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Trump’s Venezuelan oil deal could be good for La. But it will take time to come to fruition

BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK

Bird enthusiast John Parker looks out over a wetland area along La. 82 toward a liquefied natural gas facility construction site in Cameron Parish on Aug. 12.

LNG boom in coastal Cameron Parish prompts concern over impact on migratory birds BY MEGAN WYATT

Staff writer

An oak-ﬁlled ridge at the end of the marshy Louisiana coast has long served as a refuge for birds during their migrations. But property near the coastal forest, which is thick with trees, shrubs and ferns, could soon be paved over as a parking lot, leading to warnings from birders and environmentalists about the effects on wildlife. The location is one of three recently proposed park-and-ride lots meant to accommodate more than 2,000 vehicles for those working in the region’s booming liquefied natural gas industry. Energy company Caturus’s $13 billion Commonwealth liqueﬁed natural gas export facility that’s under construction near Johnson Bayou is within walking distance of Peveto Woods

A pair of orchard orioles perch in a tree at a site proposed for a parking lot along La. 82 in Cameron Parish on Aug. 12. Bird and Butterﬂy Sanctuary, which opponents say could disorient migratory birds with light and noise pollution. The planned parking lots have led to tension between the company and a group of

concerned birders, ecological researchers and environmental activists. Caturus had applied for three coastal use permits with the Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy to build the lots along La. 82

in the Johnson Bayou area. Dozens submitted comments opposing the plan to the state agency. The proposal is currently on pause, with the permit applications stalling in July when the state asked Caturus for more information about them, according to Patrick Courreges, spokesperson for the Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy. The company then asked to put the permits on hold as they attempted to work with local ofﬁcials and look into other alternatives, Courreges said in an Aug. 25 email to The Advocate | The Times-Picayune. Magnus “Sonny” McGee, who represents District 1 of the Cameron Parish Police Jury, also asked the state to suspend the review of the coastal use permit applications.

ä See BALANCE, page 4A

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump namechecked Louisiana as one of the places that will benefit from his new deal to open Venezuelan oil fields to U.S. control in hopes of lowering prices at the pump. That’s because Louisiana refineries once received much of Venezuela’s product before that country’s mismanagement and U.S. sanctions reduced the flow to a trickle. Gulf Coast facilities have the expertise and technology to turn Venezuela’s heavy, viscous crude into the gases and distillates that become gasoline, jet fuel, truck diesel and other consumer products, but also thicker products like asphalt, chemicals and plastics. “Louisiana has the refineries capable to process the kind of heavy crude coming from Venezuela, making our state a natural beneficiary of increased supply from the region,” said Tommy Faucheux, president of Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil & Gas Association, the Baton Rouge-based energy industry trade association. “As energy security remains a top international concern, the rest of the country will again be looking to Louisiana for leadership.” Still, cheaper gasoline, more jobs, and higher revenues are down the road for Louisiana, experts say. The unconventional deal Trump announced Aug. 28 — and spent much of last week explaining — is still light on details and has a few hurdles baked into what is known. Going into the long Labor Day weekend, the average price for a gallon of gasoline — $4.15 on Friday — is about $1 more than the average $3.19 price at the same time last year and still going up, according to the American Automobile Association. Even while boasting that his “historic” pact would help lower gasoline prices by freeing

ä See OIL DEAL, page 5A

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By ARIANA CUBILLOS

A fallen power transmission tower rests on an inactive oil pumpjack on Lake Maracaibo in Cabimas, Venezuela, on Wednesday.

Iran says it plans to announce a new ‘exclusion zone’ near Strait of Hormuz U.S. strikes Iranian oil tankers at sea

cil on Sunday said Tehran plans to CO ONFLICT ballistic missiles at U.S. warships. announce an “exclusion zone” out- IN THE T Experts called the side the Strait of Hormuz aimed at launches a danvessels it believes are attempting MIIDDLE EAST AST to transit the waterway. BY SAMY MAGDY, JULIA FRANKEL gerous escalation Mohsen Rezaei’s comments to after Iran’s previand CARA ANNA Iran’s state broadcaster came with ous attacks at sea targeted comAssociated Press few details, a day after the U.S. mercial shipping. The new zone should be anCAIRO — The new head of Iran’s struck three Iranian oil tankers Supreme National Security Coun- in response to Tehran launching nounced in the coming days and

WEATHER HIGH 94 LOW 76 PAGE 4B

weeks and “will begin from the line of the U.S. naval blockade, extend toward the Strait of Hormuz, and from this side continue into the Persian Gulf,” Rezaei said. “Any ship that enters this area with the intention of passing through the Strait of Hormuz and is identiﬁed will be placed on our sanctions list.”

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It is not clear where Iran deﬁnes the location of the weekslong U.S. blockade, which is aimed at Iranian ports and keeping Tehran from shipping out its oil. The U.S. military has said over 20 warships are supporting the blockade, which as of Sunday had redirected 92 com-

ä See IRAN, page 4A

102Nd yEAR, NO. 69

2A ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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Explosion of fireworks in Mexico kills at least 10

TEMASCALCINGO, Mexico — Pyrotechnic material exploded during the festival for a patron saint in a town in Mexico State, collapsing a wall, killing at least 10 people and injuring another 64, Mexican authorities said. The explosion occurred Saturday night next to the Nuestra Señora de la Luz church in Temascalcingo, a municipality in central Mexico with 66,000 residents. Hundreds of them were preparing to watch a ﬁreworks display that is part of a religious festival when the blast occurred. The municipality is about 100 miles northwest of Mexico City. The cause of the explosion has not been determined and the Mexico State Attorney General’s Ofﬁce has opened an investigation. A local bishop said two priests are among the injured. A video on social media shows the aftermath of the blast, with dozens of people walking through smoke and debris in search of survivors.

Volcanic island in Indonesia erupts

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A volcano erupted in Indonesia early Sunday, prompting the cancellation of all flights at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and disrupting other domestic airports as ash drifted across western parts of the country. The volcanic island of Anak Krakatau, located in Indonesia’s Sunda Strait between the main Java and Sumatra islands, had showed signs of activity since Friday before erupting for 30 seconds at 3:53 a.m. Sunday and for 16 seconds about three hours later, Indonesia’s Geological Agency said. Closed-circuit camera footage showed lava flares from the volcano. No casualties were reported and no evacuation order was issued. The nearest settlement is more than 10 miles away, but authorities warned residents and visitors to stay at least 2 miles from the active crater. Volcanic ash spread across parts of Jakarta and Lampung province on Sumatra’s southern tip, Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation said. AirNav Indonesia closed airspace around Soekarno-Hatta and Halim Perdanakusuma airports in Jakarta, as well as six other airports, including Radin Inten II Airport in Lampung, because of volcanic ash. By Sunday evening, the closure of eight airports had affected 170,000 passengers from 1,558 canceled flights, including 963 flights in Jakarta’s SoekarnoHatta airport alone. All eight airports were ordered closed until midnight.

Cuba’s Raúl Castro appears at event

HAVANA — Former Cuban President Raúl Castro reappeared in public at a military event that celebrated the anniversary of an army branch responsible for protecting its top leaders. Cuban state television aired more than 10 minutes of footage Saturday night that showed Castro, 95, in his traditional olive-green military uniform, alongside his bodyguard and grandson, Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro. The former leader’s previous public appearance was on Aug. 13. The broadcast also reported that Castro’s grandson had participated earlier this year in talks with the United States, which has imposed an oil and ﬁnancial blockade on the island since January. The talks have since halted, while sanctions have increased in recent months. Authorities from both nations have acknowledged that talks took place following the energy blockade, but there is neither an agenda nor any leaked details regarding these conversations. The former president, who no longer holds any formal position in government or in the island’s Communist Party, rarely appears in public. Rumors regarding his health have recently circulated, even more so since his ﬁrst absence in decades from a July rally marking the anniversary of the Cuban revolution’s biggest celebration.

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U.S. envoys hold talks in Ukraine Kushner, Witkoff spoke with Putin on Saturday

BY SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press

KYIV, Ukraine — U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held “encouraging” talks in Kyiv on Sunday in their first official visit to Ukraine, but made no breakthrough toward ending Russia’s full-scale invasion. The Trump administration’s push to end the ﬁghting has lost momentum, with the focus on the Iran war for the past six months. The trip by the Americans, part of a renewed effort to end the war, followed a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday, as both sides have escalated their aerial attacks in the more than 41/2-year all-out war. Despite the latest diplomatic push, the core demands of Moscow and Kyiv remain mutually exclusive, especially over territorial concessions, underscoring the difficulty of reaching an agreement. Kushner acknowledged the challenge, saying the U.S. was working “behind the scenes” to create the conditions for a possible deal. “It’s a very, very hard problem, but we’re going to try,” Kushner said. Russia has recently been using fast-flying jet-powered drones, and the recur-

PHOTO PROVIdEd By UKRAINIAN PRESIdENTIAL PRESS OFFICE

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, center, walks with President donald Trump’s envoys Jared Kushner, right, and Steve Witkoff on Sunday at Mariinsky palace in Kyiv, Ukraine. ring wail of air-raid sirens has become part of daily life in Kyiv. Troops have struggled to make progress along the 775-mile front line. Zelenskyy held three rounds of talks with the Americans on Sunday, the last of which brought in national security advisers from the United Kingdom, France and Germany. Zelenskyy said at a news conference that the discussions covered air defense needs — including Patriot systems — and a “winter package” of support covering both air defense and energy infrastructure before the colder months. He said that Kyiv was seeking “serious volumes” of American support on that front, with backing from European partners as well. The Ukrainian president said the U.S. planned to in-

crease production of Patriot interceptor missiles next year, with Germany also expanding its own production under existing licensing agreements. Zelenskyy said that Russia had intensified strikes on Ukrainian cities before Russia’s State Duma election later this month, calling the attacks deliberate “terror” against civilians. He said Ukraine was working with 67 domestic companies developing systems to shoot down Russia’s jetpowered drones at scale. The Ukrainian leader said the territorial question “remains relevant,” but reiterated his view that such difficult issues “can only be resolved at the level of leaders.” Zelenskyy said the talks also touched on long-term security guarantees and economic support

for Ukraine’s postwar reconstruction. He said that a strong Ukrainian army remained “one of the main guarantees of security.” Zelenskyy said the sides agreed to hold a follow-up meeting involving Ukraine, the U.S. and Europe, though a location has not been set. Witkoff said the U.S. was pursuing “a diplomatic resolution to this conﬂict, not a kinetic resolution.” Referring to the previous day’s talks, he said the meeting in Moscow had produced “new ideas” that were later brought to Kyiv. He pointed to the presence of national security advisers from the so-called E3 nations — France, Germany and the U.K. — as evidence that “collaboration is critical” to reaching a deal. Asked whether Washington was prepared to in-

crease pressure on Russia if the talks produced no breakthrough, Kushner said the U.S. approach was to look for a “win-win” outcome. He said his father-inlaw, U.S. President Donald Trump, was focused not just on ending the fighting but on building “a framework that could actually lead to a durable peace,” and that he and Witkoff had held a “constructive and substantive” meeting with Putin, discussing what Russia, Ukraine and the wider world could each gain from a settlement. Kushner said the two envoys hoped to revive trilateral talks involving Russia and Ukraine directly, a format last used roughly six months earlier, and said that Washington remained in near-daily contact with Ukrainian officials even between visits. Saturday’s meeting in Moscow lasted more than three hours behind closed doors and ended without any major developments being announced. Putin’s foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, described the talks as constructive, frank and useful, but he didn’t discuss specific outcomes. While Moscow offered its “comprehensive assessment” of the battlefield situation in Ukraine, Ushakov said, the talks weren’t purely focused on the war. “Economic issues and potentially large, mutually beneficial joint projects for Russia and America were discussed in considerable detail,” he said.

Administration makes another appeal on mail ballot order

rights groups say the fears about inability to comTrump wants voting changes are unconstitution- ply with the Rule is to grant Election ofﬁcials contend an immediate administraSupreme Court to al. there isn’t enough time to re- tive stay of the order, foltheir systems to comply lowed by a full stay pending allow restrictions vise with the new Postal Service further review,” Sauer said.

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By LyNNE SLAdKy

An Amazon cargo plane sits at the Miami International Airport after it overshot the runway Sunday.

Amazon cargo plane overturns on runway in Miami BY ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE Associated Press

MIAMI — An Amazon cargo plane barreled off a runway at Miami International Airport on Sunday, striking vehicles, bursting into flames and sending thick black smoke into the sky in a crash that shut down flights at one of the nation’s busiest airports. More than 60 MiamiDade Fire Rescue units responded to the crash, arriving to find the aircraft on fire as crews worked to extinguish the flames and assess patients. Officials had not yet released information on injuries or deaths. The Federal Aviation Administration said the aircraft overran the runway about 2 p.m. after arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue officials said the plane struck multiple vehicles after leaving the runway. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the FAA was sending investigators and issued a full ground stop at Miami International as emergency crews responded. The Prime Air plane came to rest beside a roadway near two semitrucks, according to images from the scene. The aircraft appeared to be resting on its belly

and was largely intact despite the fire. The flight had been operated by 21 Air, a cargo carrier based in North Carolina. The 32-yearold Boeing 767 was originally built to carry passengers and flew for several airlines for more than two decades before being converted to a cargo plane in 2015, according to flight-tracking site Flightradar24. All runways and taxiways were closed, an airport spokesperson said. About 250 flights were delayed at the airport as of late afternoon Sunday, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks flight disruptions. The FAA warned that delays were likely to persist even after the airport reopened, with arrivals and departures expected to resume at a reduced rate. The National Transportation Safety Board said it was gathering information about the crash. “We’re working closely with local authorities and officials to understand exactly what happened,” Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a social media post. “Right now, our absolute priority is the safety, well-being, and care of everyone involved.”

BY LINDSAY WHITEHURST and GARY FIELDS

directives. “That will remove the imThe Trump administration proper cloud of uncertainty has framed the restrictions that the district court has Associated Press as commonsense changes cast over the Rule, making WASHINGTON — The Trump that are within its power to clear to all involved that compliance with the Rule is administration on Sunday regulate the mail. “Simply put, the best way not optional and must start renewed its appeal to the Supreme Court to allow new to address respondents’ without further delay.” restrictions on mail ballots in time for the midterms. 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The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● 3A

Welcome to louisiana. the state of energy.

Through innovation, Venture Global is building some of the largest energy facilities in the world, driving economic growth and creating jobs right here in Louisiana. Our employees deliver energy to the world at a fraction of the cost, in a fraction of the time.

4A ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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BALANCE

Continued from page 1A “The Coastal Use Permit process is intended to yield the greatest public benefit with the least amount of environmental damage,” McGee wrote in a July 29 email to a Department of Conservation and Energy ofﬁcial. “Given the scope of these interconnected projects and their potential impacts, I believe the public deserves the opportunity to comment on them collectively rather than through separate permit proceedings.” Meanwhile, opponents have asked that the company consider alternative sites away from the habitat. They’ve also asked the Department of Conservation and Energy to consider the environmental impact of the proposed lots cumulatively instead of independently, and for a single public hearing to voice concerns. If the state eventually approves the permits, the Cameron Parish Police Jury would also have to sign off for approval. “We’re not anti-LNG,” said Mark Pethke, treasurer of the Louisiana Ornithological Society and Baton Rouge Audubon Society. “We’re anti- these locations, and particularly the Targa lot.” The Targa lot would hold around 900 vehicles, about one-third of a mile from the Peveto Woods. Caturus Energy did not respond to requests for comment for this story.

A vital stop for migratory birds Up to 2 million birds flock to the chenier habitat in coastal Louisiana each spring on their migration trips from South America to Canada, many stopping along the 40 acres of Peveto Woods Bird and Butterfly Sanctuary in Cameron Parish. French settlers used to invoke the word “chenier,” which means “oak grove,” to describe the beach ridges along the coast. After an onslaught of development and residential subdivisions decades ago started to shrink the habitats, a movement took hold by the 1980s to save what remained. A small group of concerned birders purchased undeveloped lots and donated parcels to the Baton Rouge Audubon Society, which has since expanded the acreage, filled in sand pits and replanted live oak seedlings. More recently, birders have documented 325 of the 493 bird species recorded in the state along the coastal refuge, according to Jane Patterson, president of the Baton Rouge Audubon Society, which owns the sanctuary. The sanctuary and similar cheniers in the region not only act as a

IRAN

STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK

Construction is underway on the Commonwealth liquefied natural gas export facility in Cameron Parish on Aug. 12.

Terns fly over the edge of the beach along La. 82 in Cameron Parish on Aug. 12. first stop for birds migrating north in the spring, but also as a last stop for birds migrating south in the fall before crossing the Gulf, Patterson said. “Without a doubt, there are just fewer birds in the woods these days than there were 50 years ago,” Patterson said. “That decline is going to continue, and we may lose additional species entirely in our lifetime if we don’t figure out a way to achieve some balance.” Of the three proposed lots, the Targa lot would be the closest to Peveto Woods. A second Johnson Bayou lot is proposed for one mile away from the sanctuary, with parking for 500 vehicles near the community library. A third Stream West lot would be about 5 miles away from the sanctuary in the opposite direction, and have parking for 665 vehicles near the community fire station. Mary Tutwiler, a Louisiana birder who lives in Lafayette, worried that the parking lots will bulldoze the brush that birds rely on. “It’s one of the very few places along the coast that offers the birds these things, and we’ve kept it from being turned into beach-

Fighting resumed a week ago

Continued from page 1A mercial ships and disabled three. The U.S. has been introducing new measures to increase the economic pain on Iran after negotiations collapsed and no end to the intermittent fighting appears in sight. Meanwhile, Iran continues to attack some ships trying to transit the strait, which has become an important source of leverage for Tehran in the war that began Feb. 28 with U.S. and Israeli strikes. Iran earlier Sunday said it struck an unmanned U.S. vessel trying to enter the Strait of Hormuz, a claim that the U.S. military dismissed as a “total lie.”

The United States and Iran resumed attacks last week, following a month of relative calm, with the Strait of Hormuz and areas along Iran’s southern coast again being targeted. At least five people were killed earlier in the week during a U.S. bombardment that returned attention to the area where a school was hit in the war’s opening strikes. The Trump administration appears to have adopted a dual-prong approach to the conflict, responding militarily to attacks on the strait while going after foreign financial institutions that handle Iran’s money. But Tehran’s hard-line new senior leaders including Rezaei have

front homes,” she said. “After the hurricanes, a lot of these oaks were wiped out, which makes it even more important to preserve this spot.” Some opponents have suggested relocating the park-and-ride lots farther north or to areas that are already developed and well-lit at night. If the lots move forward in the proposed locations, opponents have warned that the type of lighting could affect birds, saying downward-facing, motion-sensing lights would be better than those that continuously light up the sky.

right after crossing the Gulf, Johnson said. The coastal chenier habitat has long been important to migratory birds, but it’s especially vital during inclement weather when Peveto Woods and the surrounding areas serve as an emergency stop, he said. “There’s all sorts of cascading problems when you add any kind of noise and lighting to a place that is really critical for billions of birds,” said Johnson, who holds a doctorate in wildlife and ﬁsheries management. “And it’s not just Peveto Woods. It’s that whole region that’s super important for birds and is one of the great wildernesses in some ways.”

What’s happening could change

Longtime Cameron Parish residents and conservation activists both say they’re not against the recent LNG boom, which local leaders say is vital to keeping federal funding from disappearing as the permanent population dwindles. But some residents and conservationists say they want the companies to be respectful of the people and wildlife that were around before the industry. And even with environmental regulations in place, LNG facilities in Cameron Parish have been dinged over environmental problems. The three LNG export facilities in Cameron Parish have had a pattern of air pollution concerns, according to a 2025 report by the Environmental Integrity Project, a nonproﬁt research organization that advocates for stricter environmental standards. The report, which was sourced from federal and state data, documented over the last decade 34 federal Clean Air Act emission events at Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass LNG terminal, which resulted in 4,211 tons of air pollution. The report also documented 19 emission events at Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass LNG terminal, resulting in 93 tons of air pollution, and 89 emission events at Cameron LNG’s export terminal in Hackberry, resulting in 475 tons of air pollution. “Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass facility has and continues to be in compliance with federal and state environmental regulations,” Venture Global spokesperson Jess Szymanski wrote in an email to The Advocate. She disputed records about past deviations during the facility’s commissioning phase, saying they do not constitute violations and occur across the industry during a project’s commissioning. “Calcasieu Pass has been in full compliance with its annual air permit emission limits,” Szymanski added. Cheniere Energy and Cameron LNG did not respond to requests for comment. James Hiatt, a Lake Charles environmental advocate and director of the community-based environmental organization For a Better Bayou, told the Cameron Parish Police Jury during a recent meeting that the proposed park-and-ride lots will impact residents, and similar future projects will affect the area. “We’re going to see this again and again,” Hiatt said. “The police jury has the authority and ability to express the will of the people who live here — and maybe the state reps and senators too — but if y’all had a unified voice, that matters, and what’s happening in lower Cameron could change.”

Bright lights, loud noises and disruptions to their habitats can be stressors for migratory birds, according to Erik Johnson, an associate professor in LSU’s School of Renewable Natural Resources. Johnson, who has provided research for opponents of the project, also warned that daytime noise from increased trafﬁc can increase stress hormones, which impacts birds’ ability to communicate with one another. That can lead to reduced feeding at a critical time — either right before or

The three recent park-and-ride lot proposals are the latest in a series of projects along Cameron Parish’s rural coastline related to the LNG industry. The region experienced a sharp population decline over the past two decades after devastation from Hurricane Rita in 2005 and Hurricane Laura in 2020. But the recent uptick in LNG activity has inundated the two-lane coastal highways with gravel-ﬁlled dump trucks and buses packed with workers. Mark Daigle, who represents District 5 of the Cameron Parish Police Jury, said there are few residents left in his community. Still, he feels the effects of the workers who’ve come for the LNG boom. “Unfortunately, I literally stay at my house until 9 or 10 o’clock at night because I can’t even pull out my own driveway because of trafﬁc,” he said. “But as a juror and a resident, I kind of got to wear two caps. As a resident, it’s aggravating, but it’s progress. Nobody likes Email Megan Wyatt at mwyatt@ to hear it.” theadvocate.com.

signaled a willingness to dig in after weathering decades of sanctions. Iran has found ways over the years to circumvent sanctions, and now the U.S. blockade of its ports, and get its oil to buyers to help ease growing economic pressures. On the matter of the collapsed negotiations with the U.S., Rezaei on Sunday expressed wariness not only of the U.S. but also of the mediators. The memorandum of understanding that the U.S. and Iran signed in mid-June began to fall apart within days as each side accused the other of violations. “We had trusted our friends in Pakistan, Qatar or Oman, thinking that since they had stepped in as mediators, one of a mediator’s responsibilities is that if one side violates the agreement, they

should stop them,” Rezaei said. “We are now pursuing diplomacy with guarantees.” The Strait of Hormuz is crucial to global oil and natural gas shipments and was seen as an international waterway before the war began. On Sunday, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that on average, 9 million barrels of oil a day are getting through the strait, which should help to relieve pressure on energy prices. His estimate appeared to exceed average flows over the past 28 days through the strait, according to TankerTrackers.com and other sources. Wright told CNN that with oil also flowing through pipelines in the region, “we’re probably

‘All sorts of cascading problems’

two-thirds or more of preconﬂict ﬂows.” But those flows depend on the presence of the U.S. Navy to help escort tankers and provide some protection against possible Iranian attack. Wright said he expected that other countries would eventually support the Navy’s efforts. Meanwhile, Iran’s Rezaei in his interview with state TV claimed that “every day we are selling one million, one and a half million (barrels), as if Iran’s oil production and trade are continuing as usual.” Magdy reported from Cairo and Frankel and Anna reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Konstantin Toropin in Washington and Josh Boak in Bridgewater, New Jersey, contributed to this report.

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The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● 5A

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OIL DEAL

Continued from page 1A more oil for the marketplace, Trump said such relief won’t be immediate. Significant investment is necessary — some estimate about $100 million — to improve and repair the infrastructure that gets the crude out of the ground and transported to the ships that will deliver the oil onto the world market.

Why Venezuela matters Venezuela sits atop the world’s largest pool of found but unproduced crude oil, with more than 303 billion barrels known to be in the ground, according to OPEC’s 2025 Annual Statistical Bulletin. (Saudi Arabia comes in second with 267 billion barrels.) “We’re taking out millions and millions of barrels of oil, going to Hous- Trump ton, going to Louisiana,” Trump said Monday, answering questions about the agreement he cobbled out with interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez, who took over after the U.S. raided the country and deposed President Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3. The amount of oil being produced in Venezuela has declined from more than 3 billion barrels per day in 1997 to about 1.25 million barrels per day, according to the Energy Information Administration. During the past four months, imports to the U.S. have increased to about 650,000 barrels per day, another EIA report states. Most fossil fuels extracted from Louisiana lands and offshore are much lighter and called “sweet,” which is easier to turn into consumer fuels, as opposed to the Venezuelan crude that is heavier and called “sour,” requiring different procedures to process. As the amounts of Venezuelan crude available on the market declined over the past years, refineries switched slowly toward processing more light sweet crude to keep the reﬁneries operating. “They’ve been underutilized over the last few decades,” said professor Gregory B. Upton Jr., executive director at LSU’s Center for Energy Studies. “We still have the ability to do those heavy sour crudes, but the kind of trend has been more towards the light sweets. So, in terms of growing out that production, it’s going to really take time. It’s going to take a lot of investment.” Not all refineries are equipped to handle heavy sour crude, and some of that equipment may need to be upgraded.

Refineries throughout La. Major oil companies have refineries equipped to handle heavy crude. ExxonMobil Corp., based in Spring, Texas, has refineries in Baton Rouge and Baytown, Texas, which together are capable of processing 1.2 million barrels of heavy crude per day. Valero Energy Corporation, based in San Antonio, has a refinery near Destrehan that employs 550 workers who process about 340,000 barrels of sour crude daily, and another facility in Meraux. Marathon Petroleum Corporation, based in Washington, D.C., has a refinery in Garyville, where about 950 employees can handle about 617,000 barrels daily, and another in Galveston, Texas, with crude oil capacity of 631,000 barrels. Citgo Petroleum Corporation, a Houston-based

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subsidiary of Petróleos de Venezuela S.A., operates a 425,000-barrel-per-day reﬁnery in Lake Charles that employs 2,400 full-time workers and contractors. The facility creates a “total economic impact on Lake Charles” worth well over $500 million annually, according to the company’s website. Citgo last week announced a $310 million investment to add and upgrade equipment in Lake Charles that would improve capabilities “by converting lower-value streams into higher-value gasoline blend components.” And Chevron Corp., also based in Houston, has two Gulf Coast refineries: one in Pasadena, Texas, and another in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Last week, the Houston-based oil giant announced plans to invest more than $7 billion over the next ﬁve years to increase production to about 600,000 barrels a day, with permissions to work additional acreage. The company now is producing about 280,000 barrels daily in Venezuela. Chevron is one of the few private oil companies that continued trying to operate in Venezuela after that nation’s socialist leaders two decades ago completed nationalization of its oil industry — costing private companies billions of dollars in

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By PEdRO MATTEy

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, left, meets with acting Venezuelan President delcy Rodriguez at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, on Wednesday. lost investments, which has contributed to some reluctance among the major oil companies. “Chevron’s history in Venezuela spans more than a century, and our expanded position reflects our confidence in the country’s deep resource potential and its ability to compete for investment within our portfolio for decades,” Chevron CEO Mike Wirth said in a statement. Neither Citgo nor Chevron linked their decisions to Trump’s deal. Ofﬁcials with several of the major oil com-

panies with reﬁneries didn’t want to comment publicly, saying their plans are proprietary and competitive.

How Trump’s deal works Trump’s deal gives the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital ownership of about a third of North American Blue Energy Partners, the country’s second-largest private producer. That company was given a 100-year concession to operate 17 oil ﬁelds with estimated reserves of about 65 billion barrels. North American Blue En-

tined to refill the near-depleted Strategic Petroleum Reserve caches. The program puts aside up to 714 million barrels of crude in salt domes. The idea is to ensure oil is available to help stabilize prices during world upheavals. Russia’s war with Ukraine and the U.S./Israeli attacks on Iran have caused those reserves to drop to about 287 million barrels. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve stores oil in four underground former salt mines at Bayou Choctaw in Iberville Parish, another in Cameron Parish and two locations nearby in east Texas. One issue, however, is that Venezuelan sour crude will need to be processed before it’s stored, whereas Louisiana sweet crude does not. “It’s not going to take five to 10 years in order to increase production; likely it will be gradual,” LSU professor Upton said. Some of the existing wells in Venezuela can be worked over to increase production in a few months. Increased amounts of fossil fuels coming out of Venezuela allow refineries more flexibility to adjust to the economics of a given moment. “It’s the long-term effects of having access to crude that is, certainly, most important,” Upton said.

ergy Partners is controlled by Alejandro Betancourt López, a controversial businessman who has been accused of laundering money in American and European courts. He denies the claims. The company hopes to increase production from about 200,000 barrels per day to about a million within the next couple of years. The U.S. State Department can buy about 20% of the oil at production costs and has right of ﬁrst refusal to buy any or all of the remaining Email Mark Ballard at 80% produced. mballard@theadvocate. Much of the 20% is des- com.

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6A ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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Whiplash election year enters final stretch President holds wild cards

BY STEVEN SLOAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON — In the earliest days of this election cycle, the U.S. wasn’t at war with Iran. The East Wing of the White House was still standing and the Kennedy Center wasn’t threatened with demolition. Artificial intelligence data centers weren’t bipartisan shorthand for the tech sector’s excess. Democratic socialists were largely conﬁned to the outer edges of political discourse. Lake Ontario’s name wasn’t in question. Since President Donald Trump entered politics more than a decade ago, he’s had a knack for dominating the national conversation so thoroughly that it can be hard to keep up. But as the final midterm of his presidency rapidly approaches, the landscape is proving especially volatile, with Trump often stirring the tumult. “Some of these things are out of our control,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, told reporters last week when pressed on whether the frenzy will hurt his party’s election prospects. Even the map itself has been in ﬂux, with Texas, California and Florida among the states that have redrawn congressional districts. Missouri’s Republican attorney general is appealing a court ruling last week that blocked a Trump-backed map there. The twists could keep coming. The economic fallout from Trump’s tariffs on Canada may intensify as the election nears. His effort to limit mail ballots could add uncertainty to the voting process just as such ballots are being distributed in states like North Carolina, home to a critical U.S. Senate race.

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By MANUEL BALCE CENETA

President donald Trump gestures on Aug. 27 in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. The president is sitting on more than $400 million that could shape the election’s trajectory. And Trump’s gilded remake of Washington stands in contrast to the economic anxiety many Americans are expressing. The wealth he has amassed in office has no modern presidential precedent, with Trump taking in $1.2 billion from his crypto businesses last year, according to a federal filing released this summer. That’s threatening a bipartisan effort in the Senate to advance legislation to strengthen cryptocurrency regulation as soon as next week. Democrats are insisting the measure include a more robust ethics provision. “We’ve watched this president enrich himself,” said Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, of Maryland, a key Democratic vote on the bill who said she wouldn’t support it without tougher language. With so many shifts underway, it is perhaps fitting that one thing Democrats and Republicans agree on is that Trump will again be a central player in the election’s final stretch. “No. 1, President Trump,” Ari Fleischer, the White House press secretary un-

der Republican President George W. Bush, said when asked to rank the top issues this year. Rep. Suzan DelBene, of Washington, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said: “People are feeling the pain from Trump.” She expects voters will elevate candidates who “want to stand up for the American people, the pain that’s been inflicted by this administration and Republicans in Congress.” Midterm elections are historically challenging for a president’s party as restive voters seek change. Democrats flipped 40 House seats during Trump’s last midterm in 2018 and 31 seats during the final race of Bush’s term in 2006. Republicans, meanwhile, gained 63 seats in 2010 under Democratic President Barack Obama but flipped fewer than 10 seats in 2022 under President Joe Biden. Shifting dozens of seats this year could be challenging because partisan redistricting has reduced the number of genuinely competitive races. Still, just a third of U.S. adults approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, according to a July poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center

for Public Affairs Research. That’s down slightly from 37% in June and well below the 42% who approved of his work when he took ofﬁce. Majorities also disapprove of his handling of the economy and immigration, issues that were central to Trump’s election in 2024. Democrats are confident they can win the handful of seats they need to regain control of the House. There may be a path to ﬂipping the Senate if they can hold on in states like Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire while winning Republicanheld seats in places like Maine, Texas, Iowa or Ohio. But the party is also aiming to regain ground outside of Washington. Democrats are devoting resources, in particular, to the governors’ races in Georgia, Ohio, Iowa, and Nevada, all currently held by Republicans. “I’m excited about the map and I am bullish that we are going to pick up several seats,” said Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, a potential 2028 presidential contender who has led the effort to win governors’ races this year as chair of the Democratic Governors Association. Democrats are especially enthusiastic about Iowa, which hasn’t elected a Democratic governor in 20 years. Their governors association has spent $5 million to back Rob Sand, who has gained national attention for his campaign to connect with rural voters who have abandoned Democrats in recent elections. But even in a seemingly favorable year, Democrats face challenges. Beshear acknowledged that Arizona, where incumbent Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs is facing Republican challenger Andy Biggs, will be a “tough race.” The Republican candidate for governor in Minnesota, Lisa Demuth, suggested she would tap into the antiincumbent mood that has coursed through both par-

ties to target her Democratic rival, Amy Klobuchar, who has spent nearly 20 years in the Senate after working in local politics. “She is a 30-year politician,” Demuth said of Klobuchar. After democratic socialists won a string of primaries this summer, Republicans are eager to tie anyone in the party to the far left flank. Most of the candidates aligned with democratic socialists are in reliably Democratic seats. Still, Fleischer said Democrats snatched “defeat out of the jaws of victory” by elevating such contenders in a handful of congressional primaries. Democrats have dispatched democratic socialist candidates in governors’ races. But Beshear, who has carved out a centrist lane before his potential presidential bid, rejected Republican efforts to label the broader party. “The only person that I see engaged in socialism is Donald J. Trump, who is taking equity in private companies for the United States government,” he said. “That’s the definition of socialism.” Hanging over many of these states is concern that the federal government under Trump will seek to influence elections, perhaps one of the biggest variables ahead and a prospect that some Republicans are warning against. Gov. Mark Gordon of Wyoming, a Republican, said recently that the behavior of Justice Department officials who monitored poll workers and observed voters was “a bit aggressive” and “irregular.” “I feel very strongly about the federal government coming in and taking our guns,” he said at a meeting to confirm election results in August. “I don’t like that. I don’t like the federal government coming in and taking our votes, either.”

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PUBLIC NOTICE --Lafayette Parish School Board - Board Insurance Committee Meeting Minutes August 6, 2026 9:00 AM 202 Rue Iberville, Board‐ room, Lafayette, LA 70508 Meeting called to order at 9:00 AM. 1. MEETING OPENINGS AND ROLL CALL 1.1 Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America fol‐ lowed by a Moment of Si‐ lence Chairperson Hannah Mason asked Smith David LeJeune to lead in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States. 1.2 Roll Call - Board Insur‐ ance Committee - David LeJeune - District 1; Robert "Ted" Davidson District 2; Hannah Smith Mason - District 8 and Je‐ remy Hidalgo - District 9 Committee Members Present: LeJeune, David‐ son, Mason and Hidalgo Other Board Members Present: None 2. AGENDA 2.1 COMMITTEE: Review

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

and Approval of LPSB Board Insurance Commit‐ tee Meeting Minutes on July 23, 2026 - Mason LPSB - Board Insurance Committee Meeting - July 23, 2026 - Minutes - Html That the committee ap‐ prove the minutes from Board Insurance the Committee Meeting on July 23, 2026. Moved by: David LeJe‐ une; seconded by: Robert Davidson Yes: Hannah Smith Mason, Jeremy Hidalgo, LeJeune, and David Robert Davidson Motion Carried 4-0 2.2 INSURANCE: Discus‐ sion and/or action re‐ garding the Voluntary Benefits & Administra‐ tive Services Request for Proposal (RFP) 07-27 Gardner/LeBouef Public comment was re‐ ceived. The Lafayette Parish School System (LPSS) re‐ cently conducted a Re‐ quest for Proposal (RFP) process to select a ThirdAdministrator Party and brokerage (TPA) partner for its Voluntary Benefits & Administra‐ tive Services. Serving both active and retired members, the selected vendor will manage the full lifecycle of the Dis‐ trict’s voluntary benefit programs, from strategic planning to daily admin‐ istration. LPSS intends to award an initial one-year contract January 1, beginning 2027, through December 31, 2027, with options to renew for up to three ad‐ di i l

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min p ditional one-year terms. To ensure a seamless Fall 2026 Open Enrollment pe‐ riod, the selected vendor must begin onboarding and implementation ser‐ vices prior to the official January 1, 2027, contract start date. To guarantee total objec‐ tivity, LPSS utilized a blind review process. Proposers had to redact all identifying company and personnel details prior to submission; any non-compliant responses scored automatically zero for the affected questions. Based on the evaluation the following scores, three finalists will pre‐ sent (in no particular order): HUB International Midwest and AGM Bene‐ fits (an Alera Group McGriff (a Agency); Marsh McLennan Agency LLC) and Gallagher Bene‐ fit Services. Upon further review, the Board Insurance Commit‐ tee (BIC), will submit its recommendation to the Lafayette Parish School Board (LPSB). Ultimate authority for award of contract rests solely with the full Board. Original VB RFP 07-27.pdf VB RFP 07-27 Revision in‐ cluding Addendum #1. pdf VB RFP 07-27 Addendum #2.pdf LPSS Insurance & Bene‐ fits #07-27 Voluntary Benefits and Administra‐ tive Services RFP Scoring Sheet (1).pdf MINUTES: Trish LeBouef, Director of Insurance and Benefits,

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provided a detailed pre‐ sentation of the Request Proposal (RFP) for process. The process consisted of four stages: Develop Request for Pro‐ posal (RFP); Issue Re‐ quest for Proposal (RFP); Score Request for Pro‐ posal (RFP); and Award Contract. Ms. LeBouef also reviewed the criteria of the scope of services requested on the Re‐ quest for Proposal (RFP) and the timeline and deadline to implement the Request for Proposal (RFP). Ms. LeBouef an‐ nounced Company A is HUB International and AGM; Company B is Mc‐ Griff a March McLennan Agency and Company C is Gallagher Benefit Ser‐ vices. Mr. David LeJeune asked Ms. LeBouef who were individuals who the scored the Request for (RFP). Mr. Proposal Touchet replied Daphne (retiree), Villemarette Max Fontenot (Assistant Principal at W. D. & Mary Baker Smith Career Cen‐ ter), Ginger Richard (As‐ sistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruc‐ tion) and Dr. Mark Rabal‐ ais (Associate Superin‐ tendent) were the indi‐ viduals who scored the Request for Proposal (RFP). All three companies were allowed to present to the Board Insurance Commit‐ tee. Presentations are below: 1st Presenter - HUB AGM Presentation.pdf 2nd Presenter - McGriff a Marsh McLennan Agency.pdf 3rd Presenter Gallagher Benefit Services.pdf Gallagher Benefit Ser‐ vices was the only pro‐ poser who indicated they would reduce their com‐ pensation fee 30%. Mr. LeJeune asked David Melody Terral with Gal‐ lagher Benefit Services h ll h ld

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

g how Gallagher could lower employee costs and not benefits. Ms. Ter‐ ral replied Gallagher Ben‐ efit Services has lever‐ age and global contracts with insurance compa‐ nies who pay overrides, subsidies and rebates. If the overrides, subsidies and rebates along with reduced commissions by 30% are removed, the overall premiums will be reduced. Mr. LeJeune asked Ms. Terral to indi‐ cate what other school districts in Louisiana use Gallagher Benefit Ser‐ vices for their voluntary benefits. Ms. Terral indi‐ cated they provide volun‐ for benefits tary Louisiana State Univer‐ sity (LSU), Office of East Benefits, Group Baton Rouge Parish, St. Tammany Parish and many more. Committee Hannah Chairperson Smith Mason asked Ms. Terral to explain more about premiums versus claims and the 30% re‐ duction in commissions. Ms. Terral explained in‐ surance companies look at revenue coming in and expenses going out. Rev‐ enue is the premium, which is what active re‐ tirees and employees pay. Ms. Terral goes on to indicate embedded in premiums is what the in‐ surance company would like to make. For exam‐ ple, if an insurance com‐ pany wants to make 15% but the claims are only 30% of the total pre‐ mium, the remaining per‐ centage (55%) will go back to the consultant broker or it will stay with the insurance company. Mr. Jeremy Hidalgo asked Trish LeBouef why she believed COBRA and life insurance are bun‐ dled with the voluntary benefits contract. Ms. LeBouef stated she un‐ derstood if they were run alongside Lafayette i h h l

g y Parish School System's group health insurance, there would be a Per Em‐ ployee Per Month (PEPM) and it is a perk for the district because there is no cost on the district to provide those services. Mr. Hidalgo also inquired about the life insurance offered to employees that is paid by the dis‐ trict.. Ms. LeBouef indi‐ cated life insurance is ran through voluntary benefits but the rates for retirees and active mem‐ bers are rated together. Mr. Hidalgo asked Ms. LeBouef if she thought it would be beneficial to have a single system for health insurance. Ms. indicated it LeBouef would be because it would be very impactful both for the Insurance and Benefits Department and the employees. Mr. Hidalgo noted earlier in the meeting one of the indicated presenters they were capable of having a single system but were asked not to. Ms. LeBouef indicated Lafayette Parish School System is protective of their group health insur‐ ance and replied the vol‐ untary benefits adminis‐ trators are very support‐ ive and have made an of‐ fering to provide health Lafayette insurance. Parish School System's Department Insurance wants to make sure em‐ ployees are receiving ac‐ curate information. Vol‐ untary benefits adminis‐ trators would more than likely not be familiar with Lafayette Parish School System's policies regard‐ ing vesting, sick leave, etc. Mr. Hidalgo asked Ms. LeBouef if a benefits system administration would be beneficial, why has one not been imple‐ mented. Ms. LeBouef in‐ dicated it is costly. Committee Chairperson Hannah Smith Mason asked Trish LeBouef what

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is voluntary benefits and who is eligible for volun‐ benefits. Ms. tary LeBouef explained volun‐ tary benefits are every benefit except other health insurance. For in‐ stance, cancer, critical illness, long and shortterm disability, dental and vision. Active mem‐ bers can enroll in volun‐ tary benefits when a counselor visits schools and district offices dur‐ ing open enrollment or when someone is hired. When a retiree goes from an active status to a re‐ tiree status, they are eli‐ gible for what is on their payroll at the time of re‐ tirement. With the vest‐ ing policy, retirees must be enrolled under our group health insurance for at least five consecu‐ tive years prior to retire‐ ment. The only voluntary benefits a retiree is not eligible for is flexible spending and short and disability. long-term When there is a change to the voluntary benefits, there are only three ben‐ efits the active and re‐ tirees are rated together: dental, vision and life in‐ surance. Ms. LeBouef in‐ dicated it is critical to communicate with re‐ tirees when there is a change in voluntary ben‐ efits. Ms. Mason inquired about the timeline to make changes to the vol‐ untary benefits provider. Ms. LeBouef indicated if the Board would give di‐ rection at the Regular Board Meeting on August 13, 2026, Insurance and Benefits will have six to seven weeks to start enrollment and open communicating start with active employees and retirees. Ms. Mason inquired about the time‐ line in the past. Ms. LeBouef said typically her department had re‐ ceived board direction by April or May. Ms. Mason asked Ms. LeBouef if she would need to hire more people for the Insurance and Benefits Department if there was a change in the voluntary benefits and Ms. manager LeBouef responded no and added the Insurance and Benefits Department is prepared to move in the direction of the Board's vote. Mr. Jeremy Hidalgo Superintendent asked Touchet why the Request for Proposal (RFP) did not show a savings for the district and partici‐ Mr. Touchet pants. yielded Mr. Hidalgo's concern to Ms. LeBouef. Ms. LeBouef indicated in order to do a market check, census informa‐ tion must be given and requires files be sent to i d

By The Associated Press MAGDEBURG, Germany — The far-right Alternative for Germany was projected to win a strong victory in a regional election Sunday, but it wasn’t immediately clear whether it would be able to fulfill its ambition of forming the country’s first far-right state government since World War II. The party of German’s unpopular leader, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, was set for a disastrous result in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. The anti-migration and Russia-friendly Alternative for Germany’s candidate for governor said that “we have written history.” Ulrich Siegmund, 35, told public broadcaster ARD that voters had sent a signal that “things cannot carry on like this” and that it was “also a signal toward Berlin.” Of Germany’s unpopular leader, he said: “A very good campaigner for us in this election campaign was Friedrich Merz. Every day this man is in the chancellery is one too many.” Alternative for Germany, or AfD, went into the vote seeking an absolute majority in the state legislature to govern on its own. That would overcome the so-called firewall of mainstream parties’ refusal to work with AfD, but it was unclear long after polls closed whether it would happen. A first state government would be the biggest prize in the anti-migration party’s 13-year history, at a time of widespread discontent with a national government that has yet to persuade voters that it can get the country’s sluggish economy moving.

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min q prospective vendors to review. When the ﬁles are assessed, underwrit‐ ers will look at the broker who made the request and power would be ne‐ gotiated. Ms. LeBouef did not feel that method was not the most impactful Mr. Hidalgo method. stated he liked how ap‐ plicants were presented anonymously to the scor‐ ers and announced he would have made a deci‐ sion without knowing who the companies were on the score sheet be‐ cause all presentations were superb. Mr. Hidalgo suggested not to take any action as a commit‐ tee and let the Board sort it out. Mr. Robert "Ted" David‐ son indicated he thought cost savings would be provided and he was under the impression cost savings was why the Request for Proposal (RFP) was created. With‐ out cost savings informa‐ tion, Mr. Davidson said he could not support a change in the provider without knowing this in‐ formation. Board Chairperson Han‐ nah Smith Mason noted Gallagher would like to bundle voluntary bene‐ ﬁts with health insur‐ ance and it could be a cost savings to the dis‐ trict and active mem‐ bers. Ms. Mason sug‐ gested to look into bundling when time is permitted. That the Insurance Com‐ mittee make a recom‐ mendation to the full Board that we continue with our present provider for another year. Moved by: David LeJe‐ une; seconded by: Robert Davidson Yes: Hannah Smith Mason, David LeJeune, and Robert Davidson No: Jeremy Hidalgo Motion Carried 3-1 3. ADJOURN 3.1 Adjourn Meeting There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 10:58 AM. /s/Francis Touchet, Jr. Francis Touchet, Jr. Secretary-Treasurer /s/Hannah Smith Mason Hannah Smith Mason Board President

Public Notices Successions

PUBLIC NOTICE --NOTICE Administrator for the Succession of Mary Fern Cobb Briggs gives notice of his intent to sell via private sale, the follow‐ ing: 1. The immovable estate home and property lo‐ cated at 311 Sunny Lane, Louisiana Lafayette, 70506, Being the same property acquired by Mary C. Briggs by Cash Sale from Jeanie Slay Mellinger dated April 29, 1994, recorded on May 2, 1994, under instrument no. 1994-00016195 of the records of public Louisiana.; Lafayette, and 2. All movables within the estate home at 311 Sunny Lane, consisting of home furnishings, deco‐ rations, and kitchenware. Any objections to the sale of the above prop‐ erty can be ﬁled with the Judicial District 15th – Parish of Court Lafayette under probate docket number 20250640, pursuant to LA C.C.P. art 3282. 198202 Aug. 22 to Sept. 20, 30t $456.60

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The Lafayette Parish Unincorporated Areas Floodplain Management, hereby gives notice of the Lafayette Parish’s intent to revise the flood hazard information, generally located at the northeastern corner of the intersection of Kaliste Saloom Rd & E. Broussard Rd. Specifically, the flood hazard information shall be revised along an unnamed lateral of Isaac Verot Coulee from a point approximately northwest of the intersection of Kaliste Saloom Rd. & E. Broussard Rd. to a point approximately at the end of Gumbo Rd. As a result of the revision, the 1% annual chance floodplain shall be removed within the area of revision. Maps and detailed analysis of the revision can be reviewed at the SPEC, LLC at 107 Nolan Rd, Broussard, LA 70518. Interested persons may call Clay Boudreaux, CFM at 337-291-8468 for additional information. 199313-683310-sep 2-8-7t $ 3,150.00

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PHOTOS By ROBIN MAy

Members of the Ragin Cajuns Tailgate Crew, composed of parents of football players, enjoy wings and barbecue before the start of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette football game Saturday outside Cajun Field. BY JOANNA BROWN | Staff writer

Members of the Ragin’ Cajuns Tailgate Crew kicked off the season opener against the Lamar University Cardinals with barbecue, music and camaraderie on a rainy Saturday in Lafayette. The tailgaters met when their sons all joined the 2024 football recruitment class for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Players with parents in the crew include No. 15 Ja’Corian Norris, No. 10 Avery Demery, No. 2 Rahji Dennis, No. 7 Ethan Veal, No. 24 Steven Blanco Jr. and No. 9 Lance Williams. UL beat Lamar 38-7.

LEFT: Steven Blanco Sr., father of UL player Steven Blanco Jr., spins some tunes for the Ragin’ Cajuns Tailgate Crew. BELOW: The tailgaters enjoy the barbecue before the start of the game. Ashanta Green, mother of UL player Lance Williams, and Tanyeka Green-Servick enjoy wings, barbecue and friends before the start of the UL football game.

This Labor Day, try to lose track of time As Memorial Day approached last May, I discovered that my wristwatch had died overnight. The repair shop was closed for the long weekend, so I’d be watchless for three days. On a holiday that marked the unofﬁcial start of carefree summer, maybe there was something to be said for being away from reminders of time. Even so, I felt awkward without a watch. Answering habit, I glanced at my arm countless times, ﬁnding only a tan line where my watch had been. The pale circle on my wrist reminded me that, in a very real sense, I’d been branded by time. Even

when I’m doing yard chores, which work best when I lose myself in the trance of trimming and mowing and digging around my Louisiana home, I wear a watch. The trace of the timepiece where the sun couldn’t brown me is a kind of tattoo, I suppose, marking me as a vigilant timekeeper. All of us live lives ordered by the clock, and as a journalist in a deadline-sensitive business, I’ve found that the march of minutes has an even deeper claim on my days. But regardless of where we work — or whether we work at all — there’s usually a minute hand tugging at our sleeves.

I’ve often been struck by the irony that retirees are customarily presented with a nice wristwatch when they close out their careers. At just the point they’re stepping back from the press of business, they’re given a grand new way to mark time. Even seniors, it seems, are nudged to know what time it is. All of this came to mind during my watchless weekend, which I decided to use as a learning opportunity. Obviously, even without my trusty timepiece, I had plenty of other options for telling time. Clocks chime throughout our house, and my smartphone never tires of tracking the hours.

But with an extended weekend and no appointments to keep, I tried to pay less attention to whether it was 11 o’clock or 12, late morning or early afternoon. What I discovered — or rediscovered — is that you don’t always need to ask a day how long it’s traveled. The day will tell you without prompting, through dozens of helpful clues. Every morning, the riot of birdsong beyond my bedroom window rouses me more vividly than any alarm clock. Our living room is full of windows, and as the light slowly recedes across the rug each afternoon, it’s as palpable as water draining from a tub. While

Danny Heitman AT RANdOM

dozing in an armchair during my watchless weekend, I was stirred awake by a chorus of crickets, the ofﬁcial anthem of dusk. Maybe, I thought, I don’t always need a watch to know what time it is. As Labor Day informally closes out another summer, I’m also trying to keep another truth in mind. Sometimes, the best way to treasure time is to lose track of it. Email Danny Heitman at danny@dannyhetiman.com.

2B ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M/opinions

LSU is taking a big risk by signing former NFL football players

Letlow’s Meta stock purchase deserves scrutiny

I have a prediction for the upcoming football season. I predict that LSU will have an outstanding season, go to the playoffs, possibly win the national championship and then be forced to forfeit all their games because they used players who had been declared eligible by an obviously biased local judge who, with any hope of reelection, would not dare to rule against the home team. These cases in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and other states will eventually reach courts where judges are not subject to local pressure. Under NCAA rules, players who have signed NFL contracts are ineligible. I sincerely hope that the LSU athletic staff has the foresight to look past immediate gratiﬁcation to foreseeable consequences.

After signing a nondisclosure agreement that granted her conﬁdential information related to Meta’s Hyperion data center, U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow, Louisiana’s front-runner for a U.S. Senate seat, purchased stock in both Meta and Nvidia. Letlow disclosed those purchases over a year late — part of a consistent pattern and in violation of the federal STOCK Act. Letlow has tried to pass the blame to her stockbroker, claiming those purchases were made without her knowledge. However, the delay in disclosing the trades falls squarely on Letlow. Whether ill intent or simple negligence, failing to report these trades is a serious breach of the public’s trust. Louisiana deserves an elected ofﬁcial who acts with transparency and is focused on serving the public rather than her own net worth. Letlow has no scheduled town halls to allow the public to directly address these concerns and seems intent on brushing this scandal under the rug. If Letlow cannot own up to her error in judgment, she should step aside for a candidate with more integrity to serve Louisiana.

RICHARD S. DERBES Baton Rouge

Columnist overlooks violence that erupted after George Floyd’s death Regarding Will Sutton’s column of Aug. 27, “Some in Louisiana say political violence can be justiﬁed, and that’s scary”: I too was appalled at the percentage of people who thought political violence was justiﬁed. I was with Sutton about three-quarters of the way through his article until his “mind immediately went to Jan. 6 and what happened that day.” How could his mind not immediately go to the riots after the George Floyd takedown, where the Insurance Information Institute declared that between $1 billion and $2 billion of damage occurred in 140 cities in 20 states? Various tracking studies also determined between 19 and 42 deaths. He can’t seem to write an article without somehow disparaging President Donald Trump.

PAT GERNON Gretna

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. HERE ARE OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are

published identifying name and the writer’s city of residence. The Advocate | The Times-Picayune require a street address and TO SENd US A LETTER, phone number SCAN HERE for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor, The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@theadvocate.com.

PROVIdEd By THE PORT OF NEW ORLEANS

An undated conceptional rendering shows plans for the Louisiana International Terminal, which will include 3,600 feet of wharf and a container yard able to hold nearly 62,900 shipping containers.

Is there a better location for port’s international terminal?

Your editorial, “As LIT moves forward, it’s time for obstacles to clear,” suggests that the issuance of a Corps of Engineers permit should effectively end the debate over the Louisiana International Terminal. It should not. A permit is an important milestone, but it does not resolve questions involving ﬁnancing, litigation, transportation infrastructure, a public school within the project area or whether Violet is the best location for a generational investment of this magnitude. More importantly, the debate should not be framed as LIT vs. no economic development. Louisiana should think bigger. We possess one of the greatest economic assets in the world: the Mississippi River, connecting America’s heartland with inter-

national markets and the Gulf. If Louisiana intends to become a truly competitive international container gateway, we should fully examine whether a location farther downriver — closer to the Gulf and farther from established communities — offers greater potential. The Port of New Orleans has proposed a site it claims to be within its jurisdiction. But the boundaries of one port authority should not deﬁne the boundaries of Louisiana’s ambition. Why shouldn’t we ask whether going farther downriver could better serve the longterm interests of our state and nation? A permit should not prevent Louisiana from asking whether we can do better.

SHAWN COLEMAN New Orleans

Elected officials abused voters’ trust with NdAs

SIDNEY D. TORRES III Chalmette

The promise of SpaceX is welcome Our family has owned farmland in Jefferson Davis Parish for generations. We steward a coastal prairie restoration project there, as well as a working rice and crawfish farm, a solar project, a certified industrial site and hunting and fishing — all about 100 miles from the planned Starbase Louisiana site. We care about innovation and deeply respect the integrity of our ancestral property. Faimon Roberts (Aug. 27) and James Whelan (Sept. 1) miss the larger point. SpaceX’s $100 billion plan is the largest private investment in state history. Officials project 3,000 permanent jobs paying nearly twice the Vermilion Parish average, plus more than 8,000 construction and indirect jobs. The $100 million paid for former ExxonMobil marshland is slated for coastal restoration. Vermilion Parish is to receive more than $820 million over 25 years in lieu of taxes,

plus $25 million for the Community Foundation of Acadiana. SpaceX has pledged to work with the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority and wildlife agencies. That is not a giveaway of empty marshland. It is a chance for southwest Louisiana — farms, restoration work and industrial sites like ours — to share in high-wage work and related development instead of watching another generation leave Louisiana. Tesla made electric vehicles and grid storage ordinary. SpaceX cut the cost of reaching orbit and restored American-crewed launches. Starlink already serves rural homes and disaster zones when ﬁber cannot. We can welcome that kind of industry and still insist the coast and farmland be treated with respect. Those two aims are not enemies.

What have we done? “We” are the voters of Louisiana. We have elected and entrusted our public officials (the governor, attorney general, federal and state senators and representatives, mayors and parish officials) to pursue and safeguard our health, safety and prosperity, enforce the law and uphold our freedoms guaranteed by the state and federal constitutions. As a result of our vigilant press, we are now learning that our elected public officials have signed NDAs (nondisclosure agreements) with the most powerful corporations in the world behind our backs, negotiated a massive sale of public lands, waived environmental laws and, through legislation passed without the disclosure of the secret negotiations, guaranteed corporate immunity from being held accountable for damage to our persons and property. And, of course, our officials have exempted these wealthiest of the wealthy from paying property taxes. All without notice to the voters. All without input from the voters. Rather than challenge and/or debate the merits of spaceports and data centers, our representatives and officials have signed NDAs, abdicating their duty to represent and inform their constituents on these most essential governmental matters. And now, based on these confidential deals, it appears there is no turning back. What have we done?

CHARLOTTE LANDRY Baton Rouge

Trump squanders U.S. leadership role with abuse Re: ”A frivolous and oblivious president,” George Will, Aug. 31. President Donald Trump’s wildly conjuredup thoughts and ill-advised actions are becoming destructive distractions to maintaining our hard-won position on the world stage. For example, he is openly diminishing our relationship militarily with our ally in the Paciﬁc, South Korea, in favor of conducting what seems to be a personal relationship with communist North Korea (which is donating multiple thousands of soldiers to Putin’s war against another ally of ours, Ukraine). And closer to home, he is scandalously abusing Canada, a fellow charter member of NATO and the most stable neighbor we could ask for along our entire northern border; his

assertion that the Canadian nation should become our 51st state, and his renaming of our mutually contiguous Lake Ontario to “Lake America,” are two grands faux pas. Instead of our reputation as a premier bulwark for freedom and responsible leadership, we seem to be slipping (or sliding) onto the crowded, unruly, muddy racetrack of world opinion. Not only are we losing respect, but we are also losing physical superiority, into which several other entities will be only too happy to insert themselves with their own plans for dominance. Are we following a false piper into a forest of self-perdition?

JOHN BERRY Baton Rouge

MARK GOLDSTEIN Mandeville

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COMMENTARY S.C. turns into historic Senate race COLUMBIA, S.C. — The late Lindsey Graham must be giddy in paradise. His beloved sister, Darline Graham, won a Republican primary runoff for his soon-to-expire Senate seat, defeating U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, whose noteworthy liability was supporting former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley in the 2024 primary against then-presidential candidate Donald Trump. Trump is an elephant when it comes to politics. He remembers his enemies, nurses grudges for long periods and seeks retaliation. Trump’s loyalty calculus apparently doesn’t allow credit for Norman’s willingness to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Trump’s reinvention of Kathleen Darline Graham from a Parker relatively unknown state employee into an overnight U.S. Senate candidate is the stuff of political legend. The president not only supported Republican Gov. Henry McMaster’s decision to appoint her as a placeholder through the remainder of her brother’s term; he also lobbied her to run for the six-year seat. Lo and behold, she accepted his challenge and was camera-ready in no time. She immediately brought to mind the erstwhile Republican governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, who was plucked from the moose-hunting fields and dramatically injected into then-Sen. John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign as his running mate. Like Palin, Graham has an authentic down-home appeal and relates to people at the kitchen table. But also like Palin, she wasn’t ready for the national stage. When she flubbed the much-discussed question about whether Taiwan and the South China Sea were important to national security, saying that she wasn’t well versed on the subject, the political commentariat probably thought she was doomed. Obviously, not so. Not surprisingly, Trump has accepted credit for Graham’s victory. A Trump-affiliated super PAC spent almost $800,000 on her campaign. And he swept into Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, for a rally, telling the crowd: “Pretend, please, that I’m on the ballot.” Even so, I wouldn’t give Trump all the applause. Keep in mind that Norman had recently been rejected by Republican voters when he sought the nomination for governor. And Graham won

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By MEG KINNARd

Sen. darline Graham, R-S.C., speaks with reporters following a candidate event for hopefuls vying in a special Republican primary to replace her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., on November ballots. narrowly, with 52.5% of the vote in the primary runoff against Norman. Most of the credit goes to the candidate. Perhaps counterintuitively, if you’re not from around here, the smartest thing Graham did was to answer that foreign policy question with candor and without apology. Her simple, direct response was sincere and rang true to her audience. “I’m just going to be honest,” she said, adding that national security “is not my thing.” But, really, why would it be at this point? Graham had barely buried the brother who helped raise her and was rushed to her swearing-in ceremony before she’d had time to grieve. Her mere presence under such pressure is a marvel. Many, if not most, people recognized themselves in her response to the South China Sea question. Sometimes admitting that you don’t know the answer to a question can earn a candidate as much credit as a pitch-perfect response would. One can learn. What matters more to everyday folks trying to make ends meet is character and honesty, a truth that only magniﬁes the mystery of Trump’s grip on South Carolina. No doubt, Lindsey Graham could have explained it. He also could have delivered a dissertation on the Taiwan matter, while possibly making us laugh. We shall miss that. His death was a blow to MAGA world and to Trump, who could

count on his golfing pal to carry the torch in most cases. Lindsey Graham’s friends also attest to the times he tried to steer the president away from some of his more dangerous impulses. The newly appointed senator probably won’t be much help in this regard. Finally, from the department of buried leads, South Carolina now has two women vying for a Senate seat. By November, Darline Graham might be more familiar with the issues and, indeed, ready for prime time when she faces Democratic challenger Annie Andrews, a pediatrician who also has never held elective office. Graham is already putting up her dukes, saying that Andrews is “the most radical liberal ever nominated for a statewide office by the South Carolina Democratic Party.” Democrats, meanwhile, tell me they’re celebrating Graham’s win against Norman, saying they believe Andrews will destroy her in a debate. Andrews’s internal polling before the longtime senator’s death found her trailing him by just three points. Whatever happens, South Carolina voters will elect a woman to the Senate for the first time in its history — an overdue correction Lindsey Graham likely would applaud. Kathleen Parker is on X, @kathleenparker.

Thank you, Dolly Parton, for your music, good humor and public service preparing to leave her working partSince imitation is the sincerest form of ﬂattery, I am told, I was not nership with fellow country star Porter surprised to hear Dolly Parton say in Wagoner. an interview that she once entered a Although many think of the powerful “Dolly Parton lookalike” drag queen love ballad as a world-class break-up contest in Los Angeles unannounced — song, both Parton and Wagoner denied and lost. there was any romance involved Parton, who died last month in their writing partnership. at age 80, enjoyed telling that Dolly actually was married to story, which illustrated, among Carl Dean for an impressive 59 other things, that it wasn’t alyears until he died in 2025. She wrote more than 3,000 ways easy to be Dolly, even for songs in her career, which she Dolly. Clarence described as starting with a tune “Nobody applauded,” she said Page she composed at age 5. in a May 2025 radio interview, Dolly was the salt of the earth. “like a little trickle that was This quality shone in her songwriting probably David, my hairdresser.” and in the way she lived her life. It’s Go ﬁgure. Maybe she looked too not surprising she had fans in every much like the real thing for anyone to walk of life and in every corner of the believe she really was. earth. Either way, that little story tells us Among her many memorable artisa lot about Dolly. She was more than merely tolerant of different people, her tic collaborations was one with the fans will say. She was welcoming. Black South African a capella group The “Queen of Country,” as many Ladysmith Black Mambazo in the called her for her musical talents, won mid-1990s. Together they covered Bob me over with her soulful voice and inDylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and Cat Stevens’ “Peace Train,” the latspired storytelling in song and verse. She also showed impressive skills as ter of which she included on her 1996 an actress, businesswoman, fashion album “Memories.” She later invited icon and philanthropist, all without the group to perform at Dollywood. losing any of her engaging down-home Sibongiseni Shabalala, a member of wit, grace and charm. the group and the son of its founder, And she never forgot where she expressed his condolences to Parton’s came from, as the old saying goes. family. In fact, that’s where she got some of “This terrible death is not only for her best material, as the fourth of 12 them but for the world as well,” he told children growing up in a tiny cabin in BBC World Service. “She was beautiful rural Tennessee, now reproduced in an outside as well as within.” exhibit at Dollywood, her amusement Back here in the USA, my respect for park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Dolly got a huge boost when we AmeriMy appreciation for her was renewed cans were locked down during the COwith Whitney Houston’s super-hit “I VID-19 pandemic. Will Always Love You,” popularized As many Americans felt near on the soundtrack of the 1992 thriller panic, wondering what would happen “The Bodyguard.” next, Dolly Parton stepped up and Parton wrote the song as she was announced a $1 million donation to

Vanderbilt University Medical Center to help expedite development of the Moderna vaccine, which at least one correspondent suggested renaming it “the Dolly.” And if her legacy is to be remembered for anything besides good music, I would vote for the Imagination Library, a program that Parton began in 1995, inspired by her father, who couldn’t read. The program mails a free book each month to millions of children from birth until age 5. Thanks to corporate and nonprofit partnerships, as well as grants from state governments, the Imagination Library has distributed more than 300 million free books. Parton was a trailblazing philanthropist in other ways as well. When wildfires struck communities in the Great Smoky Mountains in 2016, she wrote monthly $1,000 checks to families made homeless. The emergency aid, as the New York Times commented, “distinguished her as one of pop culture’s most prolific philanthropists.” Other rich people started funneling their charity through her foundation. It’s worth pondering that Parton focused so much of her charity on helping children and families, despite not having children of her own. In that sense, dear Dolly reminds me of one of my favorite grade school teachers, who told our class she didn’t need to have children at home since she was happy to have all of us. Perhaps Dolly felt that way, too. She will be missed and, as we should tell all conscientious schoolteachers, we thank her for her service. Email Clarence Page at clarence47page@gmail.com.

The addled college football cartel Big-time college football’s season began on Saturday. Before the other professional league, the NFL, becomes a distraction, consider three propositions. Football is a mistake. Bodies, and especially brains, are not built to withstand its repeated collisions. Culturally, college football scratches the human itch for tribalism, which America’s ethos of individualism fortunately discourages. And big-time football attached to higher education is, suddenly, educational. It is teaching us two reasons the federal government grows: Many people demand this. And so, too, do society’s big battalions, when distressed. A discombobulated cartel — the college football industry — needs Congress’s help restoring order afGeorge ter the sudden emancipation of the working class: the players. Will It is unlikely that fans’ enthusiasm for football will be dampened by The New York Times report that at least 1 in 4 NFL players might expect to eventually suffer neurodegenerative brain disease (which can include impaired cognition, mood swings, erratic behavior, addiction, even suicide) as a result of the game’s kinetic energies. Up to five years of college football are now permitted for players by the NCAA’s new rules. That time is probably enough to put at risk even players who do not graduate to the NFL. Recently, the Southeastern and Big Ten conferences discovered a limit to their permissiveness: They are trying to stop LSU — a rogue football program, akin to North Korea — from recruiting two players who had suited up for NFL preseason training but wanted to return to college. There, the money is more certain, and sometimes better. Eligibility rules can, however, be made ever more permissive by those who write them. The writers are universities and sports conferences who are in a financial arms race. But arms control might be coming from Congress. College athletic departments have become entwined with money-raising “collectives” through which donors finance on-field success. This, say some industry participants, can require $5 million (at least) annually for quarterbacks who direct $40 million rosters. For elite football programs, success means surviving deep into the playoffs. These began in the 2014 season with four teams, then in 2024 expanded to 12. They might soon include 24 teams. Otherwise, fans of teams that lose, say, a third regular-season game will lose interest, the exercise having become pointless with the playoffs out of reach. But even at just 12, there can be mismatches: Sports are meritocratic, and unless players’ freedom is circumscribed, merit will move toward the highest bidders. Under today’s almost-no-rules regime, the strongest few get stronger faster than their pursuers. Pity the University of Arkansas, a pursuer. Arkansas is home to Tyson Foods and Walmart, but has the nation’s fourth-lowest median household income. The Athletic’s Seth Emerson reports that the school’s athletic director says: “We have per capita, I think, the greatest depth of billionaires of any state in the country, but per capita, we have kind of the shallowest pool of millionaires.” Can Arkansas compete with, say, Georgia and Florida? It cannot, without help from Congress. Athletes exercising free agency through the “transfer portal” is a recipe for the supremacy of the few financially fittest football programs. Congress might ride to the rescue of the many by mandating competitive balance in the form of a nationwide spending cap covering all sports at each school. This is part of the Protect College Sports Act drafted by Ted Cruz of Texas and Maria Cantwell of Washington, Republican chair and ranking Democrat, respectively, on the Senate Commerce Committee. Before becoming finicky about Congress surely having bigger fish to fry — wars, deficits — acknowledge two things. College football certainly is interstate commerce. And more people care about it than about the Iran war. If players are generating many millions for schools, are they employees of their institutions? If so, is collective bargaining next? One certainty is that the cloying vocabulary of “student-athletes” and “amateurism” has been retired. The college sports cartel flourished for a century in what was, for it, an Edenic paradise: Profits from broadcasting soared; labor cost the cartel approximately nothing. Now, however, it is in the interest of a majority of schools, players and fans to limit the players’ pay and free agency in order to protect competitive balance. Beneath the roar of stadium crowds, you might soon hear a sigh of contentment from the college football cartel as it is resuscitated by Congress. Take such satisfaction as can be had from this evidence that Congress can fix, sort of, something. Email George Will at georgewill@washpost. com.

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writer’s city of residence. The Advocate | The Times-Picayune require a street 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. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@theadvocate.com.

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4B ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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TODAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

Humid; an afternoon t-storm

Humid; a stray p.m. t-storm

Humid with a thunderstorm

A heavy t-storm in the p.m.

A few afternoon showers

A couple of morning t-storms

HIGH

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94° 76°

LOW

93° 74°

LOW

90° 73°

90° 75°

Beaumont 93/76

Baton Rouge 95/74

Lake Charles 94/78

Port Arthur 94/76

New Orleans 94/78 Houma 91/74

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Hattiesburg 99/73

Alexandria 97/73

Lafayette 94/76

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91° 74°

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92° 76°

YESTERDAY

TODAY

REAdING 43 MAIN POLLUTANT Ozone

MAIN POLLUTANT Ozone

Lafayette through 5 p.m. Sunday

Jackson 99/74 Many 96/72

LOW

TEMPERATURE

Longview 99/75

-0s

LOW

Monroe 101/73

Shreveport 100/75

-10s

HIGH

While there are isolated showers and storms in the forecast for today, the heat is our biggest issue with the weather. In fact, a heat advisory has been issued for all of southwest Louisiana. Expect a partly cloudy, hot and humid day with a few scattered storms. While the temperatures are expected to rise to the low to mid-90s, when you factor in the humidity, heat index values could rise to 107 or higher. Most of us are under a major heat risk, so take breaks, stay hydrated and wear sunscreen.

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Austin Boston dallas Fairbanks Honolulu Las Vegas Louisville Miami Nashville

Shown are areas of precipitation and high temperatures for the day.

92°/74° 91°/73° 90°/73° 101° in 1925 58° in 1953

TODAY’S TIDES Lake Pontchartrain (Tchefuncte River) Shell Beach South Point, Marsh Island Cypremort Point Grand Isle (Barataria Pass) Mississippi River (Southwest Pass) Wine Island

24-hour total Month to date Normal month to date year to date Normal year to date

HIGH

5:27p 11:02a 4:12a 6:49a 7:14a 6:26a 8:22a

6:48 a.m. 7:23 p.m. 2:50 a.m. 5:16 p.m.

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SEP 18

98 79 100 63 87 94 88 92 92

TODAY Lo

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SEP 26

t s s c r s s t pc

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GOOd

PRECIPITATION

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t s s r sh pc pc t c

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0.49” 1.22” 1.15” 45.01” 44.83”

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0.9 4:31a 0.0 2.0 11:08p 0.0 2.3 6:19p -0.1 2.2 10:35p 0.1 1.7 6:36p 0.0 2.0 4:51p 0.0 2.0 7:38p 0.1

FT.

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SOURCE: LOUISIANA dEQ ANd AIRNOW.GOV

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The solunar period schedule allows planning days so you will be fishing in good territory or hunting in good cover during those times. Major periods begin at the times shown and last for 1.5 to 2 hours. The minor periods are shorter. MAJOR MINOR MAJOR MINOR

Today 8:49a Tuesday 9:40a Wednesday 10:28a Thursday 11:14a Friday 12:00p Saturday 12:25a Sunday 1:14a

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New Orleans Orlando Philadelphia Phoenix Pittsburgh Raleigh St. Louis San diego Tampa

94 91 81 106 81 84 87 88 90

2:34a 3:26a 4:15a 5:02a 5:48a 6:36a 7:25a

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t t s pc s pc s pc t

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91 89 84 109 83 85 95 88 90

3:04p 3:54p 4:40p 5:26p 6:11p 6:58p 7:48p

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78 75 68 88 64 63 76 73 76

MISSISSIPPI Memphis Vidalia-Natchez Red River Landing Baton Rouge donaldsonville Reserve New Orleans OHIO Cairo COMITE Near Olive AMITE Near darlington denham Springs Port Vincent TICKFAW Montpelier Holden ATCHAFALAYA Simmesport Melville Krotz Springs Butte La Rose Bayou Sorrel Morgan City

t t s s pc pc s pc t

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

FLOOD STAGE

34 48 48 35 27 22 17

SUN. 24-HOUR STAGE CHANGE

-1.23 23.59 26.66 12.23 6.29 4.97 3.29

-0.41 -0.93 -1.24 -0.92 -0.66 -0.36 -1.09

12.20

-0.67

-1.54

+0.01

18 29 8

-1.19 10.01 2.37

none +0.08 -0.03

13 15

1.52 0.82

-0.15 +0.09

47 34 29 20 12 6

10.52 7.61 5.72 5.47 3.80 2.09

-1.20 -0.42 -0.53 -0.25 -0.10 -0.01

data as of 7 a.m. Sunday

Hurricane hunter ﬁnds peace in Bay St. Louis Driver in fatal accident accused of drinking

BY JUSTIN MITCHELL Staff writer

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season may be off to a slower start than usual, but that doesn’t mean life is less busy for Josh Morgerman, a world-renowned storm chaser and new-ish Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, resident. In a cottage he built a few blocks from the beach, Morgerman watches, waits and tracks tropical systems across the world and updates his thousands of followers online who know him as iCyclone. It’s been a little more than two years since Morgerman moved into his Hurricane House 2.0, a New Orleansinspired cottage built with James Hardie ﬁber cement siding made to withstand hurricane-force winds. Morgerman decided to call the Bay home after spending a summer here in 2020, but his job is intense, sporadic and often requires split-second decisions on global travel. But when he’s not loading up his car and hitting the road to track hurricanes or catching a ﬂight to position himself in the eye of a typhoon, you might find Morgerman having brunch at the Mockingbird Cafe or biking down the beach toward Biloxi. “There is something calming about this place,” Morgerman said from his sofa on a warm summer afternoon. “It’s perfect.”

From NYC to BSL Morgerman had only been to Bay St. Louis once before he rented a quaint house with a front porch made for sitting to track hurricanes during the pandemic — and that trip was a bit of a blur. “It was 1992, and the Bay was a place to party,” he said. He arrived back nearly 30 years later to a different Bay St. Louis, but the party still rages on. Beach bars like The Good Life and Fire Dog were washed away by

Josh Morgerman’s custom-built home in Bay St. Louis, Miss., left, features a hurricane gable, above. PROVIdEd PHOTOS By JOSH MORGERMAN

When world-renowned storm chaser Josh Morgerman is not loading up his car to track hurricanes to update thousands of online followers of his iCyclone account, he spends his time relaxing along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Hurricane Katrina’s fury in 2005, but they’ve been replaced by staples like Buoy’s, The Ugly Pirate and Dan B’s. The monster storm took with it shotgun houses, mansions, bed and breakfasts and live oaks. But other landmarks — like the Hancock Bank building on Main Street, the historic theater and St. Stanislaus — withstood the wind and storm surge. Today, the Bay is a fastgrowing beach town that has New Orleans charms and Destin-like vibes. It was that slow pace and historical elements of the Bay that drew Morgerman here, away from Los Angeles or

house is built with James Hardie siding that has a Fortiﬁed Gold designation, the highest level of storm protection recognized by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. It’s a “shoes off” place, unless you’re there for Morgerman’s annual hurricane parties that draw local leaders, friends, storm chasers and meteorologists from across the country, including Jim Cantore. “It absolutely feels like home,” he said. “This is the best place to come home to and recharge between all the adventures.”

his hometown of New York Email Justin Mitchell City. “I (was) a newcomer but at justin.mitchell@ a hardcore historical pres- theadvocate.com. ervationist,” Morgerman said. “When I decided to live here, I thought I’d buy LOTTERY an old house.” But when he found a place SATURDAY, SEPT. 5, he liked enough to put an 2026 offer in, he said more often PICK 3: 3-2-6 than not, “some rich person PICK 4: 2-9-2-1 from New Orleans bought it with cash.” PICK 5: 4-3-5-4-4 So Morgerman teamed EASY 5: 1-3-18-20-34 up with local contractors LOTTO: 20-21-25-30and instead built his own 32-42 place in Old Town. It has POWERBALL: 15-40-47a primary bedroom with few windows so Morger53-59 (9) Unofficial notification, man can sleep late, touches of personal memorabilia keep your tickets. and Gulf Coast décor. The

A 39-year-old Broussard man died in a single-car crash early Sunday CRIME morning nd the BLOTTER adriver was Advocate arrested, staff accused of reports drunken driving. Lafayette police said Tolentino Ramirez-Cornejo was a passenger in a 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe that was traveling north in the 1100 block of Southeast Evangeline Thruway when it left the roadway for an unknown reason and struck a house. Ramirez-Cornejo was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said the driver, 28-year-old Justyce Griffith, of Alexandria, was driving under the influence and tested above the legal limit. She was booked into the Lafayette Parish Correctional Facility on one count each of vehicular homicide, operating a vehicle while intoxicated, ﬁrst-degree vehicle negligent injuring, careless operation and failure to secure a driver’s license. Grifﬁth suffered minor injuries in the crash, police

said. Another passenger suffered severe injuries, while a third passenger suffered minor injuries. Both were hospitalized and in stable condition, police said. The crash remains under investigation.

Woman arrested after stabbing incident Lafayette police arrested a 45-year-old woman after a stabbing incident Sunday morning. According to Lafayette police, Ashlee Benjamin slashed two tires on the victim’s vehicle in the 400 block of Row 3 before walking to his residence to report the damage. When the victim left his home to inspect his vehicle, that’s when police said Benjamin attacked him with a knife. Police were called to the scene just after 7 a.m. and found the victim with a large laceration on his back, police said. He was transported to a hospital and is listed in stable condition. Benjamin was booked into the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center on one count each of attempted seconddegree murder and simple criminal damage to property.

The Advocate’s Obituary Department Labor Day Holiday Hours Due to the Labor Day Holiday, our offices will be closed Monday, Sept. 7th, 2026.

EARLY DEADLINES FOR OBITUARIES

DEADLINE

SATURDAY 9/5 @ 3 PM

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SPORTS

T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M

M o n d ay, S e p t e M b e r 7, 2026

1Cn

Cajuns’ RBs steal show in opening win vs. Lamar

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU defensive end Jordan Ross engulfs Clemson quarterback Tait Reynolds for a sack in the third quarter on Saturday at Tiger Stadium.

ON THE PROWL

UL coach Michael Desormeaux caught himself as he was making his initial comments after his Cajuns handled Lamar 38-7 in the season opener Saturday. “I guess not a typical (opener),” he said, referring to the 14-12 loss to Rice. “Last year, there wasn’t much to be proud of, you know.” Still, there wasn’t one smile in the entire postgame news conference. Not because Desormeaux wasn’t pleased with his team’s performance. Kevin Regardless of the opFoote ponent, many teams look sluggish in the first half of the first game. That didn’t happen for the Cajuns, who scored touchdowns on three of their first four possessions. “There’s a lot of things I’m really pleased with; I really am,” he said. “I don’t want it to sound negative. I guess it’s just a coach in you.” Quite possibly, it was the injury situation ... again. Redshirt freshman running back Darrell Smith looked fabulous in the first half and then went down before being tackled early in the third quarter with an apparent calf injury. “I think it might be a strain,” Desormeaux said. “My calf had popped,” said Smith, who finished with 84 yards and two scores on 10 carries. “So we’ll go see what the trainers are talking about.” Then there was redshirt junior tight end Caden Jensen, who shined with five receptions for 77 yards — only to leave the game injured and not return.

ä See FOOTE, page 4C

A look at how Baker’s LSU defense dismantled Clemson in statement win

BY JON BLAU Staff writer

LSU knew what was coming. Clemson had no one but quarterback Christopher Vizzina in the backfield. LSU safety Dashawn Spears appeared to want to stay in the tackle box with linebackers TJ Dottery and Whit Weeks, but Dottery pointed him toward the opponent’s No. 3 receiver. LSU’s defense stretched out like an accordion to cover up a spread formation, leaving only a split second between Dottery’s final command and the snap. His eyes quickly found his target, as they seemingly would all night. Clemson revealed its hand. Perhaps the speediest player on the field, running back Chris Johnson, was motioning toward Vizzina at the snap. Dottery barrelled toward the line, refusing to allow a jet sweep to get outside of him. Edge defender Jordan Ross kept tabs on Vizzina on the off chance he kept the ball. A smothering commenced. Dottery chased Johnson like a cheetah in pursuit of a gazelle. Johnson cut inside, and Ross, Weeks and safety Ty Benefield came in for the kill. All night, Clemson was allowed no refuge. In a masterclass of defense from play-caller Blake Baker and his proteges, the most shocking of statistics flashed on

ESPN’s broadcast early in the third quarter. LSU had 232 rushing yards. Clemson had minus-5. How did Baker’s defense impose their will so thoroughly? Let’s ﬂip on the tape and sort through the chaos LSU’s defensive coordinator created.

Dropping the defensive ends One of the expectations coming into this season was Baker wouldn’t need to bring as many blitzers because transfer additions Princewill Umanmielen and Jordan Ross would allow him to get more of a rush with his front four. In the opener, Baker brought four quite often. It was just never clear to Clemson which four it would be. Ross and Umanmielen both dropped on a third-and-6 with just over 2 minutes left in the first quarter. They had rushed upfield on the previous two snaps. Vizzina was completely unaware Ross had dropped in front of star receiver Bryant Wesco, who crossed the middle on a slant and was about to use tight end Christian Bentancur crossing on a slant to pick a defender. Vizzina was very much aware Weeks, who blitzed alongside Dottery, was flying toward his face. He threw to Wesco off of his back foot, which went right to Ross,

ä See LSU, page 3C

STAFF PHOTO By BRAd KEMP

UL running back darrell Smith runs in for a touchdown against Lamar during their season-opening game on Saturday at Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium.

ROUNDTABLE

Realistic expectations for Saints, QB Shough this season BY JEFF DUNCAN, LUKE JOHNSON, MATTHEW PARAS and ROD WALKER Staff writers

The New Orleans Saints are a week away from starting the season. After watching training camp and seeing Kellen Moore and his staff trim the roster to 53 players, it’s now time for the real games to begin. Before they travel to Detroit to take on the Lions in the opener next Sunday, The Times-Picayune Saints’ coverage team gathered around the roundtable to discuss what we’ve learned and what we expect in 2026.

STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Saints quarterback Tyler Shough talks to teammates during a drill at training camp on Aug. 6 at the team’s practice facility in Metairie.

Q: WHAT WAS THE MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE FROM TRAINING CAMP AND THE PRESEASON? Luke Johnson: The run game was truly a disaster last season, which was disappointing given the investments the team had made in the offensive line and Kellen Moore’s track record as a play-caller. I think that will be different this season. Based on what I saw in the lead-up to the season, Travis Etienne

and David Edwards look like real difference-makers. Even a middle-of-theroad ground attack will make a world of difference for this offense, and I think they’ll get there. Matt Paras: All three rookie wide receivers look ready to contribute. Before Tyson suffered his hamstring injury, the ﬁrstrounder gave people plenty of reasons to be excited and could be a real differencemaker when healthy. But it was also surprising to see how rookies Bryce Lance and Barion Brown seemed to meet the moment, especially once Ja’Lynn Polk retired and Tyson went down. Rod Walker: Replacing key pieces like Demario Davis and Alontae Taylor isn’t easy. But the acquisition of Kaden Elliss to plug in the hole left by Davis and moving Jonas Sanker to the star position to replace Taylor have been huge moves. The defense looks even faster in Year 2 under Brandon Staley. Chase Young looks on track to have a dominant season, and this unit has a chance to be really special. Jeff Duncan: I was pleasantly surprised

by the quick development of Lance and Brown. We all expected Jordyn Tyson to make an impact. But Lance and Brown were revelations as mid-to-late-round draft picks. Because of Tyson’s hamstring injury, both might see the ﬁeld early this season. Time will tell if their success in camp will translate to the regular season, but both have shown ﬂashes. Q: WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT? LJ: The non-Tyson version of this answer is pretty straightforward: We did not get a chance to see a single starter play a snap in the preseason. That may prove to be a genius move by the time the games start to play out — only two true starters will miss Week 1 because of injury. But it’s also opening the door for some pretty easy criticism of Moore and his staff if the Saints get off to a sluggish start against two of the better teams on their schedule in Detroit and Baltimore. MP: I have serious questions about the

ä See SAINTS, page 3C

2C ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS On TV

AUTO RACING 11 a.m. NHRA: U.S. Nationals 1 p.m. NHRA: U.S. Nationals CFL 1:30 p.m. Toronto at Hamilton 5 p.m. Edmonton at Calgary COLLEGE FOOTBALL 6:30 p.m. SMU at Florida St. COLLEGE GOLF 8:30 a.m. Folds of Honor Collegiate

FS1 FOX CBSSN CBSSN ESPN GOLF

3:30 p.m. Folds of Honor Collegiate GOLF MEN’S COLLEGE SOCCER 6 p.m. Georgetown at Maryland BTN WOMEN’S COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL 3 p.m. Penn St. at dePaul ESPNU FIBA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP 7:15 a.m. Nigeria vs. France TRUTV 10:30 a.m. Japan vs. Spain TRUTV 1:30 p.m. U.S. vs. Czech Republic TNT HORSE RACING 11 a.m. Saratoga Live FS2

IN BRIEF

FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

MEN’S LACROSSE denver at Utah MLB 12:35 p.m. L.A. Angels at Boston 4:10 p.m. Washington at San diego 7:10 p.m. St. Louis at San Francisco 10 p.m. Toronto at Athletics (JIP) WOMEN’S SOCCER 7:45 a.m. North Korea vs. Portugal TENNIS 10 a.m. U.S. Open 6 p.m. U.S. Open 2 p.m.

ESPN2 MLBN MLBN NBC MLBN FS2 ESPN ESPN2

U.S. OPEN

Sabalenka, Alcaraz reach quarterfinals BY STEPHEN WHYNO Associated Press

NEW YORK — Defending champions Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz are back to the quarterfinals at the U.S. Open, and they made it look easy. The top-ranked Sabalenka solved some early struggles holding serve and overpowered Taylor Townsend 6-4, 6-3 on Sunday. Alcaraz also advanced in straight sets, beating Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 in the second match at Arthur Ashe Stadium. “I’m happy with that performance,” Alcaraz said. “I played my game. I tried to play my style. Tommy’s such a talented player. His shots are pretty dangerous and it’s sometimes pretty difficult to control the ball when it comes to you, so I just tried to be ready.” Townsend broke Sabalenka three times in her first four service games as she looked to spring the upset. Sabalenka found a groove, regained her confidence and did not lose another point after falling behind 3-1 in the second set. “I love matches like that because it was really challenging,” Sabalenka said. “Going through tough challenges and overcoming those challenges, it definitely gives you strength and really strong belief that you can do it.” This was the first meeting between Sabalenka and Townsend, who gave her opponent fits in the first set but struggled to find her own rhythm. “This was the most comfortable and confident I’ve ever been playing against a No. 1 player in the world,” Townsend said. “From the beginning, I felt like I belonged. From the beginning, I felt like I was right where I needed to be. I still feel that way.” Next up for Sabalenka is Wimbledon winner Linda Noskova, who needed six match points to get past Marta Kostyuk 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.

Associated Press

BERLIN — Jackie Young scored 10 points and the U.S. survived its toughest test in the women’s basketball World Cup in two decades with a 55-52 victory over Italy on Sunday. The U.S. has won 32 straight World Cup games dating back to a loss to Russia in the 2006 semifinals. Only one team had come within single digits of the Americans during this run, when Australia lost by eight points in 2010. The Americans (2-0) had to work hard for the victory, putting up the lowest point total in a preliminaryround game since 1971, when they had 51 against France. The U.S. trailed 50-48 with 4:29 left before going on a 7-0 run. Breanna Stewart, who missed her first eight shots, scored her first basket of the game to put the Americans up 51-50. Young then hit a layup after the U.S. got an offensive foul against Italy on its next possession. The Americans got another defensive stop and Chelsea Gray hit a jumper to make it a five-point game. Matilde Villa scored to get Italy back within three with less than a minute to go. The U.S. had a couple of chances to make it a two-possession lead but couldn’t convert. Italy (1-1) had one last chance to tie it, but Cecilia Zandalasini’s 3-pointer was off at the buzzer. Italy’s 2-3 zone defense cause the U.S. fits on offense. The Americans couldn’t get into any rhythm and shot 29% from the field, including going 1 for 12 from 3-point range. The Americans, who led 30-24 at halftime, saw Italy go on a 11-2

Former LSU beach volleyball All-Americans Kristen Nuss Cruz and Taryn Kloth Brasher are on top again, winning the AVP League Championships on Sunday in Chicago. Competing as the Austin Aces team, the 2024 U.S. Olympians were seeded second and won their semiﬁnal on Sunday over the thirdseeded Miami Mayhem (Kelly Cheng and Megan Kraft) 15-8, 15-9. In the championship match, they defeated the top-seeded Palm Beach Passion (Melissa HumanaParedes and Brandie Wilkerson), 15-10, 15-12. Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson were the 2024 Olympic silver medalists in Paris. The win for Cruz and Brasher comes after their third straight victory this past month in the prestigious Manhattan Beach Open. They are ranked No. 2 in the world beach volleyball standings.

Giants sign QB Winston, LG Runyan to extensions

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By yUKI IWAMURA

Aryna Sabalenka returns the ball to Taylor Townsend during the fourth round of the U.S. Open on Sunday in New york. “I played a couple of matches against her in the past, which also wasn’t the easiest matches,” Sabalenka said of Noskova. “Really aggressive style of the game. Serving really well, playing super fast. You’ve got to stay really low to be able to handle that power and energy.”

Alcaraz cruises Playing his first tournament following a four-month absence because of a right wrist injury, Alcaraz said last week he would not be coming back if he could not play like his usual self. The 23-year-old Spaniard has made good on that so far, dropping just one set through four rounds. Alcaraz dictated play on the way to extending his Grand Slam winning streak to 18. When Paul was making things interesting in the

third set, Alcaraz set up match point by hitting a shot so perfectly in bounds that it left actor Matthew McConaughey in disbelief, along with many others in the crowd. Asked if he thinks he is back to form, Alcaraz responded, “I think so.” The U.S. Open is bringing that out in him. “I’m just trying to enjoy my time on the court,” Alcaraz said. “It doesn’t matter that I was out four months and a half. Every time that I come here, I play my best.”

Americans make statement Townsend and Paul were among the 10 Americans to reach the men’s and women’s round of 16. That is the most in the fourth round at any Grand Slam in nearly a quarter-century, dating to the

2002 U.S. Open, when there were 11. The ﬁve U.S. men — Paul, Ben Shelton, Learner Tien, Frances Tiafoe and Alex Michelsen — are the most at a major since eight in 1995 at Flushing Meadows. “American tennis has been on the up and up for many years now,” Townsend said. “There have been a really consistent chunk of players — Jess, Coco — (who) have been at the top and inside the top ﬁve for the last, I don’t know how many years. Ben, Frances, Tommy, Taylor: It’s just such a great group of men, as well.” At 20, Tien is the youngest American man in the U.S. Open fourth round since Andy Roddick in 2002. No U.S. men’s player has won a Grand Slam since Roddick in New York in ’03.

Young leads gritty U.S. escape over Italy BY DOUG FEINBERG

LSU beach volleyball alums nab another big win

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL WORLD CUP CHINA 74, CZECH REPUBLIC 70, OT: China needed overtime to beat the Czech Republic. Han Xu scored 22 points and drew China level at 53-53 in the final quarter after her team had trailed for most of the game. Eliška Joklová put the Czechs 64-59 up with 27 seconds left only for Luo Xinyu to respond with a 3-pointer and Yang Shuyu to level at 64-64 with 3 seconds to go – after Joklová missed two free throws. There was still time for Joklová to miss another chance to clinch the win. Yang also completed the scoring in overtime for China, which failed to get the most from 7-foot3 Zhang Ziyu. The 19-year-old sensation could only score three points in her second game after 13 on her World Cup debut against the United States on Friday. BELGIUM 76, PUERTO RICE 64: Emma Meesseman completed the scoring as European champion Belgium booked its place in the final phase with a comfortable win over Puerto Rico, its second victory in Group C. Imani McGee-Stafford finished with 25 points for Puerto Rico, which lost against Belgium for the third time at a World Cup. AUSTRALIA 87, TURKEY 71: Ezi Magbegor scored 21 points as AustraASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By EBRAHIM NOROOZI lia reached the final phase with a Sara Madera of Italy shoots over Napheesa Collier of the United States physical win over Turkey. during a Women’s World Cup match on Sunday in Berlin. Turkey, led by Sevgi Uzun with 24 points, was down 8-0 at the start run to start the third quarter and was up 50-48 in the fourth quarter but fought back after a timeout to trailed 35-32 before finishing the before the Americans’ final push. lead 15-14. That was brief, howevperiod up 42-39. Zandalasini scored 14 points er, as the Opals rallied to end the Italy, which lost to the Ameri- to lead Italy, which is making its first quarter 21-15 up and did not cans by 34 in a tournament qualifi- first World Cup appearance since relinquish the lead for the rest of the game. er in March, wouldn’t go away and 1994.

NEW YORK — The New York Giants took care of some contract business on Labor Day weekend ahead of the start of the season, signing backup quarterback Jameis Winston and starting left guard Jon Runyan to two-year extensions. Winston is receiving $13 million and Runyan $22 million, according to a person with knowledge of the moves. The extensions provide salary cap ﬂexibility and save space this season while keeping a pair of respected veterans under contract through 2028. Winston, 32, was going into the second of a two-year, $8 million deal. Runyan, 29, has spent the past two seasons starting for New York after playing his ﬁrst four as a pro with Green Bay.

NFL, Goodell agree on 4-year contract extension

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has agreed on a fouryear contract extension that runs through the 2030 league season, ending on March 31, 2031. The NFL’s Compensation Committee notiﬁed the full ownership of the agreement on Sunday. In a memo sent to owners that was obtained by The Associated Press, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said: “We believe we are very fortunate to have Roger at the helm for the next four years.” Kraft is the chairman of the league’s compensation committee. Financial terms of Goodell’s new contract weren’t immediately known. He reportedly earned $63.9 million for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons.

GB&I pulls off rally to win back Walker Cup from U.S.

COUNTY CLARE, Ireland — Connor Graham and Josh Hill each won the 18th hole in the final two matches Sunday at Lahinch as Great Britain & Ireland capped off a stunning comeback against the Americans to win the Walker Cup for the first time since 2015. Graham birdied the last two holes to earn a precious halve against 17-year-old Miles Russell. It came down to Hill, all square in his match with 18-year-old Tyler Watts, his Tennessee teammate. Hill hit a long bunker shot to 3 feet and holed the birdie putt for a 131/2121/2 victory. The Americans were loaded with seven of the top 10 players in the world amateur ranking. They still lead the overall series 40-10-1. Next up for GB&I is to try to win the Walker Cup away from home for the first time since 2001.

Antonelli wins Italian GP in an epic comeback

MONZA, Italy — Kimi Antonelli took a big step to becoming the youngest champion in Formula 1 history with a fightback for the ages at his home grand prix on Sunday. Antonelli stormed to victory at the Italian Grand Prix, despite starting 19th on the grid. It took the Mercedes driver fewer than 17 laps to fight his way to the front. The rest of the race was spent tussling with teammate and title rival George Russell for the lead. Antonelli passed him for the final time with three laps remaining, going on to become the first Italian to win at Monza in 60 years. “Oh my God ... It feels like a dream,” Antonelli said on team radio after crossing the line.

The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● 3C

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SCOREBOARD Odds Sports Betting Line NFL Wednesday

FAVORITE OPEN at SEATTLE 4½

Thursday

TODAY O/U UNDERDOG 3½ (44½) New Eng

FAVORITE OPEN at LA RAMS 3½

TODAY O/U UNDERDOG 3½ (48½) San Fran

FAVORITE OPEN at TENN 2½ at DETROIT 7 at JAX 7½ Chicago 2½ at CIN 3½ at PITT 3 Buffalo 1½ Baltimore 3½ at MINNESOTA 1½ at PHILA 4½ at LAS VEGAS 3½ at CHARGERS 10½ Dallas 2½

TODAY O/U UNDERDOG 1½ (39½) NY Jets 7 (49½) New Orlea 7½ (40½) Cleveland 2½ (47½) at CAR 3½ (50½) Tampa Bay 3½ (41½) Atlanta 1½ (44½) at HOU 3½ (47½) at IND 1½ (46½) Green Bay 4½ (44½)Washington 3½ (40½) Miami 10½ (46½) Arizona 2½ (48½) at GIANTS

Sunday

Monday

FAVORITE OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG at KANSAS CITY2½ 2½ (43½) Denver

College Football Monday

FAVORITE SMU

MLB

OPEN 2½

TODAY O/U UNDERDOG 3 (53½) at FSU

Monday

American League FAVORITE LINE UNDERDOG at BOSTON OFF LA Angels at BALTIMORE OFF Cleveland at DETROIT OFF Minnesota at ATHLETICS OFF Toronto National League FAVORITE LINE UNDERDOG at PHILA OFF Atlanta at MIAMI OFF N.Y Mets at MILWAUKEE OFF Chicago Cubs at SAN DIEGO OFF Washington at SAN FRAN OFF St. Louis at LA DODGERS OFF Cincinnati Interleague FAVORITE LINE UNDERDOG at KANSAS CITY OFF Arizona

LINE OFF OFF OFF OFF LINE OFF OFF OFF OFF OFF OFF LINE OFF

Pro basketball WNBA Glance EASTERN CONFERENCE x-Atlanta x-Indiana x-New York x-Washington Chicago Toronto Connecticut

W 26 26 24 24 15 11 10

L 14 14 16 16 25 29 30

Pct .650 .650 .600 .600 .375 .275 .250

GB — — 2 2 11 15 16

x-Minnesota x-Golden State x-Las Vegas x-Dallas Portland Los Angeles Phoenix Seattle

W 31 29 27 24 16 15 14 8

L 9 11 13 16 24 25 26 32

Pct .775 .725 .675 .600 .400 .375 .350 .200

GB — 2 4 7 15 16 17 23

WESTERN CONFERENCE

x-clinched playoff spot Saturday’s Games No games scheduled.

Sunday’s Games

No games scheduled.

Monday’s Games

No games scheduled.

Pro football NFL Glance Wednesday’s Games

New England at Seattle, 7:20 p.m.

Thursday’s Games

San Francisco vs L.A. Rams at Melbourne, VIC, 7:35 p.m.

Sunday’s Games

Atlanta at Pittsburgh, noon Baltimore at Indianapolis, noon Buffalo at Houston, noon Chicago at Carolina, noon Cleveland at Jacksonville, noon

N.Y. Jets at Tennessee, noon New Orleans at Detroit, noon Tampa Bay at Cincinnati, noon Arizona at L.A. Chargers, 3:25 p.m. Green Bay at Minnesota, 3:25 p.m. Miami at Las Vegas, 3:25 p.m. Washington at Philadelphia, 3:25 p.m. Dallas at N.Y. Giants, 7:20 p.m.

Monday’s Games

Denver at Kansas City, 7:15 p.m.

College Football Major Scores Saturday’s games EAST

Army 59, Bryant 3 Colgate 35, Holy Cross 10 Lehigh 45, Georgetown 14 Maryland 62, Hampton 0 Monmouth (NJ) 31, Sacred Heart 24 Navy 42, Towson 15 Penn St. 45, Marshall 0 Pittsburgh 59, Miami (Ohio) 14 Richmond 28, Howard 21 Robert Morris 29, W. Virginia St. 9 Stonehill 21, New Haven 3 Syracuse 66, New Hampshire 3 Temple 38, Rhode Island 14 Uconn 56, Lafayette 7 Villanova 17, Bucknell 16 Wagner 31, S. Connecticut 7 West Virginia 31, Coastal Carolina 24

SOUTH

Alabama 48, East Carolina 10 Alabama A&M 38, Miles 23 Alabama St. 34, Lane 0 Appalachian St. 55, Maine 3 Auburn 17, Baylor 16 Duke 17, Tulane 3 ETSU 48, Tusculum 14 Elon 38, Davidson 0 Florida 66, FAU 21 Georgia 63, Tennessee St. 3 Georgia Southern 31, Charleston Southern 0 Grambling St. 48, Central St. (Ohio) 26 Jackson St. 66, Edward Waters 14 Jacksonville St. 49, E. Kentucky 7 James Madison 20, Liberty 13 Kentucky 45, Youngstown St. 13 LSU 51, Clemson 10 Louisiana Tech 80, Northwestern St. 6 Louisiana-Lafayette 38, Lamar 7 McNeese St. 52, Texas Wesleyan Rams 0 Memphis 42, Arkansas St. 24 Mercer 62, Presbyterian 3 Middle Tennessee 38, Murray St. 14 Mississippi St. 62, Louisiana-Monroe 13 NC Central 27, Elizabeth City St. 6 Old Dominion 31, Norfolk St. 10 South Alabama 39, SE Louisiana 14 South Carolina 57, Kent St. 0 South Florida 19, FIU 9 Southern Miss. 49, Alcorn St. 3 Southern U. 34, Kentucky St. 15 Stetson 45, Webber International Warriors 10 Tennessee 56, Furman 9 Tennessee Tech 24, Chattanooga 9 The Citadel 43, Charlotte 41, 3OT Troy 24, Sam Houston St. 21 UT Martin 42, Chicago State Cougars 7 Vanderbilt 28, Austin Peay 9 Virginia Tech 73, VMI 3 William & Mary 22, Delaware St. 15 Wofford 17, Gardner-Webb 13

MIDWEST

Cincinnati 34, Boston College 15 Illinois St. 41, W. Illinois 10 Indiana 52, North Texas 16 Iowa 40, N. Illinois 0 Iowa St. 38, SE Missouri 10 Kansas St. 71, Nicholls 3 Michigan 13, W. Michigan 12 N. Dakota St. 38, Fordham 0 Nebraska 49, Ohio 21 North Dakota 62, St. Thomas (Minn.) 26 Northwestern 34, S. Dakota St. 18 Ohio St. 56, Ball St. 3 Tarleton St. 20, Bowling Green 13

SOUTHWEST

Arkansas 31, North Alabama 14 Houston 33, Oregon St. 20 Rice 31, Houston Christian 3 Stephen F. Austin 44, East Texas A&M 7 Texas 59, Texas State 7 Texas A&M 50, Missouri St. 0 Texas Tech 33, Abilene Christian 10 Tulsa 24, Oklahoma St. 10 UTSA 45, UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros 16 West Florida 42, Cent. Arkansas 14

FAR WEST

Air Force 34, Duquesne 0

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C Saints’ depth at corner. Martin Emerson could end up being a nice under-the-radar find from free agency, but I can’t shake the way the Los Angeles Rams went after him in the preseason. The Saints need KoolAid McKinstry and Quincy Riley to stay healthy. It could get dicey quick without them. RW: I’m not sure if disappointment is the right word, but the slew of injuries is a bit concerning. It started with Bryan Bresee tearing his ACL the first day of camp, and the injury bug just never let up. Even the always reliable Cam Jordan is missing time with a hamstring injury. The running back room was decimated by injuries. Most of the Saints draft class has missed time at some point. Injuries are a part of the game, but there seemed to be more than normal this year. Moore should be hoping that the Saints got theirs out the way early. JD: The pass protection from the offensive line was glaringly shaky at times during joint practices. I expected more from this unit, especially with the addition of Edwards and the return of Erik McCoy. Q: WHAT PLAYER WHO WASN’T ON THE ROSTER LAST SEASON WILL HAVE THE BIGGEST IMPACT THIS SEASON? LJ: I love what I’ve seen out of Etienne, and I think the Saints are going to feed him the ball, so statistically he’s the answer. But the Elliss signing has a chance to be really fun on the defensive side of the ball. It’s not a one-for-one replacement of Davis — Elliss brings a truly unique skill set that Staley is going to find a way to maximize, especially when it comes to adding some juice to their pass rush. Davis was still a very good player for the Saints at 36 years old last season, but Elliss will give them a new dimension. MP: If he only misses four games, Tyson would be my pick. He’s not only the perfect complement for Chris Olave, but their overlap in terms of skill sets will put defenses on their toes. Now, can he still make an impact if his absence is seven games instead of four? I’m willing to take that risk. And so were the Saints. RW: Etienne is the obvious answer. But I’m going with the rookie Brown here. He was drafted mostly for what he can do on special teams. He’ll have a big impact there. But he showed time and time again

Arizona 35, N. Arizona 7 Arizona St. 70, Morgan St. 7 BYU 63, Utah Tech 7 Cal Poly 24, Cent. Washington 17 Colorado St. 35, Wyoming 13 E. Washington 34, N. Iowa 24 Idaho St. 29, Utah St. 17 Montana 45, Drake 10 Montana St. 51, Butler 24 Nevada 49, W. Kentucky 14 New Mexico 38, Cent. Michigan 7 New Mexico St. 51, Mercyhurst 14 Oregon 34, Boise St. 27 S. Utah 47, Weber St. 42 Sacramento St. 52, MVSU 0 San Diego St. 53, Portland St. 20 South Dakota 38, N. Colorado 23 UC Davis 49, San Diego 17 UCLA 45, California 24 UNLV 21, Hawaii 6

Monday’s Games

A—102,321.

CLEM LSU First downs 8 38 Total Net Yards 145 644 Rushes-yards 26-40 58-309 Passing 105 335 Punt Returns 0-0 0-0 Kickoff Returns 3-65 1-18 Interceptions Ret. 1-1 1-30 Comp-Att-Int 14-22-1 22-36-1 Sacked-Yards Lost 4-19 0-0 Punts 10-40.4 2-28.5 Fumbles-Lost 0-0 0-0 Penalties-Yards 5-41 6-75 Time of Possession 23:51 36:09 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING—Clemson, Green 4-21, Davidson 7-20, Eziomume 1-11, Vizzina 5-4, Chr.Johnson 3-0, Wesco 1-(minus 7), Reynolds 5-(minus 9). LSU, Leavitt 12-113, D.Jones 23-113, Gage 8-33, Clark 4-23, Watkins 1-14, Wilson 1-9, Berry 4-9, Longstreet 1-3, Durham 3-3, (Team) 1-(minus 11). PASSING—Clemson, Vizzina 10-16-1-83, Reynolds 4-6-0-22. LSU, Leavitt 16-28-1-230, Clark 5-7-0-72, Longstreet 1-1-0-33. RECEIVING—Clemson, Moore 4-31, Wesco 2-29, T.Brown 2-11, Preston 1-25, T.Smith 1-6, Sellars 1-4, Burroughs 1-1, Patt-Henry 1-1, Bentancur 1-(minus 3). LSU, Watkins 7-110, T.Green 4-58, Wilson 4-35, Wright 3-70, J.Harris 1-32, Barber 1-15, Jayc.Brown 1-14, D.Jones 1-1. MISSED FIELD GOALS—LSU, Starzyk 48.

Major League Baseball American League Tampa Bay New York Boston Toronto Baltimore

W 85 81 79 72 69

L 57 61 65 72 75

Pct .599 .570 .549 .500 .479

GB — 4 7 14 17

Chicago Cleveland Minnesota Detroit Kansas City

W 74 73 68 65 64

L 68 71 74 78 80

Pct .521 .507 .479 .455 .444

GB — 2 6 9½ 11

Houston Texas Seattle Athletics Los Angeles

W 73 70 66 57 54

L 71 73 77 86 89

Pct .507 .490 .462 .399 .378

GB — 2½ 6½ 15½ 18½

West Division

Saturday’s Games

Q: IT ALL STARTS AND ENDS WITH TYLER SHOUGH. WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR HIM IN YEAR 2? LJ: I expect him to force people to pay attention to him. It has been odd to hear or read some of the commentary from outside New Orleans about Shough’s rookie season. Despite the team’s successes down the stretch, the Saints were largely irrelevant on the national stage, and I think that caused some to underestimate Shough’s hand in pulling the team out of its spiral. This should be the season the rest of the football-watching public gets to really know Shough. MP: Luke is on it. From a national perspective, Shough has the chance to make the Saints relevant in a way that they haven’t been since Drew Brees retired. I think there will still be some inconsistencies — can he cut down on the high number of sacks he took as a rookie? — but his highs will put people on notice. And if he does that, the Saints have a real shot at winning the division. RW: A second-year quarterback with just nine starts under his belt is going to have some rough moments along the way. But the good will outweigh the bad, especially if the revamped offensive line can give him the time he needs to operate. There are still national media members who mispronounce Shough’s last name. Expect that to change this season as Shough makes a giant Year 2 leap. JD: Shough is poised for a breakout year if he can stay healthy. He looks more conﬁdent in his second season and has taken command of the team and locker room. He needs to take the next step and show he can lead the team against quality competition. If he does, the Saints should challenge for the NFC South title and playoff berth. We’ll know a lot more about Shough after the ﬁrst two games of this season.

Cleveland (Cantillo 9-8) at Baltimore (Rogers 9-9), 12:35 p.m. L.A. Angels (Rodriguez 4-6) at Boston (Sandoval 1-4), 12:35 p.m. Arizona (TBD) at Kansas City (Cameron 9-8), 1:10 p.m. Minnesota (TBD) at Detroit (Melton 7-4), 2:10 p.m. Toronto (Cease 10-5) at Athletics (Lopez 6-4), 9:05 p.m.

National League

East Division Atlanta Philadelphia Miami Washington New York

W 85 80 72 67 65

L 58 63 72 77 78

Pct .594 .559 .500 .465 .455

GB — 5 13½ 18½ 20

Milwaukee Chicago St. Louis Pittsburgh Cincinnati

W 88 81 71 71 69

L 56 63 72 73 74

Pct .611 .563 .497 .493 .483

GB — 7 16½ 17 18½

Central Division

West Division Los Angeles Arizona San Diego San Francisco Colorado

W 85 76 74 59 55

Saturday’s Games

L 57 68 68 85 87

Pct .599 .528 .521 .410 .387

GB — 10 11 27 30

San Francisco 9, N.Y. Mets 5 Chicago Cubs 6, Miami 5 Philadelphia 4, Atlanta 2 L.A. Angels 6, Pittsburgh 1 Cincinnati 5, Milwaukee 3 N.Y. Yankees 5, San Diego 1 Arizona 4, Houston 3, 10 innings Colorado 10, St. Louis 7 L.A. Dodgers 6, Washington 5

Sunday’s Games

Cincinnati 12, Milwaukee 8 Atlanta 5, Philadelphia 4 Pittsburgh 1, L.A. Angels 0 N.Y. Mets 4, San Francisco 2 Miami 10, Chicago Cubs 3 Arizona 3, Houston 2 St. Louis 10, Colorado 8 San Diego 4, N.Y. Yankees 3 Washington at L.A. Dodgers, n

Monday’s Games

Atlanta (Elder 8-8) at Philadelphia (Luzardo 13-5), 12:05 p.m. N.Y. Mets (Tong 1-1) at Miami (Pérez 7-10), 12:10 p.m. Arizona (TBD) at Kansas City (Cameron 9-8), 1:10 p.m. Chicago Cubs (Boyd 8-3) at Milwaukee (Gasser 4-5), 1:10 p.m. Washington (Dion 1-1) at San Diego (Vásquez 10-6), 4:10 p.m. St. Louis (TBD) at San Francisco (Webb 8-8), 7:10 p.m. Cincinnati (Burns 15-3) at L.A. Dodgers (TBD), 8:10 p.m.

Tennis US Open Results Sunday

At The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center New York Purse: $5,438,400 Surface: Hardcourt outdoor Results Sunday from US Open at The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (seedings in parentheses):

Men’s Singles

Fourth Round Carlos Alcaraz (2), Spain, def. Tommy Paul (20), United States, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

Detroit 6, Cleveland 0 L.A. Angels 6, Pittsburgh 1 Toronto 4, Kansas City 3

throughout camp that he can make some splash plays hauling in passes. He played under the bright SEC lights at Kentucky and LSU, so the moments won’t be too big for him. Getting a guy in the sixth round who can help on both special teams and as a receiver could make Brown one of the steals of the draft. JD: Elliss has replaced Davis in the middle of the Saints defense, and the unit hasn’t missed a beat. In fact, he’s a better pass rusher than Davis at this stage of his career and has helped to ﬁll the leadership void created by Davis’ departure. I will not be surprised if Elliss ﬁnishes second on the team in sacks behind Young.

Men’s Doubles

Pittsburgh 1, L.A. Angels 0 Boston 3, Baltimore 1 Cleveland 3, Detroit 2, 10 innings Kansas City 6, Toronto 1 Arizona 3, Houston 2 Texas 8, Tampa Bay 6 San Diego 4, N.Y. Yankees 3 Seattle 2, Athletics 0. Minnesota at Chicago White Sox, n

Clemson 3 0 0 7 — 10 LSU 17 14 13 7 — 51 First Quarter CLEM—FG Hauser 49, 13:28. LSU—FG Starzyk 49, 10:16. LSU—D.Jones 1 run (Starzyk kick), 3:36. LSU—J.Ross 30 interception return (Starzyk kick), 2:07. Second Quarter LSU—Leavitt 8 run (Starzyk kick), 7:54. LSU—Leavitt 13 run (Starzyk kick), 1:10. Third Quarter LSU—Watkins 32 pass from Leavitt (Starzyk kick), 8:21. LSU—D.Jones 12 run (pass failed), 3:24. Fourth Quarter LSU—Wright 30 pass from Clark (Starzyk kick), 6:43. CLEM—Eziomume 11 run (Hauser kick), 3:13.

Central Division

Fourth Round Aryna Sabalenka (1), Belarus, def. Taylor Townsend, United States, 6-4, 6-3. Linda Noskova (6), Czechia, def. Marta Kostyuk (11), Ukraine, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.

Sunday’s Games

No. 11 LSU 51, Clemson 10

East Division

Women’s Singles

Tampa Bay 6, Texas 3, 10 innings Minnesota 6, Chicago White Sox 4 Boston 5, Baltimore 0 N.Y. Yankees 5, San Diego 1 Arizona 4, Houston 3, 10 innings Athletics 6, Seattle 2

LSU

Continued from page 1C who then went 30 yards to the house to make it 17-3. There were multiple other instances Saturday in which Umanmielen and Ross dropped into coverage and looked comfortable doing it. But there were also times Ross, who stands 6-foot-5, 254 pounds, lined up at defensive tackle on the same side as Umanmielen, presenting a unique threat with their combined quickness off the snap. Ross, who had ﬁve tackles for loss in two seasons at Tennessee, had a pair in his LSU debut. Baker is off to a good start with the former ﬁve-star prospect.

Creative blitz designs As mentioned above, Dottery and Weeks blitzed on Ross’s pick-6, which attacked an obvious weak point in Clemson’s line.

Second Round Harri Heliovaara, Finland, and Henry Patten (1), Britain, def. Jan-Lennard Struff, Germany, and Matteo Arnaldi, Italy, 7-5, 6-2. Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni, Argentina, def. Petr Nouza, Czechia, and Neil Oberleitner, Austria, 7-6 (7), 6-3. Brandon Carpico and Nikita Samuel Filin, United States, def. Marcelo Melo, Brazil, and John Peers, Australia, 3-6, 7-6 (0), 6-4. Edouard Roger-Vasselin, France, and Hugo Nys (12), Monaco, def. Evan King, United States, and N. Sriram Balaji, India, 6-4, 7-5. Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash (9), Britain, def. Adam Pavlasek and Patrik Rikl, Czechia, 7-6 (2), 6-4. Lucas Miedler, Austria, and Marc Polmans (13), Australia, def. Alexander Erler, Austria, and Robert Cash, United States, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Women’s Doubles

Second Round Tatjana Maria, Germany, and Zeynep Sonmez, Turkiye, def. Aleksandra Krunic, Serbia, and Anna Danilina (3), Kazakhstan, 1-6, 6-5, ret. Andreja Klepac, Slovenia, and Eri Hozumi, Japan, def. Asia Muhammad, United States, and Fanny Stollar (16), Hungary, 6-4, 6-4. Nicole Melichar-Martinez, United States, and Cristina Bucsa (6), Spain, def. Harriet Dart and Maia Lumsden, Britain, 6-2, 6-2. Hsieh Su-wei, Taiwan, and Jelena Ostapenko (4), Latvia, def. Sara Sorribes Tormo, Spain, and Marie Bouzkova, Czechia, 6-1, 7-6 (4). Zhang Shuai and Xinyu Jiang (7), China, def. Zhaoxuan Yang, China, and Eudice Chong, Hong Kong, China, 7-6 (6), 6-1.

Transactions Major League Baseball

American League BALTIMORE ORIOLES — Recalled RHP Anthony Nunez and RF Rece Hinds from Norfolk (IL). Placed CF Luis Robert Jr. on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Sept. 5. Designated RHP Albert Suárez for assignment. BOSTON RED SOX — Recalled OF Nate Eaton from Worcester (IL). Placed CF Ceddanne Rafaela on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Sept. 3. CHICAGO WHITE SOX — Recalled C Edgar Quero from Charlotte (IL). Placed LF Tommy Pham on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Sept. 3. CLEVELAND GUARDIANS — Recalled RHP Franco Aleman from Columbus (IL). Optioned RHP Austin Peterson to Columbus. DETROIT TIGERS — Reinstated LHP Brant Hurter from the 60-day IL. Optioned LHP Andrew Sears to Toledo (IL). Transferred CF Matt Vierling from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL. HOUSTON ASTROS — Recalled RHP Miguel Ullola from Sugar Land (PCL). Optioned RHP Kai-Wei Teng to Sugar Land. SEATTLE MARINERS — Selected the contract of SS Michael Arroyo from Tacoma (PCL). Optioned 3B Patrick Wisdom to Tacoma. Transferred RHP Nick Davila from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL. National League ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS — Recalled DH Adrian Del Castillo from Reno (PCL). Designated LF Max Kepler for assignment. CINCINNATI REDS — Reinstated RHP Graham Ashcraft from the 60-day IL. Designated LHP Sam Moll for assignment. LOS ANGELES DODGERS — Sent RHP Edwin Díaz on a rehab assignment to Oklahoma City (PCL). NEW YORK METS — Recalled RHP Tobias Myers from Syracuse (IL). Optioned LHP Jefry Yan to Syracuse. PITTSBURGH PIRATES — Recalled 2B Ronny Simon from Indianapolis (IL). Optioned 3B Nick Yorke to Indianapolis. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS — Recalled LHP Cooper Hjerpe from Memphis (IL). Optioned RHP Hancel Rincon to Memphis.

FOOTBALL

National Football League NFL — Agreed to terms with Commissioner Roger Goodell on a four-year contract extension through the 2030 season. SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS — Waived TE Brayden Willis. Signed LS Jon Weeks from the practice squad to the active roster.

The visitors were not only down right tackle Collin Sadler, but Clemson also started a redshirt sophomore with 130 career snaps, Ronan O’Connell, at right guard. Harris Sewell just switched to center. Elyjah Thurmon, injured two years running, was to Sewell’s left. On the Ross touchdown, Dottery led the way, occupying O’Connell while defensive tackle Deuce Gerald widened his rush to engage Clemson right tackle Easton Ware. Weeks slithered through the gap they opened. Baker threw this double linebacker blitz at Clemson a handful of times. Whether it was Dottery or Weeks leading the way, one always seemed to ﬁnd the quarterback. Adding to the unpredictability were occasions when Baker put seven men at the line of scrimmage, including safeties Beneﬁeld and Spears alongside each other. Baker was unafraid to bring them, or just drop both to cut off a hasty hot read. Vizzina and his freshman backup, Tait Reynolds, were indecisive all night.

YEARS

11 teams. 6 conferences. 1 state.

SPECIAL DATE & TIME

TUESDAY•5PM

and also streaming at www.lpb.org/gamenotes

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4C ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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CAJUNS 38, CARDINALS 7 THREE AND OUT: KEVIN FOOTE’S TOP TAKEAWAyS

GREAT START Sometimes, the level of competition isn’t even the point.A team is either ready to play or not, and despite the threat of lightning delays, the Cajuns were very sharp in the first half of Saturday’s blowout win.They ran the ball very well, hit passes when needed without their top two targets available and the defense made big plays whenever it was time to halt Lamar’s drives.They did not allow the Cardinals to believe an upset was possible.There was no playing with their food.The Cajuns’ offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage and it worked as it should.

DARRELL SMITH The coaching staff has been raving about redshirt freshman running back darrell Smith since signing day. It had not really been shown to the fans in very limited time on the field. In the first half Saturday, Smith clearly showed what all the fuss was about. His quickness was impressive and he powered through tackles as well. Smith finished with 84 yards and a score on 10 carries. Unfortunately, he left the game in the third quarter with an apparent leg injury and didn’t return.Anthony Reagan’s impressive camp carried over to the field with 37 yards and a touchdown on eight carries.

BIG-PLAY DEFENSE despite not allowing Lamar’s offense to score any points, the Cardinals’ offense wasn’t inept. It posted 11 first downs in the first half and moved the ball into the red zone twice. But each time Lamar threatened, UL’s defense came up with big plays. Brent Gordon, Jake St.Andre and Kody Jackson all delivered interceptions. On a fourth-down stop, outside linebacker Ashley Williams came up with a big stop. UL also got sacks from cornerback Avery demery and Tito Chikere, as well as a half sack each for defensive end Priest Ashe and safety Lake Bates.

STAFF PHOTOS By BRAd KEMP

UL running back Anthony Reagan breaks through the Lamar defense for a gain during their season opener on Saturday at Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium. UL won 38-7.

FOOTE

Continued from page 1C Desormeaux didn’t offer any specifics on Jensen’s injury. Also remember, Desormeaux is the offensive play caller as well as the head coach. He took Daniel Beale’s pick-six in the fourth quarter “1,000%” on himself. The offense also squandered a few other scoring opportunities. Quarterback Lunch Winfield just smiled and is ready to move on when asked about those failed chances. As a coach should, Desormeaux wasn’t quite over it. “I think that’s probably where I was probably the most disappointed,” Desormeaux said. “We had some opportunities to put another score on the board, build that momentum after halftime ... we got behind the sticks and shot ourselves in the foot a little bit.” All true, but there was plenty of positive to build on ... assuming the injury report doesn’t wipe much of it out, of course. Smith had played before, but the Picayune, Mississippi, native had put that first half on film until Saturday. “His patience is really good, and the burst is elite,” Desormeaux said of Smith. “He’s not the home run hitter. He’s not, but he gets from 0 to 60 faster than anybody else we’ve got. That turns the 4-yard gain into 15, 20, 25. That’s something we’ve been talking about a little bit. We see it every day.” For Smith, it was the first time he’s felt like that since his state title days in high school. “I had a lot of emotion,” Smith said. “I didn’t get this feeling since like high school. That’s what it felt like. Then my confidence just overwhelmed me.” The backfield also produced 37 yards from Anthony Reagan; JJ Garner had 21 yards on four tries and Steven Blanco added 17 yards, a score and a highlightfilm run to the 1. “We’re a four-headed monster,” Smith said. “One of us comes down, the next person steps up. That’s how it goes.” Next on the list for the offense were the complementary targets who kept the passing game much more viable than last year’s opener. Shelton Sampson tried to play, but couldn’t return after his first drive. That too had to be a bit frustrating. But Trenton Chaney had three catches for 34 yards and KeDarius Wade added three receptions for 64 yards, and reserve tight end Teddy Gawlik had three for 22. “I’m incredibly proud of the pass

UL quarterback Lunch Winfield is tackled by Lamar defensive back Bryce Mcdonald during their game on Saturday. UL 38, Lamar 7 UL 7 21 7 3 — 38 Lamar 0 0 0 7 — 7 First Quarter ULL—D.Smith 2 run (Sterner kick), 7:15. Second Quarter ULL—D.Smith 25 run (Sterner kick), 13:23. ULL—Reagan 11 run (Sterner kick), 9:09. ULL—Winﬁeld 22 run (Sterner kick), :31. Third Quarter ULL—Blanco 1 run (Sterner kick), :00. Fourth Quarter LAM—Kelley 40 interception return (Sandoval kick), 11:48. ULL—FG Sterner 31, 2:58.

A—20,851.

First downs Total Net Yards Rushes-yards Passing 149 Punt Returns Kickoff Returns Interceptions Ret. Comp-Att-Int Sacked-Yards Lost Punts Fumbles-Lost Penalties-Yards Time of Possession

LAM 16 205 29-56 231 1-1 5-100 3-40 18-31-3 3-24 3-41.667 1-0 5-30 26:22

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

UL 25 474 41-243 2-26 1-0 3-0 19-27-3 1-7 2-43.0 0-0 6-48 33:38

RUSHING — Lamar, Uga 8-24, Jenkins 10-23, McCown 4-11, B.Thomas 1-7, McDowell 1-2, Muhammad 1-1, Salazar 4-(minus 12). UL, Winﬁeld 8-84, D.Smith 10-84, Reagan 8-37, Garner 4-21, Blanco 5-17, Babineaux 1-5, Chaney 1-1, (Team) 1-0, Beale 3-(minus 6). PASSING — Lamar, McCown 15-26-3-126, Salazar 3-50-23. UL, Winﬁeld 15-21-2-189, Beale 4-6-1-42. RECEIVING — Lamar, B.Thomas 4-19, Fuselier 3-35, Casey 3-26, Jenkins 2-30, Driskell 2-10, Vickerson 2-10, Bonkowski 1-13, Thompson 1-6. UL, Jensen 5-77, Wade 3-64, Chaney 3-34, Gawlik 3-22, Garner 2-6, Norris 1-14, Brooks 1-10, Babineaux 1-4. MISSED FIELD GOALS — Lamar, Sandoval 36.

catchers who stepped up,” Desormeaux said. Winfield was especially fired up about Wade’s progress. “Since the spring, this guy been this changed man for sure,” Winfield said. “Everything he does is on a whole another level. Now he’s playing at

elite level. I wish I could have got him more balls. He probably would have had 100 receiving yards tonight and more people would have started paying attention to it. But he’s definitely a changed man.” Then there was the offensive line. One of the prevailing preseason thoughts is the line would have to carry a big load early on and it looked up to the task. “We did some complicated things and Lamar was doing some good things on defense to try to penetrate what we were doing and things like that,” Winfield said. But those guys definitely held up. I felt comfortable in the pocket.” On defense, sophomore cornerback Brent Gordon continued to shine with a team-high six tackles and his first interception of the season. “I hold myself to a high standard,” he said. “I feel like stuff like that is expecting the ball in the air is just to go up and get it. But that all plays a part. With the rush affecting the quarterback and how he put a ball allowed me to be in position to get that.” Gordon also added special teams to his arsenal with two punt returns for 26 yards. “Yeah, for sure,” he said. “I definitely feel like it’s another position to show my true athletic skills.” Indeed, there was a lot to like about UL’s opening performance, especially if the injury updates Monday don’t erase much of it. Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@theadvocate.com.

TE Jensen powers UL in win, but leaves game injured BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

The tight end room has been a major topic of conversation through August. It was again in Saturday’s season-opening 38-7 win over Lamar at Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium. UL’s offense knew the targets wouldn’t be nearly as seasoned in this contest. Landon Strother is still out withabrokencollarboneandShelton Sampson didn’t survive the opening Notebook drive after missing all of camp with a bruised knee. “It’s kind of just trusting the process, trying to get the guys going,” UL quarterback LunchWinfield said. “You know, some things, it’s not going to go because guys that haven’t got a lot of reps into it.” A big part of the solution was leaning on veteran tight end Caden Jensen. The redshirt junior delivered with five receptions for 77 yards. The problem is he left the field and didn’t return after his last catch. “Yeah, I don’t know,” UL coach Michael Desormeaux said of Jensen’s injury. “He wasn’t able to finish, so we’ll figure it out tomorrow.” Desormeaux did indicate tight end Brock Chappell, who missed Saturday’s game with a leg injury, could return as soon as next week at Southern Cal. Redshirt sophomore tight end Teddy Gawlik also contributed with three receptions for 22 yards.

Many interceptions In a game with six interceptions, it was a bit surprising, perhaps, that half of them were thrown by the team that won by 31 points. As it turned out, Desormeaux didn’t have a big issue with his two quarterbacks on any of the three interceptions. The one most will remember was the 40-yard pick-six thrown by backup quarterback Daniel Beale with 11:48 left in the third quarter that accounted for all of Lamar’s scoring in the game. “I’m disappointed with the touchdown, and that’s on me 1000%,” Desormeaux said. “I went back to it one too many times. That is 1000% on me. The kid made a great play. He recognized it and made a great play. I went back to it one too many times and that’s nobody’s fault but my own. “It was the right decision (by Beale) and the ball was on the money. I don’t think our receiver could even get to the guy ... That’s on me. I hate it for our defense, but that’s not even on the offense. That’s on me.” Beale finished the game 4-for6 passing for 42 yards, leading the offense on a 14-play, 67-yard drive that ended in a 31-yard field goal in the possession following the interception return. “Absolutely,” Desormeaux said of Beale’s response. “Let me tell you something, Daniel Beale’s a good damn football player. He was put in some really tough, crappy situations as a freshman and redshirt freshman. “That dude has worked his tail off this year and he played; I was really pleased with the way he played.” Winfield threw two interceptions himself — neither one caused great concern for Desormeaux. “On the one pick, we thought we got him to false start on fourth down, so you’ve got to throw the ball,” Desormeaux said. “On the other one, he stopped running the route. I don’t know if he thought we were down or not, but he stopped the route ... young player.”

Defensive standouts Throughout camp, UL’s coaching staff gave rave reviews about a number of young defensive players and the season opener seemed to back up those claims. Conor McPherson was the defense’s second-leadingtacklerwithsixstops. Micah Johnson added five tackles, including a half-tackle behind the line. Cornerback Avery Demery said in a news conference during camp that he’s good with the physical side of the game. He proved that Saturday with four tackles, a sack, and two stops behind the line.

LIVING

T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M

M o n d ay, S e p t e M b e r 7, 2026

5Cn

Symbol of culture

The Oscar statuette is Hollywood’s ultimate recognition, full of lore, mysteries and rules STAFF PHOTO By ROBIN MILLER

Emerson Bell’s sculpture, ‘Unity and destiny of Children,’ stands in BREC Expressway Park beneath the Interstate 10 and 110 split in Baton Rouge. The abstract piece was created with ancient human undertones and represents ‘generations of children seeking higher consciousness.’

SOARING ABOVE

BY ROBIN MILLER

tiny for Children,’” said Randell Henry, professor of art at Southern University. “He and I were friends, and I remember when he When Watson reader Christy was making this.” Jarreau approaches the point Henry, standing in Expressway where Interstate 110 splits into Park, squints his eyes in the AuI-10 West and I-10 East in Baton Rouge, the first question that gust afternoon sun while gazing comes to mind is, “What is it?” foltoward the top of the sculpture’s 26 feet. Well, it actually stands a lowed by a second, “How did it get couple of feet higher these days. there?” “It experienced some damage The interand was restored a few years state forms ago,” Henry said. “When they rea kind of triangle at that stored it, they mounted it on these point, and rising not quite from concrete pillars.” the center is what appears to be a He points to the individual piltotem-like structure. lars beneath each of the sculp“It has what looks like a cresture’s three legs. Photos in arcent moon at the top,” Jarreau chived editions of the newspaper said. “And it looks like it’s made of show the sculpture’s legs making FILE PHOTO direct contact with the ground, concrete. So what is it, and where did it come from?” which was the way Bell built the Late Baton Rouge artist Emerson piece in the park. Bell, who created the sculpture An oddity An April 10, 1977, a feature ‘Unity and destiny of Children.’ He story in the newspaper features The object’s mystic presence bephotos of Bell shaping rebars and neath the interstate is an oddity in built the sculpture on location in BREC Expressway Park in 1977. wire mesh to create the the sculpthe same sense as the black slate monoliths in Stanley Kubrick’s ture’s abstract form. He bypassed classic 1968 film, “2001: A Space mounting it on a pedestal, opting mark created by a noted Baton Odyssey.” It’s definitely there, but Rouge sculptor, it does belong. instead to have the sculpture it doesn’t seem to belong. “It was made by Emerson Bell, ä See CURIOUS, page 6C Yet, as an authentic city landand it’s titled, ‘Unity and DesStaff writer

‘THIS IS TRUE INCLUSION.’

Tandem bicycle club leads blind riders to new feats Associated Press

QUITO, Ecuador — Franklin Ochoa says that since losing his eyesight 16 years ago, he has started to take on new adventures that he hadn’t thought of when he could see, and it’s all thanks to a bicycle club. Every Sunday, a group known as the Ciegocleta meets in Ecuador’s capital city of Quito to ride tandem bikes that are steered by volunteers who can see, but ped-

aled by blind riders. Ochoa, 44, is one of the group’s most active members and he’s taken his passion for riding well beyond the streets of Quito. Recently, he completed a 620-mile tandem bike ride that spanned much of Ecuador. “When I arrive on a bike in a new city I feel like shedding tears of happiness,” Ochoa said. “I love speed and I always tell my guide

ä See BICYCLE, page 6C

AP movie writer

LOS ANGELES — I’d like to thank the Academy for the Oscar. Yes, the awards might have been a mere afterthought in Louis B. Mayer’s dreams for “the Academy” — part PR ploy to persuade the public that Hollywood was not a den of sin and scandal, part consolidation of power by a group of producers bucking unionization efforts. Yes, no one knows exactly who is responsible for the name “Oscar” (though Academy librarian Margaret Part of an Herrick is occasional said to have series from nicknamed The Associated the statue afPress on ter her uncle). America’s And yes, freedom they often get it very wrong. Let’s not forget that “Citizen Kane” and “Brokeback Mountain” lost best picture, that “Crash” and “Green Book” won, that “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Do the Right Thing” and “Hoop Dreams” weren’t even nominated and that David Lynch never received a competitive Oscar. Sometimes they get it right, too (see: “One Battle After Another”). Like many things about the business of making movies in America, the Oscars are full of contradictions. It is at once an undeniable honor — the most recognizable award one can receive for making movies — and a manifestation of everything that’s rotten in moviemaking, with egos, money and power tipping the scales over merit. But since the first awards were handed out in 1929 in a ceremony that took all of 10 minutes, the Oscars have become a cultural bellwether and a billion-dollar cottage industry — the culmination of an “awards season” supporting consultants, pundits, publications, stylists, stagehands and dreamers. The value of an Oscar is both everything and nothing. The statue itself is relatively modest. Studios shell out tens of millions on awards campaigns. For some lucky winners, bigger paychecks can follow. Still, it’s hardly a guarantee of a better life or career. And the resale market is complicated. If you won your award after 1951, neither you nor your heirs may sell or even dispose of the statue without first giving the Academy the option to purchase it for $1. Oscar’s popularity has fluctuated across the years. Not just with viewers, who have tuned in and out since the first broadcast in 1953. In 1969, a 22-year-old Candice Bergen raised her hand to help recruit a younger class of Academy members, like Dennis Hopper. In 2015, a tweet, #OscarsSoWhite, started another membership revolution. Critics have been crying irrelevance since its earliest days. Still, we watch. Complaining about the Oscars is, after all, its own pastime.

AMERICA @ 250

This totem-like structure has stood beneath the interstate in Baton Rouge since 1977. What is it?

BY GONZALO SOLANO

BY LINDSEY BAHR

A volunteer with the Ciegocleta, left, guides a visually impaired participant on a tandem bicycle in Quito, Ecuador, on Aug. 30. AP PHOTO By dOLORES OCHOA

Part of a recurring series, “American Objects,” marking the 250th anniversary of the United States.

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Magnesium is crucial to good health Dear Doctors: I am told that magnesium is very important, and that it can help with sleep and also with anxiety. Is that true? I struggle with anxiety, and a lot of times it keeps me from falling asleep. I’m interested in trying a supplement but not sure how it works. Dear Reader: You’re absolutely right that magnesium is crucial to good health. It plays a role in more than 300 enzyme systems that regulate metabolic processes throughout the body. These include nerve and muscle function and controlling blood sugar and blood pressure. It also plays a role in protein and DNA synthesis and skeletal development. In fact, it would be easier to say what the mineral doesn’t do in the body than to list what it does. Magnesium is an essential nu-

CURIOUS

Continued from page 5C organically jut from the ground. Once the shape was in place, Bell covered the wire mesh with oriental stucco sand and a mixture of cement.

Built on location

Dr. Elizabeth Ko Dr. Eve Glazier ASK THE dOCTORS

trient. It’s a chemical substance the body needs to function, but the body can’t produce it on its own. That means we have to get magnesium through what we eat. However, estimates suggest that up to half of us don’t get the recommended minimums for the mineral. Certain health issues can also increase the risk of magnesium deﬁciency. Digestive problems such as Crohn’s or celiac dis-

The sculpture’s totem appearance also was purposeful with Bell saying he created it with “ancient human overtones, as well as African overtones.” “I felt, as a sculptor, this was my unique time to introduce this to my hometown — my heritage,” he said. Bell died at age 74 on April 13, 2007. He was born in Baton Rouge in 1932, and though he was not formally educated in the arts, he gained his knowledge through artist associations and practice. “He would always stop by my studio and sit and talk about art,” Henry said. “He also visited Southern University from time to time to visit with (sculptor) Martin Peyton, and he was great STAFF PHOTO By ROBIN MILLER friends with Alvin Batiste.” Batiste was a renowned Emerson Bell said the sickle jazz musician who also shape at the top of his taught at Southern Universculpture, ‘Unity and destiny sity’s Alvin Batiste Jazz for Children,’ is ‘a figurative Institute. “Emerson played the representation of a bird, ﬂute, and he would often which is free.’ Bell was 44 play jazz with Alvin Bayears old when he created tiste,” Henry said.

Which answers Jarreau’s second question. The sculpture wasn’t built in a studio and moved to the park — Bell built it on location. He was 44 years old at the time. The year was 1977, and Bell had been awarded funding by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana State Arts Council, the Mayor’s Ofﬁce of Youth Opportunity and the Baton Rouge Parks & Recreation Commission. But the idea for Bell’s piece began taking shape in 1976, when he was the artist-in-residence for the Expressway Park Summer Enrichment program. “The children would ask him when he was going to do something big,” a 1977 newspaper article states. “Unity and Destiny for Children” was his response to their question. All of the agencies involved in funding the project are listed on a brass plaque installed beneath the sculpture. The project was sponsored by the Arts & Humanities Council of Greater Baton Rouge, now known as the Arts Council of Baton Rouge. However, the plaque isn’t visible to drivers zooming by on the interstate, and many may be too focused on their destinations to notice.

where a left turn onto South Boulevard leads directly to Expressway Park. A picnic table and tennis court stand on the right side of the road, and the sculpture stands tall on the left side. Parking is available in a small lot beside the picnic table, and trafﬁc is minimal. From there, walk across South Boulevard and look up. The sculpture will take on a more three-dimensional identity, its appearance changing on each of its three sides.

How to get there

Higher consciousness

But if the trafﬁc slows to a standstill, as often happens around rush hour, the sculpture attracts wandering eyes. For those who are curious, the easiest route for a closer look is to turn either left or right off North Boulevard at First United Methodist Church onto T.J. Jemison Boulevard. The street’s name will change to East Boulevard where the Baton Rouge Greenway begins, and it’s from East Boulevard

In the 1977 article, Bell described the piece as “generations of children seeking a higher consciousness, with three entrances for the children to walk through, and seven slats protruding from the higher portions of the sculpture representing ‘steps in life.’” Though some viewers have mistaken the ﬁgure at the top for a crescent moon, Bell said “the sickle-shaped top of the work is a ﬁgurative representation of a bird which is free.”

BICYCLE

Continued from page 5C to let go of the brakes.” Ciegocleta, whose name comes from the Spanish words for blind and bicycle, was founded 19 years ago by Miguel Ramos, a resident of Quito who built his own tandem bikes. He used them during the ciclopaseo, a weekly event in which the city bars cars from many avenues and turns them over to bike riders and joggers. Ramos built the tandem bikes so he could ride the ciclopaseo with his children. But one day, one of Ramos’ children couldn’t go, so he decided to invite a blind neighbor to ride with him. That became the first of many more outings, in which volunteers using tandem bikes, or even bikes with three or four seats, lead people who are visually impaired.

ease can cause this. Other causes could be metabolic disorders such as poorly controlled diabetes, alcohol dependence or eating lots of ultra-processed foods. It’s true that magnesium can play a role in sleep and mood. That may be why the mineral is having a moment on social media. Unfortunately, there’s limited and mixed evidence that taking a magnesium supplement can improve sleep or ease anxiety. A study published in 2017 suggested that magnesium supplements may ease symptoms of mild or moderate depression. Participants also described reduced anxiety. However, the sample size of the study was quite small, with just 112 adults. It also lacked a placebo as a control. Reviews of studies that focus on magne-

the sculpture on location in BREC Expressway Park in Baton Rouge in 1977.

“This is true inclusion,” Ramos said. “We have blind people who are now enjoying cycling without any limits.” Before heading out to the streets on Sundays on the bikes provided by Ciegocleta, blind people receive some security tips, while volunteers ride on the back of a bike with their eyes covered, to get a sense of what their visually impaired counterparts will experience. The Ciegocleta group has 150 members, though only about 30 show up to ride on a given Sunday. Ximena Lozano, a 54-yearold psychologist who was born without sight, says she has been part of the bicycle club for the past 14 years. Lozano says that when she was younger she spent too much time at home reading, writing or surﬁng the web. The bicycle club gives her a reason to be outdoors, she said, and “experience freedom.”

Artist-in-residence Bell eventually would be named the East Baton Rouge Parish School system’s ﬁrst National Endowment for the Arts’ artist-inresidence teacher, and his paintings would land in the permanent collections of the LSU Museum of Art and New Orleans Museum of Art, among others. Back in the park, Henry walks around his friend’s sculpture, taking in every part of the piece. “Do you see the round holes up there?” he asked, pointing toward the top. “He said those are portals that children pass through in life, and the sculpture is tall, because he wanted the children to reach high.” And once they reached the bird at the top, they would soar away from noisy trafﬁc of the interstate into a bright future.

sium’s effect on anxiety conclude that while the data suggests an easing of symptoms, the results are inconclusive. The idea that magnesium can ease insomnia has slightly better support. What is clear is that getting enough magnesium in the diet is crucial to good health. Adult women need 310 to 320 mg per day. Adult men should aim for 400 to 420 mg per day. Good sources include spinach, Swiss chard, pumpkin seeds and almonds. Black beans, quinoa, avocados, green peas, milk, yogurt and dark chocolate are also good sources. Magnesium supplements are widely touted on social media, but approach them with care. Taking too much can cause side effects such as diarrhea, nausea and abdominal discomfort. Very

high doses can cause low blood pressure, muscle weakness and irregular heartbeat. The National Institutes of Health sets the upper limit for magnesium from supplements at 350 mg per day. This is in addition to dietary sources of magnesium. People with impaired kidney function should be especially careful about daily dosage. Anyone planning to take a supplement should seek guidance from a registered dietitian or their healthcare provider. Send your questions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla. edu, or write: Ask the Doctors, c/o UCLA Health Sciences Media Relations, 10880 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1450, Los Angeles, CA, 90024.

TODAY IN HISTORY foreigners from China involving clashes with a multinational force that inToday is Monday, Sept. 7, the 250th day of cluded troops from Japan, 2026. There are 115 days Russia, Britain and the left in the year. U.S., ended with a protocol Today in history: calling for reparations to On Sept. 7, 1940, Nazi the foreign powers. Germany began an intense In 1921, the first Miss bombing campaign of Brit- America Pageant was held in Atlantic City, New ain during World War II Jersey. with an air attack on LonIn 1943, a fire at the Gulf don; known as The Blitz, the eight-month campaign Hotel, a rooming house in Houston, claimed 55 lives. resulted in more than In 1963, the Pro Football 40,000 civilian deaths. Hall of Fame opened in Also on this date: Canton, Ohio, and enshrined In 1813, during the War its first 17 members. of 1812, the Troy (New In 1977, the Panama York) Post newspaper Canal Treaty, which called first used the term “Uncle Sam” to refer to the United for the U.S. to turn over control of the waterway to States; the nickname was linked to a local meatpack- Panama at the end of 1999, was signed in Washington er, Samuel Wilson, who by U.S. President Jimmy supplied the U.S. Army Carter and Panamanian with beef. leader Omar Torrijos. In 1822, Prince Regent In 1986, Bishop Desmond Pedro of Braganza declared Brazil’s independence from Tutu was installed as the Portugal (Portugal formally first Black clergyman to lead the Anglican Church recognized Brazil’s indein southern Africa. pendence in 1825). In 1996, rapper Tupac In 1901, the Boxer RebelShakur was shot and morlion, an attempt to expel By The Associated Press

tally wounded on the Las Vegas Strip; he died six days later. In 2005, police and soldiers went house to house in New Orleans to try to coax remaining residents into leaving the city shattered by Hurricane Katrina. In 2021, El Salvador became the ﬁrst country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender. Today’s birthdays: Singer Gloria Gaynor is 83. Actor Julie Kavner is 76. Rock singer Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders) is 75. Actor Corbin Bernsen is 72. Actor Michael Emerson is 72. Pianist-singer Michael Feinstein is 70. Singer/songwriter Diane Warren is 70. Actor J. Smith-Cameron is 69. Actor Toby Jones is 60. Actorcomedian Leslie Jones (TV: “Saturday Night Live”) is 59. Actor Tom Everett Scott is 56. Actor Shannon Elizabeth is 53. Actor Oliver Hudson is 50. Actor Evan Rachel Wood is 39. Olympic gold medal swimmer Ariarne Titmus is 26.

FIND OUT WHAT YOUR HOME FINF OUT WHAT

YOURIS WORTH HOME

IS WORTH Call Today for an Expert Valuation and Make Your Next Move

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Have a question about something in Louisiana that’s got you curious? Email your question to curiouslouisiana@ theadvocate.com. Include your name, phone number and the city where you live.

According to Ecuador’s government, around 56,000 people in the country are visually impaired, and while blind people have been able to ﬁnd work with increasing success, their inclusion in sports is still a work in progress. José Paéz, one of the volunteers at Ciegocleta, said he joined the club after his father-in-law quickly lost his sight due to disease, and brought him to the free rides to help him overcome depression. “At first it felt scary to lead a blind person on a bike,” he said. “Keeping a (tandem) bike balanced and sustaining the rhythm is not as easy as when you use a regular bike.” Franklin Ochoa says that his next challenge will be to undertake a ride from Ecuador to Mexico. Through the club he has found a partner willing to join him on the adventure, which can take several months.

THINKING

OF SELLING? A home evaluation is a great place to start

addresslafayettela.com DRE#01901536 This website is a marketing and information program that sends all inquiries to state-licensed real estate professionals.

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FrAnK And erneSt

roSebUdS

zItS

zodIAC VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) A change will require more thought. Address the issues that can stand between you and what you want. Facts and the cost necessary to enjoy your pursuit need to be in place before you begin your journey. LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Emotions and professional choices will clash. Step back from whatever situation you face and give yourself a chance to breathe and observe. scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) If you turn everything you encounter into a learning experience, you'll gain momentum and insight into how and what to do next. Emotional journeys may not be welcome, but they will help you. sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Listen, but don't jump on demand. Dig deep and get the lowdown. See what is necessary to participate in someone else's plans. Don't feel compelled to help when you have your own dreams to conquer. cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Being organized will help you. Refuse to let what others say or do interfere with your plans. Take care of your concerns before you extend help to others. Researching will save you from mistakes. AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) How you earn your living or improve your qualifications to gain financial stability looks promising. Make decisions for the right reasons; if you allow emotions to interfere with common sense, you will falter. PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Plan to get moving. Whether it's a social event, an outlet

or just trying to get back in shape, having the right mindset and discipline will be necessary if you hope to achieve your goal. ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Turnyourdreams into a reality. Use your imagination and discipline, and participate in events that connect you to people who can be helpful. Refuse to let disappointment or anger set in. tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Choose the power of thought over action. Taking on too much will cost you. Misdirected emotional energy will leave you in an awkward position. Don't back yourself into a corner. GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Change begins with you. Improve your qualifications. By learning something new or developing a skill you enjoy using, you will gain the confidence to branch out and do your own thing. cAncER (June 21-July 22) Keep busy in order to avoid disputes. Having a negative attitude will stifle your ability to get things done. Walk away from people trying to control you. Use your voice constructively. LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Proceedwithcaution. The wrong move will lead to illness, injury or an emotional dispute. Concentrate on becoming the best version of yourself instead of trying to change others. The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

For better or For WorSe WonderWord

peAnUtS

SALLY Forth

beetLe bAILeY CeLebrItY CIpher Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

toDAy's cLuE: E EQuALs I

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

SherMAn’S LAGoon FAMILY CIrCUS

dooneSbUrY

8C ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

CurTiS

Hi and LoiS

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Sudoku InstructIons: Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 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

BaBY BLueS

BLondie

THe wiZard oF id

nea CroSSwordS

La TimeS CroSSword

The Acadiana Advocate ● theadvocate.com ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● 9C

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B.C.

Bridge By PHILLIP ALDER In his “Comic Dictionary,” Evan Esar defined a zoo as an excellent place to study the habits of human beings. This week, we are going to study some of the bad habits of bridge players and try to cure them. First, we will start with declarer play. South is in three no-trump. What should he do after West leads a fourth-highest heart four and East plays his eight? South starts with six top tricks: two spades, two hearts (given the first trick) and two diamonds. He must work on clubs to get the extra winners. However, the defender with the club ace will not take the first round of the suit, but the second. Then South will need a dummy entry to get to the three club tricks. And what is the only entry? It has to be in hearts. But if South makes the habitual play at trick one of winning cheaply with his heart jack, he won’t see the dummy again. South must take the first trick with his heart ace. Then, after driving out the club ace and winning East’s probable spadejack shift, South can lead a low heart to force an entry to the dummy. Get into the habit of playing slowly at trick one. Lastly, how would East know to take the second, not third, round of clubs? West gives his partner a count signal

garfield

Pearls Before swiNe

hagar the horriBle

in clubs. Here, with an odd number, he plays his lowest club first. Alternatively, if he had a doubleton club, he would play high-low. Note that if East ducks two clubs, South can shift to spades and take three spades, two hearts, two diamonds and two clubs. © 2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

wuzzles Each Wuzzle is a word riddle which creates a disguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD = GOOD AFTERNOON

PiCKles

Previous answers:

mallard fillmore

word game InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

toDAy’s WoRD — onEtIME: WON-time: Occurring only once; former.

Bizarro

marmaduKe

Average mark 16 words Time limit 20 minutes Can you find 21 or more words in ONETIME? sAtuRDAy’s WoRD — REALIty rail rale rate real realty relay relit rely retail rile rite

earl early aery airy alert alit alter arty lair laity late

later layer liar lite liter lyre irate tail tale tare teal

tear tearily teary terai tier tile tiler tire trail tray trey

trial yare year

loCKhorNs hidato Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

today’s thought “And if it seem evil to you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15 Who are you choosing to serve? It will not only effect you but also your family. G.E. Dean

10C ● Monday, September 7, 2026 ● theadvocate.com ● The Acadiana Advocate

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