The Advocate 09-13-2025 by The Advocate

Charlie Kirk killing suspectarrested

22-year-oldUtah manhad become ‘morepolitical,’ governor says

BY ERIC TUCKER, ALANNA DURKIN RICHER, JESSE BEDAYN and HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Associated Press

OREM, Utah A22-year-oldUtah man who was arrested and booked on murder charges in the assassination of Charlie Kirk held deep disdain for the conservative activist’s provocativeviewpoints andindicated to a family member that hewas responsible for the shooting,authorities said Friday

The arrest markedamajor break in a case that shocked thecountry and raised fresh alarms about political violence in a deeply polarizedUnitedStates.

Tyler Robinson hadbecome “more political” in the run-up to theshooting and mentionedduring adinner with family that Kirk

would be visiting Utah, Gov.SpencerCox saidat anews conference. The Republican governor cited as evidence engravings on bulletcasingsfound in the riﬂe that authorities believe was used in theattack,as well as chat appmessages attributed to the suspect that aroommate shared with law enforcement.

The governor credited Robinson’sfamily with helping turn him over toauthorities.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we got him,” Cox said soon after the arrest was ﬁrst heralded by President Donald Trumponthe Fox News show “Fox &Friends.”

Robinson is believed to have acted alone, andthe investigation is ongoing, Cox said.

He was arrestedonsuspicion of capital murder,weapons and obstruction offenses

He was expected to be formally charged Tuesday ahead of an initial court appearance.

Robinson’s arrest late Thursday capped afrenetic day-and-a-half search that just hours earlier seemed stuck when authorities pleaded for tips and leads from the

ä See SUSPECT, page 4A

BY DAVID J. MITCHELL |Staff writer

Louisiana has authorized the construction of its ﬁrst carbon capture and storage well, opening the waytoanew industry that could reduce greenhouse gasemissions from industrial plants, but which hasdrawnseriousconcerns fromresidentswho questionits long-term impacts. The order fromthe state Department of Energy andNaturalResources comes more than ayear and ahalf after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency granted it authority to permit wells for the technology,which injects highpressure carbon dioxide in anear liquid state into formations deep underground.

Issued based on well drilling, seismic testing, computer modeling and other data, the new Class VI permit near Hackberry would allow an arm of Sempra Infrastructure to build a well that could pump up to 2million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually for20years under Black Lake southwest of Lake Charles.

ä See WELL, page 6A

Golden Deeds Awardwinner named

BR native LeoHamiltonhas ledalifeofpublicservice

BY ELLYN COUVILLION |Staff writer

Leo Hamilton, this year’sGolden Deeds Award winner,grew up in South Baton Rouge ﬁve blocks from LSU, where he would one day earnhis undergraduate and law degrees.

“I satonmyfront stepsand listened to LSUgames,” Hamilton said. “Wecould hear the game announcer,Sid Crocker, from our front steps.”

Hamilton is named after his father of the same name, who was amachinist at the Holsum Breadfactory on Choctaw Drive —“We hada lot of bread at my house,” he said.

His mother,Myrtle, worked as ahousekeeper before returning to school and becoming a

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LINDSEy WASSON

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox speaks Friday at anewsconference as Utah Department of Public Safety CommissionerBeau Mason,left, and FBI Director Kash Patellisten in Orem,Utah.

PHOTO PROVIDED By DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS

Men stand outside an Ebola treatment center Sept. 7 in the remote Bulape Health Zone, Kasaï province, Democratic Republic of Congo, that was set up following the outbreak of the Zaire strain of the Ebola

Ebola vaccine reaches epicenter of outbreak

KINSHASA Congo Limited access and required funding are the key challenges facing health ofﬁcials trying to respond to the latest Ebola outbreak in southern Congo, the World Health Organization said on Friday It is the ﬁrst Ebola outbreak in 18 years in Kasai province, a remote part of Congo with poor road networks, which is more than 621 miles from the nation’s capital of Kinshasa.

A United Nations peacekeeping helicopter was used to help deliver 400 vaccine doses to the epicenter, in the locality of Bulape, on Friday, Patrick Otim, WHO’s program area manager, said at a brieﬁng in Geneva.

An additional 1,500 doses will be sent from the capital of Kinshasa, he said.

“We have struggled in the last seven days with access but are collaborating with MONUSCO (U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo) now,” Otim said. While the WHO and Congolese authorities have “ramped up efforts to have a full scale response” on the ground, “we need to be able to pay for the operations,” he added.

Since the outbreak was conﬁrmed on Sept. 4, the number of suspected cases has increased from 28 to 68, Africa’s top health agency said on Thursday The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or Africa CDC, has so far reported 16 deaths.

WHO’s projected cost for the current outbreak over the next three months is $20 million while Congo’s national response plan is estimated at $78 million, said Otim.

A major concern has been the impact of recent U.S. funding cuts. The U.S had supported the response to Congo’s past Ebola outbreaks, including in 2021 when the U.S. Agency for International Development provided up to $11.5 million to support efforts across Africa.

At least 193 killed in 2 Congo boat accidents

KINSHASA Congo Two separate boat accidents this week in northwestern Congo killed at least 193 people dead and left scores missing, authorities and state media reported Friday The accidents happened on Wednesday and Thursday in the Equateur province.

One boat with nearly 500 passengers caught ﬁre and capsized Thursday evening along the Congo River in the province’s Lukolela territory, Congo’s humanitarian affairs ministry said in a report. The report said 209 survivors were rescued following the accident, involving a whaleboat near the village of Malange in Lukolela territory

A day earlier, a motorized boat capsized in the Basankusu territory of the province, killing at least 86 people, most of them students, state media reported. Several people were missing, but the reports did not give a ﬁgure of how many It was not immediately clear what caused either accident

U.N. votes for two-state solution

BY EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS — The U.N General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Friday to support a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conﬂict and urge Israel to commit to a Palestinian state, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vehemently opposes.

The 193-member world body approved a nonbinding resolution endorsing the “New York Declaration,” which sets out a phased plan to end the nearly 80-year conﬂict. The vote was 142-10 with 12 abstentions.

Hours before the vote, Netanyahu said “there will be no Palestinian state.” He spoke at the signing of an agreement to expand settlements that will divide the West Bank, which the Palestinians insist must be part of their state, saying, “This place belongs to us.”

The resolution was sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia, who cochaired a high-level conference on

implementing a two-state solution in late July, where the declaration was approved. The nearly two-year war in Gaza and the broader Israeli-Palestinian conﬂict are expected to be at the top of the agenda of world leaders at their annual gathering at the General Assembly starting on Sept. 22. The Palestinians say they hope at least 10 more countries will recognize the state of Palestine, adding to the more than 145 countries that already do.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian U.N. ambassador, said the support for the resolution reflects “the yearning of almost everyone, the international community to open the door for the option of peace.”

Without naming Israel, he said, “We invite a party that is still pushing the option of war and destruction, and attempts to eliminate the Palestinian people and steal their land, to listen to the sound of reason — to the sound of the logic of dealing with this issue peacefully, and for the overwhelming mes-

sage that has resonated in this General Assembly today.”

But Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon dismissed the resolution as “theater,” saying the only beneﬁciary is Hamas.

“This one-sided declaration will not be remembered as a step toward peace, only as another hollow gesture that weakens this assembly’s credibility,” he said.

The United States, Israel’s closest ally, reiterated its opposition to the New York Declaration and the General Assembly resolution endorsing implementation of the two-state solution.

The resolution “is yet another misguided and ill-timed publicity stunt that undermines serious diplomatic efforts to end the conﬂict,”

U.S. Mission counselor Morgan Ortagus said. “Make no mistake, this resolution is a gift to Hamas.”

The declaration condemns “the attacks committed by Hamas against civilians” in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, a rare condemnation by Arab nations of Hamas.

World’s tallest sunflower is a tribute to Ukraine

BY CHRISTINE FERNANDO and OBED LAMY Associated Press

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — When Ukrainian immigrant Alex Babich stands in his Indiana backyard craning his neck to look 35 feet into the sky he isn’t just staring at a sunflower He is looking at his roots — and his future legacy

The flower, nicknamed “Clover” and confirmed Wednesday by Guinness World Records as the tallest sunflower ever measured, stretches as high as a telephone pole.

Achieving the feat holds special significance for the 47-year-old Babich since sunflowers are the national ﬂower of Ukraine.

Born and raised in Ukraine, he immigrated to the U.S. at age 14 in 1991 after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster Seven years ago, he started growing sunflowers as a symbol of his love for his home country Babich’s ﬁrst sunﬂower was 13 feet tall, then 15, then 19.

Quickly, he began asking himself, “How far can we take this?” Babich said the record-breaking flower was the result of “trial and error over years.”

“It’s one of my kids,” he said. “You’re out there every day taking care of it.”

Babich’s 10-year-old son also had an important contribution that earned the towering ﬂower its name.

He would climb onto the scaffolding and place fourleaf clovers on the sunﬂower’s leaves, for good luck.

“I’m going to die someday, but the stories of this flower will live on,” he said.

When measuring day came on Sept. 3 Babich was nervous.

About 85 people had gathered to watch, including several master gardeners from a local university and representatives from the Allen County Department of Weights and Measures. Babich was on a WhatsApp call with a representative from Guinness World Records. A camera crew was ﬁlming, and a drone ﬂew overhead.

Even Icy D. Eagle, the mascot of the Fort Wayne Komets minor league ice hockey team, was there, according to Guinness.

They used a 40-foot cherry picker to measure the ﬂower Clover was 35 feet and 9 inches, 5 feet taller

than the previous world record holder in Germany

“It’s very emotional,” Babich said. “It’s as good as it gets for someone who grows giants.”

Growing up amid food shortages in Ukraine sparked Babich’s love for gardening. His affection for sunﬂowers deepened after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

“We just pray that the war will end, that the killing will stop,” Babich said.

The sunﬂower has long been a national symbol representing peace in Ukraine, and since 2022, it has become a symbol of solidarity with the country

Judge releases redacted document used to justify search of Bolton home

BY ED WHITE Associated Press

A judge on Friday released a heavily redacted document used to justify a recent search of the home of John Bolton, who was national security adviser during the ﬁrst Trump administration, saying that revealing more could harm a criminal investigation

The FBI’s search warrant afﬁdavit said there was probable cause to believe classiﬁed information and national defense information were being illegally kept at Bolton’s Maryland home. Bolton has not been charged with a crime.

A coalition of news organizations had urged a judge in Maryland to unseal records related to the Aug. 22 search, citing a “tremendous public interest” that outweighed the need for continued secrecy

U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Sullivan, however, said limits were necessary

“The investigation involves matters of national security and highly classiﬁed materials to which the public has no right of access,” Sullivan said. More than a dozen pages in the afﬁdavit have partial or full redactions. The FBI seized phones, computer equipment and typed documents.

Bolton served for 17 months as national security adviser during President Donald Trump’s ﬁrst term, clashing with him over Iran, Afghanistan and North Korea before being ﬁred in 2019. He has criticized Trump’s approach to foreign policy and government, including in a 2020 book, “The Room Where it Happened,” that portrayed the president as ill-informed.

The search warrant affidavit says a National Security Council official had reviewed the book manuscript and told Bolton in 2020 that it appeared to contain “signiﬁcant amounts” of classiﬁed information, some at top secret level.

The Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people, mainly Israeli civilians, and took about 250 hostage. Of those, 48 are still being held, including about 20 who are believed to be alive.

It also condemns Israel’s attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure in Gaza and its “siege and starvation, which have produced a devastating humanitarian catastrophe and protection crisis.” Israel’s offensive against Hamas has killed over 64,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants.

The declaration envisions the Palestinian Authority governing and controlling all Palestinian territory, with a transitional administrative committee immediately established under its umbrella after a ceaseﬁre in Gaza.

“In the context of ending the war in Gaza, Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority,” the declaration says.

Administration to award contract on research into vaccines and autism

BY MIKE STOBBE Associated Press

NEW YORK Federal health officials intend to award a contract to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to investigate whether there is a link between vaccinations and autism, according to a government procurement notice.

The Troy, New York, engineering school is getting the no-bid contract because of its “unique ability” to link data on children and mothers, according to the notice posted this week.

Officials at the Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to questions about the notice, including how much the contract is for or what exactly the researchers intend to do.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a leading voice in the antivaccine movement before President Donald Trump selected him to oversee federal health agencies, announced in April a “massive testing and research

effort” to determine the cause of autism by this month. He has repeatedly tried to link vaccines to the condition.

An RPI biotech engineering professor, Juergen Hahn, has used artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to look for patterns in blood samples of children with autism. Hahn “is renowned for the quality and rigor of his research,” RPI ofﬁcials said in a statement acknowledging the intended grant. “If this project is awarded, he intends to publish the results of his work at the conclusion of the project,” the statement added. The notice raises many questions, said Alycia Halladay, who oversees research activities and grants for the Autism Science Foundation. Scientists have ruled out a link between vaccines and autism, ﬁnding no evidence of increased rates of autism among those who are vaccinated compared with those who are not.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MICHAEL CONROy

Alex Babich climbs on the structure that surrounds his nearly 36-foot-high sunflower that holds the world record for the tallest flower at his home in Fort Wayne, Ind., on Thursday.

virus.

Trumpsayshe’ll send GuardtoMemphis

BY JONATHAN MATTISE Associated Press

NASHVILLE,Tenn. President Donald Trump said Friday he’ll send the National Guard to address crime concerns in Memphis,Tennessee, his latest test of thelimits of presidential power by using military force in American cities

thecommunitywithout distracting from ongoing law enforcement efforts. He saidfederal officials should aim atthe “root sourceof violent crime” and mentioned rehabilitation and mental health services,jobs and housing needs

Gov.Bill Lee said he planned to speak withthe president on Friday to work out details of the mission.

He said he’s stillironing outthe best role for theNational Guard alongsidethe FBI,state Highway Patrol, city police and other law enforcementagencies.

Speaking on Fox News, Trump said “the mayor is happy” and “the governorishappy”about the pendingdeployment. Calling thecity “deeply troubled,” he said “we’re going to ﬁx that just like we did Washington,” where he’ssent the National Guard and surged federal law enforcement.

Tennessee’sRepublican governor embraced the troop deployment as part ofa broader lawenforcement surge in Memphis, however Trump’sassertiondrewpushbackfromthe Democratic leader of Memphis, which is majority Black.

“I didnot ask forthe National Guard and Idon’t think it’sthe way to drivedown crime,” Mayor Paul Young told anews conference Friday,while acknowledging the city remained high on too many “bad lists.”

Several Memphis leaders said they welcome federal helpbut don’t think it needs to involve the military.Young committed to trying to help the deployment strengthen

“I’m grateful for the President’s unwaveringsupport and commitment to providing every resource necessary to serve Memphians,” Leesaid in astatement. “Memphis remainsonapathtogreatness, andweare notgoing to letanythinghold them back.”

Thegovernor’s consent to the NationalGuard stands in sharp contrast to Democraticleadersin states like California and Illinois, who argue similar deployments undermine localauthority and inﬂame tensions.The president has also suggestedhecould send soldiers to New Orleans, another majority-Black city led by Democrats in aRepublican-leaning state. Crimedown, buttroopscoming

Since deploying the National GuardtoLos Angeles and Washington, D.C., Trump has openly mused about sending troops to some of thenation’smost Democratic cities—including Chicago and Portland, Oregon —even as data shows mostviolent crime in those places and aroundthe country has declined in recent years.

Trump said Friday he decided

to sendtroops into Memphis after Union Paciﬁc CEO Jim Vena —who regularly visited the city while on theboard of FedEx urged him earlier this week to address crimethere.

The president’sannouncement came just days after Memphis policereported decreases across every major crime categoryin thefirst eightmonthsof2025 compared to the same period in previous years. Overall crime hit a25-year low,while murder hit a six-year low,police said.

Memphishigh-profile killings

Despite theoverall decrease, Memphis has dealt withstubborn gun violence problems for years. In 2023, the cityset arecord with morethan 390 homicides.

Memphis has also seen several

high-profile killings in recent years. Rapper and independent musiclabel owner Young Dolph was fatally shot at acookie shop in November 2021.

In September 2022, schoolteacher ElizaFletcher was kidnapped during an earlymorning run, and her body waslater found near a vacant duplex. Days later,aman went on adaylong shooting rampage as he drove through the city leading to acitywide shelter-inplace order.Three people were killed and three others wounded.

Republican state Sen. Brent Taylor,who backs the Memphis troop deployment, said Friday the National Guard could provide “administrative andlogistical support” to law enforcement and allow local officers to focus on policework.The state’stwo Re-

publican U.S. senators support the intervention.

The governor said Thursday the deployment wouldadd momentum to an ongoing FBI operation in Memphisalongside state and locallaw enforcementwhich “has already arrested hundreds of the mostviolent offenders.”

Thelegal details

Asked Friday if city and state ofﬁcialshad requested aNational Guard deployment —orhad formally signed off on it —the White House didn’tanswer.Italso didn’t offer apossible timeline or say whether federal lawenforcement would be surgedinconnection with aguard deployment, as happened when troops weredeployed to Washington.

Hina Shamsi, director of the ACLU’s National Security Project, said in anewsconference Friday that shecould notspeak directly to the legality of sending National Guard troops to Memphis because she doesn’tknowwhetherthe troopswould be deployed under state or federal authority and what the legal justiﬁcation would be.

Using soldiers for civil law enforcement, she said, “leaves our Fourth andFifth Amendment rights —searches, seizures, due process safeguards —inthe hands of people who arenot trainedto uphold them, and it canchill the exercise of our First Amendment rights.”

In Washington,D.C., wherethe president directly commands the guard, Trump has used troops for everything fromarmedpatrols to trash cleanup without any legal issues.

Landry wantsleftoverbroadband fundskeptinLa.

Moneywould go toward state initiatives

BY JENNA ROSS Staff writer

Anew plan for spending Louisiana’sshare of a $42 billion federal grant program for speedy internet will cost less than before.

Gov.Jeff Landry wants that leftover money to stay in Louisiana

AI and America First Policies,’ focused on rural/urban economies while generating an even higher return for the taxpayer.”

Louisiana had been set to get$1.35 billion in funding from the bipartisan BEAD program,created under the Biden administration in 2021 to build high-speed internet connections acrossthe country.Thisyear,the Trumpadministration overhauled the grant program’srules.

Administration, an executivebranch agency overseeingthe BEAD program, to “make available tothe eligible entity theremainderof the grant funds allocated …”

“Weachievedanother $250 millioninsavings,”Iyenger saidFriday.“Andwe thinkit’sanawesome opportunitytoleverage those dollars to create aone-plus-oneequals-ﬁve opportunity.”

participation by the private sector,increased matching commitments by subgrantees, anda surgeofinnovative technology solutionstodeliver high-speed connectivity.”

Some analysts have pointed to signsthatthe Trump administration could favor returningexcess funding to theU.S. Treasury

“Since the beginning of the Trump Administration theCommerceDepartment hassentnumerous signals that the stateswill have to return allfunds notspent on connecting unserved and underserved locations,” Blair Levin, an analyst for NewStreet Research, wrote thisweek, according to an Ars Technica report. But it’slikely states would pushback on such astance. Iyengar said Friday that he expects other governors to follow Landry’slead, making their own formal or informal requests. Landry asks Lutnick to issue guidance on theuse of the remaining funds by Oct. 1.

In aletter to Secretaryof Commerce Howard Lutnick this week, Landry heaped praise on the Trump administration and requested that leftover Broadband Equity,Access and Deployment grant funds be spent on “state-led initiatives”inLouisiana that advance national goals around artificial intelligence, education and workforce training.

“This approach would vividly demonstrate thebusiness and ﬁnancial savvy that is ahallmark of yourdepartment and the Administration overall,” Landry wrote beforeconjuring apotential headline: “’President Trump and Secretary Lutnick to reinvest billions ofdollars of programefficienciesin

The state’snew plan,submitted in August, would spend $499 million to connect households acrossthe state, about $250 million less than itsprevious proposal. (The ﬁrst plan also included $500 million for “nondeployment”funds, including for rural health care andvirtual education )

“Thecurrent administration hasdone the rightthing in ripping out alot of the regulations and red tape,” said Veneeth Iyengar,executive director of the state broadband office, in an interviewFriday.“We were efﬁcient before. We’re even more efﬁcient now.”

Thestate wants to spend the remaining grant funds viaits state agencies toward federal goals outlined in Landry’sletter.“Congress grantedNTIA clearauthority to pursue thispath,” Landry wrote, citing language in the law that allows the National Telecommunications and Information

The fundscould go to state agencies to push “cutting-edge efforts” to improve outcomes in areas of healthcare where Louisiana struggles, he said, including maternal health care and chronic disease.

Louisianawas the first state to submit its revamped plan to theNTIA, which has not yet approved it,Iyenger said.

States’ plans were due to theNTIA in early September.Lastweek, the NTIA announced that36ofthe 56 states andterritories had submittedtheir ﬁnal proposals. Others requestedextensions.

“In the plans submitted today,states arealready projecting savings of at least$13 billion for American taxpayers,”the NTIA said in anews release, “driven by arise in

Young Trump

BY CHRISTOPHER CARTWRIGHT

Staff writer

SouthernUniversity ofﬁcials are investigating alaw professor after she allegedly made comments on social media aboutCharlie Kirk’s death.

The probe comes amid anationwide crackdown on jokes about his death or remarks critical of Kirk, a conservative commentatorassassinated Wednesday in Utah.

In Louisiana, Acadian Ambulance said an unnamed employee who posted acomment mockingKirk’s death was ﬁred.Across thecountry,

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public. The assassination while Kirk was speaking at Utah Valley University reverberated across the country because of his outsize inﬂuenceinconservative circles, his closeconnections with Trump and because of the questions it raised about the escalating toll of political violence that has spanned the ideological spectrum.

“This is our moment: Do we escalate or do we ﬁndan off-ramp?” Cox asked, making an impassioned plea for young people to bridge differences throughcommon ground rather than violence. “It’sachoice.”

Newdetails

Authorities, who have yet to revealamotive,described evidence they said shed potential light on the slaying Ammunition found with the weapon was engraved with taunting, anti-fascist and meme culture messages, includingone bullet casing that said, “Hey,fascist! Catch!” Cox said.

In addition,aroommate shared with authorities messages from the chatting app Discord that involved acontact named Tyler and discussed arifle wrapped in atowel, engraved bullets and ascope, the governor said. AMauser.30-caliber, bolt-action rifle was found in atowel in awooded area along the path investigators believeRobinsontookafter firing asingle shot from a distant roofand thenﬂeeing. The clothes thesuspect wore when confronted by lawenforcement late Thursday matched what he had on when he arrived on campus, and afamily member confirmed he drove a gray Dodge Challenger like the one seen in surveillance video that recorded Robinson driving to the university the day of the shooting, Cox said.

Robinson’sfather recognized him from the photos released by the FBI and told him to turn himself in. Robinson refused at first, but then changed his mind,

teachers, firefighters andanMSNBC contributorhavereportedly been investigated or terminated for comments.

At Southern University,Law CenterCommunications Director I’TyonnieV.Jackson saidthe center “is aware of arecent social media post involving one of our employees that has raised concern.”

“Theviews expressed in that post are theindividual’s own and do not reflect the values or positions of theLaw Center. We arereviewing this matterinaccordance with the institution’s personnel policies and procedures,” she wrote. “The Law Center is committedtofosteringan environment of respect, inclusivity, and professionalism both online and ofﬂine.”

Southern didnot name the professor.The postsappear to have been

deleted from social media.

In screenshots widely circulating online,the posts in question include adescription of Kirkas“an evil person” and the statement that the poster“will1000% wish death on people like him.”

“I can have empathy for his children, but nothing for him,” the post read. “Sorry not sorry This is a man whodegrades women on the daily.Underthe guise of Christianity.”

According to WAFB TV,Southern University Board Chairman Tony Clayton saidthe professorwas suspended.

“She hasbeen suspendedeffective immediatelybased on the cause that she participatedinconductthatwas prejudicial to the university,” Clayton told the station. “The school will investigate this

matter to ﬁnalize terminating her from the university.”

In response to the posts, LouisianaAttorney General Liz Murrill released astatement in which she calledthem “abhorrent.”

“Whatever your opinionisof Charlie, his assassination marked adark day forall Americans andshould be resoundingly condemned,”she added. “This individualhas aconstitutional righttohave opinions and social media ampliﬁes them. But she does not have aright to teach at apublic law school.”

Murrill madesimilarremarks following reports that aNew Orleans ﬁreﬁghterposted comments about Kirk. In those, she said Kirk’s“life workwas promotingfree speech andthoughtful, prepared civil discourse.”

But the Foundation for Individual

Rights andExpression, acollege campus freespeechorganization, called the national ﬁrings “a cancel culture that undermines American values.”

“Charlie Kirk’sassassination was an attack on free speech andopen discourse. In afree society,we must not be afraid to express our views, no matter how strongly some might oppose them,” the organization said. “That’sthe point of free speech.But it is precisely forthat reason why we must not respond to mockery of Kirk’sassassination by cancelingeveryonewho offendsus: because that too creates asociety where people areafraid to express themselves.”

Email ChristopherCartwright at christopher.cartwright@ theadvocate.com.

according toalaw enforcement ofﬁcial whospoke on thecondition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. His father contacted their youth pastor, whoalso occasionally works withthe U.S. marshalsand called theagencysoRobinson could turn himself in Meanwhile, investigators continuedtodig into the background of Robinson, who was admitted to Utah State University,about 80 milesnorth of Salt Lake City,onaprestigiousacademic scholarship, according to avideo of him reading hisacceptance letterposted to afamily member’ssocial media account. However, he attendedfor only one semester in 2021, auniversity spokesperson said Robinsoncurrently is enrolledinanelectrical apprenticeship program at Dixie Technical College near his hometown, asuburb of St.George in southern Utah. He is registered as an unafﬁliated voter and does not appear to have aprior criminal record. His addresswas still listed as his parents’ home,about a31/2-hour drive south of the campus where Kirk was shot.

Familymembers of Robinson did not immediately return messages seeking comment. It was not clear if he had alawyer At his family’shome, window coverings were drawn, anda pickuptruck blocked access to the driveway Therewas aheavylaw enforcement presence, with several police vehicles parkedalongthe street, which was closed at both ends.

‘Hedidn’tdeserve this’

Kirkwas aconservative activist who became a powerfulpolitical force by rallying young Republican voters and was aﬁxture on college campuses, where he inviteddebate on social issues.

Kirk co-foundedthe nonproﬁt political organization Turning Point USA,based in Arizona. He had been speaking at acampus debate on the ﬁrst stopofhis “American Comeback Tour”

at thetime of Wednesday’s shooting. He wastaking questions

from an audience member about gun violence when a shot rang out. Kirk reached

up with hisright hand as blood gushed fromthe left side of his neck.

Twodays later,law enforcementofficers continued to sweep the Utah Valley campus forevidence while the announcement of an arrest brought somerelief.

“There’sbeen thislike really heavy,dark weight pressed over my heart and soul forthe last two days, andwakinguptothe news of the shooter being captured today,itisa great thing,”saidCreighton Baird, whowas close enough to the stage to see horriﬁc images that continue replaying in his mind.

Trump, whowas joined by Democratsincondemning the violence, said he would awardKirk the Presidential MedalofFreedom, the nation’shighest civilian honor Vice PresidentJDVance and his wife,Usha, escorted Kirk’scasket to hishome state of Arizona aboard Air Force TwoonThursday “Hewanted to help young people, andhedidn’tdeservethis,” Trump said Friday.“He was reallyagood person.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOByLINDSEy WASSON

WendyLucas, aUtah ValleyUniversity student, kneels at amemorial set up for Charlie Kirk at Utah ValleyUniversity in Orem, Utah, on Friday.

Utah’s governor urgesU.S.tofind‘off-ramp’frompolitical violence

BY MICHELLEL.PRICE

Associated Press

WASHINGTON— In aweek when Americans witnessed apublicpolitical assassination, oceans of angry words andacollectivesense of horror and exhaustion, one man stepped up to amicrophone and said something that stood out: It doesn’thave to be like this.

Thatman, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, appeared weary, emotional, at times angry and on the verge of tears Friday.While he had the country’s attention,heused the moment to ask his fellow Americans to turn down the temperature. Cox, long an advocate for civility,said he didn’t“want to get too preachy.” But he described the momentas one where the country’s very ideals were on the line. He made an impassioned plea for Americans and young people in particular to use the horror of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination as an inﬂection point to turn the country away from political violence and division.

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nurse’saide.

“My parents pushed usto give back to the community,” Hamilton, 74, said. “My dad was very firm on that —you give back to the community.” The Golden Deeds Award is presented by The Advocate and the Inter-Civic Council of Greater Baton Rouge to honor arecipient who has been outstanding in making the community abetter place to live and work. Hamilton started on the path of community service while still an undergraduate,byworkingwitha lo-

“This is our moment: Do we escalate or doweﬁnd an off-ramp?” Cox told anews conference in Utah as heannounced authorities hada suspect in Kirk’skilling in custody. “It’sachoice.

Throughout his political career,Cox, atwo-term Republicangovernor,has issued pleas for bipartisan cooperation and at times drawn national attention for hisempathetic remarks.

His speech on Friday was his most emotional and prominent example yet,as he urged an appeal tocommon ground and humanity to forge abetter society.It was amarkeddeparture from the bellicose rhetoric oftenemployed in recent years by U.S. politicians, especially President Donald Trump, who is knownfor provocative language and hasblamed Kirk’skilling on “radical left” rhetoric.

‘Politicsfeels like rage’

On Wednesday,after Kirk’skilling, Cox madean initial plea. On Friday,acknowledging he was running on only 90 minutes of sleep after days of the manhunt

cal nonproﬁt, the Consumer Protection CenterofBaton Rouge. It was later moved into state government, as a department of the Attorney General’s Ofﬁce.

Aftergraduatingfrom law school in 1977, Hamilton worked on thestaff of the legislative counsel for both thestate Senate and House of Representatives When the work was later separated forthe two governmental bodies,Hamilton waslegal counselfor theSenate Committee on Labor,then for theSenateCommittee on GovernmentalAffairs.

His next step was amore visible role in stategovernment,asthe assistant secretary of theOfﬁce of Labor under Gov.Buddy Roemer, whowas elected in 1988

for Kirk’skiller and heated rhetoric unfurling online, he went further

His voice appearing to break at times, Cox said that theresponse to violence and hate canbemoreviolence andhate. “And that’sthe problem with political violence,”hesaid. “It metastasizes because we canalways point the ﬁnger at the other side.And at some point,we have to ﬁnd an off-ramp, or it’sgoing to get much,much worse.”

“History will dictate if thisisa turning pointfor our country,” he said. “But every single one of us gets to choose right now if this is aturning point for us.”

The 50-year-old governor, whohas fourchildren who areteenagers and young adults, directed some of his remarks to young people: “You areinheriting acountry where politics feels like rage. It feels like rage is the only option.”

But, Cox said, adifferentpath is possible: “Your generation hasanopportunitytobuild aculture that is very different than what we are suffering through right

After morethan two years in the position, Hamilton left to practice lawwiththe small ﬁrmofBlache,Perkinsand Koch. When it later merged withBreazeale, Sachse and Wilson —where Hamilton is now an attorney —the small practice was theﬁrst minorityfirm in BatonRouge to merge withalarge law practice, Hamilton said. In away,though, Hamilton has never left public service. He is afounding member of both theBaton Rouge chapter of 100 Black Men, which provides mentoring and youth development programs, and the local Young Leaders Academy,which helps young men develop leadership abilities. He’s also volunteered withBig Buddy, ayouth mentoring

now.”

He said the22-year-old suspect in Kirk’skilling had become “morepolitical” in the run-up to Wednesday’s shooting on auniversity campus.

Cox alsospoke of the harms of social media and said it was terrible that Kirk’sslaying was “so gruesomely displayed” foreveryone to watch online.

“Weare not wired as human beings biologically,historically we have not evolved in away that we are capable of processing those typesof violent imagery,”Cox said. “Thisisnot good forus. It is not good to consume. Social media is acancer on our societyright now.”

Nothingnew forCox

As governor, Cox has sought to curb theharms of social media on young people,signing laws thatrequire social media companies to verify the ages of their users and disable certain features on accounts of minors.

Though he lives in heavily Republican Utah,where little bipartisanaction is neededfor his partytoen-

program

“I can’t thinkofa better waytoserve the communitythan for thebeneﬁt of a child,” Hamilton said. In adifferent ﬁeld, Hamilton served three consecutive three-year terms, and as president in one of those terms,onthe board of trustees of theFranciscan Missionaries of Our LadyUniversity —known as FranU —which went from being solely anursing schooltoa universityoffering multiple degree, master’s and doctorate programs. “I returned to theboard of FranUinJanuary this year,” Hamilton said. Hamilton andhis wife Gwendolyn Patterson Hamilton—who hasworked with many nonprofits,mostre-

act its agenda, Coxhas for years emphasizedrespect and unity. As governor,he has consistently invoked a need for civility—a trait that’sathomeinthe culture of the Church of JesusChrist of Latter-day Saints, afaith to which Cox andmanyinthe state belong. His more moderate tone became rarerasUtah’spoliticsdriftedrightwardinthe Trumpera. At astatewide conventionofUtah RepublicansinApril 2024, Coxwas booed. “Maybe you hate that Idon’t hate enough,” Cox told the crowd.Hestill won his state’sGOP primary and reelection in November In 2016,Cox drew national attentionfor hisremarks aftera mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida.Then, he calledfor people to cometogether and appealed to their “better angels.” He also apologized for having been unkind whilein highschool to students he later learned were gay He also drew attention during his 2020 campaign for governor,inwhich he appeared in television ads with his Democratic opponent as

cently with NewSchools for Baton Rouge —have three daughters anda granddaughter

Almost20years ago, Hamilton was having lunchwith some friends and fellow music lovers —Hamilton was in the LSU ACappella Choir in his undergradyears —when they began discussing how great it would be to bring traditional jazz performances to Baton Rouge.

The result of the lunchtalk was the River City Jazz Coalition, whichpartnerswith the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge to bring ajazz performance series to the city every year

The 2025-26 season kicks offonOct. 8with Latin artist Tito Puente Jr.atthe Manship Theatre.

they pledged to “disagree without hating each other.” Cox wasopenly critical of Trumpand did not support him until after the president survived an assassination attempt in Butler,Pennsylvania,lastyear.The governor wrote then-candidate Trump aletter expressing admiration for his deﬁant response to being struck by abullet. In that letter,Cox told Trumphebelieved “God hada hand in saving you” and that “miracle” gave him an opportunity to unifythe country “Weneed to turn down the temperature andﬁnd ways to come together again before it’stoo late,” Cox wrote. Minutes before Coxtook the stage Friday,Trump had that opportunity as he sat for alive interview on Fox News Channel. He was asked how the country could be brought back together.Trump said his response would “get me in trouble, but Icouldn’tcare less.” Before he launched into alist of grievances with his Democratic opponents, the president said: “The radicals on the left are the problem.”

“Nextyear will be our 20th year,” Hamilton said. “Wewanted to get into the community and present traditional jazz. We thought it would be something nice to do that was missing in the community.”

The 84th annual Golden Deeds banquetwill be held at 7p.m. on Nov.11atthe Crowne Plaza Executive Center Tickets, which are $50 per person, can be purchased by calling Richard Flickerat (225)931-1626oremailing ﬂicker@premier.net. Alimited number of sponsorships are available, banquet organizers said. Email Ellyn Couvillion at ecouvillion@theadvocate. com.

Creating more than 200 construction jobs and up to 10 operating jobs, the project will includeaproposed well site, compression facilityand a9-mile pipeline routedalong existing rights of way to minimize impact.

It is among 33 being proposed statewide, according to aJune 20 state tally

While it is the ﬁrst approval in Louisiana, ahandfulhave been permitted nationwide.

Thestorage operation by the Sempra arm, Hackberry Carbon Sequestration, would allow the company to cut the carbon intensityof its nearby liqueﬁed natural gas facility,Cameron LNG, in aremotecorner of Cameron Parish.The LNG is exported overseas.

HackberryCarbon officialssaid the permit is an important milestone, but cautioned that the project needs additional engineering, commercial agreements and otherapprovals before the company can seek state authority to inject CO2 underground.

“If that authorization is received, the project could reach ﬁnal investmentdecision(FID) and then would move forward with the construction and commissioning of theCO2 pipeline, and the capture and compression facilities,” ofﬁcials said in astatement.

They said they would follow the highest industry standards, “usingproven and highly regulated protocols.” Thestorageareahas the capacity to accept CO2 from other companiesbesides Cameron LNG, the ofﬁcials added.

State ofﬁcials said the authorization to inject is more of an in-house permit that comes after drilling verifieswellconditions are as expected.

TheCO2 wouldbestored approximately5,000 to 10,000 feet below the earth’s surface in aseries of layers separated by what geologists believe to be impermeable shale rock, according to awell application.

The storage layers between the shale contain highly concentrated brine that isn’tsuitable for drinking. The nearest freshwater aquifer stops at 1,090 feet underground The approval is the first for an actual, operating well in Louisiana. Previous approvals by the statewere for test wells.

At the end of 20-year injection period, the total size of the underground plume has been modeled at 1,989 acres, according to apermit application. But the CO2plume is also expected to keep growing to the west, projected to cover 2,325acres in 120 years.

Hackberry Carbon’smodeling showed, however,that the highest pressurecarbon dioxide, which would be at concentrationsthatcould escape to the nearest drinking water aquiferifanunderground pathway were available, wouldcover afar smallerareathan thefull CO2 plume.

This concentrated area wouldbea mile or more from thenearest underground faults or oiland gas or other wells, thecompany’s consultantsays.

Long-term CO2 plume projections have important implicationsfor Louisiana’s government and its future taxpayers. Under state law, thesequestration operations andtheir massive reservoirs of underground CO2 become theresponsibility of the state 50 years after injection ends.

Stateofﬁcials say they are making sure measuresare in place to protect taxpayerslong-term and avoidthe kind ofliability Louisiana currently haswith orphaned oil and gas wells.

Ruralopposition

Grassroots oppositionhas grown in some areas of conservative-leaning rural Louisiana wherethe majorstorage operations are proposed. Those proposalsrangefrom southwest Louisiana to Livingstonand Tangipahoaparishesbetween Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

Skepticism of climate change, feared impacts on water aquifers, CO2pipeline leaks, land expropriation for pipelines and taxpayer support for projects have blended into astew of opposition for some rural residents. Environmentalists also oppose the technology because they say it is unproven and willhelpprevent the transition away from fossil fuels to clean energy.

Industry ofﬁcials and scientists say thetechnology is sound, well-suited for Louisiana’sgeologyand would allow important industries to decarbonize and be more competitive in foreign markets.

Though the projectsmay need other permitsfor pipelines, wetlandimpactsand other needs, DENR is the sole agency examining the nuts and bolts of the injectionand storage facilities. The administrativeprocess, withsome public input has required companies to drill test wells and collect proprietary seismic datato understand the underlying geology,produce modeling of carbon plumes and lay out methods for long-term monitoring.

Some seismic data remains secreteven after projects go out forpublic hearings.

DENR issuedthe permit Sept. 5,but it wasn’tposted onlineuntil this week.

DENR officials detailed ways that theyand Hackberrywillbeabletotrack the movement ofthe CO2 plume throughthe years, primarily through seismic and microgravitytesting. The agency noted this and other continued testing should catchsomethingthat doesn’tmatch themodeling. Department ofﬁcials added they’vereviewedgeologic data andHackberry Carbon’sstill-confidential seismic informationand are conﬁdentthe plumewill move westoverthe decades, not east toward existing wells, and that “no mapped” underground faults are “expectedtoimpact movement or containment of the car-

bon dioxide plume.”

After acarbon injection well in Illinois leaked, federal ofﬁcials recommended that the protective metal casings needed higher levels of chromium than previously required to resist corrosion from theacidiccombination of CO2and water

Hackberry planstohave these chromium-heavy casings anywhere the wellbore touches carbon dioxide and in other pieces of wellequipment, as well as corrosionresistant cement. Long-term monitoring for equipment failure is required.

“Portions of the well that will notbeincontact with carbon dioxidewon’tbe exposed to the same type of corrosive environment, so construction using other types of materials is acceptable,” department ofﬁcials said.

Earlier this year,former DENR chiefTyler Gray facedquestions aboutthe speed of permitting from some legislators. But a group of rurallegislators alsopushed during the spring session,with limited success, for bills that would block or restrict carbon storage and itsdelivery pipelines.

Speaking this month before industry executives, Dustin Davidson, the current secretary of DENR,acknowledged that thereview process was taking “a long time,” though the departmentwas workingtoexpediteapplications.

Davidsonsaidhewasn’t “going to sugarcoat it,” but the review process for carbon injection wells has been difﬁcult

Complications include Louisiana’smore complex and varied geology,the newness of carbon capture technology forDENRand the proximityofsome projects to communities.

“So,wehave been taking ourtime to ensure not only that we do it,but we get it right because, at the end of the day,the most important thingwhen it comes to these permits is having defensible standard,” Davidson said.

‘Landmarkdecision’

Some industry groups hailedthe permit as key in anecessary transition for Louisiana companies,while one environmental group accused the state of charging headlong intoanunproven technology ScottEustis, community sciencedirector for Healthy Gulf, said DENR “is undertakinganew era of destruc-

tion of ourwatersand our coastalwetlands beforeﬁxing the hundreds of idle and broken oilwellsinBlack Lake, or ensuring thedrinking water for Sulphur.”

He noted at least 149 inactive or olderoil andgas wells are within 2.5 miles of Black Lake and259 active drinking wells north of the injection zone. Eustis said Hackberry should have to plug those inactive wells, though thecompany’s application says they are far from theprojected plume.

He also raised concerns about the safety of an associated CO2 line near La. 27,

posing arisk to akey evacuation route. Industry groups, however, pointed to the large economic impact. State economic development ofﬁcials have said that Louisiana has seen $61 billioninnew projects with carbon capture storage or carbon capture utilization andstorage,orCCUS, since January 2024.

Somewhatdifferent from permanentcarbon storage, like Sempra’sproject, CCUS involves the reuse of carbon dioxide stored underground for things like enhanced oil recovery,inwhich CO2 pushesout more oiland gas from depleted ﬁelds.

“Thislandmarkdecision notonly cements Louisiana’s role as afront-runner in carbon capture in the U.S., but also directly addresses surging global demand forlow to zero-carbon products,” said David Cresson, president and chief executive ofﬁcer of the Louisiana Chemical Associationand Louisiana Chemical Industry Alliance. There’salso acompeti-

tive aspect to winning these permits and making vast storage areas available for use.GregUpton, executive director of theLSU Center for Energy Studies, pointed to an analysis showing the state may only need ﬁve to sevenstorage hubs to see meaningful carbon dioxide reduction.

Environmentalists and others have criticized the CCUSaspect of CO2 storage as not truly keeping planetwarming carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. The One Bill Beautiful Bill Act which Congress adopted in July with the advocacy of President Donald Trump, increased tax credits for CCUS,potentially enhancing incentive to pursue this version of carbon storage. CF Industries near Donaldsonville recentlyannounced plans to pump carbon dioxide from someofits operations into old oil ﬁelds for enhanced recovery.Sempra’sHackberry project, instead, proposes permanent underground storage.

Mo. maps advance; lawsuits ahead

BY DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri

Republicans handed President Donald Trump a political victory Friday, giving ﬁnal legislative approval to a redistricting plan that could help Republicans win an additional U.S. House seat in next year’s elections.

The Senate vote sends the redistricting plan to Republican Gov Mike Kehoe, who said he will sign it into law soon. But opponents immediately announced a referendum petition that, if successful, could force a statewide vote on the new map.

“This fight is not over Missouri voters — not politicians — will have the ﬁnal say,” said Elsa Rainey, a spokesperson for People Not Politicians, which is leading the referendum effort

U.S. House districts were redrawn across the country after the 2020 census to account for population changes But Missouri is the third state to take up mid-decade redistricting this year in an emerging national battle for partisan advantage ahead of the midterm elections.

Republican lawmakers in Texas passed a new U.S. House map last month aimed at helping their party win ﬁve additional seats. Democratic lawmakers in California countered with their

BY MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press

own redistricting plan aimed at winning ﬁve more seats, but it still needs voter approval. Democrats need to gain just three seats to win control of the House, which would allow them to obstruct Trump’s agenda and launch investigations into him.

On his social media site Friday, Trump touted Missouri’s “much fairer, and much improved, Congressional map” that he said “will help send an additional MAGA Republican to Congress in the 2026 Midterm Elections.” Republicans currently hold

WASHINGTON Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer weathered backlash from Democrats earlier this year when he voted with Republicans to keep the government open. But he’s now willing to risk a shutdown at the end of the month if Republicans don’t accede to Democratic demands. Schumer says he and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries are united in opposing any legislation that doesn’t include key health care provisions and a commitment not to roll them back He argues that the country is in a different place than it was in March, when he vigorously argued against a shutdown, and he says he believes Republicans and President Donald Trump will be held responsible if they don’t negotiate a bipartisan deal.

six of Missouri’s eight U.S. House seats. The revised map passed the Republican-led state House earlier this week as the focal point of a special session called by Kehoe that also includes a proposal making it harder for citizen-initiated constitutional amendments to win voter approval. That proposal, which still needs voter ratification, would require future initiated amendments to pass in each of Missouri’s congressional districts instead of by a simple statewide majority No

Things have changed” since the March vote, Schumer said on Thursday. He said Republicans have since passed Trump’s massive tax breaks and spending cuts legislation, which trimmed Medicaid and other government programs, and Democrats are now uniﬁed. A shutdown, Schumer said, wouldn’t necessarily worsen an environment in which Trump is already challenging the authority of Congress. “It will get worse with or without it, because Trump is lawless,” Schumer said. Schumer’s threat comes as Republicans are considering a short-term stopgap spending measure to avoid a Sept. 30 shutdown and as Democrats face what most see as two tough choices if the parties can’t negotiate a deal vote with Republicans to keep the government open or let it close indeﬁnitely with no clear exit plan. It also comes amid worsening partisan

other state has such a standard.

The Republican-led Senate passed both measures Friday after changing the chamber’s rules, then shutting off Democratic opponents. Senate Minority Leader Doug Beck said afterward that he plans to help gather the more than 100,000 signatures needed in 90 days to force a referendum on the redistricting plan. Kehoe has promoted the reshaped districts as a way to amplify “Missouri’s conservative, common-sense values” in Washington, D.C. Missouri’s revised map targets a seat held by Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver by shaving off portions of his Kansas City district and stretching the rest of it into Republican-heavy rural areas. The plan reduces the number of Black and minority residents in Cleaver’s district, partly by creating a dividing line along a street that has served as a historical segregation line between Black and white residents.

Two lawsuits already have been brought, including one ﬁled Friday on behalf of voters that contends mid-decade redistricting isn’t allowed under the Missouri Constitution. A hearing is scheduled for Monday on another lawsuit previously ﬁled by the NAACP

tensions in the Senate, where negotiations between the two parties over the conﬁrmation process broke down for a second time on Thursday and Republicans are changing Senate rules to get around Democratic objections to almost all of Trump’s nominees.

Trump said Friday to not “even bother” negotiating with Democrats He said Republicans will likely put together a continuing resolution to keep funding the federal government. “If you gave them every dream, they would not vote for it,” Trump said, adding “we will get it through because the Republicans are sticking together.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D., has repeatedly said that Schumer needs to approach Republicans with a speciﬁc proposal on health care, including an extension of expanded government tax credits for many Americans who get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act.

States taking steps to ease access to COVID vaccines

BY GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press

The governors of Arizona, Illinois, Maine and North Carolina on Friday joined the growing list of Democratic officials who have signed orders intended to ensure most residents can receive COVID-19 vaccines at pharmacies without individual prescriptions. Unlike past years, access to COVID-19 vaccines has become complicated in 2025, largely because federal guidance does not recommend them for nearly everyone this year as it had in the past.

CVS Health, the biggest pharmacy chain in the U.S., says its stores are offering the shots without an individual prescription in 41 states as of midday Friday

But the remaining states Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, Utah and West Virginia, plus the District of Columbia require individual prescriptions under the company’s interpretation of state policies. Arizona, Maine and North Carolina are likely to come off that list as the new orders take effect there.

“I will not stand idly by while the Trump Administration makes it harder for Maine people to get a vaccine that protects their health and could very well save their life,” Maine Gov Janet Mills said in the statement. “Through this standing order we are stepping up to knock down the barriers the Trump Administration is putting in the way of the health and welfare of Maine people.” At least 14 states — 12 with Democratic governors, plus Virginia, where Republican Glenn Youngkin is governor — have announced policies this month to ease access. North Carolina’s orders were narrower than most They apply to everyone age 65 and over and people who are at least 18 and have a risk factor Other adults would still need prescriptions. Ofﬁcials said the order takes effect immediately but that all pharmacies might not have supplies on hand right away

In past years, the federal government has recommended the vaccines to all Americans above the age of 6 months. This year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved them for people age 65 and over but said they should be used only for children and younger adults who have a risk factor such as asthma or obesity That change came as U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy ﬁred the entire Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices in June, accusing of them of being too closely aligned with the companies that make the vaccines. The replacements include vaccine skeptics.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAVID A. LIEB

Opponents of a Republican plan to redraw Missouri’s U.S. House districts march through a hallway outside the state Senate chamber in Jefferson City, Mo., on Wednesday.

Baton RougeWeather

Many Americans are fortunate to have dentalcoverage fortheir entire working life, through employer-providedbenefits. Whenthose benefits end with retirement, paying dental bills out-of-pocket cancome as ashock, leading people to put off or even go without care. Simplyput —without dental insurance, there maybe an importantgap in your healthcare coverage.

When you’re comparingplans.

THEADVOCATE.COM

| Saturday, September 13, 2025 1bN

State, feds clash in fishing dispute

Landry weighs in on amberjack season

BY JOSIE ABUGOV Staff writer

The federal government’s move to end the commercial amberjack season in the Gulf has reignited a long-standing dispute with Louisiana over the management of popular ﬁsh species.

Following the federal closure, Gov Jeff Landry wrote on social media Tuesday that recreational

BR man found guilty of murder

Johnson livestreamed himself fatally stabbing woman

BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer

An East Baton Rouge jury found

a man guilty of ﬁrst-degree murder Friday for stabbing a woman to death on Instagram Live during the haze of a multiday drug binge.

The verdict for Earl Lee Johnson Jr culminated a ﬁve-day trial inside the 19th Judicial District Courthouse.

Johnson, 39, held 34-year-old Janice David hostage in his car before beating her with a tire iron, tying her up with jumper cables, torturing and stabbing her 42 times on April 18, 2022.

“For this killing to be posted live on Instagram for everybody to see was very alarming,” East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore said outside the courthouse after the verdict. “This was a young girl — the victim — who was down on her luck at that time in her life and just happened to run into a monster. And unfortunately, she paid the consequences.” Johnson livestreamed portions of the fatal attack on Instagram Live and reveled as hundreds of online viewers watched him take David’s life.

Johnson’s attorneys spent three days trying to convince a jury of eight women and five men that Johnson’s mental instability prevented him from knowing the difference between right and wrong when he killed David. He pleaded not guilty to the murder charge by reason of insanity

“You have to think to yourself, what normal person does something like this,” Public Defender

Haﬁz Falomi said during his closing arguments Friday afternoon. “Mr Johnson suffered from a severe mental defect on the day of this incident. What normal person does that?”

But prosecutors emphasized their stance that Johnson “knew exactly what he was doing” when he stabbed, beat and burned the victim to death, and he knew it was wrong.

“I have never said that man is not normal,” Assistant District Attorney Dana Cummings said, pointing to the defendant, as she presented her rebuttal to Folami’s close. “We know he’s not normal. What I’ve said is he isn’t insane.”

The jury deliberated little more than an hour to render its guilty verdict. District Judge Carson Marcantel, who presided over the trial, ordered a presentencing investigation and set Johnson’s sentencing date for Dec. 8. He faces a mandatory life sentence. Moore said the questions about Johnson’s sanity kept prosecutors from pursuing execution because that would have been

amberjack ﬁshing would stay open through the end of October, even if the national ﬁsheries agency closes the season Louisiana argues, as it has done with other species, that amberjack numbers off Louisiana are plentiful, and that the state’s own data is more reliable than the federal government’s.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ﬁsheries division announced in late August that commercial amberjack season would close Sept. 2 in federal waters, an action necessary to protect an overﬁshed population, according to the federal agency Landry and the state fisheries agency criticized the move as “extremely disappointing” in a letter posted on X, signed by the governor and Tyler Bosworth, the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

“The existing federal framework has deprived Louisiana’s commercial reef ﬁshermen of the opportunity to harvest Greater Amberjack,” states the letter, addressed to the regional NOAA fisheries ofﬁce.

NOAA did not respond to requests for comment.

Louisiana went on to end the commercial season in its state waters, which generally extend three miles off the coast. The state issued an emergency declaration Wednesday that the season would

end on Thursday NOAA Fisheries projected that the target of 93,930 pounds of amberjack would be met on Sept. 2, the state ﬁsheries agency wrote in its declaration.

Landry’s letter this week stressed how the federal closure triggered the state closure.

“This federal action puts Louisiana’s commercial reef ﬁshermen in the untenable position of either foregoing their season altogether or violating the conditions of their

PUTTER UP

golfer lines up a putt

Resolution reached in law school dispute

LSU dean to move to full-time position

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

LSU law school Dean Alena Allen will serve her last day in the top job on Sept. 19, when she will transition to a full-time law school faculty position, the university said Friday in a news release. LSU praised Allen’s “visionary leadership, steadfast commitment, and remarkable accomplishments” — a change in tone since her departure from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center was ﬁrst announced by the university

late last month. Just two weeks ago, LSU interim Executive Vice President and Provost Troy Blanchard met with Allen to tell her the LSU Board of Supervisors had decided to “make a change in leadership at the law school” because “they were just going a different direction,” according to Allison Jones, Allen’s attorney The following day, Allen threatened to sue LSU over alleged whistleblower retaliation, racial and gender discrimination and violations of LSU policy if the school refused to engage in mediation. In a demand letter, Jones accused the LSU Board of Supervisors of engaging in “systematic discrimination and retaliatory conduct” against Allen after she raised concerns about “irregular-

Longtime

dry-cleaning

company founder dies

Frank Kean took over family’s business in 1968

BY IANNE SALVOSA Staff writer

Frank H. Kean III, the former head of Kean’s Fine Dry Cleaning, died Friday morning. He was 87. Kean took over his family’s dry cleaning business in 1968, leading it into its seventh decade and beyond. Kean’s grandfather and grand-uncle founded the business in a Government Street building in 1900, cleaning LSU students’ collars. Kean led the business for 40 years, introducing new services like one-hour cleaning and becoming the 16th largest privately owned company in Baton Rouge by the mid-1980s.

He sold the business to Gerard G. “Rock” Rockenbaugh Jr and retired in 2003 after “living and breathing” the company for 40 years, he told The Advocate in 2003.

Kean

“Am I sentimental? Hell, yes,” Kean said in 2003. “I feel like I just sold my child.” Kean also engaged in charity work throughout his career. He received the Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Award in 1993 for collecting and recycling wire hangers and was honored

ceremony at the

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

on the green recently at Greenwood Park in Baton Rouge.

Five arrested in mail, check fraud scheme

Victim was Kenner police chief

BY MICHELLE HUNTER Staff writer

Five Georgia residents are behind bars after they unknowingly targeted the mailbox of the Kenner chief of police, authorities say, to steal mail as part of a check fraud scheme.

Suspicions were raised when Chief Keith Conley got a phone call on Tuesday from Shauntell Porter, an employee at a bank in New Orleans, asking him to verify whether he’d written a large check that someone had just come in to cash

“When a customer doesn’t usually write large checks like that, it raises ﬂags for me,” said Porter, a ﬁnance center supervisor who trains employees to spot fraud. “I thought, ‘Let me reach out and dig into this a little more’ because it didn’t feel right.”

Kenner police say Porter’s suspicions were on the money Conley had indeed written a check that very morning and placed it in his mailbox for pickup by his postal carrier But the amount had been altered and increased, Kenner Police Deputy Chief Mark McCormick said.

Conley immediately reviewed his home surveillance cameras and found video of a car pulling up to his mailbox and stealing the contents.

By Tuesday night, five suspects had been arrested at the location: Christine Smith, 57; Anthony Lowe, 61; Pierre Watson, 39; Anthony Ferrell, 42; and Steven Chandler Jr., 42, all of Georgia, McCormick said. Investigators with the Major Crimes Task Force, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations helped serve a search warrant at the rental property and seize stolen mail, including checks and equipment used to create fake checks, according to authorities.

The suspects were being held Friday at the Orleans Parish jail. Once transferred to Jefferson Parish, they will be booked with three counts of mail theft, McCormick said Local and federal authorities have been battling large-scale mail theft for the past few years. Crooks alter checks to steal cash from bank accounts or use identifying information in the letters to apply for credit cards or commit other ﬁnancial crimes, authorities said

The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office in 2022 went as far as to warn the public to stop using blue

The nervous thief grabbed his belongings and fled the bank before authorities arrived, McCormick said. But Kenner police used details from the chief’s surveillance video and license-plate recognition cameras to identify and track the suspects’ vehicle — a black Nissan Altima — to a shortterm rental apartment in New Orleans, McCormick said.

U.S. Postal Service collection boxes for outgoing mail after the boxes were repeatedly looted by thieves.

Since then USPS has worked to secure its blue boxes or remove them from use in some locations altogether, according to McCormick.

“I think that kind of killed a lot of the way (mail thieves) did their business,” he said. “They had to evolve from there.”

Investigators suspect the crew from Georgia, and others who target mail followed daily delivery routes, checking neighborhoods for home mailboxes with raised ﬂags signaling outgoing mail.

“It’s kind of a red ﬂag,” McCormick said.

Curbside mailboxes are particularly vulnerable because thieves don’t even have to approach a house. They can just pull up and open the mailbox.

Thus far, Kenner investigators have identified three victims whose mail was stolen by the suspects from Georgia. Authorities are trying to identify the other victims in the case. Police know the suspects paid visits to Chateau Estates and Grandlake Estates in Kenner, as well as some areas in Metairie, McCormick said.

Kenner police are asking residents to review their surveillance video around Sept. 9 for the suspects’ black Nissan Altima, which has a Florida license plate

Residents should also check their bank accounts for any suspicious ac-

PHOTO PROVIDED By KENNER POLICE

Kenner Police Chief Keith Conley left, presents cookies and gifts to Shauntell Porter a bank employee in New Orleans who notified Conley personally that someone tried to cash a stolen check in his name.

tivity including checks cashed for inappropriate amounts

“Now is the time. We have them in custody, and we can make them responsible for the crimes they’ve committed if those victims come forward,” McCormick said.

Conley stopped by Porter’s bank branch on Friday to thank her for her actions, which prevented others from having their money stolen. He came bearing cookies, a teddy bear and other Kenner police swag

In addition to routinely checking their accounts, Porter said residents can ward off fraud by asking their bank to notify them whenever checks of a certain amount or higher are submitted.

“I want everybody to be alert,” Porter said. “It’s so inconvenient when someone takes money that people go out every day and work hard to earn.”

Email Michelle Hunter at mhunter@theadvocate. com.

Victoria’s Toy Station sold to Modern Munchkin Co.

Business opened in 1984

BY IANNE SALVOSA and TIMOTHY BOONE Staff writers

The Modern Munchkin Co. is moving down the street and pulling into Victoria’s Toy Station.

The toy store is currently located in the Electric Depot and plans to move into its new Government Street location by mid-October.

Owner Whitney Tiemann said she was seeking a new space in Mid City and was drawn to the toy station

FISHING

Continued from page 1B

federal permits,” the letter states.

Recreational fishing

While the state lacks the power to override the national ﬁsh rules, the Louisiana ﬁshery agency maintained that if the feds close the recreational season too, the state would keep its own waters open.

“In Louisiana ﬁshing is a way of life,” Landry wrote

KEAN

Continued from page 1B

tion National Clothesline Kean also collected books for an annual book drive for the Friends of the LSU Library, which garnered about 50,000 books each year After retiring, Kean dove further into volunteering. He mentored new business owners with the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, assessing their business plans and provided recommendations on how companies can reach their goals. With his brother-in-law Pat Shingleton, the longtime WBRZ weatherman, he helped launch the annual Pat’s Coats for Kids drive, which became one of his proudest accomplishments, his daughter Emily Berg said. The

since the two businesses aligned in values. Victoria’s Toy Station owner Dee Dee Culotta put the business, which opened in 1984, and its property up for sale in April with a $1.2 million price tag. MajorTiemann Investments LLC, which has the same mailing address as Tiemann and her husband, bought the property at 5466 Government for $985,000 in a deal that was ﬁled Tuesday with the East Baton Rouge Clerk of Court’s ofﬁce. Beau Box, who had the listing for Victoria’s Toy Station, said there were

on X. “That’s why even if NOAA closes the season, we’re keeping our waters open for recreational Greater Amberjack harvest through October 31.” Right now, there’s no discrepancy between the federal and state recreational amberjack rules, as waters under both jurisdictions are open for the season But Louisiana is being “preemptive,” said Chris Schieble, the deputy assistant secretary for LDWF due to the commercial closure. The move also under-

coat drive has distributed 290,000 coats to 135 local schools since its start. ”I think it succeeded beyond his wildest imagination,” she said. “I don’t think he ever anticipated it would become as big as it became.”

Kean loved being a part of the Baton Rouge community Berg said. He was named king of the Spanish Town Mardi Gras parade in the mid1990s and supported his neighbors whenever they needed it. Kean was an outstanding businessman, she said, at one point managing over 200 employees and 26 locations, but also never took himself too seriously She said her father had a silly personality and loved entertaining his family

”He just loved being a grandfather and embraced it,” Berg said.

several offers for the property but The Modern Munchkin Co. was the best fit. “We’re pleased with the outcome,” he said. Will Chadwick of JRE Brokerage represented Modern Munchkin. Victoria’s Toy Station recently closed and the inventory was sold off, so Chadwick said The Modern Munchkin Co. can start renovating the building immediately Tiemann said she plans a few structural improvements like replacing the roof and ﬁxing some ﬂooring issues, but the beloved toy store will maintain its cottage feel. The Mod-

scored an ongoing dispute over state versus federal management of recreational amberjack Louisiana and other Gulf states have argued that the federal data collection system is faulty and slow In response, states in the region have developed their own systems. Louisiana’s data collection program, called LA Creel, was the ﬁrst to get federal certiﬁcation by NOAA in 2018. The system has also been used for state management of Louisiana’s recreational red snapper season.

LAW

Continued from page 1B

ities” in the LSU law school’s ﬁnances

That same day, without giving Allen advance warning, Blanchard sent an internal LSU email announcing the university would soon launch a national search to replace her, Jones said at the time.

On Friday, Jones said an “amicable resolution resolved all claims.”

“The agreement is a result of good-faith negotiations between Dean Allen and the administration of LSU,” she said. LSU did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the deal or what prompted the university’s search for a new law school dean.

“To serve as the ﬁrst permanent woman and person

ern Munchkin Co. has an interactive concept where children can play in the store while their parents shop, and Tiemann said the new location will have a dedicated playroom.

Her Electric Depot outpost is 900 square feet and Victoria’s Toy Station will increase her store’s size to 2,300 square feet. The Modern Munchkin Co started in 2021 and the brick-andmortar location got its start in February 2024 With a larger space, she plans on increasing the volume of some of the products sold at Victoria’s Toy Station

“Our argument as a state is that we have a better reporting system that’s more timely,” Schieble said. “(The federal system) leads to these discrepancies in data.”

The federal data collection system, called the Marine Recreational Information Program, is only used for recreational catch Commercial ﬁshermen report their landings through “trip tickets,” which are compiled and provided to federal agencies.

Richard Fischer, the CEO of the Louisiana Charter

of color to lead the Law Center has been the honor and privilege of my lifetime,” Allen said in a statement Friday “I am proud of the progress we have made together and I look forward to contributing to this community as a teacher and scholar.”

Among Allen’s accomplishments that LSU lists in its announcement Friday: Improving the law school’s U.S. News and World Report ranking to its highest in a decade at No. 84, increasing first-year enrollment, recruiting 10 new full-time law faculty members and increasing tuition revenue 50%.

Jones said Allen will remain a tenured full-time faculty member at the law school.

“She will continue teaching the courses that she currently teaches, and then she will continue supporting the law school in every way

another hurdle in the penalty phase of a capital murder trial.

Cummings showed videos of David’s body that revealed ligature wounds from her being tied up. Prosecutors presented images from the bloody crime scene and autopsy photos of the victim. They even shared video of a drunk, nude Johnson being arrested after he led police on a high-speed chase following the murder

But it was the 16-minute Instagram Live video of the actual killing that had the most impact on the jury Moore said one juror wept openly while watching footage from the livestream, while others covered their faces, only able to watch through their fingers as Johnson talked to the camera while repeatedly stabbing David.

“You don’t generally get to see the act being committed,” Cummings noted during her closing arguments. “I can’t imagine any stronger evidence than that. There is no stronger evidence.”

and expanding products geared toward elementary and middle school aged children.

Tiemann said she wants to continue the toy station’s traditions and continue pop-up events with local creatives and authors. She said her mom has shopped at the toy station for her kids so she wants honor the store’s history when she takes over “We are working with Dee Dee to make it as easy a transition as we can,” she said.

Email Timothy Boone at tboone@theadvocate.com.

Boat Association, said that recreational charter captains have been “frustrated for a long time about federal ﬁsheries management,” including the data collection system and increasingly short seasons.

“The federal system is broken and we need to get into a state or regional management system, not only for amberjack, but for more species,” Fischer said.

Email Josie Abugov at josie.abugov@ theadvocate.com.

possible,” she said.

Allen held her position as dean through an at-will employment arrangement but also joined the law school as a tenured faculty member, Jones said.

Jones also said that while there are other terms to the agreement, she couldn’t discuss them.

Blanchard, the interim provost, sent an email Friday to law school faculty and staff announcing a search for an interim law school dean.

“I am conducting an internal search for the interim dean of the Paul M. Hebert Law Center The interim dean will serve in this capacity until a national search has been conducted for a permanent dean,” Blanchard said.

Candidates can apply by Sept. 17 or be nominated and must hold the rank of professor with tenure.

Proving Johnson actually killed David in brutal fashion was only half the battle for prosecutors, an ugly detail that his legal team conceded to. After the state proved to jurors beyond a reasonable doubt that Johnson committed the murder, the onus shifted to his attorneys to prove by preponderance of the evidence their theory that his mental health issues, coupled with his drug and alcohol use, rendered him incapable of knowing right from wrong at the time. Falomi attacked the testimony of Laura Brown, one of the three doctors who evaluated the defendant and determined he was mentally competent to stand trial. He cited reports from Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, where Johnson was initially taken to be screened and treated after he was arrested. One of the hospital reports referenced an “apparent psychosis” and “manic” behavior by him. Falomi went on to cast aspersions on Brown’s pretrial report on Johnson. The forensic clinical psychologist indicated Johnson couldn’t testify for himself or sustain a consistent defense, but she still found him competent for trial. Falomi tried to convince jurors of Johnson’s insanity by pointing to his illogical behavior, such as reports that he stuck around to wait for police after he killed David.

“People have done less than that on Instagram Live and been regarded as psychos,” Falomi said.

“When you kill someone and try to hide it, that is what a normal person does. A normal person would not kill someone and broadcast it to the world,” he later argued, adding, “It’s not just about him going out and telling everybody, ‘Hey, I killed somebody.’ The fashion and manner in which it was done that is not something a normal person does.”

Cummings responded by pointing to signs that Johnson was rational and “in the moment” when he killed David. He told jurors the horriﬁc nature of Johnson’s crime shouldn’t deter them from ﬁnding him guilty

“When somebody does something so horrific, nobody wants to believe that a sane person could do that,” she said. “He’d have to be insane, because that’s a way to cope.

“But that is not the legal standard,” she added moments later “That is not the way that we keep people who prey on others from doing it again. There is no indication they did not prove that this man is insane at all.”

at 2p.m

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FirstBaptist Church of Denham Springs,27735 La.Highway 16 in DenhamSprings,at11a.m

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Robert "Bob" E.Luker, Sr., passed awaypeacefully in his home in Baton Rouge. Ahome thatsits on the same property that he grewuponsince he was a young boy. Bob wasa dedicatedman who livedhis life wholeheartedlydoing the thingsheloved. From being creative in hisenthusiasm and fondness of metal and woodworking to his passion forhis love of adventure forthe great outdoors.Hecherished his time spent fishing and huntingwith his father and older brotherthathereveled in themomentsdoing the same with hischildren. The joywas thesame if the fishing trip ended with frying fish forthe entire neighborhood or if the day was spent in the drizzling rain, freezing in Leesville without abite. He also had alove of musicthat was cultivated from his youth while dancing and teaching in his mothers dance school.Thatadoration of musicled him to playing the trumpet and buglein the UnitedStates Marine CorpsDrum and Bugle Team. He served on the Goodwill Music Tours whichconsistedoftravelingthe world on three separate tours. Bob went on to retire from Ethyl/Albermarle,after 37 years of dedicationand continued to enjoy the things he loved, which included gardening, golfing,dancing, motorcycling, and cooking Mostimportantly, he devoted himself to serving Jehovah, many years ago and faithfully heldsteadfast and continuedinthat service until his death. Bob is preceded in deathbyhis parents, James Bryan and Margaret EllenLuker; brothers: James BryanLuker,Jr. and DavidLuker; and grandparents, James and BlancheMartin. Bob is survived by his wife, Stannie M. Luker,and theirchildren: Kelly Payne,Jodi Toole, RobertLuker II, and Martin"Marty" Luker. He is also survived by his 9 grandchildren: Cristy Templet, LindseyGuillot, CassandraRockford, Austin Rockford, Jordan Luker, Taylor Luker,Jacob Luker, Chase Luker,and Madison Luker; 6great-grandchildren: BriannahLuke, Jacee' Diez, Mason Diez, Bane Guillot, Oliver Luker, and Rubie Luker;3 great-greatgrandchildren: Lawson Lukas, and LillianFolks; nephews: Jamesand Michael Luker; sister-in-

law, Marilyn Luker; and numerous cousins. Visitation willbeheldSaturday, September 20, 2025, from 1:00-3:00 p.m. at RabenhorstFuneralHome, 11000 FloridaBlvd.,Baton Rouge, LA 70815. In lieu of flowers, thefamily requests donations be madeinBob's memory to acharityof your choice.

Patterson, Martin Pierce 'Pat'

Mr. Martin Pierce "Pat" Patterson, age89, passed away peacefully in his home in DenhamSprings, Louisiana, on September 10, 2025, surrounded in love by his wife and children.A beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend, Pat leavesbehind alegacy of a lifetime of strength,service, and compassion that touched countless lives. BornonJuly 8, 1936, Pat's life was marked by dedication to his family,country, community, and faith.He served in theUnitedStates Coast Guardfrom1957 to 1962 as amember of the military police. While stationed in Hawaii, he also pursuednaturalbodybuildingand wonthe title of Mr. Hawaiian Islands in 1961. This achievement marked thebeginning of a lifelong commitment to physicalfitness. Well into his later years, Patremained afixture at hislocal gym, where he inspired people of allageswithhis discipline and vitality. In 1961, Patbegan what would become adistin-

guished30-year career with thePensacola Police Department. Starting on foot patrol,hewent on to serveonthe motorcycle patrol unit,boatpatrol unit, homicidedepartment, TACsquad, and ultimately retired in 1991 as asupervising desk sergeant. Known affectionately by his colleagues as a"gentle giant", Sergeant Patterson was admired for his calm demeanor and commanding presence.His abilityto de-escalatetense situations with quietstrength became legendary among those who worked alongside him. Beyond his professional achievements, Patwas aman of deep faith. After converting to Catholicism, he became an activemember of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in DenhamSprings. He had aspecial devotion to theBlessed Mother and prayed therosaryfaithfully throughout his life.His commitment to Eucharistic Adorationand his involvement with theSt. Vincent de Paul Societyand KnightsofColumbus reflected his desiretoserve others throughboth prayer and action. He generously donated his time and talentstosupport parish events, especiallythrough his remarkable woodworking skills, crafting beautiful piecesthatwere auctioned at theannual church bazaar. Aself-taught carpenterofexceptional talent,Pat created exquisite furniture and keepsakes that arecherished by many. Each piece was crafted with care and precision, true reflections of thelovehepouredinto everything he did. Those fortunate enough to own hi h b il h ld

something he built hold notonlya fine example of craftmanship,but also a tangiblereminder of his generousspirit.Pat is survivedbyhis devoted wife of 61 years, Barbara "Bobbie" Fuentes Patterson; theirthreechildren, Lynette (Valerie) Anderson, Laura (David) Zak, and David (Michelle) Patterson; andseven granddaughters whobrought him immense joy: Claire,Elena,Emma, Anna, Emily, Elizabeth,and Sabrina. He is also survivedbyhis sister Linda Patterson Varnedoe; along with manybeloved brothers-in-law,sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, and extended familymembers. He waspreceded in death by hismotherLouise PattersonLong; father Lovic Pierce Patterson;and sisterPatricia Patterson Stanley. Though strongin statureand spirit,Pat was known for hisgentleheart andsoft-spoken nature. He hadanextraordinary gift of makingothersfeelseen andvalued-aqualitythat endeared himtoall who knew him. Hisfamily wouldliketoextend their sincere gratitude to those whocared for himduring hisfinal years anddays, especially thecompassionate staff at TheHospice of Baton Rouge,aswell as his special friends at Sport-NCenter andMedCentris WoundHealingInstitute in Denham Springs. Their kindness andlove brought himsomuchcomfort and joy. Special thanks also to hisbrothers-in-law Mike Fuentes andRon Fuentes, whovisitedhim every Monday andFriday, and hissister-in-law KitBourgeois. They were everpresentsources of comfort d id hi i i

and aid to him, anticipatinghis needsand helping withoutbeing asked. Their love andsupport were invaluable. Pat's life wasone of quietheroism, marked by service withoutfanfare, love without condition,and faithwithoutwavering. His memory will be asourceof strength andcomfort to all whowereblessed to know him. AMass of Christian Burial will be held on Monday, September 15 at 12 pm, Immaculate Conception Catholic Church,865 HatchellLn, Denham Springs, LA, with visitation from 10 am-12 pm at the church.Interment immediately followingMass will take place at theSealeFuneralHome cemetery, 1720 SRange Ave,Denham Springs. Pallbearers will be RonFuentes,Marty Sherlock, Howard Bourgeois, ClydeGodwin,David Zak, andJason Caruso

BUSINESS

Nexus’ DevDays

features $5K prize

Nexus Louisiana is calling for innovators across the state to solve industry issues.

DevDays will hone in on Louisiana’s key industries like health and energy in a competition for a $5,000 prize. It’s the second programming series the organization has announced for this fall and will run in tandem with its Tech Tailgates, an invitation-only networking event at LSU football home games.

Louisiana has the most important raw ingredients for innovation: real-world problems and experts to solve them,” Nexus Louisiana CEO Tony Zanders said in the release. “DevDays is a scalable attempt to partner with industry to increase our ecosystem’s shots on goal, and do so in a way only Baton Rouge can do.”

The competitions will take place on Fridays at Nexus headquarters and winners will be announced the next day at Tiger Stadium.

Competitors will also have VIP access to the Tech Tailgates. Zanders said earlier this month that the Tech Tailgates will tap into Baton Rouge’s love for football.

The ﬁrst challenge on Oct 24 will center on ClimateTech, in partnership with technology company Baker Hughes, and competitors will search for carbon management solutions. Nexus is working with Future Use of Energy in Louisiana (FUEL), a statewide initiative focused on accelerating the clean energy transition, for the event.

Consumer sentiment falls on job worries

U.S. consumer sentiment fell in September to the lowest since May and long-term inﬂation expectations rose for the second straight month, as concerns about the labor market and prices weighed on the economic outlook.

The preliminary September sentiment index declined to 55.4 from 58.2 in August, according to the University of Michigan. That was below all but one economist’s forecast in a Bloomberg survey

Consumers expect prices to rise at an annual rate of 4.8% over the next year, unchanged from the previous month, data released Friday showed. They saw costs rising at an annual rate of 3.9% over the next ﬁve to 10 years, a jump from the 3.5% rate seen last month.

U.S. employers added just 22,000 jobs in August, and consumer prices rose at the fastest pace since the start of the year Costs of several key household expenses like groceries and gasoline climbed

Boeing workers reject latest contract offer

Another contract proposal has been rejected by Boeing workers who have been on strike for nearly six weeks at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed

The vote on Friday refusing the latest proposal sends the workers back to the picket lines, according to the union representing the 3,200 striking workers who build ﬁghter jets, weapons systems and the U.S. Navy’s ﬁrst carrier-based unmanned aircraft. Fifty-seven percent of members voted against the proposal, the union said.

“Boeing’s modiﬁed offer did not include a sufﬁcient signing bonus relative to what other Boeing workers have received, or a raise in 401(k) benefits,” the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837 said in a statement.

“We’re disappointed our employees have rejected a 5-year offer, including 45% average wage growth,” said Dan Gillian Boeing Air Dominance vice president and general manager, in an emailed statement

“We’ve made clear the overall economic framework of our offer will not change.”

Stocks end week near record

BY STAN CHOE Associated Press

NEW YORK — Wall Street coasted to the ﬁnish of its best week in the last ﬁve on Friday as U.S. stocks hung near their record levels.

The S&P 500 barely budged and edged down by less than 0.1% from the all-time high it set the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 273 points, or 0.6%, while the Nasdaq composite added 0.4% to its own record set on Thursday Stocks have rallied with expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut its main interest rate for the ﬁrst time this year at its meeting

next week. Such a move would give the economy a kick-start, and mortgage rates have already dropped in anticipation of it Expectations for a cut have built as recent reports suggested the U.S. job market could settle into the precise balance that Wall Street has been betting on: slow enough to convince the Fed that it needs help, but not so weak that it will mean a recession, all while inﬂation doesn’t take off.

A lot is riding on whether that bet proves correct. Stocks have already soared on it And if the Fed ends up cutting interest rates fewer times than traders expect, in-

cluding three this year the market could retreat in disappointment That’s even if everything else goes right, and the economy does not fall into a recession and President Donald Trump’s tariffs don’t send inﬂation much higher Oracle sank 5.1% and was the single heaviest weight on the S&P 500 index. But that shaved only a bit off its surge from earlier in the week, when it soared to its best day since 1992 amid excitement about its winning multibillion dollar contracts related to artificial-intelligence technology Another company that’s beneﬁted from the AI frenzy, Super Micro

Computer rose 2.4% after saying it’s begun high-volume shipments of racks using Blackwell Ultra equipment from Nvidia that can be used for AI.

Microsoft climbed 1.8% after European Union regulators accepted the tech giant’s proposed changes to its Teams platform, resolving a long-running antitrust investigation. The European Commission said Friday that Microsoft’s ﬁnal commitments to unbundle Teams from its Ofﬁce software suite, including further tweaks following a market test in May and June, are enough to satisfy competition concerns.

Soybean farmers face ‘dire’ export orders due to tariffs, seek bailout

BY CHRISTOPHER VONDRACEK, J.P LAWRENCE and BROOKS JOHNSON

The Minnesota Star Tribune (TNS)

WASHINGTON It’s a bad year for a good soybean harvest as tariffs decimate export orders Minnesota farmers were in the nation’s capital this week pleading for a bailout

Historically, Minnesota sends two out of every three rows of soybeans overseas, typically to feed livestock. China has often bought the bulk of those exports.

As of early September, Chinese buyers have yet to book any shipments of American soybeans from the upcoming harvest That’s a far cry from the 12 million to 13 million tons they’d booked by this time last year traders told Reuters this week.

For Gail Donkers, who farms in southern Minnesota, it hurts to see plentiful four-bean pods growing waist-high — a sign of a robust season.

Without solid customers, she has held off selling her beans, hoping to avoid a loss. Donkers, chair of the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council, ﬂew to Washington this week to meet with Minnesota’s congressional delegation.

Because of the trade war with China, U.S. soybeans cost about 20% more than South American beans. That’s due to trade duties imposed by the Chinese government in response to President Donald Trump’s increased tariffs on goods bound for the U.S. market.

China is buying cheaper Brazilian soybeans, dragging down prices for American soy farmers

“Brazil can ﬁll almost all of China’s needs that leaves all of us American producers sitting here holding the bag,” said Dennis Fultz, a farmer in southwestern Minnesota’s Lyon County In 2016, China bought more than 40% of its soybeans from U.S farmers. As of last year, that had dropped to about 20%, customs data shows.

Earlier this week Rep Glenn “GT” Thompson, a Pennsylvania Republican and the House Agriculture Committee chair, told Agri-Pulse Newsmakers that he could see a future Farm Bill repurposing tariff revenue for farm aid.

“I’m advocating that, just a fraction of that money would be invested in our farmers,” Thompson said.

During the ﬁrst Trump administration’s

trade war with China, farmers received $23 billion in cash bailout payments in 2018 and 2019.

From the basement of a hotel on Capitol Hill, Donkers said Wednesday she’s wondering exactly when Washington will offer aid, since the current market drop is due to the tariff war

“We have to have something,” she said “We never want to take a payout. But we’ve been working for 40 to 50 years to build these relationships across oceans.

The futures price on soybeans sits just over $9 a bushel now down from highs closer to $15 at the beginning of the decade.

Across the Upper Midwest, early-season anxiety has given way to panic, especially as median farm income is expected to be in the red across the board this year

“It’s a pretty dire situation,” said Darin Johnson, president of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association “We’re in a tough spot.”

Like other farmers, Johnson is “sitting on a fair amount of soybeans” that in past years would be headed on railcars toward the Paciﬁc Northwest, and then Asia.

The China-sized hole in American farm

Unemployment, GDP growth will be

BY FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump’s tariff policy, immigration crackdowns and sweeping tax and spending law are expected to increase jobless rates and inflation and lower overall growth this year before they improve next year, according to a new report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Ofﬁce.

The CBO on Friday released new economic projections for the next three years, updating the outlook it originally released in January, before Trump’s inauguration.

The latest ﬁgures, which compare fourth quarter changes, show the unemployment rate, inﬂation and overall growth are expected to be worse this year than initially projected, while the economic picture is expected to steady in subsequent years.

The CBO outlooks attempt to

set expectations for the economy in order to help choices made by congressional and executive branch policymakers. It does not forecast economic downturns or recessions, with its estimates generally reverting back to an expected average over time.

But Friday’s outlook showed the degree to which Trump’s choices are altering the path of the U.S. economy, suggesting that growth has been hampered in the near term by choices that have yet to show the promised upside of more jobs and lower budget deﬁcits.

Kush Desai, a White House spokesperson, told The Associated Press, “Americans heard similar doom-and-gloom forecasts during President Trump’s first term, when the President’s economic agenda unleashed historic job, wage, and economic growth and the ﬁrst decline in wealth inequality in decades.” Overall, the CBO expects real

exports’ balance sheet means farmers like Johnson will need bins to store beans until prices improve. But there is only so much space to store grain for long periods, and an ample corn harvest is also on the horizon. Johnson said farmers are hoping for some signal from the federal government to calm their anxieties.

“I think we’re at the stage if we don’t have any trade deals that are officially signed in the very near future yes, we’re going to need some aid of some sort,” Johnson said A Department of Agriculture spokesperson in an email did not address the current situation but blasted the Biden administration for handing off a $50 billion agricultural trade deficit. America ran a trade surplus for decades until 2019, during Trump’s first administration

The spokesperson said the agency is refocusing its efforts on farmers, pointing to $10 billion in emergency aid to crop farmers at the beginning of the season to help ﬁnance this year’s planting, based on results in 2024. There is talk on Capitol Hill that another aid package for farmers is in the works — but it’s unclear whether that would come from Congress or the administration

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GLEN STUBBE

Minnesota farmers have few to no buyers for a high-yield year for soybeans, mainly because China is buying its soybeans from South America, not the U.S., as a tariff war continues.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By J SCOTT APPLEWHITE

The Congressional Budget Office on Friday released new economic projections for the next three years, updating the outlook it originally released in January, before Trump’s inauguration.

OPINION

Thepolitics of Trump’s health

Chatter continues aboutDonaldTrump’shealth. Is he sick?Ishedying? Has he died? Socialmediahas been full of speculation.

Some of the speculationisjust part ofthe nation’s obsession with the current president. Said comedian JonStewart, “It does say something about the ubiquity of Donald Trump in our lives thatwedon’thear from himfor 20 minutes and we’re like: ‘He’s dead!’”

Trump’sfanssee this obsessionasan unfair attempt by the media to weaken confidence in his leadership. Hisfoes fear the endless torrent of information about him camouflagesmoreimportant things, suchasthe president’s mishandling of majorissues Your guessisasgood as mine when it comes to Trump’shealth. We knowhehas anunhealthy diet,lives under amountain of stress, gets little sleep, has chronic venous insufficiency and is nearing 80. But that doesn’tmean he’sdying or incapacitated.

Rumors about presidentialhealth are nothing new. Joe Biden’smental and physical condition was debated forhis entire term —but it wasn’tuntil his woeful 2024 debate performance that the ﬁtness issue detonated live, inliving color,for all to see.

Unfortunately,presidents hiding serious health issues isnothing new.Rememberthe president who had secretcancersurgery on ayacht?Few Americans do Duringhis second term, the56-year-oldGrover Clevelandfeltasoreness onthe roof ofhis mouth. It was cancer.Ostensibly to avoid apanicthatcould worsen the nation’stroubledeconomy,Cleveland decided to have surgery under the guiseofa vacation cruise. His doctors removed part ofhis upperjaw andpalate. Later, they ﬁtted hismouth with adental prosthesis so he’d look and sound as he did before the operation. Cleveland’sstaff liedabout it. They saidhesimply had two teeth pulled. Cleveland served out his presidential termand lived 15 additional years. Only after his death did the public ﬁndout what happened.

How about the president who had astroke that left himpartially paralyzed,damaged hisvisionand likely impairedhis judgment?

Woodrow Wilson sufferedtwo mild strokes before he entered politics. While traveling acrossthe nationselling his plan to create aLeague of Nations afterWorld WarI,hewas felled by athird and more seriousstroke, which paralyzed his left arm, leg and face. Hiswife, physician and private secretary meticulously hid the 63-year-old president’scondition. For months, they carried out presidential dutiesbehind closeddoors. Wilson died three years after he left office At 39,FranklinRoosevelt was diagnosedwith poliomyelitis. From then on, he wasunable to walk, stand or do common chores unaided. Aspresident, he carefully hid the extent of his paralysis. The nation’snews media helped by not showingawkward pictures or news reels Roosevelt, the master politician, created the “illusion of mobility” to changethe optics, if notthe reality,of his disability.His bright smile,cigarette holder and crinkled hatwere propstoshift focus away fromhis paralyzed bottom halftoward hisstrongerupperhalf. Achain-smoker,FDR’s health started declining in the earlydays of World WarII. In 1944,shortly before he was elected to afourth term, medical testing showed he had severe hypertension, coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure. Helookedincreasingly sick and alarmingly older thanhis 62 years.His physician misled the press —and maybe evenRoosevelt himself —about hisprecarious condition. Struggling to keep up with official dutiesduring the final months of thewar,hediedjust 11 weeksinto his fourth term.

Seen as ayoung and vigorous leader,JohnKennedy hadchronic health problems throughout his 46years; mostwere kept secret during his lifetime

At 30, Kennedy was diagnosedwith Addison’sdisease, an adrenal insufﬁciency.His physician estimated he’dliveless than ayear.Healso suffered from back pain and numerous other ailments; he received the last rites multiple times. To dull pain and keepgoing, he used numerous medications,somedangerous, that could lead to impaired judgment, nervousnessand mood swings. The full story of JFK’shealth wasn’t told until after his assassination.

“The report of my deathhas beengreatly exaggerated,” said Mark Twain In the modern world of instant communications,sois everything else.

Ron Faucheux is anonpartisan political analyst, pollster andwriter based in Louisiana.

Keep Katrinalevee failures frontand center

Desiree Stennett chose afascinating subject for her Aug. 14 article, “20 years later,the children of Katrinahave grown up. Here’show the storm shaped their lives.” An entire generation of children was affected by thetraumatic upheaval of that event, and I’m glad that Stennett chose to writeabout it

The reference to Hurricane Katrinahaving “drowned thecity” was poetic, but concerning in that it implies that the catastrophic flooding of New Orleanswas an inevitable result of the storm.Iwas relieved when, about halfway through the article, Ifinally saw areference to “the floodwall and levee failures.” As new generations comeup, and older generations leave us —taking their

knowledge withthem —itisimportanttocontinually reiterate the fact that the ﬂooding of NewOrleans was aman-made disaster caused by the failure of our levee system due to mismanagement by the ArmyCorps of Engineers. As Ritchie Blink says in the ﬁnal sentence of the story,“Ithink we’ve gotten better.…But Ithink we’ve forgotten some of those lessons.” News articles such as Stennett’scan help refresh our collective memories so thepublic can continue to hold our governmentand the Army Corps of Engineers accountable for keeping us safe as we head into the ever-uncertain future.

SANDYPARKER NewOrleans

So U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, RLafayette, andRobert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of Healthand Human Services, two bright medical minds, are against vaccinations? Wait! Neither of them has any medical training of any substance whatsoever.So, why should anyone give an iota of credence to their opinions, which ﬂy in the face of the opinions of actual medical doctors, such as the American Academy of Physicians, who vouch, on the basis of actual evidence, for thenecessity and safety of these vaccines, even forinfants and children? Unfortunately,just having apublic podium does not confer ascientiﬁc IQ on any politician. We should beware of those who think it does.

In an Aug. 20thletter,author Susan Levin expressed that she had “grown rather weary” of the newspaper’spublishing reportsthat from July 10-21, 369 Palestinians had been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza. She noted correctly that the terrorist organization known as Hamas had committed anumber of atrocities over the years against Israel, but during this July period, she speciﬁcally referred to ﬁve Israeli casualties reported. She concluded by requesting that the newspaper provide

This is athank-you notetoKateb Nuri-Alim Shunnar regarding “Between Stories and Steam”inthe newspaper Aug. 18. Howrefreshing it is to be able toenjoy reading such awell-written article which places

CYNTHIA CAMPBELL Marrero

more“balance” in its coverage. I’m not quite sure what the newspaper can do short of misinformation to achieve this “balance.” News needs to remain actual newsand theidea of “balanced”newsisafantasy.And “fair andbalanced” news requires even more mental gymnastics and additionally carries the risk of being taken to court and heavily ﬁned for themisinformation it takes to create the illusion.

JIM

WRIGHT Baton Rouge

great value on cherishing and preserving theculture of our families of origin and valuing the wisdom of our parents and grandparents.

SANDRA CLEMENT Thibodaux

In Louisiana, nearly 1million people depend on Medicare for their health coverage, but our doctors are struggling to keep up. That’sbecause the way Medicare pays physicians is fundamentally flawed. Unless lawmakers institute significant changes, the consequences of this chronic underpaymentwill prevent patients from accessing critical care. When adjusted forinflation, Medicare reimbursement to doctors has declined by 33% since 2001. These inadequate payment rates, coupled with aworkforce shortage, rising costs and burdensomeadministrative red tape, are hurting independent clinicians. Many are deciding to stop seeing Medicare patients or shut down their practices altogether rather than fight this uphill battle. Iimplore Sens. John Kennedy and Bill Cassidy to address Medicare payment reform and help Louisiana doctors. An inflationadjusted payment system would enable physicians to maintain their practices and continue delivering high-quality care to all patients.

ANITADHANRAJANI pediatric rheumatologist

Responding to the person who wished she hadn’tvoted forPresident Donald Trumpbecause her coffee prices are up: Maybe you could use the money you saved because your eggs have dropped 39% in the past six months, cereal, sugar and dairy are now at ﬁveyear low prices, Gasoline is down 29% and other energy sources are also dropping. Maybe you could give this president your support and see the policies go into action and beneﬁt the entire American public. And enjoy your reduced federal taxes. With those savings, maybe you could buy your coffee and drink it, too.

SHARON BOSTWICK Mandeville

Ron Faucheux

GAMEDAY

An ACLinjurysidetracked Harold Perkins’ dreamofreachingthe NFL, butanew position andreturntohealthhaveput himbackonhis path

BY WILSON ALEXANDER Staff writer

Hefelt his right knee shift and the discomfort that followed, but as he slowly walked toward thelocker room inside Tiger Stadium with atowel draped over hishead, Harold Perkins thoughtheavoided theworst.

That’swhat he told himselfatﬁrst. Maybe hiskneewas tweaked or hyperextended. One coachrecalled hearing that might be the case, onlyfor an athletic trainer to tell himafew minutes later that Perkins likely hadatornACL.

“Hewas trying to go back out,” said Perkins’ mother,Bertha Walton.“Isaid, ‘Son, youcan’t go back outthere. It’s OK to sit out the remaining couple of minutes.’ He was like, ‘No.’ AndIwas like, ‘Son, youcan’tdoit.’ ”

Hisadrenaline was still pumping whenPerkins went home afterLSU beat UCLA on Sept. 21. At least 20 family members hadcome over from Houston and NewOrleans.Perkins said he can get closeto50atsomegames, andtheyalways meet up at hishouse.

ä See LSU, page 2C

FLORIDA AT LSU 6:30 P.M. SATURDAy, ABC

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON/ ILLUSTRATION By TANyARAMIREZ

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GarrettNussmeier LSU,Quarterback

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They tried to keep things normal Walton cooked smothered oxtails, cabbage and cornbread. They cracked jokes. He walked around like nothing was wrong, holding out hope even though his knee was swollen. He didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for him.

“Bro, I think I’m really good,” Perkins said. Perkins stayed up late that night. He usually does after games, sometimes until 4 a.m., because it can be hard for him to relax again. Once he awoke, the adrenaline had worn off. That’s when he realized, “Oh, yeah, I’m messed up.” An MRI later that morning conﬁrmed the diagnosis of a torn ACL. His junior season ended after four games. When he signed as a ﬁve-star linebacker in the 2022 recruiting class, Perkins thought he would graduate and leave LSU in three years. The injury changed his plan. Although Perkins said he received a second- or third-round NFL draft grade, he returned to LSU for his senior year

“What I’m rushing for, you know what I’m saying?” Perkins said. “Rushing for nothing. I got unﬁnished business here. That’s really how I looked at it. I can’t leave here with unﬁnished business.”

Everyone has seen what Perkins is capable of. With rare closing speed, he became one of the best defensive players in college football during the second half of his freshman year His debut set high expectations for the rest of his career, and Perkins has been pursuing them ever since. A year after the injury, he may ﬁnally chase them down.

‘In a dark space’

One day in August, Perkins sat in LSU’s team room. He mindlessly rubbed his right knee as he talked about the injury

“It’s just a habit,” he said. “When I was hurt, this is all I used to do. It’s like me biting my nails. Just found something else to do.”

Perkins had been hurt before. He has scars from getting cleated, and he practiced with a brace on his left arm one spring. But he believes there’s a difference, as coaches have often told him, between hurt and injured. This was the ﬁrst time he had ever been injured and needed a major surgery

“I wouldn’t say I was scared, but I was worried,” Perkins said. “I was raised good, raised to lean on the Lord. But at the end of day, I’m human. So you’re gonna have a bunch of bad thoughts run through your head, like I did at the time.”

When Perkins heard the diagnosis, his mom said she “could see the devastation on his face.”

People who know him well never had seen him like that before. He’s usually upbeat. He has an easygoing smile Former LSU safety Major Burns, a close friend and Perkins’ roommate the previous two years, said people gravitate to him because of his energy

For about a month after the injury, Perkins withdrew He struggled to accept what happened. He said he was “in a dark space.” He didn’t want to talk. He couldn’t decide whether he wanted to cry or ﬁght. He got tired of hearing people tell him everything happens for a reason. Unless they had gone through something similar, he thought they couldn’t really understand.

Most of all, Perkins felt like he let everybody down. He’s a people pleaser to the point that LSU coaches have talked to him about learning how to relieve the pressure he puts on himself. They don’t want him to think he has to make every play or support everyone, but Perkins feels responsible for his family and team.

In 2005, Perkins was a baby when his family waded through the water in Uptown New Orleans to evacuate after the levees failed during Hurricane Katrina. His mom resettled their family in the Houston area. They stayed as others returned home because she wanted to raise them somewhere she thought was safe.

Walton, a single mother worked 16-hour shifts as a certiﬁed nursing assistant She told her six children to keep God ﬁrst and move forward when times got tough. When Perkins was 7, she taught him how to cook for himself He would clean the house and iron clothes so she didn’t have to when she got home.

“He always did it,” Walton said. “He always has been like that. He big on family.”

After the injury, he couldn’t for a while.

“When I was in that phase, I just didn’t want to be bothered because, like I said, I was hearing the same stuff from everybody,” Perkins said. “It’s like, I hear what y’all saying but I’m just not

STAFF PREDICTIONS

WILSON ALEXANDER

LSU 20, FLORIDA 17

The LSU defense looks like the strongest unit on the field, and Florida quarterback DJ Lagway has to make his first SEC road start at night in Tiger Stadium That will make the difference in a lowscoring game Florida still has enough talent to beat anyone on its schedule, and the LSU offense hasn’t proven itself yet So, as Lee Corso would say, closer than the experts think

REED DARCEY

LSU 27, FLORIDA 20

Florida’s loss last week wasn’t as bad as it looks South Florida is a good team — and now a bona fide College Football Playoff contender. The problem for the Gators is almost every opponent left on their schedule is better than the Bulls. A lot better. Their gauntlet starts with a nighttime road game at LSU, which uses the opportunity to prove that its defense is legit.

trying to hear that right now, for real.” Road to recovery

Two days after the injury, Perkins’ grandfather visited him in Baton Rouge. They talked while they watched Monday Night Football.

“Very encouraging,” Walton said, “because my dad, he don’t leave the house for nobody.”

Near the end of his life, Alvin Walton Sr used a cane because he developed a limp after falling when he suffered a minor stroke Going up steps was tough. He couldn’t handle the ride to Tiger Stadium or sitting in the stands, so he never came to Perkins’ LSU games. When family members tried to persuade him to go, Perkins defended his grandfather’s decision.

Walton Sr was a Vietnam veteran who served in the Marine Corps. He later became a carpenter and painter He and his wife, Carolyn, were married for 49 years. He inﬂuenced Bertha Walton’s parenting style, and he was the person she called when she needed advice. When he was hard on Perkins, she wondered why

“He said Harold had a lot of potential in him,” Bertha Walton said. “If you don’t be hard on him, his potential’s not gonna come out. He said, ‘I don’t want him to be a follower, because he was born and created to be a leader.’ “

Three weeks later, Perkins woke up after surgery in Dallas with the urge to use the restroom. He told the staff he needed to pee. “I’m talking about bad,” Perkins said. They told him to get up and walk with his crutches. Perkins was confused. Could he really put pressure on his knee? They reassured him that the ligament was repaired, but he didn’t trust it yet.

At ﬁrst, Perkins hesitated to push himself. He asked his mom to tie plastic sleeves around his leg before he took a shower Pretty soon, she pointed out nothing was wrong with his hands. Bertha Walton dealt with him like her other patients. She and his uncle, Alvin Walton Jr., bought him a chair for the shower

“Mom, you don’t know,” Perkins’ mom recalled him saying. “It hurts.”

“I know it probably do hurt, son, but it ain’t going to hurt for a long time,” she said “This is a temporary hurting.”

He needed to move so his knee wouldn’t get stiff. Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice was in Dallas rehabbing a knee injury at the same time, and he encouraged Perkins. Talking to others who had gone through season-ending injuries, like Burns and former LSU defensive tackle Maason Smith, helped him understand he wasn’t alone. He read his Bible and prayed a lot.

“That’s really what changed my mindset, let me know that you’re still worth it,” Perkins said. “It’s all about conﬁdence. And that’s what I felt like it really was. My conﬁdence was just gone because, like, I’m not myself no more.”

Perkins stayed in Dallas for about a week as he started his rehab. Two days after he got home, his grandfather died on Oct. 26. Walton Sr 72, had been diagnosed with colon cancer, something he hid from his family Around the same time, Perkins began to pull himself out of his funk. And when LSU played Clemson in the season opener, he wrote “LLPAPA” on a piece of eye black.

Long Live Papa

Regaining his conﬁdence

Last fall, Perkins had to make a decision about the NFL draft. He entered his junior season viewed by some analysts as the top linebacker in the class, but that wasn’t the case by the time he got injured. There were questions about his position, and it was unlikely that he could participate in the pre-draft process.

Minh Luu, the director of Ollin Athletics and Sports Medicine in Houston, showed Perkins messages from scouts he knew saying they would draft Perkins high without him running the 40-yard dash. His mom told him he could declare anyway, too. He would show everyone what he could do once he got to the NFL.

Perkins felt just as conﬁdent in himself, saying, “I just needed to get my feet in the door Once my feet was in the door I was going to kick that b**** down.”

Perkins said it took time to decide, though an LSU source said the team knew early on he would stay He told Luu, who he has trained with for a couple years, that he had a lot to prove. He thought of himself as a ﬁrst-round pick, and he wanted to guarantee teams viewed him the same way

“I want a normal, slow recovery,” Perkins’ mom recalled him saying at one point. “If it heals normally, next year around this time, I’ll be ready I don’t have to worry about nothing getting reinjured or nothing getting retorn. I don’t want nothing but God to heal my leg normally in His time.”

SCOTT RABALAIS

LSU 24, FLORIDA 16

The Gators are a desperate team. Lose to the Tigers and their season likely spirals out of control and Billy Napier eventually gets fired. Despite its issues, LSU has proven dominant in some respects against Clemson and Louisiana Tech In a low-scoring tug of war, the Tigers defense rises to the challenge, giving the LSU offense time to put together enough drives to win a one-score game.

KOKI RILEY

LSU 21, FLORIDA 17

The LSU offense struggled last weekend against Louisiana Tech, but Florida’s attack looked even worse against South Florida. The Bulls are a quality team, and the Gators are bound for some offensive improvement, but LSU has lost in Death Valley just once on a Saturday night since Brian Kelly took over in Baton Rouge Tigers take this game in a close, low-scoring affair.

LSU linebacker HaroldPerkinsposes for aphoto on June 18 at the team’s practice facility.Through twogames, Perkins has eight tackles,two tackles forloss,one sack and threehurries.

By coming back,Perkins thought he could put himself and his family in abetter situation.He declinedtodiscuss his compensationfromNIL and revenue sharing.

“It’slike, man, Icould leave. Icould trust myself and bet on myself.I could dothat. But why do that when my main goal here was to come here and leave alegacy?” he said, gesturing toward abuilding where LSU has photos of its best players on the walls. “Something thatwhen Ihave my kids, Icould comeback and they could see me all over.”

By the end of the spring, Perkins was fully cleared.HedidmostofhisrehabatLSU,butwhenever the team had abreak, he returned toHouston.

In the mornings there,hesaw Luu, who coordinated with LSU’sathletic trainingstaff, for physical therapy and strength and conditioning. In the afternoon, he worked with defensive backs coach Jacory Nichols or pass rush specialist Brandon Jordan on skill development. He wanted to do so much that they had to keep him off the ﬁeldsometimes.

“He’sreally amutant, man, theway he’sable to be great at everything he does,” said Jordan, whose company says it has trained more than 200 NFL pass rushers.“But you can see why he’s greatateverything he doesbecause he’s out there working. Idon’tknow too many people that work harder than Perk.”

At ﬁrst, Perkins still didn’ttrust his knee. Nichols and Jordan could tellwhen he took extra, choppy steps coming out of abreak. He had to learnhis kneecouldhandlethepressure,andasthesummer rolledaround, he began to move like he used to. Nichols puthim through the same drills as the defensive backs, even though he was the only linebacker at the sessions.Jordan taught him to run with his hands up, reﬁning hispassrush technique. With linebackerdrills in between, he prepared for all three levels of the defense. Multiple coaches said it’srare for one player to work on all of that at once, especially at ahigh level.

“Top ﬁve,” Nicholswould tell him. “Top ﬁve.” Prepared fora breakout

Around the end of the 2024 season,Perkins met with LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker.Asthey talked, Baker askedPerkins whatposition he wanted to play.Baker oftenposes this question to his players because he wantsthem to be where they feel most comfortable “Whatever you want me to play,coach,” Perkins replied.

“No, Harold, what do you want to play?” Baker said.

“Coach,”Perkinssaid,“IthinkI’llbebestatStar.”

Baker called Perkins “tailor-made”for the position, ahybrid role usually ﬁlled by defensive backs. He gets to blitz and drop into coverage while playing in space, which Perkins thinks shows off his versatility.Baker moves him around in different packages.Burns, who

played Star lastseason, believes Perkins can “shut down half the ﬁeld” from the spotbecause of his athleticism.

Where Perkins should play has been an ongoing debate. When he broke outasafreshman with 71/2 sacks and13tackles for loss, LSUprimarily used him as an edge rusher andspy linebacker.But he was recruited withthe idea that he would develop at inside linebacker,aposition LSUhead coach Brian Kelly has often said he wouldneedtoplayinthe NFLbecause of his size. For two straight offseasons, LSUtried to turn him into one.

The position did notstick. Perkins lasted one gamehis sophomore year before movingtooutside linebacker,and he returned to inside linebacker when Bakerwas hired to replace Matt House.Baker thought he could play there.One coach said there were times that Perkins would shut down preseason practice last year because he was so dominant.

When the season started, what they saw in practice did not follow.Perkins played acouple of games at inside linebacker beforegetting moved around again. He recorded 17 tackles, 11/2 tackles for loss, no sacks and no hurries before the injury.The past two years, his mom thought he put too much pressure on himself to tryto carry the team.

“I don’tfeel like it didn’twork out,” Perkins said.“Ifeel like different strokes for different folks. Icould do it. But Iain’ttrying to have peoplereachinguptomewhenthe ball snapped.

I’m trying to be free and go make theplays That’s why Ireally felt like Star was better for me because it’s read and react ”

Perkins thought the LSU coaches over the past twoyears triedtoput him in aspot thatwould make him successful. He wanted to do whatever wasasked of him. Burns said “if they needed himtoput his hand in thedirt,hewould.” But this year,hehas tried to speak up more about what he sees and thinks.

“If Iwas the type of person to be like, Igot to have s*** my way,wewill always bump heads,” Perkinssaid. “I never been that type of person. I’ll play nose guard if it was best for the team.”

Through two games, Perkins has eight tackles, twotacklesfor loss, onesack and threehurries before No. 3LSU playsFlorida.Going into the year,Burns wondered whether people hadforgotten Perkins could wreck agame because he was outfor so long. If they did, Perkins reminded them at theend of LSU’s17-10 win at Clemson

With Clemson at LSU’s 14-yardline anda minuteleft in the fourth quarter,Perkins andjunior linebacker Whit Weeks blitzed on fourth down. As soonasquarterback Cade Klubnik rolled out, Perkinssprinted from the other side of the line. He chaseddown Klubnik and forced an incompletion, apotential sign of what’stocome.

“I think he’seven better now,” Weeks said, “thanhewas his freshman year.”

Elon (1-1)atW.Carolina (0-2), 1:30 p.m.

Tuskegee (0-0)atJackson St. (1-1),2 p.m.

Georgia (2-0) at Tennessee(2-0), 2:30 p.m.

Richmond(1-1) at North Carolina(1-1),2:30 p.m.

Furman (1-1)atCampbell(0-2), 2:30 p.m.

Lindenwood (Mo.) (0-2)atCharleston So.(0-2),3 p.m.

Alabama A&M (1-1)atTennessee St. (1-1), 3:30 p.m.

Miles (0-0)atAlabama St. (1-1), 4p.m.

FAU(1-1) at FIU (1-1), 5p.m. Fayetteville St. (0-0)atNCCentral (1-2),5 p.m.

Bethune-Cookman (0-2)atSCState (1-1), 5p.m.

Monmouth (NJ)(2-0)atCharlotte (0-2), 5p.m.

Merrimack (1-1)atKennesaw St. (0-2), 5p.m.

Stetson (1-1) at Chattanooga (0-2),5 p.m.

Wofford(0-2) at Mercer (0-1), 5p.m.

Alcorn St. (0-2)atMississippi St. (2-0), 5p.m.

Appalachian St. (2-0)atSouthernMiss. (1-1),6 p.m.

11 a.m.

Lehigh(2-0) at Duquesne (1-1), 11 a.m. Sacred Heart (1-1)atLIU Brooklyn (1-1),11a.m.

St. Francis (Pa.) (0-2)atCCSU (1-1),11a.m.

Howard (1-1)vs. Morehouse (0-0) at E. Rutherford, N.J., noon Lafayette (1-1) at Georgetown (2-0), noon Marist (1-1) at Wagner (0-2), noon Rhode Island (2-0)atHolyCross (0-2), 1p.m.

Bowie St. (0-0)atDelaware St. (1-1), 2p.m.

Uconn (1-1) at Delaware (1-1), 2p.m.

Norfolk St. (1-1) at Rutgers(2-0), 2:30 p.m. Pittsburgh(2-0) at West Virginia (1-1), 2:30 p.m. Fordham(0-2) at StonyBrook (0-2),2:30 p.m.

VMI (1-1) at Bucknell(1-1), 2:30 p.m. Stonehill (0-2)atMaine (0-2), 5p.m.

West Liberty (0-0) at RobertMorris (0-2), 5p.m. Bentley (0-0) at Bryant (1-1), 5p.m.

Haven(0-2) at Albany (NY) (0-2), 6p.m. SOUTH

(2-0) at Troy (1-1), 11 a.m.

&Mary (1-1) at Virginia (1-1), 11 a.m.

(0-2) at Tennessee Tech (2-0), noon

Morehead St. (1-1)atAustinPeay(1-1),6 p.m.

AlbanySt. (Ga.) (0-0)atFloridaA&M (0-2), 6p.m.

Old Dominion (1-1)atVirginia Tech (0-2), 6p.m.

Hampton (1-1) at NC A&T (0-2), 6p.m.

Erskine (0-0)atPresbyterian (2-0), 6p.m.

S. Illinois(1-1)atUTMartin(0-2), 6p.m.

Jacksonville St. (1-1)atGeorgia Southern (0-2), 6p.m.

Murray St. (0-2) at Georgia St. (0-2),6 p.m.

The Citadel (1-1)

SMU (1-1)atMissouri St.(1-1),2:30 p.m. Youngstown St. (2-0)atMichigan St.(2-0),2:30 p.m. SE Missouri (1-1)atN.Dakota St.(2-0),2:30 p.m. UL (1-1)atMissouri (2-0),3p.m. E. Washington (0-2)atN.Iowa(1-1),4 p.m. Liberty (1-1)atBowlingGreen (1-1), 4p.m. Drake(1-0) at S. Dakota St. (2-0), 6p.m. Valparaiso (1-1)atW.Illinois(0-2),6 p.m. Umass (0-2)atIowa(1-1),6:30 p.m. SOUTHWEST Samford(0-2) at Baylor(1-1),11a.m. Washington St.(2-0) at North Texas(2-0),2:30 p.m. Incarnate Word (1-1)atUTSA(0-2),2:30 p.m. Oregon St. (0-2)atTexas Tech (2-0),2:30 p.m. Lamar (1-1)atTexas Southern (0-2), 6p.m.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

THENATION

THINGS TO WATCHINWEEK3

Crimson Tide to test Badgers defense No.19Alabama (1-1) lost at Florida State in its opener before rolling to avictoryover UL-Monroe last week.Wisconsin (2-0) wanted to upgrade adefense that slipped into mediocrity last year.The Badgers have responded by shutting out Miami (Ohio) 17-0 and beating Middle Tennessee 42-10 in their first twogames. Nowcomes a much bigger test,as Wisconsin is 0-6 against Top25teams during coach LukeFickell’s three-year tenure, including a42-10 home loss to Alabama last year

Bulldogs look to sustain win streak over Vols Georgia hasreeled offeight straight wins over the Vols for its longest streak in arivalry that started in 1899. Coach KirbySmart’s lone loss came in hiscoaching debut in 2016 on alast-second Hail Mary. The defending SEC champcomesinto the conference openerfor both teams ranked sixth.No. 15 Tennessee (2-0) scored aprogram-record 72 pointsina rout of East Tennessee State. At NeylandStadium, the Vols have wonnine straight andare 21-1 since the startofthe 2022season.The lone loss? Georgia.

Irish seek first win of seasonvs.Aggies No.8 Notre Dame (0-1) will spend Saturday tryingtoget its season back on track when No. 16 TexasA&M (2-0) comes to town Coach Marcus Freeman is more willingtounleash CJ Carr against the Aggies knowingan 0-2 startcouldknock the Irish out of the playoff picture early on.The Aggies rely heavily on QB Marcel Reed, whoaverages 5.8 yards per carrywhile throwing for509 yards and seven TDs in the first twogames. But the challenge will be facinganopponent as talented as the Irishafter opening with UTSA and Utah State.

—AssociatedPress

second half of their game

Rivalryampsupasannualgameindoubt

It was always going to be ahuge game No matter the records. No matterwhathappened in the ﬁrst two weeks ofthe season. Why? Because it’sLSU versusFlorida That’swhy.It’sbeen aseason-deﬁning game on both teams’schedules for seemingly forever. The rivalry,the animosity,is simmering like atailgate gumbo(accompanied by adiced alligator tail appetizer, of course).

Allweek long, both teams engaged in a long-distance tango of dueling availability reports, moving acouple of key chess pieces into position for Saturday’sshowdown. Mostnotably,LSU says center Braelin Mooreisprobable after spraining his ankle on theTigers’ ﬁrst offensive play against Louisiana Tech. Florida counters with defensive lineman Caleb Banks, theiceberg of LSU’stitanic 27-16 loss in Gainesville last year, who will apparently see his ﬁrst action of the year after suffering alowerleg injury in preseason camp.

ning under theclassic “Wehate you/We hate you more” emotions. There’sthe knowledge that this year’sgame could be theend of an era of sorts, and we’re not talking about Napier’shot seat.

“I’m not abig fan of theFlorida Gators,” LSUquarterback GarrettNussmeiersaid Tuesday,asly smile curling across his face. “I can’twait to get in DeathValley and feel that environment. It’s goingtobe awesome. It should be everythingthat makesLSU football so compelling: atraditional rival, anight game (mostly) and a packed house inside Tiger Stadium (6:30 p.m., ABC) TheGatorsmay have been an upset victim to South Florida last week, 18-16. And LSU may have pulled off one of theseason’s biggest wins for anyschool two weeks ago at Clemson, 17-10. But that’sall pre-show diversions waiting in line for aDisney World headliner attraction now.This is the Southeastern Conferenceopener for bothteams. Thebig leagues. And it means so much once again. No. 3LSU is trying to getthe wind back in itssails from the Clemson game, awind that was deflated somewhat bylast week’s uneven23-7 win over LouisianaTech. Florida is likely trying to saveits season and thejob of fourth-yearcoach Billy Napier.Eight of the Gators’next 10 opponents are ranked, five of them in thetop 10. If Florida lets another win slip through its fingers then there is little if anyhope forthe rest of the season.

For more LSU sportsupdates, sign up for our newsletter at theadvocate.com/ lsunewsletter Who,

The Tigersremember last year’sdismantling in The Swamp, thethird of three straight defeats last season that trap-doored LSUfrom thetop 10 to out of CFPand SEC contention. Not that revenge seems to be part of the equation for the Tigers this week. They know Floridahas enoughﬁrepower to be dangerous. No need to get overly worked up about what didn’t work last year

LSUcoach Brian Kelly had aterm for it Thursdayonhis weekly radio show:

“Wedon’twant abunch of show dogs” against the Gators, Kelly said. “Wewant hunting dogs.”

Forwhatever reason, LSU dogged it against Louisiana Tech, agame played in the emotional trough between Clemson and Florida.

The Tigersmadeittheir ever-present goal for months to be 1-0 after Clemson. Now they try to point their effortstowinning agame that, with Southeastern Louisiananextweek, would be 99.9% likely to putLSU at 4-0 going into theseason’snext bigshowdown with Ole Miss.

Butasbig as it is when the Tigers play the Rebels, or Alabama, or Texas A&M, for generations of LSUfans, Florida is the gold standard of SEC rivalries.

There’sanother facet to this game run-

LSUand Floridahave played each other every year since 1971, but that is likely coming to aclose. The SEC ﬁnally adopted anine-game conference schedulestarting in 2026, with three permanentand six rotatingopponents. No word is expected who those permanent opponents will be until sometime after theregular season, but it seemsgeographically unlikelythat one of those three will be LSU-Florida.

That’sfairer in some waysfor LSU, which for years had to deal with the Gators and the gauntlet that was the SEC West every season. Now that divisions are gone, theannual East-West LSU-Florida rivalry remains, but perhaps in itslast annual go round.

The SEC needs to play ninegames, but it’salso sadthat this rivalry that has produced so manygreat games is acasualty of progress.

Just to recall afew: 1982, the debut of theDalton (Hilliard) and (Garry) James gang as LSU stuns No. 4Florida 24-13 1997, LSU takes down No. 1for the first time, beating Florida28-21 …2007, LSU wins 28-24 over eventual Heisman winner TimTebow,converting five fourth downs …2020, The Shoe Game, Marco Wilson sends Kole Taylor’scleat flying through the foggy Gainesville air as LSU stuns No. 6 Florida 37-34. Will this game add achapter to the list?

When it’s LSU-Florida, that’salways what is expected.

1. LSU Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 1

Last week: DefeatedLouisiana Tech 23-7

Thisweek: vs.Florida, 6:30 p.m. Saturday (ABC)

2. GEORGIA

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 2

Last week: DefeatedAustin Peay 28-6

Thisweek: at Tennessee, 2:30 p.m. Saturday (ABC)

3. TEXAS

Record: 1-1overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 3

Last week: DefeatedSan Jose State38-7

Thisweek: vs.UTEP,3:15 p.m. Saturday(SEC Network)

4. OKLAHOMA

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 9

Last week: DefeatedMichigan 24-13

Thisweek: at Temple, 11 a.m. Saturday (ESPN2)

5. AUBURN

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 5

Last week: DefeatedBall State 42-3

Thisweek: vs.South Alabama, 11:45 a.m. Saturday(SECNetwork)

6. MISSOURI

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 12

Last week: DefeatedKansas 42-31

Thisweek: vs.UL, noon Saturday(ESPN+, SECNetwork+)

7. VANDERBILT

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 13

Last week: DefeatedVirginia Tech 44-20

Thisweek: at South Carolina, 6:45 p.m. Saturday(SECNetwork)

8. SOUTHCAROLINA

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 6

Last week: DefeatedSouth Carolina State 38-10

Thisweek: vs.Vanderbilt, 6:45 p.m. Saturday (SECNetwork)

9. MISSISSIPPISTATE

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 16

Last week: DefeatedArizona State 24-20

Thisweek: vs.Alcorn, 5p.m. Saturday (ESPN+, SECNetwork+)

10.TENNESSEE

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 7

Last week: DefeatedETSU 72-17

Thisweek: vs.Georgia, 2:30 p.m. Saturday (ABC)

11.OLE MISS

Record: 2-0overall, 1-0 SEC

Previous rank: 11

Last week: DefeatedKentucky 30-23

Thisweek: vs.Arkansas, 6p.m. Saturday (ESPN)

12.TEXAS A&M

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 10

Last week: DefeatedUtah State 44-22

Thisweek: at Notre Dame, 6:30 p.m. Saturday(NBC)

13.ARKANSAS

Record: 2-0overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 14

Last week: DefeatedArkansas State56-14

Thisweek: at Ole Miss, 6p.m. Saturday (ESPN)

14.ALABAMA

Record: 1-1overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 8

Last week: DefeatedUL-Monroe 73-0

Thisweek: vs.Wisconsin, 11 a.m. Saturday (ABC)

15.FLORIDA

Record: 1-1overall, 0-0 SEC

Previous rank: 4

Last week: Lost to South Florida 18-16

Thisweek: at LSU, 6:30 p.m. Saturday(ABC)

16.KENTUCKY

Record: 1-1overall, 0-1 SEC

Previous rank: 15

Thisweek: vs.Eastern Michigan, 6:30 p.m. Saturday(ESPNU)

SECRATINGS By REED DARCEy

Scott Rabalais

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

LSUlinebacker Whit Weeks, right, pursues Floridaquarterback DJ Lagwayinthe

Nov. 16 at BenHillGriffin Stadium in Gainesville, Fla.

CALIFORNIA DREAMING

Southern knowstalltaskitfaces againstFBS foeFresnoState

BY TOYLOYBROWN III Staff writer

FRESNO,Calif. The Southern football team understands what it’sfacing in its last nonconference gameofthe season against Fresno Stateat9 p.m.Saturday at Valley Children’sStadium.

Coach Terrence Graves doesn’tmind being aheavy underdog againstanFBS opponent after his team’s disappointing 30-7 loss to Alabama State in the home opener.The second-year coach enters

every contest with the goal of winning.

“We’re goingtopreparetowin the football game, even though the odds may be stacked against us, but that’sjust part of it,” Graves said. “You know, if you’re

going to be in this profession, yougoto those games with the mindsettowin and so that’swhatwe’re going to do.”

While winning is important,the Jaguars (1-2) knowtheyneed to learn what gives them the best chance to succeed when Southwestern Athletic Conference games start.

The Southern-Fresno State game is historic for both teams

It will be theﬁrstmeeting ever between the two programs. Southern’s marching band, theHumanJukebox,

will travel, too, and thefootball team will be the ﬁrst HBCU programtoplay at Fresno State (2-1).

Fresno State, which is in the Mountain West Conference, haswon 19 straight games against FCSopponents.The last timeSouthern playedanFBS foe was in 2022 when it lost 65-17 to LSU.

This will be theﬁfthtime Southern has played in thestate of California. The last appearance was in 1990 when it faced

ä See SOUTHERN, page 7C

Saints special-teamer Stalbird provingworthyofhis ‘37’ evaluation

Jeff Duncan

When Saints coaches scout college players for the NFL draft, they tag elitespecialteams prospects with aspecialcode: 37. That, of course, is the jersey numberworn by Saints special teams legend Steve Gleason. To no one’ssurprise, Isaiah Stalbird earned a“37” tag last year when the Saints evaluated the speedy linebacker from South Dakota State. The tag ﬁts. In manyways, Stalbird is acarbon copy of Gleason. Elite multisportathlete. Undersized but productivecollege linebacker.Undrafted free agent who wasn’tinvitedtothe NFL scouting combine.

Stalbird arrived in New Orleans with littlefanfare. But, like Gleason, once he steppedonthe ﬁeld, his effort andplaymaking ability were impossible to ignore. “All he’sdone since he got here was showupin practice andmake ﬂash plays,” special teams coordinator Phil Galiano said.“Ikept telling our guys (coaches, scouts), ‘This guy can be special.’ ” Stalbird hasbeenjustthat so far.Afterearning a spot on the 53-man rosterbyleading the Saintsin special teams tacklesduring the preseason, he was dominantinthe season opener against Arizona

49ers at Saints NOON

Stalbirdwas credited with four of the team’s six special teamstackles, including akey stoponthe Saints’ ﬁnal kickoff that penned the Cardinals at their own 26-yardline.

Stalbird’sfreaky athleticism paired with what coaches and teammates say is an insatiable desire for ﬁlm study and game-plan preparation have vaulted him to the front of the special teams units. He’squickly become aplayer on coverage units thatopponents have to identify and preparefor

“I think Isaiah has the potential to be an All-Pro special teamsplayer,” Galiano said.“I’m excited about him. Ithink he’sgoing to be areally good player in this league for along time.”

ä See DUNCAN, page 6C

BY ROBMAADDI AP pro football writer

JoshAllenand Lamar Jackson didn’tplaya snapinthe preseason. They didn’tneed it. Allenand Jackson werespectacular in their ﬁrst game action of theseason. Jacksonled the Baltimore Ravenstoa15-point, fourth-quarter lead only to watch Allenrally the Buffalo Bills to a 41-40 victory So much forrust. Allen was33-of-46 passing for 394 yards with two touchdown passes and two more rushing. Jackson was 14-of-19 passing for 209 yardsand twotouchdowns plus70yards rushing and another score.

“It’strusting, trusting our process,trusting ourother 10 guys on thefootball ﬁeld, trusting what Joe’s(offensive coordinator Joe Brady)calling, and really sticking to our fundamentals and how we worked duringtraining camp, and really just trying to pickup where we leftoff from last year,” Allen said.

The reigning NFL MVP sat out the entire preseason for the ﬁrst time in his career,but Allen was

sharp against atough defense. He had251 of hispassingyards in the fourth quarter Jackson, atwo-time MVP and three-time All-Pro, hasn’tplayed in thepreseason since 2021. He just steps on the ﬁeld and dazzles whenever he gets an opportunity NFLcoaches have to makedifﬁcultdecisions each preseason, choosing whether to rest starters or put quarterbacksinharm’s way in meaningless games. Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love injured his hand in an exhibitiongame but was readytoplay in Week 1. Sitting out doesn’tmeanguys will be ineffective.Allenand Jackson demonstrated that. So did Aaron Rodgers. Playing in preseason games doesn’tguarantee success early in the season, either Footballisateam sport.There area lotoffactors that determine aquarterback’s performanceand whether an offense clicks right from the start. Rodgers was amongthe 10 starting quarterbacks whodidn’t get any reps in exhibition games. He was outstanding in theopener,

ä See PRESEASON, page 10C

STAFF PHOTO By BRETTDUKE

Saints linebacker Isaiah Stalbird reacts after making a stop againstthe Jacksonville Jaguars on Aug. 17.

PHOTO By CHRIS TODD

Southerncaptains, from left,safety Elijah West, wide receiver Darren Morris, linebacker Michael Jones and safety TreylanJames meet at midfieldfor the coin toss during an Aug. 30 game against Mississippi ValleyState at Rice-Totten Stadium inItta Bena, Miss. The JaguarstakeonFresnoState at 9p.m. Saturday in Fresno, Calif

6:30 p.m. NASCAR Cup: Night Race USA GOLF Noon LPGA: Queen City Golf

3p.m.KornFerry:Open

5p.m.PGA:

3p.m. N.y.yankees at Boston MLBN

7p.m. St. LouisatMilwaukee Fox

9p.m. L.A.Angels at Seattle MLBN RODEO

7p.m. PBR: Team Series CW WOMEN’S RUGBY

8:55 p.m. NewZealand at Wests FS2 MEN’S SOCCER

11:30 a.m.Tottenham at West Ham U. NBC

2p.m. Chelsea at Brentford USA

6p.m.Vancouver FC at PacificFCFS2 WOMEN’S SOCCER

11:30 a.m.Angel City at North Carolina CBS

4p.m.Bay at Orlando ION

6:30 p.m.Washington at Kansas City ION TENNIS

1p.m.Davis CupQualifiersTennis TRACK AND FIELD

2p.m.World Athletics Championships NBC

Rookie SSankerready forhis shot

BY MATTHEW PARAS and LUKE JOHNSON Staff writers

With the waythe New Orleans Saints structured training camp, defensive coordinator Brandon Staley saidnogroup on the defense received more reps thanthe unit’s rookies

The Saints used five of their nine draft picks on Staley’sside of the ball.And even though none of thoseplayers started in last weekend’sseason opener,the goal of the heavy workload in camp was to get them up to speed in case they were suddenly forced to play Jonas Sanker is the ﬁrst test case to see whether the approach pays off.

“We’re not afraid of playing young guys,” Staley said. “I know he’ll maximize his opportunity.” Sanker,athird-round pick out of Virginia, will get an opportunity to startatsafety Sundayafter veteran JulianBlackmon suffered a season-ending shoulderinjuryin last weekend’sloss to theArizona Cardinals.

The Saints, who host theSan Francisco 49ers this weekend, turnedtothe rookiebecause of how he came on strong throughout the summer,notablyrecordingan

DUNCAN

Continued from page 5C

That Stalbird even made it to the NFL might be considered an upset.

He was born in Chicago, the youngest of four childrenraised by his mother, NicoleStalbird. Soon after,Nicole moved the familycloser to her Nebraska roots in BrokenBow,Nebraska. In 2005, amove to Minneapolis led to astint at Mary’sPlace shelter,where Nicole sought protection from atroubled relationship. She then moved the family to Kearney,Nebraska, to regroup andrebuild their lives, andIsaiah entered fostercare. It wasthere that Isaiahmet Cathy and Larry Mohlman,who were friends with hisfoster parents. Nicole later enrolled Isaiah in Cathy’sin-home day care, where his bond with the Mohlman family grew In 2013, after Nicole welcomed Isaiah’syoungest sibling, Gabriel, into the family,heeventually moved in with them at Nicole’s suggestion.Fouryearslater, when Isaiah was asenior at Kearney High School, he ofﬁcially becamethe adoptedson of Larry andCathy Mohlman

“I knew that for him to have aﬁghting chance,heneeded to be in adifferent environment,” Nicole Stalbird said. “Heneeded to learn how to be aman. God placed (theMohlman) family in our path early on for areason.” Larry,aﬁnancemanager at a Kearney auto dealership,and Cathy,ateacher,had three children of their own:Dakota, Sierra and Savannah.Buoyedby the stability, discipline andsupport he needed, Stalbird thrived in his new surroundings. He starred in football, track and wrestling at Kearney High School, where he earned all-state honors as a5-foot-11,190-pound safety and wide receiverfor the Class Astate runner-up Bearcats. In the state championshipgame, he blocked apunt for atouchdown,but it wasn’t enough. Omaha North defeated Kearney 27-20

“He was devastated,” Larry Mohlman said about the loss. “As he sat there and watched (Omaha North) celebrate, Iput my arm aroundhim and told him,‘Watch what they’re doing. Forthem, it’sthe peak. For you, there’smore coming.’ ” Mohlman’s wordsproved prophetic. Stalbird elected to walk on at Nebraskainstead of accepting scholarship offers from

interception in apreseason game against theJacksonville Jaguars.

Staley said Sanker hada “really big jump”inthe last two preseason games and against New Orleansﬁrst-team offenseinpractice when the 1’swould face the 2’s. That caused Sanker to leap up the depth chart, passing Jordan Howden, Terrell Burgess and UgoAmadi along theway

“I’mjust excited,” Sanker said.

“I’ve just been preparing all summer. Ihad alot of time to get used to the systemand get used to the waythey do things.Soreally just excited and ready to get rolling.”

At Virginia, the 6-foot, 206-pound safety mostly played in the box meaning he’d be near thelineof scrimmage to wreakhavoc with physicalhits.

Butthe Saints signed veteran Justin Reid this offseasontoplay in the box, so to avoid overlap, the coaching staff had Sanker focus more on the backend.That spot was more uncertain given Blackmon’sinjury history and Tyrann Mathieu‘s retirementbeforetraining camp

Now,the Saints hope Sanker can provide stability. He playedjust onedefensivesnap in his debut.

Fuagaquestionable

Taliese Fuaga is questionable to play in the againstthe San Francisco 49ers on Sunday,and three

other starters have been ruled out

Chase Young (calf) and Trevor Penning (toe) will bothbeheld out for the second straight game after neitherpracticed this week. Blackmon alsowill not play,and coach Kellen Moore suggestedFridayhe likely will be placed on injured reserve this weekend.

Fuaga missed the fourth quarter of last week’s game and then was held out of practice Wednesday, but he participated in alimited capacitybothThursdayand Friday. He suggested earlier this week thatthe knee issue —aninﬂamed patellar tendon —ismanageable and that he expected to play Speaking to reportersFriday, Moore said Fuagamay be on a “maintenance program”throughout this season if the issue persists, which is another way of saying load management. The rest of theinjury report contained some good news. Running back and kick returner Velus Jones (knee) was upgraded to a full participant,and so waslong snapper Zach Wood (elbow).Neither carried an injury designation, and bothwill play Sunday Purdyout;Jones in

With regular starting quarterback Brock Purdy dealing with toe andleft shoulder injuries,the 49ers are going to start Mac Jones againstthe SaintsonSunday in the

Isaiah and Nicole Stalbird hold their son Kendrixx in the Caesars Superdome last season.

“We really liked him coming out of college.His physical traits, he’sveryexplosive, he’svery fast, and he’sstronger than you think. He has the‘it factor’ for special teams.”

PHILGALIANO, Saints special teams coordinator

Nebraska-Kearney and Wayne State and apreferred walk-on opportunity at Wyoming. He blocked two punts as aredshirt freshman before electing to transfer to South Dakota State, apowerful FCS program in Brookings, South Dakota.

Stalbird blocked apunt in his ﬁrst game at South Dakota State. He moved to linebacker and became aleader on anationally ranked defenses.

“Transferring to South Dakota State was ablessing for him,” Nicole Stalbird said. “The coaches there really poured themselves into him as aperson, not just as afootball player who could help them win games.

Stalbird’sathleticism and production landed him on the radars of NFL teams. But his “tweener” size —smaller than most NFL linebackersand too big to play safety —led most teamstoview himasalateround or undrafted freeagent prospect.

The Saints signed him as an undrafted free agent, and he yoyoed between the practice squad and active roster for most of his rookie season. He ﬁnished with

Isaiah Stalbird wasa standout linebacker at FCS powerSouth Dakota State butwas considered a‘tweener’ in the NFL— smaller than most NFL linebackers and too big to playsafety

three special teamstackles in three games.

“Wereally liked him coming out of college,”Galiano said “Hisphysical traits, he’svery explosive, he’svery fast, and he’sstronger than you think. He has the ‘it factor’for special teams.”

Stalbird plays with enthusiasm that is noticeable to observers and infectious to teammates.After almost each of his four tackles againstthe Cardinals, Stalbird was mobbed by teammates on the sideline, atestament to his popularity

“I want my teammates to feed offme,”hesaid. “The big thing on (special) teamsisjust the

Caesars Superdome.

Purdy played eachofthe 49ers’ 76 offensive snaps last week againstSeattle,but he did not practice this week.

That is potentially abig boon for theSaints,who now get to face Jones, the2021 ﬁrst-rounder who is trying to revive his career with his thirdNFL franchise.

This will markJones’ 50th career start, but his ﬁrst appearance withSan Francisco. He spent the ﬁrst four yearsofhis career with theNew England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars, but he has struggledsince astrong rookie season.

His teams have gone 20-29 in his starts, includinga2-5 mark lastseason when he ﬁlled in for injured Jaguars starter Trevor Lawrence.He’sthrown 46 touchdowns against 36 interceptions in his career,withan84.9career passer rating.

“The athleticism and mobility is probably whereit’sdifferent withBrock,because he’ssuch an effective playmaker outside the pocket on the edges,” Staley said. “But they’re going to run their offense.”

San Francisco has gone 24-13 in games Purdy has started since he took over as the starter midway through his 2022 rookie season. In that span, the 49ers have gone 0-3 in games Purdy did not start.

want-to, the effort.”

It helps to have afearlessattitude, 4.4 speed and the quicktwitch explosiveness of a37½inch vertical leap.

Mostofall, Stalbirdhas embraced his role. He has akeen understanding of his strengths and weaknesses as aplayer and has impressed the Saints with his drive to improve. His teammates and coaches rave about his humility and professionalism, qualities forged by his extraordinary life journey

“I could havelooked at (life) goals and said, my life’snot going to be anything, I’m going to fall into the same cycle —but I knew Iwanted to change that,” Stalbird said. “I wanted to write my own narrative. Knowing my background and the things that have happened in my life, theoretically,I’m not supposed to be here. But if you put in the work and believe in yourself and stay grounded in faith, anything’s possible.”

It’sa message he repeats often when asked to speak to schools or youth groups.Hedelivered a similar message to the football team at Long Beach (Miss.) High School on Tuesday,where he spent part of his off day,surprising the playerswith $15,000 in donated footballequipment from alocal moving and warehousing company

“Asa mom, I’m just inﬁnitely proud of the down-to-earth, kindhearted person he’sbecomeon and offthe ﬁeld,” Nicole Stalbird said.

Added Larry Mohlman: “Seeing his determination and having that dedication to do what it takes to be the bestand understanding that it’snot just about football. If anybody deserves a shot, it’sIsaiah.”

The Saints have arich history of great special teams players. Gleason, Tyrone Hughes,Michael Lewis, Fred McAfee, Chris Banjo and J.T.Grayset astandard of excellence that earned the Saints league-wide respect and recognition. Stalbirdhopes to follow in those large footsteps and live up to the“37” legacy

“It’sjust ablessing for me to be here in an NFL locker room,” he said. “I know that whatever circumstances Ihad, Iknow I didn’thave it the worst. Hopefully,mystory can inspiresomeone elsewho is going through some (tough) circumstances of their own. It took avillage for me to get here, and Iwouldn’t trade it for anything.”

EmailJeff Duncan at jduncan@ theadvocate.com.

IN BRIEF FROM STAFFAND WIRE REPORTS

Commanders’ Wise out for season; Ekeler injured Washington Commanders defensive end DeatrichWisewill miss the rest of the season after having quadriceps surgery,and the team believes running back AustinEkelertore his right Achilles tendon in aloss to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday but is awaiting tests to conﬁrm the severity of that injury, apersonwithknowledge of the situations told The Associated Press on Friday Wise is a31-year-old in his ninth NFLseason whojoinedthe Commanders this offseason after playing his entire career with the New England Patriots.

He wasinjured in the first half of Green Bay’s27-18 victory while trying to block an extra-point attempt.Wise wasdrivenoff the field and raised his right fist as he wastaken away

FanDuel

to pay Jaguars about $5M in theft fiasco

FanDuelhas agreed to paythe Jacksonville Jaguarsroughly $5 million to help offset thenearly $20 million that aformer employee stole from the NFL franchise and deposited at the sportsbook, aperson familiar with discussions said Friday

Thedeal wasfinalized earlier this year,the person said. It came ayear after financial manager Amit Patel pleaded guilty to stealing $22 millionthrough avirtual credit card system the team used forexpenses.

FanDuel is one of the NFL’sofﬁcial gambling partners, so it made sense to ﬁnd an amicable resolution with theJaguars and avoida potentially expensive legal battle.

The Jaguars declined comment, as wellasFanDuel.

Philliespitcher Alvarado out for restofthe season

Relief pitcher Jose Alvarado of the Phillies will miss the remainder of the season after being placed on the15-dayinjuredlist with aleftforearmstrain Friday Alvarado was4-2 with a3.81 ERA in 26 innings pitched over 28 appearances this season.

He served an 80-gamesuspension for performance-enhancing drugs fromMay 18 to Aug. 18 aftertesting positive for exogenous testosterone.

He was 4-1with a2.70 ERA and seven saves at the time of the suspension,usually servingasthe club’scloser.

The Phillies acquired closer Jhoan Duranfrom Minnesota at the July 31 trade deadline, and he hasdominated in the role ever since.

Matsuyama leads BMW PGA Championship

Hideki Matsuyama made two eagles in shooting 8-under 64 to take aone-stroke lead over atrio of European Ryder Cup players after the second round of the BMW PGA Championship on Friday Matsuyama made 11 birdies this week along with eagles at twoof the four par-5s in the second round to be 12 under for the tournament. At the 17th he chipped in from the edge of thegreen to jump into the lead late in the day.Viktor Hovland (66), Ludvig Åberg (69) and Justin Rose (66) were leading the pursuit of Matsuyama in their last event before the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black from Sept. 26-28.

There are 11 members of the Europe team playing this week and only rookie Rasmus Hojgaard(5 over after 75) failed to make it.

Astros place McCullers on 15-dayILwith soreness

The Houston Astros placed righthanderLance McCullers on the 15day injured list with soreness in his pitching hand, general manager Dana BrownsaidFridaybeforethe Astros opened athree-game series in Atlanta McCullers flew back to Houston from Toronto to havehis handevaluated. McCullersmade two relief appearances in September, includingone Thursday in a6-0 loss to the Blue Jays. He is 2-5 with a6.88ERA with 12 startsin15appearances this season. Rookie left-hander Colton Gordon (4-4,5.67) wasrecalled from Triple-A Sugar Land and is available to pitchagainst the Braves on Friday. The Astros alsopromoted outfielder Zach Cole, who was set to makehis major league debut Fridayinleft field andbatting eighth.

PROVIDED PHOTOS

GAMEDAY

SOUTHERN at FRESNO STATE

9p.m., ValleyChildren’sStadium, Fresno, Calif.

Radio: KQXL-FM, 106.5

Line: FresnoState by 35½

AlabamaState’s windrops Southern

BY RASHAD MILLIGAN and TOYLOYBROWN III Staff writers

Footballinthe Southwestern

Athletic Conference is back in full swing after Week 2. Hereare ourlatestSWACfootball power rankings

1. JacksonState Record: 1-1overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 1

Last week: 38-20 loss at Southern Miss

This week: vs.Tuskegee, 2p.m.

Saturday

Extrapoints: Jackson State quarterback JaCobian Morgan completed 14 of 27 passes for 131 yards and an interception at Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles also sacked Morganthreetimes.Running back Travis Terrell had 10 carries for 80 yards in the matchup.

2. AlabamaState

Record: 1-1overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 3

LEADERS

PASSING

Cam’RonMcCoy

51.67%,312 yards, 2TDs,2INTs

JalenWoods

72.22%,79yards

RUSHING

Trey Holly

44 carries, 256yards,5.8 avg, 2TDs

Cam’RonMcCoy

25 carries, 183yards,7.3 avg, 2TDs

RECEIVING

Darren Morris

8catches,96yards,12avg,TD

CamJefferson

6catches,90yards,15avg,TD

Last week: 30-7 win at Southern This week: vs.Miles College,4 p.m.

Saturday

Extrapoints: Alabama State quarterback Andrew Body completed 16 of 25 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns in theroad win over theJaguars. Wide receiver Ajai Harrell caught five passes for 69 yards and atouchdown

Running back Marcus Harris had a47-yard run for atouchdown as well.

3. AlabamaA&M Record: 1-1 overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 7

Lastweek: 41-31 win vs. Alcorn

State This week: at Tennessee State, 3:30 p.m. Saturday

This week: at Mississippi State, 5p.m. Saturday

Extrapoints: QuarterbackJaylon Tolbert completed 23 of 33 passes for168 yardsand atouchdown in the loss at Alabama A&M. Running back Jacorian Sewell continues to be thestar of the Braves with 115 yards on 12 carries. Wide receiver Jarvis Rush caught seven passes for 53 yards and a touchdown.

6. Southern

Record: 1-2 overall, 0-0 SWAC

for 17 yards.

8. FloridaA&M Record: 0-2 overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 5

Last week: 56-14 loss at Florida

Atlantic

This week: vs. Albany State, 6p.m.

Saturday

Extrapoints: FAMU quarterback

ChristianPeterscompleted18 of 36 passes for 228 yards and atouchdown. Wide receiver D’AveryRobinsoncaught five passesfor 60 yards against Central Arkansas. Linebacker Mohammed Kelleh finished witha forced fumble, 0.5 tackles for a loss, seven total tackles and a51yard interception return.

11.Bethune-Cookman

Record: 0-2, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 12

Last week: 45-3 loss at Miami

DEFENSE

HoracioJohnson

25 tackles, 0.5for loss

Elijah West 17 tackles, 0.5for loss

SCHEDULE

Extrapoints: Alabama A&Mquarterback CorneliousBrown completed25of34passes for 260 yards and three touchdownsin the win against Alcorn State. Running backMaurice Edwards ran for 80 yards on 21 carries and atouchdown. Wide receiverDaveon Walker caught six passes for 78 yardsand atouchdown.

Previous rank: 4

AUGUST 23 vs.N.CarolinaCent.*L,14-31

30 at Miss.ValleyState W, 34-29 SEPTEMBER

11 at Bethune-Cookman4 p.m. 18 vs.Prairie

PREDICTION

FRESNO STATE48, SOUTHERN

7: Fresno Statewillbethe best team Southern facesin2025. To overcome thetalentgap,it’ll have to be excellentinall phases.But the Jaguarsoffense hasbeenrough, ranking last in passingyards (130.3) andseventh in points pergame (18.3) in theSouthwesternAthletic Conference.It’sdifficult to imagine it improving versus ateamthathas beaten19straightFCS opponents. Toyloy BrownIII

SWAC STANDINGS

4. PrairieView

Record: 1-1 overall, 1-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 2

Last week: 27-21 loss vs. University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley

This week: at Rice, 6p.m.Saturday

Extrapoints: PrairieView running back Chase Bingmon ran for 88 yardson16carries in last week’s loss at Texas-Rio Grande Valley Wide receiver Jyzaiah Rockwell racked up 98 yards on sevenreceptions. Linebacker Kennedy Parker ﬁnished with two tackles for aloss of 5yards and10total tackles.

5. Alcorn State

Record: 0-2overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 9

Last week: 41-31 loss at Alabama A&M

SOUTHERN

Continued from page5C

Howard in Los Angeles. Saturday’s contestalso will be the 18th time it faces an FBSteam. TheJaguars are 0-17 against FBS teams.

If Southern wants to compete andgrow asa group, Graves said limiting turnovers is paramount.

“Wegot to stopshooting ourselvesinthe foot,” he said. “Seven turnovers inthree games, you know,itmakes it tough to win a ball game.”

Offensive execution has been thebiggest issue thus far. Out of 12 SWACteams, the Jaguarsare last in passing yards per game (130.3) andseventh in points per game (18.3).

Despite the challenging opponent,Southern wants to see progress in the first game that quarterbacks coach FredMcNair operates as the team’splay-caller.

Southern alsowill look for Cam’Ron McCoy to fix his mistakes, asheremains thestarter andthe quarterback that has taken the majority ofthe team’s snaps. Jalen Woods, who started the game against Mississippi ValleyState, is unavailable because of an injury McCoy has completed 31 of 60 passesfor 312 yards, twotouchdowns and two interceptions. He also has rushed for 207 yards on 25 carries, but he has three fumbles. McCoy had two interceptions and two fumbleslast week

Last week: 30-7 loss vs. Alabama State This week: at Fresno State, 9p.m. Saturday Extrapoints: The Jaguars ofﬁcially have aquarterback issue. As Jalen Woodsdeals with an injury, quarterback Cam’Ron McCoy had two interceptions and twofumbles in last weekend’sloss to Alabama State. The run game and defense remain solid,but betterquarterback play will be pivotal for the Jaguars if they want achance at a SWAC West division title.

7. TexasSouthern

Record: 0-2 overall, 0-1 SWAC

Previous rank: 6

Last week: 35-3 loss at California

This week: vs. Lamar,6 p.m.Saturday

Extra points: TexasSouthern quarterback KJ Cooper completed 19 of 35 passesfor 137 yards andan interception at California this past weekend. Wide receiver Jalen Williams pulled down 42 yards receiving on six receptions.Texas Southern cornerback Edric Whitley also returned an interception

RJ Johnson completed 18 of 28 passes for222 yardsand two touchdowns in the Rattlers’ loss to Florida Atlantic. Wide receiver Jordan Edwards caught two passesfor 72 yards and atouchdown. Wide receiverJamal Hailey reeled in ﬁve passes for46yards.

9. Grambling

Record: 1-1overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 8

Last week: 70-0 loss at Ohio State

This week: vs. Kentucky State, 6p.m. Saturday

Extrapoints: Grambling quarterback C’zavian Teasett completed 9of15passes for 55 yards and an interceptioninthe blowout losstoOhio State. Running back Andre Crews ran for38yards on ﬁve carries. Grambling defensive back Tyrell Raby grabbed an interception.

10.Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Record: 0-2 overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 10

Last week: 41-17lossatCentral Arkansas

This week: vs. Lincoln, 5p.m.Saturday

Extra points: UAPB quarterback

Ball security is an emphasis for every player.While running backs Trey Hollyand MikeFranklin are averaging 7.8and 4.9yards per carry,respectively,eachlosta fumble in Southern’swin against Mississippi Valley State.

Southern also will give quarterback Ashton Strother “a lot of playing time,” McNair said. The junior transfer from Coahoma Community College,who joined theteam less than aweek before the season opener,didn’tthrow a pass in his few snaps during the ﬁnal drive of Southern’s34-29 win over Mississippi Valley on Aug. 30. Strother’sfirst real chance to lead will comeagainst the most talented defense Southern will see this year.Fresno State linebacker Jadon Pearsonleads the Mountain

West Conference with 21 solo tackles. Onearea the Southern defense can exploit is the turnover-prone natureofFresno State quarterback E.J. Warner,the son of NFL Hall of Famequarterback Kurt Warner.The senior hasﬁve interceptions in three games. He also has completed 51 of 74 passes for 476 yards and no touchdowns.He has nine carries for 62 yards and a touchdown. Southern has recovered three lost fumbles but has zero interceptions. The lack of picksisconcerningbecausethe defensehas had several opportunities. Graves said before the game againstAlabamaState that the secondary practices capitalizing on turnover opportunities con-

This week: at South Carolina State, 6p.m. Saturday Extrapoints: Quarterback Timmy McClain completed 13 of 16 passes for86yards in the loss to Miami. Running back Cam’Ron Ransom had ﬁve carries for39yards. Running back Khamari Robinson had nine carries for38yards. Cornerback Gabe White finished with twopass breakups and nine total tackles. Defensive end Keyon Clark and linebacker Stephen Sparrow both had sacks in the game.

12.MississippiValleyState

Record: 0-2 overall, 0-0 SWAC

Previous rank: 11

Last week: 59-3 loss at Tarleton State

This week: at Southeastern Louisiana, 6p.m. Saturday

Extrapoints: Mississippi Valley Statequarterback Joshua Brown completed 10 of 19 passes for113 yards and an interception against Tarleton.

Wide receiver Joe Williams hauled in a64-yard reception. Safety Dakari Cabell had 2.5 tackles foraloss for5yards.

stantly

“You just got to pay attention to details,hand-eye coordination,” Graves said.“Gottamakesureyou catch the football. Alot of times, defensivebackswanttorun before they catch the football. So just got to makesure that we catch it andthenrun. “Wedoaball security turnover circuit, we do atackling circuit everyday.Sowe’ll just continue to put the emphasisonthat.” The Jaguarsare conﬁdentinthe depth and experience level of the group. Returners such as Horacio Johnson, apreseason SWAC firstteam safety,and nickelback Elijah West havefourpassbreakups apiece Transfers Treylan James from PrairieView andcornerback Zay Franks from Southern Miss both have two pass breakups. What could helpSouthern spur poor decisionsfrom Warner is pressure appliedinthe backﬁeld by CkelbyGivens. Thesenior defensive endhas 5.5 sacks, 8.5 tackles for loss and aforced fumble this season. He is also oneofthe leaders of adefense that is coming off adefensive players-only meeting after last Saturday’sloss. Graves trusts the work Southern is putting in. He’salso certain his team has the talent to perform better and use this matchup to start its upward trajectory

“I’m still encouraged,” Graves said.“Istill believe in this team. We have agood football team, we do.And we justgot to clean up some things andgoforward.”

STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

STAFFPHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Southerntight

North Iberville defense keys win over Livonia

BY PATRICK WRIGHT Contributing writer

The North Iberville defense made conditions miserable for a pair of Livonia quarterbacks in the ﬁrst half to build an early lead, then held on for a 26-25 victory over the Wildcats on Friday night at Marcus Hill Stadium. North Iberville (2-0) sacked Wildcats quarterbacks ﬁve times and collected three interceptions — two by BJ Melancon — en route to a 14-0 lead at halftime.

“Hats off to our defense tonight,” North Iberville coach Josh Gast said. “Livonia scored 25 on us but a lot of that was the offense’s fault. The defense was relentless tonight and I am proud of those guys for ﬂying around and being ball hawks.”

Livonia (1-1) was more ef-

ﬁcient offensively after halftime and cut the deficit to 14-7 with 3:20 remaining in the third quarter when Paris Hayes caught a quick pass over the middle and sprinted untouchedfora78-yardscore.

On the ensuing possession the Bears running attack got rolling and appeared to put the game away

Aiden Melancon took his

first carry of the night 51 yards around the left side to put North Iberville up 20-7.

Following a Livonia turnover on downs, Jeremy Favorite weaved and juked his way 40 yards for a score that put the Bears up 26-7 with 11 minutes remaining

“We were fortunate there to hit a couple of long runs,” Gast said. “Livonia did an incredibly good job of stalling us out early, even when our defense was putting us good positions to extend the lead.”

Favorite finished with 120 yards rushing and two scores.

Livonia scored two touchdowns and two-point conversions to make the game close late

Delaney James intercepted a screen pass and returned it 40 yards for a score, followed by a Bo Stewart 27-yard touchdown catch with 2:33 remaining that cut the deﬁcit to three.

North Iberville was able to use the rest of the clock and took an intentional safety as time expired for the ﬁnal score.

“We just weren’t executing,” Livonia coach Khalil Thomas said of his team’s ﬁrst half. “That is what the

message after the game was. We are starting to take steps in the right direction and become the program we want to be, but we can’t sleepwalk through the ﬁrst half and magically ﬁgure it out every game”

The Bears defense was ready from the ﬁrst snap.

On Livonia’s first play from scrimmage, Christopher Armster intercepted a Cam Carter pass and returned it to the Wildcats 13.

Two plays later, Favorite scored on a 10-yard run to give North Iberville a 7-0 lead three minutes into the game.

In the second quarter, Justice Roy scored on a quarterback keeper from 4 yards out that capped a sixplay drive and put the Bears up 14-0.

Melancon intercepted passes from Carter and backup Chase Sylvain on consecutive drives before halftime to preserve the lead that was ultimately too large for Livonia to overcome.

“I want the guys to be allin and stay in the ﬁght and they did that,” Thomas said.

“They fought their tails off to get us back into the game in the second half and give us a chance to win”

Brusly shakes off sluggish 1st half, downs Broadmoor

Staff report

Brusly shook off a slug-

gish ﬁrst half and erupted for four third-quarter touchdowns to roll past Broadmoor 43-7 in Friday night’s District 6-4A opener at Panther Stadium.

The win moved the Panthers to 2-0 for the second straight year, following last week’s 42-6 victory over cross-parish rival Port Allen in the Sugar Cane Classic. Senior quarterback Drake Vincent powered the offense, throwing for 262 yards and four touchdowns.

“We struggled a little bit in the ﬁrst half, but we went and talked at halftime and I feel like everything came together,” Vincent said. “We take a lot of reps at practice every week on those deep balls and they just weren’t connecting. We relaxed and came out in the third quarter, and that’s when the deep ball started connecting.”

Vincent opened the scoring midway through the ﬁrst quarter with a 23-yard touch-

down pass to Reggie Riley on fourth down. The Broadmoor defense forced a fumble inside the Brusly 30 and intercepted one of Vincent’s passes in the second quarter but failed to capitalize The Panthers extended their lead to 14-0 with 30 seconds left in the half on Vincent’s 40-yard strike to Patrick Gales.

Less than two minutes into the third quarter, Vincent and Gales connected again, this time for a 46-yard touchdown. After a successful twopoint conversion, Brusly led 22-0. Gales led all receivers with ﬁve receptions for 121 yards and two scores.

Moments later, the Panthers recovered a muffed kickoff at the Broadmoor 17, setting up Robdrick Covington’s 3-yard touchdown run. Covington added a 10-yard scoring run on the next possession before Vincent hit Darion Bennett with a 50yard touchdown pass down the sideline to make it 43-0.

“We started out slow with all the penalties in the first half and kept putting us be-

hind the chains,” Brusly coach Hoff Schooler said.

“We couldn’t get into a rhythm and get anything going. We played pretty good in spots, but it’s tough when you put yourself in second and 15. We got adjusted at halftime, we came out and hit a couple big ones. Pat (Gales) got it started with the kickoff return and got a little momentum going. Those 12 minutes were the tale of the game.”

Broadmoor (1-1) quarterback Brandon Thomas scrambled for a 38-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter to put the Bucs on the board.

“We played hard in the first half and gave up the touchdown at the very end,” Broadmoor coach Yasin Sarah said “They came down and scored in the second half, then we had that blunder on the kickoff return. That was just a missed play and then it spiraled downhill from there. We’ve got to work on getting mentally tougher and working through stuff like that.”

Catholic changes strategy to erase halftime deﬁcit vs. STM

BY WILLIAM WEATHERS

Contributing writer

Catholic High running back

Jayden Miles said it was a mindset that was established leading into the week. When the Bears needed to break free of St. Thomas More in the fourth quarter, they simply ﬂexed their muscles.

Catholic turned almost exclusively to a bruising ground game led by Miles in the second half, specifically in the fourth quarter Miles scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 15-yard run with 6:33 remaining and the Bears were able to run out the ﬁnal three minutes ofthegamefora35-28victory over St. Thomas More on Friday at Memorial Stadium.

“When we get in on Sunday, we talked about effort,” Miles said. “It was a matter of our effort being better than their effort.”

No. 2 Catholic (2-0) won for the second straight week in a game that was played in close quarters. The Bears, who opened with a 32-23 win over Destrehan were tied four times with STM (0-2)

until Miles’ ﬁnal score at the end of an eight-play, 67-yard drive that took almost four minutes off the clock

“That’s why we play the schedule we do,” Catholic coachHudsonFullersaid.“You don’t want to be doing that for the ﬁrst time in the playoffs.”

The Catholic defense, which surrendered 510 yards, came up with its biggest play with STM at the Bears’ 21. Quarterback Cole Bergeron, a Virginia Tech commitment, was picked off in the end zone by Taylor Goldsmith on third and 9 with 2:50 to play

Catholic, Class 5A’s secondranked team, rushed for 177 of its 250 yards in the second half. Miles was a major contributor to that second-half swing with a game-high 122 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. Justin Batiste added 61 yards on 11 attempts, and Lamond Robinson had 24 yards and a TD on six carries.

Catholic overcame a 14-7

deﬁcit behind a 21-7 surge in the third quarter, with Baylor Graves scoring on a 4-yard run and leading the Bears to

‘BELIEVE IN ME’

BY JACKSON REYES Staff writer

Trailing by two points most of the second half, Central managed to force a stop defensively and get the ball back at the Denham Springs 39 with 1:54 left on the clock. With the game on the line, Wildcats junior wide receiver Marcus Watson had a simple message for his coach, David Simoneaux.

“Just believe in me,” Watson said. “Told coach I was ready Then just made a play.”

Junior quarterback Max Gassiot dropped back on the second play of the drive and glanced to his right. He found Watson sprinting down the ﬁeld toward space. Gassiot connected with the receiver for a 33-yard touchdown to put the Wildcats up for good and secure a win in the “Amite River Rivalry.”

“We’ve been working on that for a while,” Gassiot said “We could do that in our sleep.”

Central (2-0) defeated Denham Springs (2-0) 34-28 on Friday night at Yellow Jacket Stadium. Watson had two catches for 88 yards. Both receptions were for touchdowns.

“Just gutsy as hell,” Simoneaux said about Watson. “He was the difference in this game for us.”

Simoneaux noted that Watson had a tremendous week of practice and earned the chance to become a big-time player for Central in the game.

Gassiot, who did not start, entered early in the second quarter He went 9-of-22 passing for 211 yards and three touchdowns.

“I was waiting for my opportunity,” Gassiot said. “I was blessed with it. You

four touchdowns in four possessions. He completed 15 of 16 passes for 169 yards, and Goldsmith was 11-of-18 passing for 64 yards and a TD to Jude Chamberlain.

STM, Class 4A’s No. 4 team, was a picture of perfection in its ﬁnal series of the ﬁrst half, covering 75 yards in 10 plays and 68 seconds to grab a 14-7 halftime lead.

Bergeron, who ﬁnished 24of-49 passing for 349 yards and two touchdowns, took care of all of the yardage through the air — completing 6 of 10 passes — with his ﬁnal two going to Kyle Billiot — capped by an 18-yarder on a seam route on second down — and Jack Cowan added his second extra point

Bergeron’s 18-yard score to Guilliot with 15 seconds left before halftime helped STM regain the lead going into halftime.

“The big focus for our team was their effort,” Fuller said.

“We’ll see when we watch the film. When it was time for them to bring the effort to make the play at the crucial time of the game, they did.”

know I’m going to do what I do.”

The Wildcats and Yellow Jackets traded scores to open the game. After Denham Springs led 14-6, Central responded with senior Marvin Joseph returning the kickoff 84 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown. Central tied it at 14-14 after converting the twopoint try The Wildcats took the lead midway through the second. Gassiot came up clutch on a fourth down midway through the drive, ﬁnding junior wide receiver Brody Diel down the ﬁeld for a 40-yard touchdown to make it 20-14. With just four seconds left before the break, the Yellow Jackets went back in front after senior quarterback Da’Jean Golmond found his twin brother, senior receiver Da’Sean Golmond, for a 6-yard touchdown that made it 21-20.

Denham Springs scored on its ﬁrst play of the second half after De’Jean Golmond dropped a dime to senior running back Brenton Paul for a 62-yard score to take a 28-20 lead.

Gassiot answered Golmond’s deep score with a long score of his own after he found Watson open for a 53-yard score. Central trailed by two after failing on the ensuing two-point attempt. After surrendering 28 points early, the Central defense shut down Denham Springs the rest of the second half. With just over a minute left to play, Denham Springs had one last chance to take the lead. Da’Jean Golmond dropped back, but a pack of Wildcats swarmed him for a strip-sack to take over on offense and kneel the game out.

“I thought that our energy on defense at times was pretty ﬂat,” Simoneaux said. “But when we needed to bow up, we did.”

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Central wide receiver Marcus Watson stretches to try to make a catch on a play broken up

by Denham Springs defensive back Quentin Clay in the second quarter of their game on Friday in Denham Springs.

Madison Prep ralliespastMandeville

BY CHARLESSALZER

Contributing writer

Mandeville had a7-point lead and all of the momentummidway through the fourth quarter of its game against Madison Prep on Friday night.

Chargers two-waystandout

Landon Johnson had other ideas.

Johnson quarterbacked the Chargers on two late touchdown drives. In between, he sandwiched in an interceptionondefense as MadisonPrep rallied fora30-21 win over MandevilleatIstrouma

High.

Johnson completed 14 of 23 passes for 169 yards butdid most of his work on the ground. Including three sacks, he carried 20 times for 119yards and atouchdown. He also rushed forthree 2-point conversions.

“Wepreach all the time —if something bad happens, you keep playing. If something good happens —you keep playing,” Johnson said. “Wejust kept playing until the game was over. There was no stopping.”

Chargers running back J’on

Proﬁt never stopped, and he ﬁnished with 203yards rushing and atouchdown on 23 attempts.

Overall, Madison Prep rolled up 538 yards of offense whileholding Mandeville to 269. Penalties were afactor with the Chargers being ﬂagged 14 timeswhile Mandeville committed only four Mandeville (1-1) stayed close behind astrong effort from fresh-

manquarterbackKrew Collura, making hisﬁrst start in place of injured senior BenHendricks. Collura completed13of23passes for 173 yards and three touchdowns.

Twoofthose TD strikes camein

theﬁrst two minutes of the fourth quarter.Collura found Jake Jacketti for a29-yard score andcame right back after aMadison Prep three-and-out. His48-yard strike to Jax O’QuingaveMandeville a 21-14 lead with 10 minutes left.

THE VARSITYZONE FOOTBALLREPORT

for a22-21 Chargers lead.

MadisonPrep (2-0) lost afumble on its ensuing series but later put together a10-play, 73-yard drive for the go-ahead score. Johnson’s 42-yard runset up a2-yard TD runbyHarlem Turner, andJohnsonadded the 2-point conversion

Three plays later,Johnson picked off Collura on the left sideline, setting up ashortdrive for an insurance touchdown. Johnson carried three times, the last a 17-yard burst up the middle that helped MPAtakea30-21 leadwith less than one minute to go.

“It wasa war,” MPAcoach Landry Williamssaid. “Last year we lost to them in ashootout. This year my guys were alittle more motivated. Mandeville hasagreat program,and we’re just happy to come out with awin.”

Mandeville defeated Madison Prep 53-42lastseason,but this one was adefensive battle in the first half. Madison Prep moved the ball well but turned the ball over on downs twice inside the MHS 20.

Midwaythrough thesecond quarter,aided by an MPAfacemask penalty, Mandeville went 83 yards in ﬁve plays to take a7-0 lead. Collura had two completions, the second a27-yarder to Landon Lips for the touchdown.

Madison Prepresponded withan 11-play,80-yard drive capped by Harlem Turner’s3-yard run. The 2-point try failed, and Mandeville took a7-6 lead into halftime.

“Wemade alot of changes on defense.I thought Krew did agood job, but (overall) it still wasn’t clean enough,”Mandeville coach Craig Jones said.“It wasbetter thanWeek 1, andMadisonPrepis very good, but we had our chances.”

Parish 54, Wossman 6 Parklane Aca.,Miss. 35, Oak Forest 12 Parkway 56, Woodlawn (SH) 6 Pine 44, Independence19 Pineville 69, Avoyelles 14 Pointe Coupee Catholic 63, Crowley 12 Port Barre34, Beau Chene 27 Prairieville 21, Parkview Baptist 14 RedRiver 20, St. Mary’s14 Ringgold 54, Plain Dealing12 Riverside Academy19, Newman 13 Rummel 30, University 17 Ruston 63, Cabot, Ark. 28 Sacred Heart 42, Pine Prairie 0 Shaw46, West Jefferson 0 Slidell 42, Livingston Collegiate Academy27 South Beauregard42, WashingtonMarion 38 South Lafourche 26, Pearl River 22 South Plaquemines 38, Bogalusa 14 South Terrebonne 22, Covenant Christian Academy21 St. Charles Catholic 28, Lutcher 0 St. James 52, West St. John 6 St. John50, Springﬁeld 12 St. Michael 42, Tara 8 Sterlington 48, Rayville 14 Sumner 29, Kentwood 14 Terrebonne 42, Ellender 3 TeurlingsCatholic 46, Sam Houston 14 Thibodaux41, Landry/Walker 13 Tioga 56, Leesville 20 Varnado 50, Pope John Paul 6 Welsh 36, Oakdale 28 West Feliciana 54, Belaire16 West Monroe 31, Pulaski Academy, Ark. 17 West Ouachita 62, Jonesboro-Hodge 13 West St. Mary 44, Centerville 6 Westlake47, LaGrange 12 WillowSchool 33, Country Day20 Zachary 30, Acadiana 14 BrotherMartin 37, St. Paul’s 27 TeamBMHSSt. Paul’s First Downs 16 19 YardsRushing 27-132 34-219

YardsPassing 311 113 Passes (C-A-HI) 18-21-0 14-22-1 Punts-avg.0-0.0 0-0.0 Fumbles-lost 1-1 2-1 Penalties-yards11-100 17-117 SCORING SUMMARY Brother Martin1010710—37 St. Paul’s71307—27

SPS: Cody Corales run58(Carter Pierson kick)

BM: Maximo Barrios kick 40

BM: Easton Royalpass 11

26-83 37-173 YardsPassing 243 234 Passes(C-A-HI) 13-30 17-30 Punts-avg Fumbles-lost 1-1 2-1 Penalties-yards6-55 6-50 SCORING SUMMARY Central61468—34

Denham Springs71470—28

CHS: Brody Knapps 3run (PedroDe Sousa Costa kick no good)

DSHS: Da’Jean Golmond to Trey Seals 13 pass (Jason Dixon kick)

DSHS: Da’Jean Golmond 6run (Dixon kick)

CHS: MarvinJoseph 84 kickoff return (2 point attempt good)

CHS: Max Gassiot to Brody Diel 40 pass (De SousaCosta kick no good)

DSHS: Golmond to Da’Sean Golmond 6pass (Dixon kick)

DSHS: Golmond to Brenton Paul 62 pass (Dixon kick)

CHS: Gassiot to Marcus Watson 53 pass (2 point attempt no good)

CHS: Gassiot to Watson 33 pass (2 point attempt good) Holy Cross 20, De La Salle 0

TeamHoly CrossDLS First Downs 15 14

YardsRushing 31-87 34-158

YardsPassing 201 37 Passes(C-A-HI) 13-19-0 5-16-3

Punts-avg.0-0 2-35

Fumbles-lost 0-0 0-0

Penalties-yards10-120 8-76

SCORING SUMMARY Holy Cross01406—20 De La Salle0000—0

HC: Ke’Rynn Smith 12 run(no good)

HC: SavoyGuidry84interception return(JokobyFarriarun)

HC: Carson Chiappetta 74 pass from JokobyFarria(no good) Jesuit24, E.D.White21

TeamE.D.WhiteJesuit First Downs 11 17

YardsRushing 31-85 33-162

YardsPassing 166 135 Passes(C-A-HI) 16-29-0 8-21-4

Punts-avg.6-24.5 2-20.5

Fumbles-lost 1-1 1-1

Penalties-yards4-55 4-20

SCORING SUMMARY E.D.White7608—21 Jesuit7377—24

EDW: Alexander Percle 21 fumble return(Jonathon Leekick)

JHS: BenjaminNeff 14 pass from Taylor Norton (Ethan Cabos kick)

EDW: Lee31kick

EDW: Lee23kick JHS: Cabos 29 kick JHS: Gavin Palmisano14run (Cabos kick) JHS: Palmisano 31 run(Cabos kick)

EDW: Reece Lafont 64 pass from Grant Barbera(BrockWankopass from Barbera) Livonia 26, North Iberville 25

TeamNorth IbervilleLivonia First Downs 14 11

YardsRushing 36-219 20-22

YardsPassing 41 198 Passes(C-A-HI) 9-15-1 12-30-4

Punts-avg.5-36.2 2-30 Fumbles-lost 1-1 2-0 Penalties-yards9-85 10-84 SCORING SUMMARY North Iberville00718—25 Livonia7766—26 NIHS: Jeremy Favorite10run (BJ Melancon kick)

NIHS: Justice Roy4 run(Melancon kick) LHS: ParisHayes 78 pass from Chase Sylvain (AnthonyRoppolokick)

NIHS: Aiden Melancon 51 run (kick blocked)

NIHS: Favorite 40 run(runfailed) LHS: Delaney James 40 intreturn (Cam Carter run) LHS: Bo Stewart27pass from Carter (Carter run) LHS: Safety Madison Prep30, Mandeville 21 TeamMandevilleMadison Prep First Downs 14 23 YardsRushing 26-96

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

Madison Prep wide receiver Trammel Sanford,right, slips the tackle by Mandeville safety Nathan Woodward on Friday at IstroumaHigh School.

LIVING

TerryRobinson FAITH MATTERS

BatonRouge couple sees ﬁtness as aservice

Personal trainers Steven and Jacquole Johnson are ﬂexing their physical and spiritual muscles to help people achieve holistic health through a Christ-centered approach.

The Baton Rouge couple and longtime ﬁtness enthusiasts founded FLXX (Fit Living Exceeding Expectations) Fitness and Wellness in January with the core principles of ﬁtness, faith and family

“It’sall connected to theultimate calling in that we want to be able to show the best way we can all attain wellness is beingright with God and having the right perspective on how we view our lives,” said Steven Johnson, an associate minister at Calvary Third Baptist Church in Baton Rouge. “It’s just more of asense of giving ourselves to the community and being the light in away that God has called us to be.”

The mission at the center is to help people flourish in mind, body and spirit, Jacquole Johnson said. She spent five years as ahealth coach before gaining her personal training certification last year

PROVIDED PHOTO

Jacquole and StevenJohnson, owners of FLXX Fitness and Wellness

“Our goal is to advance Christ’skingdom, and thevehicle to do that happens tobe fitness and health,” she said The Johnsons said the guiding scripture for FLXX comes from 3John 1:2: “Dear friend, Ipray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting alongwell.” The couple uses the verse about physical and spiritual health to remind people not to neglect one for the other Amobile company,FLXX brings fitness to popups, churches, community walks, Zoom workouts and home visits through both its nonprofit and for-profit arms. Its third major event, “Ignite: A FLXX Wellness Experience for Educators,” is set for 9a.m.to 12:30 p.m. Sept. 13, at Calvary Third Baptist Church, 1911 Georgia St., BatonRouge. The theme of the eventis “Fan the Flame. Fuel the Mission” from 2Timothy 1:6: “For this reason Iremind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.” Visitorswill have access to aworkout, brunch and panel discussion. Among the guest speakers will be Rodney Q. Freeman, alongtime East

GOTTORIDE THEWAVE’

He blew up on TikTok andgot

TBY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

eenage singer-songwriter

Noah James crafts music fromhis childhood bedroom in Prairieville. Hisinstruments,including afew guitars, line the wallnexttohis sticker-covered closet door

James is aTikTok-viral, 18-yearold Baton Rouge native who has already made anamefor himself in the country music industry.Hejust got signedbySony-ownedSanta Anna RecordsinDecember 2024, based in Nashville, andreleased hisﬁrstEP, “The Tracks,” with six songs.

“In my mind, Ithought this was going to come five years from now,” James said about getting signed. “Never thought at 17 that this would ever even be possible.”

Afterposting videos of his raw vocals and guitar strumming for three years, Jameshas climbed to almost 300,000 followers on TikTok. He’s most known forhis covers of countrysinger Zach Bryan and his poetic lyrics about love. In Prairieville, his favorite place to writefrom is his room.

“IfIcome in here andplay, then I’m walking around and playing,”

Chapter Twenty mobile bookstore, which features a cozy interior, will be rolling through local areas.

time to experiment with music.

“One thing we do with homeschooling is we want to nurture each of them wherever theirtalents lay,”saidJames’mother, TianyDavis.“We knewthatwe wanted to support him in it, but he really did it all on his own.”

James said he started taking music seriously at age15, the same time when he started to post videos on TikTok.Hetaught himself how to play the guitar,and it didn’ttake long forhis ﬁrst videotogoviral in March 2024 when he covered “Burn, burn, burn” by Zach Bryan. The video has over 150,000 views.

“I got to ride the wave with this,” James said he thought to himself after seeing the success of his video.

In December 2024, he covered anotherZachBryansongthatalmost has 4million likes, nearly half of the overall8.5 millionlikes on his account. By the timehehit 10,000 followers, he was already skyrocketing to 20,000 followers.

he said.

TikTok fame

James grew up in Prairieville and was constantlyaround music. His father was aprofessional jazz player,and being homeschooled with his brothers gave James even more

“I was just posting on TikTok, having fun, just writing songsand hoping someonewill likethem,” James said.

So when Santa Ana Records contacted him in September 2024 with

BY JOYHOLDEN Staff writer

ter, whichiswhere thenameof their business, Chapter Twenty comes from. They bought atrailer,gutted

Noah James plays asonginthe backyard of his home in Prairieville.

James shows offabracelet tied

Inclusive Louisiana plans

Mass at St. Margaret’s

Inclusive Louisiana will host a Eucharist Celebration (Mass) followed by areception at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, 12663 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge, from 6p.m.to8 p.m. Monday,Sept.22.

“Inclusive Louisiana is aministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana to proclaim and embody God’sall-inclusive love for LGBTQ+ persons and their allies,” according to anews release. All are welcome.

Cathedral celebrates the music of Palestrina

St.JosephCathedral, 401 Main St., BatonRouge, will hosta specialchoral concert at 5p.m. Sundayfeaturing thecombined voices of the St. Joseph Cathedral Choir and the Schola Singers of Most BlessedSacrament Church. The program honorsthe 500th anniversary of the birth of Giovanni PierluigidaPalestrina (1525-1594), alegendary composer known forhis service to 11 popes and hislong tenure as choir directorofSt. Peter’sBasilica.

Selections will follow the liturgical calendar,with music from Advent, Christmas, HolyWeek, Easter,Pentecost and Christ the King. The concertwillopen and close with Italian sacredorgan music.

An Italian-themed reception withsavory andsweettreats will follow in the Cathedral ParishHall. This free event is open to the public.

Mission Sunday at Nathaniel Baptist Church Nathaniel Baptist Church, Highway 33 South, Centreville, Mississippi, invites the public to “Mission Sunday” this weekend at 11 a.m. The Rev.William Wells, pastor of the Bay Ridge Baptist Church, willbeguestspeaker

TODAYINHISTORY

By The Associated Press

Today is Saturday,Sept. 13, the 256th day of 2025.There are 109 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On Sept. 13, 1993, at the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands aftersigning an accord granting limited Palestinian autonomy Also on this date: In 1788, the Congress of the Confederation authorized the ﬁrst national election and declared New York City thetemporary national capital.

In 1948, Republican Margaret ChaseSmith, of Maine, was elected to the U.S. Senate;she became the ﬁrst woman to serve in both houses of Congress. In 1997, afuneralwas held in Kolkata, India, for Nobel peace laureate Mother Teresa In 2008, crews rescued people from their homes in an all-out search for thousands of Texans whohad stayed behind overnight to face Hurricane Ike.

Today’sbirthdays: Actor Barbara Bain is 94. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Óscar Arias is 85. Rock singer David Clayton-Thomas (Blood, Sweat &Tears) is 84. Actor Jacqueline Bisset is 81. Singer Peter Cetera is 81. Actor Jean Smart is 74. Recordproducer Don Wasis73. Chef Alain Ducasse is 69. Rock singer-musician Dave Mustaine (Megadeth) is 64. Olympic gold medal sprinter Michael Johnson is 58. Filmmaker Tyler Perryis56. Fashion designer Stella McCartney is 54.

JAMES

Continued from page1D

an offer,James and his family and friends were ecstatic.

Poetic lyrics piquedaninterest Jamesdidn’tgrowuplistening to country music. When he began his mission to find his voice, he drew inspiration frompop musicians like Michael Jackson, Justin Bieber,Shawn Mendesand Ed Sheeran.

“I’m going to be honest,pop music was not working,” James said with alaugh. “So Igot more into Noah Kahan. That’s when Ifound outaboutZach Bryan.” James fell deeper into country and folk music, discovering musicianslikeTyler Childers, Morgan Wallen andmost significantly, Zach Bryan. Poetic lyrics piqued James’ interest, he said, which happens to be alot of Zach Bryan’s discography

Another inspiration is “The Notebook,” aﬁlm adaptation set in 1940s South Carolina followingtwo lovers with unapproving parents, and James was actually named afterthe maincharacter, Noah.

“Noah andAlly, they bothlived different lives,” he said. “She lives amore rich andprivileged life, while he lives amore poor [life], and you got to work forevery-

COUPLE

Continued from page1D

Baton Rouge Parish School Systemeducator and pastor of Calvary Thirdand Providence No. 2Baptist Church in Ethel; JonathanCoats, principal of Northwestern Elementary School in Zachary; Sandra Adams Douglas, CEOofSOAR Education Consulting LLC;and Briana Coats,registered dietitianand founder of BeWell Foundation.

Mental health will also be part of theconversations “A lot of people mentally are suffering. There’salot of mental health crises that people are not paying attention to,”Steven John-

thing.”

It took James untilhewas 16 years old to watch the movie, and it immediately became his favorite romance movie. And it motivated thelyrics behind his song“The Tracks,” asong he wrote with his olderbrother Micah and Micah’s girlfriend. When it comes to experimenting withsound, James is eager to implementdifferentinstruments in his music, like thebanjo and ﬁddle. He just learned how to play theharmonicaand was quickto

son said.

Fitnessisa passion and ministryfor the Johnsons, who are both Southern Universityengineering graduates in addition tobeing certiﬁed personal trainers.

Jacquole Johnson, 39, credits a healthcoach and others for helping her to healthier habitsand a mindset.She says she struggled with her weight, but she lost 30 pounds three years ago and has kept it off since.

She said her transformation was more than physical.

“Only when Istarted integrating the spiritualside, Ilooked at health as not just getting into somejeansbut also honoring God with my body,because our bodies are atemple,” she said. “Wellness is worship.”

feature it in the intro of “Set Free.”

“I got it for Christmas and been trying my best on that,” he said.

Next steps, live performances

WhenJames sets foot on stage, he says his nerves instantlyvanish when he starts to sing.

JamesﬂiestoNashville aboutevery month, where his record label is based. He’sperformed at several venues and remembers the ﬁrst time, in March at Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row,when the fans in the crowd began to sing his own songs

Steven Johnson,43, said their focus on physical and spiritual healthhas led to ahealthy marriage after 16 years.

“Wesee the oneness that God has established through marriage being livedout, and that’ssomethingthat Ihold near and dear to my heart,” he said. “Inthe early part of our marriage, we were out of alignment, but thank Godwe kept thejourney.”

He added:“To get to the point of being aChrist-centered organization has come as aresult of our trust in God.”

Running the organization together has been ajoy forJacquole Johnson after years of managing abusiness alone.

along with him

“It’sthe best feeling ever,” James said. “The dopaminerush from that is stronger than anything, especially whentheystart singing the samesong with you.” Food, family and culture remain important to James.

“I’m abig nature guy,” he said. “I think the nature around me has inﬂuenced me alot. The people, the culture.”

He admires Louisiana-born musicians who still connect themselvestothe state despite hitting fame, like Lainey Wilson and Tim McGraw.James loves where he grew up, regularly eating jambalaya,gumbo andcrawﬁsh when in season. In Baton Rouge, James is set to perform at 7p.m. Sept. 18, at The Station Sports Barand Grill, 4608 Bennington Ave. The showisfree to attend, but customers must be 18 years or older to attend.

His EP includes six songs: n “Set Free” n “Love Run Cold” n “SameOld Things” n “The Tracks” n “Kind Tired Eyes” Music is alanguage thateveryonespeaks, James said, andhe wants people to know they’re not alone. He hopes his music can bring people together “God gave me the giftofmusic,” James said. “And I’mdoing music to inspire and bring alittle hope to the world.”

“Like night and day.They don’t even compare —just having that support and somebody to lean on,” she said. The Johnsons encourage people to form connections with others instead of experiencing their health journeys in silos.

“God created us to be in community.We’re not supposed to be isolated and alone,” he said.

“We’re all about helping meet people where they are. No judgment, all love and encouragement.”

For moreinformation on the Ignite and FLXX, go to www ﬂxxwellness.com oreventbrite. com/e/ignite-a-ﬂxx-wellnessexperience-for-educatorstickets-1574218191989. Contact Terry Robinsonat terryrobinson622@gmail.com

STAFF PHOTOSByJAVIER GALLEGOS

With his other 2guitars lyingaround,Noah James admires his first guitar,which he received as aChristmas gift 3years ago.

Noah James sings with

Writetofriendhow deeply youfeel

Dear Miss Manners: There’sawoman I’ve known for more than 40 years. We wereclose when our children were young butwehave not been in regular contact for many years. Istill care alot about her,and believe the feeling is reciprocated. She’sbecome more isolated by healthchallenges over the last couple of years, and my invitations to meet for lunch have been rebuffed. Ihaven’ttaken it personally She’sfacing surgery ina few days, and Ihad the epiphany that an old-fashioned phone call would be welcomed. We talked formore than an hour,about awiderange

Dear Harriette: My boyfriend is incredibly generouswhen it comes to friends, family and even strangers, but when it comes to me, he’s surprisingly stingy, whether it’stime, attention or small gestures of affection. Ifeel unappreciated, hurt and confused because Idon’tunderstand why I’m being treated differently,especially since Itry to support and give to him in every way Ican. I’ve thought about bringing it up,but I’m worried that if Ido, it might come across as nagging or start an argument. At the same time, Idon’twantto continue feeling undervalued in my own relationship. How canItalk to himhonestly about how his behavior affects me without creating tension or making himfeel attacked? Ijust wanttofeel seen and appreciated for once. Iworry that if this continues, it could build

BOOKSTORE

Continued from page1D

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

of topics, andmysense was that we were both having agood time. As we were winding down, she got serious and said some kind things about me. Iwas touched and told herhow appreciative Iwas. In the moment, Ifelt that if Isaid theequivalent of “I like you, too,” it would seem like Iwas only saying it because she had said it ﬁrst.Am I wrong not to have respondedwith something similar? Her remark was different in tone than the rest of the conversation,and seemed to come outofthe blue. Idovalueher and our friendship over the years. It just would

have felt reactive to say so in that moment. If Idid err,how should Iaddress my failure to respond in kind?

Gentlereader: Your friend’swords touched you because they were genuine and spontaneous. No doubt she was also feeling sentimental in the face of her upcoming surgery.Had you immediately responded in kind, it might,as you say,have felt disingenuous. Butifitisbothering you, Miss Manners suggestsyou get really, really old-fashioned and write her aletter expressing afew thoughtful things about her and thefriendship. Not only will this be authentic and touching, it will also give her something to read while she recovers.

Dear Miss Manners: I’ve been invited to acasualbackyard party for alow-country boil. I’d like to attendand spend time with my friends, but my shellﬁsh allergy meansIcan’tpartake of thefood. Is it impolite formetobring my own snack?Should Ioffer to bring aside dish to share? Or should Ijust eat before the party? My husband thinks Ishould send my regrets to avoid the awkwardness of not eating the food on offer

Gentlereader: Eat beforehand. Alertingthe hosts in advance will only make them go into apanic, trying to ensure there is somethingfor you to eat (although there are likely to be non-shellﬁsh sides as well). It mayalso make them abit resentful since their menuplans werealready in the title of their party If anyone asks whyyou are not eating, Miss Manners suggests you say,“Iknew what Iwas getting into, but I’mafraid I’mallergic to shellﬁsh. Ijust wanted to spend timewith everyone —enjoying the low-country part of the party,ifnot the boil.”

Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mailtoMiss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City,MO 64106.

resentment between us over time —StingyBoyfriend Dear StingyBoyfriend: This man doesn’tdeserve to be your boyfriend if he doesn’ttreat you right. Speak up! Point out to him that you have noticed how generous and thoughtful he is with others and how attractive you ﬁnd that in his personality This makes it all the more perplexing that he does not afford you the same thoughtfulness andattention. Give him examples of times when you wish hehad saidordone somethingthat acknowledged or supported you when he didn’t. Tell him it hurts your feelings when he seems to overlook your needs and desires. Askhim if he realizeshedoes this If he shrugsitoff and diminishes your concerns, push back. Tell him you needhim to take your feelings seriously.The way he responds will tell you all you

and itmakes you want to be in there.”

need to know about whether he is the guy for you. Don’t stayifheisunwilling to shine some of his loving generositydirectly on you. Dear Harriette: I’ve been an attorneyfor about five years. Iworkatatight-knit boutique firm representing major artists, entertainers and recordlabels.Since my career started, Ihave brought myriadnew clients to the firm and exceeded my annual goals on aregular basis. It feels like my firm upholds ahierarchy that is less about performance or value and moreabout tenure. The people who have been at the firm longer feel entitled to all of the bigger clients,even if Iamthe one who brokered the relationship or scouted themout. Ioften feel undermined because some of themanaging attorneys speak over me (and other young attorneys) during client meetings.And God forbid Imake amistake or miscommunicatewitha client —asopposed to con-

structive conversations, my manager is condescending. I triedgiving feedback about the hostility that comes with this hierarchy they abide by,but my moreseasoned colleagues accused my generation of being sensitive and assuredmethat it’s nothing they didn’texperience. Inever expected that this kind of hazing would be prevalent in the professional world. Is this what it’s like for all young professionals acrossall industries? —Corporate Ladder Dear Corporate Ladder: Every industry is different,but what’shappening to you isn’tright.Workonbuilding relationships with individual leaders in your business so theyget to know you and are exposed to your workethic and results. Building and strengthening one-on-one relationships is theway to grow and defend yourself. Send questions to askharriette@ harriettecole.com.

DearHeloise: Getting items out during the morning of ayard sale is difﬁcult. This year,weare loading the items in the back of our SUV the day before, so in the morning, we can just back up the vehicle and unload it in front of our house. The lowered back gate can also serve as atable! Even acar with a regular trunk would serve well to move items out quickly And another travel tip: Ialways create afull itinerary that Iprint out. Iinclude a contact, cellphone number, dates, ﬂight numbers and times, and hotel contact information. If my luggage is lost, and the tags comeoff, acopy that is placed inside each piece of luggage helps get it to the correct destination! —Ellen Christy,via email Keep guacamolegreen

smooth over the top, and add asmall layer of water to it. When it’sready to use, drain the water and stir in the small amount that remains. It works perfectly and can be repeated with any leftover guacamole. Judy Peterson, in Boerne,Texas Frying panhint

“Wethought how cool it would be to have ourown, and we don’thave anything like that in our area.Sowe started researching, and it allhappened very quickly, Degraw said. Within the hour,Degraw was looking online for possibilities. They foundabus for sale, but soon realized that businessmodel was a little unrealistic.Instead, they found an 8-by-20 racecar trailer that would work as abookmobile. Degraw’s husband checked it out and brought it home.

“We’ve spentthe last month endlessly working on it,” Rowland said. “It was super crunchy and gross, and now it’s, like, really cozy

While workingon their bookstore-to-be trailer,Degraw and Rowland continuedonwith their busy lives, including running aballoon decor business, TheClubhouseBalloons andMore, together

Degraw is also astayat-home mom who homeschoolsher twochildren, and Rowlandisamom of three whoworks at Baton RougeCountryClubasa manager Rowland said that they are most proud of actually following through and doing what they setout to do. The women chose natural wood luxury vinyl tileﬂooring, white shelving, dark greenﬂoral wallpaper and a cheerful natural wood door with windows to create a welcoming ambiance.

“We’re very excitedthat we went through withitso quick andmade avision come to life,” Rowlandsaid.

Degrawsaysthatthe process of watching aguttedouttrailer with no floors become afully functioning mobile store has been an incredible experience.

Self-proclaimed huge readers, the two women want to bring books to areas with less access to bookstores, but they also have community engagement in mind. They see this business as away to connect withotherlocal Livingston Parishbusinesses.

Theyput acall-out on their Facebook page to local businessesthatwantto“adda little charm, alot of books, anda wholelot of community” to places that provide aspot to set up. They hope to be at dif-

ferentlocationsinthe area each week. They are also available for private events. People can book themobile bookstore for parties, book clubs and festivals.

Degraw and Rowland have stocked the Chapter Twenty shelves with avariety of novels and nonﬁction, both new and pre-owned books.

Chapter Twenty mobile bookstorewillbeopenfrom 8a.m. to 2p.m. Sept. 14, at Luxe 38 Cafe &Lounge, 34130 La. 16 in Denham Springs, and 8a.m. to 1p.m. Sept.20, at theZachary Toy Store, 4860 La. 19 in Zachary Chapter Twenty will also have agrand opening event at theend of the month. Follow Chapter Twenty,LLC on Facebook and Instagram for more information.

Email Joy Holden at joy holden@theadvocate.com.

Hints from Heloise

Dear Heloise: This hint is from my husband. He always moves the frying pan to another burner on the stove once he’s done cooking. This way,ifyou forget to turn the burner off, you can see it and turn it off without burning apot, pan or causing potential ﬁre. —Nancy,in Florissant, Missouri Hidingstraps

DearHeloise: In arecent column, Iread about putting onion bits on top of guacamole to keep it from turning brown. Awhile back, Iread to place the guacamole in the container,

DearHeloise: Ihighly recommend that womenwear acamisole under asheer blouse. It provides aclean line in the back and hides bra straps and hook closures, which are not attractive! —Carrie R., in San Antonio Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Open discussions will help you determine your next move. Mixbusiness with pleasure, and something unexpected will offer the boost youneed to reach your target.

LIBRA(sept. 23-oct. 23) Askwhat's entailedorexpected of you before you volunteer or committoasubscription or ongoing donation. Attendgatherings that foster connections with like-minded individuals who share your thoughts andvalues.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Keep afriendly demeanor and avoid unnecessary altercations with random people. How you carry yourself and treat others will make adifferencetohow your day unfolds.

sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec.21) Create opportunities. Personal growth will come through the conversations you engage in and the places you travel to. Listen,take notes and updateyour plans accordingly.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Broaden your plans to fit yourneeds.Assertive actionwill ensure you get things done andattract positive attention. An steady, streamlinedcashflow will keep youinthe game and entitle youto aheftypayback

AQuARIus(Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Youare overdue for achange. Be the one to kick things off. Achange that saves you money will also reduce stress and give you extra cash for entertainment or a special treat.

PIscEs (Feb.20-March 20) Ultimatums will turnintoemotional battles. Take a momenttoconsider what's truly importanttoyou. Compromise and kindness will go along way when dealing with difficult individuals.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Use your imagination and deliver your message with gusto and charisma. Trust and believe in yourself,and devoteyourtime and energy to making progress.

tAuRus (April20-May 20) Pay attention to where your money goes. Emotional spending or underestimating thecost of aproject will setyou back. Exercising will help easestress.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Letyouractions speak for you. How you conduct yourself today willdetermine theextent of your achievements.Distance yourself from people and groups that askfor too much.

cAncER(June 21-July 22) Jumping to conclusions will lead to trouble. Be open,ask questions anddetermine what'sbestfor you before you engage in events or activitiesthatare costly or indulgent.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) The changes you implement will have alasting impact on howyou live andthose with whom you spend the most time. Don'tshare personal dataorfamily secrets

Celebrity Cipher cryptogramsare created from quotations by famous people, past and present.Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

toDAy's cLuE:c EQuALs X

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

bIG nAte

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers1to9 in the empty squares so that each row,each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’sPuzzle Answer

nea CroSSwordS

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

CurTiS

Bridge

By PHILLIPALDER

Robert Fitzgerald, atranslator of ancientGreekandLatinwhodiedin1985, said,“The test of agiven phraseshould be: Is it worthy to be immortal? ‘I guess I’ll split’ is not going to be immortal.”

Bridge players occasionally have to guessabout asuitsplit.But they prefer not to need afavorablesplit to gethome. This deal, as if you could notguess, is an example.

Southisinfivediamonds. Weststarts with the spade ace and another spade Declarer takes the trick andcashes the diamond ace, West discarding aspade. Howshould South continue?

South was too strong to open one notrump, showing 15-17 points. When West leaped majesticallytothree spades, indicating aseven-card suit and some 6-10 high-card points, North bravely competed with four diamonds. Now South wondered about suggesting aslam, but hadalot of losers.

Declarer hadtwo aces to concede, so needed the club finessetowork.Healso could not afford asecondheart loser, but did not wish to rely on a3-3 break or the 10 dropping doubleton.

South played adiamond to dummy’s kingand called for the10. To keep declarer out of the dummy, East covered with hisjack. South wonwith his queen, played adiamond to dummy’s

wuzzles

eight,and took theclubfinesse. When it won, declarer cashed the club ace and now carefully led the heart jack. East wonand returned aheart, but South then led dummy’s club jack and ruffed away East’sking.Backtodummy with aheart, declarer cashed theclub10and discarded hislast heart. Nicely done! ©2025 by NEA, Inc., dist.ByAndrews McMeel Syndication

Each Wuzzle is aword riddlewhich creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the additionof“s,” suchas“bats”or“dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

toDAy’sWoRD nItRIFIEs: NYE-trih-fyes: Oxidizes salts to nitrites.

Average mark 28 words

Time

Canyou find 56 or more words in NITRIFIES?

thought “And why call you me, Lord, Lord, and do not

Isay?” Luke 6:46

Puzzle Answer

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

PearlsBefore swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

public hearingbeheldtocon‐siderthisapplication. Re‐quests forpublichear‐ings shallstate,withpar‐ticularity,the reasonsfor holdinga public hearing andmustcontain the name andcontact infor‐mation of therequester Beloware thereferenced application(s): *OCM; P. O. Box44487, BatonRouge LA 70804-4487; Phone: (225) 342-2767; Email: maggie.james@la.gov; OCMReviewer: Maggie James; CUPNUMBER: P20250720 Name:Entergy Louisiana, LLCc/o GeosyntecConsultants 2600 CITIPLACECOURT SUITE500, BATONROUGE LA 70808 Attn:Autry AkinsLocation: Jefferson Parish,LA; Lat. 29-57-00N Long.-90-08-38W;Missis‐sippi RiverMile104; Westwego. Description: Proposed biannual main‐tenancedredging(ap‐prox.140,000 cy per dredging event) to main‐tain safe/efficientopera‐tionsofthe intake site A totalofapprox.1,400,000 cy will be depositedin theriver below-55 feet contour. NOTICE theLa. Dept.of Energy andNatural Re‐sources, Office of CoastalManagement (OCM)has received are‐questtoextendfor the referenced CoastalUse Permit in accordance with theState andLocal CoastalResources Man‐agementAct of 1978, as amended, (Louisiana R.S. 49:214.21-214.41),and the rulesand regulationsof theCoastal Resources Program.Application for theproposedworkmay be inspectedat617 North 3rdStreet,Room 1078, BatonRouge,LAoron theOCM webpageat: http://dnr.louisiana.gov/ index.cfm?md=pagebui lder&tmp=home& pid=591. Copies maybe obtained upon payment of cost of copying. Writ‐tencomments, including suggestionsfor modifi‐cationsorobjectionsto theproposedworkand statingthe reasons thereof, arebeing so‐licitedfromthe public Commentsmustbere‐ceived within 10 days of thedateofpublication of this notice.The sole rea‐sonfor notallowingex‐tensionbased upon pub‐liccomment shallbethat therehas been achange in theconditionsofthe area affected by theper‐mitsince thepermitwas originally issued.Com‐mentsshouldbeup‐loaded to ourelectronic record,but maybe mailed, faxed or emailed to thedesignatedOCM Reviewer.All comments must containthe appro‐priate applicationnum‐berand thecommenter's full name andcontact in‐

formation. OCM, P.O. Box 44487, BatonRouge,LA 70804-4487, CUPNUMBER: P20230949 (Revised,Ex‐tended)Name: Hilcorp Energy Company, c/o CoastalResourceCon‐sulting, LLCP.O.Box 52370 Lafayette,LA70505 Attn:JeremyGriffith Lo‐cation:Terrebonne Parish,LA; Lat. 29-1044.29 N, Long.90-29-23.54 W; Section12, T22S-R19E; Section13, T22S-R19E; Approx.11.5miles from Cocodrie,LADescription: Drilltwo injectionwells andinstall well protec‐tors andassociated6 flowlines(8,531' and 3191')inthe Lake Barre FieldinTerrebonne Parish,LA. The flowlines will be jetted aminimum of threefeet belowthe mudline. Approx.2,050 cy of material will be jetted andallowed to backfill throughsedimentation Approx.24cyofsand bags will be used for fill at pipelinecrossings. 158067-sept 15-1t $53.21

VISIT BATON ROUGE BOARD MEETING MINUTES August 2025

The following Supplemental Resolutionwas offered by Mary Stein and seconded by Robyn Merrick.

SUPPLEMENTAL RESOLUTION

WHEREAS,Visit Baton Rouge is abody politic and corporate and a political subdivision of the StateofLouisiana (“VBR”) created pursuant to Article VI,Sections 19 and 30 of the Louisiana Constitutionof1974, as amended, and Sections 4574 and 4574.16 of Title 33 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, as amended;

WHEREAS,VBR is the owner of the immovableproperty bearing municipal address 232 Lafayette Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70801, as moreparticularly described on Exhibit Aattached hereto (the “Property”) and located in East Baton Rouge Parish (the “Parish”); WHEREAS,through the Resolution, VBR authorized and approved several actions by or on behalfofVBR related to the Project,including, butnot limited to,(a) the issuance of not exceeding Seven Million Dollars ($7,000,000) of Revenue Bonds, Series 2024 (the “Bonds”), for the purpose of financing the Project and paying the cost of issuance of the Bonds; (b) the application for,obtention of, and sale of State Historic TaxCredits (“TaxCredits”); (c) the creation of apublic benefit corporation to assist and support VBR and the Project;(d) the application to the Louisiana StateBond Commission for approval and authority to proceed with the TaxCredits; and (e) the advertisement and sale of the TaxCredits;

WHEREAS,VBR created and designated 232-Lafayette, Inc.,a Louisiana nonprofitpublic benefitcorporation with VBR as its sole member (“PBC”), as its public benefitcorporation under the Public Entity Facilities Financing Act contained in Title 39, Section1051 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, as amended (“PEFFA”), forthe purposes of completing and facilitating the Project;

WHEREAS,VBR desirestoenter into acooperative endeavor agreement with PBC in order to carry out the Project whereby the renovated Property will ultimately serve as VBR’sprimary office in the Parish;

WHEREAS,VBR desirestosupplement the Resolutiontogrant additional authority to carry out the Project as set forth herein.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the BoardofVBR, acting as the governing authority of VBR, that, in connection with the above, VBR is hereby authorized, empowered and directed to take the following actions (collectively,the “Authorized Actions”):

(1) Enter into aCooperative Endeavor Agreement with PBC providing forthe transfer and conveyance of the Property to PBC and such other terms, conditions, covenants and agreements as arenecessary or desirable in order forPBC to facilitate and carry out the Project in accordance with the termsset forth therein (the “CEA”);

(2) Sell, transfer,grant, assign, contribute or otherwise convey the Property to PBC pursuant to the CEA(the “Conveyance”), and enter into

RESOLUTION OF THE BOARDOFDIRECTORS OF VISIT BATON ROUGE

CONCERNING APPROVALOFAMENDMENTS TO THE FISCAL YEAR 2025 BUDGET

anyagreementofany nature, kind, or description in connection with the Conveyance as set forth in the CEA;

(3)Assign, transfer, andconveytoPBC those certaincontracts relating to the design, development, and/or construction of the historic rehabilitation andrenovation of the Property for PBC to carry out the Project in accordance with the CEA(the “Assignment”);

(4)Loanthe proceeds of the Bonds to PBC, as permitted by the PEFFA, to facilitate the Project in accordance the terms of the CEA (the“Loan”), andenterinto anyagreementofany nature, kind, or description in connection with the Loan, including, but not limitedto, those agreements necessary to evidence, govern, andsecure the Loan, as set forth in the CEA;

(5)Enterinto alease, as lessee, for VBR’spossession anduse of the Property upon PBC’scompletion of the Project until such time as said lease terminates in accordance with the CEA; and

(6)Accept the re-conveyance of the renovatedProperty andthe proceeds of PBC’ssaleofTax Credits in connection with the Project from PBC in accordance with the CEA.

RESOLVED,thatJill C. Kidder, as President andChiefExecutive Officer of VBR (the“AuthorizedRepresentative”), is hereby authorized, acting alone but on the advice of bond counsel, taxcredit counsel, andmunicipaladvisor to VBR, to execute anddeliverall documents in connection with the Authorized Actions in the name of, andfor andon behalf of, VBR as maybenecessary,desirable or properinorder to fully carry out the transactionscontemplatedherein.

RESOLVED, thatthis SupplementalResolution shall become effective immediately upon adoption hereof.

[Vote tally andsignaturepage(s) to follow]

This SupplementalResolution having been submitted for avote,the result thereof:

Member YesNoAbstain Absent Janice Delerno X Gary Jupiter,Chair X

Mary Stein X

Claude Reynaud, Jr.X

Kim GinnX

Rowdy Gaudet, Vice Chair X

MartyEngquist X

Gary Patureau X Stephen Hightower, SecretaryTreasurer X Robyn Merrick X And the SupplementalResolution wasdeclared adopted on August 28,

Ascheduled Boardmeeting of VisitBaton Rouge was held on Thursday, August 28, 2025, at the Visit Baton Rouge Office located at 359 Third Street.

Present were:

Gary L. Jupiter,Jr.,Chair

Rowdy Gaudet, Vice Chairman

Gary Patureau, BoardMember

Janice Delerno, BoardMember

Kim Ginn, BoardMember

Marty Engquist, BoardMember

Mary Stein, BoardMember

Robyn Merrick, BoardMember

Absent:

Stephen Hightower,Secretary/Treasurer

Claude Reynaud, BoardMember

Present but not participating in formal actions:

Jill Kidder,Staff

Lauralyn Maranto, Staff

Lisa Clary,Staff

Danielle Prejean, Staff

Laura Cating, Staff

Emily Mastrantonio, Staff

Stacy Simon, Staff

Geraldine Bordelon, Staff

Lori Lasseigne, Staff

Chuck Elkins

Lisa Nice

Mack Gregory

Angie Adolph

Jeremy Fontenot

Scott Michelet

Gary L. Jupiter,Jr. called the meeting to orderand opened the meeting for public comment.

Amotion was made by Mary Stein seconded by Kim Ginn to approve June 26, 2025, minutes as presented.

Motion carried.

Amotion was made by Gary Patureau seconded by Rowdy Gaudet to approve July 1, 2025, minutes as presented.

Motion carried.

Amotion was made by Marty Engquist seconded by Mary Stein to approve July 29, 2025, minutes as presented.

Motion carried.

Danielle Prejean presented and discussed the July Financials.

Danielle Prejean presented and discussed the amendments to the Accounting and Financial Policy and Procedures Manual.

AMotion was made by Robyn Merrick, seconded by Kim Ginn to adopt the following Resolution:

RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF VISIT BATON ROUGE CONCERNING APPROVAL OF AMENDMENTS TO THE ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE POLICY AND PROCEDURES MANUAL AUGUST 28, 2025

BE IT RESOLVED that, acting on the recommendation of the Finance

Committee of the BoardofDirectors of Visit Baton Rouge (“VBR”), the BoardofDirectors of VBR hereby adopts the amendments, changes, and modifications to the VBR Accounting and Finance Policy and Procedures Manual reflected in the Exhibit “A” attached to this Resolution effective August 28, 2025.

Motion carried.

Danielle Prejean presented and discussed budget amendments to the 2025 budget.

AMotion was made by Mary Stein, seconded by Gary Patureau to adopt the following Resolution:

AUGUST 28, 2025

BE IT RESOLVED that, acting upon the recommendation of the Finance Committee of the BoardofDirectors of Visit Baton Rouge (“VBR”) the BoardofDirectors of VBR hereby adopts the amendments, changes, and modifications to the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget reflected in the Exhibit “A” attached to this Resolution, effective August 28, 2025. Motioncarried.

Jill Kidder,President and CEOdiscussed the August 2025 Presidents Report.

Chuck Elkins discussed the Joint RepresentationAgreement between himself, Charles Elkins, Attorney at Law,Visit Baton Rouge, and the PBC AMotionwas made by Gary Patureau, seconded by Mary Steintoadopt the following Resolution:

RESOLUTIONS OF THE BOARDOFDIRECTORS OF VISIT BATON ROUGE CONCERNING APPROVAL OF JOINT REPRESENTATION AGREEMENT

AUGUST 28, 2025

BE IT RESOLVED by the BoardofDirectors of Visit Baton Rouge (“VBR”) thatJill C. Kidder,President &CEO, is hereby authorized and directed on behalfofVBR to negotiate, execute, and cause to be performed ajoint representation agreement by and among VBR, VBR232 Lafayette, Inc. (“232 Lafayette”), and Charles R. Elkins II, Attorney at Law,concerning the joint legal representation of VBR and 232 Lafayette by Mr.Elkins regarding the historic rehabilitation, restoration, renovation, and operation of the immovable propertywith amunicipal address of 232 Lafayette Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70801, with such agreement containing such termsand conditions that Ms.Kidder,inher sole discretion, deems appropriate and in the best interest of VBR.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the President &CEO is further directed and empowered in the nameofand on behalfofVBR to take all actions related to the accomplishment of the above resolution at any timebeforeorafter the execution and delivery of the joint representation agreement referred to above, including without limitation to approve any subsequent change, amendment, or modification to the said agreement, that, she, in her sole discretion, deems necessary or convenient to the accomplishment of the previous resolution set forth above.

MotionCarried. AngieAdolph, Attorney at Law discussed an amendment to the Resolution approved on May22, 2025, regarding Authorizationtoenter into Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with Public BenefitCorporation; execution of real estate documents, including act of sale and lease; assignment of construction and architects’ contracts; and execution of loan agreement, promissorynote and mortgage.

The following Supplemental Resolution was offered by Mary Steinand seconded by Robyn Merrick.

SUPPLEMENTAL RESOLUTION

Aresolution supplementing that certainResolutiondated May22, 2025 (the “Resolution”), to further authorizeand direct VisitBaton Rouge to take such actions and enter such agreements, including cooperative endeavor agreements, sales, transfers, conveyances, contributions, financing arrangements, assignment and assumption agreements, leases, and other agreements, as may be necessary or desirable to complete the historic rehabilitation and renovation of 232 Lafayette Street (the “Project”). WHEREAS,Visit Baton Rouge is a body politic and corporate and a political subdivision of the StateofLouisiana (“VBR”) created pursuant to Article VI,Sections 19 and 30 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, as amended, and Sections 4574 and 4574.16 of Title 33 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, as amended; WHEREAS,VBR is the owner of the immovableproperty bearing municipal address 232 Lafayette Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70801, as moreparticularly described on ExhibitA attached hereto (the “Property”) and located in East Baton Rouge Parish (the “Parish”); WHEREAS,through the Resolution, VBR authorized and approved several actions by or on behalfofVBR related to the Project,including, but not limited to,(a) the issuance of not exceeding Seven Million

($7,000,000) of Revenue Bonds, Series 2024 (the “Bonds”), for the purpose of financing the Project and paying the cost of issuance of the Bonds; (b) the application for,obtention of, and sale of StateHistoric TaxCredits (“Tax

Louisiana State BondCommission for approvaland authority to proceed with the TaxCredits; and(e) the advertisement andsaleofthe TaxCredits; WHEREAS,VBR created anddesignated232-Lafayette, Inc., a Louisiana nonprofitpublic benefitcorporation with VBR as its sole member (“PBC”), as its public benefitcorporation underthe Public Entity Facilities Financing ActcontainedinTitle 39, Section 1051 of the Louisiana Revised Statutesof1950, as amended (“PEFFA”), for the purposes of completing andfacilitating the Project; WHEREAS,VBR desires to enterinto acooperative endeavor agreementwith PBCinorder to carry out the Project whereby the renovatedProperty will ultimately serve as VBR’sprimary office in the Parish; WHEREAS,VBR desires to supplementthe Resolution to grant additionalauthority to carry out the Project as set forth herein. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the BoardofVBR, acting as the governing authority of VBR, that, in connection with the above, VBR is hereby authorized, empowered anddirected to take the following actions (collectively,the “Authorized Actions”): Enterinto aCooperative Endeavor Agreementwith PBCproviding for the transferand conveyance of the Property to PBCand such other terms, conditions, covenants andagreements as arenecessary or desirable in order for PBC to facilitate andcarry out the Project in accordance with the terms set forth therein (the“CEA”); Sell, transfer, grant, assign, contribute or otherwise conveythe Property to PBCpursuant to the CEA(the “Conveyance”), andenterinto anyagreementofany nature, kind, or description in connection with the Conveyance as set forth in the CEA; Assign, transfer,and conveytoPBC those certaincontractsrelating to the design, development, and/or construction of the historic rehabilitation andrenovation of the Property for PBC to carry out the Project in accordance with the CEA(the “Assignment”); Loanthe proceeds of the Bonds to PBC, as permitted by the PEFFA, to facilitate the Project in accordance the terms of the CEA(the “Loan”), and enterinto anyagreementofany nature, kind, or description in connection with the Loan, including, but not limitedto, those agreements necessary to evidence, govern, andsecure the Loan, as set forth in the CEA; Enterinto alease, as lessee, for VBR’spossession anduse of the Property upon PBC’scompletion of the Project until such time as said lease terminates in accordance with the CEA; and Accept the re-conveyanceofthe renovatedProperty andthe proceeds of PBC’ssaleofTax Credits in connection with the Project from PBC in accordance with the CEA.

RESOLVED,thatthis SupplementalResolution shall become effective immediately upon adoption hereof.

This SupplementalResolution having been submitted for avote,the result thereof:

Member YesNoAbstain Absent Janice Delerno X Gary Jupiter,Chair X Mary Stein X Claude Reynaud, Jr.X Kim GinnX Rowdy Gaudet, Vice Chair X MartyEngquist X Gary Patureau X Stephen Hightower, SecretaryTreasurer X Robyn Merrick X And the SupplementalResolution wasdeclared adopted on August 28, 2025. THUS DONE, ADOPTEDAND SIGNEDthis 28th day of August 2025 by Gary Jupiter,Chair

On amotion by Kim GinnsecondedbyMary Stein, to