UREC: Complex sees improvements, p. 3
Athletic Dept.: Miles contract to go before Board of Supervisors, p. 7
Reveille
Football: Two players held at gunpoint, DA pursuing suspects, p. 7
The Daily
ALTERCATION
www.lsureveille.com
Friday, August 26, 2011 • Volume 116, Issue 5
Conf licting reports surface on Shady’s bar brawl
Employee: Victim threw first punch Mark Clements Sports Writer
The Baton Rouge Police Department released an incident report Thursday regarding the Shady’s Bar altercation last Friday, confirming senior quarterback Jordan Jefferson and sophomore linebacker Josh
FOOTBALL
Shepard ineligible for season opener
Johns’ involvement. According to the report, Andrew Lowery, 21, advised officials that several suspects he believed to be LSU football players pulled a man out of a truck and beat him. Lowery said he intervened and managed to pull the man away from the crowd. Lowery said he was then punched and kicked several times by the crowd, and he believed Jefferson and Johns were among the attackers. “Lowery’s face was swollen
and had several bruises,” the report stated. “Lowery also had blood on his shirt.” However, two Shady’s Bar employees told the Associated Press their versions of the fight, which differ from the police report. Shady’s Bar general manager John Peak and door manager Jordan Neldare said they saw Lowery throw the first punch in the brawl. “That’s one thing we do know,” Peak told the AP. Both bar employees also told the
AP that Lowery was asked to leave the bar at 1:30 a.m. after he appeared to be harassing a woman. Contrary to the incident report, Neldare said Lowery was already involved in the fight before the truck pulled up, minutes after Lowery left the bar. An unnamed witness who claimed to have observed the entire altercation told BRPD she “for certain” observed Jefferson kick Lowery in the face, according to the police report. Neldare said he saw Jefferson at
one point “standing by himself and looking upset while the fight was still taking place.” The unnamed witness advised officials that approximately 10 suspects attacked the driver of the car and re-affirmed Johns’ involvement as well. She said approximately five more suspects joined the attack on Lowery. She said she believed they were all football players because she ALTERCATION, see page 5
Go with the Flow
Hunter Paniagua Sports Writer
The NCAA ruled junior wide receiver Russell Shepard ineligible Thursday for LSU’s season opener Sept. 3 against Oregon. Shepard violated NCAA Bylaw 32.1.4 by discussing an NCAA inquiry with a teammate who was scheduled to meet with an NCAA representative. “Russell Shepard has run afoul of some NCAA regulations,” said LSU coach Les Miles. “The things that were done there were innocent. They were issues of protocol. They’re serious enough to warrant him being ruled not eligible. We’ll seek reinstatement and hope that goes well.” No timeline has been given for the reinstatement process, but Shepard can continue to practice with the team. Shepard was the subject of a compliance issue in July when his housing situation roused the interest of NCAA investigators. Shepard lived in an off-campus apartment with an Athletic Department student worker, who was his girlfriend and paid for a month of rent. Miles said the suspension does not stem from that investigation, and Shepard did nothing wrong in that aspect. Contact Hunter Paniagua at hpaniagua@lsureveille.com
photos by BLAIR LOCKHART / The Daily Reveille
Students attend the Student Activities Board’s Back to School Concert on the Parade Ground on Thursday night. Attendees rocked out to Flow Tribe, Syllable 7 and X-Definition.
Check out a photo gallery and video of the event at lsureveille.com.