For the fifth straight season, the Saints lose their season opener as Tampa Bay came into the Mercedes Benz Superdome and shocked New Orleans 48-40. Bucs journeymen quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick had a career passing day with 417 passing yards and four touchdowns, he also rushed for 36 yards and a touchdown. The Saints came into the game as a 9.5 point favorite. Coach Sean Payton agreed with everyone else, the defense played poorly…
Cut 19 (13) “ many positives”
The Saints offense was in midseason form as Drew Brees threw for 439 yards and three touchcdown passes. Mike Thomas set a franchise record for most catches in a game, with 16 receptions for 180 yards and a score.

New Orleans will look to even up its record at 1-1 when they host Cleveland on Sunday. The Browns tied the Steelers 21-21.

We learned two things during LSU’s 31-0 win over Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday. The Tigers offensive line needs to improve and quarterback Joe Burrow will not slide to avoid contact…

cut 16 (04) “….will slide”
Coach Ed Orgeron says he would like to see Burrow slide, because there are only two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. 12th ranked LSU faces a big challenge this Saturday as they will visit 7th ranked Auburn.

ULM is 2-0 on the season thanks to a great defensive effort on Saturday in Hattiesburg that resulted in a 21-20 win over Southern Miss. The Warhawk defense produced five sacks and four turnovers. Coach Matt Viator says it feels good..
Cut 17 (12) “weapons”
Former Neville star Donald Louis had a big game with three tackles for a loss.

LSU and Southeastern Louisiana will meet on the football field for the first time since 1949 when the two schools face off in Tiger Stadium at 6 PM on Saturday. Both teams are led by Louisiana natives, Ed Orgeron for LSU and S-L-U’s Frank Scelfo is from Abbeville and has known Orgeron since high school…
Cut 16 (20) “ this week”
LSU is coming off a victory over Miami, while the Lions lost last week to ULM. But Southeastern Quarterback Chason Virgil threw for 358 yards. Orgeron says he’s impressed with the Fresno State transfer.
Cut 7 (10) “…well coached.”

Saturday will be a big day of intrastate matchups. Louisiana Tech will host Southern University. During the game, the Bulldogs will celebrate the first 50 years of football at Joe Aillet Stadium. In Natchitoches, Northwestern State takes on Grambling. The Tigers won this game last year 23-10. And Nicholls looks to beat an FCS school for a second straight week as they visit Tulane.

On Sunday, the Saints host Tampa Bay in the season opener. The Bucs will start Ryan Fitzpatrick at quarterback as Jameis Winston is suspended for the first three games for violating the league’s conduct policy. New Orleans defensive end Cam Jordan says Fitzpatrick usually played well in the beginning of the season when he was in Buffalo…
cut 20 (19) “…be great”
Kick-off Sunday is at noon.

The Saints go into Sunday’s season opener against Tampa Bay with just two running backs, Alvin Kamara and recently signed Mike Gillislee. Mark Ingram begins serving his four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy against performance enhancing drugs. Kamara on what he expects from the Bucs….
cut 19 (13) “….good game”
A Saints victory over Tampa Bay would put the Black and Gold up a full game over Atlanta after one week. The Falcons lost to the Eagles 18-12 last night. And ratings for the game show that the TV audience was bigger in New Orleans than Atlanta.

The LSU Board of Supervisors meets today and they’ll discuss putting up a statue outside of Alex Box Stadium of legendary baseball coach Skip Bertman. Bertman led the Tigers to five national championships and if it gets approval, construction would begin in November.

Southeastern Louisiana is not expected to keep it close tomorrow night when they face 11th ranked LSU. Lions Coach Chris Scelfo says the key to a good showing in Tiger Stadium is to practice well and then play the game like you practice
Cut 18 (20) “…goes on”
The L-S-U—S-L-U game is one of four intrastate matchups this weekend.

Also tomorrow, Louisiana Tech hosts Southern, Grambling State is at Northwestern State and Tulane will try to avoid the upset when they face Nicholls State.

Also on the schedule for tomorrow, McNeese is at Houston Baptist and ULM travels to Southern Miss.

In the SEC, 24th ranked South Carolina hosts third ranked Georgia. After beating Northwestern State last week, Texas A-and-M faces a much bigger challenge as they host second ranked Clemson.

Southeastern Louisiana will make the short drive over from Hammond tomorrow to take on the 11th ranked LSU Tigers. Lions Coach Chris Scelfo knows that players on his team from Louisiana are super excited to play in Tiger Stadium, but they have to realize it’s just one game…
cut 17 (20) “….the game”
There are several other intra-state games on the schedule tomorrow. Southern is at Louisiana Tech. It’s the second meeting all-time between the two schools. The Bulldogs beat Jaguars 62-15 in 2015.
Also this weekend, Grambling is at Northwestern State and Nicholls looks to knock off another F-C-S school when it visits Tulane.

The Saints have just two running backs on the roster for Sunday’s game season opener against Tampa Bay, but that could change. Coach Sean Payton admits they’ve never had just two running backs on the roster for a game and it will not be an easy thing to manage. Alvin Kamara is expected to get a bunch of touches, while recently signed Mike Gillislee will be asked to get yards on rushes between the tackles. Kick-off on Sunday is at noon.

And if the Saints win Sunday, they will be a full game up on Atlanta. The Falcons lost last night to Philadelphia 18-12. It was an ugly game as there 26 penalties, 15 of them committed by the Dirty Birds.

In high school football action last night, the top ranked team in Class 5A, John Curtis beat Dallas Bishop Lynch 21-14 in a game played at Independence Stadium in Shreveport. Oak Grove defeated Wossman 34-19 and Sam Houston clipped Cecilia 47-30.

And there’s a big story in college baseball, Oregon State Coach Pat Casey has announced his retirement. He led the Beavers to three national titles.

It appears LSU has a kicker they can count on this season. Cole Tracy hit all four of his field goal attempts in Sunday’s win over Miami, including a 54-yarder that tied a school record. Before he arrived at LSU, Tracy kicked at Division Two Assumption College in Massachusetts. Tracy says kicking in front of a much bigger crowd didn’t psych him out…
cut 30 (17) “…locked in”
Tracy will make his Tiger Stadium debut on Saturday when LSU hosts Southeastern Louisiana.

Sunday is the season opener for the Saints against the Bucs. Starting left guard Andrus Peat did not practice yesterday. Coach Sean Payton says Peat is day-to-day with a quadriceps injury.

ULM looks to improve to 2-0 on the season when they visit Southern Miss on Saturday. The Warhawks beat Southeastern Louisiana 34-31 last Thursday as ULM had 554 total yards. But Coach Matt Viator says there’s room for improvement
Cut 17 (19) “what we do”
ULM lost to Southern Miss 28-17 last season.

Peyton Manning and Les Miles highlight the 2019 class of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame. Former Southern baseball coach Roger Cador, Peabody basketball coach Charles Smith and former Louisiana Tech quarterback Matt Dunigan will also be enshrined next year. Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Foundation President Ronnie Rantz….
cut 16 (12) “…of three”
The 2019 class will be inducted on June 8th in Natchitoches.

The N-F-L season kicks off tonight with defending Super Bowl champs, Philadelphia hosting the Atlanta Falcons. New Orleans will take on Tampa Bay in the Dome on Sunday to begin its season. The Buccaneers were just 5-11 last season and won just one game on the road. But Quarterback Drew Brees says it’s never easy to play Tampa Bay…
cut 20 (18) “….for sure”
The Saints have released former Louisiana Tech running back Boston Scott. The team hopes he clears waivers so they can add Scott to the practice squad. Also starting left guard Andrus Peat did not practice yesterday as he battles a quadriceps injury.

LSU has announced they’ll use metal detectors at gates into Tiger Stadium on Saturday. By 2020, the SEC requires metal detectors at every gate.

After winning its season opener on Saturday, ULM looks to improve to 2-0 in Hattiesburg as the Warhawks face Southern Miss. ULM lost to the Golden Eagles 28-17 last season in a game where the Warhawks threw for just 112 yards. Coach Matt Viator says Southern Miss does a good job of creating chaos on defense…
cut 18 (18) “….it out”

The 2019 class of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame is headlined by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning and ex-LSU Coach Les Miles. Former Louisiana Tech quarterback Matt Dunigan and Peabody High School basketball coach Charles Smith are also in the class.

Former LSU star Alex Bregman hit a two-run homer last night and the Astros beat the Twins again nine to one.

In a surprising move, the Saints have reportedly waived former Louisiana Tech running back and Zachary native Boston Scott. Scott was on the 53-man roster after cut down day on Saturday after averaging over four yards a carry, while also showing pass catching and kick returning skills. But the re-signing of Michael Ola resulted in Scott’s departure.

LSU’s passing game remains a work in progress despite the team’s 33-17 win over Miami last weekend. There were dropped passes, poor protection and even quarterback Joe Burrow admits he made some mistakes. Burrow also says he didn’t mind just 24 pass attempts…
cut 18 (20) “…my ability”
The Tigers will can work more on the passing game this Saturday against Southeastern Louisiana.

Junior running back Jaqwis Dancy led the Bulldogs to victory last week as he averaged 10 yards a carry and finished with 144 yards and two touchdowns against South Alabama. Coach Skip Holtz says if Dancy stays healthy, he’ll rush for over 1,000 yards this season, which is remarkable considering he was diagnosed with cancer in 2016…
cut 20 (20) “…see Christmas”
Tech will host Southern in its season opener on Saturday.

Peyton Manning and Les Miles highlight the 2019 induction class for the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, which was announced today. They will be inducted next June.

And the Triple-A baseball team, the New Orleans Babycakes, are reportedly moving to Witchita, Kansas after the 2019 season.

11th ranked LSU will play the rest of the season without its top pass rusher as Coach Ed Orgeron says K’Lavon Chaisson suffered a knee injury in the win over the Miami Hurricanes
Cut 16 (20) “. that position”
Chaisson plays the “Buck” position in Dave Aranda’s defense. Sophomore Andre Anthony replaced Chaisson after he suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game.

The Saints are back at practice today getting ready for Sunday’s season opener against the Buccaneers. No Jameis Winston for Tampa Bay, he’s been suspended for the first three games, so 14-year veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick is set to start.

After beating South Alabama in Mobile, Louisiana Tech hosts Southern in the home opener this Saturday. Bulldogs Coach Skip Holtz likes playing in state schools
Cut 19 (18) “ we maket”
Holtz feels good about his run game after watching Jaqwis Dancy rush for 144 yards and two touchdowns last week against South Alabama.

The Pelicans have signed free agent guard Darius Morris. He most recently played for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League and averaged 19 points and eight assists a game. He was drafted in the second by the Lakers in 2011.

The Astros beat the Twins five to two last night. Alex Bregman had three doubles and drove in two runs as Justin Verlander won his 14th game.

Bad news for the LSU Tigers as Coach Ed Orgeron announced today that edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson will miss the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury in the season opening win over Miami. Chaisson is the team’s best pass rusher and needed assistance to get off the field in the fourth quarter on Sunday.

LSU certainly gained some respect with their 16 point win over previously eighth ranked Miami. In the AP poll, the Tigers moved up 14 spots to number 25. Quarterback Joe Burrow says projections of a 6-6 or five win season fueled the team in fall camp….
cut 18 (13) “…to it tonight”
LSU now prepares for the home opener on Saturday against the Southeastern Louisiana Lions.

The Saints season opener is Sunday against Tampa Bay. Nine months after tearing his Achilles tendon, defensive end Alex Okafor says hes’ ready for the season and believes his tendon is stronger than last year.

ULM Chief Administrative officer Scott McDonald has been named interim Athletics Director for ULM. McDonald is a former outfielder at the school and has spent 33 years in the financial services industry.

Louisiana Tech defensive back James Jackson has been named Conference USA defensive player of the week. Jackson had six tackles, half a sack, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in the Bulldogs road win over South Alabama. The Bulldogs host Southern this Saturday.

After its big win over Kansas on Saturday, Nicholls State has moved to 10th in the F-C-S Coaches Poll. McNeese also moved up a few spots after beating Northern Colorado. The Cowboys are ranked 14th. The Colonels are at Tulane this Saturday. McNeese is at Houston Baptist.

Many wondered if LSU had a 1,000 yard rusher on its roster, well Nick Brossette looked like that guy in the Tigers 33-17 win over the Miami Hurricanes. Brossette rushed for a career-high 125 yards and scored his first two touchdowns in college. The senior from Baton Rouge was behind Leonard Fournette and Derrius Guice during his first three seasons at LSU and knew he would get his shot
Cut 16 (14) “. season for him”
ESPN says the LSU-Miami game was the most watched football game of the weekend.

The Saints have released veteran linebacker Nate Stupar, even though he had a productive preseason camp coming off a torn ACL last year. New Orleans needed to let Stupar go so they can sign former Patriots running back Mike Gillislee.

After its big win over Kansas on Saturday, Nicholls State has moved to 10th in the F-C-S Coaches Poll. McNeese also moved up a few spots after beating Northern Colorado. The Cowboys are ranked 14th. The Colonels are at Tulane this Saturday. McNeese is at Houston Baptist.

Louisiana Tech defensive back James Jackson has been named Conference USA defensive player of the week. Jackson had six tackles, half a sack, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in the Bulldogs road win over South Alabama. The Bulldogs host Southern this Saturday.

Jaguars Coach Dawson Odums announced that John Lampley will start at quarterback again for Southern, even though he completed just five passes in a 55-7 loss to 16th ranked TCU.

The Pelicans have signed restricted free agent guard Tyrone Wallace to an offer sheet. Wallace averaged nearly 10 points and 4 rebounds and two assists in 30 games with the Clippers last season. Los Angeles has a couple days to match the offer.