1:30 LRN Newscast

It is a windy day and the temperature is falling. LRN Meteorologist Bill Jacquemin has more on this last arctic blast before the new year…

Cut 2 (30) “…Bill Jacquemin.”

If you welcomed a new addition to your family and named him or her Elijah or Olivia, you’re in good company. According to Baton Rouge General’s Birth Center, those were the top boy’s and girl’s names, respectively, for 2025. Other girls’ names include Nora, Evelyn and Ivy; top boys’ names include John, Henry and Walker.

The 49th playing of the Independence Bowl is expected to yield an economic impact of 6.4-million dollars to the Shreveport-Bossier City area. Emma Boone with Visit Shreveport-Bossier says whether the fans are taking the short drive from Ruston or taking a long drive or a flight from Conway, South Carolina, they will be in for a treat when visiting Shreveport.

Cut 8 (07) “..Shreveport-Bossier special.”

Make it four in a row for the Saints as they’re setting up a foundation for success. The Saints came back from down 13 in the first half to beat the Titans in Nashville, 34-26. Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough improved to 5-3 as a starter. He had his second straight 300-yard passing game, throwing for 333 yards and two touchdowns. Shough appreciates Who Dat Nation’s big showing in Nashville.

Cut 6 (10) “…like that.”

12:30 LRN Newscast

The Saints are finishing 2025 on a high note as the Black and Gold won their fourth straight yesterday, rallying to beat the Titans, 34-26, in Nashville. The Saints fell behind 13-0 and trailed by ten at halftime, but they completed the comeback with two fourth quarter touchdowns. Coach Kellen Moore says it was their most impressive win of the year.

Cut 5 (13) “…second half.”

While the Saints are heading towards a strong finish, LSU fans are just glad that the Tigers’ 2025 campaign is over. The season came to a merciful end Saturday night with a 38-35 loss to Houston in the Texas Bowl to finish the season at 7-and-6. This fan who took in the game at NRG Stadium is ready to turn the page.

Cut 4 (05) “…the portal hard.”

The transfer portal opens Friday.

The 49th playing of the Independence Bowl is expected to produce an economic impact of about 6.4-million dollars this year. Emma Boone with Visit Shreveport-Bossier says the fact that one of the teams, Louisiana Tech, is close by is actually a very good thing.

Cut 7 (11) “…in Shreveport-Bossier.”

Boone says the game is also a way for the city to showcase itself to Coastal Carolina fans visiting the area for the first time. There are plenty of events for fans of both teams to enjoy today and tomorrow, including a battle of the bands competition.

11:30 LRN Newscast

The Trump administration is sending the National Guard to cities in Louisiana to help with law enforcement as we get set to ring in the New Year. On “The Will Cain Show” on the Fox News Channel, Governor Landry said about 350 of those troops will be deployed to New Orleans, and they will stay beyond New Year’s and through Mardi Gras.

Cut 8 (07) “…we desperately need”

How quickly things change – the cold front has arrived, and that has sent temperatures plummeting. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says if you thought this morning was cold, you’ll really be in for a rude awakening as you leave your house to go to work tomorrow and Wednesday – assuming that you’re indeed going to work and are not taking the week off.

Cut 6 (08) “…I-10/I-12 corridor.”

Warm temperatures will return by the end of this week.

Some things age really poorly, like this prediction from SEC prognosticators this summer – and my reaction to it.

Cut 23 (08) “…third place Alabama.”

LSU ended up finishing 10th in the SEC and lost to Houston 38-35 in the Texas Bowl Saturday. The season couldn’t have ended a moment too soon for these fans who were at the Texas Bowl Saturday night.

Cut 3 (04) “…it was terrible.”

But the Saints season, which started out predictably awful with a very young quarterback room, is going to end on a high note, with the team winning its fourth in a row yesterday, beating the Titans in Nashville, 34-26. Tyler Shough threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns; he says the team was not down despite trailing by ten points at halftime.

Cut 15 (13) “…great team win.”

11:40 LRN Sportscast

The Saints were down by 13 points but came from behind to beat Tennessee 34-26 yesterday improving to 6 – 10. Defensive end Chase Young started the rally in the second quarter by stripping the ball away from Titans quarterback Cam Ward and returning the fumble 33 yards for a T-D. Young is playing at a high level, and so are the Saints…

Cut 14 (14) “…keep fighting.”

New Orleans will try to end the regular season on a five-game winning streak when they visit Atlanta this Sunday for the final game of the 2025 season.

LSU women’s basketball completed a dominant run through its non-conference schedule by beating Alabama State 109 to 41 yesterday. SEC play tips off New Year’s day night as LSU hosts 11th ranked Kentucky at 7 PM.

 

The 2025 LSU football season came to a close on Saturday night with a 38 to 35 loss to Houston in the Texas Bowl. Interim head coach Frank Wilson had this message for his team after the game…

Cut 18 (09) “…of the game”

LSU’s loss drops Louisiana teams to 0-and-3 in bowl games. Louisiana Tech is the Bayou State’s last hope on Tuesday in the Independence Bowl against Coastal Carolina.

Louisiana Tech men’s basketball begins its final season in Conference USA tonight by hosting UTEP at 6:30 in the Thomas Assembly Center. The Bulldogs are 7-4-, while the Miners are 4-and-7.

The LSU men play its final non-conference game tonight as they host Southern Miss. The Tigers are 11-and-1, while the Golden Eagles are 7-6.

McNeese is at 2nd ranked Michigan, while Northwestern State hosts Lamar and Nicholls is at Texas A-and-M Corpus Christi.

10:30 LRN Newscast

Hundreds of National Guard troops are set to deploy to cities throughout Louisiana. Jeff Palermo reports.

Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

A shooting in the Richwood area of Monroe left one 17-year-old dead and another 17-year-old injured. No arrests have been made in connection with the shooting. Monroe Police detectives are asking the public for clues. If you have any information call Crime Stoppers of North Delta or Monroe P-D.

 

We enjoyed temperatures in the upper 70s and low 80s this weekend, but LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says a strong cold front has led to a considerable drop in the temperatures.

Cut 5 (07) “…along the coast.”

Warm weather will return for New Year’s Day.

The Saints were down by 13 points but came from behind to beat Tennessee 34-26 yesterday improving to 6 – 10. Defensive end Chase Young started the rally in the second quarter by stripping the ball away from Titans quarterback Cam Ward and returning the fumble 33 yards for a T-D. Young is playing at a high level, and so are the Saints…

Cut 14 (14) “…keep fighting.”

The Saints wrap up the season this Sunday in Atlanta.

9:30 AM Dec 29 Newscast

Researchers at Tulane have taken the lead in developing a vaccine to protect against a little-known, yet potentially deadly tropical disease. after ten years of development, Dr. Lisa Morici and her team have taken their melioidosis vaccine from discovery through pre-clinical testing to GMP manufacturing of drug substance. Dr. Morici says while it is little-known, melioidosis could have an impact locally.

Cut 11 (06) “…U.S. Gulf Coast.”

Melioidosis is sometimes known as the great mimicker, since it can look like a lot of different illnesses.

Hundreds of National Guard Troops will be in New Orleans from New Year’s Eve through Mardi Gras in February. After calling the deployment a scare tactic meant to score political points, New Orleans Mayor-elect Helena Morena now says she appreciates the support from federal partners, having been assured that it’s designed strictly to increase public safety and comes at no cost to the city. Governor Jeff Landry says the state is always ready to help President Trump with national security.

Cut 9 (09)  “…so much better.”

The beautiful warm weather we’ve been enjoying is coming to an end. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says cold weather is here.

Cut 4 (09) “…Gulf Coast today.”

Highs for the next few days, highs are expected to be in the 50s and 60s with lows as low as the 20s for some northern parishes. Temperatures should return to the 70s for most of the state this weekend.

For the second straight week, Saints rookie quarterback Tyler Shough threw for more than 300 yards as he threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns in yesterday’s come-from-behind win over the Tennessee Titans. Shough says the team was not down despite trailing by ten-points at half…

Cut 15 (13) “…great team win.”

The final score was 34-26. It was the Saints fourth consecutive win. New Orleans concludes the regular season by visiting Atlanta and they’re looking to finish with a 7-10 record.

8:30 AM Dec 29 LRN Newscast

A boy who would have turned 18 next month was killed in a Shooting in a Monroe neighborhood, in broad daylight Sunday Morning. Police are investigating the shooting that fatally injured Ryan Gray and injured another 17-year-old. Witness reports say there were three male shooters — two riding bicycles and one on foot. They scattered after firing their weapons. So far no arrests have been made. The Monroe Police Department is asking anyone with information to call them 318-329-2600 or call Crime Stoppers at 318-388-CASH.

President Trump is sending about 350 National Guard Troops to New Orleans at the request of Governor Jeff Landry.

Cut 8 (07) “…we desperately need”

Landry appeared on The Will Cain Show on the Fox News Channel. New Orleans Mayor-elect Helena Morena who initially called the deployment plan a scare tactic meant to score political points, now says she appreciates the support since being reassured the it was strictly a public safety plan and will not cost the city.

LSU’s 2025 football season ended with a loss in the Texas Bowl. Andrew Greenstein was there.

Cut 3 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

The lovely warm weather on Christmas day will not be repeated on New Years Day. The temperatures began dropping Sunday night and LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says Tuesday and Wednesday mornings will be especially cold.

Cut 6 (08) “…I-10/I-12 corridor.”

Fortunately, Temperatures are expected to return to the 70s this weekend.

7:30 AM Dec 29 Newscast

As Louisiana gets set to ring in the new year, President Trump is deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to the state. Trump is acting on a request from Governor Landry, who talked about it on “The Will Cain Show” on the Fox News Channel.

Cut 7 (05) “…elsewhere around Louisiana.”

He said about 350 of those troops will be deployed to New Orleans, and they will stay through Mardi Gras in February.

The Saints were down by 13 points but came from behind to beat Tennessee 34-26 Sunday improving to 6 – 10. Defensive end Chase Young started the rally in the second quarter by stripping the ball away from Titans quarterback Cam Ward and returning the fumble 33 yards for a T-D. Young is playing at a high level, and so are the Saints…

Cut 14 (14) “…keep fighting.”

Researchers at Tulane University are taking the lead on a vaccine to combat a little-known, potentially deadly illness. Jeanne Burns reports.

Cut 2 (35) “…I’m Jeanne Burns.”

The temperature swings of Louisiana winters have begun and LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says the latest drop starts today.

Cut 5 (07) “…along the coast.”

For most of the state, temperatures return to the 70s this weekend.

6:45 LRN Sportscast

The Saints won their fourth straight on Sunday as they rallied back from an early 13-point deficit to beat Tennessee 34 to 26. For the second straight week, rookie quarterback Tyler Shough threw for more than 300 yards as he threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns. Shough says the team was not down despite trailing by ten-points at halftime…

Cut 15 (13) “… great team win”

Coach Kellen Moore was impressed with Shough’s performance, who is now one of the favorites for NFL Rookie of the Year..…

Cut 19 (13) “…the right way”

New Orleans concludes the regular season on Sunday at noon against the Falcons.

______________________________________________

A highly anticipated 2025 LSU football season ended with a thud on Saturday night, losing to the Houston Cougars 38 to 35 in the Texas Bowl. Quarterback Michael Van Buren had a good showing in the loss, throwing for 267 yards and three touchdowns. Van Buren says he hopes he’ll be part of the 2026 Tigers…

Cut 17 (09) “…see what happens”

The transfer portal opens Friday and head coach Lane Kiffin will be looking at possibly signing multiple quarterbacks. The Tigers also need to rebuild their offensive and defensive lines.

The fifth-ranked LSU women’s basketball team finished off the non-conference portion of its schedule with another dominating victory, beating Alabama State 109 to 41 to go to 14-0. It’s the 11th time LSU has scored more than 100 points.

In men’s hoops. ULM fell to Kansas State 94 to 85 and the Cajuns defeated Norfolk State 63- to 54. Tonight McNeese is at second ranked Michigan.

6:30 AM Dec 29 LRN Newscast

Researchers at Tulane have taken the lead in developing a vaccine to protect against a little-known, yet potentially deadly tropical disease. Dr. Lisa Morici with the Tulane University School of Medicine says after ten years of development, she and her team have taken their meliodosis vaccine from discovery through pre-clinical testing to GMP manufacturing of drug substance.

Cut 10 (08) “…perhaps in Europe.”

Morici and her team’s findings are published in the journal “Nature Communications.”

The beautiful warm weather we’ve been enjoying is coming to an end. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says cold weather is here.

Cut 4 (09) “…Gulf Coast today.”

Highs for the next few days, highs are expected to be in the 50s and 60s with lows as low as the 20s for some northern parishes. Temperatures should return to the 70s for most of the state this weekend.

Hundreds of National Guard troops are set to deploy to cities throughout Louisiana. Jeff Palermo reports.

Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

The Saints fell behind 13-0, but rallied to take the lead in the fourth quarter and went on to beat Tennessee 34-26 for their fourth win in a row. Coach Kellen Moore has orchestrated the team’s longest winning streak in five years, but Moore gives credit to the players…

Cut 13 (09)  “…really special.”

The Saints conclude the regular season by visiting Atlanta and are looking to finish with a 7-10 record.