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Louisiana schools get a chance to shine

State’s new grading system rewards for student growth

BY PATRICK WALL Staff writer

Principal Jenenne Coulon was observing a teacher’s lesson last month when text messages came pouring in. School grades had been released.

For Louisiana educators, the annual school ratings can inspire delight or dread — a year’s worth of grueling work condensed to a single A-F grade, which the public often sees as shorthand for whether a given school is “good” or “bad.” This year was especially nerve-wracking as the state issued, in addition to schools’ ofﬁcial grades, simulated scores based on a tougher rating system that takes effect next year Coulon ran back to her ofﬁce at Judge Lionel R. Collins Elementary School and pulled up the grades.

The Marrero school, where about 90% of students are economically disadvantaged, had seen its rating fall to a D last year after taking in about 100 students from two shuttered campuses. But this year, things drastically improved: Not only did Collins land on the state’s list of top-growing schools, boosting its ofﬁcial rating to a C, but its simulated grade was a B — the highest in Coulon’s decade leading the school. She shrieked and cried, then collected herself before making a schoolwide announcement. Finally, the grade reﬂected the school she knows, where educators strive with each lesson, tutoring session and pep talk to push students steadily forward.

“I felt vindicated,” Coulon said. “We work so hard over here, and now it’s showing up in the accountability system.”

For most schools, the simulated scores were a worrying preview of challenges ahead. Hundreds of campuses, including 75% of the state’s high schools, would have earned lower grades under the new rating system than the current one, which ends this year Yet just over 130 public schools, or about 10% of the total, deﬁed the trend. Those campuses, almost all elementary or middle schools, managed to get higher grades under the tougher system.

ä See SCHOOLS, page 5A

BRING ON THE BOIL

State’s residents and restaurants prepare for ‘optimistic’ crawfish season

BY JOANNA BROWN Staff writer

After a moderately dry and warm fall season, crawﬁsh are starting to emerge from their burrows and land in boiling pots across Acadiana.

Todd Fontenot, an LSU AgCenter crawﬁsh extension agent based in Acadia Parish, said he is “optimistic for the season” — although he resists delving into prediction, saying that the lifecycle of these crustaceans is extremely weather-dependent.

“We’re expecting a normal season, barring any adverse weather conditions,” he said. “Last year, we were very fortunate. We had some severe cold, very short-lived, and a record-breaking snow, and fortunately we came out of all that really well. But those kinds of things can change your season, practically overnight.”

Last January, historic blizzard conditions in Louisiana dropped up to 10 inches of snow in the Lafayette area, around 7 inches in Baton Rouge and the highest recorded total of over 13 inches near Grand Coteau.

Fontenot said the anomalous snowfall, stretching across the heart of crawfish country, had little impact on last year’s season, beyond delaying the emergence of some crawﬁsh.

“We were very fortunate that hit when it did,” he said. “Last year our yields were definitely not record-breaking, but much better than the year of the drought.”

During summer 2023, intense heat and extremely low precipitation across the state

During last year’s

area restaurants were pricing a 3-pound platter from $25 to $35 at the end of January.

“We’re expecting a normal season, barring any adverse weather conditions.”

TODD FONTENOT, LSU AgCenter crawfish extension agent

led to $290 million in agricultural losses, according to professors Paul Miller and Matt Hiatt, of the Department of Oceanography & Coastal Science at LSU.

Southwest Louisiana experienced moderate drought conditions again this year in the late summer and fall, but there is little reason for concern regarding the upcoming season, said Fontenot.

ä See CRAWFISH, page 5A

Life spans in La. on the rise

COVID recovery boosts rates, according to federal data

BY EMILY WOODRUFF Staff writer

Life expectancy in Louisiana is rising, rebounding from the deadliest early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new federal data that shows the state still has far to go in catching up to the average life span for the rest of the U.S.

A child born in Louisiana is expected to live 73.8 years, according to a report released Friday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that used data from 2022. That ﬁgure is up 1.6 years from the previous year’s report, outpacing the national average increase of 1.1 years. Despite the gain, Louisiana still ranks 48th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Only Kentucky, Mississippi and West Virginia reported lower life expectancy, according to state life tables released by the National Center for Health Statistics on Thursday The U.S. average is 77.5, and states such as Hawaii, Massachusetts and New Jersey are around 80 years. Thomas LaVeist, dean of the Tulane School of Public Health, said the improvement is good news, even if it may be due to starting at such a low point.

“The states that have had the biggest improvement are the states in the southeast, which are the states that have the worst health proﬁle in the nation,” LaVeist said.

The gains reflect a decline in COVID-19 deaths along with fewer drug overdose deaths, said report authors. Louisiana, as one of the states with higher COVID deaths and soaring overdose deaths, had much lost ground to make up for Still, the gains did not erase long-standing health disadvantages. Louisiana’s life expectancy remains nearly four years lower than the U.S. average and more than six years behind states with the longest life spans.

Men in Louisiana continue to fare worse than women when it comes to life span. In 2022, Louisiana men had a life expectancy of 70.6 years, ranking second to last nationally

Women had an average life expectancy of 77.2 years. The sixand-a-half-year gap between men and women in Louisiana mirrors

See RISE,

GOP senator advocates releasing video of boat strike

Some experts criticize U.S actions near Venezuela

BY BILL BARROW Associated Press

A video of a U.S. military strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean that killed two survivors of the initial attack shows “nothing remarkable,” the Republican who leads the Senate Intelligence Committee said Sunday, and he would not oppose its public release if the Pentagon were to declassify it.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, who backs President Donald Trump’s campaign against suspected drug smugglers, is partially aligning himself with Trump and top Democrats in favor of releasing the video of the Sept.

2 attack. It was the ﬁrst in what has become a monthslong series of American strikes on vessels near Venezuela that the administration says were ferrying drugs. At least 87 people have been killed in 22 known strikes.

But Cotton, among the top lawmakers on national security committees who were briefed Thursday by the Navy admiral

commanding those strikes, is splitting with Democrats over whether military personnel acted lawfully in carrying out a second strike to kill the two survivors. The nine others aboard the boat also were killed.

“I think it’s really important that this video be made public. It’s not lost on anyone, of course, that the interpretation of the video ... broke down precisely on

ä See STRIKE, page 4A

STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

Judge Lionel R. Collins Elementary

Principal Jenenne Coulon walks with second grader Indie Girard at the school in Marrero on Wednesday.

Cotton

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL DUNLAP

Angie Roches pours boiled crawfish into a container at University Seafood on Saturday

The 2026 crawfish season in south Louisiana looks like it will be normal, according to LSU AgCenter crawfish extension agent Todd Fontenot.

FILE PHOTO By LEE BALL

season,

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Bullet-pocked lynching marker goes on display

ATLANTA A historical marker from the site of a 1918 lynching that was repeatedly vandalized in recent years is now safely on display in Atlanta in an exhibit that opens Monday

It memorializes an event that some people in rural southern Georgia have tried hard to erase: the killing of Mary Turner by a White mob that was bent on silencing her after she demanded justice for the lynching of her husband, Hayes Turner, and at least 10 other Black people

Pocked with bullet holes and cracked at its pedestal by an off-road vehicle, the Georgia Historical Society marker reads in part: “Mary Turner, eight months pregnant, was burned, mutilated, and shot to death by a mob after publicly denouncing her husband’s lynching the previous day No charges were ever brought against known or suspected participants in these crimes. From 1880-1930, as many as 550 people were killed in Georgia in these illegal acts of mob violence.”

Now each word damaged by bullets is projected on a wall, and visitors hear those words spoken by some of Turner’s six generations of descendants.

Americans learned about these lynchings in 1918 because they were investigated in the immediate aftermath by Walter White, who founded the Georgia chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and would become an inﬂuential voice for civil rights nationwide. A light-skinned Black man who could pass for White, he interviewed eyewitnesses and provided names of suspects to the governor of Georgia, according to his report in the NAACP’s publication, The Crisis.

Cinnabon worker fired after racist outburst

ASHWAUBENON,Wis.— A Cinnabon worker in Wisconsin has been ﬁred after a racist outburst directed at two customers went viral, the Georgia-based cinnamon roll chain said.

Cinnabon posted a statement on social media that the worker, who it did not identify, was “immediately terminated” by the franchise owner over a “disturbing video” of the incident.

“Their actions and statements are completely unacceptable and in no way reﬂect the values of Cinnabon, our franchisees, or the welcoming environment we expect for every guest and team member,” the company added in a follow-up statement to The Associated Press on Sunday.

The video was posted on TikTok and showed a White, female employee cursing at and taunting the customers from behind the counter as one of them recorded the encounter At one point she is seen on video uttering a racial slur and saying, “I am racist and I’ll say it to the whole entire world. Don’t be disrespectful.”

The employee was also recorded giving an obscene hand gesture to customers and exchanging expletives with one of the people at the store.

Java island zoo releases photos of panda cub

JAKARTA, Indonesia A zoo on Java island released photos of Indonesia’s ﬁrst locally-born giant panda cub, and said the male cub was showing signs of being in good health.

The mother, 15-year-old Hu Chun, gave birth to Satrio Wiratama — nicknamed Rio — on Nov 27 at the zoo’s facility in Cisarua, West Java province

The name symbolizes the hope, resilience and shared commitment of Indonesia and China in protecting endangered species, Taman Safari Indonesia said in a statement Sunday

“This birth is the result of a long-term international cooperation program that has been ongoing for a decade, since the arrival of giant pandas Hu Chun and Cai Tao to Indonesia in 2017 as part of a 10-year conservation partnership with China,” said the statement.

Rio is in stable condition and under 24-hour monitoring by zoo’s team, showing healthy early signs such as strong vocalization, effective nursing and steady weight gain.

Israel: Ceasefire will enter 2nd phase soon

BY MELANIE LIDMAN and KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press

TEL AVIV, Israel Israeli Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel and Hamas are “very shortly expected to move into the second phase of the ceaseﬁre,” after Hamas returns the remains of the last hostage held in Gaza

Netanyahu spoke during a news conference with visiting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and stressed that the second phase, which addresses the disarming of Hamas and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, could begin as soon as the end of the month.

Hamas has yet to hand over the remains of Ran Gvili, a 24-year-old police ofﬁcer who was killed in the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war His body was taken to Gaza.

The ceasefire’s second stage also includes the deployment of an international force to secure Gaza and forming a temporary Palestinian government to run day-to-day affairs under the supervision of an international board led by U.S. President Donald Trump.

A senior Hamas official on Sunday told The Associated Press the group is ready to discuss “freezing or storing or laying down” its weapons as part of the ceasefire in a possible approach to one of the most difficult issues ahead.

Netanyahu said few people believed the ceaseﬁre’s ﬁrst stage could be achieved, and the second phase is just as challenging.

“As I mentioned to the chancellor there’s a third phase, and that is to deradicalize Gaza, something that also people believed was impossible. But it was done in Germany, it was done in Japan, it was done in the Gulf States. It can be done in Gaza, too, but of course Hamas has to be dismantled,” he said.

The return of Gvili’s remains and Israel’s return of 15 bodies of Palestinians in exchange would complete the ﬁrst phase of Trump’s 20-point ceaseﬁre plan.

Hamas says it has not been able to reach all remains because they are buried under rubble left by Israel’s two-year offensive in Gaza. Israel has accused the militants of stalling and threatened to resume mili-

Benin’s leader condemns foiled coup attempt

BY VIRGILE AHISSOU and OPE ADETAYO Associated Press

COTONOU,Benin— Benin President Patrice Talon on Sunday condemned an attempted coup that was foiled by the country’s army in his ﬁrst public comments since sporadic gunﬁre was heard in parts of the administrative capital, Cotonou.

A group of soldiers appeared on Benin’s state TV earlier Sunday to announce the dissolution of the government in an apparent coup which would have been the latest of many in West Africa. The group called itself the Military Committee for Refoundation.

Later, Interior Minister Alassane Seidou announced in a video on Facebook that the attempted coup had been “foiled,” but Talon, whose location was unclear did not comment.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to express my condolences to the victims of this senseless adventure, as well as to those still being held by the fleeing mutineers,” the president said in a televised address to the nation that ended his silence. “I assure them that we will do everything in our power to ﬁnd them safe and sound.”

The coup attempt is the latest in a string of military takeovers and attempt-

tary operations or withhold humanitarian

aid if all remains are not returned.

A group of families of hostages said in a statement that “we cannot advance to the next phase before Ran Gvili returns home.”

Meanwhile, Israeli military Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir on Sunday called the so-called Yellow Line that divides the Israeli-controlled majority of Gaza from the rest of the territory a “new border.”

“We have operational control over extensive parts of the Gaza Strip and we will remain on those defense lines,” Zamir said. “The Yellow Line is a new border line, serving as a forward defensive line for our communities and a line of operational activity.”

Merz said Germany, one of Israel’s closest allies, is assisting with the implementation of the second phase by sending ofﬁcers and diplomats to a U.S.-led civilian and military coordination center in southern Israel, and by sending humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The chancellor also said Germany still believes that a two-state-solution is the best possible option but that “the German federal government remains of the opinion that recognition of a Palestinian state can only come at the end of such a process, not at the beginning.”

The U.S.-drafted plan for Gaza leaves the door open to Palestinian independence. Netanyahu has long asserted that creating a Palestinian state would reward Hamas and eventually lead to an even larger Hamasrun state on Israel’s borders.

Netanyahu also said that while he would like to visit Germany he hasn’t planned a diplomatic trip because he is concerned about an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, the U.N.’s top war crimes court, last year in connection with the war in Gaza.

Merz said there are currently no plans for a visit but he may invite Netanyahu in the future. He added that he is not aware of future sanctions against Israel from the European Union nor any plans to renew German bans on military exports to Israel.

Germany had a temporary ban on exporting military equipment to Israel, which was lifted after the ceaseﬁre began on Oct. 10.

ed takeovers that have rocked West Africa. Last month, a military coup in Guinea-Bissau removed former President Umaro Embalo after a contested election in which both he and the opposition candidate declared themselves winners. Talon did not provide ﬁgures on casualties or hostages in Sunday’s attempted coup.

“In the early morning of Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, a small group of soldiers launched a mutiny to destabilize the state and its institutions,” Seidou said. “Faced with this situation, the Beninese Armed Forces and their leadership, true to their oath, remained committed to the republic.”

The regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, said it ordered the deployment of troops from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Ghana to support Benin’s army to “preserve constitutional order and the territorial integrity of the Republic of Benin.”

ECOWAS earlier called the attempted coup “a subversion of the will of the people of Benin.”

Judge deals setback to DOJ effort to indict Comey again

BY ERIC TUCKER Associated Press

WASHINGTON — A federal judge has dealt a setback to Justice Department efforts to seek a new indictment against former FBI Director James Comey, temporarily barring prosecutors from using evidence they had relied on when they initially secured criminal charges.

The ruling Saturday night from U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly does not preclude the department from trying again soon to indict Comey, but it does suggest prosecutors may have to do so without citing communications between Comey and a close friend, Columbia University law professor Daniel Richman. Comey was charged in September with lying to Congress when he denied having authorized an associatetoserveasananonymous source for media coverage about the FBI. In pursuing the case, prosecutors cited messages between Comey and Richman that they said showed Comey approving of Richman interacting with journalists for certain FBIrelated coverage.

The case was dismissed last month after a different federal judge ruled that the prosecutor who ﬁled the charges, Lindsey Halligan, was unlawfully appointed by the Trump administration. But that ruling left open the possibility that the government could try again to seek charges against Comey, a longtime foe of President Donald Trump. Comey has pleaded not guilty, denied having made a false statement and accused the Justice Department of a vindictive prosecution After the case was thrown out, lawyers for Richman sought a court order to bar prosecutors from continued access to his computer ﬁles, which the Justice Department obtained through search warrants in 2019 and 2020 as part of a media leak investigation that was later

closed without charges. Officials searched the files for communications between Comey and Richman they could use to build the case against Comey But Richman and his lawyers say prosecutors exceeded the scope of the warrants, illegally held onto communications they should have destroyed or returned, and conducted new, warrantless searches of the data.

Kollar-Kotelly on Saturday night granted Richman’s request for a temporary restraining order, instructing the department “not to access the covered materials once they are identified, segregated, and secured, or to share, disseminate, or disclose the covered materials to any person, without ﬁrst seeking and obtaining leave of this Court.” She gave the Justice Department until Monday afternoon to certify that it is in compliance with the order She said her order would remain in effect through this coming Friday, “or until dissolved by further order of this Court, whichever comes ﬁrst.”

“Petitioner Richman has also shown that, absent an injunction, he will be irreparably harmed by the ongoing violation of his Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable seizures arising from the Government’s continuing retention of the image of his computer and related materials,” she wrote in granting Richman’s request. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment Sunday on the ruling and what it meant for revived charges against Comey It is not clear that the Justice Department could secure new charges against Comey even if it could rely on Richman’s communications. Comey’s lawyers have said the statute of limitations on such a case — the congressional testimony at issue was given on Sept. 30, 2020, or more than ﬁve years ago has expired.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ABDEL KAREEM HANA

Palestinians walk Saturday through the destruction left by the Israeli air and ground offensive in Jabaliya, northern Gaza Strip.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO Soldiers ride in a military vehicle Sunday along a street amid an attempted coup in Cotonou, Benin.

Democratic governors: Focusonvoters’

BY JONATHAN J. COOPER Associated Press

PHOENIX Democraticgovernors met this weekend in Arizona,looking to parlay last month’sbig victories for the party in New Jersey and Virginia into campaigns for next year’smidterms, when amajority of governor’sseats will be up for election.

Those elections helped Democrats zero in on what theysee as astrategy to help grow their ranks in office and recover from big losses in 2024, whenvoters put Donald Trumpback in the White House and gave Republicans majoritiesin both houses of Congress.

The plan is to focusintently on making life more affordable, amessage they hope will work even in some conservative-leaning states.

“Wehave to be laser focused on people’severyday concerns and how hard life is right now for the American people,” said Kentucky Gov.Andy Beshear,the new chairman of the Democratic Governors Association and apossible candidate for president in 2028. “Everybodywants the economy of tomorrow,but paying the bills todayisabsolutely critical.”

He and other governors said Democrats can use the affordability message as a cudgel against Trump without making him the central focus of their campaigns.

“Yes, we can judge apresident, and we should judge this president,” Beshear said. “But we neverjudge those voters.”

STRIKE

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party lines,” said Connecticut Rep.Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee. He said he has spent“years looking at videos of lethal action taken, often in the terrorism context,and this video was profoundly shaking.”

When Trump was asked Wednesday whether he would release the video of thatfollow-on strike, he told reporters, “I don’tknow what they have, but whatevertheyhave we’d certainly release. No problem.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in aFox News interview Saturday at the Ronald ReaganPresidential Library in California that ofﬁcials were reviewing the video. “Whatever we were to decide to release, we’d have to be very responsible” about it.

“That boat was still avalid target,” Cotton said, arguing that releasing the video would prove that the two

RISE

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The meeting of Democratic governors comes as blue states have been under ﬁrefrom the Trumpadministration, which isexercising powerinnovel ways against thepresident’sperceived enemies.

Trump hasdeployed the NationalGuard in California, Oregon and Illinois over theobjectionsoftheir Democratic governors.His administration hasdemanded detailed voter dataand threatened to cut off food assistance for states that don’tprovide information to supporthis immigration crackdown Headingintoaprimary season in which factions will battle over thefuture of the party, Democratic governors largely sang from the same sheet over the weekend. Adozen can-

survivors of the initial strike remained athreat

“It’snot gruesome. Ididn’t find it distressing or disturbing,” he said, explaining why he does not have a problem with releasing all thefootage. “It looks like any number of dozens of strikes we’ve seen on jeeps andpickup trucks in theMiddle East over theyears.”He added that“there’s nothing remarkable on that video, in my opinion.”

didates andsitting governors all said theyplan to talk extensively aboutthe costs of housing, child care, utilitiesand groceriesduring Trump’ssecondterm. But the unified focus on affordability papers over real divisions in the party’s ranks over howaggressively to confrontTrump, who won all of the presidential battleground states last year,and how to deal with the rising costs that are squeezing Americans.

On thesame dayDemocratic moderates with national security credentials, Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey andAbigail Spanberger in Virginia, won their governor’sraces,Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani wonelectionasNew York mayor.All ran on promises to tackle affordability, but

lation of the laws of military warfare.

The classiﬁed sessions on Capitol Hill came after The WashingtonPost reported that Adm. Frank “Mitch”Bradley had ordered a follow-on attack that killed those survivors, to comply with Hegseth’sdemands. Bradleytold lawmakers there was no “kill themall” orderfrom Hegseth, but avideoofthe entire series of attacksleft somelawmakers with serious questions. Legal experts have said killing survivors of astrikeat seacould be avio-

Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the top Democrat on the House ArmedServices Committee, and Himes are amongthose who have seen thevideo and they disputedCotton’s characterization. “I have no doubt that these guys were involved in the running of drugs. Butinthatinstance, these guys were abouttodie,” Himes said.

Smith added: “It did not appear that thesetwo survivors were in anyposition to continue the ﬁght.”

Himes said lawmakers are aware of the partisandivide

Some legal experts have disputedthatthe United States is in an ofﬁcialarmed conflictwith Venezuela, raising questionsabout the legalitiesofusing American military personnelfor what wouldamount to law enforcement activitiesthat require due process. Other

they offered very different visions for howtodeliver.

The affordabilitystrategy isn’twithout risk. Economic conditions could change, making concerns about prices less salient or urgent.

AndDemocrats could be setting themselves up for disappointmentdown the road if they winin2026 but are unable to bring down costs to voters’ satisfaction,allowing Republicans to capitalizeonthe same buyer’sremorse Democrats are nowseeking to stoke.

ForDemocratic incumbents seeking reelection, theycan’trest on ﬁghting the Trump administration, said two-term Democratic Gov.Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico. They need to show results.

“Deliver for me. But don’t

experts have said that, regardless of theterms of engagement, international law does notallow further attacks on defenseless survivors of aprevious attack. Speciﬁcally,Pentagon protocolssay that ﬁring uponthe shipwrecked is illegal.

There have been questions and criticism of the mission raisedbylawmakers from both partiesonCapitolHill, with inquiriesongoing. Bradleytold lawmakers

forget to ﬁght this,” said Lujan Grisham, who is barred by term limits from seeking reelection. “They do want both, and finding ways to crosscutthose andmarry thatIthink is going to be a winning set of messages.”

Afterthe NewJersey andVirginia elections last month, theWhiteHouse began shifting its message to focusmore on affordability.Trump, whohas not done muchdomestic travel during his second term, is scheduledtovisitPennsylvania on Tuesdaytohighlight his efforts to reduce inﬂation.

Thepresident has talked more aboutaffordability recently, andhereduced tariffs on beef and other commoditiesthatconsumers say cost too much. But Trump also hassaidthe economy is betterand consumerpriceslower thanreported by the media.

“The word affordability is aDemocrat scam,” he said during aCabinet meeting last week.

He continues to blame his Democratic predecessor, formerPresident Joe Biden, for the increase nationwide in inflation rates that occurred this year after his return to the White House. Overall, inﬂation is tracking at 3% annually,up from 2.3% in April when Trumprolled outa sweeping set of import taxes.

Treasury SecretaryScott Bessent on Sunday said the administration will be intent on reducing inﬂation, after tackling immigration and pushing to have interest rates cut.

“I expect inﬂation to roll down strongly next year,” he saidonCBS’s “Face the Nation.”

Democratic governors and candidates were largely aligned in the conclusion

in aclosed session that he ordered the second attack on the wreckage of aboat that wascarrying cocaine because it was believed that bales of the drug were still in thehull of theboat.

Cotton saidSundaythat two ﬁnal victimswere “not in ashipwrecked state”or “floating helplessly in the water” butinstead were “sitting or standing on topofa capsized boat.” Because they were“notincapacitated,” he

that many voters in 2024 didn’tfeel as if their party was focused on their concerns or shared their anger at asystem they believe is failing average Americans.

“I think if there was any failure in the presidential election, it’sweforgot what real people care about,” said Oregon Gov.Tina Kotek,who is expectedto seek asecond termnext year

“We’vegot to listen to people,” said Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta who is running for Georgia governor

Once Spanberger takes officeinJanuary,Democratswill control24governor’soffices, asignificant improvement from the low point of just 16 following the 2016 election but still slightly behind the Republicans’ 26 seats.

Thirty-six states will hold elections for governor next year

Among the hardest-fought contests will be in swing states that ﬂipped between supporting Biden in 2020 and Trump in 2024. Those include Arizona, where DemocraticGov.Katie Hobbs is seeking asecond term,and Nevada,where Republican Gov.Joe Lombardo is up forreelection. Wisconsin, Michigan and Georgia all have open seats that are widely expected to attract alarge ﬁeld of candidates and big spending.

Theretirement of Democratic Gov.Laura Kelly in Kansas, an overwhelmingly Republican state in presidentialcontests,givesthe GOP the upper hand there. But Democrats are talking about expanding the field by competinginstatessuch as Iowa or Ohio,where the party used to be competitive but has struggled in the Trump era.

said, “that boat, its cargo remained valid targets.” Smith, who sawthe same video, said, “The boat was clearlyincapacitated.Atiny portion of it remained capsized, the bow of the boat. Theyhad no communications device.Certainly,they wereunarmed.”

Cotton was on NBC’s “Meet thePress,” Smithwas on ABC’s“This Week” and Himes appeared on CBS’ “Face theNation.”

broader patterns in the South tied to higher rates of chronic disease,injuries, violence and preventable deaths among men. Men in states like Louisiana tend to work jobs with more health risks, said LaVeist, like manufacturing, oil reﬁnery jobs andagricultural positions. Overall, higher rates of poverty seem to shape how long residentslive, said LaVeist, pointing out that thestates at the bottom of the list are the poorest.

The gains seen in 2022 represent arebound rather than an upwardtrajectory Life expectancy fell in Louisianaduring the height of thepandemic, from almost 76 yearsin2019 to 72 yearsin2021.

Email Emily Woodruff at ewoodruff@theadvocate.com

Trump

Hegseth

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By REBECCA

SCHOOLS

One likely reason is that the schools excel at catching up students who start behind. The new rating system rewards that by putting much more weight on growth, or how much students’ test scores improve each year while deemphasizing proficiency, or the share of students who met grade-level targets.

Focusing on proficiency can penalize schools that serve more economically disadvantaged students, whom research shows often enter school below grade level, said Douglas Harris, a Tulane University economist who studies education. By contrast, growth accounts for students’ different starting points by emphasizing progress over ﬁnal scores.

“Schools don’t control where students are on the ﬁrst day of school,” Harris said in an email, “but they do control what students learn and how they grow So, we should reward them for that.”

Rewarding progress

The state’s new rating system, which will be used to calculate school grades next fall, puts a premium on such growth.

Students’ year-over-year improvement on state tests will count for 54% of each K-8 school’s grade, more than double its weight under the current system. Proficiency will make up 46% of each elementary school’s grade, down from 70%.

“We see elementary schools that are doing really good work and they’re growing kids, but they previously haven’t received the letter grade recognition that they probably deserve,” said state Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley “Now, they’re ﬁnally going to be honored.” Schools will also be graded on how many of their lowest-performing students improve each year That

metric aims to focus educators’ attention on the most struggling students, not just those who are closest to reaching mastery the third of five achievement levels in the state’s system and the point at which state leaders consider a child fully prepared for the next grade level.

Jeff Powell, superintendent of the Rapides Parish school district, said he appreciates that the new expectations have come with support. For example, Brumley and the state Education Department launched a program, which the Legislature funded, to provide struggling students with intensive tutoring.

“That hurt,” said Principal Janitra Underwood. “I knew the work we were doing to get where we needed to be.”

In her four years at the school’s helm, she’s pushed her staff to closely track student data, provide extra help to struggling students and reward student growth. To celebrate reading gains, the school gave out ice cream sandwiches that students could slather with chocolate syrup, gummy bears and other toppings.

tor Still others work with tutors over video.

“That’s where our growth comes from,” Coulon said of the daily personalizedsupport period. “I can tell you that.”

The school’s growth numbers are striking, especially in math. Nearly 70% of students improved their scores this year, almost 30 percentage points more than the share of students statewide who made math gains.

“We really haven’t gotten rain till now, and the main problem with that is it was more costly for producers to flood their ponds initially, because the ground was so dry,” Fontenot said.

“It might slow down some early production a bit, but in most cases, we’re seeing a lot of young emerging crawﬁsh.”

Restaurants like The Cajun Table in Lafayette and the Blues Man Seafood and Catering drive-thru in Broussard are selling boiled crawﬁsh at $35 for 3 pounds. During last year’s season, area restaurants were pricing a 3-pound platter from $25 to $35 at the end of January

Many crawfish producers across the region also

grow rice, relying on both crops to make a good year. Those producers are hoping to have a strong season this year to make up for challenges in the rice market, said Fontenot, who works closely with area farmers to check on the health of their ponds.

“The price of rice is terrible right now, and those producers are really relying on their crawfish to provide,” he said. “We’re definitely hoping for a good season for them. That was the really good thing about last year — crawfish were reasonably priced for the consumer, but there was enough production that it was good for the farmers. I hope that’s what we’ll see again, because that’s what makes for a great season.”

Email Joanna Brown at joanna.brown@ theadvocate.com.

“What we’re seeing is law policy and resources converging to get the desired outcomes,” he said Rapides Parish is poised to do well under the new system, with 13 of its schools getting higher simulated grades than ofﬁcial ones this year — more than any other district. Powell said there’s no “secret sauce” for nurturing student growth, but an essential ingredient is highly skilled and motivated educators.

“This is the result of a lot of teachers doing a lot of really hard, good work,” he said.

One school’s turnaround

The revised rating system has revealed the hidden strength of schools like Shady Grove Elementary Based in Monroe, where the share of children living in poverty is nearly four times the national rate, Shady Grove serves an especially high-need population. Many of its students start far behind academically, making proficiency — defined as scoring at the “mastery” level or above on state tests — a high bar to reach

Under the current accountability system, in which proﬁciency rates drive elementary schools’ grades, Shady Grove earned F’s the past two years.

This year, the hard work ﬁnally paid off. Shady Grove improved its score by more points than any other school in the state, raising its grade to a D. Its simulated grade, generated by the new growth-driven rating system, jumped to a C.

Though its proficiency rates remain far below state averages, with just 19% of students reaching mastery or above in English and 11% doing so in math, its growth rate is exceptionally high. Two-thirds of students made gains in English last school year and nearly 60% did in math, far outpacing the state’s growth rate.

“Every student can grow,” Underwood said, “and we can do our part to grow them.”

Helping students soar

At Collins Elementary in Marrero, Principal Coulon has a two-pronged strategy to help every student soar

First, teachers stick to grade-level material during core classes like English and math, rather than slowing down to reteach concepts that some students missed Second, the school devotes an hour every day to specialized support to help stragglers catch up and push topachievers further

During that time, students are divided into groups. Some get lessons from the classroom teacher to fill gaps in their learning. Others get individual support from different staffers, like the school’s master teacher or English language instruc-

Coulon said she’s especially gratiﬁed by the gains because she promised “to leave these students in a better place” before she retires, which she expects to do soon. The progress also afﬁrms her belief that every student can succeed with the right support.

“Once you give them the opportunity to excel and grow,” she said, “they’re going to take off.”

Email Patrick Wall at patrick.wall@theadvocate. com.

Judge Lionel R. Collins Elementary School Assistant Principal Jennifer Dykes

math class at the school in Marrero on Wednesday.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL DUNLAP Angie Roches

Records offer details on N.O. immigration crackdown

BY JIM MUSTIAN and JACK BROOK Associated Press

State and federal authorities are closely tracking online criticism and protests against the immigration crackdown in New Orleans, monitoring message boards around the clock for threats to agents while compiling regular updates on public “sentiment” surrounding the arrests, according to law enforcement records reviewed by The Associated Press.

The intelligence gathering comes even as officials have released few details about the first arrests made last week as part of “Catahoula Crunch,” prompting calls for greater transparency from local officials who say they’ve been kept in the dark about virtually every aspect of the operation

“Online opinions still remain mixed, with some supporting the operations while others are against them,” said a brieﬁng circulated early Sunday to law enforcement. Earlier bulletins noted “a combination of groups urging the public to record ICE and Border Patrol” as well as “additional locations where agents can ﬁnd immigrants.”

Immigration authorities have insisted the sweeps are targeted at “criminal illegal aliens.” But the law enforcement records detail criminal histories for less than a third of the 38 people arrested in the ﬁrst two days of the operation

Local leaders told the AP those numbers — which law enforcement officials were admonished not to distribute to the media undermined the stated aim of the roundup They also expressed concern that the online surveillance could chill free speech as authorities threaten to charge anyone interfering with immigration enforcement.

“It confirms what we already knew — this was not about public safety, it’s about stoking chaos and fear and terrorizing communi-

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agents question occupants of a vehicle they pulled over Friday during an immigration crackdown in Kenner

ties,” said state Sen. Royce Duplessis, a Democrat who represents New Orleans “It’s furthering a sick narrative of stereotypes that immigrants are violent.”

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not respond to questions about the intelligence gathering and referred the AP to a prior news release touting “dozens of arrests.” The agency has not released an accounting of the detainees taken into custody or their criminal histories.

DHS has publicly detailed only six arrests stemming from the operation all people with criminal histories — including a man they vaguely said was convicted of “homicide” and another convicted of sexual assault. The agency, which has several hundred agents on the ground in southeast Louisiana, has said it aims to make at least 5,000 arrests in the region over an operation expected to last up to two months.

“Americans should be able to live

without fear of violent criminal illegal aliens harming them, their families or their neighbors,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said.

DHS and Republican leaders have framed the crackdown as targeting the most violent offenders. But the records reviewed by the AP identify only nine of the 38 people arrested in the ﬁrst days as having criminal histories that rose beyond trafﬁc violations — information the intelligence bulletins warn “should not be distributed to the media.”

New Orleans City Council President J.P Morrell said the stated goals of the operation to arrest violent offenders did not align with the reality of what is taking place.

“There’s literally no information being given to the city of New Orleans whatsoever,” Morrell said. “If the goal was for them to come here and augment existing law enforcement, to pursue violent criminals or people with extensive

criminal histories, why wouldn’t you be more transparent about who you’ve arrested and why?”

Morrell and other ofﬁcials have said the crackdown appears to be a dragnet focused on people with brown skin, citing viral videos of encounters such as masked agents chasing a 23-year-old U.S. citizen returning home from the grocery store.

Law enforcement ofﬁcials have been carefully tracking such footage and public reaction “For some supporters, the videos with sounds of children crying in the background as their parents are placed under arrest, is weighing heavy on their hearts,” one brieﬁng stated.

The records also shed new light on cooperation among state and federal authorities in an operation welcomed by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry Both the FBI and Customs and Border Protection have stationed agents at the Louisiana State Analytical and Fusion Exchange, an intelligence and data sharing center that is closely following discussions on the online forum Reddit that local residents have used to exchange information about the immigration raids.

One briefing noted that some “have gone so far as to accuse agents of racially profiling Hispanic areas speciﬁcally.” Another ﬂagged social media posts suggesting agents “are not keeping with the mission of targeting criminal immigrants only.” And a third pointed out that critics of the raids “bring up past hurricanes and the work done by immigrants” in their aftermath.

“The chatter is slower during the night, mainly just commenting on posts from earlier in the day,” one of the brieﬁngs states. “Once daylight arrives and agencies are back out, the chatter and new posts will pick back up.”

The briefings have identified no threats to law enforcement, but the fusion center has sought to debunk what it called false re-

ports that a pedestrian was fatally struck by law enforcement. “It has been conﬁrmed that this actually did not occur,” the center told law enforcement on Saturday

One brieﬁng described an incident involving “suspicious persons/protesters” who showed up early Saturday at an ICE facility in St Charles Parish, where records show the detainees were expected to be processed.

Some local ofﬁcials said they had been unaware of the state’s role in the online monitoring. Louisiana State Police pledged “operational support” to immigration authorities and warned the public that troopers will arrest anyone who assaults a federal agent or causes criminal damage to property

“The Louisiana State Police remains vigilant in monitoring social media activity related to protests, activism and other forms of public response,” Trooper Danny Berrincha, a state police spokesperson, wrote in an email to the AP. “Through the LSP Fusion Center, we actively track developments and facilitate the sharing of information and communication among our partner agencies.”

The fusion center also has tracked the tools used by protesters to foil federal immigration enforcement, highlighting social media links to whistle handouts, trainings on ﬁlming federal agents and the emergence of a hotline for reporting arrests The surveillance extended to activist discussions about immigration authorities’ presence near an elementary school and recapped demonstrations inside the New Orleans City Council chambers and elsewhere.

“They can monitor me all they want,” said Rachel Taber, an organizer with the New Orleans-based grassroots advocacy group Union Migrante, which shares crowdsourced reports and videos of the federal immigration enforcement operations. “We are not doing anything illegal.”

BY SUSIE BLANN Associated Press

KYIV, Ukraine — President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

“isn’t ready” to sign off on a U.S-authored peace proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war Trump was critical of Zelenskyy after U.S and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences on the U.S. administration’s proposal. But in an exchange with reporters on Sunday night, Trump suggested that the Ukrainian leader is holding up the talks from moving forward.

“I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelenskyy hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn’t,” Trump claimed in an exchange with reporters before taking part in the Kennedy Center Honors. The president added, “Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelenskyy’s ﬁne with it. His people love it. But he isn’t

ready.”

To be certain, Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn’t publicly expressed approval for the White House plan. In fact, Putin last week had said that aspects of Trump’s proposal were unworkable, even though the original draft heavily favored Moscow Trump has had a hot-andcold relationship with Zelenskyy since riding into a second White House term insisting that the war was a waste of U.S. taxpayer money Trump has also repeatedly urged the Ukrainians to cede land to Russia to bring an end to a now nearly fouryear conﬂict he says has cost far too many lives.

Zelenskyy said Saturday he had a “substantive phone call” with the American ofﬁcials engaged in the talks with a Ukrainian delegation in Florida. He said he had been given an update over the phone by U.S. and Ukrainian ofﬁcials at the talks.

“Ukraine is determined to keep working in good faith with the American side to genuinely achieve peace,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media.

Trump’s criticism of Zelenskyy came as Russia on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy in comments by the Kremlin spokesman published by Russia’s Tass news agency Dmitry Peskov said the updated strategic document, which spells out the administration’s core foreign policy interests, was largely in line with Moscow’s vision.

“There are statements there against confrontation and in favor of dialogue and building good relations,” he said, adding that Russia hopes this would lead to “further constructive cooperation with Washington on the Ukrainian settlement.”

The document released Friday by the White House said the U.S. wants to improve its relationship with Russia after years of Moscow being treated as a global pariah and that ending the war is a core U.S. interest to “reestablish strategic stability with Russia.”

Speaking on Saturday at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Trump’s outgoing Ukraine envoy, Keith

Kellogg, said efforts to end the war were in “the last 10 meters.”

He said a deal depended on the two outstanding issues

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GERALD HERBERT

Diocese exempts faithful amid sweeps METRO NEWS

BY AIDAN McCAHILL Staff writer

The Catholic Diocese of Baton Rouge has announced that Catholics affected by ongoing immigration enforcement activity will not be required to attend Mass.

The announcement read Sunday during Mass across the Baton Rouge Diocese, comes the ﬁrst week after federal authorities began immigration sweeps across south Louisiana. As many as 250 Border Patrol agents are planning to detain at least 5,000 people in the New Orleans area, and into Baton Rouge and Mississippi

“Since many of the faithful genuinely fear immigration enforcement actions, thereby making it untenable for them to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation, I hereby grant a dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass for those Catholics rightfully afraid to participate in Mass because of their fear,” Bishop Michael Duca wrote.

A dispensation is an exemption from canon law granted by church authority during a speciﬁc time of hardship

The statement also encourages those accepting the dispensation to maintain their spiritual practice at home during holy days by gathering with family for prayer. Duca suggested daily Mass readings, praying the rosary or reciting a novena for intercessory protection as suitable spiritual alternatives to Mass.

“These expulsions are affecting not only our Catholic Hispanic brothers and sisters but also refugees and immigrants of all denominations from other nations who form the rich tapestry of our local communities. These are our neighbors, coworkers, and parishioners,” the statement adds.

Dozens of people appear to have been detained so far as part of the New Orleans operation, which began Wednesday, though it’s unclear if any have been arrested in Baton Rouge. The diocese’s letter was published less than a month after the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a special message condemning such deportations and opposing what it describes as inhumane treatment of immigrants.

Gregory Aymond, archbishop of New Orleans, also released a similar statement Thursday And Pope Leo XIV has publicly criticized the U.S. immigration crackdown. Both the U.S. Conference and the Baton Rouge statements describe national security and protection of human dignity as not mutually exclusive, and both advocate for immigration reform.

“But for now, let us pray for those immediately affected, especially during this Advent season — a time in which we should be anticipating the joy of Christmas, surrounded by our family in celebration, instead of the experience of anxiety and fear,” Duca wrote. “As Pope Leo XIV reminds us, ‘God has a special place in his heart for those who are discriminated against and oppressed, and he asks us, his Church, to make a decisive and radical choice in favor of the weakest.’”

TOP: Members of the Grifﬁn family sit with Papa Noel, Stan Guidry, at the Rural Life Christmas at the LSU Rural Life Museum on Sunday in Baton Rouge.

ABOVE: Volunteers dressed in vintage clothing play checkers on a bench.

RIGHT: Frances Vidrine makes a candle with help from volunteer Maggie Babcock.

New federal ban could upend Louisiana hemp industry

everything.

That threat had Dwayne Dugas, owner of Blue Basin Canna, focused on his television as lawmakers in Washington sought to end the federal shutdown.

tions, businesses that rely on lowlevel THC or alternative cannabinoids will now be federally illegal once the law goes into effect.

nabidiol, is a nonintoxicating compound produced by hemp plants.

BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL Staff writer

Part of the federal spending bill that ended a historic government shutdown could also put an end to hemp-derived THC products in Louisiana.

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized industrial hemp and created a loophole that effectively legalized the psychoactive chemical THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, found in the plant. The bill led to a burgeoning industry in Louisiana producing edibles, drinks and tinctures, with some companies based in Lafayette Parish. A new federal ban is expected to take effect in the next 12 months, and if nothing changes from now those businesses say they could lose

Law lowers amount of THC in products LOTTERY SATURDAY, DEC. 6, 2025

“It became a daily job for me,” Dugas said. “Pretty much glued to the TV emailing people, making social media posts for everybody to email and call their congressman.”

Currently, state law caps products at 5 milligrams of THC per item, with retailers only allowed to sell gummies in packs of eight.

The new federal law would prevent the sale of intoxicating hempderived and hemp-based products and would limit total THC per container to 0.4 milligrams. It would limit THC content to no more than 0.3% on a dry-weight basis.

The new law would not impact the 20 states that allow recreational use of marijuana or the 40 states, including Louisiana, that allow marijuana use for medical purposes. However, under the new limita-

The state industry, which is about 5 years old, had sales last year of about $33 million, generating about $4.3 million in tax revenues in Louisiana, according to the Louisiana Hemp Association.

If the law goes into effect, it will come at a steep cost for Dugas, who said he used his entire life savings to keep his company afloat when Louisiana, one of the most regulated states in the U.S., tightened the screws on hemp-derived THC products.

“I’m kicked in the face again. The state’s been doing it for four years, and now the federal government,” Dugas said.

The ban has Blaine Jennings, owner of Lafayette-based Virgin Hemp Farms, worried as well. While Jennings also sells CBD products, he said around 95% of his sales come from THC products. CBD, or can-

A ban on hemp-derived THC would likely leave him with no option but to shut down his business and deal with the debt he took on to start it.

“It’ll be a huge kick in the gut to all of these business owners that have invested, sometimes everything, just for the opportunity,” Jennings said. “And they gave us the opportunity in the beginning, and people jumped in with all these hopes.”

Both Dugas and Jennings agreed that the industry needs better regulation, from increasing the legal age to purchase to 21, truth in labeling, childproof packaging and maximum THC limits.

The federal government, slowly but surely is posturing that one day marijuana will be legal, Jennings said. Why wouldn’t it use hempderived THC as a sort of regulatory testing ground? he asked.

“I think Louisiana is actually the bellwether state in this situation be-

cause we are one of the most-regulated states with industrial hemp,” Jennings said.

The hemp THC industry provides jobs and helps people, Dugas said. His clientele is mostly older people and those suffering from painful medical conditions like cancer

When his clientele heard about the ban, many called Dugas to ask whether they’d be able to “get their medicine,” he said.

STAFF PHOTOS By MICHAEL JOHNSON

MENGSHINLIN

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTO By

WorldWar II veteransand government officialssalute Sundayduring the 84thPearl Harbor Remembrance DayceremonyinHonolulu

12 survivorslefttomark PearlHarborbombing

People turn to otherways to learnabout theattack

BY AUDREY MCAVOY Associated Press

HONOLULU Survivors of the 1941 Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor have long been the center of aremembranceceremony held each year on the military base’s waterfront.

But today only 12 are still alive— all centenarians— and this yearnonewere abletomake the pilgrimage to Hawaii to mark the event

Sunday

That means no one who attended had ﬁrsthand memories of serving during the attack, which killedmore than 2,300 troops andcatapulted theU.S.intoWorld WarII. The developmentis not asurprise and is an evolution of an ongoing trend. As survivors fade, their descendants and the public are increasingly turning to other ways of learning about the bombing.

“The idea of not havinga survivor there for the ﬁrst time —Ijust, Idon’tknow —ithurt my heartina way Ican’tdescribe,” said Kimberlee Heinrichs, whose 105-year-oldfather Ira “Ike” Schabhad to cancel planstoﬂyinfrom Oregon after falling ill

Survivors have been present every year in recent memory except for 2020, when the Navy and the National Park Service closed the observance to the general public because of coronaviruspandemic health risks.

The ceremony began with amomentofsilence at 7:55 a.m. local, the same time the attack began on Dec. 7, 1941. Solemn rituals followed.

Fighter jets flew overhead in “missing man formation,” in which one jet peels off to symbolizethose lost. Survivors typically present wreaths to honor the dead, though active duty troops have assumed this job in recent years. Survivors also would rise to salute active duty sailors who themselves salute as theirshippasses theUSS Arizona Memorial, which sits above submerged hull of the battleship sunk in the attack.

About 2,000survivorsattendedthe 50th anniversary event in 1991. Afew dozen have showed in recent decades. Last year,only two made it. That is out of an estimated 87,000 troops stationed on Oahu that day

Many survivors werejovial despite the occasion, happy to catch up with old friends and posefor photographs. Even so, harrowing recollections wereseldom far from their minds.

In 2023, Harry Chandler gazed across the water while telling an Associated Press reporterhow hewas raising theﬂag at amobile hospital in the hills above the base when he saw Japanese planes ﬂy in and drop bombs.Chandlerand his fellow Navyhospital corpsmen jumped in trucks to helpthe injured.

He spokeofseeingthe Arizona explode, and of hearing sailors trapped on thecapsized USS Oklahoma desperatelytapping on their ship’shull to summonrescue. He helped care for Oklahoma sailors after crews cutholes in thebattleship.

“I can still see what was happening,” Chandler said. He died the next yearata senior living center inTequesta, Florida.

The bombing haslong held different meanings for different people, thehistorian Emily S. Rosenberg wrote in herbook“ADate WhichWill Live: Pearl HarborinAmerican Memory.”

Some sayithighlightsthe needfor awell-prepared military anda vigilant foreign policy.Tosome it evokes then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt administration’s“ineptitude or deceit” andthe unfair scapegoating of themilitary.Others focusonthe “treachery” of Japan or the heroicacts of individual troops, shewrote.

Askedwhat he wanted Americans to know about Pearl Harbor,Chandler said: “Be prepared.”

“Weshouldhave known that was going to happen. The intelligencehas to be better,” he said.

Lou Conter,who was Arizona’slast living survivor whenhedied last yearat 102,toldthe AP in 2019he likedtoattendtorememberthose who lost their lives.

“It’salways good to come back and pay respect to them andgivethem the top

honors that they deserve,” Conter said.

Heinrichs’fatherhas been six times since2016. The former tuba player on the USS Dobbin likes to go not only toremember those killed but also in place of his latebandmates; his three brothers who fought in World WarII; and the now-deceased PearlHarbor survivors he has met.

Retired National Park ServicePearl Harborhistorian Daniel Martinez said the circumstances resemble the early 20th century when Civil Warveterans were dying in increasing numbers. Awareness grew that soon they wouldn’tbe able to share theirstories of Gettysburg and other battles,hesaid.

Martinez knewsomething similar could happen with Pearl Harbor survivors and recorded their oral histories. During a1998 convention, he conductedinterviews 12 hours aday for three days. The Park Service today has nearly 800 interviews, mostonvideo.

“They remain as apart of thenational memoryofa daythatchangedAmerica andchangedthe world,” Martinez said.

TheParkService shows some in itsPearl Harbor museum and aims to includemoreafter renovations, saidDavid Kilton, theagency’sPearl Harbor interpretation, education and visitor services lead.

TheLibrary of Congress hascollectionsfrom 535 Pearl Harbor survivors, including interviews, letters, photos and diaries. Over80% areonline. They are part of thelibrary’s Veterans History Project of firsthandrecollections of veterans who servedin WorldWar Ionward. Many wererecorded by relatives, Eagle Scouts and other amateurs interested in documentinghistory

The Sons and Daughters of PearlHarborSurvivors givespresentations in schoolsand marchesin parades to share thestories of their families. TheCalifornia chapterhas added six new membersthis year, includingtwo great-grandchildren of survivors.

“Whenthey’reall gone, we’re still going tobe here,” saidDeidre Kelley, thegroup’spresident.“And it’sour intent to keep the memory alive as long as we’re alive.”

Fire at nightclubinIndia kills25

By The Associated Press

NEW DELHI Afire ripped through apopular nightclub in India’sGoa state, killing 25 people, including tourists, the state’schief minister said Sunday The blaze occurred just past midnight in Arpora village in North Goa, aparty hub, some 15-miles from the state capital, Panaji. Goa’sChief Minister Pramod Sawant said most of the dead were the club’s kitchen workers, as well as three to four tourists. Six people were injured and are in stable condition,hesaid. All the bodies have been recovered. The fire was caused by agas cylinder blast and has been extinguished, the Press Trust of India news agency reported,quoting local police. However,witnessestoldthe agency that the firebegan on the club’s first floor,where nearly 100 tourists were on the dance floor.Several rushed to the kitchen below in thechaos and got trapped along with staff, it said. Fatima Shaikh said the commotion began asflames erupted,according to the news agency.“We rushed outofthe club onlytosee that the entire structure

was up in ﬂames,” she said. The nightclub, located along the Arpora River backwaters, hada narrow entryand exit that forced the firefighters to park theirtankers about1,300 feet away,delaying the efforts, the news agency said. Sawant saidthe club had violated ﬁresafety regulations. The state government ordered an inquiry to determinethe exact cause of the fire and responsibility, he said, adding that authorities would act against the club management andofficials who allowed it to operate despitethe violations.

Funerals Today

Daigle,Carolyn WilbertFuneral Home,24120 RailroadAvenue in Plaquemine, at 11 a.m.

Easterly,Irma Wilson Community Church in Wilson at noon. Grim, Henry Saintsville COGIC, 8930 PlankRd. BatonRouge,LAat11am.

TrusclairSr.,Donald Hall'sCelebrationCenter, 9348 Scenic Highway,at11a.m

Vicknair Sr., Donald ResthavenFuneral Home,11817 JeffersonHighway,at11a.m

Obituaries Davis, HenryAllen

Henry AllenDavis Sr., "Allen",born on January7, 1944, in Port Arthur, TX, passed away on December 4, 2025, in Baton Rouge, LA, at theage of 81.

Allengraduated from IstroumaHighSchool in 1963 before serving in the UnitedStatesAir Force;He retired fromSyngentaafter30years of service. He enjoyed family time, camping,LSU sports,woodworking and gardening

He is preceded in death by his parents, Leslie Lethrage Davis andFlorice Gray Davis;his father-inlaw, Wilton JosephKling; his mother-in-law, Argelie Gautreaux Kling; and his siblings, Curtis Davis, Mary Hereford, and Anne Cobb

Allenissurvivedbyhis loving wife, Juanita Kling Davis; his children, Henry AllenDavis, Jr."Hank"and wife CinnamonDavis, Les Davis andwifePaula Davis, ClaytonDavis and wife Alisha Davis,and Brad Davis andwifeMeredith Davis; his sister, Patricia Lynch; 10 grandchildren; and 1 great-grandchild

Visitation willbeat Household of FaithChurchMt.ZionCampus, 17683 LA933, Prairieville, LA 70769, on Wednesday,December 10, 2025, from1:00 pm until Memorial Service at 2:00 pm Mitchell, Norma R.

Norma R. Mitchell,a native and residentofBaton Rouge, passed away on Sunday, November 30, 2025, at theage of 94. She was astay-at-home wife and mother and enjoyed going to thecasino,playing Mexican Train, going on family camping trips, and lovedholiday tree decorating.She was amember of theRed Hats and Senior Singles, enjoyed playing bridge withher lady friends, and lovedgarage saleshopping with her sister, Jeanette.She was fond of her beach trips withher ladyfriends from church and was always active with church functions. She is preceded in deathbyher parents, Henry P. Rodriguezand Bessie BrassettRodriguez, both formerly of Donaldsonville, LA.She is also preceded in death by her daughter, CindyBaughman; son-inlaw, BillAinsworth; mother -in-law, JanieFrizell; husband, Harry Mitchell; and dear special partner, Bud Broussard.She is survived by her four daughters: Susan Weisse (Lambert), Jeannie Ainsworth (Al) Donna Ainsworth(Johnny Wayne), and Wendy Hebert(Dwayne); son-inlaw, David Baughman; sister, Jeanette Breaux (Booster); sister-in-law, DotBordelon; and Godchild, Tracy Breaux. She is also survivedby10grandchildren: Lambert, Tiffany, Tricia, Melissa,Troy, William, Crystal, LilJohnny, Courtney, and Blake; 13 great-grandchildren: Emma, Lambert III, Brady, Brees, Adelynn, Alyse, Alexis, Braylen,Kambrie, Shea, Kylie, Mallory, and Cade; 2step-grandchildren:Dustin,Adam; and 5 step-great-grandchildren: Bentley, Kristie,and Skyler, and Zane and Zaiden. Visitation willbeatSt. Thomas MoreCatholic Church, 11441 Goodwood Blvd,on

Tuesday, December 9, 2025, from 8am until Mass of Christian Burial at 10am, celebrated by Rev. Eddie Martin. Burial willfollow at Greenoaks Memorial Park. Serving as Pallbearers will be:TroyAinsworth, William Ainsworth III,Lambert Weisse II, Johnny Ainsworth, Jr., Braylen Ainsworth, Shea Meliet, Blake Hollier, andBooster Breaux. Honorary Pallbearerswill be BradyBennett Brees Bennett,Cade Tate, andLambert Weisse III

Pearce, Ann Nette Dicharry

AnnNette Dicharry Pearce, 84, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, passed away peacefully on November 29, 2025. Shewas agraduate of Baton Rouge High School, CharityHospital School of Nursingand The University of Texas at Austin. Shededicatedher career to helpingothers, serving over 40 years as a respected researchnurse at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Her deep Catholic faithguided herthroughouther life, inspiringthe compassion she showed to others and thelove she shared with familyand friends. Ann wasblessed to make pilgrimages to theHoly Land andFrance, including visits to Lisieux, home of St Thérèse, andLourdes wherethe Virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette.Ann wasknown for herquirky spirit,her smile, love of dancing,and herfondness for callingeveryone "Sha"—a term that reflected herwarmth andCajun heritage.Ann's love for gardening andfloraldesign broughther joy throughout herlifein Houston. Sheformed lastingfriendships andshared hertalents as an active member of theBouquettes Garden Club, Far Corners Garden Club, Designing Women, and theHouston Federation of Garden Clubs. Herpassion ledher to become acertifiedMaster Gardener,serve as a Flower Show judge and earnedher special recognition for startingthe Seedsfor Life Program. In 2014, Annreturnedhome to Baton Rouge to be closer to herfamily. Sheissurvived by herbrother,Dale Dicharry, andhis wife, Dawn;nieces and nephews, Greg Dicharry Ryan Dicharry(Katie), TaylorDicharryGuidry (Jai), Chase Dicharry, andTeal Dicharry; great-nieces and nephews, GracyDicharry, MorganDicharry, Hudson Dicharry, Stella Dicharry, Bobby Dicharry, Grey Guidry, GriggsGuidry, AmeliaDicharry, Addyson Dicharry, and HarborMiller andmanybeloved cousins. Annisprecededindeath by herlovinghusband, Don C. Pearceand herparents, Michael andLillian Dicharry. Annleaves behind a legacyoffaith, kindness, andresilience that will continue to inspireall those whose lives she touched. Visitation will be held from9:00 -10:00 a.m.

on Tuesday, December 9, at OurLady of Mercy Catholic Church,445 Marquette Avenue, Baton Rouge,LA, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial, officiatedbyFather Cleo Milano. Inurnmentwill followatRoselawn Memorial Park, 4045 North Street,Baton Rouge,LA.

Larry Paul

Larry Paul Templet, 73, a lifelongresident of Gonzales, LA passedawayonDecember 1, 2025, surrounded by hisfamily. He leaves behindto cherish hismemory his loving anddevoted wife of 44 years, Cherie Bourque Templet; his children, Melissa Friday (Mike), JamieLanoux(Shannon), Shayne Templet (Heather) andCarey Melancon(Haley); 9grandchildren, Joleigh Hartman,Christina Maxwell(Alex), Jordan Hartman (fiancé Payton Braud), DillonFriday, Morgan Templet, Lathan Melancon,Chandler Templet, Logan Melancon,and Will Templet; and1 great grandchild,Sylvie Maxwell He is also survived by his brothers, PerryTemplet (Judy), KevinTemplet(Laurie);and sistersVickie Edmonston (Troy) andDiane Templet; and sisters-inlaw Becky Petite(Blaine), Kristi Granier(Leslie)and Michelle Bourque and manynieces andnephews. He wasprecededin death by hisparents, Lucien and Lois Templet, brotherKennyTemplet, sister Janet Fontenot, nieceMelanie Fontenot, inlawsMyles andFrances Bourque,and brother-inlaw MylesBourque Jr Familyand friends are invited to attend aMass of Christian Burial on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at OurLady of theHoly Rosary Catholic Church, 44450 LA Hwy429 St Amant, LA 70774. The visitation willbeginat9 AM with Mass to startat11 AM.Followed by burial at CornerviewCemetery,1214 E. Cornerview St Gonzales, LA 70737. Serving as pallbearers will be Shayne Templet, Carey Melancon,Shannon Lanoux, Mike Friday, Dillon Friday, andLathan Melancon. Honorarypallbearers, PerryTempletJr, Joey Fontenot,Derek Edmonston, Blaine Petite, Corey Bourque

Templet,

Protectshrimp industryfrom unfair competition

As alifelong Louisiananborn intoafamilywith over acentury in the shrimp industry —my father co-founded the American Shrimp Processors Association and Louisiana Shrimp Association —Iurge action on avital resource: shrimp. Americans love shrimp,asmy father’s business envelopes said: “People Love Shrimp.” Anutritious and economic bedrock, it faces unfair foreign imports. The Gulf of America yieldsapproximately 100 million pounds yearly,about 25% of U.S.consumption, and creates thousands of Louisiana jobs. Yetimports exceed 1.6 billion pounds— 90% of what we eat, witharound $6 billion in value. While we can’t produceenough domestically,our imports must meet our standards. Secretary of Health andHuman Services Robert F. KennedyJr. warns that foreign shrimp carries banned antibiotics,bactericides and cesium-137. These foster resistance and cancer risks. Europe rejects them, and we should too. From personalexperience, I saw subsidized sources undercut us with predatory pricing. The solution: targeted tariffs, strict chemical/antibioticlimits, thirdparty certiﬁcations, FDA testing. This protects ﬁshermen, processors and wageswhile keeping shrimp available and affordable.

Istand with President Donald Trump and Secretary Kennedy Let’sprioritize American health andworkers. Regulate wisely,import safely andkeep “People Love Shrimp” apromise.

ERIC F. SKRMETTA public service commissioner

Politicianstrying to make it so voters don’t matter

The multiple gerrymandering initiatives taking place across the country remind me of acomment attributed to JosefStalin during hisdictatorialrule of the Soviet Union. Stalin said it didn’t matter who voted; what mattered was who counted the votes. Today in the United States, it doesn’tmatter who votes. How thevotes are counted and allocated is what is important. MARK WEBER NewOrleans

YOUR VIEWS

HonorLSU’s firstsuperintendent in naming of renovatedbuilding

As the founding executive director of LSU’sLouisiana Emerging Technology Center and acurrent economic development professional, Iurge LSUtorename the LETC “Sherman Hall” to honor Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, the university’sﬁrst superintendent. Shermanhelped launch theLouisiana State SeminaryofLearning &Military Academy in 1860, establishing the discipline, leadership and academic rigor that would deﬁne LSUfor generations.

As LSU’sfirst leader,Sherman built the foundation of what became Louisiana’sflagship university.Herecruited the inaugural faculty,structured thecurriculum on the modelofWestPointand set high standards for excellence. Though he left before the Civil War, hisinfluence endured; LSU’smilitary character guided its re-establishment in Baton Rouge in 1886 on the grounds of the former U.S. military post that became its home fordecades. Recognizing Sherman’s

role would honor bothLSU’sorigins and the proud militarytradition that continues to serve Louisiana’speople and economy

The newly renovated LETC will soon house LSU’sreactivated cadets, which includes ROTC programsfor theArmy,Air Force and Navy.The 65,000-square-footfacility will accommodate up to 700 cadets and cadre and serve as the cornerstone of LSU’snew Cyber-Military Corridor,anintegrated environment for military training, leadership development and cybereducation —leveraging its proximity to theCenter for Computation &Technology Louisiana’smilitary and defense sectors now generatemore than $17 billion annually in economic activity.Naming the LETC “Sherman Hall” would connect LSU’sproud militaryroots to its modern mission of service, innovation and leadership forLouisiana and the nation.

ARTHUR R. COOPER Prairieville

WhiteChristianscan’t serveGod,MAGA

When U.S. Rep.Clay Higgins of Louisiana’s 3rd District wrote on X, “Any American whohas been receiving $4200 per year of free groceries and does NOT have at least 1month of groceries stocked should never again receive SNAP, becausewow, stopsmokingcrack,” my ﬁrst thought was, “Didn’tJesusimplore us to feed the hungry instead of hurling racial slurs?”

If you remain loyal to theMAGA movement, youhave chosen to serve money,not God. “No onecan serve two masters. “You cannot servebothGod and money.” (Matthew 6:24).

Residents should be grateful to Landry for welcoming immigration enforcement

Gov.JeffLandry’spolicy of increased immigration enforcement is exactly the kind of leadership Louisiana needstoprotect its communities andthe rule of law.We cannotoverlook that Louisiana is home to asubstantial population of illegaland unvetted immigrants, with many newly arrived in recent yearsunderthe disastrous Biden administration.

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR

AREWELCOME.HEREARE

OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name and the writer’scity of residence.The Advocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address and phone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box588 Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@theadvocate.com. TO SEND US ALETTER, SCAN HERE

History shows that White Christians aligned with Republicans to opposedesegregation andsoon after to support anti-abortion policies. Psychologists have coined the term “moral self-licensing,” which describes the phenomenon of doing one good thingtojustify overlooking abad one. Moral self-licensing is applied to President Donald Trump’s

inﬁdelity and dishonesty, U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson’slack of compassion, humility or inclusivity,aswell as Higgins’ four marriages and failure to pay child support or his taxes. Youcan no longer call yourself aChristian while supporting MAGA policies that lower tax rates for therichest in our country by denying food or healthinsurance to others. The scriptures make clear that only those who provide comfort to tired, hungry,sick or imprisoned “strangers” will ascend to heaven. Conversely,those who deny aid to immigrants and those in need are doomed to “eternal punishment.” AreWhite Christians OK with eternal punishment?

Iknow what it’s like to quit an addiction —I’ve been sober now for 27 years —soI understand that leaving the MAGAdoctrine may takeyou all alittle time. Youhave until November 2026.

LINDAMEREDITH Monroe

LSUwomen’s soccer team deserves spotlight

Ihave aquestion that has nothing to do with politics. Does anyone in your sports department have even apassing interest in futbol? Youknow,toquotePelé, the beautiful game,soccer? TheLSU Women’s soccer team played abeautifulgame in the SEC tournament opener andwon! They had adecent turnout. Ican’thelp but wonder why your organization has largely ignored its season. Perhaps we need more articles about coaches being ﬁredfor losing seasons, or maybe it’sthe potential money to be madebythose aspiring high school athletes that gives them so much copy. Please don’t misunderstand,Irespect all athletes.

Butthese young college athletes had awinning season that was largely ignored both by LSUand this paper as they advanced in their hopes for thenational championship. Ihope you will consider giving them kudos by at least publishing an occasional article about their progress. If you pass by Burbank or any park with space to play on weekends, you will see alarge number of local players, bothyouth and otherwise. Or go to one of the local watch parties at certain sports bars. There is deﬁnitely an interest. So, shameonyou and LSU fornot publicizing awinning local college team.

LYNNE MAYES Baton Rouge

In 2020, Oscar Urias, an immigrant here illegally,brutally murderedtwo people in LaPlace and was arrestedafter walking down the street covered in blood. In 2016, Denis Rodriguez, also an immigrant here illegally.struckaSt. JohnParish fire truck, killing Fire ChiefSpencer Chauvin and wounding two otherfirefighters. This goes to showhow the Democrats’ immigrationpolicydirectly harms Louisiana families. Strong interiorenforcement sends aclear message that our borders andlawsmatter to the people of Louisiana WhenLouisiana residents complain aboutlate-night disturbances,trash in public gathering spots andsafetyconcerns, law enforcement authorities have a duty to respond. Authorities were receiving these complaints in KennerbeforeU.S.Immigration and Customs Enforcement and LouisianaState Policedetained 13 illegal immigrants on Nov.8.This follows last month’sarrest by FBI and state lawenforcementofaHamasassociated terrorist in Lafayette, who was involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack in Israel. Multi-agency operations thataim to restore public orderand to identify those who pose criminal risks are legitimate exercisesofstate andfederal authority,and serve to make communities safer for allLouisianians. Ensuring public safety for Louisianafamiliesisa clear priority for Landry

National analysesshowthe illegaland unvettedimmigrant population grewsigniﬁcantly in recentyears, placing strains on local services andlaw enforcement resources.

Iapplaud Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill for prioritizing the safety andwell-being of Louisiana citizens. Elected leaders like Landry who act to restore order deserve our unwavering support.

NICHOLAS JAMES LaPlace

This doesn’tfeellike winning to most people

Iam80years old and retired. I support my daughter and grandchildren. Iama disabled veteran whoretired 22 years ago. Isit here all day listening to how great Iam doing. Does anyone go to the store anymore? The only ones doing great are the Elon Musks, Donald Trumps, Jeff Landrys and others whohave not been to the store for the last several years. Icannot believe that intelligent people can believe the lies.

FREDERICK

GOTTSCHALK

Zachary

STAFF FILEPHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

GIFT GIVINGTIME!

Holidayoffice parties are happening, andgiftswaps are apopular event at many of them. It looks likesomeone’sabout to getanexciting present this year!

o, what’sgoing on in this cartoon? youtell me.Bewitty,funny, crazy,absurd or snarky —just trytokeepitclean.There’snolimit on the number of entries

Thewinningpunchline will be lettered into the word balloon and runon Monday, Dec. 15 in our printeditions and online. In addition, the winner will receiveasigned print of thecartoon along with acool winner’sT-shirt! Some honorable mentions will also be listed.

To enter,email entries to cartooncontest@theadvocate.com.

DON’T FORGET!All entries must includeyourname,homeaddressand phone number.Cell numbers are best.

Thedeadline for all entries is midnightonThursday, Dec. 11. HappyHolidays, everyone! —Walt

Trump’swar on drugscould be lunacy

Since President RichardNixon declared a“WaronDrugs”in1971, federal, state and local governments have spent an estimated $1 trillion ﬁghting it —and losing. Donald Trumpnow seems fullyengaged in that futile conﬂict, adding his own twisted brand of violence.

It’snot enoughto bomb boats “suspected” of ferryingdrugs to the United States.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the military, after the initial strike, to “kill” survivors clinging to life rafts on thewaters below Shocked lawmakers, bothRepublican and Democratic, are calling such actions “war crimes.” Thelaw of war authorizes the use of deadly force against enemy combatants. Butonce they’re no longer athreat,the obligation is to care for the wounded That’sbeside the matter of whether the targets were, in fact,drugboats. Some may be, but the U.S.military is fully capable of stopping,boarding andinterviewing the crew of alittle vessel sailing through theCaribbean or Pacific. And even if the boats are carrying drugs, there’snoeasy way of knowing howmany of their passengers were traffickers and how many were the traffickers’ hostages. Druggangsare known to threaten innocents andtheir children to force participation in the ferrying business.

How well has this “war” been working out? Not well. Fentanyl, asynthetic opioid,has killed more Americans than thewars in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan combined. And lined up behind it are still more vicious street drugs. In 2023,about 110,000Americans died from drug overdoses, nearly 10 times the number in 1999. The death toll fell in 2024,due mostly to the availability of naloxone, which can reverse overdoses. But it was still seven times the drug-related fatalities of a quarter century prior

This is counting deathsfrom both opioids andstimulants, the category forcocaine. Deadly synthetic opioids such as fentanyl are now often added

President Donald Trumpspeaks during aCabinet meetingatthe White House on Tuesday in Washington, as Defense SecretaryPete Hegseth looks on.

to the cocaine. Arecent CDC report found that nearly 80% of cocainerelated deaths involved drugs with opioidsmixed in, especially fentanyl. Youcan’t stopfentanyl from enteringthisorany other country.Fentanyl the size of apencil eraser can kill dozens of people. Howhard is it to hide that tinyamount sewn in ateddy bear’snose? Not hard at all.

Akilogram of fentanyl contains up to half amillion potentially lethal doses. Akilogram is only 2.2 pounds. Aquart of milk weighsabout that. In fiscal 2025, theCoast Guard seized almost510,000 pounds of cocaine. That was themost in its history but afraction of the cocaine that got past our borders —drugs arriving by land, sea and air Go ahead and keep trying to prevent these drugsfromcoming in, but let’s notpretend that this bombing of unidentified boats is anything morethan another Trumpperformance. Perhaps it’sanotherway to divert attention from theEpstein files.

If this were really about punishing drug lords, Trumpwouldn’thave just issued afull pardon to Honduran exPresident Juan Orlando Hernandez. Convicted last year of partnering with traffickers, Hernandez is credited with helping flood theU.S. with hundreds of thousands of kilograms of cocaine. ADrug Enforcement Administration agent, who worked on the Hernandez case but was not allowed to comment publicly,called the pardon “lunacy.” That show of inconsistency was so crashing, you can’thelp but suspect Trump’smotive was to even further distract thepublic from theinvestigation into the sex trafficking of underage girls. It was piled right onto the macabre videos of the U.S. military dropping bombs on small boats. That would seem the best explanation for these bizarre Trumporders— short of lunacy,that is.

Froma Harrop is on X, @FromaHarrop. Email her at fharrop@gmail.com.

High school seniors completing college applications confront asmorgasbord of choices. Herewith, eight suggestions: Arizona State University,because of its School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership. University of Florida, because of its Hamilton School forClassical and Civic Education. Florida State University because of its Institute forGovernance and Civics. The University of Texas, because of its School of Civic Leadership, and Civitas Institute. The University of Tennessee, because of its Institute of American Civics. The University of North Carolina because of its School of Civic Life and Leadership. The University of Mississippi because of its Declaration of Independence Center forthe Study of American Freedom.

And The Ohio State University,because of its new Salmon P. Chase Center forCivics, Culture, and Society.These eight, with similar programs gestating in other states, are reviving universities’ civic seriousness —that is reinvigorating the humanities, inspiring students eager to grapple with big questions and reversing academia’sforfeiture of its prestige.

All eight share the Chase Center’sconviction that “American citizenship is ahigh calling.” And that “citizenship well-lived” must be grounded in “the historical ideas, traditions, and texts” —the Federalist, SupremeCourt cases, consequential rhetoric, etc. —that have shaped America’spolity and society

Such programsare usually prompted by state legislatures, which, although occasionally clumsy and overreaching, are less threatening to academic freedom than are today’scampus monocultures enforced by censorious faculty factions. Such programshave inexpungible political resonances, so planting them in the groves of academe requires delicate tenacity

The planting presupposes that the nation’sintellectual patrimony is worthy.Nowadays, this is controversial. But the Chase Center and kindred programsoperate on the assumption that “progressive patriotism”isnot an oxymoron. Furthermore, civics programsoften provide courses (e.g., military and diplomatic history,and political theory) that other departments ignore. Courses found only in civics programssometimes even include those on the American Revolution and American intellectual history

Many academics seem mystiﬁed about the 20-plus-year decline of humanities majors. William Inboden believes curricula pertinent to civic thought, but nowadays largely neglected, can “reset the demand signals in the academic marketplace” forcourses and forspecialized faculty to teach them

Former Arizona governor DougDucey,who oversaw the 2017 birth of ASU’s program,helped to ignite this movement. Inboden has spread the movement’sgospel (literally,“good news”) through good works at two universities. He left the University of Texas to assist the ﬂourishing of Florida’sHamilton School, then returned to Texas as provost. The Hamilton School, which has its own majors, degrees and tenured faculty,is not an agency of “counter-indoctrination,” it is a small cluster of liberal arts excellence. It leavens the educational menufor asmall(about 1,500) but intellectually thirsty fraction of Florida’s40,000 undergraduates eager to study the Western civilization of which our nation is an emanation and elevation.

Writing in National Affairs, Inboden notes that universities should be conservators and transmitters of the best that has been thought and said. Therefore they have an inescapably conservative function that is the essence of universities’ “social contract with American society.” The rupture of that contract included Yale’s1995 rejection of a$20 million giftbecause it wasdesignated for studying Western civilization.

Students, Inboden says, have been voting with their feet, walking away from the sterile humanities dogmathat identity (racial, ethnic, sexual) is the decisive dimension of human identity.This idea, which discounts the history-making role of ideas, yields, Inboden says, an “impoverished view of the human person, the communities we form,and the endeavors we undertake.”

No wonder disappointed students and dismayed scholars are flocking to places like Hamilton. It had morethan 2,000 applicants forthe first 55 faculty positions it filled, and in one year hired four Harvard and four Cambridge Ph.Ds.

Ohio State’sChase Center advances the 21stcentury renaissance of civic education by invoking Salmon P. Chase, President Abraham Lincoln’s treasury secretary,then chief justice of the SupremeCourt. He lived alifeof19th-century usefulness and heartbreak: Implacably anti-slavery, he lost three wives and four of his six children to diseases. Ohio State is aland grant university spawned by legislation signed by Lincoln, the 1862 Morrill Act.

Long ago, adroll president of the University of Oklahoma vowed to make OU an institution its football team could be proud of. Ohio State —a top 15 research university in aNational Science Foundation survey,ranked ahead of Harvard and Yale, and decent at football —issuch aplace, and becoming even better because of the Chase Center. Email George Will at georgewill@washpost.com

Froma Harrop

George Will

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JULIA DEMAREENIKHINSON

Anew trend has been for clouds to stick around longer on Monday. Expect mostlycloudyconditions for most of the daywith partial clearing in the afternoon and evening.Highs will top out in the mid-50s. Current expectations are for

BY DARLENE SUPERVILLE and HILLEL ITALIE Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump hosted the annual Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday,praising Sylvester Stallone, Kiss, Gloria Gaynor and the other honorees as being “legendary in so many ways.”

“Billions andbillions of people have watched them over the years,” Trump, the ﬁrst president to command the stage insteadofsitting in an Opera House box, said to open the show He said the honorees, who also include country music superstar George Strait and Tony Award-winningactorMichael Crawford, are “among the greatest artists and actors, performers, musicians, singers, songwriters ever to walk thefaceofthe Earth.”

Since returning to ofﬁce in January,Trumphas made the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which is namedafter aDemocratic predecessor atouchstone in abroader attack against what he has lambasted as “woke” antiAmerican culture.

Trump, who said in August that he had agreed to host the show,said Saturday at aState Department dinner for the honorees that he was doing so “at the request of a certain television network.” He predicted the broadcast, scheduled to air Dec.23on CBS and Paramount+, would have its best ratings ever.

Trump assumedarole that has been held in the past by journalist Walter Cronkite and comedian and Trumpnemesis StephenColbert, among others. Before Trump, presidents watched the show alongside the honorees. Trump skipped the

honors altogether during his ﬁrst term.

Askedwhen he arrived for the ceremony how he had found time to prepare, Trumpsaid he“didn’t really prepare very much.”

“I have agood memory,soI can rememberthings, which is very fortunate,” the president said.“But just, Iwanted to just be myself. Youhave to be yourself.JohnnyCarson, he was himself.”

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, one of several Cabinet secretaries attending the ceremony,said he waslooking forward to Trump’shosting job.

“Oh this president, he is so relaxed in front of these cameras, as you know, and so funny,Ican’twaitfor tonight,” Lutnicksaid as he arrived with hiswife,who is on the Kennedy Center board. Since 1978, the honors have recognized stars for their inﬂuence on American culture and thearts. Members of this year’sclass are pop-culture standouts, including Stallone for his “Rocky” and “Rambo” movies, Gaynor for her feminist anthem “I Will Survive” and Kiss for its ﬂashy,cartoonish makeup and onstage displays of smoke and pyrotechnics Trump said persistenceis atrait all the artistsshare

“Some of themhave had legendary setbacks, setbacks thatyou havetoread in the papers because of their leveloffame,”hesaid from the stage.“But in the wordsofRockyBalboa, they showed us that youkeep moving forward, just keep moving forward.”

The ceremony was expected to be emotional for the membersofKiss. The band’s original lead guitarist, Ace Frehley,died in October after he was injured during a fall. The band’sco-founder Gene Simmons, speaking on thered carpet when he and theother honoreesarrived for the ceremony,said the president had assured him therewouldbeanempty chair among the membersof Kiss in memory of Frehley Stallone said being honored at the ceremony was like being in the “eye of a hurricane.”

“This is an amazing event,” he said. “But you’re caught up in themiddle of it. It’shard to takeitinuntilthe next day But I’m incredibly humbled by it.”

Crawford alsosaiditwas “humbling, especially at the end of acareer.”

Gaynor said it “feels like adream”tobehonored. “To be recognizedinthis wayis the pinnacle,” she said on thered carpet.

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

TAMPA, Fla Zoom in on the victorious postgame locker room, that space that has been so hard for these New Orleans Saints to occupy this year, where Cam Jordan broke the team down after they beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-20 at a rain-soaked Raymond James Stadium. It was Jordan who, earlier in the week, acknowledged the Buccaneers’ recent supremacy in the NFC South because of the edge they’ve had on the rest of the division at the most important position. And it was Jordan, referencing his own team’s quarterback, as he delivered those closing words.

“The world counted us out, baby, but we’re still ﬁghting, we’re still swinging,” Jordan said. “They didn’t want us to win, but here we are. We said ‘Shough it.’” So many Saints players had their ﬁngerprints on the upset win The defense ratcheted up the inten-

Hoosiers

top College Football

Playoff ﬁeld

Alabama, Miami, Tulane make playoff bracket; Notre Dame left out

BY EDDIE PELLS

Nobody paying attention over the past 24 months would be surprised to see Indiana leading the way into this year’s College Football Playoff.

But anyone paying attention over the last 24 hours knew the only sure thing beyond the Hoosiers was that the playoff selection committee was destined to get picked apart when it released the pairings for this season’s 12-team bracket on Sunday Most of that second-guessing came from Notre Dame, which was passed over in favor of Alabama and Miami for two of the bracket’s bubble spots. The Fighting Irish dropped two notches in the CFP rankings over the last two weeks to No. 11, despite a 10-game winning streak, winning their ﬁnale by 29 points and simply sitting on the couch Saturday “There is no explanation that could possibly be given to explain the outcome,” Irish athletic director Pete Bevacqua told Yahoo Sports, hours after the bracket was revealed and Notre Dame said it would skip bowl season altogether “We feel like the playoff was stolen from our student-athletes.” Notre Dame’s loss was Alabama’s gain. The Crimson Tide didn’t move an inch the CFP rankings despite a 28-7 loss to No 3 Georgia that looked worse than that No. 10 Miami didn’t play, either, but the Hurricanes’ 27-24 win over Notre Dame

ä See PLAYOFF, page 6B

BY WILSON ALEXANDER Staff writer

There’s something about LSU, interim head coaches and the Texas Bowl. LSU is going back to the Texas Bowl for the second straight year it was announced Sunday The Tigers will ﬁnish their season against the No. 21 Houston Cougars at 8:15 p.m. on Dec. 27 at NRG Stadium in Houston, a familiar place for the team. The game will be broadcast on ESPN. It will be the third trip to the Texas Bowl in the past ﬁve seasons for LSU. The Tigers will play their last game under interim head coach Frank Wilson, and they also played in the Texas Bowl in 2021 under interim coach Brad Davis.

lost that game 42-20 to Kansas State with a depleted roster Last season, LSU beat Baylor 44-31 in the Texas Bowl. It has made one other appearance in the Texas Bowl, when it defeated Texas Tech 56-27 in 2016. Led by former Tulane coach Willie Fritz, Houston went 9-3 this season while playing in the Big 12. The Cougars got off to a 7-1 start this season, but they split their last four games. They still finished ranked in the top 25 of the final College Football Playoff rankings. LSU (7-5) will try to finish a disappointing season with a win. It started the year with CFP aspirations after signing the No. 1 transfer portal class in the country but the Tigers fell well short of expectations and fired head coach Brian Kelly in the midst of his fourth season.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

AP PHOTO By MICHAEL CONROy

Indiana’s Charlie Becker catches a pass during the second half of the Big Ten championship against Ohio State on Saturday in Indianapolis

LSU posts season-high point total

Tigers stifle UNO in lopsided road win

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

The LSU women’s basketball team climbed back over the 100-point threshold on Sunday in the Lakefront Arena, notching its season-high point total in a 126-62 drubbing of UNO.

That offensive output is the third-largest in program history for the Tigers, who scored that many points because they turned defense into easy offense.

The Privateers (0-8) turned the ball over 27 times, and LSU capitalized with 43 points off those mistakes. Most of those giveaways led to open shots around the rim The No. 5 Tigers (10-0) in their ﬁfth win of at least 60 points this year — converted 37 of the 46 layups they attempted and scored more points in the paint (86) than UNO did altogether But coach Kim Mulkey still thinks LSU could’ve played a better defensive game.

“My ﬁrst thought,” she said, “is that’s too many points to give up.” Sophomore center Kate Koval, a Notre Dame transfer, scored a career-high 22 points on 9-of-9 shooting. Junior guard MiLaysia Fulwiley, a South Carolina transfer, tallied 18 points, eight assists and three steals.

LSU entered Sunday’s game undefeated, fresh off a road win over the only high-major team on its nonconference schedule On Thursday, Duke managed to hold the Tigers below the 100-point mark, becoming the ﬁrst team to do so this season. LSU still, however, scored 93 — the second-highest total the Blue Devils have allowed across the past six seasons. UNO is still winless. Before Sunday, the Privateers had lost three of their ﬁrst seven games by more than 30 points. Their most lopsided loss was a 61-point drubbing by Oklahoma State in their season opener LSU won by an even larger margin on Sunday in large part because it continued to force UNO into turnovers.

The Privateers gave the ball

away 18 times in the ﬁrst half, and the Tigers used those opportunities to score 26 easy points — the kind of offense that gave them a 63-29 halftime advantage.

LSU started to pull away halfway through the ﬁrst quarter

First, MiLaysia Fulwiley collected a steal and tossed an outlet pass to freshman guard Bella Hines, who banked in one of the nine layups the Tigers converted in the ﬁrst quarter Koval scored three of those buckets, including the one Fulwiley set up for her on the fastbreak opportunity LSU found on the possession after Hines’ layup.

“I think (Koval’s) confidence is really, really high right now,” Mulkey said. UNO shot only 31% from the field. The Privateers attempted more 3-pointers (26) than layups (17), largely because LSU used its size and length advantages to wall

off their drives to the rim LSU, on the other hand, shot 59% from the field. Turnover issues cropped up on the Tigers in the first quarter, when they gave away five possessions, but disappeared the rest of the way LSU turned the ball over only eight times across the second, third and fourth.

Six Tigers scored in double ﬁgures. ZaKiyah Johnson added 17 points and six rebounds, while Grace Knox chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds. Transfer forward Amiya Joyner ﬁnished with 14 points and 10 boards, and sophomore point guard Jada Richard posted a double-figure scoring tally for the third time in the past four games. On Sunday, she notched 12 points and eight assists — to only two turnovers.

“We’re a work in progress defensively,” Mulkey said. “I think

the effort is there I thought we got better in spurts tonight, but it’s hard because everybody’s playing everybody’s subbing in and out.”

LSU has four games left on its nonconference schedule. The next one — a meeting with Mulkey’s alma mater Louisiana Tech will tip off at 3 p.m. Saturday in the Smoothie King Center UNO will keep looking for its first win of the season, starting next Sunday against Tulane in Fogelman Arena. LSU has now scored at least 100 points in nine of the 10 games it’s played this season. The Tigers hit that mark in each of their first eight games, setting an NCAA record for consecutive 100-point outings.

Email Reed Darcey at reed. darcey@theadvocate.com

Texas Tech ends LSU men’s 8-game win streak

BY TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writer

LSU faced, by far, its biggest test in the nonconference part of its schedule when it played No. 19 Texas Tech at a neutral site, and the Tigers showed there’s still plenty of work to be done for the 2025-26 season.

The Tigers were unable to compete with their ﬁrst ranked opponent of the year, losing 82-58 on Sunday at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, in the Coast 2 Coast Challenge.

LSU (8-1) trailed by as many as 30 points and never led. The defeat ends the team’s eight-game win streak, the longest under coach Matt McMahon. Their previous best under the fourth-year coach was seven straight during the 2022-23 season.

“Give credit to Texas Tech,” McMahon said on the LSU sports radio network. “I thought they played outstanding. We did not answer the bell in the ﬁrst half, and therefore, they were able to dominate the game.”

Dedan Thomas had 13 points on 5-of-14 shooting, one assist and two steals. Christian Anderson led Texas Tech (7-2) with 27 points and eight assists.

Texas Tech’s top shooters, Anderson and Donovan Atwell, each drained a 3-pointer to give it an 8-1 lead against LSU, forcing McMahon to call a timeout after three minutes of game action.

The timeout didn’t cool down the Red Raiders’ deep-range scoring. They made seven of their ﬁrst eight attempts, helping them get out to a 31-13 lead with 8:52 left in the ﬁrst half. Anderson, a 6-foot-3 point guard, led the charge with 12 points and four assists to that point.

The sophomore made his team’s ﬁfth 3-pointer, which was a heav-

LSU guard Dedan Thomas, right, shown during a game against Alcorn State last month, scored 13 points in a loss to Texas Tech on Sunday.

ily contested shot from the right corner over the 6-10 Michael Nwoko with the shot clock running down. LSU’s Thomas was the primary defender on Anderson and while he stayed attached, the screens set by Texas Tech repeatedly created space for Anderson to make pull-up jumpers.

“They really assaulted the 3-point line in the first half,” McMahon said. “Hit some tough ones late in the clock, but then we missed a couple of assignments, and they made us pay You look for the game, get outscored 27 points from behind the arc. That’s the difference in the game.”

Anderson entered halftime with 20 points, ﬁve rebounds and ﬁve assists, giving Texas Tech a 47-26 lead.

LSU couldn’t buy a basket, open or contested, in the ﬁrst half. The Tigers struggled to ﬁnish in the paint as Nwoko drew a lot of at-

tention and missed shots because of the congestion. They also had five turnovers, three from Thomas, in the first 12 minutes. Most of the mishaps were due to inaccurate passes as the receiver tried to carve out space for the catch. Thomas and Max Mackinnon were unsuccessful on their floaters early When they created shots for themselves, Texas Tech’s defense swarmed and made the looks difficult. Catchand-shoot opportunities were rarely dropping for McMahon’s team. Mackinnon struggled especially as the 44% 3-point shooter missed all his open looks. The Portland transfer closed the first half 0 of 9 from the field and 0 of 5 from beyond the arc. He finished the game with two points from the free-throw line. LSU went into halftime making 9 of 35 shots and 2 of 13 on

McLaren driver Norris clinches his first F1 title

McLaren driver Lando Norris held his nerve but could not hold back the tears after clinching his ﬁrst Formula 1 title at the seasonending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday Red Bull driver and defending champion Max Verstappen won the race with Norris placing third behind McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri in second, which allowed Norris to ﬁnish two points ahead of Verstappen in the season-long standings.

Norris became Britain’s 11th F1 champion, a racing journey that began with kart racing when he was 8 years old. The first of his 11 F1 wins came last year, when he finished second in the standings. Norris also denied Verstappen a fifth straight title.

Matsuyama rallies to win Hero World Challenge

NASSAU, Bahamas Hideki Matsuyama holed out from the 10th fairway for eagle on his way to an 8-under 64 and stuffed his 9-iron to 2 feet on the 18th hole in a playoff to defeat Alex Noren and win the Hero World Challenge for the second time.

Noren also shot a 64, making an 18-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole in regulation to force a playoff.

His 20-foot birdie putt on the ﬁrst extra hole missed to the left.

Scottie Scheffler, going for a third straight title at Albany Golf Club, fell back on the par-5 11th when he hit driver off the fairway with a speck of mud on his golf ball. It led to a bogey and he never caught up.

Matsuyama won the ﬁrst tournament of the year in Hawaii and the ﬁnal tournament of his season.

Reitan wins, earning his first trip to the Masters

SUN CITY, South Africa Kristoffer Reitan held on over the back nine Sunday and closed with an evenpar 72 to complete a wire-to-wire victory in the Nedbank Golf Challenge, his second European tour title of the year that will send him to the Masters for the ﬁrst time. The Norwegian began the ﬁnal round with a five-shot lead, but he saw the lead shrink to a single stroke when he played the back nine without a birdie.

He held his nerve against Jayden Schaper of South Africa (68) and Dan Bradbury of England (66) for a one-shot victory Reitan, who earned a PGA Tour card for 2026 by ﬁnishing eighth in the Race to Dubai, ﬁnished at 17-under 271.

Neergaard-Petersen wins at Australian Open

3-pointers. The makes from beyond the arc came from Thomas and PJ Carter a Memphis transfer To open the second half, McMahon made a change from his starting lineup. Carter replaced Mackinnon and Robert Miller replaced Pablo Tamba, who had three fouls. Nwoko, who finished with 10 points, was involved early, as he managed to score twice on his go-to hook shot. The paint scores didn’t lead to defensive stops. On one possession after a missed 3-pointer from Anderson, Texas Tech’s LeJuan Watts corralled the rebound, which led to a second open 3-point attempt that went in for Jaylen Petty The Red Raiders took a 55-32 lead at the 15:47 mark of the second half. With a little over 14 minutes left in the game, LSU started to apply some full-court pressure. That temporary change, along with crisper team defense, prevented Texas Tech from increasing its lead in the ﬁrst nine minutes after halftime. However, the Tigers couldn’t string together a scoring run because Texas Tech had ﬁve second-half offensive rebounds by the 11:25 mark, which helped it remain in control.

LSU continued to falter offensively due to Texas Tech’s aggressive defense and never cut into the deﬁcit. Ron Zipper, who played the final eight seconds in the ﬁrst half, checked in with 5:45 remaining in the game The 22-year-old freshman from Israel made the team’s only two 3-pointers after halftime.

The Tigers went 4 of 24 from beyond the arc and Texas Tech was 13 of 27.

LSU’s next game is against SMU (9-1) at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Smoothie King Center.

MELBOURNE, Australia — Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen won the Australian Open on Sunday and earned a spot in the Masters when he scrambled for par on the final hole at Royal Melbourne for a 1-under 70 to crush the hopes of home favorite Cam Smith, who missed a 5-foot par putt to force a playoff. Smith and Neergaard-Petersen came to the 72nd hole tied at 15-under par after a thrilling contest over the last nine holes. The Dane went after the right pin and it faded beyond the bunker into difficult rough. He did well to flop that to 10 feet.

The Dane finished at 15-under 269. Smith started the last round two shots back, drew level by the turn and led outright after sinking a 10-foot birdie putt on No. 10.

Texas businessman who owned Dallas teams dies DALLAS Tom Hicks, the Texas businessman and philanthropist who owned two Dallas-area professional sports franchises and an English Premier League soccer team, has died. He was 79. Spokesperson Lisa LeMaster said Hicks died peacefully Saturday in Dallas surrounded by family Hicks owned the NHL’s Dallas Stars from 1995–2011, winning the Stanley Cup in 1999. He also owned baseball’s Texas Rangers from 1998-2010, a period when they won three American League West Division titles and made their ﬁrst World Series appearance just months after the team was sold. In 2007, he acquired a 50% stake in Liverpool.

Hicks served as a paratrooper in the Army Reserves and

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

STAFF PHOTO By ENAN CHEDIAK

UNO guard Shanihya Brown, left, goes up for a shot against LSU forward Kate Koval during a game at Lakefront Arena on Sunday.

Nixon has game-sealing INT in win over Bears

By The Associated Press

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Keisean Nixon intercepted Caleb Williams’ pass in the end zone with 22 seconds remaining to preserve Green Bay’s victory over Chicago that moved the Packers into ﬁrst place in the NFC North.

The Bears were facing fourthand-1 from Green Bay’s 14-yard line when Williams faked a handoff and rolled to his left. Tight end Cole Kmet had gotten behind Nixon in the end zone but Nixon made a leaping catch of the underthrown pass. Josh Jacobs scored the tiebreaking touchdown on a 2-yard run with 3:32 remaining as the Packers (9-3-1) won their fourth straight and snapped a ﬁve-game winning streak by the Bears (9-4).

STEELERS 27, RAVENS 22: In Baltimore, Aaron Rodgers threw for 284 yards and a touchdown and even ran for TD in perhaps his best game with the Steelers, and Pittsburgh took sole possession of ﬁrst place in the AFC North, holding on for a win over the Ravens when a Baltimore touchdown with 2:43 remaining was overturned by a replay review Isaiah Likely secured a pass from Lamar Jackson with two hands in the end zone, and both his feet came down, but as he was about to complete another step with his right foot, Joey Porter Jr of the Steelers knocked the ball free. It was initially called a touchdown but then changed to incomplete. The Ravens eventually turned the ball over on downs.

TITANS31,BROWNS29: In Cleveland, Tony Pollard rushed for a careerhigh 161 yards and two touchdowns, Cam Ward passed for two scores and Tennessee held off Cleveland to snap a seven-game skid.

Cleveland’s Shedeur Sanders passed for 364 yards and three touchdowns in his third start, and he also ran for a score in a matchup of rookie quarterbacks. However, Sanders threw a costly intercep-

tion in the third quarter that led to Tennessee’s go-ahead TD.

Sanders’ father, Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, was in attendance. Coach Prime was at his son’s ﬁrst NFL start on Nov 23 at Las Vegas, but missed last week’s home game against San Francisco.

The Titans (2-11) had a 31-17 lead with 6:17 remaining before the Browns scored a pair of touchdowns. Sanders had a 7-yard scramble with 4:27 left and threw a 7-yard TD pass to Harold Fannin Jr with 1:03 remaining, but the Browns (3-10) missed both of their 2-point conversion attempts.

SEAHAWKS 37, FALCONS 9: In Atlanta, Rashid Shaheed returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, Seattle’s defense came up with three turnovers and the Seahawks won for the seventh time in eight games, beating hapless Atlanta.

Sam Darnold threw for 249 yards and three touchdowns, including a pair of scores to Jaxon Smith-Njigba and another to Cooper Kupp.

The Seahawks (10-3) broke away

from a 6-6 tie at halftime with a 31-point beatdown of the Falcons over the ﬁnal two quarters. With their seventh loss in eight games, the Falcons (4-9) sealed an eighth straight losing campaign matching the worst stretch in franchise history — and were officially eliminated from playoff contention with a month still to go in the regular season.

Atlanta hasn’t made the postseason since 2017, a year after its infamous Super Bowl meltdown to Tom Brady and the Patriots.

Seattle is a team with soaring expectations, coming into the day as one of three NFC West teams with nine wins and its sights on a division title, maybe even a top seed in January BRONCOS 24,RAIDERS 17: In Las Vegas, Bo Nix passed for 212 yards and rushed for a touchdown, and the Denver Broncos didn’t fall behind for the ﬁrst time this season as they defeated Las Vegas Raiders.

The Raiders lost quarterback Geno Smith, who injured his right

Bills rally for win over Bengals

BY JOHN WAWROW AP sportswriter

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y Christian

Benford apologized with a laugh, because the Buffalo Bills cornerback wasn’t supposed to jump when he instinctively leaped to snag Joe Burrow’s attempt to lob a pass over his head.

“I actually didn’t do my technique right, if I’m being honest,” Benford said. “But I don’t know, God just gave me something for me to leave my feet. I’m sorry, but then the rest was history.” Benford intercepted Burrow’s soft toss and returned it 63 yards for a go-ahead touchdown with 5:25 left, Josh Allen threw for three touchdowns and ran for one, and the Bills beat the Cincinnati Bengals 39-34 on a snowy Sunday By the time Benford outran intended receiver Ja’Marr Chase to the end zone, everyone on the Bills sideline was leaping for joy It was one of three touchdowns in a span of 4:20 for Buffalo, which overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deﬁcit.

“It’s fun to see your brother who does his job and can make plays for your team in big moments of the game,” Allen said. “It’s so awesome. He deserves every bit of it.” Two of Allen’s passing TDs came on fourth down. He also scored on a 40-yard run — breaking his own team record for the longest rushing TD by a quarterback and capped the victory with a 17-yard scramble to convert a third-and-15 and allow Buffalo to run out the clock.

It wasn’t pretty And it was a little sloppy with the field slicked by persistent snow flurries What mattered for Buffalo (9-4) was the outcome. The Bills have won two straight for the first time in a month and kept pace in the tightly packed AFC.

The Bengals (4-9) saw their already shaky playoff prospects dim even further Their only realistic shot entering the weekend was winning the AFC North, but they fell three games behind Pittsburgh.

“Just sick for the guys,” Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor said. “They made more plays than us down the stretch, and that was the difference in the game.” Burrow’s boost to the Bengals lasted only one week after he oversaw Cincinnati’s 32-14 win

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JEFFREy T. BARNES

Buffalo Bills cornerback Christian Benford runs for a touchdown after intercepting a pass by Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow during the second half of a game on Sunday in Orchard Park, N.y

over Baltimore in the starter’s ﬁrst game after missing nine with a toe injury

He finished with interceptions on consecutive plays. After being picked off by Benford, Burrow’s next pass was tipped by defensive tackle Jordan Phillips and intercepted by A.J. Epenesa. That set up Allen’s 3-yard TD pass to Jackson Hawes.

“Could’ve thrown it higher, I guess,” Burrow said of Benford’s interception.

The interceptions were Burrow’s first in four starts this season. He finished 25 of 36 for 284 yards and four touchdowns while losing for the first time in nine starts dating to last season. The Bengals are guaranteed to finish with their fewest wins since going 4-11-1 in 2020 when Burrow was a rookie.

“Obviously we are not where we want to be as a team or organization,” Burrow said. “That’s how the cookie crumbled this year Obviously, I would have loved to have been out there more, and would have loved to make an impact. But that wasn’t the case.”

Tee Higgins caught two touchdown passes, including a onehanded 25-yarder with 2:13 left.

Tight end Mike Gesicki scored on a 12-yard catch and Chase Brown scored on a 5-yard run. Allen finished 22 of 28 for 251 yards. His first TD pass, an 11-yarder on fourth down to Khalil Shakir, was Allen’s 20th of the

hand and shoulder in the third quarter and was replaced by Kenny Pickett.

The Broncos (11-2) appear to be on the verge of ending Kansas City’s nine-year reign in the AFC West, and they tied idle New England for the top seed in the conference. Denver owns the tiebreaker because of its 6-0 record against common opponents; the Patriots lost to the Raiders.

JAGUARS 36, COLTS 19: In Jacksonville, Florida, Trevor Lawrence threw two touchdown passes, Travis Etienne ran for two scores and Jacksonville moved atop the AFC South with a victory against rivals Indianapolis.

The Jaguars (9-4) won their fourth consecutive game and extended the Colts’ misery in Jacksonville. Indianapolis (8-5) most recently won at EverBank Stadium in 2014, an 11-game skid that includes a matchup in London.

DOLPHINS 34,JETS 10: In East Rutherford, New Jersey Tua Tagovailoa remained unbeaten against the New York Jets and put his cold weather woes on ice, and Miami had three rushing touchdowns to run away with a victory

With Miami’s fourth straight win, Tagovailoa improved to 7-0 against the Jets as a starter and 8-0 overall in games in which he has played against the AFC East rivals. And with the temperature 41 degrees at kickoff, Tagovailoa moved to 1-7 in his career when the temperature is 46 or colder

De’Von Achane ran for 92 yards and a touchdown before leaving in the second quarter with a rib injury Jaylen Wright ﬁlled in and had a career-high 107 yards and a score. Rookie Ollie Gordon II also ran for a TD for Miami (6-7), which ran for 239 yards and has won ﬁve of its last six after starting the season 1-6.

Tagovailoa was 13 of 21 for 127 yards with a touchdown pass to Jaylen Waddle before sitting for the final minutes with the game well in hand. Zach Wilson, New York’s No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft, ﬁnished up for Miami.

RAMS45,CARDINALS17: In Glendale, Arizona, Matthew Stafford threw for 281 yards and three touchdowns, Puka Nacua and Blake Corum both scored twice and Los Angeles rolled past Arizona to stay tied for the NFC West lead.

The Rams (10-3) scored 35 unanswered points to bounce back from last week’s turnover-filled loss to the Panthers and win for the seventh time in eight games. They are tied with the Seahawks atop the division, one game ahead of the 49ers.

The reeling Cardinals (3-10) have lost five straight and 10 of their past 11 after starting the season at 2-0.

Los Angeles fell into an early 7-0 hole but rallied for a 24-10 lead by halftime, scoring just before the break on a beautiful 28-yard throw over the middle from Stafford to Nacua, who had six catches for 136 yards in the ﬁrst half The Rams also scored touchdowns on a pair of 2-yard runs one each by Kyren Williams and Corum.

VIKINGS31,COMMANDERS0: In Minneapolis, J.J. McCarthy threw a career-high three touchdown passes in his ﬁrst turnover-free game, returning from his latest injury absence in prime form for the Minnesota in a victory that sent Washington to its eighth straight loss.

McCarthy went 16 for 23 for 163 yards in his seventh NFL start, after sitting out last week in Seattle with a concussion while the Vikings were shut out for the first time in 18 years and dropped their fourth consecutive game with the offense in disrepair McCarthy, who missed his entire rookie season after knee surgery and five games earlier this season with a sprained ankle, targeted his tight ends for all three scores — the first two to Josh Oliver and the last one to T.J. Hockenson. As smooth as the afternoon went for the Vikings (5-8), the return of the starting quarterback for the Commanders (3-10) produced nothing positive only pain.

QB Herbert expects to play with broken hand

BY DAN GREENSPAN Associated Press

EL SEGUNDO Calif. — The Los Angeles Chargers had to adjust on the ﬂy after Justin Herbert broke a bone in his non-throwing hand last Sunday

As optimistic as they are that Herbert will be ready to start against the visiting Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, the Chargers (8-4) have spent this week accounting for every possible contingency

“I think you got to try to look at it from all the different angles, you know, as you prepare,” offensive coordinator Greg Roman said. “What if this happens? What if that happens?”

season, making him the ﬁrst NFL player with three season of 20 TDs passing and 10 rushing.

Benford, who returned a fumble 17 yards for a touchdown in a 26-7 win at Pittsburgh last week, became the Bills’ first player to score defensive TDs in back-toback games.

The two interceptions were highlights for a defense that couldn’t get off the field to start the game. The Bengals scored touchdowns on each of their first three drives and converted seven of their first eight third-down opportunities.

Buffalo’s offense, meantime, had some sputters. With the Bills trailing 21-18, James Cook was stripped of the ball at the Cincinnati 1 by DJ Turner, and the Bengals’ Oren Burks recovered it in the end zone. And the Bills settled for a ﬁeld goal when their opening drive stalled at Cincinnati’s 5 — after running back Ty Johnson went down untouched with an open path to the end zone.

“That’s why it’s two halves of football, right? Sixty minutes,” Bills linebacker Shaq Thompson said. He then shared how Allen urged on the defense after Buffalo cut Cincinnati’s lead to 28-25.

“Josh said we needed one. And when 17 says you need one, we got to lock in and buckle up,” Thompson said “Guys stepped up. It doesn’t matter who makes the play it’s just as long as the play gets made.”

Planning went into practice during a 31-14 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, when Herbert had to play the ﬁnal three quarters with his left hand in a hard cast and protective glove. The injury prevented Herbert from taking snaps under center, with the Chargers using shotgun and pistol formations the rest of the way

“It’s just a good reminder you really need to work through these contingencies in your mind,” Roman said. “A lot of what we practiced that week went out the window So, really, hats off to Justin and really everybody.”

Herbert had surgery on Monday and was back at practice Thursday, leaving an organization that typically treats such matters as state secrets expressing an unusually public degree of belief he will be ready to go against the NFC East-leading Eagles (8-4). Herbert was listed as “questionable” on the injury report Saturday following three straight days of limited practices.

“That’s the plan, is to prepare as if I’m going to play,” Herbert said Wednesday “See how the next couple days goes, and do everything I can to be out there for the team and for the guys.”

However, that does not necessarily mean Herbert will be able to run the full offense. Backup Trey Lance worked with the first unit on Wednesday, and coach Jim Harbaugh has said

at Chargers. 7:15 P.M.

the third overall pick in the 2021 draft would be prepared for situations where the Chargers might need to be under center such as in short yardage or at the goal line.

Roman has used quarterback platoons at times, but never because of an injury like Herbert’s.

“It was because of, you know, trying to throw some trickeration at people,” Roman said. “But, no, I mean, we’ll do whatever it takes.”

The uncertainty carries over to the Eagles, where defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has also been devising plans for Herbert and Lance, who has not thrown a touchdown pass in the NFL since Jan 2, 2022, the last game of his rookie season with the San Francisco 49ers.

“We’ll have to prepare for both quarterbacks,” Fangio said. “Probably knowing that if Herbert plays, he’ll be in the pistol a lot and in the gun. Yeah, we’ll have to be ready for both.” Eagles run over Philadelphia’s offense has absorbed the bulk of the blame for the team’s struggles of late. Yet, it was the defense — especially the line — that got whipped against the Bears, when the unit allowed 281 yards. Chicago had two 100-yard rushers in a game for the ﬁrst time since its dominant Super Bowl-winning 1985 season.

“I didn’t do a good enough job of preparing our squad for the quality and the diversity of their run game,” Fangio said “We didn’t play the run and the blocks the way we had been playing.” Herbert familiar with Fangio Herbert has experience going against Fangio’s schemes, having faced him four times from 2020-21 when Fangio was head coach of the Denver Broncos. Herbert went 2-2, throwing for 1,071 yards and eight touchdowns with four interceptions. Both wins were at home, and he did not throw a pick in those games.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MATT LUDTKE

Green Bay Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon intercepts a pass against Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet during the second half of a game on Sunday in Green Bay, Wis.

SAINTS 24, BUCS 20

RB Neal earns game ball

BY LUKE JOHNSON AND MATTHEW PARAS Staff writers

TAMPA, Fla.

— All this talk about ball security during a rainy game at Raymond James Stadium, and there was Devin Neal forgetting to secure the ball.

Thankfully for him, this was after a play He was too caught up in the celebration after he caught the late signal from the referee that he’d scored his ﬁrst touchdown of his professional career with the New Orleans Saints.

And, doubly thankfully, someone on the Saints equipment staff had the good sense to grab the keepsake for Neal’s collection. In fact, the rookie running back came away from Sunday’s win in Tampa Bay with a pair of mementos.

and go about it in the wrong way and not focus on getting wins, but we ﬁght for each other, and I think that represents our culture as a whole. And I’m just excited to keep on building.”

Neal and fellow rookie Tyler Shough were the engines that ran the Saints offense Sunday With New Orleans being forced to lean on the ground game in challenging conditions, Neal carried the ball 19 times for 70 tough yards against a Buccaneers unit that had allowed only three players to top 70 yards all season coming into Sunday’s game.

let me dump it down by running back, and let’s just make a play Whatever happens, happens.”

A sixth-round pick out of Kansas this year, Neal has started each of the last two games for the Saints while Alvin Kamara has dealt with a knee injury

Why no challenge?

Well before the Saints’ victory over the Buccaneers, Moore left fans puzzled over his decision not to challenge a controversial spot on third down that forced his team to settle for a ﬁeld goal.

camera (angle) because we were already in tempo,” Moore said. “Usually, (the) TV (broadcast) is going to go right to the live action in those scenarios, so (it was) a little bit tricky.”

The Saints then went for it on fourth-and-1, and while they converted, the play was penalized for an illegal man down the ﬁeld. Moore then settled for a 30-yard ﬁeld goal, which CharlieSmyth made. Moore is 0-for-3 on challenges this season, his first as a head coach.

Odds and ends

0-1-0. Tampa Bay, Izien 5-3-0, Winﬁeld 4-1-0, Dean 4-0-0, Vea 3-2-1, David 3-2-0, Gaines 3-0-1, Braswell 2-1-1, Smith 2-1-0, Dennis 1-1-0, Diaby 1-1-0, McCollum 1-1-0, Reddick

1-1-0, Brewer 1-0-0, Nelson 1-0-0, Parrish 1-0-

0, E.Roberts 1-0-0, L.Hall 0-2-0, D.Jones 0-1-0.

INTERCEPTIONS—New Orleans, Taylor 1-10. Tampa Bay, McCollum 1-19. MISSED FIELD GOALS—New Orleans, Smyth

48. OFFICIALS—Referee Clete Blakeman, Ump Scott Campbell, HL Andy Warner, LJ Kent Payne, FJ Karina Tovar, SJ James Coleman, BJ Jonah Monroe, Replay Chad Adams.

Bucs defensive lineman Logan Hall was the first to arrive, and when Shough spun out of his tackle, he pounded the dirt in disgust. Two-time Pro Bowler Vita Vea came next, and he couldn’t corral the rookie either For good measure, Anthony Nelson came free and was left in the dust like the others.

Shough saw daylight and sprinted toward it, and if those first three defenders weren’t going to get him, neither were the other eight. His 13-yard touchdown run gave the Saints a 24-17 lead they would not relinquish.

“That was a big-time play,” coach Kellen Moore said.

If that felt rare, it’s because it has been. Since Drew Brees retired, the Saints have had 30 opportunities to put together a go-ahead drive in the final 10 minutes of games, including Sunday Shough’s run was only the fifth go-ahead touchdown the Saints have scored in those situations, and it marked only the second time New Orleans had hung on for a win (the other being Seattle in 2022).

Quarterback wins may not be a real statistic, but big plays in big moments do matter — perhaps to no one more than the players

Shough shares a locker room with As he was saying how much he respected Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayﬁeld, Saints linebacker Demario Davis said the quarterback position was what

There was that game ball from his ﬁrst touchdown — a three-yard plunge to cap an impressive tonesetting touchdown on the game’s opening drive — and there was the game ball he received from coach Kellen Moore after the Saints’ 24-20 win over Tampa Bay

“Special, special moment for me — and not only for me, but for this team,” Neal said. “I just think it’s a representation of who we are. We can easily just be down

He contributed some big plays as a runner, including a 21-yarder that represented the longest run by any Saints running back this season. But he also added a crucial 14-yard catch on third down to set up the go-ahead score in the fourth quarter, catching a pass in the ﬂat and turning upﬁeld for a big gain.

On the play, Shough was dealing with pressure up the middle and he dumped it off to Neal well shy of the ﬁrst down marker Neal did the rest.

“I’m just glad Tyler saw me in time, had enough trust in me,” Neal said. “... He just has a natural feel, like, the pocket’s collapsing,

But the coach had a reasonable explanation for why he didn’t throw the red flag: He couldn’t see a replay to see if it was truly a bad call.

On third-and-2 with 2:26 left in the third from the 9-yard line, running back Audric Estime rushed for what officials initially indicated was a first down. So to avoid a challenge from the Tampa side, Moore said the Saints tried to push the pace by running tempo — but the Saints failed to get the next snap off in time as the officiating crew then changed the spot of the ball and ruled it to be fourth-and-1.

“We weren’t able to get the

Saints players celebrate a touchdown

second half on Sunday in Tampa, Fla.

decided the game in the Saints’ favor Sunday In Shough, he sees someone who has the “it factor.”

The it factor being “that thing that separates some of my top quarterbacks in the league from the rest of the guys,” Davis said.

The conditions made that speciﬁc type of heroics a necessity The Saints and Buccaneers spent most of Sunday’s game playing in a driving rain, and both offensive play-callers leaned heavily into the run game. Shough contributed two of the Saints’ three rushing touchdowns,

and as a team, New Orleans had one of its best rushing efforts of the year, turning its 32 attempts into 139 yards against one of the NFL’s better run defenses But for all Shough did late, the game ultimately came down to what the Saints defense would do against Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayﬁeld. Holding a 24-20 lead, New Orleans took over at its own 18 with 4:54 remaining. Shough converted a pair of clutch third downs with tough throws to Devaughn Vele, but he couldn’t pull off the trifecta. His

third-and-11 pass fell incomplete with 1:54 remaining, and the Saints sent the punting unit onto the ﬁeld

— which actually made some happy

“We’ve been waiting for a twominute drive to be on (the defense) the whole year,” Davis said.

“. It’s been a long time coming, and it was interesting that it ended as fast as it did.”

The Buccaneers needed to go 80 yards with no timeouts to take the lead. They didn’t even make it 10 yards. With Davis in coverage, Mayfield’s fourth-down pass to Cade

Shough’s 34-yard touchdown run was the longest run by any Saints player since Taysom Hill‘s 75-yard touchdown against the Cleveland Browns in November of last year It was only the Saints’ second run of 30 or more yards since the start of the 2023 season Right tackle Asim Richards, who ﬁlled in for injured starter Taliese Fuaga, left in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s win with an ankle injury William Sherman replaced Richards in the lineup Baker Mayfield‘s 55.1 passer rating against the Saints was his second-worst single-game mark since he took over as the Buccaneers’ starting quarterback.

Otten on fourth-and-4 picked up 3 yards — the ﬁfth stop the Saints defense came up with on fourth down Sunday New Orleans took over and kneeled out the clock on their third win of the season. The game started to turn early in the second half when Alontae Taylor injected some life into the Saints sideline by picking off Mayﬁeld on the opening drive of the second half.

Trailing 10-7 at the time, New Orleans took the lead when Shough found a seam off the left end on a read option and out-raced the Buccaneers defense for a 34-yard touchdown run. It was the longest run by any Saints player this season Shough ﬁnished the game with modest stats as a passer, going 13 of 20 for 144 yards and an interception that was a result of a miscommunication with Chris Olave. But he contributed 55 yards and two scores on the ground and, most importantly was a central ﬁgure in a winning effort.

Days before the game, he was asked if he was treating the closing stretch as an audition to keep the job in 2026, with the Saints appearing destined for a top draft pick — where franchise quarterbacks are typically drafted. Sunday, the tone shifted: Does he feel he’s opened eyes with his play? Shough didn’t bite.

“I

Shough

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JASON BEHNKEN

by quarterback Tyler Shough against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JASON BEHNKEN

Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Elijah Roberts tackles Saints running back Devin Neal in the second half of a game on Sunday in Tampa, Fla.

SHOUGH STANDS TALL

Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough hada brilliant day, leading the Saints offense to asecondhalfcomeback and rushingfor twosecondhalftouchdowns in the rain. He finished the daywith modest numbers (13 of 20 passing,144 yards, one interception; 7carries for 55 yards), butitincluded several big plays on third down and is the typeofvictory that will lead the Saints to believe theyhavetheir quarterback of the future, no matterhow hightheirdraft pick is next spring

SAINTS 24,BUCS20

MOORE FINDS MORE

Shough isn’t the only rookie whoimpressed Sunday. First-year head coachKellen Moore had agood daycallingthe offense, fromthe scripted first drivethat produced Devin Neal’s first career touchdown to the fourth quarter,whenthe Saints were finding ways to runthe ball in bad weatheragainst a good rushing defense.The resultwas acareer dayfor yetanother rookie: Neal finished with70yardsand the touchdownon19carries, plusa big 14-yard catch to convert athird down on the Saints’ final touchdowndrive.

TOUGH ‘D’WHENITCOUNTED

The Saints defense wasn’t perfect, but it was very good when it counted. The Buccaneers were only 3of13onthird down and 2of7 on fourth down.The five fourth-down stops included threestuffs in short-yardagesituations near midfield, flipping field position, as well as the stop that ended the game. Anddon’t forget acouple of third-down stops inside the 25-yard line that forced Tampa Bay into field goals. That ultimately wasthe difference in thegame.

‘Westuffed themiddlelikea turkey’

NewOrleans defensedominates on fourth down

BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer

TAMPA,Fla. CarlGranderson hadan idea what was coming, thanks to what happened 42 days earlier In October,during in the ﬁrst meeting between the New Orleans Saints andthe TampaBay Buccaneers,the Saints bottled up their NFC South rival’srushing attack with adominant goal-line stand. And they nearly had another later on So on Sunday,when theBuccaneers lineduptogofor it on fourth-and-1 from midﬁeld, Granderson knew there was no way that Tampa Bay would send Bucky Irving straight ahead.Not afterlasttime.

“Westuffed the middle like aturkey,” Granderson said. “They couldn’t run up the middle. .Weknew they were going to try and hit (the) outside. It was awrap after that.” Granderson read the pitch and immediately wrapped up the running back for a7-yard loss —the first ofa remarkable five fourth-down stops in NewOrleans’24-20win over theBuccaneers. Tampa Bay finished the afternoon just 2of7onfourth down Like in the previous matchup, the Saints controlled the line of scrimmage Sure, Tampa Bay rushed for179 yards on 39 carries. But more oftenthan not, when the Buccaneers needed justa few yards to keep their drives alive, it was the Saints’ defensive line that blew up the play as soon as it started. And this time, unlike the first meeting, they won the game.

“Everything’sonthe line,” Saints defensive endCam Jordan said of those fourth-down moments. “That’s what gets players excited. When you’re on defense, you’re like,‘Man, putitonme. Put it on us.’” Each stop proved huge for New Orleans. Excluding quarterback Baker Mayfield’sbatted-down Hail Mary right before halftime, three of theother four stops gaveNew Orleansgreat ﬁeld position. And though they initially failed to capitalize on severalofthe chances, the offense ﬁnally delivered in the fourth quarter when they scored thegame-deciding touchdownfresh

Kellen Moore needed awin like this one. Ascrappy,out-of-the-mud(both literally and physically) victory against aquality opponent thathis New Orleans Saints simplyout-toughed.

The Moore era in New Orleans got off to astart as gloomy as the Sunday afternoon weather at Raymond JamesStadium. There weren’tawhole lot of wins (just two) through the ﬁrst dozen games under Moore, and there wasn’tawhole lot of optimism. Nothing seemedto suggest the Saints weretrending in the right direction. Every week, something popped up that needed to be ﬁxed. Penalties. Red-zone woes. Turnovers. Defensive lapses.Moore’s decision-making. Moore’sgame management. Something.

Saints linebackerDemario Davis, center,celebrates with safety Terrell Burgess, left, and cornerbackQuincyRileyafter stopping the Tampa BayBuccaneers on fourth down in the first half on SundayinTampa, Fla

off cornerbackKool-Aid McKinstry’s fourth-and-2 passbreakup.

McKinstry’sPBU in particular also showedhow it wasn’t just thedefensive line thatchanged thegame. The Bucs’ Chris Godwin initially appeared to catchthe pass right in front of the chains when the second-year cornerback came ﬂying in withathunderous hit, causing the wide receiver to bobble the ball and force the incompletion.

“I wentuptohim and told him, ‘Man, Idon’t thinkyou realize howbig aplay that was,”cornerback AlontaeTaylor said.

To even get to fourthdown, the Saints hadtobeexcellent on third down. And they responded with some of their best effort of theseason. New Orleansheld Tampa Bay to 3of13on third down, whichtieda season-best percentage for the Saints. What was theother game?The ﬁrst Bucs’meeting, of course.Tampa Bay also went 3

of 13 in that one.

Maybe themost important of all of them was Michael Davis’ coverage on tight endCadeOtton with just under ﬁve minutes left. Davis, aseldom-used corner,was on theﬁeldaspart of a packagethatrequired another defensive back. Butheblanketed thetight end, preventing him from catching a potential game-tying touchdown.

TampaBay settled for the ﬁeld goal, its last pointsofthe afternoon.

“We’re there to ruin their season,” Davis said. “We’re out of playoff contention. They’re still in the hunt, so we’vegot to ruin their season. We came in here andplayedhard.They underestimated us alittle bit.” TheSaints indeed playedspoiler. The Buccaneers fell to 7-6 on the season, dropping them into afirstplace tiewiththe CarolinaPanthers. TampaBay and Carolina still have to face each other twice in the ﬁnalfour

games, puttingthe NFCSouth very much up forgrabs.

New Orleans, at 3-10, won’tbepart of that divisional hunt. But so much of thisseason has been about buildinga foundation for the future.And awin over ateamlike theBuccaneers— who have won the South four straight years —only adds to that. They were even tested in new ways Sunday, 13 gamesinto the campaign. Demario Davis said the defense had been waiting all year for agameto truly be put on their shoulders in the ﬁnal minutes. Andwith1:48left, Davis and the unit got their wish. The defense took theﬁeld,needing to prevent TampaBay from driving 80 yards for agame-winning touchdown.

“It was like adog licking its chops,” the linebacker said.

TheBuccaneers instead went 9, stopped just short of the sticks on fourth-and-4.

Panthers. Maybe theSaints will do the Bucs afavor next week when the Panthers come to theSuperdome.

The Saints, who already have one winagainstthe Panthers,are just 3-10 and at thebottom of that same NFC South ladder.Credit goes to Moore for having ateam that hasn’t quit.His players hadevery reason to give up after winning just one of their ﬁrst eight games.

But Sunday,the Saints ﬁnally put it all together and beat the TampaBay Buccaneers 24-20inthe most impressive and complete victory since Moore took over Moore was his same stoic self after thewin, not showing much emotion. Butonthe inside, you know he hadto be smiling from ear to ear

This was asignature win against a Bucs team that was ﬁghting to stay alone atop the NFC South standings. Instead, the Saints played spoiler,and now the Bucs (7-6) are tied on the top rung of the division with theCarolina

“Kellen’sgot ice in his veins,” said Saintslinebacker Demario Davis. “Hedon’t change, win or lose. He comes in and he’sthe same person every day. As human beings, you respect that more than anything. Youmay agree or disagree with somebody, but when somebody is the same person every day,it’slike, ‘OK, Ican rock with you. Iknow you’re not gonna changeup.’And that’show he’sbeen. He’s been steady. He doesn’tﬂinch.”

Moore’steam didn’tﬂinch either Every time theSaints scored Sunday, theBucswouldanswer withascore of their own.But theSaints just kept making plays.

One of the best decisions Moore madewhenhelanded theSaints job washiring Brandon Staley to be his defensive coordinator.That was evident Sunday, as theSaintslimited Baker Mayﬁeldtoarough passing day. Mayﬁeld completed 14 of 30 passes for122 yards withatouchdown and an interception. It was the second time

in six weeks the Saints held Mayfield in check. Mayfield completed 15 of 24 passes for 152 yards in the Bucs’ 23-3 victory in the Dome in October. This time, theSaints flipped the script,with Tyler Shough doing his best Mayfield impersonation in the win. Shough ran for two touchdowns and threw for another and the Saints scored 20 pointsina gamefor the first time since beating the New York Giants in Week 5. The 24 points were much needed for Moore, who was hired because he was supposed to be an offensive mind. There have been times this season when that was in doubt,especially in games when the Saintsfailed to score once inside the

red zone. The Saints went 2for 3in the red zone Sunday.They also got plenty of help from their defense, holding the Bucs to 3of13onthird downs and 2of7 on fourth downs. This wasthe very deﬁnition of the complementary football Moore had been waiting to see.

“When you’ve only won acouple games during the season, there is alot of adversity you face,” Moore said. “So forour guys to come out and have the energy and the physicality they played with, Ithought it wasa credit to our guys. They are aspecial group that keeps playing.”

The Bucs, ateam the Saints once dominated, had won the last three games in the series. The Saints have never lost four straight games to the Bucs, and they made sure not to start on Sunday

Nothing wasgoing to stop them

Notthe Bucs. And not Mother Nature, who pouredrain on the ﬁeld muchofthe afternoon and made this game asloppy one. Moore, who monitored the weather in away that would have made former local meteorologist Margaret Orr proud, made the adjustments and leaned on arunning game that has struggled most of the season. Running back Devin Nealrushed for 70 yards, and Shough rushed for 55 more. Both Shough and Nealscored their ﬁrst rushing touchdowns, making it abig day for the two rookies. And the rookie head coach’sday wasn’tsobad either

Rod Walker

AP PHOTO By CHRISO’MEARA Saints head coach Kellen Moore smiles after atouchdownagainst the Buccaneers on Sunday

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByJASON BEHNKEN

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Teams in quarterfinal have Sugar Bowl history

Georgia to face winner of Tulane-Ole Miss

BY LES EAST Contributing writer

The Allstate Sugar Bowl matchup is only partly set.

But the Sugar Bowl and New Orleans will have a winning combination no matter what.

SEC champion Georgia (12-1, 7-1) is the No. 3 seed and will face the winner of a ﬁrst-round game between No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 11 Tulane in a College Football Playoff quarterﬁnal matchup at 7 p.m. Jan. 1 in the Caesars Superdome.

“Whatever happens, we’re going to have a good game and a good environment,” Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said shortly after the 12team bracket was announced Sunday. “There’s a lot of rabid fan passion for all three programs.”

Hundley attended Georgia’s 28-7 victory over Alabama in Atlanta on Saturday and sensed that the Bulldogs’ fans would be enthusiastic about returning to New Orleans. No. 2 seed Georgia lost to No. 7 Notre Dame 23-10 on Jan. 2 after the game was postponed one day in the wake of the Bourbon Street terrorist attack in the early hours of New Year’s Day

The enhanced security for the Jan. 2 game, as well as the Super Bowl in February and last month’s Bayou Classic, is now “part and parcel” of major events in New Orleans, Hundley said.

Georgia has won nine consecutive games since losing a home game against Alabama, 24-21, on Sept. 27. A 43-35 home victory against Ole Miss on Oct. 18 is part of that streak.

The Rebels and Green Wave have 13 days to prepare for their rematch, while the Bulldogs have more time (25) days but less certainty with which to begin preparation.

“We’ll treat those teams as equals,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “We’ll split our (coaching) staff in half, look hard at both teams and dive into their seasons.”

Green Wave coach Jon Sumrall led his team to a 34-21 victory against North Texas in the American Championship game Friday night at Yulman Stadium and will continue to as long as Tulane is in

The Rebels (11-1, 7-1) will host the American Conference champion Green Wave (11-2, 7-1) at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 20 in Oxford, Mississippi. It will be a rematch of the Rebels’ 45-10 home victory on Sept. 20 and the 75th meeting in a series that dates to 1893. Both teams’ success has led to their coaches leaving for other opportunities, though under different circumstances. Former Ole Miss coach Lane Kifﬁn is on the job as the new LSU head coach, and defensive coordinator Pete Golding, a Hammond native and a former assistant coach at Southeastern Louisiana has succeeded him.

the CFP before taking over fulltime at Florida. The hometown Green Wave played in the first Sugar Bowl in 1935, but its third and most recent appearance in the game came way back in 1939. Georgia and Ole Miss are both central ﬁgures in the long history between the SEC and the Sugar Bowl.

Notre Dame left out of playoff while Alabama and Miami get in

BY MARK LONG Associated Press

Snubbed by the College Football Playoff, Notre Dame snubbed its nose at a second-tier bowl game

The ninth-ranked Fighting Irish responded to getting dropped in the CFP rankings for the second consecutive week by turning down an invitation to play in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Florida.

“As a team we’ve decided to withdraw our name from consideration for a bowl game following the 2025 season,” Notre Dame wrote in a statement posted to its ofﬁcial X account. “We appreciate all the support from our families and fans, and we’re hoping to bring the 12th national title to South Bend in 2026.”

Although it might be the exact reaction that many Notre Dame fans wanted, it’s far from ideal for the long-term viability of non-playoff bowl games.

The decision also denies Notre Dame’s seniors a chance for one ﬁnal game, denies underclassmen from a few extra weeks of practice and denies a legion of fans is there a bigger brand in college football? — from watching this team play again.

Unlike Iowa State and Kansas State, which each got ﬁned $500,000 by the Big 12 for opting out of a bowl game because of coaching changes Notre Dame won’t get punished because it’s not a fullfledged member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Despite winning every game for nearly three months, Notre Dame dropped behind Miami in the ﬁnal CFP rankings and was left out of the 12-team bracket entirely

The Fighting Irish, who won their last 10 games by an average of nearly 30 points, watched championship weekend from afar, idle as an independent with no options to impress the selection committee one last time in a league title game.

Athletic director Pete Bevac-

qua and coach Marcus Freeman had taken the high road in recent weeks, avoiding too much lobbying and believing their winning streak would be enough to earn a berth over Alabama Miami (10-2) ended up knocking the Irish (10-2) out.

With BYU losing to Texas Tech in the Big 12 title game, the committee ranked Miami and Notre Dame next to each other and turned to the head-to-head metric to determine which one would get the No. 10 seed.

It was Miami, which beat Notre Dame 27-24 in Week 1 of the regular season.

Hunter Yurachek, the chair of the selection committee, said members rewatched the game and were struck by Miami’s shutting down of a Notre Dame running game in a way nobody else did this season.

“Then there was observation from the coaches in the room where Notre Dame did a lot of chasing of some of the athletic receivers, especially on the Miami side,” Yurachek said. “And it just felt like there was a little bit more athleticism on the side of Miami versus Notre Dame.”

The Hurricanes will play at Texas

Continued from page 1B

They have gone 2-2 under Wilson with losses to Alabama and Oklahoma.

Houston went 4-8 during Fritz’s first season, but it has turned things around this year It has scored 28.3 points per game, ranking 65th in the country, and it has allowed 21.8 points per game, which ranks 40th nationally Its losses came against Texas Tech, West Virginia and TCU.

It’s unclear what the roster will

A&M in the opening round of the playoff.

No. 12 BYU, No 13 Vanderbilt and No. 14 Texas — and, to a lesser extent, Atlantic Coast Conference champion Duke — are sure to have issues with the ﬁnal CFP standings, too.

“We are not entitled to anything and we’re not victimized by any process or any committee,” Vandy coach Clark Lea said. “This is about ownership over what we’ve created, and the opportunity we created for ourselves is to go and know exactly what our season is going to be ﬁnished.”

But no one has a bigger gripe than Notre Dame, which dropped one spot after beating Stanford 4920 and then fell another while not playing.

Fans online had demanded the Irish boycott their bowl game, cancel their scheduling agreement with the ACC and reassess future slates. Some called for Bevacqua to be ﬁred.

Notre Dame lost consecutive games to open the season against teams that made the playoff — Miami and Texas A&M, by a combined four points and has been as good as anyone in the country since.

look like. LSU wide receivers Kylan Billiot and Jelani Watkins have decided to enter the transfer portal when it opens Jan. 2, but there are no other known opt-outs or transfers at this point.

LSU’s offensive coaching staff is also in flux after the hiring of new head coach Lane Kiffin Wilson will coach through the bowl game, Kiffin said, but his future with the team is uncertain after that. Kiffin has brought in a new offensive staff, while LSU retained most of its defensive staff after defensive coordinator Blake Baker passed on jobs at Tulane and Memphis.

“Tulane has a historic connection to the Sugar Bowl,” Hundley said, “and the SEC has been the Sugar Bowl’s bread and butter for 90 years.”

The Bulldogs will make their 13th appearance in the Sugar Bowl, tied for second-most all-time, and their second consecutive. Ole Miss is seeking its 11th trip to the Sugar Bowl.

PLAYOFF

Continued from page 1B

in Week 1 played a role once the teams were grouped right next to each other after BYU lost its game on Saturday and dropped one spot.

“Everyone can spin the metrics in favor of the team or teams they support,” committee chairman Hunter Yurachek said “You’re always going to have controversy That’s why we debated for so long, 9, 10 and 11, into the earlymorning hours, and woke up at sunrise to do the same thing — make sure we got it right.”

The committee’s other key decision was choosing James Madison over Duke for the ﬁnal spot. The selection left the Atlantic Coast Conference champion out of the mix, but didn’t fully exclude the ACC because Miami made it.

The rest of the ﬁeld includes No. 2 seed Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia and No 4 Texas Tech, all of which joined Indiana in getting ﬁrst-round byes.

The Hoosiers moved up to No. 1 with their 13-10 win over the Buckeyes on Saturday — their ﬁrst Big Ten title since 1967 — and the teams’ 1-2 positioning sets up a possible rematch in the national title game Jan. 19. Then it was No. 5 seed Oregon, followed by Mississippi, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama, Miami, American champion Tulane and James Madison of the Sun Belt.

The playoffs start Dec. 19 with No. 9 Alabama at No. 8 Oklahoma. On Dec. 20, it’s No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 12 James Madison at No. 5 Oregon.

The winners move to the quarterﬁnals, which will feature Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Eve, then Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl, Indiana in the Rose Bowl and Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1.

Tide back in after snub Alabama (10-3) is in despite three losses. Those who believe the Tide deserve it will look at these factors:

n An eight-game winning streak after a shocking 14-point, season-opening loss to Florida State that included a 24-21 victory at Georgia for a season split while, for instance, BYU lost both its games against Texas Tech

n Ignoring the above, there was the “you can’t lose ground for playing in the title game” argument Last year, Alabama had three losses and was passed over for SMU, which was coming off a loss in the ACC title game. Using the same logic, someone other than the Tide needed to go this time.

A costly miss for Notre Dame

It was a particularly costly

The 92nd edition of the Sugar Bowl will be Smart’s sixth appearance as coach.

“The Sugar Bowl is an incredible event,” Smart said. “I’ve had the great fortune of playing there more than I ever thought I would. (I have) a lot of respect for how much passion there is in this game.”

Conference

and painful snub for the Fighting Irish.

They lost their ﬁrst two games of the season — one to Miami, the other to Texas A&M by a combined four points. They did not play a tough schedule the rest of the way; it was ranked 44th, compared to sixth for Alabama but 45th for Miami. But the Irish won all those games easily It also hurts the pocketbook. Where conferences split $4 million for each team they place into the ﬁrst round, Notre Dame — as an independent — would have banked the full amount for itself.

Yurachek said the committee had not previously considered Miami’s Aug. 31 win over Notre Dame because there were always other teams in the mix, namely Alabama and BYU. But when BYU lost, the Irish and Hurricanes ended up right next to each other which made that Miami win more important. Yurachek directed the committee to go back and rewatch it.

“Really, how Miami’s defense dominated Notre Dame’s running game, where for the rest of the season, their running game dominated most of the teams they played,” Yurachek said when asked what the committee saw in that game.

Duke’s argument not enough Duke tried to make a compelling argument that its seven wins over Power Four teams, including the victory over Virginia in the ACC title game, made it more deserving than James Madison for that ﬁfth and ﬁnal automatic spot for conference champs.

But the Blue Devils had five losses. And Virginia was ranked four (now nine) spots lower than Miami, the ACC’s best team by many measurements.

James Madison’s playoff game against a mega-team from a megaconference — Oregon — will suss out whether teams like that should be playing for the title.

AP PHOTO By MIKE STEWART Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson looks to make a pass against Georgia during the Southeastern

championship on Saturday in Atlanta.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU quarterback Michael Van Buren runs the ball in a game against Arkansas on Nov. 15.

AP PHOTO By MIKE STEWART

Georgia linebacker Quintavius Johnson celebrates a sack on Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson during the SEC championship game on Saturday in Atlanta.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GENE J PUSKAR

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, left, greets players as they return to the sideline during the second half of a game against Pittsburgh on Nov 15 in Pittsburgh.

hottopic on ‘College GameDay’

BY SCOTT RABALAIS Staff writer

ATLANTA— Lane Kifﬁn canceled a scheduled appearance here Saturday on ESPN’s“CollegeGameDay” show before the SECchampionship game. LSU’s newcoach said on social media he hadtostay in Baton Rouge wherehe was “ﬁnishing some things out withplayers and acoach.”

Those things turned out to be defensive coordinator Blake Baker, who decided to stay at LSU instead of becoming Tulane’shead coach, and University High’sLamar Brown, the nation’sNo. 1-rated prospect.

Still,Kifﬁn’s absence didn’t stop the show’scast from talkingabout him at length.

“There wereseveral questions we wanted to ask,” “CollegeGameDay” host Rece Davis said.“Those will have to wait for another day.” Davis brought up the fact that Kifﬁn and Nick Saban, theformer LSU and Alabama coach now part of the “College GameDay”cast, areboth representedbyagent Jimmy Sexton of CAA. Davis also said he is represented by CAA, as is the show’sDesmond Howard, the former Heisman Trophy winner

Saban advised Kifﬁn on his decision to stay at Ole Missortake the LSU job.

“I get alot of callsbecause some people view me as asenior professional,” Saban said. “So asa person, as ahuman being, you want to help everybody you can.

“I’m in this for the betterment of thegame,really forthe players. And coaches impact players. Administrators impact players. Anyone who callsme, Itry to do

the best Ican to give them the bestinformationtomakethe best decisions for thebetterment of the game

“The ﬁrst thingI ask acoach if he’s contemplating changing jobs is, ‘What do you want to do?’ Iwant them to follow their heart. Inever tell anybodywhatthey should do. Ijusttry to bring some thought into it so they can make the best decisionfor their family and their future.”

Saban went on to say he felt Kif-

ﬁn was “veryconfused” as he tried to decide to stay or go.

“I think this is adifficult circumstance to be in,” Saban said.

“I’ve been in this situation before, where you ﬁnish the season, you want to stay with your team and coachthemina bowlgame or the playoffs or whatever it is. Butyou feel like you owe it to yourself and your family to at least look at other opportunities and see if they’re bettersituationsfor you in thefuture.”

While the show’sPat McAfee said he was“holding outhope” Kifﬁn wouldhavestayed at Ole Miss, he ticked off some of thereasons he left for LSU. Those included signingBrown and Edna Karr’s Richard Anderson, the nation’sNo. 1defensivetackle prospect, along with keepingBaker on staff.

“You look at his recruiting right now,” McAfee said. “He’sgot the No. 1recruit in the country signing with him,meeting with him when he getsthere. He’sgot the No. 1 defensive lineman in thecountry. He kept his defensive coordinator down there.Everything he thought and envisioned happening at LSU, thereason hetook the job,iscomingtofruition.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GODOFREDOA.VÁSQUEZ

Notre Dame running back AneyasWilliams, front, celebrates withwide receiver Elijah Burress, right, after scoring atouchdownagainst Stanford on Nov. 29 in Stanford, Calif. The Fighting Irish declined to participate in abowlgame this year

Bowl officialsseekout

5-7teams

to take bids

Eligible teamsNotre Dame,IowaState, Kansas State declinetheir spots

BY ERIC OLSON Associated Press

In amatter of hours Sunday, what had appearedtobea yearno teams with losing records would be needed to fill outthe bowl schedule suddenlychanged when Notre Dame, Iowa State andKansas State announced they would decline bids despite being eligible. There are 41 bowls this year, and 82 teams won the necessary sixgames to be eligible. ButIowa State and Kansas State aregoing throughcoaching changes almost simultaneously said they were hanging up their cleats for the season. Notre Dame, the ﬁrst team left out of the College Football Playoff, followed afew hourslater Mississippi State and Rice, both 5-7, swooped in to accept bids because they were among the ﬁrstin line based on their Academic Progress Rate. The Bulldogs will play Wake Forest in the Duke’sMayo Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Owls will face Texas State in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas. TheBirmingham Bowl, after multiple 5-7 teams declined bids, on Sunday night got Appalachian State to accept an invitation to play Georgia Southern in an all-Sun Belt Conference matchup. Georgia Southern won the regular-season meeting 25-23 on Nov.6 Iowa State, Kansas Stateand Notre Dame weren’tgoingtoplay in any of those lower-level bowls, buttheir decisionsaltered the

WhyTexas,not Alabamaor Miami, deserves to be in CFP

Ah,yes, conference championship weekend. Thefinal twist of athree-plus months long saga that ends on the final Sunday of theseason, the day theCollege Football Playoff field is announced.

This is an AP Top25poll column, but withthe ﬁnal playoff teams also being announced on thesame day this storyispublished, I’ve decided to discuss my poll this week through the lens of the CFP.DoIthink Alabamashould makethe playoff? What about Notre Dame and Miami? Where’sJames Madison and Duke in all of this chaos?

Let’sanswer those questions and more.

Riley’spoll

1. Indiana, 2. Georgia, 3. Ohio State, 4. Texas A&M, 5. Texas Tech, 6. Ole Miss, 7. Oklahoma, 8. Oregon, 9. Notre Dame, 10. Texas, 11. Alabama, 12. Miami, 13. Vanderbilt,14. BYU, 15. Utah, 16. Southern Cal, 17. Michigan, 18. Iowa, 19. Arizona, 20. Missouri, 21. Tennessee, 22. Houston, 23. SMU, 24. Louisville, 25. Tulane. Texasshouldbein

It took sometime lastnight for me to realize it,but why shouldn’tTexas be in theplayoff?

order of selections and presumably allowed three lesser teams to move up and bowls at the bottom to scramble

Notre Dame’sdecisiontoshut down for the year cameafter it was announced as the ﬁrst team left outofthe playoff.

“As ateam, we’ve decided to withdraw our name fromconsideration for abowl game following the 2025 season,” the Fighting Irish saidina statement on social media. “Weappreciate all the support from our families and fans, andwe’re hopingtobring the12th nationaltitle to South Bend in 2026.”

Notre Damewon itslast10 gamesfollowingathree-point loss to Miami and aone-point loss to Texas A&M. The Fighting Irish, which lost to Ohio State in the national championship game last season, ﬁnished 10-2 and ranked No. 9onSunday in The Associated Press poll and No. 11 in the CFP rankings.

Miami got into the playoff as an at-large selection after moving from No. 12 to No. 10 in the ﬁnal rankings. Notre Dame dropped a spot andwillnow stay home for the postseason for the ﬁrst time since 2016.

The Big 12 Conference said it will fine Iowa Stateand Kansas State $500,000each foropting out of bowl participation. Both schools are goingthrough coachingtransitionswith Matt Campbell leaving Iowa State for Penn State and Chris Klieman announcing his retirement.

“Whilethe conferenceacknowledges the difﬁcult timing around coachingchanges, the Big 12 is responsible for fulﬁlling its contractualobligations to its bowl partners,” the Big 12 said in a statement.

The Longhorns have beaten three top-13 teams in my poll, faced one of the10toughest schedules in thecountry,and, unlike Alabama, didn’thave its best win negated by alopsided

BYERIC OLSON Associated Press

Indiana is theNo. 1team in The Associated Press Top25college football poll for thefirst time after going through theregular season and Big Tenchampionship game 13-0, ending Ohio State’s 14week run atop the rankings.

The Hoosiers’ 13-10 win over the Buckeyes in Indianapolis on Saturday night made them the unanimous pickfor No. 1and they locked up the top seed for their second straight appearance in the 12-team College Football Playoff. Georgia,whichbeat Alabama by three touchdowns in the Southeastern Conference title game, moved up onespottoNo. 2for itshighestrankingofthe season Ohio State,the defending national champion, slipped two spotsto No. 3. Texas Tech,a27-point winner over BYU in the Big12championship game, also has itshighest ranking of the season after rising one rung to No. 4. Oregonwas No. 5and followed by OleMiss, TexasA&M, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Miami. Miami moved up two spots and returned to thetop 10 for the ﬁrst time since mid-October.Alabama and BYU each dropped one spot to Nos.11and 12.

loss to the sameteam. Texas andAlabamaboth have three losses. And though it may not be fairtoding the Crimson Tide for reaching the SEC championship game, sometimes life isn’tfair,either.Alabamahad a chance to jump into the top four of the CFP rankings with awin over Georgia. Instead, it lost, puttingits resumebehind another three-loss team in Texas.

Fate of NotreDame, Miami Notre Dame mademytop 10, and therefore my CFP field, fairly easily.The Irish have only improved since the first two weeks of the season, when they lost to Texas A&M and Miami, and haven’teven come close to losing since. It matters that one of those losses came to the Hurricanes, their direct competitor forone of thefinal spots in the playofffield.

ButMiami has also lost to Louisville and SMU.Both of those teams cracked my rankings, but they are not close to being on the sametierasMiamiand Texas A&M Miami’s winover the Irish was also at homebyonly three points back in Week 1. The margin between the twosides was thin to

begin with, and Notre Dame has been the better team since these twoteams played.

Why Texas and Alabamaover Miami? The Longhorns and Crimson Tide have much worse losses than the Hurricanes, dropping games to Florida and Florida State, respectively However,both teams also faced moredifﬁcult schedules and, in turn, own morequality wins than Miami. The Hurricanes haven’t beaten ateam in my poll besides Notre Dame.

TheJames Madison debate

James Madison didn’tcrack my AP poll after winning the Sun Belt championship on Friday,but the Dukes still deserve to make the CFP ahead of Duke.

The Blue Devils’ surprising win on Saturdayinthe ACC championship game improved their resume but didn’tpull themahead of JamesMadison, which beat everyone but Louisville this season.Duke played the much tougherschedule this year —evenifitwasn’ta gauntlet, either—but it also has the weakest loss in comparison to JMU(falling to UConn) and failed to beat aranked team in my poll.

James Madison also hasn’t taken downanyone in my top 25, but it at least played acompetitive gamewith my No. 24 team in Louisville. That, combined with beating everyone else in its path, was enough to place the Dukes in my theoretical playoff ﬁeld ahead of Duke.

Among Group of Five teams, American Conferencechampion Tulane jumpedfourspots to No. 17 for its highest ranking in two years. Sun Belt Conference champion JamesMadison remained No. 19. Theﬁnal AP Top25will be released Jan.20, the day afterthe national championship game. Poll points n Indiana, which had the most

lossesinmajor college football history priortoCurtCignetti’s arrivaltwo yearsago,had never been rankedhigherthanNo. 2 before Sunday.That was the position the Hoosiers held for seven straight weeks before they rose to the top. They were 100 ballot points ahead of Georgia. The Bulldogs werejust 12 points ahead of Ohio State.

n With thelimited schedule of games, all teams that wereinthe Top25remained in the poll. n Virginia took the biggest fall after losinginovertimetoDuke in the ACC championship game, going from No.16toNo. 20. Conference call

SEC (8 ranked teams): Nos. 2 Georgia,6Mississippi,7Texas A&M, 8Oklahoma, 11 Alabama, 13 Vanderbilt, 14 Texas, 25 Missouri.

Big Ten(5): Nos. 1Indiana, 3 Ohio State, 5Oregon, 16 Southern California, 18 Michigan. Big 12 (4): Nos. 4Texas Tech, 12 BYU,15Utah, 20 Arizona. ACC(3):Nos.10Miami, 21 Virginia, 24 Georgia Tech.

(3): Nos. 17 Tulane,22

23 North Texas.

9Notre

Sun Belt (1): No. 19 James Madison.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByCOLIN HUBBARD

center,walks down the sideline during the second half of agame against Georgia on Nov. 15 in Athens, Ga

KokiRiley

BREAKING THEBANK

ABY JANRISHER

By The Associated Press

rare crystal and diamond Fabergé egg crafted for Russia’srulingfamily before itwas toppledbyrevolution shattered records Tuesday as it sold at auction in Londonfor $30.2 million.

TheWinterEgg, which was compared to theiconic “Mona Lisa,” was just one of seven of the opulent ovoids remaininginprivate hands,Christie’sLondonauction house said.

The4-inch-tall egg is made from finely carved rock crystal, covered in adelicate snowflake motif wrought in platinum and 4,500 tiny diamonds.Itopens to reveal a removable tiny basket of bejewelledquartz flowers symbolizing spring.

Thesaleprice, which included abuyer’s premium, topped the $18.5 million paidata2007 Christie’sauction for another Fabergé egg created forthe Rothschild banking family.

Craftsman Peter Carl Fabergéand hiscompany created more than 50 of the eggs for Russia’simperialfamily between 1885 and1917, each elaborately unique and containing a hidden surprise.Czar Alexander III started the tradition by presenting an egg to his wife eachEaster. Hissuccessor,Nicholas II, extended the gift to his wife and mother

ä See FABERGÉ EGG, page 2C

What types of Christmas gifts are suitable forarelative withAlzheimer’s disease?

The giftoftimeisalways aperfect giftfor someone with Alzheimer’sdisease or dementia. People going through this journey appreciate the companionship and socialization because they feel isolated most of the time. Spending time with the person, engaging in activities of their preference, taking rides in acar,giving soothing hand massages with scented lotions, involvement in holiday decorating and cooking, looking at photo albumstogether are all examples of activities of engagement that the affected person would surely appreciate. Youcan makeapersonalized scrapbook or memoryalbum foryour relative, either digitally or using it as ameans for an activity that you and your relative could work on and create together.Imagine the pleasure the person would receive going through old photographs and reminiscing with you! Plus, adult coloring books are popular,and someolder adults, including those with memory impairments, take pleasure in coloring, especially when the activity is accompanied with children/grandchildren.

Be cautious, however,that the drawings to color are not too busy or intricate as this might confuse the person or makethem less interested in the activity.Not only will these types of pastimes provide hours of enjoyment, but you can learn agreat deal about your relative during the dialogue that results from this sharing of time together

Purposeful gifts are also good choices, such as toiletries, combs, brushes, easy pull-on clothing and sweaters, handkerchiefs or socks. Additionally you can purchase gifts that provide some mental stimulation, such as easy word searches, matching games, fidget therapy tools or apackage of letter tiles to make words (like Scrabble). There are also numerous apps specifically designed to stimulate the brain, and these apps can be downloaded on a tablet or iPhone if your relative has access to one. Someaffected people might be hesitant at first to use electronics, but you could easily guide them through the programs, and these could not only motivate and pass the timeinauseful way,but also provide mental stimulation and engagement. Magic Piano, Pocket Pond, Flower Garden, Book of You, and Lumosity are great apps, to nameafew,todownload for older adults and those with Alzheimer’sdisease or dementia. Additionally,ifyour relative enjoys animals, robotic pets provide hours of entertainment and are maintenance free (joyforall.com or mindcarestore. com). Further,giftcards to purchase favorite songs and tunes to download on atablet or

The Winter Egg by Fabergé, displayed

according to the auction house. | ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KIRSTy WIGGLESWORTH

Strong bonesaren’tbuilt by calciumalone

Dear Doctors: Doestaking calcium help keep your bones strongor not? Iamgoing through perimenopause now,and osteoporosis is on my mind. Afriend says that just acalcium supplementisn’t enough, you need to thinkabout vitamin K. Ihaven’teven heard of that. Can you please explain?

Dr.ElizabethKo Dr.EveGlazier ASK THE DOCTORS

DearReader: Perimenopause refers to the physical changesthat take place as awoman nearsthe end of her reproductiveyears. A shift in hormone productionbythe ovaries triggers these changes. Most notably,estrogen begins to ﬂuctuate and gradually decline.As blood levels of estrogen and other reproductive hormones rise and fall, arange of symptoms occur These include irregular periods, hot ﬂashes, sleep disruptionand mood changes. Because estrogen helps maintain bone density, perimenopausecan also setthe stage forosteoporosis.This is when the cycleofbone remodeling falls out of balance. Bone tissue is broken downmorerapidly thanitcan be rebuilt. This results in porous, brittle and fragile bones that can be easilyinjured. That bringsustothe concept of supplemental calcium. The idea is that, because dietarycalcium pro-

TODAYINHISTORY

By The Associated Press

Today is Monday, Dec. 8, the 342nd day of 2025. There are 23 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On Dec. 8, 1941, the United States entered World WarIIasCongress declared war againstImperial Japan aday after the attack on Pearl Harbor

Also on this date:

In 1980, rock star and former Beatle John Lennon was shot to death outside his New York City apartment building by Mark David Chapman.

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev signed atreaty at the White House calling for the destruction of intermediaterange missiles.

In 2012, Texas A&M

TRADITIONS

Continued from page1C

remain Gramercy,Lutcher and Paulina. Celebration in the Oaks at City Park in New Orleans

Each year,City Parkturns itself into aglowing reminder of why New Orleans does holidays its own way More than amillion lights wind through the ancient oaks, whether you choose the 2-mile driving tour at 4Friederichs Ave. or the walking path at 7Victory Ave. The tradition dates back to the 1980s and has growninto the park’s largest fundraiser Ticket information is at celebrationintheoaks.com/ tickets. Louisiana Lights: Where theHolidays Shine in Baton Rouge For the second year, Burden Museum and Gardens in Baton Rouge is hosting ayears-in-the-making immersive light show for the holiday season. Running through Dec. 30, guests walk through illuminated pathways and holiday scenes throughout the gardens. The paths are designed to be accessible for young and old to enjoy time together and outside

quarterback Johnny Manziel became the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy In 2014, the U.S.and NATO ceremonially ended their combatmission in Afghanistan, 13 years after theSept. 11 terror attacks sparked their invasion of the country to topple the Taliban-led government In 2016, John Glenn, whose 1962 flightasthe first U.S. astronauttoorbit the Earth made himanAmerican hero andpropelled him to along career in theU.S. Senate, died in Columbus, Ohio, at 95. In 2022, Russia freed WNBA star Brittney Griner in ahigh-profile prisoner exchangewith the U.S that released Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.Griner hadbeen detained for nearly 10 months.

vides theraw material for bone remodeling, adding the mineral to thediet should help offset the bone loss. Butaswith many of our bodily processes, thereality is morecomplex. Calcium does not act alone. Itsefﬁcacy in bone remodelingistied to vitamin D, zinc, magnesium, phosphateand vitamin K—more speciﬁcally, vitamin K2. Vitamin Dboosts the absorption of calcium and phosphate from theintestine. It keeps blood levels of these minerals within the range needed tobuild bone. Zinc, magnesium and vitamin Deach play arole in promoting bone formation.They support thebalance between bone growthand resorption.Phosphorus contributes to bone mineralization.Vitamin K2 makes sure that calcium in the

blood getstothe matrix of the bone, not the softtissues of the circulatory system.Itdoes this by activating aprotein that binds calcium to the bone matrix.

As one reader wrote to us on this topic, “… taking calcium alone without zinc, magnesium and vitamin K2 is like trying to make acake when the only ingredient you put in the bowl is ﬂour.” That means thinking about multiple dimensions wheneating for skeletal health. It is possible to get each of these important building blocks in dietary supplements. However,we always urge patients to seek out real food sources. Youcan ﬁnd vitamin K2 in animal-based and fermented foods, including cheese, butter,egg yolks and liver.The traditional Japanese dish knownasnatto,

madefrom fermented soybeans, is also arich source of vitamin K2.Vitamin K2 is also produced in the gut microbiome. Good sources of zinc and phosphorus include red meat,poultry,seafood and shellfish, eggs and milk. You’ll find vitamin Dinfatty fish like salmon, eggs, liver and dairy products. And formagnesium, look to the plant-based world with leafygreens, avocados, bananas, nuts, seeds and legumes. Bottom line: Strong bones aren’tbuilt by calcium alone.

Send yourquestions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla. edu, or write: Ask theDoctors, c/oUCLA HealthSciences Media Relations, 10880 Wilshire Blvd.,Suite 1450, Los Angeles, CA, 90024.

In 2024, insurgents completed their occupation of theSyrian capital of Damascusasa half-century of Assad family rule swiftly crumbled. Russian state media reported that President Bashar Assad was in Moscow after ﬂeeing the rebel advance.

Today’sbirthdays: Flutist James Galway is 86. Author Bill Bryson is 74. Actor Kim Basinger is 72. Commentator andcolumnist AnnCoulter is 64. Actor Wendell Pierce is 63. Actor Teri Hatcher is 61.

Basketball Hall of Famer Teresa Weatherspoon is 60. Baseball Hall of Famer Mike Mussina is 57. Actor Dominic Monaghan is 49. NASCARdriver Ryan Newman is 48. Singer Nicki Minaj is 43. Country singer Sam Hunt is 41. Actor AnnaSophia Robbis32.

The Noel Acadien

Villagefeatures half-a-millionlights, including the fully lit chapel, lighted holidaydisplays, live entertainment,carnival rides, local cuisine, photos with Santa and holidayshopping in the Christmas Store.

Dear Heloise: I, too, had no idea who was calling me —whether it was a“friend or foe” so to speak. Ihave aSamsung phone, and Icategorized my contacts,such as all doctors, family members, auto services, and medical groups (i.e., radiology and labs), by assigning different ringtones to each of the groups. Iget hundreds of suspected spam and political calls. So, if Ihear the default ringtone, Idon’tanswer the call and check my voicemails tosee if someone left amessage there. If there is no message, I block thenumber.When a distinct ringtone is heard, Iknow to answer —B.E.,in Vail,Arizona

attend awedding is just classless. If you’re worried about your ROI (return on investment), don’tspend a lot on your reception. Cut back on frivolous things.

—Patty C.,inWaterbury, Connecticut

Yellow glassware

Pay-to-attendweddings

Dear Heloise: I’ve read your column for many years. This is theﬁrst time that Ihave responded to an inquiry.Telling guests how much they have to pay to

Dear Heloise: My great-grandmother’scrystal glassware has turned yellow.It is about 150 years old and washand-carved in Poland. Iwant to clean this stemware, but how? —Jenna S.,in Columbia,South Carolina Jenna, mixequal amounts of white vinegar and warmwater —enough to cover the stemware and let it soak. Stubborn spots may need apaste of baking soda or adenture tablet to gently clean any cloudy areas. Rinse and polish with alint-free cloth or acoffee ﬁlter —Heloise Peelingvegetables

Dear Heloise: Iwanted to write in response to the

womanwho wastaught to peel her vegetables in the sink, but then had such a hard timegetting all the peelings out the way.What Ihave always done is to take an old newspaper, spread out acouple of layers of it in the dry sink, and peel my potatoes and carrots and what not in there. Then Iwould just wrap it up and take it out to the composter,throwing it out in the newspaper wrappings and all. Newspaper deteriorates quicker than vegetable peelings, and there’snomess in the sink whatsoever —Tina Urzan,in Troy,NewYork Letthere be light

Dear Heloise: Ihave ﬂashlights that plug into the wall sockets in every room When the power goes out, the light comes on. They can either be leftpluggedin or removed forﬂashlights. —Susan B.,inCalifornia Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.

Each night’sﬁrst session begins at 5:30 p.m., with the final entry at 8:30 p.m. and themed nights planned, includingBarks &Bright Night, when guests are invited to bring their pups for anight at the lights Ticketsare $24. Formore information,visitbatonrouge. com/louisiana-lights.

FABERGÉEGG

Continued from page1C

Czar Nicholas II commissioned the egg for his mother,Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, as an Easter present in 1913. It was one of two eggs created by female designerAlmaPihl; her other egg is owned by Britain’s royal family The Romanovroyalfamily ruled Russia for 300 years

GIFTS

Continued from page1C

relative withaccess to hours of listening to their much-loved music. If your relative is living independently or with a caregiver,you might opt to purchase gift cards to anearby grocery store,

NatchitochesChristmas Festival For the 99th year,Natchitoches is doing up for Christmas. Festivities run through Jan. 6. On Saturdays, thereare lights and displays alongthe banks of the Cane River.There arehorse-drawncarriages along with live music, ﬁreworks and kids activities. It’sasmall town done up for the season. Most of the downtown joins in, but the

before the1917 revolution ousted it. Nicholas and his family were executed in 1918. Boughtbya London dealer for450 British pounds when thecash-strapped Communist authorities sold off some of Russia’sartistic treasures in the 1920s,the egg changed hands several times.Itwas believedlost for twodecades until it was auctioned by Christie’s in 1994 for more than 7million Swissfrancs($5.6 million

pharmacy or favoriteeatery.These types of gift cardsare practical andare alwayswelcomed and very appreciated presents. Lastly,you can also honor your relativebydonating in their name to alocal charity.Though it is not atangiblegift, perse, it isone that providesatouching remembrance of your relativeand their legacy

center of it all is 781 Front St., Natchitoches Noel Acadien au Villagein Lafayette In Lafayette, guestsenjoy awalkingtour of half amillion lights, including the historical park’sfully litchapel. Theevents host live entertainment, carnival rides, local cuisine, photos with Santa and even some holidayshopping in the Christmas Store.Tickets are $8 in advanceand $10 at the gate.For more information, acadianvillage.org. Allproceedsdirectly benefit LARC’sAcadian Villageand the residential, vocational and community supports andservices at LARC.

at the time). It sold again in 2002 for $9.6 million. Each time theegg has sold, it hasset aworld record price for aFabergé item, Christie’ssaid.

Margo Oganesian, the head of Christie’sRussian art department, called the egg“the‘Mona Lisa’for decorative arts,” asuperb example of craft and design. There are 43 surviving imperial Fabergé eggs, most in museums.

This column ﬁrst appeared in TheAdvocateonDec. 4, 2023.

Dana Territo is an Alzheimer’sadvocate and author of “What My GrandchildrenTaught Me About Alzheimer’sDisease.” She hosts “The Memory Whisperer.” Email her at thememorywhisperer@ gmail.com.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By BRADKEMP

SAGITTARIUS (Nov.23-Dec. 21) Having aplan in placewill help youhead toward the end of the year with less stress. Consider what youenjoydoing most and set your routine around what makes you happy.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Call for help if that's what's necessary to getthings done or to be theone to make adifference. Be openand upfront, andshow dedication and willingness to do your part

AQUARIUS (Jan.20-Feb. 19) You are in a good position. Yourdedication,insight and ability to motivate others will encourage positive change andprovide an opportunity to make adifference.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Emotionswill surfaceifyou overreact or offer too much beforeyou find outwhat you'll get in return. You have plentytogain if you are patient and willing to compromise.

ARIES(March 21-April19) Observe, listen and learn. The information you gather and the ideas that arise from your encounterswill motivate youtorethink what you want to accomplish.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Questioneverything, set abudget and useyour energy wisely, and you will be happy with the outcome. Knowing how to relateand respond to people will help youinch your wayonward and upward.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Change begins with you. Be the host, and the response will make you feel good aboutyourself

and thedifference you can make to those youtouch emotionally with your warmth andconsideration.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Speak boldly, but share your thoughts andfeelings in apeaceful and loving manner.You'll get far more in return if your demeanor is positive and you arewilling to see andunderstand other people's perspectives.

LEO(July 23-Aug. 22) Howyou engage in social or networking events will determine whatyou getinreturn. You'll gain the most through kindness, consideration andunderstanding. Personal progress andloveare in the stars.

VIRGO(Aug. 23-Sept.22) Be observant. Pay attention to what's unfoldingat home. Setaprice and stick to your budget. Anger willadversely affect the outcomeofatricky situation. Choose your words andactionswisely.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct.23) Activity, fitness, healthand working to look and feel your bestwill be uplifting. Explore what intriguesyou andexpandyour interests to meet your demands.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Concentrate on what's essential. Participation encourages learning anddoing things differently. It's time to make updates across the board

Celebrity Cipher cryptogramsare created fromquotationsbyfamouspeople, past and present. Each letter in thecipherstands foranother TODAy'SCLUE: AEQUALS B

FAMILYCIrCUS

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

SALLYForth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM SherMAn’S LAGoon

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.

Saturday’s Puzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

BY PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

P.G. Wodehouse,myfavoriteauthor, said,“Golf, likemeasles, should be caught young.”

Hecouldhavealsoaddedbridgetothat sentence.Andsometimeswhenyouhave the opponentscaught, do not let them escape —double and extract apenalty.

One aspect of that will be my theme this week. Opener bids one of asuit and the next player doubles.What does responder’s redouble mean?

He promises at least 10 high-card points anddeniesfour-card or better support if partneropened in amajor, and denies five-card or better supportif partner bida minor.

Afterthis redouble, thesimplest rule is that either theopening sideplays the contract or the intervening side plays in something doubled —asintoday’s deal.

WhenSouthdoubles,Westshouldsmell blood. He redoubles, planning to double anythingtheopponentstry.Here,maybe North should immediately bidone notrump as he does nothave four cards in an unbidsuit. But one no-trump doubled can cost 1,100.

Against two clubs doubled, West leads the spade queen, then shifts to the diamond10.

East wins thattrick and switches to a trump, ducked to West. He leads another diamond and East returns his second trump. West winsand plays athird diamond,Easttakingthetrickandswitching to the heart eight. West wins and now has ahardplay to find.Ifheleads atrump into South’s ace-queen, the penalty is also 1,100. Anything else and declarer escapes for “only” 800. ©2025 by NEA, Inc dist.

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

wuzzles

Each Wuzzleisaword riddle which 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

or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

ToDAY’s WoRD PAssIVITY: pah-SIV-ih-tee: The state of being inert or inactive.

Averagemark 14 words

Timelimit25minutes

Canyou find19ormore words in PASSIVITY?

sATuRDAY’s WoRD —cAPRIcIous

today’s thought “Andwhen all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God.” 1Kings 18:39

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C. PiCKles