Reveille
Football Offensive problems contributed to Tigers’ loss page 5
The Daily
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2014
lsureveille.com
thedailyreveille
Opinion Online classes don’t compare to traditional courses page 8 @lsureveille
Volume 119 · No. 19
thedailyreveille faculty
JAVIER FERNÁNDEZ / The Daily Reveille
University to set retirement contribution floor
LSU junior safety Jalen Mills (28) watches Mississippi State junior running back Josh Robinson (13) run the ball down the field Saturday in Tiger Stadium.
BY quint forgey qforgey@lsureveille.com
pick and choose his best options at will. “[Mississippi State] spread the ball down the field, and it spread our defense a little wider than we wanted it to be,” Miles said. “There were so many big plays that if you play some of those plays differently, the outcome would be completely different.” Prescott finished the game 15-of-24 for 268 yards and two
The University administration has pledged to set a minimum for the amount of money it contributes to employees’ retirement funds, following the passage of House Bill 6 this summer. The bill dictates the state’s normal cost — the cost of funding the benefits all active employees will earn per year — drop no lower than 6.2 percent starting in 2018. Gov. Bobby Jindal signed the bill into law on June 12. The normal cost also refers to the amount of money universities pay to the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana to fund employee benefits. For the previous fiscal year, which ended on the last day of June 2014, the normal cost was 5.2 percent, said Director of External Affairs Jason Droddy. Droddy said the normal cost was set to fall to 3.7 percent starting July 1, but the University took action in June to maintain its current employer contribution
see defense, page 11
see retirement, page 11
LSU’s defense run over by Mississippi State’s offense BY jack chascin jchascin@lsureveille.com Compared to the dream of 147 minutes and 24 seconds of dominance for the LSU football team’s defense in its first three games, Saturday’s 60 minutes against Mississippi State was a nightmare. LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis’ defense had its worst performance of the season in the Tigers’ 34-29 loss Saturday.
The Tigers’ defense gave up 570 total yards of offense against the Bulldogs, the most an LSU team coached by Les Miles has ever given up. The Bulldogs, led by junior quarterback Dak Prescott, shredded a Tiger defense that hadn’t allowed a point for 31 straight possessions coming into Saturday’s game. On its first possession of the game, Mississippi State drove the ball 51 yards, putting the ball in the end zone when Prescott threw
the first of his two touchdowns, connecting with sophomore wide receiver De’Runnya Wilson. The drive took only two minutes, and the touchdown pass was the first the LSU defense allowed all season. The Tigers had no answer for the Bulldogs’ spread offense as it ran through and around LSU defenders on its way to gaining 302 yards rushing. The Bulldogs’ diverse playbook spread open the LSU defense, allowing Prescott to
environment
Students transform campus parking spot into ‘parklet’ BY michael tarver mtarver@lsureveille.com Seemingly misplaced shrubberies sprouted from the coarse, gray concrete of a parking spot near Johnston Hall on Friday, encouraging passing students to slow down and enjoy a moment of peace on an otherwise hectic day. University landscape architecture students converted this parking spot into a “parklet” as part of Park(ing) Day 2014, an annual, worldwide event where parking spaces in urban areas are transformed into small parks for the
public to enjoy. Landscape architecture senior Erin Percevault said the event is meant to raise environmental awareness in a simple, yet powerful, way. “[Park(ing) Day] is where community members try to enliven public spaces, especially urban spaces, and to reclaim them as parklets,” Percevault said. According to Better Block BR, a total of 16 parking spots throughout Baton Rouge were transformed into parklets, altering the flow of the city. Percevault said Baton Rouge has been proactive in trying to
develop Government Street and a few other locations to make the city more accessible to pedestrians and cyclists. She said Park(ing) Day advocates for urban development and inspires creative ideas for places where people can congregate. “It’s especially focused towards areas that don’t have a lot of green space or places for people to gather,” Percevault said. “It’s been fun to be able to talk to people more about it and spread the word.” Park(ing) Day started in 2005 CONNOR TARTER / The Daily Reveille
see Park(ing) day, page 11
A parking spot outside Johnston Hall is transformed into a ‘parklet’ on Friday.