The Reveille 2-9-23

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NEW REFORMS

Campaign reforms seek to open up Student Government to all

BY CLAIRE SULLIVAN @sulliclaire

You may have seen the highlyproduced Instagram videos, the students clad in business attire and the dozens of reposts and comments. The social media buzz can only mean one thing: Student Government election season is here.

But this time is different—and you can already see it. Candidates announced their aspirations for executive office within hours of each other, instead of rushing to be the first by weeks or months. The change is part of election reforms passed by SG in the fall to address what many felt was a broken system.

SG voted in September to, among other changes, cap campaign spending to $4,000, shorten the election season, expand voting time to two days instead of one and make clearer parameters around candidate disqualification, which had previously been up to the discretion of the judicial branch.

The next 50 days until voting opens will beg the question: Did the reforms work at leveling the playing field for students?

Colin Raby, a senator for the College of Engineering, said running for SG president in 2022 gave him a crash course in the flaws of the election system. He noted a laundry list of problems.

Some candidates got money from their family and could outspend their competitors many times over, he said. Some candidates would announce in November, months before the election. Some candidates piled on disinterested Senate candidates so they could spend more, as the old rules allowed. And some tickets had the coffers to spend “absurd amounts of money on food to essentially just bribe voters,” Raby said.

SG President Lizzie Shaw led the push for reforms, working over the summer to change up the system that some had long felt favored wealthy students.

Campaign finance is perhaps the biggest change emerging from the reforms.

For the spring 2021 election, tickets could spend $2,000 per president-vice-president pair and an additional $100 for each other candidate running on the ticket for senate or college council.

For the spring 2022 election, that $100 was reduced to $50. Still, the three tickets spent a combined total of almost $20,000, with one ticket alone spending almost half of that.

For both elections, donated items would go toward the spending limit but would only be counted as60% of their value.

Campaign expenditures for these two elections, only a piece of the financial pie, totaled more than $33,000, according to an in-

ternal SG document circulating during the reform debates.

The rule allowing more money to be spent per each person on a ticket “heavily incentivized bringing people onto the ticket who could not care less about Student Government,” Raby said.

The 2023 election season will play by a different rulebook.

The spending cap for tickets is now $4,000. No money will be added for additional candidates running on a ticket. Donated items will count for 100% of their value. And only 25% of spending can go toward perishable items like food.

Campaign finance records have always been public, but they had to be requested. Now, they’ll be posted on the SG website under the election tab in early April, according to Chris Charles, the chair of the election commission.

Emma Long, a mass communication sophomore and senator representing the university Center for Advising and Counseling, thinks the spending cap will help prevent some of the bloat of disinterested candidates.

“I think that helps tickets find people that actually care about filling those roles, instead of just finding a warm body,” Long said.

When the reforms were debated in the fall, some senators disagreed on where the spending cap should fall. Raby said he favored $1,000 while others called for caps as high as $8,000. $4,000 was the decided compromise.

Some were concerned the cut spending would lower outreach and, consequently, voting tolls.

But Raby noted that voting actually increased after the $50 drop in additional funding per ticket candidate between 2021 and 2022.

The spring 2021 election brought 5,207 student votes, around 17% of LSU’s student body. The spring 2022 election saw an increase of 38%, bringing the vote total over 7,000.

Long, who voted in favor of the reforms, thinks that election outreach should be the job of SG, not the candidates.

While the cap was higher than some proposed, the change still cuts campaign spending by thousands of dollars.

Another change brought by the reforms is a shortened election season.

Students originally couldn’t announce their candidacy until Feb. 2, Charles said. Meaning gone are the days of candidates announcing their run for the spring election in the fall and holding ticket meetings before winter break.

“It disincentivized the petty political strategy of trying to be first to win over as many people there that don’t know about the existence of the other tickets,” Raby said, pointing to the fact that, oftentimes, the first ticket to announce has been the one that has won.

Changes come, too, for the student electorate. Voting will now last two days instead of one. Raby said he hopes this will encourage more people to vote. SG elections have historically drawn relatively low student turnout, though the participation has ticked up in re -

cent years.

Long looks forward to what the changes might mean for SG.

“The more I’ve been around Student Government, the more I’ve kind of not liked a lot of what happens in campaigns, mainly because it divides Student Government, and then you’re not able to really put in the work to actually get things done,” Long said. “There’s a lot of people that just kind of want to see their person win instead of pushing for better ideas and a better campus, which is what everyone says they’re going to do.”

Now, students are left to elect their first president and vice-president under the new rules, alongside a fresh class of student senators and college council members.

How much the reforms succeed in opening the doors of SG to low-income students, encourage voter participation and weed out disinterested candidates may become clearer as the votes are tallied at the end of March.

Raby is hopeful the reforms will make a difference to future SG candidates and the electorate.

“It used to be that maybe you would have to fundraise $13,000 to have a chance at winning and you would have to announce a whole semester before, and all of these other things were really impractical for most candidates,” Raby said. “Now, with the limit of $4,000…and the restriction on announcing and planning the ticket, it makes it a lot more feasible for a lot more students to actually run for these positions and have a chance at winning.”

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CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS

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FRANCIS DINH / The Reveille

A United States, Louisiana and LSU flag flutters in the breeze Feb. 6 on the Parade Grounds.

STUDENT HEALTH

Multi-million-dollar partnership discussed at forum

Crypto club connects students

BY MORGAN CHARLES @Morgan_Charless

While crypto is continuously growing in the world of finance, there’s an endless amount of learning to be done. International trade and finance sophomore Niko Osborn has created a place for LSU students to do just that by starting the Digital Assets and Blockchain Club LSU, or better known as Crypto.

According to Osborn, the club aims to keep members updated on global trends and educate students interested in the digital asset industry.

“This is a club where you can come to either learn about crypto from an investor perspective and participate with others, do projects and learn from guest speakers in the industry,” Osborn said.

BY CORBIN ROSS @CorbinRoss5

Officials from the Student Health Center and Our Lady of the Lake Hospital discussed their new multi-million dollar partnership in a forum in the French House on Wednesday.

LSU and Our Lady of the Lake will be entering a $170 million partnership over the next 10 years, $40 million of which will be going to the Student Health

CAMPUS SAFETY

Center.

Around 30 people came to the forum hosted by Student Government.

Our Lady of the Lake will not be involved with the gynecology clinic, the Lighthouse program or wellness and health promotion, the university said in an email earlier this month. Our Lady of the Lake will fund services in the rest of the Student Health Center.

Catherine Smith O’Neal, chief medical officer at Our Lady of

the Lake, said their involvement hopes to expand access to underinsured students.

“We already have a world class health center,” said Dan Bureau, LSU’s assistant vice president for health and wellbeing. “This partnership will just up our game.”

Bureau said that this partnership will seek to improve the health of the student body. He said Louisiana has some of the lowest health outcomes in the country, which is why he said

this partnership is important.

Julie Hupperich, the executive director of the Student Health Center, said none of the services the health center already provides will be restricted by this partnership.

Many of the people in attendance voiced concerns that Our Lady of the Lake’s religious affiliations would impact care surrounding LGBTQ students and

see STUDENT HEALTH, page 4

Since the club’s formation in September 2022, Osborn said he has been constantly working on creating a space for members to flourish. He said being a member of the club allows them several benefits, such as networking events with other organizations on campus, internship opportunities, guest speakers and group events.

“I would just hope for people to learn about the real-world value of crypto and look past all the hype,” Osborn said. “I would hope for people to find something that interests them in this industry. Maybe it’s a job or something

see CRYPTO, page 4

GroupMe helps women students feel safe amid concerns

BY EMILY POIRRIER @Emily_Poirrier

Women at LSU are taking action into their own hands to protect themselves and others.

LSU students Alisha Ortolano, Caitlynn Bakewell, Bobbilynn Akers, Iyian Paige, Abigail McIntosh, Hailey McGhee and Hanna LeBlanc created a campus wide GroupMe in an effort to keep women on LSU’s campus safe.

The GroupMe is designed as a rideshare service between women on campus. When a member of the group is in an uncomfortable situation and wants to be picked up, they can contact one of the designated drivers of the night. As a safety and precautionary measure, students must put in their LSU emails to be added.

Orlantano is a member of LSU’s Alpha Delta Pi Omega Chapter, said she. As a member of Greek life, she was compelled to reach out in the community after the death of Madison Brooks, who was a member of the same sorority.

“There have been many girls who have reached out to me saying they have been put in vulnerable situations when left alone in Tigerland or places on campus and would have felt more comfortable having a support system,” Orlantano said.

Although the GroupMe is helpful for students, student and member of LSU’s Delta Zeta Sigma Chapter Georgia Szoke believe the GroupMe never should have needed to be created in the first place.

REAGAN COTTEN/The Reveille

Our Lady of the Lake and LSU Student Health Center speakers address the audience on Feb. 1 in the French House in Baton Rouge, La.

CRYPTO, from page 3

you never even knew existed, but that’s what I want the most – is for people to take their talents and find a reason to apply it to crypto.”

International trade and finance junior Claire Hill says she’s had the chance to explore new avenues that she wouldn’t have had access to without the club.

“My favorite part is just having

STUDENT HEALTH, from page 3

gynecological services, but Hupperich assured students that no services will be restricted.

“They’ll be expanding some of the services we’ve offered previously,” Hupperich said.

O’Neal said that she had previously worked at an LSU hospital before moving to Our Lady of the Lake. She said she experienced few differences in terms of the care either provided, so she said students shouldn’t have to

RIDESHARE, from page 3

“The situation young women are put in at the university’s nightlife is nauseating,” Szoke said. “The concept of the GroupMe is comforting, but the fact that something like this had to be created to make girls feel more comfortable is despairing.”

the opportunity to meet unique individuals and discover these new assets and new avenues of investing,” Hill said. “The opportunity to connect with huge companies and investment bankers and all of these new things.”

One main reason members said this club became what it is today is due to their shared passion to learn about crypto on a larger scale than what is portrayed in the

worry about the hospital’s religious ties affecting their care.

The reason Our Lady of the Lake won’t be assisting in the gynecology clinic is because the hospital doesn’t have expertise in that area, O’Neal said.

Hupperich said the health center will be adding a new patient portal called MyChart to handle scheduling and communications, while a separate portal will be used for everything else.

LaDonna Williams, vice president of the Our Lady of the Lake

Members of Greek life and female students at LSU remain unsettled following Brooks’ death. In two weeks, Orlantano’s GroupMe has gained over 900 members.

With so many students feeling unsafe, members of the LSU community are waiting to see what actions the university will take.

media.

“The gain of perspective on cryptocurrency and digital assets from a view that’s not so hyped and social media-based is important,” Hill said. “I find a lot of people come and they have negative sentiments towards it because they only see the breakdown of how people have lost money…but what they don’t see is how this has utility in the future.”

Physician Group, said the hospital has no intentions of making a profit off of the partnership with LSU; Our Lady of the Lake is classified as a not-for-profit institution.

Hupperich said the Student Health Center will be looking to expand embedded therapists, which are therapists that serve just a single college. LSU currently has one embedded therapist in the honors college. A student asked the forum whether Our Lady of the Lake would use this

LSU President William Tate IV responded to Brooks’ death with an email that sparked backlash among students and advocates for his targeting of Tigerland and underage drinking.

“Our action plan starts with a deep and relentless focus on any establishment that profits off our students by providing alcohol to underage individuals,”

International trade and finance senior Noah Broussard said he enjoys being in the club because it allows him to be around people who share a common interest.

“A big part of this club is getting to network with like-minded individuals, but also being able to learn about the future – the future of innovation, technology and where everything’s going,” Broussard said. “We have a lot of attrac-

partnership to try to refer students to doctors that are a part of the Our Lady of the Lake system.

O’Neal said the hospital doesn’t dictate where patients are referred, and students can choose which doctors they wish to see.

She said the health center physician who is treating the student can provide options to the student for them to choose.

Another student asked if Our Lady of the Lake would seek to put religious imagery in the Student Health Center. LaDonna

Tate said in the email.

Others argue this message perpetuates rape culture. The College Democrats of LSU and Feminists in Action responded with a message stating, “We call on you to provide succinct analysis of how the age of the victim and perpetrators are relevant to this goal.”

Tate responded to the mes -

tion with investors and businesses that are in this space because the realm is so new and we’re trying to capitalize off of that.”

In the spring Osborn said he is looking to host a crypto investment competition within the club with a reward of a $500 amazon gift card.

The Digital Assets and Blockchain club can be found on TigerLink.

said the only religious imagery that may appear in the health center would be the logo of Our Lady of the Lake, but that would be it.

The health center’s $40 million dollars is only a chunk of the change from Our Lady of the Lake. Tens of millions more will be distributed between the LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, a new disciplinary science building, a healthcare-based research fund and advancements in athlete health and wellness.

sage with a column in The Advocate.

The creators of the GroupMe hope to continue providing rides so that LSU students can stay safe. They also hope that other campuses will create similar ideas.

“Women should protect and support other women,” Orlantano said.

MORGAN CHARLES/ The Reveille Digital Assets and Blockchain Club president Niko Osborn speaks to club members on Jan. 31 inside the Business Education Complex on LSU’s campus.

ENTERTAINMENT

Louisiana metal band Eyehategod performs at Chelsea’s Live

BY NYX CROOKS @voiceofnyx1

Chelsea’s Live was filled with metal fans across multiple generations Friday, Feb. 3 as Louisiana metal legends Eyehategod were joined by newcomers Brat and Capra.

Older metalheads with graying hair joined young fans shoulder-to-shoulder. The show reinforced one of the most important parts of Louisiana’s metal scene: community.

Capra was the first band to take the stage. The band formed in 2016 in Lafayette, but its members have been playing in the local Lafayette scene for decades.

The band’s music has been described as “crazy weird metallic hardcore,” according to guitarist Tyler Harper.

“I normally just say rock ‘n’ roll. It’s kind of just fast, loud, chaotic, crunchy, party,” Harper said. “There’s some dancing that goes on.”

“It’s definitely metallic hardcore with a lot of southern influence. That’s why we work with

bands like Eyehategod,” bass player Trevor Alleman added.

This is the band’s first show since it took a break to work on its second album, which will be released within the next year.

Brat formed in New Orleans in 2021 and creates a unique blend of pop samples and metal that provides a fresh take on the metal genre. The band starts every song off with a pop song sample which leads into a crushing metal intro. For the metal component, Brat incorporates multiple genres and styles.

“There’s thrash riffs, death metal riffs, the hardcore riffs, the breakdowns,” drummer Dustin Eagan said.

The band has a unique aesthetic to go with its unique music; its Instagram describes it as “barbiegrind bimboviolence.”

“We thought it would be funny and fun. That was kind of the extent, then we built a brand around that,” lead singer Liz Selfish said about the pop samples.

Lastly, Eyehategod, which formed in 1988 in New Orleans, took the stage. Eyehategod takes

on a lot of different influences and was a foundational band in establishing the New Orleans metal sound.

“It’s hardcore blues. We are modern blues, but obviously it’s noisy and it’s loud and it’s heavy,” lead singer Mike IX said.

Its music has since become

but I don’t mind the sludge thing, you know, people use that and that’s fine. I just don’t personally.”

Many may be wondering about the seemingly blasphemous name. The original singer for Eyehategod had a mental breakdown where he wrote “the Eyehategod” and was then taken to a hospital, where he eventually became a born-again Christian and distanced himself from the metal scene.

The name itself was interpreted by the band as the eye that sees God which represents vices such as drugs or addiction. Mike IX denies that the band is satanic.

known as sludge metal, which is characterized by the New Orleans heavy metal sound. It was popularized in the 1980s and 1990s by bands such as Crowbar, Acid Bath and Eyehategod.

“People call us sludge, and I have to say, I hate that,” Mike IX said. “It just sounds silly to me,

“It’s kinda silly if you look at it one way, but it’s deeper,” Mike IX said. “It’s a really bizarre name to me, and I don’t really know what it means, but we stuck with it and it’s got us this far.”

Eyehategod has become a legend in the Louisiana scene. Now, as it continues to perform 35 years after forming, the next generation of metal in Louisiana performs with the band and forms a tight knit community of metal enthusiasts.

LSU Vet Med provides hedgehog with life-saving treatment

BY WILL NICKEL @WilNickel

Near Tiger Stadium there’s a brand new building that houses a room with 9-foot-thick cement walls, encasing a $1.2 million machine that can shoot ultra-powerful beams of radiation.

And in the center of it all, there’s a hedgehog.

LSU’s Stephenson Pet Clinic is the only full-service cancer center that sees animals in Louisiana. All kinds of animals, from cats and dogs to birds and hedgehogs, are brought to the clinic to receive the same cancer treatments that are used on humans: chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Betty, a four-year-old hedgehog who is affectionally referred to as Queen Betty, was one of the animals treated for cancer at LSU’s pet clinic.

“Even though cancer in small exotics like hedgehogs hasn’t been extensively studied like in cats or dogs, the LSU team did above and beyond,” said Sunny Tran, Betty’s owner. “Betty is a fighter, and despite the nature of cancer treatments, I believe they were extremely successful in securing her more happy months or years with me.”

Betty first came into LSU’s pet clinic because Tran noticed her gums were bleeding. The initial diagnosis was gingivitis.

However, Tran then noticed lumps growing on her jaw and took her in a second time. This time, the biopsy diagnosed the swelling on the bottom of her jaw as oral squamous cell carcinoma, a type of cancer that forms inside the mouth.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma

is a particularly aggressive form of cancer, according to Dr. Laken Russell, a zoological medicine and surgery resident at LSU.

“It was a very malignant form of cancer. Typically, if you try to perform a surgical procedure to remove it, it just aggravates the mass,” Dr. Russell said. “Whenever you try to remove it, you need good margins around the mass, meaning try to find an area that’s unaffected. In a hedgehog, achieving good margins can be difficult.”

Betty was given a CAT scan to see the extent of the growth and if it could be operated on. After discussions between Tran and the small animal surgeons, a plan for Betty to have surgery to remove part of her right jaw was made.

The surgery was a success but left a hole in the bottom of Betty’s jaw that she periodically pokes her tongue out of.

“She has a little permanent derp face,” Dr. Russell said.

Despite missing part of her jaw, Betty retained good usage of her tongue and mouth and was still

able to eat on her own.

“I was worried we’d have to feed her through a tube all the time, but she proved otherwise,” Tran said.

Even though the surgery went well, the doctors at the pet clinic knew it was unlikely they achieved the margins needed to keep the cancer from returning due to Betty’s small size. A few months after the surgery, more cancerous masses started to form on her upper jaw. Betty would need more treatment.

Dr. Jayme Looper, one of only 129 radiation oncologists in the world, oversees the cancer treatments of animals at the pet clinic and said that the next step for Betty was radiation therapy.

“Unfortunately, the new tumor was inoperable,” Dr. Looper said. “We had to do a few rounds of radiation on her.”

For radiation treatment, animals are given anesthetic before being brought to a room called The Vault. The Vault earns its name because of the thickness of its walls. Each wall is 9-foot thick to keep the people outside of the room from receiving

any unnecessary radiation.

In the center of the vault sits the pet clinic’s radiation machine, a large lump of machinery that is like an x-ray machine, only more powerful.

The first three rounds of radiation went well, but the fourth round experienced one small hiccup: Betty died.

“She had an unremarkable physical exam and was doing well under anesthesia until, abruptly, she was not,” Dr. Russell said. “She crashed and her heart stopped beating.”

The clinic’s staff quickly began to perform CPR on Betty using a thumb and index finger for chest compressions. The CPR was successful and restarted Betty’s heart.

“We saved her. We got her back in under two minutes,” Dr. Russell said. “She was breathing on her own again and we decided at that point, ‘Well, a fourth treatment might not be worth it.’”

Tran didn’t know how to react to the news when he received the phone call.

“At first, it’s the doctor kind of giving you a cheery mood whenever they call you and then they said, ‘Oh, her heart stopped by the way, but she’s doing fine now,’” Tran said.

Though the radiation treatments seem to have worked well, it is difficult to tell how Betty will react long-term.

“We don’t have much information,” Dr. Looper said. “Nobody does radiation on hedgehogs.”

Despite this, the treatment is already considered a success. Most hedgehogs that don’t undergo any treatment and have a similar diag-

nosis as Betty are only given four to six weeks to live. Betty was diagnosed with cancer eight months ago.

“Because of the nature of cancer, [the LSU pet clinic] can’t guarantee you, ‘Hey, this will be fine.’ This isn’t a normal procedure they’ve done thousands of times,” Tran said. “But after every time they showed slight uncertainty in it, I was like, ‘Hey, you guys did perfectly.’ The experience with LSU vets has been great.”

The cancer treatments that animals undergo at the pet clinic are like those that humans receive at hospitals. The chemicals used in the chemotherapy are the same in animals and humans. The machine used for radiation therapy was even donated to LSU from a hospital and was used on humans beforehand.

“All the machines are the same and the technologies are the same,” Looper said. “All the chemotherapy drugs we use are developed for humans. We do very extensive testing on them to establish what is the dosage needed in a dog or small mammal, but the chemicals are the same.”

LSU is in the process of creating a comparative research center with the goal of translating cancer treatment for pets and other animals into saving human lives. The comparative research center will combine the vet school, the human health center and physics department and allow those departments to collaborate on cancer research.

“This is not just about animals,” Dr. Looper said. “One health is kind of what we’re going for. We want to develop a one health type of program.”

COURTESY OF CHELSEA’S LIVE Eyehategod performs at Chelsea’s Live.

GRAPHIC BY MADDIE FITZMORRIS

WHAT ARE THE LSU SQUIRRELS EATING?

The LSU squirrels are willing to eat everything from french fries to peanuts.

A squirrel sits and eats on Feb. 6, near the LSU Art and Design building in Baton Rouge, La.

The squirrel holds a magnolia seed pod in its mouth on Feb. 5, near the Art and Design building in Baton Rouge, La.

A squirrel chows down on Jan. 27, in the LSU Greek Amphitheater in Baton Rouge, La.

A squirrel stuffs its face with a sauce cup on Feb. 5, behind the LSU student union in Baton Rouge, La.

Photos by Reagan Cotten

A squirrel eats some pocky on Jan. 27, in the LSU Quad in Baton Rouge, La.

A squirrel takes a bite of a french fry on Jan. 29, in the LSU Quad in Baton Rouge, La.

An LSU squirrel holds a french fry on Jan. 29, in the LSU Quad in Baton Rouge, La.

A squirrel eats a fry from a trash can on Feb. 5, near the LSU Student Union in Baton Rouge, La.

A squirrel sticks its head out of a trash can while looking for food on Feb. 5, near Himes hall in Baton Rouge, La.

Help Wanted

SPORTS WORTH THE DROP?

Column: Indiana surpassing LSU in the latest AP Poll makes sense

Despite remaining undefeated through the end of last week, No. 3 LSU was jumped in the latest AP Poll by Indiana, much to the disapproval of Tiger fans everywhere. While it isn’t atypical for an undefeated team in college sports to be disregarded when they undergo a drop in production, 23 straight wins including four against Quad I teams should justify a team to keep its spot, right?

Well, not always.

LSU’s stellar start, continued success in SEC play and No. 2 ranking in point margin and scoring offense warrant a spot in the top five no matter what. That’s not even a question. But that doesn’t mean the voting committee can’t rule in favor of a team sporting a better track record, even if that record contains a blemish.

In this case, that team is Indiana. The Hoosiers are 22-1, have maintained a spot in the AP Top 10 since late November, just recently secured the Big 10 throne over Ohio State and should secure a one-seed in March Madness if their success continues.

There are arguments for why the Tigers should have remained at No. 2 but they lack context

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

and are easy to argue against.

The Hoosiers possess a single unranked loss suffered at the end of 2022, which justifiably dropped them down a few spots in the rendition of the AP Poll that followed it. While they do hold the No. 3 spot in point margin right behind LSU, the Tigers, along with South Carolina, are in a league of their own when it comes to the stat line, each holding more than a 10-point

lead over Indiana within the category. If the teams had schedules with similar levels of difficulty, the decision to place Indiana above LSU would be completely unjustified and warrant contention because of its single loss. That’s how incredible each of their seasons have been.

But that just simply isn’t the case, not even close.

LSU’s toughest opponent in

terms of both the current AP Poll and NET rankings is Tennessee, which is interesting because that just so happens to be a team Indiana beat on the road back in November. It’s even more interesting because the Volunteers are the fifth best team the Hoosiers have defeated.

Ahead of Tennessee, the Hoosiers have wins over No. 8

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Will LSU men’s hoops break the streak?

BY JASON WILLIS @JasonWillis4

LSU always knew this season was going to be an uphill battle. With a new head coach in Matt McMahon and a roster with only three returnees, the Tigers’ season could’ve gone any number of ways. Generally, the collection of talent seemed like it would be capable of competing in the SEC, even if it was probably never going to be among the league’s best.

The early returns confirmed as much. LSU looked relatively strong with an 11-2 non-conference record, but it was also clear that things would probably level out in SEC play. The Tigers were able to win, but didn’t blow their opponents away, even against some lower-level teams. LSU fans had modest expectations.

What no one could’ve predicted is the absolute nosedive that would come in LSU’s conference schedule. After an opening win against ranked Arkansas on Dec. 28, the Tigers have lost every game since.

LSU’s current 10-game losing streak is historic. It’s currently tied for the sixth-longest in program history. The record of 15 was set during the 2016-17 season under

see LOSING STREAK, page 10

Where does LSU women’s hoops stand in the ESPN Bracketology?

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

The postseason is getting closer by the day for the LSU women’s basketball team.

With their current 23-0 record, the Tigers look to be a top seed in both the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. But as there have been all season, there are teams that stand in their way of being at the top, and teams that have threatened to take them down. When it matters most in March, the question is: who will those teams be?

Where does LSU stand as of right now?

According to ESPN’s Women’s Basketball Bracketology, the Tigers were projected as a No. 2 seed as of Tuesday morning. They’re projected to host the first two rounds at the PMAC once again, and if the tournament started today, the Tigers would play Gardner-Webb of the Big South Conference.

If the Tigers were to win that game, they would take on the winner of a No. 7 vs. No. 10seed matchup. As of Tuesday morning, those two teams are projected to be Louisville as the No. 7 seed, and Washington State as the No. 10 seed. The second round matchup would also be played at the PMAC.

Who is above LSU in the bracketology?

The top overall seed in the bracketology is the South Carolina Gamecocks, who LSU plays on Sunday afternoon. They’re also the only other remaining undefeated team in the country along with LSU. They’re the defending national champions, and they returned the projected first WNBA Draft pick in center, Aliyah Boston. Regardless of if LSU dethrones the Gamecocks on Sunday, it makes sense that they’re projected at the top once again.

The other No. 1 seeds in the

REAGAN COTTEN / The Reveille LSU women’s basketball sophomore forward Angel Reese (10) breaks through the defense on Feb. 2, during LSU’s 82-77 victory against UGA in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, La.

see RANKING, page 10

REAGAN COTTEN / The Reveille LSU women’s basketball sophomore forward Angel Reese (10) avoids her opponent on Feb. 2, during LSU’s 8277 victory against UGA in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, La. see BRACKET, page 10

HENRY HUBER @HenryHuber_

RANKING, from page 9

Maryland, No. 12 Michigan, No. 13 Ohio State and No. 14 North Carolina, with three of those wins coming within the last month. It’s safe to say that Indiana’s lone loss, a Quad ! loss on the road against Michigan State nearly six weeks ago, gets trumped by the four top-15 wins that follow it.

Other than that, defeating Illinois (No. 34 in NET) and Purdue (No. 40 in NET) on the road gives the Hoosiers a total of seven Quad I wins opposed to LSU’s four, which all came against teams not currently ranked in the AP Top 25. Strength of schedule has become a tired argument to Tiger fans, being that LSU can’t control its conference not being as deep as the Big 10, but when you’re getting compared to top teams like that, one week not meeting your usual standards can usually be the difference.

Heading into last week, Indiana fell two votes short of sur-

passing LSU and had steadily been inching closer to it in that regard, meaning there was already a great chance of it jumping the Tigers if it simply performed better than them. Each team went in with similar scenarios, one opponent in the NET Top 50 (LSU vs. Georgia, Indiana vs. Purdue) and one outside the NET Top 100 (LSU vs. Texas A&M, Indiana vs. Minnesota), with the Hoosiers having a slightly more difficult week with both matchups occurring on the road.

That meant that if the Tigers faltered even a little bit, Indiana was bound to jump them.

While LSU struggled in both outings, narrowly avoiding an overtime loss to Georgia and struggling to put the Aggies away on the road, the Hoosiers played exceptionally well in each of its contests, defeating both opponents by 23 points. With the teams going into each week neck-and-neck in the rankings, it’s clear why Indiana jumped LSU.

Fans would argue that one bad week in a long season featuring nearly 30 games doesn’t define a team, which is true. Indiana’s bad week came earlier in the season and recency does play a role in the committee’s decision. But that doesn’t make the decision any less justified considering the comparison in track records.

It doesn’t mean either team is better than the other. That won’t be determined until each team consistently gets put to the test in March, with a possible crossing of paths later on in March Madness.

Either way, there’s only one scenario where this remains a point of contention moving forward. Indiana faces No. 5 Iowa on Thursday and LSU faces No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday, with each game occurring before next week’s rankings are released. If each team wins in similar fashion, a near-impossible choice awaits the committee, a choice that will likely cause chaos no matter what.

Johnny Jones, topping the previous record of 14, set in the 1965-66 season and matched the following year.

The bottom has fallen out for an LSU team that has almost no hope of playing meaningful postseason basketball because of this streak. Although the Tigers have made improvements in their last two games, particularly on the offensive end, having notched two of their three highest scoring outputs of the conference schedule in that span, it hasn’t yet resulted in a win.

The goal for the rest of the season is really just to see if the team can string together some competent performances and establish some momentum heading into next year, when LSU at least figures to have more continuity than it did this season.

But there’s also a secondary goal for the Tigers: avoiding infamy.

If LSU doesn’t win one of its next five games, it will find itself sharing a dubious distinction, having lost the most consecutive games in Tiger history.

A 16th straight loss would have them in sole possession of that embarrassing record.

The good news for the Tigers is that the schedule ahead of them is undoubtedly easier than the stretch they’ve left behind. Every SEC opponent LSU’s faced through 10 games is either projected to be in the NCAA Tournament or included as one of the first four out, according to Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology. Only three of LSU’s remaining opponents hold that distinction.

In their all-important next six games, the Tigers will face only one team listed by Lunardi: Texas A&M, projected to be one of the first four teams outside of the tournament bubble.

Still, according to ESPN’s win probability projections, LSU’s favored to win only two of its next

BRACKET, from page 9

bracketology are UConn, Indiana and Stanford. Out of these three teams, Indiana is the only one that ranks ahead of LSU in the AP Top 25; with LSU ranked third and Indiana in second. UConn is right behind LSU at No. 4 in the AP rankings, and Stanford is ranked sixth after losing to Washington this past Sunday.

Who are the other projectedNo. 2 seeds with LSU?

Maryland, Utah and Iowa are the other projected No. 2 seeds in the class. Of these three teams, Iowa is the highest ranked in the AP Top 25, sitting at No. 6.

The Hawkeyes are led by junior guard, Caitlin Clark, who is ranked second in the country for points per game, second in the country for assists per game and tied for fourth in the country for three-pointers made per game. Iowa faces off with Indiana on Thursday night at 5:30 p.m.

Maryland has the projected second-overall WNBA draft pick in small forward, Diamond Miller. The Terrapins still have to play Iowa and No. 13-ranked Ohio State.

Who else in the SEC is projected to make the NCAA Tournament?

LSU and South Carolina are the two highest-seeded SEC teams in the bracketology, but they are two of the projected eight SEC teams to make the tournament. The next highestseeded SEC team after LSU is Tennessee, which is projected as a No. 7 seed.

Ole Miss and Alabama are both projected as No. 8 seeds, and Arkansas is projected as a No. 9 seed. Georgia is projected as a No. 11-seed, and Mississippi State is projected to play in a play-in game for a No. 12-seed.

Of the SEC teams projected to make the tournament, including South Carolina, LSU has Ole Miss and Mississippi State still to play, and both matchups are at home.

six games. The Tigers are calculated to have an 89.8% chance of beating South Carolina on Feb. 18, which makes sense, considering the Gamecocks are the only team below LSU in the SEC standings at 1-10. LSU’s also favored against Vanderbilt on Feb. 22, with a 63.7% chance of winning.

LSU would obviously like to win before then and avoid that drama, but a victory may be hard to find. Mississippi State’s a tough team that has wins over Missouri and ranked TCU, while Texas A&M boasts a 9-2 conference record, albeit without having played Tennessee or Alabama, the conference’s two best teams.

Georgia seems like a team LSU will have a better chance of beating, as the Bulldogs have losses in six of their last seven games, most of which were uncompetitive. However, Georgia scored more than 70 points in five games

during that span, something LSU’s done only twice in all of SEC play.

If the Tigers are winless in their next three games, those South Carolina and Vanderbilt matchups will certainly be dramatic, but LSU would have reasonable expectations of winning, as both teams have struggled.

Statistically speaking, LSU will almost definitely not set the program record for losses in a row.

Using ESPN’s win probability projections, the Tigers have about a 1.5% chance of losing all of their next five games, and about a 1% chance of hitting that additional 16th consecutive loss.

However, it seemed improbable that LSU would find itself in this situation to begin with. Until LSU breaks the streak, stops the bleeding and reminds people what a win feels like, the disappointment that this season has been will have people fearing the worst.

LOSING STREAK, from page 9

MORGAN COOK / The Reveille LSU men’s basketball junior forward Derek Fountain (20) shoots the ball Feb. 4, during LSU’s 79-69 loss to Alabama at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, La.

MORGAN COOK / The Reveille LSU men’s basketball fifth-year senior forward KJ Williams (12) and junior forward Derek Fountain (20) briefly pause together Feb. 4, while the referees make a decision during LSU’s 79-69 loss to Alabama at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, La.

OPINION

A letter from U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins: Chris Christie is a loser

SERIOUSLY KIDDING

FRANK KIDD @FK446852315

Editor’s note: the following is a satirical letter written to appear as if it came from Rep. Clay Higgins on the subject of Chris Christie.

I’ve been asked to apologize for my tweets regarding Chris Christie. From the bottom of my heart, I’d like to say that I’m sorry. Sorry that Christie is a bumbling oaf.

That much should be clear from his name. His genetic makeup comes from two people that were too stupid to think of a new name, so they used the first half of their last name.

Christie fancies himself a lawyer, but he worked in New Jersey and didn’t defend the mob once. Any lawyer worth his salt at that time was working on getting wiseguys out of jail, while Christie was probably arguing traffic court cases.

He dares to attack Donald Trump when he is our only hope to save America from Joe Biden. Christie seems to think that attacking other Republicans is important while our country is being destroyed by Democrats.

Schools are teaching classes on being gay and how to change your gender. They’re taking first graders holding their eyes open clockwork orange style and showing them gay people kissing.

They’re also teaching racist propaganda in schools. They’re indoctrinating kids into anti-white ideology by only teaching the negative effects of slavery.

They also refuse to acknowledge the legitimate doubt around the issue of slavery. There is not a single person on earth that was alive for so-called American chattel slavery, yet it’s accepted as orthodoxy by our schools.

Liberals have gone so crazy that they think the sun is going to destroy the world and that we’re making it mad by driving cars. They’re scared of using too many of the earth’s natural resources as if we can’t just make more.

Worst of all, President Joe Biden is ruining the country by pressing

his inflation button. The Communist Demon Rats are working to turn this country into Venezuela while Christie is attacking the only man who put a stop to their nonsense.

Trump acknowledged the crisis on the border and did all he could to combat it. He took on the fake news media and exposed them for being partisan hacks. He also fought valiantly against the illegitimate election and went as far as inciting an insurrection.

Christie probably couldn’t even get his own family to show up for a birthday dinner, much less thousands of patriots to storm the capital for him.

Christie is clearly jealous of the true president, and who can blame

him? Trump is a beloved leader, and Christie is a sad sack failed presidential candidate. He should be grateful to be where he is. In a just world, he would work at a fast-food restaurant and live in a closet that he rents out. Anyone that knows my record understands that I am not in favor of abortion, but if I could go back in time, I’d convince Christie’s mother to put him in a vacuum.

Republicans should do their best every day to be more like Trump and less like Christie. Still, I would like to offer my deepest apologies to you, Chris. I’m sorry that you’re a massive loser.

Frank Kidd is a 21-year-old mass communication major from Springfield, Virginia.

College students’ mental health deserves more attention

BESKE’S BUZZ

KATE BESKE

@KateBeske

Mental health issues are quickly being destigmatized, and people are able to openly discuss these issues more, but college students’ mental health still suffers.

“Up to 44% of college students reported having symptoms of depression and anxiety,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

Between 2020 and 2021, more than 60% of students met the criteria for at least one mental health issue, which was nearly a 50% increase since 2013, according to a 2022 study by National Healthy Minds.

College administrators need to focus on services directed at prevention, coping and resilience according to Sarah Lipson, a Boston University School of Public Health assistant professor, who was one of the authors of the article. She says the survey data revealed a “treatment gap” that shows that many people who suffer from anxiety or depression are not receiving treatment.

Other surveys have indicated important information regarding college students’ mental health. “Seventy-three percent of students experience some sort of mental health crisis during college,” according to The National Alliance on Mental Health.

All of this data shows that college students’ mental health

EDITORIAL BOARD

Josh Archote Editor-in-Chief

Managing Editor Hannah Michel Hanks

Claire Sullivan News Editor

is suffering, but it’s important to understand why this is happening.

A prominent factor that impacts students’ mental health is the consistent pressure from society to be successful. Young adults increasingly deal with “America’s culture of hyperachievement” and “the pressure to be effortlessly perfect,” according to Julia Scelfco, a New York Times writer.

All of these factors and more contribute to the increasing mental health issues of college students.

Sydnee Deshotel, a psychology sophomore, says she deals with anxious or depressed thoughts and feelings regularly. She says that school is the reason for around 40% of her stress.

When asked what she believes may be a big impact on the rise of student mental health issues, she said the pandemic changed things for many people, and the crime on campus for her has been a concern.

“There have also been many bad things happening around here lately,” she says.

This factor is one more localized to Baton Rouge and LSU, and the crime in the city or at a college can play a large part in students’ mental health.

Without a sense of security or safety at a university, students may struggle with mental health issues associated with worrying or feeling impacted by the crimes surrounding them.

For students who don’t feel

these negative thoughts as frequently, such as kinesiology sophomore Evan Jones, mental health can still be an issue that affects them.

He says when he does have negative thoughts, around 60% are caused by school, with the rest mainly being caused by overthinking.

“One major societal factor plays into not opening up about mental health and that is the fear of being non-masculine because you can’t ‘handle your problems like a man,’” Jones says.

While the stigma around mental health as a whole has significantly improved, the stigma surrounding mental health in men is still alive. It’s important that men’s mental health is also recognized and discussed.

With all of these issues playing into the mental health of college students, it’s important for universities to ensure they are doing their best to prevent and treat mental health issues.

Many universities around the country have begun to implement new mental health services in response to these alarming statistics.

Some new services being introduced to colleges around the country include group therapy, peer counseling and online therapy through telehealth, according to the American Psychological Association.

Schools are beginning to rely on teachers and professors to be “first responders,” spotting students in distress, said Hideko

Sera, psychologist and director of the Office of equity at Morehouse College.

At LSU, Jonathan Earle, Dean of the Honors College, began the “Honors College Mental Health Initiative” because he noticed an increase in mental health issues in students stemming from the pandemic the Reveille reported.

LSU alumna Julie Lorio started as the Honor College’s therapist on Jan. 9. Lorio is providing individual therapy that students can access through the Student Health Center. She is also hosting seminars discussing mental health and coping mechanisms the Reveille reported.

With all of these issues brought to the attention of universities, they are able to work to prevent issues that are more avoidable in order to give students a higher chance of success. When dealing with mental health issues, college can be a difficult

feat to face, but with support from the university, it’s more likely that students will have what they need to succeed.

While data shows that mental health issues of college students are at an all-time high, universities are responding by offering more mental health services to students.

While universities can’t help prevent or deal with every mental health issue or the factors that play into it, such as the pandemic, it’s important to see the growth in services offered for those that do suffer from mental health.

Some may think that mental health has enough attention, but it’s important that universities focus to help lessen the mental health of students on their campus.

Editorial Policies and Procedures

Deputy News Editor Gabby Jimenez

Brandon Poulter Opinion Editor

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 Communication. 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 delivered to B-39 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must provide a contact phone number for verification 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 editor in chief, hired every semester by the LSU Student Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.

Kate Beske is a 19-year-old journalism sophomore from Destrehan.

MATTHEW PERSCHALL / The Reveille

The LSU Student Health Center sits open on March 3, on Infirmary Lane in Baton Rouge, La.

Confessions from a first-generation college student at LSU

Coming to college is a nobrainer for some and a monumental decision for others.

Nearly 4.2 million students are considered first-generation and come from low-income households, according to RiseFirst, an organization supporting first-generation college students’ success. I didn’t have anyone to advise me, so I’m here to advise and support you.

Finances will be the highest mountain for any first-generation student to climb. It’s important to know that the first year will be the most expensive.

Between dorms, meal plans and other expenses, finances can be a huge struggle. Finishing the FAFSA forms by October helps tremendously. Don’t wait because this can significantly decrease your aid.

I would also recommend getting a job in high school to save. I understand that everyone’s circumstances are different, but if you’re able to it can really help with textbooks, learning programs and other college expenses.

Different learning programs

and software can cost anywhere from $30-$125. Websites like Packback offer financial aid for those unable to afford their payment plan. Asking for assistance is a large part of navigating finances in college.

For those coming from immigrant or low-income households, failure is not an option. I’m here to tell you that failure big or small is inevitable in college. Of the 4.2 million first-generation students, only 9% of them earn a bachelor’s degree by age 24.

While you may not be able to avoid some form of failure, there are resources on campus that can help reduce your chances of failing. Asking for help is the key to success at a large institution like LSU.

Free tutoring, printing, resume templates and other resources are available all over campus. Utilizing these tools can optimize your academic success. Even with all these available resources, students can still feel lonely on a campus full of people.

Luckily students don’t have to go through college alone. The 1st Generation student program offers resources and mentorship to make life in college more manageable. Program Director, Erwin Torres, has brought together mentors and mentees to build strong

bonds that will last beyond college.

The program not only connects you with mentors and it also connects you to other firstgeneration students. It’s through our experiences that we’re able to help each other navigate college and its many paths.

“When I was asked to be the program coordinator, I was and continue to be excited and proud to lead the program. I had great mentors throughout college and I am happy to now help students

obtain great mentors as well. It is a full circle moment for me,” Program director Erwin Torres said when asked about his experience with the program.

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed, but don’t worry, you belong here.

Sociology sophomore Shanai Watson had a similar feeling to this when coming to LSU.

”I didn’t know any other firstgeneration students so I felt a strong sense of imposter syndrome, wondering if I was actually smart enough to be in a po -

sition of such prestige,” Watson said.

Don’t allow your underdog status to hinder your experience as a student, there are people here to help and many other first-generation students.

Being a first-generation student is nothing to be ashamed of. It’s a key part of your identity and something to be proud of.

Jemiah Clemons is a 19-year-old kinesiology major from Miami, Florida.

MADDIE FITZMORRIS / The Reveille