The U-S men’s soccer team begins play tonight in the Word Cup as they face Paraguay. The United States will also face Australia and Turkey later this month in group play. Paul Boron (bore-ON) who does reporting for the Louisiana Soccer Association, says the Americans can certainly score, but have questions on defense…

Cut 11 (07) “…is a possibility”

USA’s matchup with Paraguay is set for 8 p.m. in Los Angeles.

The LSU men’s basketball program has officially announced four transfer portal additions to the roster. They are three-point specialist Abdi Bashir (OBB-dee- BUH-sheer) from Kansas State, SEC veteran forward Mo Dioubate (dee-OH-bah-tay) from Kentucky, former U-T-S-A guard Austin Nunez and six-three guard Divine Ugochukwu (oo-go-CHOO-koo) from Michigan State.

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A second baseman who played four seasons at Florida has committed to LSU. Cade Kurland was a freshman All-American in 2023 when he hit 17 home runs. Kurland hit 14 more home runs his sophomore campaign but was limited the last two seasons with shoulder and oblique injuries. Kurland could still decide to turn pro if he’s selected high enough in next month’s M-L-B draft.

The College World Series gets underway today in Omaha. The first game of the day is at 1 PM as West Virginia takes on Troy and then at six o’ clock tonight, Ole Miss faces North Carolina. Former LSU star and ESPN college baseball analyst Todd Walker says it’s a wide-open C-W-S…

Cut 18 (18) “…85-percent”

The Tigers are welcoming Notre Dame outfielder Bino Watters to Baton Rouge. LSU was in a heated recruiting battle with Texas and Texas A&M for the top-rated transfer, but Jay Johnson and his staff were able to land the slugger to address some glaring needs in the outfield next season. D1Baseball’s Bradley Smart says he can be a day one starter for the Tigers.

Cut 18 (14) “…production out of.”

Watters joins a transfer class that already has a top pitcher in Gonzaga lefty Landon Hood and a defensive ace in Texas State infielder Dawson Park.

The SEC announced start times for some of LSU’s conference football matchups this season. LSU will have a night trip to Kentucky, host Mississippi State in the early window, visit Auburn at 11 a.m. and close out the season with an early game at Arkansas. Matchups with Texas A&M, Alabama, Tennessee, and Texas were all given flex start times between 3:30 and 8 p.m.

Former Saints head coach Sean Payton signed a new contract with the Broncos that keeps him in Denver for the next five years. Payton led Denver to a 14-and-3 season and an AFC Championship game appearance last year. He has a 32-and-19 record with the team since New Orleans traded his contract rights in 2023.

The son of LSU baseball legend Eddy Furniss, Will Furniss, is following in his dad’s footsteps at the College World Series. While he won’t be wearing purple and gold, Will has led Ole Miss to Omaha in his senior season. The first baseman hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth to clinch a Super Regional win over Auburn. Eddy says that’s just who he is.

Cut 12 (13) “…get it done.”

The Rebels’ first game in Omaha is set for 6 p.m. tomorrow against UNC.

LSU landed one of the most sought-after talents in the transfer portal in Notre Dame outfielder Bino Watters. The Michigan native hit .362 with 10 homers, 51 RBI and a .610 slugging percentage his sophomore season with the Irish. Bradley Smart covers the ACC for D1Baseball and says he’s only gotten better each year in South Bend.

Cut 16 (17) “…pickup for LSU.”

The Louisiana Sports Writers Association announced its Class 5A All-State baseball and softball teams. In baseball, Hahnville third baseman/pitcher Koa Romero won Most Outstanding Player, and Dutchtown’s Chris Schexnaydre was named Coach of the Year. The Most Outstanding Player in softball was West Monroe’s Evie West, and the Coach of the Year was Pineville head coach Allison Frye.

The Saints will rely on a young secondary this year. At outside corner, Kool-Aid McKinstry was a second-round pick in the 2024 draft, and Quincy Riley was a fourth-rounder last year who saw significant snaps. Safety Jonas Sanker turned heads as a rookie filling in for an injured Julian Blackmon last year, and McKinstry says he’s made great progress replacing Alontae Taylor at slot corner this season.

Cut 20 (18) “…same exact way.”

LSU javelin thrower Jack Larriviere earned bronze at the NCAA Championships last night with a clutch final throw of 77.91 meters. Sprinter Jaiden Reid qualified for the finals in both the 200 meter and 100 meter. He ran a personal best 9.95 in the 100 semifinal, the third fastest time in LSU history.

LSU baseball needs contact hitters and a veteran presence in the outfield. Coach Jay Johnson found someone who can handle both roles when it was announced on Wednesday that First Team All-ACC selection Bino Watters committed to the Tigers. Watters entered the transfer portal after a sensational sophomore season at Notre Dame. He hit .362 with 10 home runs and 51 RBIs in 53 games for the Irish in 2026. He struck out only 37 times. ACC Reporter for D-1 Baseball, Bradley Smart, had this scouting report…

Cut 17 (16) “…..do damage on”

Watters hits from the left side, will likely bat in the middle of the order and play either left or right field.

Today is the final day of Organized Team Activities for the Saints before the team holds a minicamp next week. Head Coach Kellen Moore praised the confidence his team has gained as the offseason has gone on. He says one player that’s stood out is free agent running back Travis Etienne.

Cut 19 (19) “…rotating as much.”

Veteran running back Alvin Kamara attended just one OTA session, but is expected to participate in mini-camp.

We got more information yesterday about LSU’s upcoming football schedule. The SEC home opener against Texas A&M will kick off in the afternoon or night. The same flex schedule exists for the Alabama, Texas, and Tennessee games. Going to the Kentucky game. That will be a night kick-off. Mississippi State is either 11 AM or noon, while Auburn is set for an 11 AM kick-off.

Saints head coach Kellen Moore gave an update on contract negotiations with defensive end Cameron Jordan.

Cut 16 (17) “…rock and roll.”

This is the first time in Jordan’s 15-year career in New Orleans he’s been a free agent. The 36-year-old led the team with 10-and-a-half sacks last season. The Saints will wrap up the final day of OTAs tomorrow before mandatory veteran minicamp kicks off next week.

LSU earned a commitment from top portal outfielder Bino Watters. The rising junior from Notre Dame chose the Tigers over Texas and Texas A&M. He hit .362 with 10 home runs and 51 RBIs as the Irish left fielder this year.

McNeese senior pitcher Eric Nachtsheim was named a Second-Team All-American by Perfect Game. The Reno-native set a program record with 129 strikeouts this season and just 21 walks in 93 innings. He was also named the Southland Relief Pitcher of the year and was an All-Conference First-team selection after going 8-and-4 with a 3.39 ERA. Nachtsheim was a second-team selection for the American Baseball Coaches Association D-I South All-Region team.

Eight other Louisiana college players earned All-Region honors. LSUI catcher Cade Arrambide, shortstop Steven Milam and outfielders Jake Brown and Derek Curiel joined Louisiana Tech first baseman Trey Hawsey on the first team. UL Lafayette catcher Colt Brown and pitcher Cody Brasch earned second-team selections along with ULM third baseman Kade Dupont.

Six LSU baseball players will be competing in summer collegiate baseball leagues. Gavin Guidry, Ethan Plog and Reagan Ricken will pitch against one another in the Cape Cod League while outfielder William Patrick and infielder Jack Ruckert team up on the Healdsburg Prune Packers in the Pacific Empire League.

LSU landed one of the top prospects in the college baseball transfer portal in Notre Dame outfielder Bino Watters. The lefty batter hit .362 with 10 home runs and 18 doubles as a sophomore last season and was named First-Team All-ACC. He joins a transfer class with Gonzaga pitcher Landon Hood and Texas State infielder Dawson Park.

A little league team in the north suburbs of Pittsburgh got a surprise visit from the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Monday evening. Paul Skenes was driving by Ingomar Franklin Park when he saw the lights on for a little league practice and decided to check it out. Eddie Dubis, a coach in the league and father of two of the kids, says it wasn’t long before 6-6 superstar was noticed. He says Skenes stayed to take pictures, sign autographs and play catch for two hours and made a lifelong memory for his kids.

Cut 4 (09) “…about it.”

Skenes followed the visit with a start against the Dodgers last night where he allowed just six hits and two runs in six innings and struck out seven in one of his best outings in nearly a month. The Pirates lost 12-3.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries announced a new experimental black-bellied whistling duck season starting this year. LDWF Waterfowl Program Manager Jason Olszak says the season will run from October 3rd to the 11th and will offer hunters the opportunity to exclusively target the species.

Cut 13 (06) “…next four years.”

Shooting hours for the special season will be sunrise to sunset. The daily bag limit is four ducks with a possession limit of 12.

Loyola University in New Orleans is making the move from NAIA to Division Two in the fall of 2027. The Wolfpack will compete in the Gulf South Conference. Vice president of the GSC board Daniel Ennis says Loyola is joining the SEC of D-II.

Cut 17 (12) “…accomplish both.”)

Loyola men’s basketball won a national championship in 2022 and it’s baseball team was in the NAIA World Series last spring.

Good outing for former LSU star Paul Skenes versus the two-time defending World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers last night. Skenes allowed two runs in six innings and struck out seven, but the Pirates bullpen was awful, and L-A won 12 to 3. The night before, Skenes did a really cool thing by spending two hours at a Pittsburgh Little League field playing catch and signing autographs and providing the thrill of a lifetime for the kids.

WRAL News in Raleigh is reporting that North Carolina State is investigating whether LSU violated the Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act in its hiring of men’s basketball coach Will Wade. N-C State believes LSU may have worked to help Wade avoid a larger buyout fee. Wade paid a four-million dollar buyout. His contract called for him to pay a five-million dollar buyout if he left before April 1st. Wade was announced as LSU’s coach on March 26th.

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The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will hold a special black-bellied whistling duck season that will run from October third to the 11th. Hunters can target black-bellied whistling ducks during the regular duck hunting season that runs from November into January, but LDWF Waterfowl Program Manager Jason Olszak says surveys indicate there is also an opportunity to harvest black bellied whistling ducks in early October…

Cut 14 (08) “…earlier in the year”

Hunters see Black-bellied whistling ducks during the September teal season and their numbers decline in the fall because they migrate to Mexico and Central America by early to mid-fall.

Loyola University in New Orleans is moving from N-A-I-A to Division Two and will compete in the Gulf South Conference starting in the Fall of 2027. The  move to Division Two will attract better athletes. Men’s basketball won an NAIA championship in 2022 and baseball was in the NAIA World Series last spring.

We’re a week away from mandatory veteran mandatory minicamp, and defensive end Cameron Jordan is still a free agent. The Saints allowed the 36-year-old to hit the open market for the first time in his fifteen-year career this offseason. Jordan led the team with ten-and-a-half sacks last season, and his pass rush partner Chase Young told NFL Network he’s a difference maker on and off the field.

Cut 16 (13) “…in the building.”

Young is expected to join seventh-year edge rusher Carl Granderson as the week one starters.

UL Lafayette welcomed another round of recruiting commitments after hosting visits this weekend. Three-star University Lab defensive lineman Maison Smith and St. Thomas Moore Safety Landen Ortte decided to stay in-state. The Cajuns added Texas-native Caleb White at corner. UL’s 2027 class now features 7 commits and ranks second in the Sun Belt.

Vandebilt Catholic swept the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Class 4A awards. Sophomore Corey Bourgeois was baseball’s Most Outstanding Player, hitting. 547 with 43 RBIs, 13 doubles, three triples and four home runs. He was also 6-and-3 as a pitcher with a 2.60 ERA and 45 strikeouts. The Most Outstanding Player in softball was senior Lauren Baudoin. The Nicholls State signee was 20-and-1 in the circle with 172 strikeouts and a 1.28 ERA in 125 innings. She also hit .402 with six home runs and led the Terriers to their third straight state title.

Ex-LSU star Joe Burrow restructured his contract to clear up ten-million-dollars in cap space for the Bengals. The move is partially due to the trade Cincinnati made for Giants All-Pro D-tackle Dexter Lawrence before the draft.

Former Louisiana Tech star L’Jarius Sneed is returning to Kansas City on a one-year five-million-dollar deal. The corner was drafted in the fourth round by the Chiefs in 2020 and played a pivotal role in their two Super Bowls. He was traded to the Titans in 2024 and inked a four-year deal that was cut short due to injuries.

LSU doubled the size of its 2027 recruiting class in the last few days. The Tigers added five-star edge rusher KJ Green and four-star wideout Cade Cooper

LSU also earned a commitment from three-star running back Brennan Lacey over the weekend. Lacey is a 6-foot-1, 187-pound speedster out of Frisco, Texas who has been shooting up recruiting boards. Andre Champagne of 247Sports says the only reason he’s only a three-star is that he started his high school career as a wide receiver.

Cut 17 (17)  “…in the offense.”

Northwestern State left-handed pitcher Brody Trosclair announced he’d be transferring to Tennessee. The Southland Conference Freshman of the Year also made visits to LSU and Arkansas.

LSU kept three-star Northwest High School cornerback Markez Davis in the state. Northwest football coach Chris Edwards says when Davis was in the sixth grade, his junior high coach told him he would change the Northwest program one day. Edwards has been the Raiders’ head coach for 13 years and is an Opelousas native. He says he can’t remember another Power Four commit from the school.

Cut 20 (15) “…for the program.”

Coastal Carolina head baseball coach Kevin Schnall has been hired as the new head coach for South Carolina. Schnall has a 93-and-36 record with the Chanticleers and led them to the championship series of the College World Series against LSU in his first season last year. He led the Chants to a regional appearance this year and has been a candidate for the South Carolina job since Paul Mainieri left midseason.

One of the state’s top high school football players has given his verbal pledge to the LSU Tigers. Markez Davis from Northwest High School in St. Landry Parish has committed to the Tigers. He’s ranked by 247 sports as the 15^th best player in the state and is listed as an athlete, but is expected to play cornerback at LSU.

Northwest head coach Chris Edwards says Davis has mostly played receiver for the Raiders, but he can see why LSU sees him as a cornerback…

Cut 19 (18) “….off from there”

Davis will be the first player from Northwest High School to sign with a Power Four school. Houston, Texas Tech and West Virginia are also after the three-star recruit.

LSU football received a commitment from four-star wide receiver Cade Cooper. He’s six-foot-three, 192 pounds and is ranked as the tenth best prospect in the state of Pennsylvania. 247 sports LSU recruiting analyst Andre Champagne (Shom-pine) says Cooper possess unique traits…

Cut 18 (19) “…able to flourish”

LSU’s 2027 class now has eight commitments and is ranked 44^th in the country by 247 sports.

In college baseball portal news…two pitchers from Marshall are transferring to the Ragin Cajuns. Blaine Albright, who had an ERA close to eight and Charlie Krebs, who had 3 saves and an ERA just over six are headed to Lafayette so they can be coached again by Cajuns pitching coach Tyler Sandefur.