Volume 122 · No. 2
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
EST. 1887
lsunow.com
thedailyreveille
@lsureveille
dailyreveille
SWAPPING SWAMPS BY JOSH THORNTON | @JoshuaThornton_
Beyond defensive positions, Battle, Smith, Toliver share Sunshine State bond
John Battle
Hallandale, Florida
S
aivion Smith had Florida Gator orange and blue plastered on the walls of his childhood bedroom. “Born and raised die-hard Florida fans,” Anthony Smith, Saivion’s father said. A long with junior safety John Battle and s o ph o m o r e cornerback
Saivion Smith
Kevin Toliver
Saint Petersburg, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Kevin Toliver, Smith decided to leave his home state of Florida to play for LSU. And to Louisianans, their lingo is a bit uncommon. “First of all, they cut their words,” senior Rickey Jefferson, a fellow defensive back, said. “When they refer to where they’re from, they call it ‘the crib.’” The clash of cultures often leave players wondering about the use of their jargon. Battle said whenever he, Toliver or Smith make a play, they’ll reference the “crib,” but teammates jokingly remind them of where they are now Louisiana.
“Stop saying you from Florida, you‘re in Louisiana now,” their teammates jab at them. Battle, a native of Hallandale, Florida, showed Jefferson firsthand the culture of Florida during a spring break trip to Miami the last two years. Jefferson likened Florida’s culture to New Orleans and called Florida one of his favorite states.
see FLORIDA, page 11
TOPS deficit pressures students BY LAUREN HEFFKER @laurheffker Having the highest number of TOPS-qualifying students in the state, the University is being hit the hardest with the reality that most of its student body will soon have to look elsewhere for tuition funds. The Taylor Opportunity Program for Students was cut 70 percent overall for this academic year, but that cut isn’t spread evenly over both semesters. TOPS is currently funded at 93.06 percent for the fall semester and 47.63 percent for the spring semester. The Louisiana Legislature came up with the idea of “front-loading” the cuts in order to decrease out-of-pocket expenses for the first semester of the budget. As cuts to the program were being discussed earlier in the year, biology freshman Hannah Martin, who was on track to attend LSU, nearly transferred to Southeastern Louisiana University. “I wasn’t really happy about it ... I was totally set to go to LSU, then TOPS got cut short so I applied to Southeastern, and for a time I was fully planning on going to Southeastern,” she said. “Out of all the things to take money from, I feel like it should not have been education.” Martin was accepted to SLU, and only decided to return to her original plan of attending the flagship university after reproportioning her savings and loans. To save up money that will invariably go toward the stark deficit in tuition she’ll face next semester, Martin is currently searching for a job.
see TOPS, page 11