAS-TV)
JOURNAL SPORTS
Robby Albarado, a Louisiana-born jockey who won a pair of Preakness Stakes and two Super Derby titles at Louisiana Downs in a 32-year career that ranks him among thoroughbred racing’s greatest riders, died suddenly Tuesday days after a procedure placing a stent in his heart.
The Lafayette native, who had 168 wins at Louisiana Downs beginning as a teenager, ranked in the sport’s top 20 all-time in jockey earnings. Overall, Albarado posted 5,222 career wins – tied for 30th most in North American history with another Acadiana native, Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame member Mark Guidry.
Albarado’s mounts finished in the money 44 percent of the time and earned more than $221 million, 19th most in history and second to Kent Desormeaux among Louisiana-born riders.
He twice won the Preakness, in 2007 aboard Curlin and 13 years later on longshot Swiss Skydiver. He retired in 2021, ending 32 years in the profession.
The first of his 39 Grade I stakes wins came at Louisiana Downs in 1993 aboard Tuck’s Honey Bear in the Grady Madden Memorial.
He won the Bossier City track’s Super Derby atop Strong Contender in 2006. He captured another Super Derby in 2013 with Departing.
Albarado, 52, died in his sleep at the home of trainer and friend Kenny McPeek. After retiring as a jockey, Albarado was an exercise rider for McPeek’s stable and was credited with contributing to Grade 1 stakes wins in that capacity.
A report from HorseRacingNation.com said Albarado underwent a procedure last week in Saratoga Springs, New York, where the annual Saratoga meet is ongoing, to place a stent addressing a blockage near his heart.
“He was a very good friend and a top horsemen,” McPeek said to Horse Racing Nation. “This is rough.”
Albarado was the regular rider for two Horses of the Year – Mineshaft in 2003 and Curlin in 2007 and 2008. Those two horses combined for 10 of Albarado 39 career Grade I victories.
Albarado was elected to the Fair Grounds Racing Hall of Fame in 2005 for winning seven riding titles at the New Orleans track. A year before, he received the prestigious George Woolf Memorial Award for career achievement and personal character reflecting well on the sport in a vote of national riding peers.
Albarado ranked in the top 15 nationally in earnings 11 times in his career and in the top 15 in wins on four occasions. He overcame multiple injuries during his career, including a pair of skull fractures.
By PATRICK MEEHAN, Centenary Assistant AD for Strategic Communications
Before heading off to cooler surroundings on a summer trip, I sat down for a conversation with Morgan Dorsey, who has more job titles than anyone else on campus, I’d say. She is Centenary’s Assistant Athletic Director for Internal Operations, Senior Woman Administrator and the Student-Athlete Advisory Council advisor – plus, the former women’s soccer coach is now the new women’s flag football coach.
Here’s what she shared:
“The past few months have definitely been a whirlwind. After recently stepping down as head women’s soccer coach, I’ve transitioned into my new role as Assistant Athletic Director for Internal Operations while also serving as the head women’s flag football coach. It’s been a significant change of pace, but one that has been incredibly rewarding.
“My new position comes with a tremendous amount of responsibility, particularly on the compliance side of athletics. A lot of my focus is making sure we’re meeting NCAA requirements and that every detail is covered to best support our coaches and student-athletes. While the behind-the-scenes work is very different from being on the sideline every day, I’ve really enjoyed the opportunity to work with all of our student-athletes instead of just one team. Building relationships across every program has been one of the most rewarding aspects of this transition.
“Of course, I’ll always miss coaching my soccer team. Those relationships and experiences will always be special to me, but I also know they’re in great hands, which has made this transition much easier. At the same time, I’m excited to build something new with our women’s flag football program and continue growing a sport that is creating incredible opportunities for female student-athletes.
“One of the things I’m looking forward to most this year is traveling to Paris (this month) with our student-athletes. It’s such a unique opportunity that extends far beyond athletics.
“Our fall sport student-athletes will be preparing for their preseason with early morning workouts before heading to class each day, giving them the chance to balance academics, athletics, and an unforgettable international experience. Being able to support them through that journey, watch them grow together, and experience a different culture is something I know they’ll remember for the rest of their lives.
“I’m grateful to be part of an experience that will challenge them, strengthen their bonds as teammates, and create memories they’ll carry well beyond their time at Centenary.”
GYMNASTICS AND WOMEN’S SOCCER ADD ASSISTANT COACHES: Ethan Poole has joined the Centenary Gymnastics program as an assistant coach.
Poole is a recent graduate from Greenville University with a B.S. in Business Management and a B.A. in Spanish. He was a McAllaster Honors Scholar and member of the men’s gymnastics’ team.
Poole completed an interdisciplinary honors thesis on comparative economic policy and led community engagement initiatives while maintaining a 3.5+ GPA. He served as team captain as a senior and was an Academic All American (2023-2025), NCAA National Championship qualifier (2023, 2025 individual/ 2024, 2026 team), Elite 90 Award candidate, and ECAC Conference Champion (2026).
Outside the Gold Dome, Ana Ramos has been named assistant women’s soccer coach.
Ramos, a native of Riverside, Calif., previously served as head coach at Mississippi University for Women for two seasons – 2024 and 2025. Ramos, who served as the co-SAAC advisor, led the Owls to the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament in 2024 and in her two seasons at the helm she coached three all-conference players, two all-sportsmanship honorees, one all-tournament player, and six players were named Player of the Week.
Under Ramos’ leadership, the Owls excelled off the field as six players were named academic all-conference, eight named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team, two All-Academic Team awards from United Soccer Coaches, and 11 were inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma.
Ramos spent one season (2023) at Division II Eastern New Mexico University and from 2019-22 she was an assistant coach at McMurry University. She was the assistant coach at University of the Ozarks from 2015-19.
Ramos is a product of Arlington, Texas and played at LeTourneau University from 2011-2014 where she was a three-time All-Academic Team member and majored in business management.
Thank you, LSU, for giving these lads a soft place to land.
Thank you, Ole Miss, for pulling a Peter Finch in Network with an “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore” move.
Thanks to all of you because you’ve done college football a great service. And for that, we are thankful.
(Oh, by the way, all of you listed above still have real issues to overcome with this matter. But that’s not why we are here.)
I’m not saying that one day we will all look back and say that Harper, a Shreveport native, and Umanmielen are going down in history as pioneers and eventually take their place beside Neil Armstrong and Rosa Parks.
But the decision they made could – and hopefully will – have great consequences down the line. (And the shorter the line, but better for us all.)
The short version of all of this is that Harper and Umanmielen decided one day in January that they’d like to continue playing football for Ole Miss and thereupon signed a deal with the university to be paid to do so.
Then, before the ink was barely dry, they decided on another day in January that they’d rather not.
Next thing you know, they had hightailed it down I-55 and surfaced in Baton Rouge at LSU. Perfectly within their rights to do so.
But it’s also perfectly within Ole Miss’s rights to remind the two that there was that little thing called a contract and in it, there is the stipulation that if you do leave, you owe us some of the money you had already received.
LSU may or may not have told these two they’d take care of that – schools do that all the time when their new coach wants out of his deal with his previous member institution – but the school’s official policy is N.O.P. (not our problem).
If you are an LSU fan or an Ole Miss, I’m going to take a moment here and ask you to try to take away with overwhelming loyalty to your school and think about how this might play out in the long run.
If you are one of those who hates every single change that has been brought about in today’s college football, it’s been a tough couple of years. Judges, overzealous boosters, state legislation have all worked against you. Lots of fudging of what has attempted to be a rulebook.
But this is different. This is a contract and unless you are scribbling on the back of a bar napkin, it’s pretty reasonable to assume that it’s been looked over by all of the legal beagles.
You can break a contract, but you have to pay for it. And it appears that Messers Harper and Umanmielen failed to do so.
Given the nature of the testiness between the two schools involved, it is perfectly acceptable to wonder if Ole Miss would have gone to these suit-filing lengths had it been USL instead of LSU. (I know it’s not USL anymore, but work with me here.)
But maybe, just maybe, the result won’t be nearly as important as the action itself. You want to leave? Sure, now get out the checkbook.
Maybe this will play a part in retarding the ridiculous amount of player movement that threatens college football far more than athletes getting paid.
You want to be an adult? Then play by adult rules. You don’t get to use the “I’m a kid” excuse when you’re getting paid more than 99 percent of the people in the stadium who are watching you play on Saturdays.
Actions have consequences. And when other players start to realize what’s gone on with Harper and Umanmielen, maybe there will be far less examples of this in the future.
Sure, players can try to do this. Nothing is stopping them from giving it a shot.
But that signature on the dotted line means something. It does for you and me and everyone else.
BACK TO COLLEGE: Donald Pickett, who returned to his Tennessee hometown in 2023 after 15 years as softball coach at Northwestern, was hired Thursday by his alma mater, Tennessee-Chattanooga. (File photo courtesy NSU Athletics)
JOURNAL SPORTS
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Former Northwestern State softball coach Donald Pickett, who led the Demons to great success in 15 seasons until departing in 2023, is back in the college ranks in his backyard.
Pickett, who won almost 400 games at NSU, was announced Thursday as the new head coach at Tennessee-Chattanooga.
After three years back home in an area where he has family roots, Pickett returns to his alma mater where he spent five seasons including four as an assistant to the retired Frank Reed, who stepped down June 22.
Said Chattanooga vice chancellor of athletics Mark Wharton: “It’s great when you can bring someone in who not only has a strong history of success as a head coach on the collegiate level, but they also have a rich history with the program they’re joining.
“His proven track record and strong ties to a vibrant softball community made this a home run for us.”
In 2023, Pickett returned to the Scenic City as general manager of the Chattanooga Steam professional softball team and was vice president of coach and player development for the Fury Platinum organization. He owns Tristar Elite Hitting and was head coach of the Fury Platinum X Pickett 16u.
He spent 15 seasons as the head coach at Northwestern State where he is the program’s winningest head coach amassing 393 victories. He led the Demons to the three Southland Conference Championships. Two were tournament titles in 2013 and 2014, producing NCAA Tournament appearances, followed by the 2015 regular season crown with a stellar 22-3 league mark.
“I’m incredibly excited to be back in Chattanooga and grateful for the opportunity to lead this program,” Pickett said. “Returning to the place where my coaching journey began makes this a truly special full-circle moment. Chattanooga softball has a proud tradition, and a strong foundation. I’m eager to get to work building on that success and look forward to investing in our student-athletes, connecting with our community and competing for championships.”
Pickett turned around an NSU program that won just 39 percent of its games in the three years prior to his arrival. He posted winning marks in 12 of his 15 campaigns topping 30 triumphs five times and 40 once. The Demons 40-15 mark in 2013 featured the top winning percentage (.727) in school history.
Northwestern made two NCAA Tournament appearances in his tenure following the 2013 and 2014 SLC titles. That 2014 squad featured the first Demons in more than a decade to make the All-South Region squads (Tara McKenney and Kellye Kincannon). In all, he coached six all-region performers.
He was named the 2013 Louisiana Sports Writers Association and 2015 Southland Conference Coach of the Year. He coached 21 All-Louisiana selections and 48 All-Southland picks, including 2015 SLC Pitcher of the Year Mikayla Brown and 2022 SLC Freshman of the Year Sage Hoover.
Prior to NSU, Pickett was an assistant coach at Memphis for two seasons where he assisted with recruiting and player development while helping the Tigers to its first conference tournament win.
Pickett assisted Reed for nine seasons across two Scenic City programs. He spent five seasons at UTC as an assistant coach. The Mocs claimed three Southern Conference Tournament regular season titles during his tenure, three conference tournament crowns and three trips to the NCAA.
At Chattanooga State under Reed, the Tigers claimed three conference titles and three tournament titles. In all three Junior College World Series appearances, Chattanooga State finished in the top 5.
The Tigers posted an NJCAA record 62-wins in 2001, a mark that still stands today, and the staff was named the National Fastpitch Coaching Staff of the Year.
