The LSU Tigers won their season opener on Saturday, but a couple of their high-profile freshmen did not perform well in their collegiate debut. Leonard Fournette rushed for only 18 yards, while quarterback Brandon Harris couldn’t move the team in his only series of action. Coach Les Miles asks the fans not to be hard on them..:
CUT 16 (20) “a due process”
The Tigers moved up a spot in the coaches poll after their comeback victory over Wisconsin on Saturday. LSU, who return home this Saturday to face Sam Houston State, are now #12 in the poll after starting the season at 13.

If you’re going to the game this weekend, LSU reminds fans that they’ve adjusted traffic matters to include contraflow southbound on Nicholson Drive. Kickoff is 6:30pm.

The New Orleans Saints have re-signed place kicker Shayne Graham who had been with the club since late last season and through camp before being cut Saturday. The Black and Gold has also waived reserve QB Ryan Griffin.

According to new research out of Vanderbilt University, college football coaches are worth every penny of their high paid salaries because of the value they bring to the university. Study Co-Author Randall Thomas, a Vandy business and law professor, says many NCAA football programs are extremely valuable…:
CUT 4 (12) “of value”
LSU coach Les Miles gets $4.3 million a year and is the 7th highest paid coach. Study authors say you can’t look at a high number and wonder if Miles is worth that but rather his contract and whether it pays him based on the value he brings to the university.

LSU is ranked 12th in this week’s Associated Press and Coaches Top 25 poll, which came out today. The Tigers rallied to beat Wisconsin on Saturday night. Senior linebacker DJ Welter says Saturday’s win was a good learning experience as they get ready for their next opponent, Sam Houston State….
cut 18 (14) “…..on track”
Coach Les Miles said today that wide receiver Malachi Dupre, who missed the Wisconsin game because of an injury, is back at practice. and Miles says the four players who were suspended for the season opener have also returned to the team.

A statue to honor Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson was unveiled today on the steps leading into the Mercedes Benz Superdome. The statue has Benson holding the Lombardi Trophy above his head.

The Saints are back at practice tomorrow as they will get ready for Sunday’s season opener at Atlanta. Still no word on who will be kicking field goals for the Black and Gold. Veteran Shayne Graham and rookie Derek Dimke were with the kickers for the Saints during training camp, but both were cut last Saturday.

There are reports former SEC Defensive Player of the Year Michael Sam will be added the Dallas Cowboys practice squad. Sam, who is the NFL’s first openly gay player to be drafted, was cut by the Rams over the weekend and has been looking for a team since then.

LSU running back Kenny Hilliard was one of the offensive stars in the Tigers come from behind win over Wisconsin on Saturday night. Hilliard rushed for 110 yards and one touchdown and the senior from Patterson says if he continues to take care of his body, he’ll have more games like that…
cut 17 (10) “…for his team”
Wisconsin Head Coach Gary Andersen says his star running back Melvin Gordon had a hip flexor and that’s why he saw limited carries against LSU.

There’s a chance some Saints fans in New Orleans will not be able to watch Sunday’s season opener against the Falcons. That’s because the Fox Affiliate in New Orleans is currently dark on DirectTV. The two sides are in negoitations for the channel to return to Direct TV, but for right now agreement has been reached.

Looking ahead to Saturday’s college football schedule, there’s an interesting in-state match-up. Louisiana Tech will travel to down to Lafayette to play the Ragin Cajuns. Expect to see freshman Gabe Fuselier to see more playing time after catching a couple of passes in UL Lafayette’ win over Southern. Meanwhile, Bulldogs head coach Skip Holtz wants to see better play from his defense after they allowed Oklahoma to jump out to a 31-to-nothing lead last Saturday. The Sooners went on to win 48-16.

Southeastern Louisiana remains ranked number three in the latest FCS polls. The Lions opened the season on Saturday with an easy 44 to 3 win over Jacksonville. The Lions are back in action this Saturday as they host Southern Utah in a match-up of two teams who were in the FCS playoffs last season.

McNeese State is ranked sixth and seventh in the FCS polls. The Cowboys will kick-off their season on Saturday at nationally ranked Nebraska.

The first Louisiana Sports Writers Association high school football polls are out. Acadiana is ranked number one in 5A.

The first panel of honors by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association has been selected for the 2014 college football season. Kenny Hillard was named the Offensive Player of the Week. Hillard’s second half of rushing helped get the LSU offense rolling in the tigers 28-24 comeback win over Wisconsin on Saturday. ULM’s Mitch Lane, who also made the ESPN Sports Center Top 10 plays in their win over Wake Forest got Defensive Player of the week. And Special teams player of the week went to Louisiana-Lafayette punter Daniel Cadona who in the opening week got best average in the nation.

The top 25 teams in the Coaches Football Championship Subdivision polls are out. Southeastern Louisiana made the No 3 spot after their 44-3 win over Jacksonville over the weekend. McNeese State came in at NO.6. The Cowboys kick off their season Saturday at Nebraska.

The Saints are preparing for Sunday’s season opener against Atlanta. The Black and Gold signed ten players to their practice squad Monday, including former LSU and McNeese State tight end Nick Jacobs and safety Pierre Warren. Warren played well in the preseason with ten tackles and an interception. Practice squad players are not on team’s 53-man rosters but they do get paid to train as if they are. They can also be promoted to the full team and signed to the 53-man rosters of other teams.

Making big national news Monday in sports, the Houston Astros have fired manager Bo Porter in his second season with the club. Apparently GM Jeff Luhnow says it doesn’t have anything to do with the record this year, which is the second worst in the league, but they want to take things in a new direction. Tom Lawless has been named interim manager for the Astros.

LSU fans are still buzzing today about the Tigers come from behind win over Wisconsin Saturday night.  The Tigers offense didn’t do much in the first half, but by the end of the third quarter they were unstoppable.  LSU Associate Head Coach and Running Backs Coach Frank Wilson says some blocking adjustments on the offensive line helped…

cut 30 (10)  “frequently”

The Tigers will now get ready to play Sam Houston State, who has already played two games this season, winning one and losing the season opener to Eastern Washington.

The Saints are preparing for Sunday’s season opener against Atlanta.  The Black and Gold signed ten players to their practice squad today, including former LSU and McNeese State tight end Nick Jacobs and safety Pierre Warren.  Warren played well in the preseason with ten tackles and an interception.

Southeastern Louisiana remains ranked number three in the latest FCS polls.  The Lions opened the season on Saturday with an easy 44 to 3 win over Jacksonville.  The Lions are back in action this Saturday as they host Southern Utah in a match-up of two teams who were in the FCS playoffs last season.

McNeese State is ranked sixth and seventh in the FCS polls.  The Cowboys will kick-off their season on Saturday at nationally ranked Nebraska.  The Cornhuskers crushed Florida Atlantic this past Saturday 55 to 7.

ULM linebacker Mitch Lane was named the Sun Belt defensive player of the week.  Lane had six tackles against Wake Forest and returned an interception for a touchdown.  ULM held the Demon Deacons to just 94 total yards and the Warhawks currently rank second in the NCAA in sacks and is third in both rush defense and total defense.

In Major League Baseball, the Astros fired manager Bob Porter today.  Houston is 59-and-79, which is the fourth worst record in baseball.  Tom Lawless has been named interim manager.

The 2014 college football season is off to a thrilling start for the LSU Tigers. The Bayou Bengals rallied back from a 17-point third quarter deficit to beat Wisconsin 28-24. Associate Head Coach and running backs coach Frank Wilson says it was a great character win…:
CUT 12 (11) “times than not”
Anthony Jennings started at quarterback and played most of the game. He had a couple of shaky moments, but ended up throwing for 239 yards and two touchdowns. Wilson says the coaching staff is pleased with how the sophomore played..:
CUT 14 (11) “the ball”
The Tigers home opener Saturday against Sam Houston State kicks off at 6:30pm.

In other college football scores from around the state over the weekend, Southeastern Louisiana had no problem with Jacksonville as the Lions got the 44-3 victory. Louisiana Tech fell to Oklahoma 48-16. Nicholls lost to Air Force 44-16. Northwestern state loses to Missouri State 34-27.

UL-Lafayette put away Southern 45-6. Quarterback Terrance Broadway threw for three touchdowns and ran for another.

The New Orleans Saints have made roster cuts and the Black and Gold’s 53 man roster is set. On of the more notable cuts the Saints made included future Hall of Fame player Champ Bailey. At Wide Receiver the Saints cut veteran WR Robert Meachum. The guys open the 2014 season next Sunday in Atlanta as they take on the Falcons.

There are reports two potential starters on the LSU football team will not play in tomorrow night’s game against Wisconsin. Cornerback Rashard Robinson has reportedly been suspended, while wide receiver Malachi Dupree has an injured ankle and did not make the trip to Houston. LSU says they won’t comment on the reports.

A big crowd is expected at the newly refurbished Cajun field for Saturday night’s game between UL Lafayette and the Southern Jaguars. Ragin Cajuns Coach Mark Hudspeth says the Jags return a lot of key pieces from a team that won the SWAC last year….
cut 15 (10) “…best shot”
Also in Louisiana tomorrow night…the defending Southland champs, Southeastern Louisiana, will host Jacksonville at Strawberry Stadium. Nicholls State is at Air Force and Grambling travels to Lamar.

The Saints have until 3 o’ clock Saturday to reduce their roster to 53 players. That means 22 players who participated in Thursday night’s preseason finale will be cut. Coach Sean Payton says it’s a difficult situation for everyone involved…
cut 20 (28) “…difficult time”
Backup quarterback and kicker are two position battles that will be decided before the three o’ clock deadline.

ULM has started the college football season with a victory. The Warhawks rallied from a ten to nothing deficit on Thursday night to beat Wake Forest 17 to 10. The Warhawks are home again on September sixth, taking on Idaho.

The hype continues to build for tomorrow’s LSU game against the Wisconsin Badgers. Many Tiger fans are excited to see freshman running back Leonard Fournette in his first college game. But Fournette is not the only freshman who will play on offense. Wide receivers Malachi Dupre and Trey Quinn could catch a few passes, and freshman Q-B Brandon Harris is expected to get some snaps.

Louisiana Tech has a difficult challenge to begin the 2014 season as the Bulldogs are at third ranked Oklahoma tomorrow night. The game is listed as a sell-out in Norman and Bulldogs wide receiver Paul Turner says staying focused is the key when playing in front of 82-thousand fans….
cut 14 (16) “….put in place’
Tech is a 38-point underdog.

The Saints concluded the preseason last night with a 22 to 13 loss to Baltimore. Now Coach Sean Payton will decide which 22 players to cut from the active roster. Back-up quarterback and receiver are two of the bigger position battles. Veteran Robert Meachem could be cut loose, he caught one passe for 52 yards last night. Luke McCown and Ryan Griffin have been competing to be Drew Brees’ back-up. Griffin was 11 of 21 for 126 yards yesterday, while McCown completed all four of his passes.

In college football last night….Pete Thomas’ nine-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter gave ULM a 17-10 win over Wake Forest last night. At one point, ULM trailed ten to nothing.

Northwestern State had a 17-point halftime lead, but lost to Missouri State 34 to 27. And Tulsa defeated Tulane 38 to 31 in double overtime. It’s the Green Wave’s 16th straight defeat in games played outside of Louisiana.

Two Louisiana teams begin the college football season tomorrow against Top 25 opponents. The 13th ranked Tigers will face 14th ranked Wisconsin at a neutral site in Houston. LSU Coach Les Miles says the plan is to play two quarterbacks, Brandon Harris and Anthony Jennings, but that could change depending how the game goes:
CUT 13 (10) “right there”
Louisiana Tech is also facing a Top 25 team as the Bulldogs will visit third ranked Oklahoma tomorrow night. And a big crowd is expected at the newly refurbished Cajun field for Saturday night’s game between UL Lafayette and the Southern Jaguars.

Last night ULM got a nice victory. The Warhawks beat Wake Forest 17-10 at JPS Field in Malone Stadium. ULM trailed at the half 10-0 before rallying for 17 unanswered points on Wake Forest in Monroe. The Warhawks next host Idaho on September 6th.

The defending the Southland Conference champion Southeastern Louisiana Lions kickoff the 2014 season by hosting Jacksonville on Saturday night in Strawberry Stadium. The Lions are coming off an 11-and-3 season and their first playoff appearance on the F-C-S level. Coach Ron Roberts to get back to the playoffs they need to start the year with a victory:
CUT 16 (23) “the road”
The game kicks off tonight at 8pm.

The Saints lost their final preseason game last night to the Ravens by a score of 22-13. Quarterback Drew Brees did not play but backup Luke McCown completed all four of his passes. The Black and Gold begin the regular season next Sunday in Atlanta.

The college football season kicks off tonight in Louisiana with a couple of games in the Bayou State. At six P-M, the Warhawks will host Wake Forest at Malone Stadium. The Demon Deacons have a new head coach by the name Dave Clawson, so ULM head coach Todd Berry says they are not exactly sure what Wake Forest will do tonight….
cut 18 (21) “…to adjust”

Tulane will play its first ever game in the American Athletic Conference as the Green Wave is at Tulsa. Northwestern State opens the season at home tonight against Missouri State. The Demons won last year’s match-up with the Bears 23-17.

The Saints wil close out the preseason tonight by hosting the Baltimore Ravens at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The starters are expected to play only a few plays, if at all. Several position battles will continue to unfold tonight especially at back-up quarterback, reserve wide receiver and kicker.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell admitted today that he didn’t get right when he suspended Ravens running back Ray Rice for two games after he allegedly struck a woman who he later married inside a casino elevator. Goodell says the Personal Conduct Policy has been changed and now a player will be subject to a six game suspension for a first offense domestic violence situation. A second offense will result in a one-year suspension.

The son of former LSU Coach Gerry Dinardo has been arrested in Baton Rouge. Michael Dinardo is a 21-year-old student at LSU and an arrest affidavit says several plastic bags of weed and two firearms were found at his residence.