The Reveille 11-17-22

LSU graduate student hosts safety forum with LSUPD, BRPD and community officials.

LSUReveille.com

SAFETY FORUM

Student hosts forum to address Baton Rouge safety concerns

BY GABBY JIMENEZ @gvjimenezz

Mathematics graduate student Jake Weber hosted a safety forum in the Student Union Monday in collaboration with the Graduate Student Association for an open discussion about safety concerns within the LSU and Baton Rouge community.

Weber, who is from Waterloo, Iowa, and previously attended the University of Northern Iowa, said he felt the impacts of crime more while at LSU.

“The number of occurrences that were serious crimes in a row really stood out to me. I mean, I was burglarized at the beginning of August…between that we had a shooting, a kidnapping during the first week…I said, ‘oh my gosh, we need to look at doing something,’ because I’ve definite ly been brought up in the way that you can’t complain about anything if you’re not willing to try to make a difference your self,” Weber said.

Weber met with Council Mem ber Carolyn Coleman in Septem ber to discuss his concerns, who then encouraged him to create the forum.

The panelists included Cole man of District 10, which cov ers the 70802 zip code; Myron Daniels, Baton Rouge Police De partment Administrative Chief; Bart Thomson, Chief of Police at LSU Police Department; MayorPresident of East Baton Rouge Parish Sharon Weston Broome; and Jazzika Matthews, director of operations with the Office of the Mayor-President.

Patrol Division Captain Regi nald Berry with LSUPD and Abbi Rocha Laymoun with LSU’s Office of Communications and Univer sity Relations were also present.

The forum was held in a townhall style format, with Weber leading the discussion. The pan elists began by explaining what measures they currently have in place to promote safety within the community.

Coleman said she participates in various events to see what problems are affecting her con stituents, and she wanted to help solve the issues students were concerned about.

“Don’t look around at who’s not here, look at who is here –and we’ve only just begun…I am here to hear,” Coleman said.

Thompson said that the com munity outreach approach LSU Police started four years ago has been “a huge success” so far. Part of the effort includes having of ficers go out into the community and meet with student organiza tions.

Berry said LSU Police is con stantly working with Greek Life, the largest group on campus, and encourages other student organi zations to reach out to them.

“Anybody with time for us to

FRANCIS DINH / The Reveille Panelists sit Nov. 14, during the LSU/ BR Safety Forum in Magnolia Room 301 in the LSU Student Union.

be there, we’ll be there. We don’t have to be in charge, we just want to listen and bring the in formation back and see what we can do to make our campus safe and secure,” Thompson said.

Thompson also said lighting on campus was one of the big gest ways to make students feel safe, and currently, they’re go ing “in the right direction” with progress. He said that there are currently 25 portable light trail ers around campus that will tem porarily illuminate the area until construction is completed.

LSU Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer Kimberly Lewis said they plan to have the lighting project complet ed by the summer of 2023.

Thompson also emphasized cameras as being one of the big gest deterrents against crime, noting that LSU has over 1,700 security cameras on campus monitored by officers. Thomp son also encouraged students to download the LSU Shield app so students could contact them as quickly as possible.

“[LSU Police] could be any where in three minutes…if you see something, say something,” Thompson said.

Daniels outlined BRPD’s stra tegic plan, which he said focused on four core areas: reducing vio lent crime, civic engagement and partnership, leveraging use of technology, and effective and ef ficient police service.

Daniels noted a change in pol icy which now allows officers to

work in Tigerland.

“For a very long time we wouldn’t allow police officers to work at bars and clubs. It was because we knew we had an is sue and we couldn’t fix it that we actually amended our policy to allow it,” Daniels said. “So when you see that increased person nel over there, that goes back to a change in policy but also the collaboration with our business community as well as our univer sity to help in any way that we could.”

An audience member from the Freshman Leadership Council said it was “scary” to hear about the crime on campus and asked the BRPD and LSU Police repre sentatives how they were keep ing officers accountable.

“We hold ourselves account able for crime…we set bench marks for ourselves within our individual divisions,” Daniels said.

Thompson said that all LSU Police officers who deal with the public wear body cameras, and all campus crime statistics are re ported on the LSU website under the Clery Act.

“We’re not perfect, but we’re going to do the best we can,” Thompson said.

When asked about the recent bi-annual report on Power-Based Violence that came out earlier this month, Thompson said the number of reports increased as victims became more comfort able coming forward.

“The better job we do, those

numbers will then go up because then I think the victims and sur vivors are more comfortable in reporting…And the changes in Title IX, the things that we’ve [put] in place because of the numbers, you’re going to see those numbers and hopefully at some point yes, that starts going down,” Thompson said “...So we do look at those numbers…We look at all that and that’s how we determine where we put more of ficers, where we put more light.”

During the meeting, Weston Broome brought up the shoot ing at the University of Virginia and the alleged homicides at the University of Idaho that occurred over the weekend.

“This is a timely discussion, unfortunately, because of what just happened with two universi ties yesterday, University of Vir ginia, students at the University of Idaho, so the security and safe ty of our college community…is a top priority,” Weston Broome said. “...Your feedback is vitally important to whatever we do to address safety for our students.”

Weber said he felt the forum was a success, and he hopes to continue active communication between the panelists and the LSU community.

“I hope through this event, I’ve been part of that agent of change for students. I hope I’ve been part of that agent of change for these administrators, saying what needs to be done, what can be done and who to partner with,” Weber said.

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CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS

The Reveille holds accuracy and objectivity at the highest priority and wants to reassure its readers the reporting and content of the paper meets these standards. This space is reserved to recognize and correct any mistakes that may have been printed in The Daily Reveille. If you would like something corrected or clarified, please contact the editor at (225) 578-4811 or email editor@lsu.edu.

ABOUT THE REVEILLE

The Reveille is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. A single issue of The Reveille is free from multiple sites on campus and about 25 sites off campus. To obtain additional copies, please visit the Office of Student Media in B-39 Hodges Hall or email studentmedia@ lsu.edu. The Reveille is published biweekly during the fall, spring and summer semesters, except during holidays and final exams. The Reveille is funded through LSU students’ payments of the Student Media fee.

FIRST IN SEC

LSU Police Department implements soft interview room

BY CHANDLER MCINTOSH & MORGAN CHARLES @ GeauxChandler18 & Morgan_Charless

The LSU Police Department became the first in the SEC to implement a soft interview room with the help of Project Beloved, according to LSU Sergeant Sarah Drake.

Drake said she has been in terviewing victims in the soft in terview room at the LSU Police Department for the past eight months. She said that the room of fers victims an inviting setting dif ferent from a police station.

“If you’re walking in the halls of the police department, it seems cold. It seems hard,” Drake said. “We wanted to create a room that will calm victims’ nerves.”

She said that the decorations donated by Tracy Matheson, founder of Project Beloved, such as weighted blankets, soft chairs and dimly lit lamps, are in place for a survivor of an attack to feel comfortable talking with police.

In addition to being the first in the SEC, Drake said LSU Police is 44th in the nation to implement a soft interview room. She hopes that LSU will be a catalyst for oth er schools in the SEC and the na tion to implement soft interview rooms for students.

Anyone who reports a crime can enter the soft interview room,

ACADEMIC

according to LSUPD Officer Kim Bass.

“This room serves as a place for someone to speak about a sexual assault or a vehicle bur glary,” Bass said. “The more infor mation someone tells [detectives], the more we are able to help and prevent further crimes from oc curring.”

Matheson, the founder of Proj ect Beloved, lost her daughter, Molly Jane, to rape and murder on April 10, 2017.

After Molly’s death, she learned everything she could about sexual assault, the investigation of sexual

assault, trauma and how they are all woven together. She did this through reading, watching videos and attending training sessions surrounding the topic.

The pain Matheson and her family felt is what started Project Beloved, a nonprofit with a vision to create “a world where survivors of sexual assault are heard and be lieved, perpetrators are prosecut ed, and justice is served.”

“Project Beloved is a nonprofit that I founded in the aftermath of the rape and murder of my daugh ter, Molly Jane,” Matheson said. “Our mission statement is that we

strive to educate, advocate, and collaborate to change the conver sation about sexual assault and empower survivors to find their voices.”

One of Project Beloved’s main initiatives is working with law en forcement agencies to install soft interview rooms in various loca tions across the nation, Matheson said. By the end of 2022, they will have installed 57 soft interview rooms across the nation.

“We have a couple at an air force base, we’ve done some for

page 4

STUDENT LIFE ISA hosts Festival of Nations

BY MADISON SCOTT @madscottyy

Students gathered on Friday and Sunday for the Festival of Na tions, a two-day event celebrat ing international cultures with a variety of events such as a tugof-war tournament, a formal ball, food, dancing and the launch of a magazine.

Graduate student Ritu Ghose, president of the LSU International Student Association, is from Ban gladesh and planned the event alongside members of her orga nization and was excited to an nounce the launch of the asso ciation’s first magazine at Friday’s festival event.

The magazine, Continental Fu sion, aggregates content from in ternational students and student leaders. It also contains messages from Executive Vice President and Provost Roy Haggerty, as well as Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School James Nguyen H. Spencer.

Through a variety of literature such as poems, short stories and book reviews, the 48-page maga zine shares perspectives from different countries and cultures across the globe. According to Ghose, the magazine has been in

page 4

LSU set to oversee development of Louisiana Space Campus

BY CORBIN ROSS @CorbinRoss5

LSU will be one of the ma jor partners in the development of the Louisiana Space Campus, a central hub for space-related industrial developments in the state, according to Bob Fudickar, executive director of the National Center for Advanced Manufactur ing.

“The cool thing about the campus is that anything that is generated from that campus, as in revenues or free cash flow, stays on campus to further re-invest in that property to continue the mis sion of NASA or the mission of any business or industry coming in there,” Fudickar said.

The Space Campus was an nounced in a March 10, 2021, press release by Governor John Bel Edwards. According to the press release, the campus will target commercial office develop ment for tenants of the Michoud Assembly Center, a New Or leans facility where NASA builds crewed rockets. The press release reads that it will seek to bring in new partners from both the com

mercial and private sectors.

“It’ll really be the driver for a lot of economic responses both current and new and unknown, frankly, some of it will be un known,” Fudickar said.

LSU will be the administrator of the Space Campus, facilitat ing it in the educational arena as well as a training and workforce development operation. Accord ing to Fudickar, LSU decides who runs the administration of the campus.

Additionally, Fudickar said there will be a large educational component to the Space Campus. He said they will attempt to train and develop the skills of a future generation of prospective engi neers.

LSU’s involvement in the Space Campus will open up many opportunities for LSU students to receive direct knowledge of what goes into building rockets, Fudickar said, as well as opening research opportunities for LSU faculty and students as well.

The Space Campus will be lo cated in a 50-acre plot near the heart of the 829-acre Michoud As

sembly Facility. According to Fu dickar, many of the buildings at Michoud date back to the 1940s, so the more modern Space Cam pus will likely be very appealing to companies like Boeing and Lockheed Martin to move their offices to the Space Campus.

Companies operating in the Space Campus will allow LSU students to interact with them directly, possibly opening up in ternships or career opportunities for them.

According to Fudickar, Mi choud has also courted SpaceX and Blue Origins before but their buildings currently aren’t up to the specifications they need. He said providing the Space Campus with a variety of new buildings could change that, adding that it may attract new aerospace com panies that may crop up in the future.

“We absolutely want to make a very attractive reason for those companies to migrate and pop ulate, in the aerospace world, here,” Fudickar said.

He said the Space Campus aims to have various office spaces at first, but he said as it evolves,

they hope to add manufacturing to the complex.

Fudickar said the Governor’s goal for the Space Campus is to expand job opportunities in the state and to increase Louisiana’s presence in the space industry, with $40 million being devoted to the Space Campus.

The state, according to Fu dickar, is set to cover half and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, a nonprofit which seeks to further develop the state, will cover the

other half of the price tag.

Physics professor Jeffrey Chan cellor said the Space Campus has the potential to bring in a lot of new research-based innovation to the state. He said this could allow LSU to have a larger influence on space industries and have a great er role to play in space-related in dustries and future missions.

“Everybody’s trying to jump into space now. Everybody. This could really be a huge impact,” Chancellor said.

see SAFE ROOM,

COURTESY OF BOB FUDICKAR Artist’s rendering of the planned Space Campus.

FRANCIS DINH/ The Reveille

LSUPD’s Soft Interview Room sits on Nov. 8 inside the Louisiana State University Police Department headquar ters on S. Stadium Drive. see FESTIVAL,

the works since September.

“You have stories from some one who is in Pakistan and then from someone who is from Co lumbia,” Ghose said. “It will give you a different flavor when you read it.”

There are students from all over the world at LSU, Ghose said, and it’s important for them to feel as included as domestic students. She believes the Festival of Nations created an inclusive environment.

“It’s important to promote di versity because there are students at LSU from all over the world,” Ghose said. “[There] may not be a large number from each coun try, but there are students, and they have to feel inclusive as well

SAFE ROOM, from page 3

the Department of Homeland Se curity, we’re going to be doing a room for the FBI next year, sher iff’s departments and local police departments around the country as well,” Matheson said.

Now that there’s a better un derstanding of trauma and sex ual assault, there is a best prac tice called a “trauma-informed response,” Matheson said. This means anyone who interacts with a victim should add to the victim’s comfortability, not the opposite.

as the domestic students need to know about the culture of their peers.”

This creates an inclusive envi ronment, she said, which was the goal of the magazine.

Ghose invited other interna tional clubs to set up information booths and activities at the festi val, all of which was funded by SG. The event hosted over 250 at tendees, she said.

Graduate student Hemanthie Wickramasinghe is a member of the Sri Lankan student associa tion at LSU. She had a booth with informational pamphlets about Sri Lanka and hosted an activity where students learned to write their name in the Sri Lanakan al phabet.

She said she’s passionate about learning other cultures and

One component of this response is a soft interview room.

“Now we know better and so we need to do better,” Matheson said. “Part of doing better is pro viding a trauma-informed space, like a soft interview room. It has to be more than just a soft inter view room, you have to be trained in what it means to conduct an investigation that is trauma-in formed.”

Heather Tatom, a volunteer for Project Beloved, understands the importance of sexual assault ad vocacy. Tatom is a sexual assault

is grateful for getting the oppor tunity to teach people about her own culture.

“Most of the students [who] visited our booth were not aware of our country, Sri Lanka,” Wick ramasinghe said. “So we were able to inform them about our country.”

Wickramasinghe’s favorite part about the event was the game of tug-of-war, which is a Sri Lankan national game, she said.

“There are cultures out there which will have common ele ments as your culture, and it is fascinating to learn how they could have common things even if they are not related to each oth er,” she said.

Toyin Adebamiji, the president of the African Student Organiza tion, was born in the U.S. but

survivor that found Project Be loved when it delivered “Beloved Bundles” on the one-year anniver sary of Molly Jane’s death to the Tarrant County Women’s Center, where she volunteers as a Victim’s Advocate.

“[Beloved Bundles] are back packs with clothing and hygiene items that we hand out to victims that we go to the hospital to vis it,” Tatom said. “This was the first time I got to meet Tracy and hear about Project Beloved and it’s just grown since then as far as my in volvement with her and the orga

The Continental Fusion magazine sits on a table.

her family and friends are from Africa. She was excited to spread knowledge about her culture to students at the event. Being part of the relatively new organiza tion, Adebamiji felt happy to be included in the event. She be lieves it’s important for everyone to know a little bit about every

nization.”

While Tatom has never been in a soft interview room herself, she still advocates their importance in places of law enforcement.

“The soft interview room’s goal is to: A) make the person feel comfortable,” Tatom said. “They’re about to have to tell this horrific story about what has just hap pened to them and it’s not com fortable or easy to do. This envi ronment provides a space for them to do that more comfortably. It provides a much more welcoming space than a typical police inter

culture.

Adebamiji was excited to see people taking interest in her cul ture by stopping at her table.

“The fact we got to tell them, let them know and educate them – it was really inspiring and just made our hearts a little bigger,” Adebamiji said.

view room.”

Tatom said creating more survi vor-centered and trauma-informed ways of handling sexual assault victims is key in our society.

“If we get to a point where sur vivors feel freer to tell their stories and tell the details of it by being more trauma-informed, officers have better avenues to actually go after criminals and rapists,” Tatom said. “If they do better investiga tions because of that, then hope fully district attorneys take more rapists to court and get them be hind bars where they belong.”

COURTESY OF RITU GHOSE

ENTERTAINMENT THIS WEEK IN BR

BY MADELON DAVIS @madelondavis

Want to see your event in The Reveille? Email information to editor@lsu.edu.

White Light Night Mid City

Kick off your holiday shopping with Mid City’s big gest art festival. Find handmade gifts and goodies while perusing the vendors under the white lights lining Government Street. The festival is free and open to the public from 6 - 10 p.m. For an event map and a list of participating businesses visit www.midcitymerchantsbr.org/events.

Gears and Beers: BR Charity Bike Ride/Pub Crawl

Perkins Road Community Park

This event lasts from noon to 5 p.m. The Gears and Beers bike ride starts at 7122 Perkins Road., cycles through Southdowns and the LSU Lakes and finishes at SoLou. Along the path, you can stop and enjoy local restaurants and bars. The event costs $50, and you can purchase your ticket on Eventbrite. Registration closes Nov. 17 at 10 p.m. You must be 21 or older to participate. Funds ben efit Front Yard Bikes, a community organization for local youth.

COURTESY OF TICKETMASTER.COM

COURTESY OF 225BATONROUGE.COM

COURTESY OF EVENTBRITE.COM

Judas Priest

Raising Cane’s River Center Arena

British heavy metal band Judas Priest is coming to the Raising Cane’s River Center Arena, 275 S. River Road. The show starts at 8 p.m. Ticket

An up-and-coming artist brings his work to life in Baton Rouge

BY COURTENEY LATIMER @goldencxx

When walking around the LSU campus, you might come across cir cular objects that have a sticker of a smiley face with stitches on it. New Iberia native Brennan Williams, also known as B Smoke, is a senior majoring in art, who creates out-ofthe-box art by drawing, spray paint ing and tattooing.

Williams started his freshman year at LSU as an architecture ma jor, but during quarantine for the COVID-19 pandemic, he used his free time to find himself and his passion.

“My art has no boundaries,” Wil liams said. “My passion is to create.”

He officially switched his major to art and has been creating ever since.

Williams first noticed his love for art when he found himself draw ing on all his papers in high school. Since his hobby wasn’t football or basketball, Williams said some in his hometown considered his pas sion for art strange. But he still pursued it, making extra money by customizing and restoring shoes for his fellow classmates.

In his hometown, Williams earned an artistic reputation and a nickname, B Smoke. Both have been following him ever since.

Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith

Haring are two artists who inspire B Smoke. Both Basquiat and Haring created art in New York City in the 1980s. Basquiat spray painted any where he could, while Haring’s pop art mainly appeared in subways.

Basquiat and Harin’s contem porary and pop-up art are what in spires B Smoke to put his own art on random objects.

“If you look outside at the struc ture of buildings and landscapes, it all flows a certain way,” B Smoke said. “Everything is art. It is what keeps the world unique. I’m just adding to it.”

B Smoke creates and designs art on anything he comes across in cluding posters, clothes and skin. In addition to stickers and paintings, B Smoke also tattoos at Ink Dungeon in New Iberia.

Jordan Griffin, an LSU sports administration junior, has received multiple tattoos from B Smoke.

“There are tattoo artists, and there are artists that happen to do tattoos,” Griffin said. “I view B Smoke as an artist that happens to know how to do tattoos. His tattoos provide a sense of uniqueness that you won’t get from a typical tattoo artist.”

Griffin has known Williams since college and said B Smoke is always growing as an artist.

“It’s amazing to see how much he’s progressed in a short time,”

Griffin said. “The future is very bright for him.”

B Smoke recently had a painting of him and his logo on display at an art show called “BluuGenesis” at Yes We Cannibal, 1600 Government St., Baton Rouge.

B Smoke’s logo comes from a human head he tried to sketch but struggled to finish. Even after searching tutorials, he only ever made it to a certain part of the drawing — the circle with lines go ing vertically and horizontally.

Later on, B Smoke revisited the project and added stitches because he broke his thumb and was going through a rough time.

Recently, B Smoke turned his logo into a face mask with a domeshaped object he found at Hobby Lobby. First, he sketched the whole face out, then cut the eyes and slits for the elastic to hold it around his head. Lastly, he painted it. He fin ished this project the same day he started it.

“The mask I created is one of the best things I’ve ever made,” B Smoke said.

B Smoke’s message behind his logo is to smile through the pain and keep moving forward in the right direction.

You can find more information about Williams’ art and works on his social media @bsmokee and @ bsmoketats.

COURTENEY LATIMER/ The Reveille

Brennan Williams, an LSU senior studying art, holds the mask-form of his logo.

SPORTS UNWRITTEN

Column: The most likely engings to LSU’s football season

HENRY HUBER @HenryHuber_

It seems like the near future is straightforward for the LSU foot ball team, especially with it now having the SEC West crown under wraps. Win against Georgia, and it probably makes the College Foot ball Playoff. Lose against Georgia, and it lands in a New Year’s Six Bowl.

Those scenarios are possible, sure, and will certainly be dis cussed in this article. But there are two regular season games remain ing on the schedule and though wins in each of those are probable, they aren’t guaranteed. There’s still plenty of football left to be played before the Tigers travel to Atlanta, meaning plenty of room left for heartbreak.

In this article, I will propose three possibilities that I believe could occur through LSU’s last three games heading into bowl season, ranging from least to most likely. Let’s get into it.

3. LSU beats Georgia, makes the College Football Playoff

Since LSU’s loss to Tennessee, a lot has changed. Besides the Ar kansas game, Jayden Daniels has become what fans were hoping he’d be, a borderline Heisman can didate that possesses confidence and proficiency in both his pass ing and rushing abilities. On top of that, the run game, special teams

unit, offensive line and defense have all improved as well.

The recent uptick in Har old Perkins’ play time has trans formed the LSU defense into one of the scariest units in the coun try. Through three quarters with the freshman heavily involved, the unit held Alabama to nine points. He was also a big reason why Ole Miss managed zero second half points against the Tigers.

Those are both proficient of fenses, especially the Tide, who currently match Georgia’s points per game on the season while playing a tougher schedule. If the unit can perform like that for four quarters against the Bulldogs and force some mistakes, it could put the Tigers in a position to win. They will probably struggle to score, so they must prevent Geor gia from getting ahead to have a chance.

LSU has displayed the ability to look off intimidating competi tion since the Tennessee loss and has already surprised Vegas once, defeating Alabama despite being 13.5-point underdogs, with even the most optimistic of fans being unsure it could pull it off. It has continuously overcome adversity throughout the latter portion of the season, so what’s stopping it here?

2. LSU suffers a trap-game loss, loses to Georgia

Don’t look at me like that.

I’m not saying this is prob able, considering the next one is much more likely. I’m just saying

it’s more likely than LSU beating Georgia.

The teams that remain on its schedule are 5-5 UAB and 3-7 Texas A&M, two teams that have grossly undershot their preseason expectations but still possess the

talent to cause problems for LSU.

All five of UAB’s losses have been by one score, including loss es against Liberty and UTSA. Lib erty beat Arkansas and UTSA had

Ashton Stamps talks LSU commitment

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

Ashton Stamps was surely reminded why he committed to LSU after the program’s win over Alabama. Stamps committed to LSU in July.

“I was in shock,” Stamps said. “Especially when the stadium was shaking, I kind of got scared, I was in shock.”

The game against Alabama was a game that many LSU com mits, including Stamps, were in attendance for. In addition, sev eral recruits still being recruited to commit to LSU were also in Ba ton Rouge for the game.

Stamps is a 6-foot, 170-pound cornerback from Archbishop Rummel High School in Metairie, Louisiana. He is ranked as the No. 87 cornerback in the country, the No. 35 recruit in Louisiana, and the No. 896 recruit in the country.

The three-star cornerback chose the Tigers over schools like Missouri, Nebraska and more. Stamps is one of 10 commits in LSU’s Class of 2023 that are from Louisiana.

“It’s close to home, and when I went up there, the coaches showed me a lot of love, and that’s what I need,” Stamps said.

LSU women’s basketball further extends winning streak

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

The 100-point game streak extends to four games for LSU Women’s Basketball. But more importantly, the win streak stays alive as well. With a 101-47 win over Houston Christian, the Ti gers move to 4-0 in the regular season.

The game against Houston Christian was a bit different for the Tigers. Not only did the game start at 11 a.m. on a Wednesday morning, but the majority of the crowd were students from nearby grade schools, as Wednesday’s matchup was LSU’s annual field trip game.

Despite not having the nor mal crowd they would for a night game, the students still brought a great amount of energy and remained loud throughout the whole game.

“It was a sense of a lot of en ergy in the building,” Jasmine Carson said. “It gave and my

teammates a boost of energy, so it was just very exciting and ap preciative that they took the time to come early in the morning and cheer us on for this win.”

The crowd loved when the Tigers surpassed 100 points for the fourth game in a row this sea son, the first time that has ever been done in program history. The main factor for the victory Wednesday was LSU’s defense. In the second half, the Tigers held Houston Christian to 21% shoot ing from the field, and just 25% the whole game.

“I felt a different vibe today,” Head coach Kim Mulkey said. “That vibe that you look for from your team on the defensive end of the floor showing me that they’re getting better individually, they’re getting better collectively, and it was an enjoyable game to coach.”

Angel Reese’s double-double game streak extended to four games, as she finished Wednes day’s game with 29 points and 16 rebounds.

Jasmine Carson also shot the ball very well, especially from the three. She finished with 13 points, shooting 3-4 from three.

“When I make shots early on, it does build my confidence,” Carson said. “When I got off to a hot start, it gave me more energy to play defense, because I don’t want to just be a one-way player, I want to be a two-way player.”

LaDazhia Williams, Flau’jae Johnson and Alexis Morris all fin ished with 12 points. In addition, Williams grabbed five rebounds, Johnson grabbed four rebounds and added five assists and Morris added six assists. Sa’Myah Smith added seven points and nine re bounds.

Wednesday’s game was un usual for LSU in the sense that Houston Christian was competi tive in the first quarter. LSU has been used to getting off to great starts and separating itself from its opponents so far this season. Houston Christian wouldn’t go down without a fight. They end

LSU women’s basketball sophomore forward Angel Reese (1) prepares to shoot free throws Nov. 7, during LSU women’s basketball 125-50 win against Bellarmine in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on North Sta dium Drive in Baton Rouge, La.

ed the first quarter only down by two points with 20 points to LSU’s 22 points.

Julija Vujakovic led Houston Christian with 18 points, shoot ing 4-7 from three, along with

three rebounds.

But LSU’s defense came back strong in the second quarter, al lowing them to build a comfort

KARLI SMITH/ The Reveille Offensive line Anthony Bradford (75) jogs onto the field with his team mates while fireworks shower the sky on Nov. 5, during LSU’s 32-31 victory over Alabama in Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La.

CHYNNA MCCLINTON/ The Reveille

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

able lead. In fact, the Tigers went on a 24-0 scoring run and didn’t allow Houston Christian to score

FOOTBALL, from page 9

Texas on the ropes through three quarters, so I suspect the Blazers could give a Power 5 team a scare at least. However, the much-morelikely spoiler would have to be Texas A&M.

I know the Aggies are 3-7 and sport a six-game losing streak but a closer look at their schedule re veals that they still have the capa bility to compete with the confer ence’s bests. They’ve risen to the occasion each time they’ve faced off against a top-15 team this sea son and though their wins over Miami and Arkansas don’t hold any merit at all, their close losses to Alabama and Ole Miss do.

Their last two losses to Florida and Auburn indicate they’ve given up on the season, and it’s unclear

ASHTON, from page 9

Since Stamps committed to LSU, Brian Kelly and his staff were able to add 14 commitments to the Class of 2023, helping them build a fourth-ranked recruiting class. Stamps also committed on July 4 along with a pair of four-

in the second quarter until 20 seconds remained.

“I loved our defense,” Mulkey said. “I look at the stat sheet and there’s only one thing I circle ev

if their star running back in Devon Achane will be cleared to play by then, but the prospect of crushing LSU’s playoff chances is enough motivation to give it their all, con sidering the rivalry and what the Tigers did to Texas A&M at the end of last season. Not to mention the game will take place at College Station, a setting LSU hasn’t won in since 2016.

Spoilers have been a thing in sports for as long as they have existed, and they are especially prevalent in college football. It isn’t outside of the realm of possi bility that LSU’s playoff hopes end before it gets to Atlanta.

1. LSU finishes regular sea son 10-2, loses to Georgia

The Tigers are in a great po sition to close out Brian Kelly’s first season as head coach with 10

star defensive linemen, Dashawn Womack and Darron Reed.

“They’re doing pretty good in recruiting,” Stamps said. “We have a lot of 2023 and 2024 com mits, and that’s going to help the BK show.”

Of the commits in the Class of 2023 and 2024, Stamps is close

ery game, ‘what did they shoot from the field’? That’s the only thing I care about.”

The Tigers continued to run with their momentum in the sec

wins, shattering even their most optimistic preseason and midsea son projections in the process. All Kelly has to do is keep his play ers’ heads in the game and with the way he’s been able to motivate them to overcome adversity lately, that shouldn’t be a problem.

It doesn’t seem like they’re looking ahead to the SEC champi onship just yet. They want to give spectators a show in the next two games that indicates they deserve their top-10 ranking. While getting through the last two regular sea son games is probable, Georgia is a whole another story.

Despite the Tigers defeating Ole Miss and Alabama in backto-back games, LSU vs. Georgia is still very much a David vs. Goliath type matchup. That’s not discount ing what the Tigers have managed

with the fellow LSU commits from New Orleans, like four-star offensive tackle Tyree Adams and 2024 three-star offensive lineman Khayree Lee.

Since Adams committed to LSU on July 29, almost a month after Stamps committed, Stamps most likely had a helping hand in

ond half, as they led by as much as 57 points just before the final buzzer.

With another win in convinc ing fashion, LSU moves to 4-0 on

to accomplish since their loss to Tennessee, that’s just how good the Georgia Bulldogs are.

Head coach Kirby Smart has built the Georgia football program into one that matches the domi nance of Saban and Alabama in the 2010s.

Not to mention LSU will also face Georgia in what is basically an away game, as Athens is just over an hour away from Atlanta. Though fans won’t admit it, the Tigers have struggled on the road this season, with their only impres sive performance away from Death Valley coming against Florida.

While Georgia had some head scratchers earlier in the season, it has been unstoppable since its near loss to Missouri at the start of October. Its blowout victories over Florida and Mississippi State

LSU landing Adams. But regardless, Stamps was able to persuade other recruits to join him in Baton Rouge for the reasons that brought him to com mit to LSU.

“That atmosphere, that love, that passion, that’s what I love,” Stamps said.

the season. The Tigers will take the court Sunday afternoon at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center at 2 p.m. against Northwestern State.

compared to LSU’s performances against the same teams should raise some concerns, but that’s not the most daunting fact: it has not struggled against top-ten competi tion once this season.

That includes a win against Tennessee in which the Bulldogs showed no signs of struggle, an opponent that crushed LSU in Oc tober. While it is a much different team than it was in that loss, I sus pect that Georgia is just on a dif ferent level compared to LSU and the whole country in general.

While we can endlessly specu late on how this season will end, no one will truly know until these games happen. That doesn’t di minish the fact that Brian Kelly is three games away from becoming an LSU legend, one season into his career with the program.

Stamps and his team at Arch bishop Rummel are currently in the second round of the Division 1-Select state playoffs. Local LSU fans will have the chance to see Stamps play in Baton Rouge, as Archbishop Rummel is set to take on Catholic High School on Fri day night.

Midterm message to Democrats, Republicans: ‘Stop being crazy’

BRANDON POULTER @Brandopinione

My theory about why Republi cans would win in a landslide this midterms was completely and ut terly wrong.

Americans turned out this mid terms for a divided government. What was supposed to be a red wave turned out to be a red trickle.

So, what happened?

Abortion was a substantially bigger issue than initial polling would’ve had it seem. In exit poll ing data from CNN for the U.S. Sen ate race in Pennsylvania, abortion ranked higher than inflation, with 37% of voters choosing it as their top issue. In the red state of Florida, abortion ranked second at 28%.

The importance of this number is further exemplified by the fact that unmarried women voted heav ily in favor of the Democrats, favor ing them by 37 percentage points, according to CNN. This energized the Democratic base and prevented a landslide loss.

Inflation remained atop the list

of worries and, without it, Demo crats may have kept the House. So, why did voters not turn out in droves to support the Republicans?

The answer seems painfully clear: former President Donald Trump.

Trump’s picks were a drag on the party. Lauren Boebert, a con servative firebrand, is headed to a likely recount against her oppo nent Adam Frisch in Colorado’s 3rd congressional district, which has voted Republican by a margin of 9 percentage points in the last three races. Trump-backed Dr. Mehmet Oz lost to John Fetterman by more than four percentage points in Pennsylvania’s Senate race. In the last election, the seat went by one percentage point to the Republican Pat Toomey.

This general trend seems to fol low that Republicans—or Trump— chose poor candidates for races that could’ve otherwise been winnable.

Historically, midterms tend to be terrible for the incumbent presi dent’s party. Since 1934, the average for the incumbent president is a loss of 28 House seats and four Senate seats, according to The American Presidency Project.

So, the question remains, with so many bad Republican candi dates, why didn’t Democrats pick up seats?

Polling data from Third Way, a left-of-center think tank, showed that voters perceived both parties to be extreme, with 55% saying Re publicans are too extreme and 54% saying Democrats are too extreme.

We know why Republicans are seen as extreme with abortion and election denialism, but why Demo crats? The answer seems to be value misalignment, which stems from radicalism on social issues.

Democrat’s push for bail reform and anti-police rhetoric over the past two years, combined with recent upticks in murders, has weighed heavily on voters. Data from Third Way showed voters trusting Repub licans by a 20-percentage-point ad vantage compared to Democrats on handling crime.

Data also showed Republicans with a 20-percentage-point advan tage on handling the issue of im migration. Both immigration and crime polled as the top ten issues for voters. On inflation, which was ranked as the number one issue, voters trusted Republicans to han

dle it better by an 18-percentagepoint margin.

So, what can our politicians do better?

For Republicans, the model is clear. Reject Trump at all costs. Not only are his favorability ratings and his picks for candidates abysmal, but he’s also perceived by a large percentage of the country as selfobsessed and, to some, plain crazy.

Republicans would also be wise to heed caution with the issue of abortion. They should allow abor tion until at least the end of the first trimester and should allow rape and incest exceptions—a stance held by the majority of Americans.

Another thing: They should be more like Florida Gov. Ron DeSan tis.

DeSantis is widely perceived to be a contender for president in 2024 and rightfully so. He’s seen success in governing his state and soared to re-election, beating his opponent Charlie Crist by nearly 20 percentage points. In the prior gov ernor’s election, he won the state by less than one percentage point. He also swung Miami Dade, a histori cally Democrat county. DeSantis is a model of responsible Republican

governance without the election de nialism craziness.

How about Democrats?

Unlike what Biden has suggest ed, which is that he won’t change a thing, Democrats could change a few things. The average voter sees them as out of touch with their val ues, significantly less patriotic than Republicans and as social radicals.

This is perfectly represented by former U.S. congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard announcing that she is leaving the Democratic party be cause she believes it’s run by “an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness.” If Demo crats don’t similarly leave behind their radical social values, embrace law and order and get a hold on im migration, they may soon see them selves going down in flaming defeat in 2024.

Overall, the message is clear to both Democrats and Republicans. Stop being so crazy. Move towards the center. The first party to do this will win the next election in a land slide.

Brandon Poulter is a 27-year-old political science and psychology major.

Student Government represents us. But what does it actually do?

BESKE’S BUZZ KATE BESKE @KateBeske

LSU Student Government’s mission statement says that it aims “to advocate tirelessly the interests of LSU students.”

But to most students—includ ing me, until recently—what SG actually does to better the com munity is sometimes unclear.

The legislative branch, or Student Senate, includes elected representatives from each senior college. It’s led by an elected speaker and speaker pro tempore and by legislative staff appointed by the speaker, according to SG’s website.

Emma Long, a mass commu nication and political science sophomore, joined the Senate her freshman year.

“I chose to be a part of Student Government because I wanted to make a change on our campus and to work with like-minded in dividuals to better the campus,” Long said.

She said SG works in conjunc

tion with administration, faculty and staff to see proposals from the initial stage until completion. The Senate works in legislative sessions to pass bills and advo cate for students, Long said.

Long is currently working on several projects, including one to get Adobe free for students and creating a syllabus database to al low students to see the expected workload of a specific class and use that information to decide whether they want to take the class.

These projects show how SG works towards bettering the uni versity and making things easier for students.

Matthew Delatte, SG’s chief of staff, also joined his freshman year.

“I believe that joining Student Government was one of the best decisions that I’ve ever made be cause the values and work ethic that you gain from this organiza tion is truly insurmountable,” he said.

Delatte said the executive branch works with administra tors to further policies and ini tiatives that will benefit the stu

dents at the university.

“Members of Student Govern ment sit on several universitywide committees as student rep resentatives, ensuring that the student body is considered in university conversations and de cision-making,” he said.

Delatte said SG works to bet ter students’ experience through initiatives, new programs and changes in policies, and events.

Some examples of new initia tives are the creation of an Amer ican Sign Language Program and the installation of audio accessi bility devices on crosswalks off Highland Road, he said.

SG also has groups of people who work specifically to create initiatives focusing on creating a more welcoming environment for minorities on campus. Long said the Senate has an African Ameri can and LGBTQ+ caucus that fo cuses on legislation aimed to pro mote diversity.

“As leaders in Student Govern ment, we represent all students at LSU. In each of our departments, there is an expectation to assess how inclusion is involved with the work delegated to them and

to ensure our events are repre sentative of all communities,” Delatte said.

The core values of SG impact how the members of the organi zation present themselves to oth ers.

“Our core values are serving our student body and I think they have an effect on how our members carry themselves and how our members seek to affect change on campus,” Long said.

She said that many members of SG are highly involved and that they bring a positive influ ence to many other organizations on campus.

While there are many positive aspects of SG, like any organiza tion, there are problems.

“The only downside I see to it is that some people are in it for the wrong reasons, but the ma jority of people are not,” Long said.

She said the focus on cam paigns, especially during election season, can create a toxic envi ronment. This session, though, the Senate has worked to cut down on those negative aspects by implementing election reform,

Editorial Policies and Procedures

Long said.

Delatte said there is much SG can do better, such as improving communication to students about what SG does.

As a student at the university, I had no idea about any of the projects the SG has been working on throughout my time at LSU. This is true for many students.

“We acknowledge that these hurdles come with every student organization, but we know that as representatives of the entire student body we have a respon sibility to do our best in each of these areas, and we have really been trying,” Delatte said.

He said SG has implemented student feedback in events, met with student leaders and worked to assist university organizations with their events and ideas.

After learning about the initia tives and ideas that SG is work ing on, I feel content knowing that members of SG are trying to better the university and make my and all students’ experiences at LSU better.

Kate Beske is a journalism sopho more from Destrehan.

Quote of the Week

EDITORIAL BOARD

Josh Archote Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Hannah Michel Hanks

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The Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Commu nication. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, The Reveille or the university. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to editor@lsu.edu or deliv ered to B-39 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must provide a contact phone number for ver ification purposes, which will not be printed. The Reveille reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration while preserving the original intent. The Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author. Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Reveille’s edi tor in chief, hired every semester by the LSU Student Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.

Thomas Griffith American lawyer 1954 — present

“Journalism is in fact history on the run.”

What I’ve learned in my first three months as an out-of-state student

JEMIAH’S JUSTIFICATIONS

JEMIAH CLEMONS @Miclemah

When considering college, most students include schools out of their state. College provides educa tion, opportunities and a new sense of community. Moving away from home can be risky but offers a large reward, too. As a freshman from Florida, those risks and rewards have become clear to me over my first few months at LSU.

Moving to a new state is nerve wracking, but it allows for growth and the chance to build a commu nity. In a state where jambalaya, beer and Southern hospitality reign supreme, meeting new people is no challenge. Someone staying in the city they grew up in is OK, but branching out to new places will bring fresh experiences and a change of perspective. Being in the same city for a lifetime can leave people feeling stuck and stagnant.

Leaving your comfort zone is great, but being an out-of-state stu dent can bring isolation. Anyone leaving the life they once had will experience emotional transitions.

A new state with no family is hard to manage, but it’s the little things that truly make me miss home. Not going to Publix, the lo

cally owned shops or my favorite 99 cent really made me realize how far away from home I am.

Luckily, LSU provides several re sources to help students experienc ing emotional transitions and isola tion. The LSU Student Health Center and the University Recreation Cen ter can be great for students suffer ing in silence. The Student Health Center offers confidential coun seling and other mental health re sources.

Making use of the UREC has improved my mental and physical health. With fun events like goat yoga, boxing classes and pilates, the UREC gives great incentives to draw more students out of their dorm rooms.

Coming from out of state, the first thing I did was compare every thing in Louisiana to Florida. Loui siana’s weather, laws, taxes and so cial norms differ greatly from what I’m used to. The first thing I noticed was the severe poverty surrounding LSU’s campus. With a population of over 222,000 people, 24% of those people suffer from poverty.

The next thing I noticed was the extreme crime rate. Louisiana has the second highest homicide death rate in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The issues of poverty and crime are intertwined. So, the longevity of these problems in this

city feels intentional from the local and state government.

Obviously, out-of-state students like myself should do research be fore moving to a new place. Howev er, during the application process, safety and poverty fall short on the list of priorities. In the months be fore applying, fancy newsletters and school advertisements are sent to the homes of prospective students. It feels to me that this is done in a dual effort to promote the school and distract from the overwhelming crime and poverty near campus.

Despite this, LSU still offers a great education and a unique col lege experience. But on the back end, that education comes at a hefty price.

Every year, incoming freshman receive fee bills that detail their expenses at LSU. Some weeks lat er, the university releases a billing statement that has additional fees. For out-of-state students, there’s a high fee added.

These high costs can be a bur den on families and leave them with limited options on how to proceed.

In this way, LSU is contributing to the widespread unsustainability of affording college education.

I don’t highlight these issues because I hate Baton Rouge, but because I’ve grown to like this city, and seeing its flaws is heartbreak ing. The newfound perspective of an out-of-state student may aid in fixing problems within the city and state.

Jemiah Clemons is an 18-year-old kinesiology freshman from Miami, Florida.

L O C A L L Y D E S I G N E D & P R I N T E D

MATTHEW PERSCHALL / The Reveille

An LSU student carries take-away containers on Oct. 7, near the Art and Design building in Baton Rouge, La.