The Acadiana Advocate 02-19-2026

RECEIVING ASHES

BY QUINN COFFMAN Staff writer

The Nottoway plantation house will be rebuilt “exactly” as it stood before the May fire that totaled it, ending its reign as the largest antebellum home in the South, its owner says.

“It was a sad day, May 15. It was a sad day for us,” Dan Dyess said “Part of us said we could just sell and leave, but we didn’t want to leave a legacy of just leaving Nottoway on the ground.”

When the fire started, Dyess was driving down from Natchitoches, where he owns the historic Steel Magnolia House. He had the progress of the fire described to him in increasingly hopeless phone calls.

By the time he reached Nottoway the electrical fire had been blazing for

nearly four hours. It had started on the southern side, where the basement museum was located, then spread quickly inside to all three floors. After the fire, Dyess said, he received calls from people all over the world, speaking “about how much they love Nottoway.”

Even so, Dyess said he was surprised the fire became national news. The news cycle was dominated by questions of whether it is proper to host weddings and vacation stays on the

re on May 15.

grounds. Some people celebrated its destruction. Dyess said the “disheartening” backlash has motivated him to consider a “memorial” to Nottoway’s enslaved Black population, though the details are still unclear He views rebuilding as his due diligence to the White Castle community and to visitors who still have fond memories of the place. Salvage and demolition start this

ä See NOTTOWAY, page 5A

Longtime Xavier University president’s ‘impact is immeasurable’

BY JOHN POPE Contributing writer

Norman Christopher Francis, the president of Xavier University for 47 years who was a force for justice in classrooms and boardrooms at the local, state and national levels, died Wednesday at Ochsner Hospital, according to family members. He was 94.

ä Francis has ties to Lafayette. PAGE 1B

During Francis’ years as the leader of the country’s only Black Catholic institution of higher learning, the Gert Town campus grew from five to 16 buildings, expanding far beyond its original boundar-

ä See FRANCIS, page 3A

Investigators open probe of pipeline blast

BY DAVID J MITCHELL Staff writer

82, the coastal highway in that part of the state according to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Agency

See PROBE, page 5A

Poll: Many Democrats are still down on party

WASHINGTON Democratic candidates have notched a series of wins in recent special elections but a new AP-NORC poll finds views of the Democratic Party among rank-and-file Democrats have not bounced back since President Donald Trump’s victory in 2024. Only about 7 in 10 Democrats have a positive view of the Democratic Party, according to new polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. While the overwhelming majority of Democrats still feel good about their party, they’re much less positive than they’ve been in the past

The midterm elections are still many months away, and lackluster favorability doesn’t spell electoral doom. Other factors could benefit Democrats this year, including broadly negative views of Trump and other Republicans. Additionally, recent polling has found that independents tend to identify more with the party that’s out of power, which could boost Democrats this year too. Historically, the party not in the White House has picked up seats in Congress in midterm elections.

N.J. diocese agrees to $180M settlement

TRENTON, N.J A New Jersey Catholic diocese this week agreed to a $180 million settlement to resolve allegations of clergy sexual abuse, a figure far exceeding agreements in some large dioceses but still dwarfed by other massive settlements.

Bishop Joseph Williams of the Diocese of Camden, covering southern New Jersey and its Philadelphia suburbs, announced the settlement Tuesday in a letter

“For the survivors of South Jersey, this day is long overdue and represents a milestone in their journey toward restored justice and the healing and recognition they have long sought and deserve,” Williams said.

Mark Crawford, state director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said in a phone interview Wednesday that the settlement was long overdue but he was glad the ordeal was coming to an end. He praised the bishop for listening to survivors and for pledging transparency, contrasting him with his predecessor who fought a legal battle over a state investigation into alleged clergy abuse.

5 dead in Colorado highway crashes

DENVER A total of five people have died in crashes on a Colorado interstate involving over 30 vehicles, including seven semitrailers, after blowing dirt made it nearly impossible to see, authorities said Wednesday Authorities initially said four people died and 29 people were injured in the crashes Tuesday on Interstate 25 near Pueblo. But one of the people hospitalized later died of his injuries, the Colorado State Patrol said Dirt from parched land along the interstate was kicked up by heavy winds and blew across the interstate around 10 a.m. Tuesday causing a “brown out,” Maj.

Brian Lyons of the Colorado State Patrol said.

“Visibility was next to nothing,” he said.

11 arrested in death of student in France

PARIS French police investigating the beating of a far-right militant who died of brain injuries have arrested 11 people, prosecutors said Wednesday, in a case adding fuel to long-standing divides in French politics ahead of presidential elections in 2027

Quentin Deranque, a 23-yearold student described as a fervent nationalist, died in a hospital on Saturday He was beaten two days earlier by a group of people in the city of Lyon in fighting that erupted between far-left and far-right supporters on the margins of a student meeting where a far-left lawmaker Rima Hassan, was a keynote speaker

An autopsy found that Deranque suffered a fractured skull and fatal brain injuries, according to Lyon’s prosecutor Thierry Dran.

8 backcountry skiers found dead; 1 missing

BY BROOKE HESS-HOMEIER, JULIE WATSON and JOHN SEEWER Associated Press

NEVADA CITY, Calif Crews found the bodies of eight backcountry skiers near California’s Lake Tahoe and were searching for one more after they were caught in an avalanche, the nation’s deadliest in nearly half a century, authorities said Wednesday Authorities said the skiers had little time to react “Someone saw the avalanche, yelled ‘Avalanche!’ and it overtook them rather quickly,” said Capt. Russell “Rusty” Greene, of the Nevada County sheriff’s office.

Six from the guided tour were rescued six hours after the avalanche hit Tuesday morning during a three-day trek in Northern California’s Sierra Nevada, as a monster winter storm pummeled the West Coast.

Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said investigators would look into the decision to proceed with the trip on Sunday despite the forecast for a major storm.

That morning at 6:49 a.m., the Sierra Avalanche Center issued an avalanche watch, indicating that

large avalanches were likely in the next 24 to 48 hours.

The center increased the watch to a warning hours before the avalanche hit. It’s not known if the guides would have known about the warning before they ventured out. Authorities have told the families the mission has moved from rescuing people to recovering bodies, Moon said during a news conference.

The victims, including three guides, were found fairly close together, Greene said. The dead and missing include seven women and two men, ranging in ages from 30 to 55. The crews have not yet been able to remove the victims from the mountain because of the extreme conditions, the sheriff said.

Three to 6 feet of snow has fallen since Sunday The area was also hit by subfreezing temperatures and gale force winds. The Sierra Avalanche Center said the threat of more avalanches remained Wednesday and left the snowpack unstable and unpredictable in an area known for its steep, craggy cliffs.

Rescuers reached the survivors

just before sunset on Tuesday

The skiers all had beacons that can send signals to rescuers and at least one of the guides was able to send texts, but it wasn’t clear if they were wearing avalanche bags, which are inflatable devices that can keep skiers near the surface, Greene said.

While they waited to be rescued, the survivors used equipment to shelter themselves and fend off temperatures dipping below freezing. The survivors located three others who had died during the wait, Moon said.

Rescuers used a snowcat to get within 2 miles of the survivors, then skied in carefully so they didn’t set off another avalanche, the sheriff said.

One of those rescued remains in a hospital Wednesday, Moon said. A guide was among the survivors.

The area near Donner Summit is one of the snowiest places in the Western Hemisphere and until just a few years ago was closed to the public. It sees an average of nearly 35 feet of snow a year, according to the Truckee Donner Land Trust, which owns a cluster of huts where the group was staying near Frog Lake.

Envoys: No breakthrough on bridging Russia, Ukraine gap

BY JAMEY KEATEN and ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press

GENEVA — The latest U.S.-brokered talks between envoys from Moscow and Kyiv over Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine ended Wednesday with no sign of a breakthrough and with both sides saying the talks were difficult,” as the war’s fourth anniversary approaches next week.

The negotiations in Switzerland were the third round of direct talks organized by the U.S., after meetings earlier this year in Abu Dhabi that officials described as constructive but which also made no major headway Expectations for significant progress in Geneva were low

“The negotiations were not easy,”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after the talks broke up and he spoke briefly by phone from Kyiv with his negotiating team.

He earlier accused Russia of “trying to drag out negotiations” while it presses on with its invasion — an accusation he and European leaders have repeatedly made in the past.

Despite that, some progress was made on military issues although political differences remain deep, including over the future of land in eastern Ukraine that is occupied by the Russian army and that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to keep, Zelenskyy said.

The head of the Russian delegation, Putin adviser Vladimir Medinsky, told reporters that the two days of talks in Geneva “were difficult but businesslike.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that it’s “too early” to speak about the outcome of the talks Putin has been receiving reports about progress in Geneva, he said.

Both sides said a new round of talks is set to take place.

Soldiers wait Tuesday at a pickup for assignments on the

Zelenskyy described the military discussions as “constructive,” adding that the armed forces of both countries considered how any future ceasefire might be monitored.

“Monitoring will definitely be carried out with participation of the American side,” he said in a voice message shared in a media group chat on WhatsApp.

U.S President Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, said on social media that Washington’s push for peace in Ukraine over the past year has “brought about meaningful progress,” without elaborating.

The two armies remain locked in battle on the roughly 750-mile front line, while Russia bombards civilian areas of Ukraine daily Hours after the first day of talks ended on Tuesday, Russian drones killed a woman and injured a 6-year-old girl and 18-month-old toddler in the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzhia, officials said.

CEO pressed on kids’ Instagram use

BY KAITLYN HUAMANI and BARBARA ORTUTAY AP technology writers

LOS ANGELES

Mark Zuckerberg and opposing lawyers dueled in a Los Angeles courtroom on Wednesday where the Meta CEO answered questions about young people’s use of Instagram, his congressional testimony and internal advice he’s received about being “authentic” and not “robotic.”

Zuckerberg’s testimony is part of an unprecedented social media trial that questions whether Meta’s platforms deliberately addict and harm children

As of early afternoon, Zuckerberg has not directly answered the central question of the case: whether Instagram is addictive.

The plaintiff’s attorney, Mark Lanier asked if people tend to use something more if it’s addictive.

“I’m not sure what to say to that,” Zuckerberg said. “I don’t think that applies here.”

Guided tour group caught in sudden avalanche Zuckerberg quizzed in social media trial

Attorneys representing the plaintiff, a now 20-year-old woman identified by the initials KGM, claim her early use of social media addicted her to the technology and exacerbated depression and suicidal thoughts. Meta Platforms and Google’s YouTube are the two remaining defendants in the case, which TikTok and Snap have settled.

Beginning his questioning, Lanier laid out three options of what people can do regarding vulnerable people: help them, ignore them, or “prey upon them and use them for our own ends.” Zuckerberg said he agrees the last option is not what a reasonable company should do, saying, “I think a reasonable company should try to help the people that use its services.”

When he was asked about his compensation, Zuckerberg said he has pledged to give “almost all” of his money to charity, focusing on scientific research. Lanier asked him how much money he has pledged to victims impacted by social media, to which Zuckerberg replied, “I disagree with the characterization of your question.”

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ies. Because of his focus on science, Xavier became a university that consistently sent more minority students to medical schools than any other college in the country

“His impact is immeasurable,” said Dr.Michael Francis, his son. “He would do anythingfor hisfamily, theXavier family and the Louisiana family.”

Among those Francis welcomed to Xavier’scampus were the Freedom Riders, civil rights activists he housed in adormitory in 1961after Whitesupremacists attacked them in Alabama;formerPresident Barack Obama, who was Illinois’ junior senator when he delivered the university’s 2006 commencement address; and Pope John Paul II, who, during his September 1987 visit, spoke in the campus’ quadrangle to the leaders of every Catholic universityinthe country

“Itwas agreat,great moment for Xavier,” Francis said of the Pope’svisit in a 1997 interview.“That moment gave us anational presence.”

Francis’ years of service have been recognized witha slew of awards, including42 honorary doctorates and,in 2006, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor

Because he built the university and thereby drew national attention to it, Francis is “clearly oneofthe most influential New Orleanians of the 20th century,” said former New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League.

“His greatness is being a builder of institutions that are going to continue being significant players in New Orleans.”

People-and book-smart Francis,who served on 54 boards and commissionsand advisedeightpresidentson education and civil rights issues, was born on March 20, 1931, in Lafayette during the Great Depression.One of five children, he earned money by shining shoes and painting houses.

He graduated from St Paul High School and considered enlisting in the Army because his family couldn’tafford to send him to college.

But anun who had taught him contacted the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, the order of Catholicnuns that founded and ran Xavier.The group arranged ascholarship for Francis that allowed him work in the libraryto pay his tuition. He enrolled in 1948 at 17.

His leadership skills were evident even then, saidSybil Morial, afriend since their undergraduate days at Xavier,aneducatorand acivil rights activist. Sybil Morial, the wife of former Mayor Dutch Morial and motherto Marc Morial, died lastyear

“I knew he was full of life and very smart,not just book-smartbut peoplesmart,” she said. “It was an innate talent.” Francis was president of

his class each year until his senior year, when he was elected studentbodypresident and graduatedwith honors in 1952.

He later applied to Loyola University’slaw school, becoming itsfirst Blackstudent. But there was acatch: Even though Francis had integrated the law school, he couldn’tlive in aLoyola dormitory.Sohebunkedina Xavier dorm, where he was in charge of freshmen men.

“I was abudding lawyer living with abunchofrowdy teenage boys,” Francissaid in an interview.“At night, they’d setupbowling pins at one endofthe halland roll a Coke bottle down it to knock them over.…Those were some of the best years of my life.”

His firstday there, Francismet afellowstudent, Maurice“Moon”Landrieu, in the lobby

“I put my hands on his shoulders and said,‘Welcome aboard. If there’s any way Ican help you, let me know,’ ”said Landrieu, a former New Orleans mayor who died in 2022.

Before the two met, “I neverthought aboutsegregation. That’sjust theway things were,” said Landrieu, who often called Francis for advice during hispublic service career.“ButwhenI met Norman, Ibegan thinking in terms offairnessand integrity.Ibecame convinced that as long as his freedom was limited, mine was, too. It made me angry.”

AfterFrancis got his law degree, he joined theU.S Army, serving in the 3rd Armored Division.He later worked on special assignment with the U.S. Justice Department to desegregate federal agencies in major cities, especially in the South. He also joined the New Orleans law firm of Collins, Douglas &Elie, whichwas counsel for the Congress for Racial Equality, the civil rights organization known as CORE. In this job, Francis fought segregation and represented activists who were challenging shop owners on thethen-bustlingDryades Street to hire Black workers and staging sit-ins at Whiteonlylunch counters on Canal Street

Alegacyasaneducator

Althoughhis legal career was going well, Francis decided in the late 1950s to pivot

“I made adecision that education was going to be the answer formebecause as Ilooked at thestruggle for

African Americans, Iknew

we weren’t going to make it if we just kept showing up in courtroomsdefending ourselves against whatever the circumstances,”hesaid in a1992 interview

He returned to Xavier in 1957 to become itsdean of men, the first of several posts he would hold during his climbupthe administrativeladder

In thespring of 1961, a group of Xavier undergraduates told himabout the FreedomRiders, agroup of young people who planned to take aGreyhound bus from Washington, D.C., to NewOrleans in abid to end segregationinbus travel in theSouth.

The riders gotasfar as Anniston, Alabama, where about 50 Whitesupremacists attacked them and their bus. The next day,Vincent Roux and Rudy Lombard,who were coordinatingthe New Orleans endof thatride, went to Francis’ office to askifthe Freedom Riders could be put up in St Michael’s Dormitory,which had an empty third floor “I had to think aboutit awhile fortwo reasons,” Francis said. “I knew if Iput them in the dormitory,Iwas perhaps endangering the lives of the other kids there, but this was theright thing to do.”

Sister MaryJosephina Kenney, Xavier’spresident, agreed, Francis said, on the condition that the school not announce the decision in anews release, as local hotels and residentsfeared violencewould followthe group.

Buthedidn’tkeepa low profile.Instead,Francisheld anews conference in the dorm lobby to celebrate the group, whoarrivedoncampus bloodiedand bandaged in ascene Francis described as “sad and triumphant.” He also joined the group at Zion Baptist Churchtocelebrate the seventh anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that outlawed segregation in public schools.

Seven years later,the Sisters of theBlessed Sacramentdecided it was time for aXavier graduate to become president of the 43-year-old university that St. Katharine Drexel,the order’sfounder, hadestablishedfor Black students. Francis became Xavier’s first lay president and first Black president When he took over,“everyone was trying to be ageneral liberal artscollege,”Marc Morialsaid. “He hada focus. He positioned Xavier with a

dents in the country

When Hurricane Katrina’s floodwaters battered southeast Louisiana,ravaged his Gentilly home and tore through Xavier’scampus in August 2005, Francis vowed to not only rebuild the campus but makeitbetter

“Bringingusbackto where we werebefore Katrina wasn’tgood enough,” he said in an interview. “We had to get where we were planning to go. We were able to combine the plan that started before Katrina and see how we could move to the next step.”

focus on science. …Hedid it before it was atrend.”

These days, Xavier turns out dozens of graduates each year whogoontomedical schools, and it has one of Louisiana’stwo colleges for training aspiringpharmacists.

Sybil Morial, who held aseries of administrative positions at Xavier for 28 years, witnessed all the changes. “It was an exciting job to be part of this vibrant thing thatwas turning out these successful students who were contributing not only professionally butalso personally,” she said. “He set theexample.”

As president, he was perpetually cheerful, andhe had aheartygreeting for everyone. But he could be serious when the situation demanded it,asSybil Morial remembered when she described aprotest on campus.

“It could have been very ugly,” she said. “He told the studentshewanted to meet with them and hear what their concerns were. He let them talk,not just the leader.Hetotally disarmed them, and they walked away satisfied. Iguess they did some marching andpublic speaking on the campus, but it wasn’t angry.Hehad the talenttodothat.”

A1986 survey by the Councilfor Advancement and SupportofEducation named him one of the 100 most effective college presi-

Eventhough thecampus marinated for weeks in water as deep as 6feet, Francis vowed that classeswould resumeinJanuary 2006. They did.

“Somesaid it wascrazy Somesaid it couldn’thappen,”President Barack Obama said on campus on the fifth anniversary of the storm. “But they didn’t count on what happens when one force of nature meets another.”

‘Never forget’

Francisalso developeda reputation for leadership in civic and business organizations, includingLiberty Bank, one of the biggest Black-owned financialinstitutions in theUnitedStates. He helpedfound it in 1972 andwas chairmanofits board of directors.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco also appointed Francis in 2005 to lead theLouisiana Recovery Authority to coordinate the state’scomeback from Katrina.

“He wasone of the few peoplethat peopleinpolitics trusted to do their things,” Dr.Michael Francis said of his father Despitehis accolades,“I don’t wearmytitle on my chest,”Francis said in a 1992 interview.“It’sthe last thing Iwould do.Ijust see everybody as important.I’m president because that happens to be my job, but that doesn’tmake me any better than anybody else.”

Francischairedthe New Orleans Aviation Board and the boards of the Educa-

tional Testing Service, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the Southern Education Association, WLAE-TV,the Metropolitan Area Committee Education Fund and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, aregional accrediting agency.Hewas president of theAmerican Association of Higher Education and the United Negro College Fund and amember of the Catholic University of America’sboard of trustees andThe Times-Picayune Editorial Advisory Board. In addition to the honorary degrees he received, Franciswas awardedThe Times-Picayune Loving Cup and the University of Notre Dame’s Laetare Medal. In 2020, theNew Orleans City Council changedthe name of Jefferson Davis Parkway,whichruns past the edge of Xavier’scampus, to Norman C. Francis Parkway At Francis’ final commencement, in 2015, the tributes rained down.Vartan Gregorian, the Carnegie Corporation president and an honorary degree recipient, was succinctwhen he told Francis, “The universe is not going to see anyone like you again.”

In response to all the praise,Francis saidhefelt privileged to be of service, and he told the graduates to “never forget from whence you come. …Iwould especially hope that yougive your talent and your expertise to those who need it most. …You havethe tools. Youhave the strong leadership example. Now go out and contribute.”

Francis’ wife, Blanche Macdonald Francis, died in 2015. Survivors include four sons, Michael, Timothy and David Francis, allofNew Orleans, and Patrick Francis of Austin, Texas; two daughters, Kathleen Francis of NewYork City and Christina Francis of Los Angeles; asister,Mabel Bailey of Lafayette; and 11 grandchildren. Funeral arrangements are incomplete.

Continued from page1A

week, Dyess said. Almost all of the mansion’swhitepainted old-growth cypress boards sit charred in untouchedpiles around the base of the structure. Whileasooty skeleton of Nottoway’s façade stillstands, the north-facing portico is completely gone, with only stacks of bricks and snapped cast-iron railings where it stood.

The ruin’stallest heights are now the tops of blackened pillars, which narrow to points where the third flooronce was. Alarge needlepoint rug hangs from one of those pillars; it was originaltothe house but is now too burnedfor its pink-and-white floralpattern to be recognized.

Fire investigation teams with the U.S. BureauofAlcohol, Tobacco and Firearms were required to knock down the house’sremaining chimneys over fears of them collapsing on workers.

The survivinggranite front staircases are still cluttered with discarded fire hoses, left when Nottoway’sceiling collapsed, making entry impossible.

Despite the damage, Dyess said he’scommitted to rebuilding Nottoway regardless of the timeorcost. He estimates the formerattwo or three years andthe latterat“several million dollars.”

No insurance was purchased for Nottoway before the fire due to the cost,Dyess said.And he thinks it’s unlikely he’ll receive anygrant funding for historical preservation. Dyess hopes to rely in part on the support of those who hadafondness for the historichome. In the months since the fire, stays inthe property’scottages and even afew rentals of the Randolph ballroom have continued.

In November,Dyess and his wife, Desiree, opened arestaurant on the grounds with anew chef. Trafficto “Randolph’satNottoway” has been steady,Dyess said.

Dyess says one way he is raising funds is through donations by selling engravedbricks for $150 that will be laid along the recreated plantation house’spaths.

“We’re doing everything in our power with the people working here to improve theproperty,” Dyess said. “Planning, painting, replacing stuff, keepingeverything going by having arestaurant,having agift shop. We don’twant to quit, and we won’tquituntil weget this done.”

Dyess estimates that 54% ofthe original building survived, primarily in the unburned garçonnière andthe ground floor.Hecalls that asign thatthe mansion can be remade authentically,not as areplica.

Of Nottoway’soriginal square entrance pillars, only the left-

PROBE

Continued from page1A

“The release and ignition of natural gas poses arisk to public safety,people, and the environment,” PHMSA said in theorder “The proximityofthe pipeline to astate highway,otherhydrocarbon pipelines, and theGulf of America increases the possible consequencesofadditionalreleases from the pipeline.”

PHMSA, which issued its order on Feb. 6, has preliminarily determined that the company’s pipeline inspection and cleaning work, which included injecting fresh natural gas into the closed line, triggered the fire.

Louisiana State Police and other local agencies are also investigating the blast.

DelfinLNG officialssaid they are cooperating with federal, state and local agencies and are “coordinating with PHMSAtoensure” the repair and assessment of the line are consistent withthe agency’srequirements.

“Wewillcontinueforward on this projectwith the highest degrees of safety and integrity,and we will workwiththe agencies to implement any needed additionalmeasures to ensure safe operations,” the officials said in astatement. The worker injured in the blast

most survived the blaze, which wasthe onestill bearinganotch from where grapeshot struck and lodged itself during the Civil War.

To Dyess, this is another sign his rebuild is alegitimate extensionof the original property

It’s those same 20-inch,oldgrowth cypresspillars thatarchitectShane Aymond predictswill pose thegreatest challenge for his team during the rebuild.

“You can’tget wood that wide anymore without it wanting to curl,” said Aymond, an architect with more than 23 years of experience in restoring historic homes.

“The wood on that houseright there was cured for so many years, and it wasall virgin cypress.”

Aymond plans to usetreated cypress replacements forthe pillarstoensuretheycan support the house’s weight without twisting or buckling.

That’sone ofthe dozens of structural,material and design hurdles faced in accurately rebuilding the pre-Civil Warmansion.

Aymond’steam will consult the few available historical primary sources and the plentiful images of theoriginal structure. Then they will eitherprocurethe same wood, brickorplaster believed tobeused in theoriginal or the best approximation.

Wherever possible, structurally sound original materials that survivedthe fire will beused.

“Thegoalistorecreate thehouse as authentic as possible to theactual constructionthat was done in 1859,”Aymond said.

Aymond said that for days after the fire,hecouldn’tstopthinking about the ruins.That feeling didn’t go awayuntilhecontacted Dyess, he said

“I neededtocall this man, Ineeded to find outwho he was, andI neededtooffer my help,” Aymond said. “He could have said no, but he didn’t. He could’ve gone with a massive well-knownbuilder,… but he didn’t.”

What followed was extensive research. Aymond contacted author

hassuedoverhis injuries, levelingseveral of the same allegations as contained in thePHMSA’s initial set of facts.

Delfin LNG bought the line from EnBridge in 2014 andhas planstouse the30-mile pipeline, which isprimarily offshore, to send liquefied natural gastoa floating platform in the deep-waterGulffor foreignexport. While Louisiana has becomea hub of LNG exports withother large, onshore plants alreadyoperating, the DelfinLNG project and its offshore component would be unique

Formerly known as the UTOS line,the 42-inchpipeline was built in 1978 originally to gather natural gas produced from platforms in the Gulf for onshore distributioninthe United States.

DelfinLNG wantstoreverse the traditional flow,moving domestic gasproduced on land offshore

The Delfinproject,which the Trump administration approved in early 2025, had been stalled foryears amidquestions from theBiden administration.

Sincethe approval, the project hasfaced criticism from environmentalgroups opposed toLNG export generally but whichalso question the safetyofreusing the old line, thecompleteness of Delfin’sproposaland the risk it may pose to the Rice’swhale.

TheCenter forBiologicalDiversity sued in March last year

Robert Brantley,who wrotea biography on Henry Howard, thefamed architect of the original Nottoway Brantley provided acopy of the original contract between Howard and sugar cane planter John Randolph, which included details on the house’sconstruction.However,in his search, Aymond wasrepeatedly told thatRandolph deliberately destroyedthe original designs to keep Nottoway unique.

In addition to local craftsmen, Aymond hasbrought in specialists from Washington, D.C., and New York to recreate the home’smantlesand plaster frieze work.

Acentral Louisianateam will handle the newcypress planks inside the house andsome of theoriginal planks for the outsidesiding. Finding era-appropriate antique furniture will be easier and will include afew recoveredoriginal drapes alongside recreations

Aymondand Dyesssay thegoal is to rebuild the structure “exactly” as it was in 1859. The biggest change is thatguest roomswillbe on the lowest floor,where astorage area and, later,the bowling alley once stood.

Both men saythat,insomeways, the rebuild will be more accurate to theoriginalstructure than the onethatburnedlast year.For one, air-conditioning and electrical systems can be built inside thewalls, hidden.

“Wehave acouple photos that show abalcony going around the girls’wingthatwas removed over time,” Aymond said. “We’re actually going to be putting it back on.”

Reached for asecond opinion Kevin Harris, an architect and historical home preservationist who workedonbothMagnolia Mound andWoodland plantations, estimatedsucharebuild couldtakeat least five years. He couldn’toffer a possible total cost.

Harrissaid therebuilders must balance the costand ease of new constructionmaterials and techniques withthe preservation of the building’shistory.Anowner wanting only awedding venue might opt

to block the license from an arm of the U.S. DepartmentofTransportation

Thegroup pointed outthe same agency had denied the license less than ayear earlier, in April 2024, and ordered an amended application to address design, operational and ownership changes since theproject’s initialblessingin2017. Thatcase is on appeal.

Kenneth Clarkson, spokesman for the nonprofit, nonpartisan Pipeline SafetyTrust, said the incident “highlights the risk of recommissioning old, unused or underutilized pipelines for new purposes,including transporting different products at different pressures, andoften in different directions.”

Clarkson pointed out that PHMSA previously warned operatorsin2014 about these types of projectsand that Congress had mandated the agency in 2020 to develop regulations “toprescribe requirementstooperators movingpipelines into andout of service.”

“Projects like Delfin’sare being proposed and constructed across the Gulf Coast region forliquefied natural gas, carbon dioxide, andhydrogen gas,” Clarkson added. “With more of this work on the horizon, operators, industry regulators, and the public must be awareand protected from the inherent risks of repurposing

for the former,hesaid.

“Itwas one of the finesthouses ever built in Louisiana,” Harris said. “This wasthe best of the best at thetime, it’satribute to its design forsure, butit’salsoa tribute to thepeople that actually built it. They mayhave built it under duress, but they were master craftsmen.”

Aymondechoed that, saying the project is away to honorenslaved builders who created Nottoway.

Dyess has stressed his goal is to “unify the community and our state,our nation” through “hope and not hate.”

He said he doesn’twanttorebuild theformer plantationinahistorically one-sidedway,and that his interestinthe property is historical as well as architectural andcommercial.

“We’re going to probablydo something, Idon’t knowwhatit would be,tomemorialize,” Dyess said. “Some kind of plaque, or room, or something. We’re going to recognize that andembrace the future.”

Dyesssaid his model will be the WhitneyPlantation in Wallace. He said he believes there’sroom for such an acknowledgment while still keeping theproperty as abusiness open for weddings, corporate retreats and bed-and-breakfaststays

Jo Banner is aco-owner of Woodland Plantation in St. John the Baptist Parish, as well as founder of theDescendants’ Project, which is “committed to healing and flourishingofthe Black descendant community in the Louisiana river parishes,” according to its site.

“My concern is,and I’ve seen other attractions do this, where they mayput all of the history about enslavement relegatedtoone room or onestatue, and say,‘Yeah, we have acknowledgedenslavement,’”Banner said.

Bannersaid she felt both relief andpain upon hearing Nottoway burned down and understood why there was acelebration. So while she wouldn’tcriticize anyone for beinggladthe plantation burned

pipelinestransportingand storingthese potentially dangerous products.”

Delfinofficials said, however, that, in additiontoDOT’sapproval, “theU.S.Coast Guard, 15 other federal agencies, the states of Texas and Louisiana, andseveral state agencies,fully reviewed and evaluated the proposed project, including the proposed reuse of existing pipeline infrastructure, and took public comment.”

Before selling to DelfinLNG, EnBridge had shut offthe pipeline,purged the gas and filled the line withinert nitrogen by late 2011. DelfinLNG officials said they recently beganinspections “important to ensure that theline is in good working order.”

Delfinrecently sent in equipment that runs inside of the pipeline,known as a“ pig,”toclean andinspect itscondition.After inserting gas back into the line, the pig hit aclosed valve and sparked an explosion with the flammable natural gas,the PHMSA order states.

PHMSAsaid the fire released about 56 million cubic feet of naturalgas

Clarkson, the spokesman for thepipeline safety group, said theinjection of gas “concerns us considering the pipeline has not been in operationfor over adecade, andits integritymight be unknown.”

Banner said preservation is very importantinher work at Woodland, down to collecting every discarded nail.

“I think the sad part of our history as Black people, as descendants of enslaved people, is that sometimes thesehousesare theonlymaterial thing thatwehaveleftofour ancestors,” she said.

Bannersaidincluding thedescendantsofBlack Americansenslaved on aplantation is necessary in any future decisions about such locations, especially whenthe sites are operated as businesses. To her,even if thedestruction of thesitewas wanted, the fire was an accident, notadirect choice by descendants. Some of her suggestions, including connectingwith local Black faith leaders and studying the work at Whitney Plantation, had already been taken up by Dyess in thewake of the fire.

Mia Crawford-Johnson livesin Baton Rouge and traces someof her family heritage to Nottoway and other plantations along River Road.PhotosCrawford-Johnson posted the day of the fire, which show her and her cousins celebrating on the levee above Nottoway, went viralduringthe fire’s news cycle. She drovetoWhiteCastleafter hearing the plantation wasburning. Before leaving, she made sure to graba bottleofHouse of Mandela wine from South Africa. As the house still smoldered, CrawfordJohnson stood on the grounds and poured the wine out.

“NelsonMandela represented freedom,” Crawford-Johnson said “I intentionally poured that wine as tributetothe ancestorsthat once roamed that plantation. We often forget about the things that took place on plantations.”

Crawford-Johnson saidshe thought of Nottoway as aplace interested in honoring slave owners morethan the enslaved themselves, and noted the resort’swebsite at the time of the fire didn’t mention the 155 men, women and children believed to have been enslaved there in 1860.

Crawford-Johnsonsaidshe isn’t fully against reconstructing the house, however,aslongasproper memorials are made.

“They need to do something to honor those ancestors that were on that land,” Crawford-Johnson said, “because those spirits are still there and they’re never going to go away.”

While Dyess is excited about the new restaurant and the prospect of the rebuild, he acknowledges the long road ahead.

“It’sthe legacy thing. I’m71 yearsold,”Dyess said. “I don’t know how manymore years Igot. Nobody knows how many more years anybody got, butwedidn’t want ourlegacytobethatweleft Nottoway on the ground.”

In the final yearsofEnbridge’s ownership, between 2010 to 2012, theline had at least seven pinhole gas leaks offshorefrom corrosion and three more from strikes by third-party vessels and equipment or company excavation work, according to PHMSA reports. Clarkson said the strike by the dredging vessel in 2011 caused $8 million in damage and repair

In theeight yearsbefore2010, thesamelinehad just onereported break whena fitting broke looseonshoreinCameron Parish amid heavy rain and flooding during Hurricane Rita’slandfall in 2005. Theline wasshut in at the time.

Asked if the increasing number of incidentsinthe finalyears contributed to the decision to close the pipeline, EnBridge officials said thecompany stoppedusing the line due to low utilization fromoffshore gas sources and demand.

The company said the pipeline had been maintained in accordance “with applicable regulations throughout Enbridge’sownership.” Delfin officials noted thatin the yearsthe pipeline remained closed and out of service while in their ownership,the company worked to ensure proper operation and maintenance,includingthrough “regularreports to PHMSA.”

Officials: More than 550 schoolsmustclose

Investigators find safety issues

with commercial drivingprograms

BY JOSH FUNK

AP transportationwriter

More than 550 commercial driving schools in theU.S. thattrain truckersand bus drivers must close after investigators found they employedunqualified instructors, failed to adequately test students and had other safety issues, the federal Transportation Department announced Wednesday Themove marks the Transportation Department’slatest effort to improve safety in the trucking industry. And unlike itsprevious actions last fall to decertifyupto 7,500schools that included many defunct operations, this lateststep is focused on what it deemed were active schools with significant shortcomings that inspectors identified in 1,426 site visits. The department has been aggressively going after states that handed out commercial driver’s licenses to immigrants who shouldn’thave qualified for them

ever since afatal crash in August

Atruck driverthat Transportation Secretary SeanDuffy says was not authorized tobeinthe U.S. made an illegal U-turn andcaused a crashinFlorida that killed three people.Other fatal crashes since then,including oneinIndiana earlier this monththat killed four, have only added to theconcerns.

Duffy said448 schools that failed to meet basic safetystandards. Inspectorsfound shortcomingssuch as employing unqualified instructors, failing to test students’ skills or teach them how to handle hazardous materialsand using the wrong equipmenttoteach drivers. Another 109 schools removed themselves from the registry of schools when theylearned that inspectors were planningtovisit.

“American families shouldhave confidence that our school bus and truckdrivers are following every letter of the law and that starts withreceiving proper training

before getting behind thewheel,” Duffy said.

Thelist of schoolsthatofficials want to decertify now are generally smallerones, including a number of programsrun by school districts. Five of the bigger,more reputableschools represented by the national Commercial Vehicle Training Association were audited butthose all passed.

Jeffery Burkhardt,who is chair of the national trucking schools group, said established schools welcome the new enforcement efforttoeliminate badschools that aren’t meeting the standards. He said theseaudits mark thefirst time regulatorshave enforced the standardsfor driving schools that were passed in 2022.

“There’snoreason to believe thatthey’re not going to keep on moving on it, whichisgood. You know,the good playershave no problem withit. Absolutely none,” said Burkhardt, whoisalso is senior director of operations at Ancora, whichprovides CDL training at colleges,communitycolleges andcompanies. Another 97 schools are currently under investigation for compliance issues.

Pope laments‘ashesofinternational law’ in hisAsh Wednesdayliturgy

By TheAssociated Press

ROME PopeLeo XIV opened the church’spenitentialLenten season by presidingoverAsh Wednesday and lamenting the “ashesofinter-

ASSOCIATEDPRESS

death on Good Friday and resurrectiononEaster

In his homily,Leo offered ameditationonsin and said the ashes that Christians receive bear the “weight of aworldthatisablaze,ofentire cities destroyed by war.”

“Thisisalsoreflectedinthe ashes of international law andjustice among peoples, the ashes of entire ecosystems and harmony among peoples, the ashes of critical thinkingand ancient localwisdom, the ashes of that sense of the sacred that dwells in every creature,” he said. Leo hasspoken outstrongly against the collapse of the postWorld WarIIinternational legal order fueled by Russia’swar in Ukraineand even theU.S.military incursion into Venezuela to remove its leader

JesseJackson’s children honor hislegacyafter hisdeath

BY SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press

CHICAGO From jokesabout his well-known stubbornness to tears grieving the loss of aparent, the adultchildren of the Rev.Jesse L. Jackson Sr.gave an emotional tribute Wednesday honoring the legacy of the late civil rights icon, aday after his death.

Jackson died Tuesday at his home in Chicagoafterbattling a rare neurological disorderthat affected his ability to move and speak. Standing on the steps outside his longtime Chicago home, five of hischildren, including U.S.Rep.Jonathan Jackson, remembered him notonlyfor his decades-long work in civil rights but alsofor his role as spiritual leader and father

“Our father is aman whodedicated his life to public service to gain, protect and defend civil rightsand human rights to make our nation better,tomake the worldmorejust,our people better neighborswitheach other,” said his youngest son, Yusef Jackson, fighting back tears at times. The family saiddetails on funeral arrangements for Jackson would be announced at alater time, but services will begin next week,withhim lyinginreposeat theheadquarters of the organizationhefounded, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago, which his sonYusef oversees. Services will follow at achurch large enough to

accommodate expected crowds. Jacksonrosetoprominence six decades agoasaprotege of the Rev.Martin LutherKing Jr., joining the voting rights march King led from SelmatoMontgomery, Alabama. King later dispatched Jackson to ChicagotolaunchOperation Breadbasket, aSouthern ChristianLeadership Conference efforttopressure companiesto hire Black workers.

Jackson waswith King on April 4, 1968, when the civil rights leader was slain.

Remembrances have poured in worldwide for Jackson, including flowers left outside the home where large portraits of asmiling Jackson hadbeen placed.But his children said he wasafamily man first.

“Ourfather took fatherhood very seriously,” his eldest child, Santita Jackson, said. “Itwas his charge to keep.”

Hischildren’s reflections were poetic in the style of the late civil rights icon filled with prayer, tears and afew chuckles, including about disagreements that occur when growing up in alarge, lively family Hiseldestson,Jesse Jackson Jr., aformercongressman,said hisfather’sfuneral services would welcomeall, “Democrat, Republican, liberal and conservative, right wing, left wing —because his life is broad enough to coverthe full spectrum of what it means to be an American.”

Francis had early ties to Lafayette

His story in began in city

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

Norman Christopher Francis, the president of Xavier University for 47 years, died in New Orleans on Wednesday at the age of 94. Francis’ story, however, began in Lafayette, where the man who would advise eight presidents on education and civil rights issues, was born on March 20, 1931, during the Great Depression.

One of five children, he earned money by shining shoes and painting houses, according to his biography

Neither of his parents had finished high school. His mother was a homemaker and his father was a barber who rode to work each day on a bicycle because the family did not own a car, according to his biography They sacrificed to send him to St. Paul Catholic elementary and secondary school.

The historic parochial school was on the current-day site of Holy Family Catholic School on St. John Street in Lafayette. It began its operations in 1903, when members of the Congregation of Sisters of the Holy Family entered the parish to teach Black youth, the first of its kind in Lafayette Parish, according to the school’s website.

The school was renamed St. Paul School in 1911, and the original building was demolished in 1916. The school merged with the Holy Rosary Institute in 1948, when Francis is said to have graduated as valedictorian, according to a Xavier University blog post Francis considered enlisting in the Army because his family couldn’t afford to send him to college. But a nun who had taught him

Historic Sunset site ready to reopen

French immersion school to open doors in August

BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL Staff writer

In the St. Landry Parish town of Sunset, off Napoleon Avenue, sits the former Sunset High School. The red brick building, constructed in 1926 and closed in 1991, has sat vacant for decades. Over the years, it has fallen victim to vandalism, including crude graffiti sprayed by teenagers and a makeshift ladder used to access the roof overlooking the town known for its antique shops.

It’s that building Lindsay Smythe, principal of École Saint-Landry, a tuition-free French immersion charter school, once told town officials she hoped to renovate for her students.

In 2023, that vision became more of a reality when the school signed a 100year lease with the town for $1 a step toward filling the historic school with children again.

Now nine years after she first envisioned her school, Smythe walks the halls of the revamped building, a tape measure on her hip, measuring doorways for the desks she plans to move in.

“It’s so surreal,” she said. “Now we’re finally here and I’m super stoked about it. I’m excited to have an office, and I’m really excited to start thinking of the long-term part of this school.”

Man residing in U.S. illegally admits to lying on forms

BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer

A Guatemalan national pleaded guilty Wednesday to lying on federal documents to get an undocumented teen out of a refugee detention facility Standing before U.S. Middle District Chief Judge Shelly Dick, Felix Coc Choc pleaded guilty to felony charges of making a false, fictitious or fraudulent statement and aggravated identity theft. The 28-year-old man faces at least two to 10 years in federal prison.

Coc Choc was residing in the United States illegally when he was indicted on the felony fraud charges in September During Wednesday’s hearing, Dick reminded him that he likely faces immigration consequences in addition to his prison time.

Coc Choc, who has been detained in the West Baton Rouge Parish jail, agreed to the plea deal

The project is not yet complete. Standing in a room stacked with donated furniture, Smythe said the school plans to open in August for fifth and sixth grade students Renovation will cost around $7.1 million, making it one of Sunset’s largest investments. About a third of the total was covered through historic tax credits.

“Otherwise, we could have never done this project,” Smythe said.

Design work was led by Lafayettebased SO Studio and architect Stephen Ortego, who also helped renovate the church campus. Ortego said he donated much of his time to the high school project.

“I believed in the project,” Ortego said.

The campus has nine classrooms designed for about 20 students each Elementary students will remain at the school’s original site an old Baptist church just down the road.

‘My secret is doing what I love’

At 95, man still working hard managing a firm’s roofing operations

BY JA’KORI MADISON Staff writer

At 95 years old, Harris Baudoin isn’t slowing down, and he credits his longevity to doing what he loves every single day Baudoin is nearly three decades past what most Americans consider retirement age. The current full retirement age is 67 for people reaching age 62 in 2026, while Medicare eligibility begins at 65. Baudoin passed both milestones long ago, according to the Social Security Administration. Instead of retiring, he kept working. For the past 63 years, Baudoin has worked at Pellerin & Wallace

OPINION

OUR VIEWS

Norman Franciswas aleaderfor theages

It’spossible to measure Norman C. Francis’ impact by listing the accolades he earned over his long publiclife, from numerous honorary degrees to our nation’shighest civilianhonor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom —oreven by drivingdownthe parkwaythat runs by the historically Black, Catholic university he built into apowerhouse,a roadthat since 2021 has borneFrancis’ name Youcould add in his noteworthyachievements, from his history-makingmatriculationto Loyola College of Law as its first Black student to his landmark 47-year tenure as presidentof Xavier University of Louisiana.

As formidable as this list is,though,itdoesn’t fully capture the role that Francis, whodied Wednesday at 94, played as amentor, as an adviser to powers-that-be andasa graciousbut always clear-eyed moral compass fora community he loved.

Anative of Lafayette born intothe Great Depression, Francis came to Xavier as ascholarship student and never left NewOrleans.His leadership skills already on display, he was elected classpresident each year and student body president in his senior year On his first day of law school, hefamously met afellow student named Moon Landrieu and formed apartnership that would continue throughout their long lives. Landrieu,who would go on to integrate CityHall’sworkforce as mayor,said watching thedisparate treatment he and his friend received opened his eyes to theinjustices of segregation.

As ayoung lawyer,Francis representedcivil rights organizations and activists, but hisalma mater soon called. He returned to Xavierasa dean and served during an eventful periodin which he agreed to house theFreedomRiders after they’d been attacked bysegregationists in Alabama.

In 1968, he became the university’s first Black, and first lay,president, and launchedaperiod of physicalgrowth and academic transformation for Xavier,which under Francis’ stewardship developed aprescient focusonthe sciences

“Dr. Franciswas more than an administrator. He was an institutional builder,a civil rights champion, and aman of quiet generosity ”recalled U.S. Rep. Troy Carter,analumnus whose mother earned aXavier degree while raising sixchildren. “Hebelieved education wasthe pathway to justice. He believed lifting onestudent could lift an entire family.In ourcase, he was right.” Francis served on numerousboardsand was active in the formation of Black-owned Liberty Bank.

Although both his Gentilly home and his university flooded, Francis stepped upin2005 when then-Gov.Kathleen Blanco asked himto chair the Louisiana Recovery Authorityfollowingthe devastation of hurricanes Katrinaand Rita.

At the same time, he oversaw notjust arebuild but an ambitious expansion of Xavier’s campus. Then-President Barack Obama, speaking on campus on Katrina’s fifthanniversary, described it as acaseofone force of nature meeting another

Those who worked alongsidehim remember Francisfor accomplishing great things by gently leading in the right direction

“Norman Francis had atalentfor calming troubled waters whilestill makingsure that they flowed toward justice,” authorWalter Isaacson, who served as theLRA’s vice chair, recalled.

Tania Tetlow,the New Orleans native and Fordham University presidentwho awarded Francis a2023 honorarydegree, said sheoften asked veterans of thecivil rights erahow they sawthe correct path at thetimewhen so many others did not. She said they all gave her thesameanswer: “Because Norman wasmy friend.”

In ways momentous and deeply personal, Norman Francis made his city, hisstate andthe larger world kinder,smarter and fairer. We are blessedtocount him as one of ourown.

Immigrationofficials are traumatizing children

Recently,our 6-year-old grandson, who lives in asmall city with no ICE presence, asked his mother at bedtime if the “icebreakers” were coming to his house. This reminded us of ICE stories involving young children:

n ICE agents arrested afather driving his 2-year-old son to day care in Washington, leaving the child crying and confused in the back of the car The father’sboss came to retrieve the child and reported that the child was visibly frightened, telling her that the police had taken his dad.

n Masked ICE agentswith guns drawn handcuffed and arrested aU.S. citizen whom they took out into the Minnesotawinter in his underwear as his 5-year-old grandson watched.

n A5-year-old boy sent by ICE agents as bait to get his father to open thedoor.Father and son were flown to Texas that same day to await deporta-

Arecent edition included alist of inactive voters in Lafayette Parish. Iestimate the number to be about 24,000. Granted, somedeaths are most likely included. Someothers have moved but apparently have not re-registered in

tion

n At achild care center in Chicago, ICE agents entered, grappled with a teacher and led her away in handcuffs as young children watched.

n ICE agents arrived at achurch in North Carolina, sending manyworshippers intothe woodswhile young children sobbed insidethe church. These and manyother publicized examples of unnecessary traumas involving children can leave lasting scars and turn safe spaces —homes, schools, churches —into danger zones. Having treated dozens of traumatized young children in ourcareers, we decry theunnecessarily cruel behavior of ICE. Can’tsome of their allocated $75 billion provide humanity training to agents?

CHARLES H. ZEANAH AND PAULA D. ZEANAH Metairie

Explanationfor LSU enrollmentrise wasbeyondsilly

Iwrite to take issue with astatementmade by state Rep. Dixon McMakin in the Feb. 15 article, “Freshman applications breaking records at LSU.” McMakin states, “I think that reason is because of the quality education where they’re not going to be indoctrinated like they might be in the North.” Ihope that Rep. McMakin will soon share with the public the details of Northern indoctrination from which the minds of the impressionable young students will be protected by matriculating at LSU. Iwonder if McMakin is aware of the ongoing net outmigration of Louisiana citizens. Is it possible that “Louisiana indoctrination” plays a role in the population loss? Also, is there aLouisiana indoctrination that contributes to the state’sperennially abysmal ratings in quality-of-life measures? Ilook forward to his response.

SAMUELG.PORTER Lafayette

Pedestrian crossovermakes more sensefor thruway

The sidewalks along Martin Luther King Drive are awelcome sight,but there is also ahuge need for an elevated pedestrian crossover near Northgate Mall to the Interstate10area. Pedestrians get hit and killed often trying to

the six-lane thruway. It would be welcomeifLafayette Consolidated Government could get additional funding from the feds to build this.

BRIAN GAUTREAU Lafayette

Trump’sthreats to officialsamounttoblackmail

President Donald Trumpreportedly wanted to withhold $16 billion that Congress authorized until PennStation in New York and Dulles Airport in Virginia are renamed after him.Around 1,000 construction jobs would have

SMITH youngsville

JFK’squestionhas particular relevancetoday

I’m old enough to recall the impact of thatmostmemorable line from John F. Kennedy’spresidentialinaugural address on Jan. 20, 1961: “Ask notwhat your country can do for you —ask what you can do for your country.”

Sixty-five years later,I find myself among agrowing number of citizens who areanxiously waiting for elected

officials to stand up to and speak out againstthis administration’srepeated assaults on our democracy. But perhaps it’seven moreimportant to answer JFK’scall at this moment in history.What can each of us do as patriotic citizens to defend thecountry we love?

GERALD “JERRY” MEUNIER NewOrleans

Iapplaud serious efforts to improve LSU’s academic quality.I would also cheer forwork in our state to improve literacy and the cultivation of critical reasoning ability National recognition of the teaching and research value engendered by LSU faculty would go along way in overshadowing the perception that LSU is merely the state’slargest publicly funded amusement park

JEROME A. FREEDMAN Baton Rouge

Officialspublish voter data buthidetheir own

It is interesting that one report by the Times Picayune |The Advocate (Feb. 8) has meaningful information that posting certain personal infoabout elected officials is now a crime. But in successive additions of the newspaper,there are pages and pages of addresses of citizens published on behalf of Jefferson Parish, apparently required forpurging of voting records, which anyone could use forwhatever purpose they might ill conceive. Where is the logic in this? Is what is good forthe goose still good forthe gander?

Have government officials forgotten that citizens have rights and that publishing such addresses without permission could have undesirable consequences?

CHAD SHERMAN Marrero

JD Vanceviesfor thegold medalin coarseness, flippancy

Spurning the rich subtleties of the English language, JD Vance has apenchant for words that he perhaps thinks display manly vigor,and express a populist’srejection of refinement.In arecent social media post,hecalled someone whose posts annoyed him a “dipshit.” He recently toldaninterviewerthat anyone who criticizes his wife can “eat shit.”

Now,Vance might reasonably believe that many Americans enjoy potty-mouthed high officials. The “Access Hollywood” tape became public 32 days before the 2016 election in which the star of the tape, who mused about grabbing women’sgenitals,was elected president. At a minimum, it would be reasonable for Vance to suppose that,after five years of apresident who talks about “shithole countries,” Americans are inuredtosuch pungent language. And that people who look down their upturned noses at it are effete. (An earlier vice president, Spiro Agnew warned against America’s“effete corps of impudent snobs.”) Vance might think that Americans who wince when he swears simply do not appreciate the earthiness of people who express themselveswithavividness not watered down by good taste. Besides, the man currentlyoccupying Abraham Lincoln’schair got there using the word “shit” dozens of times in speeches. Although Lincoln’slarge stock of humorous stories included ribald ones, you can scour his written and spoken record without finding any violation of his “time, place, and manner” standards of propriety.But, then, as has been said, standards are always out of date, which is why we call them standards. Last year,agroup chat of high-spirited Republicans, most in their middle to late 20s, two of them in their 30s, were recorded saying colorful things. (“Can we fixthe showers? Gas chambers don’t fitthe Hitler aesthetic”; “Everyone that votes no is going to the gas chamber”; “watermelon people”; “expecting the Jew to be honest”; “I love Hitler”). Vance’savuncular reaction (he is 41) was that “kids” do the darndest things: “Kids do stupid things, especially young boys. They tell edgy,offensive jokes. Like, that’s what kids do.” The kid Thomas Jefferson was 33 when he wrotethe Declara-

tionofIndependence.

Vance seems to be of the George and Ira Gershwin school of language: Yousay eether and Isay eyether,/You say neether and Isay nyther,/ Eether eyether,neether,nyther,/ Let’s call the wholethingoff. The Gershwins thought it disproportionate for lovers to getinspatsbecause “you like this and the other/ While Igofor this and that.

Vance seems to think it comparably niggling to allow what he evidently considers comparably minor differences tointerfere with friendships and political alliances.“Do Ihave disagreements with Tucker Carlson?” said Vance in an interview last month. “Sure. Ihave disagreements with most of my friends.” Last year,Carlson hosted along, friendly podcast interview with the antisemitic, Hitler and Stalin admirer Nick Fuentes. (Trump had Fuentes to dinner at Mar-a-Largo.) In 2024, Carlson had an amicable discussion with an author he called “thebest and most honest popular historian working in the United States today.” The author thinks Winston Churchill was thevillain of World WarII, for which Adolf Hitler is unfairly blamed.

Vance laconically sayshis “disagreements” with Carlson —who “has a place in the conservative movement” —are akin to disagreementshehas

with other friends. Vanilla, vanella, oysters, ersters, what’sthe big deal? When, during the2024 campaign, rumors about Haitians eating the pets of Springfield, Ohio, weredisseminated, with Vance’shelp, this was his response when confronted with the fact that no factssupported therumors: “If Ihave to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to thesuffering of the American people, then that’swhat I’m going to do.” He has a duty to lie becausethe media areindolent Vance has aknack for late— very late—adolescent naughtiness. It is not easybeing transgressive in an era when there are few norms remaining to transgress. Undaunted, he tries. Of Europe’slargest war since World WarII: “I don’tcare what happens to Ukraine one way or another.” Very edgy Performative politics is almost the only politics on offer nowadays. But must it be acoarseness and flippancy competition? Let it be saidonVance’sbehalf that he refuses to present himselfasother than what he is.But beforecelebrating him for his authenticity, attention should be paid to what he authentically is.

Email George Will at georgewill@ washpost.com.

Feelinginsecure? Youmay be on to something.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did astar turn at the Munich Security Conference, and her appearances wentabout as well as you’d expect of acelebrity congresswoman whohas spent about five minutes thinking about foreign policy

AOC is to strategic thinkers what Gayle King is to astronauts. She projects all the authority of an International Relations 101 student whodidn’trealize that there was going to be apop quiz before spring break. She sounds as if she watched the 2024 Kamala Harris campaign and concluded that what sank the vice president wasthat the candidate’spolicy answers weremuch too substantive and precise. There’snoway,judging by her performance in Germany,that AOC is going to let herself make the samemistake.

Ocasio-Cortez critiqued Secretary of State Marco Rubio’sremarkable speech at the conference forbeing “a pure appeal to ‘Western culture,’”which she rendered with air quotes as though its existence is somehow in doubt. It is certainly true, as she said, that cultures change over time, but this doesn’talter the reality of Western distinctiveness as it has developed over acouple of millennia.

AOC seemed to consider it aprovocation that Rubio had talked about Western culture when discussing aWestern alliance, NATO, founded to defend Western countries from atotalitarian menace emanating from aEurasian behemoth. In fact, the secretary’sspeech was wellreceived and persuasively set out the common history of Europe and the United States.

The AOC rejoinder wasthat what she called “alleged” Western values are illusory because they haven’talways defined our interactions with “the global South.” Even if the West hasn’t always lived up to its values, though, that doesn’tfalsify them or makethem any less powerful.

The best formula forsuccess forunderdeveloped countries around the world —the global South —would be forthem to Westernize in the sense of embracing the rule of law,property rights, markets and stable, representative government.

AOC also said that culture is “thin” compared to concrete economic interests. This belief that material considerations trump cultural ones from religious faith to national identity —isan old Marxist chestnut that has proved false over and over again.

Froma Harrop

Groundhog Day’sfurry forecaster Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of wintry weather.What if we asked Phil to apply his insights to the frigid job market?He might answer the way an alarmedgroundhog does, with chattering teeth, and then squeak, “Wheet! Wheet! Cold days are comingfor American job seekers, and they’lllast alot longer than six weeks.”

Economists are using the term “deep freeze” to describe the currentjob outlook. These are strange times. The officialunemployment rate of4.45% is not adistressing number,but thereasons behind it are worrisome.

Many workers are stickingwiththeir jobs, fearful they can’t find anew one. Aside from some big-headlinelayoffs, most employers figure business is good enough to hang on tothe staff they’ve got, but not strongenough to take new people on. The main reason: They have no idea what exactly is going on in theAmerican economy Is it fair to pin this unsettling situation on Donald Trump? Sure, it’sfair though he doesn’tdeserve all the blame. What he does, reliably,ismake alot of problems worse. Start with the tariffs. His tradewar —slapping higher duties on essentially the rest of the world—was sold as a job-creation engine. It hasn’tworked out that way.Since “Liberation Day,” April 2, 2025, U.S. factory employment has fallen month after month. And

Aside from some big-headline layoffs, most employers figure businessisgood enough to hang on to the staff they’ve got, but not strong enough to takenew people on. The main reason: They have no idea what exactly is going on in the American economy.

last year, thenumber of job openings dropped by nearly amillion. What tariffs have done is push up prices that Americans pay for food and other everyday goods. In other words, they add to inflation. Prices haven’tspiked as dramatically as some warned, but they’ve risen enoughtoleave consumers uneasy and on edge.

American companies that obtain partsand materials from abroad are nowpaying more for them. Some have swallowed at least someofthose added costs, butmuch of the tariff tax gets passed onto buyers. Many companies saytheywill now have to pass more of those costs to consumers. Suchdisruptions have hit Main Street businesses especially hard. They are less able than big corporations to deal with theconfusion over tariffs. Who is meant to foot thebill? Vendors? Purchasers? Shoppers? Small companies employ almosthalf the American workforce. Then there’sthe immigration crisis. Roundupsofundocumented aliens were supposed to free up jobsfor Americans. But Trump’sspectacle of U.S.Immigration and Customs

Enforcement agents sweeping up the foreign-born has created amess for local businesses. Both legal and illegal immigrants are afraid to go to work andshop at stores. Immigrants, after all, are also customers.

Artificial intelligence isn’tTrump’s doing, but it’s here. Analysts expect American companies to pour more money into robotics and artificial intelligence —technologies that replace human labor.Abachelor’sdegree will no longer shield manycollege grads from unemployment, as AI moves into work that manywell-paid professionals considered safe.

Anthropic’s“AI Assistant,” Claude, can now read, write and analyze text. It can takeonsome accounting tasks, such as reviewing documents and drafting reports. As demand for humans withsuch skills shrinks, employers looking to add staff have become superpicky That’smaking life especially tough for young people trying to landentrylevel jobs. The office outlook is scary: asmall cadre of senior executives, the“C-suite,” presiding over rooms of smart machines that can match, or even outthink, Homo sapiens. Businesses don’tknow which way is up, down or sideways, and Trump’s daily dose of chaos isn’thelping. The mystery of what will come next leaves manycompanies hesitant to hire. Winter is settlinginthe job market. If you’re feeling insecure, you may be on to something.

Froma Harrop is on X, @FromaHarrop.

At the outset of World WarI,the AOCs of the timebelieved that the working classes of the various combatant countries would unite to oppose the conflict. As it happened, they backed the war efforts of their own nations.

The average American worker has nothing in common with aChinese worker or,for that matter,aFrench or German worker.AOC is hoping for, in effect, aFourth International as the foundation of “class-based” U.S. foreign policy —democratic socialists of the world unite!

This is achildish fantasy,but it wasn’tthe least impressive thing she said at Munich.

Asked whether the U.S. shoulddefendTaiwan in the event of aChinese attack, AOC hesitated andstumbled as though thequestion hadnever occurred to herpreviously, before notanswering.

She objected to our operation to grab Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela. According to AOC, we undertook it “just because the nation is below the equator,” when Venezuela is north of the equator

She poured scorn on Marco Rubio’sstatementthat American cowboy culture was“born in Spain,” apparently not realizing that he was wholly correct about this.

AOC is young and charismatic with along career ahead of her,and she isn’tseeking to land ajob at the State Department —she doesn’t need to be Prince Metternich or even Antony Blinken.

Yet, her timeatthe Munich conference was another reminder that no matter how much she is billed as arising star,she is still callow and unserious. If AOC knowswhat she doesn’t know,she doesn’tseem to particularly care, and her casual disregard forWestern culture is symptomatic of aLeft that, to its shame, considers its own civilization an affront and lie. Rich Lowry is on X, @RichLowry.

Smythe said it feels good to take a breath, even if it’s just for a moment. Her school had rapidly grown since it began opening in 2021. The school adds about three classrooms a year and now has nearly 240 students from kindergarten to fifth grade École Saint-Landry opened in 2021 and has grown steadily adding about three classrooms each year The school now serves nearly 240 students from kindergarten through fifth grade. Growth strained the space at the church campus. Smythe gave up her office for a classroom, and even the church’s former baptismal pool was converted into workspace.

“Anybody can run a school, but to have a group of people who are interested in actually creating something from scratch,” Smythe said. “In order for us to get this building, we had to first create the school, and we had to find a starter

PLEA

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through a Spanish interpreter who stood next to him and his attorney in court. He told the judge he could not read, write or speak English and had a sixth grade education

According to his indictment, Coc Choc was living in Brusly illegally in January 2023 when he applied to be a sponsor for a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy who had been captured by immigration officials. The teen entered the U.S.

ROOFING

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and downtown’s Chase Bank. He has overseen commercial buildings, schools and industrial facilities, and is known for remembering exactly when certain structures were built and whether he installed their roofs.

“I don’t drink. I don’t sit around,” he said. “I like being out working. That’s what keeps anyone healthy, in my opinion, moving, thinking, enjoying what you do.”

His day begins at 5 a.m. with breakfast, followed by a short drive so he can be at the office by 6 a.m. He drives himself to work five days a week, arriving before anyone else. From there, his schedule quickly fills with phone calls and meetings with architects, contractors and clients. He reviews plans for new projects and “shares his encyclopedic knowledge of Lafayette’s buildings,” according to his co-worker Robert Oncale, many of which Baudoin personally helped roof decades ago. So what keeps a 95-yearold man showing up to work before sunrise every morning?

“My secret is doing what I love,” Baudoin said. “I just like staying busy I’ve always liked working with my hands, and getting out every day can keep you going.”

FRANCIS

Continued from page 1B

contacted the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, the order of Catholic nuns that founded and ran Xavier

PROJECT

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Joseph Marino, with Duplantis Design Group, told council members the visuals of the project would blend in with the city of Broussard

location. You can’t just tell people, ‘Would you give me $7 million? I have a good idea for a school.’ You have to have results.” The building’s history also weighs on her Sunset High was desegregated in 1969. For decades, French-speaking students in Louisiana — Cajun and Creole alike — were punished for speaking the language in school and pressured to assimilate into English-speaking culture.

Now, Smythe said, the mission is reversed.

“Now 100 years later we’re flipping it,” she said.

French language use declined sharply during the 20th century While estimates vary, some data suggests Louisiana has about 120,000 French speakers today, down from roughly 1 million six decades ago.

Like other historic Frenchspeaking communities, Sunset has worked to revive the language. École SaintLandry immerses students in French from their first day of school.

Historic French-speaking localities have long driven efforts to bring the language back into the regional

without proper documentation on Jan. 17, 2023, and Homeland Security agents apprehended him the following day The child was held at a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services facility while he awaited immigration proceedings. Federal authorities classified the Guatemalan teen as an “unaccompanied alien child,” a status designated for undocumented minors with no lawful immigration status and no parent or legal guardian in the U.S Government officials release unaccompanied alien children to parents, guard-

lexicon, and Ecole is no different, instilling the French language in children the moment they enter public school.

ians, relatives or qualified sponsors who can prove a family relationship.

Coc Choc applied to become the teen’s sponsor, submitting a “Family Reunification Application” and an Authorization for Release of Information form to the Department of Health and Human Services through the Office of Refugee Resettlement He completed both forms for the minor’s release in Spanish on the same day the minor was apprehended. They contained fraudulent statements, Coc Choc confessed on Wednesday “I’m guilty, and I apologize

Baudoin was hired in the early 1960s after leaving a job with the railroad What began as a new opportunity one he never imagined would last more than 60 years, quickly became a lifelong career. He stayed with the company because, he says, he genuinely enjoyed the work and the people.

“I didn’t know at first if I’d like it,” Baudoin said in reference to entering the roofing business. “But the more I learned, the more I enjoyed it.”

Oncale, who has worked alongside Baudoin for the past 12 years, said Baudoin’s energy and sharpness are remarkable.

“He’s sharp, active and engaged like someone 60 years younger,” Oncale said. “It’s inspiring He doesn’t just survive, he thrives.”

The group arranged a scholarship for Francis that allowed him work in the library to pay his tuition. He enrolled in 1948 at 17. Francis’ survivors include four sons, Michael, Timothy and David Francis, all of New Orleans, and

Outside of work, Baudoin once enjoyed traveling and fishing across the country These days, he prefers simpler pleasures like spending time with family Still, his daily sense of purpose continues to drive him.

Baudoin celebrates his 96th birthday this month, and Pellerin & Wallace Inc. will host a gathering at its Lafayette office, inviting colleagues and friends he has worked with over the years.

At an age when most people slow down, Baudoin says his secret to life is simple: “Do what you love, stay active, and never stop learning.”

Email Ja’kori Madison at jakori.madison@ theadvocate.com.

Patrick Francis of Austin, Texas; two daughters, Kathleen Francis of New York City and Christina Francis of Los Angeles; a sister Mabel Bailey of Lafayette; and 11 grandchildren.

Staff writer John Pope contributed to this report.

LOTTERY

The school continues to raise funds. In 2024, Smythe launched a campaign selling customizable bricks for landscaping improve-

for what I did. It is true that I did that,” he said.

Coc Choc falsely claimed to be the child’s older brother and tried to assume that sibling’s identity by submitting his birth certificate and Guatemalan national ID card as his own. Both had photos of the teen’s actual brother Office of Refugee Resettlement officials screening the application became suspicious when they noticed Coc Choc’s appearance didn’t match the photos of the birth certificate or ID card. They asked Coc Choc to come in and submit fingerprints to

Obituaries

AMass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, February 21, 2026 at a10:00 AM Mass in Sts. Peter &Paul Catholic Church in Scott for Wilbert "Lee" Rutledge, age, 82, who passed away on February 14, 2026, in Porter, Texas. Interment will be held in Sts. Peter &Paul Cemetery. Reverend Gilbert J. Dutel will be the Celebrant of the Funeral Mass and officiate the services. Survivors includehis daughter, Anita Rutledge and her partner,Johnny Miller; his grandchildren, Chad Donatoand his wife Brittany, Holly Guin, Catherine Donato, Crystal Donato, and Corinne Donato; his great-grandchildren, Hope, Avery, Colt, Aspen, Rylee, and Jaxx; his sister, Nellie Talbot; and numerous nieces, nephews, great nieces, and great hews.

ments, raising about $15,000 through roughly 200 sales. The effort allows former Sunset High students to honor the campus’ past while

prove his identity A day later, he admitted to federal screening officials that he had lied and misrepresented himself on the sponsorship forms. The government denied the application and Coc Choc submitted another application a day later, this time under his real name and identity The Office of Refugee Resettlement also denied the second application, citing that Coc Choc lied in his original submission.

A grand jury indicted Coc Choc on the fraud and identity theft charges Sept 4. He was arrested in Fayetteville,

Rutledge; his parents, Paul Rutledge Guidry and Anita Hernandez Guidry; his brothers, Roy Rutledge, Woodrow Guidry, Raymond Dale Rutledge, and Allen Rutledge; andhis sisters, Eva Dartez, Eula Thibodeaux, andRuth Guidry. Lee had adeep love for life and thesimple joys that made it meaningful. Lee proudly served his country in the United States Marine Corps, carrying that sense of honor, strength,and dedication throughouthis life. Lee treasured time spent outdoors -whether camping beneath the stars, hunting at sunrise, or casting aline into quiet waters. Softball was more than agame to Lee; it was camaraderie, laughter, and memories that lasted alifetime. Lee carried atrue cowboy spirit, taking pride in rodeo calf roping, bush hogging, and the hard, honest work that shaped his character. The open road called to Lee during his years as a hot shot truck driver, and he embraced it with independence and determination.

In his quieter moments, Lee enjoyed settlinginto watch Gunsmoke and cheering on the Houston Astros. You could often find him with acigar in hand, playing dominoes, trying his luck at bingo, or

supporting its future. “Everyone is so thankful that someone cared enough about their school,”

Arkansas, eight days later, according to federal court records. Both charges carry fines and a maximum of five years’ imprisonment. Dick explained that the identity theft mandates a two-year minimum that must be added to his sentence on the count of misleading statements. Dick ordered a presentencing investigation and report from the U.S. Probation Office. She did not set a date for Coc Choc’s sentencing at Wednesday’s hearing. Email Matt Bruce at matt. bruce@theadvocate.com.

tryingbingo, sharingstories andlaughter with friends. Above all, Lee was devoted to his family. He shared adeep andenduring love with his beloved wife, and his daughter was aconstant source of pride and joy in his life. Nothing meant more to Lee than the time he spent with his grandchildren,who were truly the light of his world. His greatest happiness was simply being surrounded by those he loved most.

Pallbearers will be Chad Donato, CatherineDonato, Crystal Donato, Corinne Donato, Kenneth Benoit and Johnny Miller. ARosary will be recited on Friday, February 20, 2026, at 7:00 PM in Martin & Castille's SCOTT Location The family requests that visitation be observed on Friday, February 20, 2026 from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM and will continue on Saturday, February 21, 2026 from 8:00 AM until time of services. View the obituary and guestbook online at www.mourning.com Martin &Castille Funeral Home -SCOTT, 802 Alfred Street, Scott, Louisiana 70583, 337-2342320

“There’s a lot of construction going on Main Street that is just going to blend into all that construction,” he said. “So, as the current work that’s underway now is wrapping up, this work will begin.”

TUESDAY, FEB 17, 2026

PICK 3: 9-0-8

PICK 4: 2-4-4-5

PICK 5: 3-8-0-9-0

Work will include a new fence to replace the old one at the Celebrity Gateway It will feature lighting and electrical outlets for use during the holiday seasons.

MEGA MILLIONS: 3-37-44-52-63

MEGA BALL: 14

Unofficial notification, keep your tickets.

SPORTS

CARRIED AWAY

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

LSU baseball targeted Trent Carawayout of the transferportal to fill multiple roles.

With Michael Braswell gone, theTigers needed athird baseman.Theyalsoneeded more power, andspecifically,right-handed power.Jared Jones and EthanFreyhad moved on to professional baseball. Caraway,ajunior transfer third baseman fromOregon State, potentially could fill both holes. He hit sixhome runs in the NCAA Tournament last summerand was the starting third baseman forthe Beavers. Through five gamesthis season,Caraway has filled his duties admirably sincehis first season beganatLSU, and no moment has shown his talentmoreclearlythanin the first inning of Wednesday’s12-1 win against Nicholls State at Alex Box Stadium. With the basesloaded andtwo outs, Carawayswung at

Freshman hastaken on —and excelled in —several roles

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

The key that unlocked ZaKiyah Johnson’s stardom was her jumper,but it didn’tcome naturally.She started perfecting the shot when she was amiddle-school post player,and the earliest versions of it looked alittlefunky Johnson’smother,TaNeisha Jointer, remembers that her husband, Butch Jointer, once said those shooting mechanics looked like Larry Bird’s. Her release was long and slow —almost like aslingshot

“It was like on the side of her head,” TaNeisha Jointer said with alaugh. “It was weird.” Luckily forJohnson,she hadeasyaccess to ateam of shot doctors whocould bothdiagnose the problem and crafta treatment plan. The LSU freshmanforward comes from afamilyofbasketball players and coaches. It’show she got her physical gifts, work ethic and the list of things sheneeded to do if shewanted to playcollegehoops

UL looks to regain momentum

Cajuns in athree-way tie for10thplace in SBC

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

Arkansas State at

And just like that, it appears the UL men’s basketball team is heading in the wrong direction again. Just aweek ago, the Ragin’ Cajuns were within shouting distance of getting into the top six in the Sun Belt standings after reaching the .500 markinleague play Twogames later,coach Quannas White’sclub is now in athree-way tie for 10th place. At 7p.m. Thursday the Cajuns hope to stop the bleeding when theymeet ArkansasState in the Cajundome. UL is now9-18overall and6-8 in league play whileArkansasState comes in 16-11 and 7-7.

“We’ve got to take morepride on the defensive end,” UL guard Dorian Finister said after the last homeloss.

In two of UL’s last three games, opponents have shot 56.9% and 57.1% from the field. Old Dominion attacked the basket relentlessly in the final eight minutes of the Monday gamefor an 83-72 winover the Cajuns. Thetask won’tget anyeasier on Thursday against Arkansas State. The Red Wolves average 82.5 points agame. In its last twogames, Arkansas State beat

the first pitch he saw and lifted it intothe left-field stands to break a1-1 tieinthe bottom of the first inning, showcasing the pull-side power that made him an attractive transfer. The blast washis firstofthe year and wasall the Tigers needed in their eight-inning victory SophomoreJohnPearson endedthe game viathe 10run mercy rule withathree-run homer in the eighth. “I’m the biggestfan of himthatI possibly couldbe,” LSU coach Jay Johnson said when asked about Pearson, “and glad to see that he smoked that ball.” Caraway’s finalyear at Oregon State was farfrom perfect.Hehit only six homeruns in the regular season andstruggled withconsistency.It’swhy upon his arrival LSU(5-0), he madeafew mechanical adjustmentstohis swing. He struggled in thefall as he got used to thechanges, butheeventually found comfort with his new mechanics

Now Johnsonisone of thegreatesthigh schoolplayers to ever come throughthe tradition-rich basketball state of Kentucky And herrelease is quick,tight andsmooth. She’s shownthis season shecan drain an outside shot for the No. 7Tigers(22-4, 8-4 SEC), but only when sheisn’t battling an opposing post playerormusclingher way through contested looks around the rim. Johnson is both willing and able to do a little bitofeverything. She started as apost player in high school, thentransformed into aguard, then morphed back intoaforward for her freshman season at LSU before she finally settled intomore of ahybrid role. Coach Kim Mulkeystarted Johnsonin thefrontcourt on Saturday in LSU’sloss to South Carolina. She could do so again when theTigers face No. 17 Ole Miss on the road at 8 p.m. Thursday (ESPN), and if shedoes,itcould be asign that she wants to give hermorerun than shedid against the Gamecocks.

BY WILSON ALEXANDER Staff writer

Early last year,the LSU equipment staff wasgiven atask. Athletic officials needed jerseys with corporate-sponsor patches on them forpresentationstopotential partners,soa couple of sets weremade. As part of the first known saleofa college jersey patch,LSU wanted to show companies what it would look like if they paidtohave theirlogoonthe uniforms. Even thoughcorporate-sponsor patches werenot approved by the NCAA until January, LSUwanted to be readytotap intoa new revenue stream. It struck aseven-year, multimillion-dollar deal with Woodside Energy,acompany founded in Australia that hasoperated offshore in Louisianafor almost two decades. Beginning this fall, every LSU uniform will have asponsor logo on it. “We’re not stopping looking for different ways to generaterevenue,” LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry said. “Every day, in athletic departments in the United States today,you better be figuring out how you’re going to generate more revenue. If you’re not doing that, then you’re gonna be dying.” That mindset is whyLSU began the process more than ayear before the NCAA changed

BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS

5

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LSU men see offensive uptick

Better scoring without PG Thomas still not enough

BY TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writer

LSU did something for the first

time in its three-point loss to Texas on Tuesday

Coach Matt McMahon’s group crossed the 80-point threshold in regulation during a game without point guard Dedan Thomas.

Before its 88-85 loss to the Longhorns on the road, the last time the Tigers scored 80 or more points in regulation was in an 85-81 loss to Arkansas on Jan. 24. Thomas, who since has had season-ending foot surgery after reaggravating the injury put up 18 points and five assists against the Razorbacks.

McMahon admitted recently that making games “ugly” by slowing the pace to avoid high-scoring contests was how LSU needed to adapt to win games. That was best exemplified in its 73-63 loss at Tennessee on Saturday when the Tigers held the Volunteers to their second-fewest points in SEC play LSU stayed close despite missing four players, including its starting backcourt of Thomas and Max Mackinnon.

The scoring punch that LSU thought it lacked returned against Texas. The Tigers shot 52% from the field, and Mackinnon tied a season-high 27 points on 11-of-17 shooting Marquel Sutton had 21 points and made all eight of his free throws. Mike Nwoko had 15 points in 20 minutes, and Jalen Reece had 14 points and a careerhigh nine assists.

McMahon was pleased with his top contributors.

“Jalen Reese did a fantastic job with nine assists, only one turnover orchestrating the offense there,” the fourth-year coach said after the game on the LSU sports radio network. “Mike was really good with his screening.

Riviera has

BY DOUG FERGUSON AP golf writer

LOSANGELES Riviera has evolved over its 100 years as one of the best golf courses in America, no greater example than the fourth hole that now has a scorecard yardage of 273 yards that makes it the longest par 3 among regular PGA Tour stops. Not everyone likes the change, or has been willing to publicly say they do.

“A horrible change,” Rory McIlroy said, the most blunt assessment of the hole Ben Hogan once called the greatest par 3 in America.

“Hit and hope,” Collin Morikawa said. “I think it’s just a very long par 3. There’s not a lot of thought to it other than just kind of hitting the green and moving on, unfortunately.”

The other change for the Genesis Invitational, which starts Thursday, is adding 24 yards on the 18th tee — now roughly where the fourth tee used to be — to make it 499 yards. Someone forgot to tell Scottie Scheffler, or maybe he never looked. He didn’t realize the closing hole at Riviera had been lengthened until he climbed the steep hill to the fairway and wondered why he was having to hit a 4-iron to the green. What hasn’t changed at Riviera is the history Hogan won three times, including the U.S. Open, leading to the nickname “Hogan’s Alley.” Byron Nelson and Sam Snead won at Riviera, as did Tom Watson and Johnny Miller and Fred Couples. McIlroy has Riviera on his list of places he wants to win, now that he has won at Augusta National and Pebble Beach.

Equally noteworthy is who didn’t win. Tiger Woods, the tournament

That opened him up, freed him up to score it more efficiently, gets 15. And then I thought Max his movement without the ball whether it was off the ballscreen actions in the middle third or some of our baseline runners, where we were setting pin-downs for him he was able to be really effective, especially there in the second half.”

LSU had a lull at the end of the

long

first half, trailing by as many as 17 points with 34 seconds remaining before halftime. It got within three points at the 1:39 mark of the second half, largely thanks to Mackinnon’s 23 second-half points quick decisionmaking and his off-ball threat that pulled defenders toward him and away from his teammates. Despite outscoring Texas 5240 in the second half, the Tigers didn’t have enough timely stops to finish the comeback as they lost their fourth straight game.

“I’m disappointed with this road trip, but we played much better in both games,” McMahon said. “The competitive spirit was there, the fight was there. We just got to find a way to execute a little better Whether that’s getting them one more defensive rebound, one less bad foul. It’s a possession game, and we got to find ways to get better these next couple days, going into Alabama.” LSU’s next game is against No. 25 Alabama at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center

history with PGA Tour events

quick and you have to place your second shots into the greens.

“That’s the part about this golf course that I really like, and that’s why you’ll see a lot of different good players winning here.”

The par-4 10th is the most famous hole, reachable off the tee and yet no one ever complains about making a 4 and moving on to the next hole It’s all about angles off the tee with an iron, and even where to miss when trying to drive the green.

As for the fourth hole, that was long and hard, and now it appears to be longer and harder

The idea for his Redan-styled hole is to carry the bunker fronting the green, or using the shoulder on the right that feeds down to the green — except this is February, cold and usually damp, and the kikuyu grass can be sticky and not allow balls to roll.

This would explain McIlroy’s definition of “horrible change.”

Guard Irving won’t return to play for Mavs this season

Kyrie Irving won’t play this season as the star guard for the Dallas Mavericks continues his recovery from a knee injury suffered almost a year ago.

The nine-time All-Star and the team made the announcement Wednesday, two days before the Mavericks return from the All-Star break Dallas is on a nine-game losing streak, its longest in 28 years, and out of playoff contention.

Irving tore the ACL in his left knee on March 3 This will be the first time in his 15-year career that he has missed an entire season. The injury came a month after the Mavericks traded young superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for a package centered around Anthony Davis.

Seahawks go up for sale per late owner’s wishes

The Seattle Seahawks are going up for sale in accordance with the wishes of late team owner Paul Allen.

Allen’s estate announced Wednesday that it has begun the process of selling the team, which is coming off its second Super Bowl victory in franchise history The NFL did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press, nor did Allen’s estate have anything further to add beyond its brief statement, it said. Ahead of the Super Bowl, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell commended Allen’s estate on its time owning the Seahawks.

The estate said the sale is consistent with Allen’s directive to eventually sell his sports holdings and direct all estate proceeds to philanthropy

Bears promote Taylor to offensive coordinator

The Chicago Bears have promoted pass game coordinator Press Taylor to offensive coordinator to replace the departed Declan Doyle one of four coaching moves announced by the team Wednesday Taylor was the Jacksonville offensive coordinator from 2022-24. His promotion comes after Doyle left to call plays in Baltimore under new Ravens coach Jesse Minter Coach Ben Johnson will continue to call plays after the Bears made the playoffs in his first season. The Chicago offense ranked sixth overall, with quarterback Caleb Williams making big strides in his second year He threw for 3,942 yards with 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Northern Illinois football coach leaving for NFL job

Northern Illinois coach Thomas Hammock has resigned to take a job in the NFL, the school announced Wednesday Hammock coached the Huskies for seven seasons and led them to the 2021 Mid-American Conference championship and the program’s first win over a top-10 opponent when they beat Notre Dame in 2024.

Defensive coordinator Rob Harley, who has been on staff for one year, was named interim head coach.

Northern Illinois’ announcement did not specify Hammock’s job in the NFL. ESPN reported Hammock would join the Seahawks as running backs coach and senior offensive assistant.

Hammock was 35-47 at Northern Illinois, with his 2021 team going 9-5 with a win over Kent State in the MAC title game. The Huskies won back-to-back bowls in 2023 and 2024.

host of the Genesis Invitational, went 0 for 11 as a pro at Riviera, making it the PGA Tour course he played the most times without ever winning.

Jack Nicklaus has Woods beat again. He played Riviera 14 times — twice in majors, including a runner-up to Hal Sutton in the 1983 PGA Championship without winning. “There’s places I haven’t won that I would love to, St Andrews being one of them Riviera would be another,” McIlroy said.

This is the 100-year anniversary of the club and the tournament, though what began as the Los Angeles Open was not held at Riviera until 1929. Even more special is just being back at the fa-

bled course off Sunset Boulevard following the devastating Pacific Palisades wildfires last year that led the tournament to moving south to Torrey Pines.

Ludvig Aberg won the Genesis Invitational a year ago at Torrey Pines. This is only his second time competing at Riviera, but he liked what he saw from 2024.

“I think it’s one of the best golf courses we play all year,” Aberg said “Obviously it’s a small property It’s not crazy long. You’ll have some strong holes and some longer par 4s. But what I like about it is a hole like No. 10 kind of puts the stamp on this golf course in terms of working the angles, fast greens, and everything going down towards the ocean is really

“Well, like 15% of the field hit the green last time when it was played at its original yardage at 230,” he said. “If you want it to be a 275yard par 3, you have to change the apron leading up onto the green. It can’t be kikuyu, it has to be another type of grass that can help you run it onto the green because again, in the right conditions, you try to fly that ball on the green with a 3 iron, it’s going to finish up on the fifth tee box.

“That’s sort of what I mean by why it’s not a great change.”

U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun might borrow a page from his college coach at San Diego State.

“If this was a par 4, you’d make 3 every time,” Spaun said. “You know what I mean? It’s kind of a mindset. If this was a drivable 290-yard hole but really a par 4 and you didn’t walk away with a birdie, you’d be kicking yourself.”

Ortiz, Clase plead not guilty in baseball-betting case

A scheduled spring fraud trial for two Cleveland Guardians pitchers accused of colluding with sports bettors to rig bets and betray “America’s pastime” will likely be postponed until October, a federal judge said Wednesday as the men pleaded not guilty to a rewritten indictment.

Pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, speaking Spanish, entered not guilty pleas through a translator to a rewritten indictment in Brooklyn federal court. The pitchers were first charged in November with accepting several thousand dollars in payoffs to help two gamblers from their native Dominican Republic win at least $460,000 by placing more than 100 in-game prop bets and parlays on the speed and the outcome of certain pitches.

Dwyer’ssix goalscatapult Teurlingstostate semifinals

BY ERIC NARCISSE Staff writer

It’snosecret that Carson Dwyer is abig-timeplayer and offensive weapon for Teurlings Catholic boys soccer

So it was no surprise that Dwyer stepped up when the Rebels needed him the most.

Dwyer turned in the best performance of his career as he recorded all six of his team’sgoalsenroute to the No. 3Rebels’ 6-4victory over No. 6Central Lafourche in the Division II quarterfinals Tuesday

“That was one of the most intense and insane games I’ve ever been apart of at all levels,” Rebels coachStephen Devine said.“And then you lookback after we get a couple goals and you see Carson, Carson, Carson. Carson, Carson, Carson when looking at the stats. What aperformance from this guy That was avery,very impressive performance from him.”

Dwyer now has 34 goals thisseason, including 12 in three playoff games. His first two goals Tuesday came on penalty kicks, while the next four were assisted by Luke Brown, Logan Boudreaux, Eden Schlabach and Luke Breaux.

“As far as aclose game like that

andgetting us that many goals, probably one of the best performances I’ve seen in that context,”

Devine said.“Getting histeam resultsinsucha tight game was great. He waslike, ‘Let’s go.I’ll get you another one andanother and another one.’ That’sprobably oneofthe more special performances I’ve seen.”

Dwyer —who has had acouple of hat tricksonthe season, including two in the first two rounds of theplayoffs —said it didn’tbegin to sink in until the second half when he scoredthe fourth goal.

“After the fourth goal,Iwas walking back to the center circle andall of asuddenithit me in that moment of what Icould do,” Dwyer said. “So, Iwas able to finish it off by scoring two more goals after that. After the sixth goal, really,all Icould do was just laugh. Ifeltlikeevery time I touched the ball in the box, it was agoal.”

Devinesaid thedefense couldn’t do anything to keep Dwyer from gettingfree.

“Carson did things to get himself in good position to create opportunities,”Devinesaid. “Sometimes peoplejusthave one of those games and the ball justseems to go in the back of the net. He was just

Baseball Thursday’s games Acadiana at Northshore,Vermilion Catholic at North Vermilion, Teurlings at Catholic-NI,Centerville at Westgate, Acadiana Renaissance at Central Catholic Friday’s games Acadiana at Northshore,Catholic-NI at Teurlings, Glencoe at Abbeville, Central Catholic at Acadiana Renaissance, Loreauville at St.LouisCatholic Saturday’s games Acadiana at Northshore, North Vermilion at Vermilion Catholic, Teurlings at Catholic-NI, Helix at Westgate, Highland Baptist at Abbeville, Midland at Abbeville, St. Louis Catholic at Loreauville, HighlandBaptist at Midland. Ascension 9, Hanson 8 Ascension Episcopal 000231 12 —9 10 3 Hanson 002 010 41 —8 60 WP —C.Adania(1.2 IP,1ER, 3H,0 BB, 2K), LP —Vaccarella (3.1 IP,4ER, 5H,1BB, 1K). Tophitters —AES: Preston Peebles 2-3; A. Johnson 2-4, RBI; S. Gros 2-4, RBI;

relentless on figuring out where to be dangerous, really focusing on technique whenever it was timeto put theshot on frame.

Beforethe season, Dwyer asked Devine whether he thoughthe could score as many goals as Charlie Mader,who was the Louisiana GatoradeSoccer Player of the Year last season.

After his huge performance Wednesday,Dwyer is two goals away from matching Mader’s career-high of 36 that he achieved last season.

“I feel like with anyteam, when you lose aplayer like Charlie Mader,you need somebody to kind of step up and fill thatrole or you need multiple playerstostep up and fill that role,” Dwyer said. “I feel like it’s just moreconvenient for there to be one rather than requiring thewhole team to step up, even though we’ve done that.“

Dwyer and the Rebels now are focused on facing crosstown rival St.ThomasMoreat6 p.m. Saturday withatrip to the state finals on theline.

“Weknow thatthey’re going to play aphysical game like Central Lafourche,” Dwyer said of St Thomas More. “We’re ready.”

Email Eric Narcisse at enarcisse@theadvocate.com.

PREP REPORT

C. Womack2-4, 3RBIs; HAN: Vaccarella 1-3,HR, 5RBIs. Softball Thursday’s games Acadiana at Church Point, St. Amant at New Iberia, LiveOak at Southside, Franklin at Beau Chene, Eunice at Breaux Bridge, Sacred Heart at Cecilia, Acadiana Renaissance at North Vermilion, RayneatKaplan, Opelousas Catholic at Teurlings, Glencoe at Westgate, Abbeville at Delcambre, Crowley at LakeCharles Prep, DeQuincyatIota, Lafayette Christian at Jennings, Hathaway at Gueydan, North Central at Elton, Port Barre at Westminster. Friday’s games Cecilia at Acadiana, Lafayette at Highland Baptist, New Iberia at Loreauville, Beau Chene at Catholic-NI, Comeaux at Lafayette Christian,Iota at Eunice, Erath at Westminster-LAF,Northwest at St. Martinville. Saturday’s games Calvary Baptist at St. Thomas More, Sam Houston at St. Thomas More, NotreDame at John Curtis,NotreDame at Sam Houston, RapidesatSt. Edmund.

St.ThomasMore boys soccer outlasts physical Neville

BY MIKE COPPAGE Contributing writer

Grit, trust and choice.

St. ThomasMoresoccer coach Dane Adams adopted those words for his No. 2-seeded Cougars, who got two goals in the first halffrom Luke Finley in a 2-1 win over Neville in the Division II quarterfinals on Tuesday at home.

“It’sabeautiful game,” Adams said. “It’seven morebeautiful when yourboys go to war.They knowthe culture. They know what it meanstowear this crest on their chest.”

No.10Neville (14-4-0), which took down No. 7Ben Franklin in the regional, also scored its only goal in the first half. Down 2-0, Rex Parker drilled a30-yarder over the head of STM goalkeeper Will Sonnier,who finished the gamewith six saves.

“Wecan talk about tactics, but to me, I’mjust emotional about theheart the boys showed,” Adams said. “My backline and goalkeeper werehammered all day —long ball, long ball —and they stood up and wenttowar.”

The Cougars (18-2-4) scored first when Finleyreceiveda 20yard pass from Reid Harris and used his left foot to skip the ball past goalkeeper Parker Cameron.

Just before stoppage time, Finley andCameron each raced to gain possession of aloose ball near the Neville goal. Finley gotthere first, took atouch and scored again.

“Luke has had quick feet all year,” Adamssaid. “He took one little touch andmadethe goalie miss.”

The Cougars, who haveal-

lowed only four goals in their last 18 games, were tested by abig, physical Neville team

“Coming in, we knewitwould be aphysical game where the ball would be played alot in the air,”Adams said. “For Carter Schwartz andmybackline of JacksonHotard, Connor Smith, Christian Breauxand ReidShelton, it wasabout winning the first ball. If we can’twin the first ball, let’swin the second ball.” Hotard and Shelton thwarted the Tigers by blockingattempted shots in stoppage time.

“I felt thatweplayeda great game,” Breaux said. “Wetrusted our guys. We had afreshman (Shelton)and asophomore (Hotard)withtwo seniors (Smith and Sonnier). I’m glad our younger guys stayed in theirheadsand kept their composure.”

STM hasn’tlost since beginning theyearwitha 2-2-2record. A come-from-behind win over Alexandria was aturning point for theCougars, who defeated their playoffnext opponent —No. 3-seeded Teurlings Catholic —in the regular season.

“Ever since then,the boys have wokenup,”Adams saidof the slow start. “It’sbeen agreat season. We’ve overcome alot of adversity with our backs against the wall. There’sbeen alot of fight and alot of grit.”

The game against Teurlings Catholic (20-7-1) is also arepeat of last year’ssemifinal wonbythe Rebels on their field.

“Knowing what(Rebels coach Steven Devine) is doing at Teurlings withthe quality theyhave, it’sgoing to be atough semifinal match,” Adams said. “It’sgoing to be abattle.”

AREA HIGH SCHOOL SOCCER STATEPLAYOFF SCORES AND SCHEDULES

Boys soccer Playoff glance Division II Quarterfinal results No. 3Teurlings 6, No. 6Central Lafourche 4 No. 10

Girls basketball playoff pairings Nonselect

DivisionI No. 23 SouthsideatNo. 10 South Lafourche, 6p.m. Thursday DivisionII No. 24 Bossier at No. 9Iota, 6p.m. Wednesday No. 25 Cecilia at No. 8West Feliciana, 6p.m. Thursday No. 20 Abbeville at No. 13 Northwest, 6p.m. Thursday No. 22 Pearl RiveratNo. 11 Opelousas, 6p.m. Thursday Bye–No. 3North Vermilion

DivisionIII No. 22 Kinder at No. 11 Church Point No. 27 Kaplan at No. 6Jena, 6p.m. Thursday DivisionIV No. 21 FerridayatNo. 12 Jeanerette, 6p.m. Thursday No. 23 North Central at No. 10 Grand Lake,6p.m. Thursday Bye–No.

Chase Manafi 1, Hudson Campbell 1. Next —AscensionatNewman in semifinals. Semifinals pairings

Chris Paul is hanging up his jersey Now it’stime for the New Orleans Pelicans to hangitupas well, high in the rafters of the Smoothie King Center

The greatest player to everput on aNew Orleans Hornets or Pelicans jersey calleditquits last week. Paul’sNBA journey started in New Orleans and ended in Canada on Friday just afew hoursafter the Toronto Raptors waivedhim, bringing to aclose a21-yearcareer of one of the greatest point guards to ever play That “Point God” nickname was so fitting for aguy who made at least one of the All-NBA teams 11 times and an All-Defensive team nine times.

Paul, who turns 41 in May,decided to retire midseason because he just knew it was time to spend more time with his family. The Raptors, who he never suited up

forafterbeing acquired in atrade, would’ve been hiseighth NBA team. Toronto is a51/2-hour flight from hishomeinL.A., which was aplacehe wanted tostay closeto this season. It’sthe main reason he signedwith the Clippers before the season began. It’sunfortunate Paul didn’tget the farewell tour that he deserved forsuchastellar career But it’snot toolatetostill give himhis due.In fact, now is the perfect time to do so,especially forthe team thatdrafted him fourth overall in the2005 draft Thereare no jerseys or championship banners hanging in the building that was called New Orleans Arena during Paul’sdays Nowisthe time to put Paul’sNo. 3 jersey up there. Youcan still find fans walking aroundNew Orleans wearing Paul’s jersey. Even veteran Saints defensive end CamJordan wore one last weekashewas riding in aMardi Grasparade. That’sthe type oflasting effect Paul still has here,despite being gone for 15 years

Youwon’t find many fans who disagree thatPaul deserves to have his jerseyretired, but there aresome. In an unscientificpoll conducted on Xlastweek, Iposed the question. The resultsshowed that81.5% thinks it should be retired, while 18.5% said no.That 18.5% is likely comprised of fans still bitterabout Paul’sdeparture when he was traded to the Clippers. It’s timetoget over that. Yes, it’shardtoget over an ex when you feel like thatperson doesn’twant you, but Paul has statedhenever really wanted to leave New Orleans Paul said afew yearsback that he was hearing from thefront office thatthe franchise could be relocating. So who can really fault the then-26-year-old for being a little hesitant about staying with a franchise that seemed unstable. So instead of focusing on how he left, the focus should be on what he did while he was here. That includes having theHornets one game away from reaching the Western Conference finals,

the closest the franchise ever has been to getting thatfar.Healso finished second to Kobe Bryant for league MVP that same season.Nobody else in franchise history has come closetothat. If Paul had finishedout this season,his return to New Orleanswould have been March11 when theRaptorscame to town. Instead, his finalgame in the Smoothie King Center was last February when he was withthe Spurs. Paul recorded12points and10assiststhatnight for the finaldouble-double of his career Fittingly,itoccurred in New Orleans. And just as fitting, Paul had this to sayduring thattrip to thecitywhere his career began. “After 20 years, thelove for this cityhas never changed!” Paul wrote in an Instagram post. “The journey started here, and I’ll always have gratitude forthe city of New Orleans.”

Now that Paul has retired, it’s timefor NewOrleans to return the gratitude and put No.3 in the rafters.

MI LA N CO RT IN A OL YM PI CS

Shiffrin captures slalom gold

U.S. star ends eight-year Olympic medal drought with emotional win

BY STEVE DOUGLAS and ANDREW DAMPF AP sportswriters

CANADA HOCKEY TEAM

SURVIVES CZECHIA: After losing captain Sidney Crosby to an injury, Canada was staring at a stunning quarterfinal hockey exit until Nick Suzuki tied it on a deflected goal with 3:27 left.Then Mitch Marner scored a little over a minute into overtime to beat Czechia 4-3 on Wednesday and send the tournament favorite into the semifinals.

The nerves were palpable when Canada fell behind with 7:42 remaining on Ondrej Palat’s goal on an odd-man rush off a pass from Martin Necas. Replays showed Czechia had six skaters on the ice Suzuki just about did it all on the tying goal, sending the puck out to the point to Devon Toews and then redirecting the defenseman’s shot that was going well wide past Lukas Dostal and into the net.

U.S. MEN ADD TO BEST CROSSCOUNTRY SKIING SHOWING:

Fresh off ending a 50-year medal drought in men’s cross-country skiing American Ben Ogden proved Wednesday it was no fluke by winning a second silver Teaming up with Gus Schumacher the U.S. men even gave runaway favorites Norway some real competition and held off host country Italy in the home stretch for its winningest Olympics ever at the Milan Cortina Games. Ogden became the firstAmerican man to win a cross-country skiing medal in the Olympics in 50 years when he won a silver in the sprint event on Feb 10.Until then,Bill Koch, who won silver in 1976 in Innsbruck, was the soleAmerican man to medal in the sport.

DUBOIS STOPS VAN ‘T WOUT’S QUEST FOR 3RD GOLD: Steven Dubois prevented Dutch short track speedskating star Jens van ’t Wout from making it three victories out of three at the Milan Cortina Olympics by winning the men’s 500 meters on Wednesday. And van ’t Wout’s older brother, Melle van ’t Wout, beat him out for silver It is Dubois’ first individual Olympic gold after helping Canada to the relay title in Beijing four years ago. He picked up bronze in the 500 then as well as silver in the 1,500.

On his 26th birthday, Melle van ’t Wout earned his first medal by finishing just ahead of his brother — who had won both the previous men’s individual events in Milan.

SU WINS CHINA’S FIRST GOLD OF GAMES: Su yiming celebrated his 22nd birthday with a second career gold medal on Wednesday and China’s first gold medal overall at these Games. He was the winner of an error-prone men’s snowboarding slopestyle final, when he was the only one of the 12 finalists to complete his three runs through the course’s big rails and tightly bunched jumps without any falls or major errors.

— The Associated Press

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy Mikaela

Shiffrin stood atop the Olympic podium, looking almost in disbelief at the gold medal around her neck.

The American skiing star hadn’t simply won a slalom race to end her eight-year medal drought at the Winter Games and underline her status as surely the greatest Alpine skier of all time.

She’d also won a battle with herself

“It’s like,” Shiffrin said, before pausing, “... being born again.”

Racing in what she described as a “spiritual state,” Shiffrin put in two dominant runs in gorgeous conditions amid the jagged peaks of the Dolomites to win by a massive 1.50 seconds, making her the first American skier to win three Alpine gold medals.

In emotional scenes after the race, the 30-year-old Shiffrin was embraced by Camille Rast of Switzerland, who took silver, and bronze-medalist Anna Swenn Larsson before fighting back tears as she approached her mom and coach, Eileen, for a long, deep hug next to the finish area. Through it all, Shiffrin said, she never stopped thinking about her father, Jeff, who died at the age of 65inanaccidentat the family home in Colorado in February 2020.

“This was a moment I have dreamed about I’ve also been very scared of this moment,” Shiffrin said. “Everything in life that you do after you lose someone you love is like a new experience.

“And,” she added, her voice starting to tremble, “I still have so many moments where I resist this. I don’t want to be in life without my dad. And maybe today was the first time that I could actually accept this, like, reality.”

It was the largest margin of victory in any Olympic Alpine skiing event since 1998 and the third biggest in women’s slalom — the event she won as a freshfaced 18-year-old in Sochi in 2014 to buttress her rising status as a skiing superstar

Twelve years later and having failed to meet huge expectations at the 2022 Olympics, become the most successful World Cup skier of all time with a record 108 victories, and overcome the two biggest crashes of her career and an ensuing battle with post-traumatic stress disorder she delivered again in her favorite event

Her skiing career, in a sense, had just come full circle.

“Maybe,” she added, “just today, I realized what happened to me in Sochi.”

At the medal ceremony, she shook both of her hands by her side as she was about to receive her medal. When it was placed around her neck, she put one

hand to her mouth. For Shiffrin, this also was a release of the pressure that had been building after going eight Olympic races without a medal since adding gold and silver to her collection in Pyeongchang in 2018. A nightmarish 0-for-6 performance in Beijing was followed in Cortina this year by a fourthplace finish in the team combined when Shiffrin placed 15th in the slalom portion after teammate Breezy Johnson led the downhill leg — and then 11th place in the giant slalom.

It was fodder for the “keyboard warriors,” Shiffrin acknowledged, but she ignored all of them in a masterpiece Tuesday

“I couldn’t think of a more welldeserved medal for an athlete to win,” said Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of the U.S Ski and Snowboard Association.

“She’s been so dominant but as we know these big sporting moments in the Olympics bring extra pres-

Knight gets dream matchup as U.S. faces Canada for the gold

BY JOHN WAWROW AP Hockey Writer

MILAN — Before the puck dropped on the U.S.-Canada Rivalry Series three months ago, before the Americans romped through their first six games at the Milan Cortina Olympics, and before her engagement on Wednesday, Hilary Knight looked ahead to the gold-medal final with hope and anticipation.

How fitting it would be, the U.S. captain told The Associated Press in early November, for her Olympic career to end with one more showdown against Canada

“It’s best on best. I think people really like it when our two teams face off,” Knight said.

“It’s a testament to the work that both have put in off ice and on ice. So, yeah, it would definitely be a win-win from a 30,000-foot view.”

Anticipation has become reality for the 36-year-old Knight as the border rivals and the sport’s global powers prepare to meet on Thursday It will be their seventh gold-medal matchup in eight Olympics since women’s hockey debuted in 1998 — and the fifth for Knight, who has said these will be her final Games.

“It’s exciting. It’s fleeting. It’s all these emotions at the same time,” Knight said after practice Wednesday, hours after she

proposed to U.S. speedskater Brittany Bowe.

“At the end of the day it’s just so special,” she added. “And I can’t tell you enough how amazing this group is.”

The Americans are favored to add a third gold medal after winning in 1998 and 2018. The team has a mix of experience, led by Knight, and young talent, including seven players still in college U.S. has legacy on the line

The Americans stand one win from cementing a legacy as one of the most dominant women’s hockey teams. The reigning champion Cana-

dians haves shown signs of age and struggled through parts of the tournament. Canada is 5-1, having dropped a 5-0 decision to the U.S. in the preliminary round — its most lopsided loss and its first time being shut out in Olympic play

Canada advanced to the final by eking out a 2-1 win over Switzerland, after which Swiss captain Lara Stalder said the winners looked “shaky” and “beatable.”

The Canadians acknowledge they’ve yet to play their best, and know anything can happen in the final.

“This group does have it in us,” coach Troy Ryan said.

sure and scrutiny And to see her ski that well and just go for it, I couldn’t be prouder of her.”

Shiffrin has now won three golds and a silver at the Olympics to add to her record total of World Cup wins — which include 71 in slalom, also a record There’s also world titles in slalom (four), giant slalom and super-G to fill out arguably the greatest career in Alpine racing.

“In another league,” was how Larsson put it.

Shiffrin led by 0.82 seconds after the first run on a mostly flat course that Team USA officials described to her over the radio as a “high-tempo ripper.” There was one wobble when she struck a gate and for a fraction of a second, it appeared she was headed for another Olympic disappointment.

Not this time.

She snapped back into form to post a time, in the No. 7 bib, no one could get near

U.S. men beat Sweden in OT, advance to hockey semis

BY KEVIN BAXTER Los Angeles Times (TNS)

MILAN The U.S. men haven’t stood on the podium at the end of an Olympic hockey tournament in 16 years and haven’t played for a medal in 12. In fact, it’s been so long since an American hockey team took home a prize from the Winter Games none of the players on this year’s team, the second youngest in the MilanCortina competition, had finished high school the last time it happened. No one on the team was alive the last time the U.S. won gold in 1980. Now this team has a chance to end that drought after beating Sweden 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday to advance to Friday’s semifinals, where it will play Slovakia. The win was the Americans’ first over Sweden in an Olympic tournament in nine games dating to 1960. ThewinninggoalcamefromQuinn Hughes 3:27 into the extra period. The other U.S. goal came from Dylan Larkin but Sweden forced overtime when Mika Zibanejad scored on a slap shot with 91 seconds left in regulation. Hughes, a Minnesota Wild defenseman, then ended things, circling around the ice before skating into the high slot and blasting a shot past Swedish goalie Jacob Markstrom.

UL-Monroe 103-70 and lost to South Alabama 92-88 in overtime.

“I thoughtwelostour defensive discipline,” White said after the loss to Old Dominion. “My expectations are what they are. No matter who you play,I expect our guys to be locked in from a defensive standpoint and not allowguys to score easy.”

Six Arkansas State players are averaging 9.4 or more points per game.The Red Wolves are led by three double-figure scorers in Christian Harman (13.2 pts, 3.9 rebs), Matt Hayman (11.6pts, 3.1 rebs) and ChandlerJackson (10.1 pts, 3.3 rebs).

UL must quickly find answers on the offensive sideaswell. A high percentage of the Cajuns’ turnovers have come down the stretch when it matters most in the last three losses, and scoring

points has beena chore for most of theseason Finister (14.5pts, 4.8 rebs), Jaxon Olvera (11.6pts, 3.8 rebs) andDe’Vion Lavergne (9.8 pts, 3.3 rebs) remain thetop threats,but UL hashad trouble findingconsistentcomplementary scoring. In the loss to Old Dominion, only four players scoredmore than four points “Wewant to get the ball movement —getting on the first side, the second side, and, you know, creatingmiscommunication and mismatches and find the right shot,” White said.

After playingTexas State (1711, 9-6) on Saturday at home, the Cajuns will have to travel to Troy (17-10, 9-5) and Arkansas State to close out theregular season. Recapturingthe momentum that led to fourstraight wins and five of six before the recent skid is imperativefor the Cajuns as postseasonplay nears.

Email KevinFoote at kfoote@ theadvocate.com

LSU

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Johnson played 15 minutesin the first half of that gamebut only five in thesecond. She finished with seven points, three rebounds and an assist.

“That’sone of the things Ithink about, as acoach,”Mulkey said.

“Should Ihave given her some minutes there? Youcan’tsecondguess yourself now,but Ido. I always go back and think about what Icould have done to help us winthis ballgame.”

Johnson played well against SouthCarolina. In the firsthalf, she grabbed arebound and drove coast-to-coast for alayup. She also nailed amid-range jumper She even drew the primaryassignment of defending Joyce Edwards, the star sophomore who was scoring 20.3 points pergame on 61%shooting beforeshe finished with only 10 points on 4-of11 shooting against LSU.

When she was in high school, Johnson affected games in all the same ways for coach Donna Moir at Sacred Heart Academy— an all-girlsprivate school witha powerhouse basketball program.

“People ask me all thetime,” Moir said.“ ‘Isshe thegreatest high school girls basketball player to play (in Kentucky)?’

“I mean, without adoubt, yes. Nobody’sdone what she’sdone in the state of Kentucky as far as girls basketball goes. Idon’tthink people realize the magnitude of what she accomplished here.”

Kentucky is the only state that doesn’taward statetitles for multiple divisions or classifications at the end of the season. Every year, it crowns only one state champion,and Johnsonhelped Sacred Heart win that distinctionall four years of her prep career.She finished that four-yearrun with more than 3,800 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 assists.

Gatorade has been handingout its player of the year award in every state since 1985, and Johnson is the only Kentuckystar —on either the boys or girls side —to take home that honor four times ESPN said Johnson was the 10th-best player in her class. It considered her a6-foot guard, and LSU did, too.

Then Mulkey and herstaff brought her onto campus and quickly realized they needed to find aspot for her inside the rotation. There was one problem, though. The new-lookroster was aguard-heavy group, without much room left on the perimeter for afreshman.

So Johnson moved to the post, and it didn’ttake long for Mulkey to likenher to NinaDavis —a5-11 former Baylor All-American who

Ragin’ Cajuns bullpen delivers in shutoutofRice

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

The UL bullpen took some lumps during the season-opening series loss to Missouri State.

In Tuesday’s3-0 winover the Rice Owls at Reckling Park in Houston, the bullpenthe Cajuns expected from the start showed up in abig way

True freshmanstarter Sawyer Pruittbegan the game with four shutout innings to getthe win, allowing two hits, one walk and striking out four

From there on, five UL relief pitchers completed the five-hit shutout to help the Cajuns even their record at 2-2.

Hayden Pearson beganthe series of relieverswith11/3 innings giving up no runs on onehit, one walk and striking out one.

After Cowan Alfonso got oneout, the relievers who pitched in Saturday’s13-12 lossin11innings to Missouri State showed why the UL coaches had confidence in them in the first place.

True freshman Bryce Wilson yielded ahit and awalk and struck out two. Tyler Papenbrock allowed ahit with one strikeout in 11/3 innings before Cody Brasch got his first save of the season by striking out all threebatters he faced in the ninth.

TheCajunsouthit Rice 6-5 but were able to scratch across acou-

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ple of runs earlyinthe game.

In thesecond inning, Colton Brown reached on a fielder’schoice before stealing secondbase. Two outs later,GriffinHebert singled homethe game’s first run.

In thethird, NoahLewis singled andMaddox Mandino walked beforeBrown’stwo-out RBI single gave UL a2-0 lead.

TheCajunspickedupaninsurance run in the ninth when Drew Markle hit asolo homer with two outs.

The Cajuns will return home to open athree-gamehome stand against Maryland at 6p.m.Friday at Russo Park.

Email KevinFoote at kfoote@theadvocate.com.

Mulkey frequently compared to Aneesah Morrow.They’reall undersizedfor theirpositions,but they each have theathleticism, skilland tenacity to thrive in the role.

Their roles can be tough to define, but Craig Lewis, Johnson’s father,doesn’twantanyone to overthink it.

“She’sjust abasketball player, if you will,” he said Which means that Johnson can playanywhere on the floor for justabout any program.In-state schools Kentucky and Louisville recruited her.So, too, did South Carolina, Notre Dame and Southern Cal. So why did shechoose LSU?

“It was really aboutthe atmosphere, the people, therelationships and the connections,” Lewis said. “ZaKiyah is very outgoing. She’lltalk to some random person on the corner for 30 minutes, right? Shejust likes people.”

Lewis and Jointer metduring their playing days at Morehead State. Lewis wasa 6-6 forward.

Jointer was a5-9 defensiveminded guard. Johnson grew to be 4inchestaller than her mom but 6inches shorter than her dad, which gave heradvantages in size andlength over mostplayers she faced in highschool.

Johnson’sparents knew she’d lose those edges at the collegiate level.It’d be harder for her “to go down there with thetrees,” Jointer said, so they encouraged her to develop someperimeter skills, then combinethem with what she already knew about playing in the paint

“She can holdher own down there,”Jointer said, “but we were just realistic with her and told her,like, ‘Hey,look, you need to start working on that outside game.’ Andshe did.”

Now Mulkey has another doit-all forward. Only three SEC freshmen have more double-digit scoring games this seasonthan Johnson, who’saveraging 8.4 pointsand 5.6 rebounds percontest in league play while shooting 54% from the field.

Mulkey started occasionally stationingJohnson on the perimeter when LSU beat Georgia on Jan. 8. Those chances have helpedthe Tigersthrow out bigger, moreathletic lineups.

They’ve also allowed Johnson to take acoupleof3-pointers. She made both of those looks, using the more refined version of the shootingformthatpropelled her to this pointofher career

“She bought in early,” Jointer said, “andshe wanted to do it andshe obviouslyput herselfin agood place.”

Email ReedDarcey at reed. darcey@theadvocate.com. For more LSU sportsupdates,

revenue has become atop priority for athletic departmentsnow that they can payplayersdirectly through the House settlement,and officialswanted to have adeal in place as soon as the NCAA cleared theway.LSU alsohas soldasponsorship logo on the field at Tiger Stadium andcreated aconcert series. It voted last fall to raise season-ticketprices before backtracking.

“I believe that if we would have started this thing when theNCAA approved it,there’sa very small chance we would have found a partner from now until thefall,” said Clay Harris, theLSU deputy athletic director andchief revenue officer

The deal was brokered by Playfly Sports, LSU’slongtime multimedia-rights partner. Playfly came up witha valuation for LSU based on avariety of factors mostly related to exposure, including TV viewership and social media impressions. It also didwhatHarris called “pretty intense studies” on what professional teams make from commercial jerseypatches Overtime, alonglistwas narrowed to around adozen potential companies.

“I don’tthink it’s something we didn’ttake lightly as far as being on thejersey,” Harris said, “so we wanted to make sure it madesense financially.”

Afterfinalizing thedeal with Woodside Energy in August, LSU added the sponsorpatch midseason to footballpractice jerseys and Mike the Tiger’scostume. Next schoolyear, it will appear somewhere on every uniform in

GRAND SLAM

Continuedfrom page1C

once thepreseasonbegan.And so far,that newfound comforthas turned intopositive results. Caraway was 5for 13 with adouble, atriple and six runs drivenin before his blast against Nicholls (0-5).

“I needed to simplify alot of stuff and take alot of movement out of my swing,”Caraway said. “I mean, if you’ve watched alot of hitters here, theytakea lotofmovement outoftheir swing, (like) Dylan Crews. He’ssuper intothe ground and getsintohis toe really early and doesn’thave like abig leg kick or anything.”

After Caraway’sgrand slam,the LSU lineupfound itself in arut. The Tigers had just one hit from innings twothrough five despite holding a6-1 lead heading into the sixth. That’s when the attack came back to life, as two singles and a walk turned into two runs that gave LSUan8-1 advantage. “I thoughtwewere much better offensively the lastthree games than the first two,” Johnson said. LSUsenior right-hander Zac Cowan earned thestart, but his outing didn’tlastlong. He went

PROVIDED PHOTOByLSU ATHLETICS

AWoodside Energypatchis displayedonanLSU football uniform. Beginning thisfall, every LSU uniformwill have asponsor logoonit.

apurple-and-gold colorscheme

Although Woodside Energy’slogo is red, it was important to LSU officials for thepatch to stay in school colors.

Officials declined to disclose financialdetails of the agreement, and LSU has said contracts done through Playflyare not subject to apublic-records request because it is aprivate third party.UNLV, theonly otherschool so farthat has announced acompleted jersey patch sponsorship, reached a fiveyear,$11 million deal with Acesso Biologics, aLas Vegas-based regenerativemedicine company

“There is more of aconnection between commercial success and competitive successthanever,” said Christy Hedgpeth, the president of Playfly.

While LSU is one of the first schools to add asponsorship patch,

moreare expected to follow.Hedgpeth called it “a really compelling asset for all of our schools.” Arkansas plans to have one next season, and Auburn is in the sales process with the hope of identifying apartnerbythe fall. Severalother SEC schools, including Ole Miss and Tennessee, said they are exploring their options. So far,Texas is theonlySEC schooltosay it will not have asponsor patch.

“You can only go up on ticket prices so much,” Ausberry said “Apparel companies, they’re pretty much tapped out. They’re only doing so much. Youlook at all the different ways— licensing, concessions, you look at the whole thing, you’re like, ‘OK,where do we generate new revenue?’ AndI think all of us in the country are figuring out this is where.”

As part of the rule change, the NCAA letteamsplace two commercial logos on their uniforms during the regular season and one more forconference championships. Theyare notyet approved forthe postseason.

LSU will have the one patch with Woodside Energy.Harris said LSU will “research andstudy andget evaluations” on an equipment sponsor logo, which is nowlegal, in case it wants to sell that in the future.

“Professional sportshas given aroadmap to collegesnow to look at, and they do areally good job of maximizing alldifferent revenue streams,and that’swhatwe have to do, tastefully,going forward in collegesports,”Harris said. “I think college is different in pro with the traditions. That’sa massive deal for us, and we want to make sure we uphold the LSU traditions,but we have to startgetting moreaggressive in how we’re generating revenue in this newera of college sports.”

13 1TOTALS 31 12 89

Nicholls 100 000 00 —1 32 LSU 510 002 13 —128 2 E—Giger (1); Milam (1); Caraway (1); Reaves(1).DP—Nicholls 1. LOB—Nicholls 11; LSU 7. 2B —Simpson(1);Brown(3); Dardar (2). HR —Rijo—Berger (1); Pearson(1); Caraway (1). HBP —Jenkins; Westcott. SB Perkins (1); Brown(1);Reaves(2) Nicholls IP HR ER BB SO Mabry,L(0-1) 1.0 36 641 Avery 2.1 10 002 Simoneaux 1.1 00 022 Waters0.2 11 10 1 Bordelon 0.1 11 120 Dyess 1.1 01 010 Hensarling

1.0 00 022

S(1) 3.0 00 002 WP —Mabry(1); Bordelon(1); Dyess(1).HBP —byDathe (Jenkins); by Ricken(Westcott). Umpires—HP: ColbyVidrine1B: Jeremy Hayes2B: Eddie Newsom3B:

just11/3 innings while striking out two batters and allowing three hits. The run he allowed wasasolo homer in the first. LSUneeded agroup effort to get

throughthe rest of thegame. Fifthyear senior right-handerDax Dathe tossed 11/3 scoreless innings afterCowan.Freshmanright-hander Zion Theophilus madehis LSU debutand walked three batters without giving up arun. Oregon transfer Santiago Garcia tossed ascorelessframe before walking the leadoffhitter in the sixth and coming outfor freshman righthander Reagan Ricken. Ricken,inhis first collegiateappearance, hadthe best outing of the day.Hetossed three scoreless inningswithtwo strikeouts anddid agood job of consistentlyinducing weak contact. He threw the ballefficiently,needing only 38 pitches to get through his outing.

“I’ve gota supergood defense behind me,” Ricken said, “so they makeiteasy on me, making great plays.”

LSU next travels to Jacksonville, Florida, to participate in the Jax College Baseball Classic beginning on Friday against Indiana. First pitch is slated for 1p.m., and the game will be available to stream on D1Baseball.com

Email Koki Rileyatkoki.riley@ theadvocate.com. For more LSU sports updates,signupfor our newsletter at theadvocate.com/ lsunewsletter

Miller. Rebounds—LSU 22 (Sutton, Tamba5), Texas33(Vokietaitis, Swain 10). Assists—LSU 13 (Reece 9), Texas 9(Wilcher 4). Total Fouls—LSU 25, Texas14.

Tuesday’s games UCLA13, Tulane 5 Southern Miss 3, Southeastern 1 South Alabama 7, Nicholls 5 UL 3, Rice0 Wednesday’s games LSU 12, Nicholls 1 UNO 14, Southern 5 Thursday’s games None scheduled. Friday’s games LSU vs.Indiana at Jacksonville,Fla 1p.m. Southern vs.Grambling at Vero Beach, Fla. 2p.m. Alabama A&M at UNO,4p.m. Tennessee-Martin at Nicholls, 6p.m. Maryland at UL,6p.m. Southern Illinois-EdwardsvilleatSoutheastern, 6p.m. HarvardatTulane, 6:30 p.m. College softball

Tuesday’s games Florida State 8, UL 0(5inn.) LSU 10, South Alabama 2(5inn.)

Wednesday’s games None scheduled. Thursday’s games None scheduled. Friday’s games Nicholls vs.KennesawState at Troy,Ala., 11 a.m. Southern at Arlington Baptist (DH), noon

Southeastern vs.St. Louis at Conway,Ark. noon UL vs.HowardatLSU,1:30 p.m.

Southeastern at Central Arkansas, 2:30 p.m. UL vs.Michigan State at LSU,4p.m. Nicholls at Troy,6:30 p.m. Michigan State at LSU,6:30 p.m.

Porgolf

PGA Tour statistics Through Feb. 16

FedExCup Season Points

1, Chris Gotterup, 1,066. 2, ScottieScheffler, 938. 3, Collin Morikawa, 706. 4, Hideki Matsuyama, 560. 5, Ryan Gerard, 558. 6, Justin Rose, 520. 7, Si WooKim,512. 8, Ryo Hisatsune, 435. 9, Sepp Straka, 419. 10, Min WooLee, 417. Scoring Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 68.679. 2, JakeKnapp, 68.937. 3, Hideki Matsuyama, 69.128. 4, Chris Gotterup, 69.190. 5, Nicolai Hojgaard, 69.238. 6, TommyFleetwood, 69.361. 7, Si WooKim, 69.439. 8, Jacob Bridgeman, 69.449.9,Ryan Gerard, 69.521. 10,Vijay Singh, 69.533. DrivingDistance 1, Gary Woodland, 330.2. 2, Michael Brennan, 329.5. 3, Aldrich Potgieter, 327.1. 4, Rasmus Hojgaard, 324.7. 5, Chris Gotterup, 323.9. 6, Min WooLee, 323. 7, Rory McIlroy,322. 8, Isaiah Salinda, 321.8. 9, JakeKnapp, 321.4. 10, 2tied with 321.3. DrivingAccuracy Percentage 1, Andrew Putnam, 79.76%. 2, Joel Dahmen, 79.29%. 3, Blades Brown, 76.79%. 4, Lucas Glover, 75.00%. 5, Si WooKim,73.57%.6,David Lipsky,72.32%. 7, CoreyConners, 72.14%

8, MattFitzpatrick, 71.43%. 9, Kensei Hirata, 70.95%. 10, Shane Lowry,69.64%. Greens in Regulation Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. Total Driving 1, Blades Brown, 20. 2, David Ford,38. 3, Adam Scott, 40. 4, Min WooLee, 42. 5, Rory McIlroy,47. 6, Jesper Svensson, 50. 7, Scottie Scheffler, 74. 8, 3tiedwith 77. SG-Putting 1, Kris Ventura, 1.901. 2, Davis Riley,1.405. 3, Sam Ryder, 1.344. 4, Matt Kuchar, 1.308. 5, Zach Johnson, 1.232. 6, Chandler Phillips,1.202. 7, Karl Vilips, 1.180. 8, Jacob Bridgeman, 1.119. 9, LeeHodges, 1.109. 10, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, 1.097. Birdie Average 1, Rory McIlroy, 6.25. 2, ScottieScheffler, 6.17. 3, DavidLipsky,6.13. 4(tie),Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry,6.6,Jacob Bridgeman, 5.56. 7, Justin Rose, 5.55. 8, 3tied with 5.5. Eagles (Holes per) 1, Rory McIlroy, 36. 2(tie),Keegan Bradley Joel Dahmen and Sahith Theegala, 45. 5, JakeKnapp, 48. 6(tie),Peter Malnati, Scottie Scheffler, Adam Svenssonand Adrien Dumont de Chassart, 54. 10, Justin Lower, 63. Sand Save Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. All-Around Ranking 1, Scottie Scheffler, 139. 2, Rory McIlroy,176. 3, MinWoo Lee, 207. 4, Rickie Fowler, 257. 5, RyoHisatsune, 306. 6(tie),ChrisGotterup and Si WooKim, 307. 8, Justin Rose,332. 9, Andrew Putnam, 334. 10, PiercesonCoody 371. Auto racing NASCARCup Series points leaders Through Feb. 16 1. Tyler Reddick, 58. 2. JoeyLogano,46. 3. Chase Elliott,43. 4. Zane Smith, 41. 5. RickyStenhouse Jr, 39. 6. Brad Keselowski, 39. 7. Chris Buescher, 39. 8. BubbaWallace, 37. 9. Carson Hocevar, 36. 10. Ryan Blaney,36. 11. Riley Herbst, 35. 12. Daniel Suárez, 35. 13. Josh Berry,33. 14. Kyle Busch,29. 15. Kyle Larson, 29. 16. Noah Gragson, 27. 17. Michael McDowell, 26. 18. William Byron, 25. 19. John H. Nemechek, 25. 20. Ty Dillon, 23. 21. Cody Ware,20. 22. AJ Allmendinger, 18. 23. Ross Chastain, 17. 24. Ryan Preece,17. 25. Erik Jones, 16.

LIVING

Hungarian paprika brings authenticity to goulash

BY LINDAGASSENHEIMER

pasta similar to extra-widefettuccine, perfect for catching every spoonful of sauce.

HELPFUL HINTS:

n Any type of pasta can be used.

n Any type of sliced mushroom can be used.

n To save preparation time, use diced onion and green pepper found in the produce section.

Chicken Hungarian Goulash

Yields 2servings. Recipe is by Linda Gassenheimer

2teaspoons

Seeyou on theflipside

As afarewelltoher

BY APRIL HAMILTON Contributingwriter

paprikaor

1½ tablespoons ordinarypaprika

1cup reduced-sodium marinara sauce

½pound cooked boneless skinless chickenbreast cut in ½-inch pieces Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2tablespoons reduced-fat sourcream 1medium tomato cut into wedges

1. Heat olive oil in anonstick skilletovermedium-high heat andadd onion, green pepperand mushrooms. Saute 3minutes.

2. Sprinkle paprikaover vegetables and saute 2minutes. Add marinara sauce and simmer 1 minute. Add chicken and salt and pepper to taste.

3. Removefrom heat and serve over pappardelle. Dot the goulash with sour cream.Arrange tomatoes on the side.

NUTRITION INFO PER SERVING: 369 calories (32 percent from fat), 13.0 gfat (3.0 gsaturated, 4.3 gmonounsaturated), 114 mg cholesterol, 38.0 gprotein,26.5 gcarbohydrates, 7.1 g fiber,132 mg sodium.

Caraway Pappardelle

Yields 2servings. Recipe is by Linda Gassenheimer

¼pound pappardelle (about 1½ cups)

2teaspoons olive oil

1tablespoon caraway seeds Saltand freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring alarge pot with2 to 3quartsofwater to aboil. Add the pappardelle and boil 3to4 minutes or according to package instructions.

2. Drain, leaving about 2tablespoons water on the pappardelle. Tosswitholiveoil,carawayseeds, andsalt and peppertotaste.

3. Divideinhalf and serve on two dinner plates with thegoulash.

NUTRITION INFO PER SERVING: 262 calories (20 percent from fat), 5.8 gfat (0.8 gsaturated, 2.5 g monounsaturated), no cholesterol, 8.1 gprotein, 44.1 gcarbohydrates, 3.0 g fiber,3mgsodium.

The Food Truck is my kitchen’snickname. It is tinyand theplace where we have madenine years of meals and memories.

The time has come to bid her gratitude and afond farewell.

When we first toured this home as prospective buyers, my wisehusband announced that the kitchen would need to be our first order of upgrades. How could our growingfamily of five, abunch who loves to cook and entertain, function in this 8-foot square cubicle?

ANOTHER RECIPE

LEMON BARS 8C

As you do, we made it work. Three years intothe small but mightykitchen journey,wetoyed withtearing down walls and building our dream kitchen. Afriend recommended acontractor who stopped in to check the scope of ourrequest. He looked and poked around using thelaser measuring device to do some calculations “This is abig project,” he

Make

Shrimp Risotto

Risotto is such afun dish to make for company.Add agreen salad andyou’re good to go. Spring asparagus makes anice substitute for thepeas if preferred. Using shrimpstock makesit Lent-friendly anda great way to put your shrimpshells to use.

6cups shrimp stock

3tablespoons cold butter,divided use

1tablespoon olive oil

4shallots, finelychopped

2clovesgarlic, minced

½teaspoon red pepper flakes

1teaspoon dried thyme

1teaspoon coarse salt

2cups arborio rice

1. In a2-quart saucepan, bring the stock to agentle boil. Reduce heat and keep on asimmer while preparing the rice.

2. In a4-quart Dutchoven, melt 1tablespoon of the butter with the olive oil overmedium heat.Add thechopped shallots and cook until slightly softened. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, thyme and salt and stir for 1minute.

3. Addthe rice and saffron to theDutch oven and stir to coat the rice with the aromatic oil andlightly toast the rice, about 5minutes. Increasethe heat to medium-high and add the wine, stirring constantly until most of the liquid evaporates.

4. Ladle in the stock in halfcups,stirringbetween each

½teaspoon saffron threads

(optional, but recommended if you have it)

1cup drywhite wine

1pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1cup frozenpeas

Zest and juice of 1lemon

Lemon wedges forserving

additionuntil the liquid is absorbed. Adjust heat to medium if it is sticking or burningon the bottom.Continue until most of the stock hasbeen added. If the rice is still firm in the center,add additional stock by ¼-cupfuls.

5. Lay theshrimp andpeas on top of the rice, reduceheat to low and cover for 5minutes to steam cook the shrimpand peas. Add the zest and juice of the lemon and stir well to incorporate everything intothe risotto.

6. Grate the remaining 2tablespoonsofcoldbutterover thetop of the risottoand stir in gently

7. Scoopthe risottointo warm bowls and garnish each with alemon wedge.

Mom’s LemonBars

Ikeep thisrecipe,writteninmymom’sinimitable handwriting, for special occasions. As soon as my new kitchen is upand running,thiswill be the first oven recipe Iturn to FORTHE BASE:

Having aphone foremergencies

powder FOR THE FROSTING:

3tablespoons butter at room temperature

¾cup powdered sugar

Zest and juice of 1lemon, plus extraifneeded

1. First, make the base: Preheat theovento350 F and line an 8-inch or 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper

FAREWELL

Continued from page7C

repeated as he roamed in and out of the kitchen that could.

We chickenedout. When my second of three daughters was in college, overlappingwith the first one, Ihad the realization that ourdream kitchen would come when we finished funding their college degrees.The year 2021 found us with three college graduates and anew kitchen on the horizon. Then Idecided to punctuate the empty nest with anursing degree My kitchen fund went back to school and this nutrition nurse is now back in the kitchen renovation business. Iobserved in awe as my

2. Placethe 1cup of flour and¼cup powdered sugar in amixing bowl and stir to combine.Grate in the cold butter usingthe large holes of abox grater.When the mixtureholds together,press it out intothe prepared bakingpan andbake untiljust golden, about 15minutes. Cool in thepan on arack while you preparethe filling.

3. Make the filling: Whisk the eggs and sugar together (can usethe samemixing bowl as above) untilno streaksofegg remain.Add thelemon zest andjuice andstirtocombine. Addthe flourand baking powder and stir again until the flour is incorporated.Pour the filling on top of the cooled base and

neighbor Lori remodeled herkitchen.She shared her contractor’snumberand asked me monthslater if I had called him. Iconfessed Ihad not, sincethe idea was overwhelmingand we didn’thaveadesignyet.

“He can help with that,” shereassured Aboutayear ago, Igot the courage to call him. Many visits and sketches later,with numbercrunchingand kitchen tours, the demolition began just this week. In anticipation of beingkitchen-less untillikely summer,I fired up afew burners to makeour last Food Truck supper,shrimp risotto, which is aperfect Lenten dish. Imeasured, mixed and bakeda treasured three-part dessert Mom’sLemon Bars, which taste exactly likemom

bake until just set, about25 minutes. Cool in the pan on a rack before frosting.

4. Make the frosting: Using ahandmixer,blend the 3tablespoons softened butter with the¾cup powdered sugar. Add the zest and juice of 1lemon and mix to combine. If thefrosting is too thickfor spreading,add additional lemonjuice abouta tablespoon at atime. Spread the frosting over the cooled lemon bars and chill briefly to setenough to cut into squares. Cut into2dozen squares or rectangles and serve. Transfer extras to an airtight containerwith layers separated with parchment paper and refrigerate for up to aweek.

madethem herself. While thewalls come down and the dust flies, we will transform thecovered portion of our pool deck into thebackyard bistro. My growing cookbook collection is stashed in boxes in aback closet, and I’m keeping just two within reach toaccess simple recipes that require minimal cookware and cleanup. Isay that aday without cooking is aday without sunshine. The upcoming monthsmight be chaotic, but Iplan to keep thesun shining in amakeshift manner.Ihope you will follow along as Ichronicle this process and we learn to feed ourselves on the fly, hopefully withlots of nutritioushome cooking and maybe adinner party in the backyard bistro.

Cheesy BroccoliChicken Bake

Serves6.Recipe is by Gretchen McKay,Post-Gazette

1pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, rinsed and patted dry Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1tablespoon olive oil

12-ounce packageofbaby broccoli, trimmed and cut into 4-inch florets

5tablespoons butter,divided

5tablespoons flour or cornstarch

2cups chicken broth or stock

1/2 cup heavy cream 1cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided 1cup shredded sharp cheddar 8frozen hash browns patties, thawed and cut into bite-sized pieces Grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish

1. Preheat ovento375 F.

2. Season chicken breasts with saltand pepper

3. Heat oil in alarge skilletuntil shimmering. Add chicken and cook, turning once, until it is cooked through,10-12 minutes total. Remove to plate and allow to cool for 5minutes, then cut into bite-sized chunks and place in alarge bowl.

Continued from page7C

the dish was created in the early 1900s —Chicken Divan became smart mothers’ tactic for getting theirkids to eat vegetables after the recipe popped up in cookbooksinthe late 1950s and early ’60s. Broccoli is slightly bitter when raw and mushy (and slightly stinky) when overcooked, so it can be ahard sell on its own. But add some roasted chicken and

PHOTO By GRETCHEN McKAy Cheesy BroccoliChicken Bake

4. Meanwhile, steam or boil broccoli florets in well salted water for 4-5 minutes until tender-crisp, drain well andadd to bowlwith chicken. Toss to combine. 5. Melt 4tablespoons butter in aheavy saucepan over medium-lowheat.Add flouror cornstarch and cook, continuouslywhisking, for around 3 minutes to make aroux.

6. Addchicken stockor brothslowly,alittle at a time, whiskingconstantly, until you reach aboil. Then reduce heat and simmer

top it with acreamy cheese sauce andthe result is a rich andcozy casserole that even thepickiest child will happily eat. Thereare probably as many recipes for broccolicheese casserole as there are

Dear Heloise: As my grandchildren have gotten older, it occurred to me that their parentshad gotten rid of their old landline. Today, manyhomes rely only on cellphones. Also, parentsare wary of giving their young ones cellphones. This means that when young children are safely left at home without adult supervision for short periods, there is no way for them to call for help in an emergency Parents might consider having aseparate cellphone in thehouse to replace theold landline and teach youngsters how to use it if needed. Thank you for all your hints. —Diane Hobbs, areader Ceramictrivettiles

Dear Heloise: Coasters

By The Associated Press

while whisking occasionally for 8minutes

7. Reduce heat to low, and cook for 10 minutes more.

8. Fold in creamalong with ½cup Parmesan and all the cheddar.Stir to combine and cook until cheese is completely melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper

9. Addcheese sauce to the broccoli-chickenmixture and stir to combine.

10. Pour mixture into the bottom of abuttered 2-quart casseroledish. Sprinkle remaining ½cup grated Parmesan on top

11. In asmall skillet, melt remaining1tablespoon butter,add hash brown squares and cook, tossing often, until crispy.Sprinkle on topofthe casserole.

12. Bake in hotoven until just hot, around 20 minutes. For an extracrispy top,turn oven to broil, sprinkle casserole with alittle grated Parmesan andbroil 5inches fromheatuntil casserole is bubbling andgolden, about1 minute. Serve immediately

are helpful when using drinking glasses, and cups usually come with saucers. However,mugs don’talways fitwell on standard coasters, especially larger or heavier ones. But Ifound that the ceramic trivet tiles that I’ve collected over the years work just fine under my mugs. They provide asturdy surface, protect furniture from heat or moisture, and add adecorative touch. Best of all, they are attractive reminders of places that we’ve visited or of thoughtfulfriends whogifted them to us. —G.A., in Colorado Springs, Colorado Twocycles

Dear Heloise: Afriend recently complained that her energy-efficient dryer

TODAYINHISTORY

Today is Thursday, Feb.19, the 50th day of 2026. There are 315 days left in the year

Todayinhistory: On Feb.19, 1942, during World WarII, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which paved the way for the internment of 125,000 people of Japanese ancestry,including U.S.born citizens.

Also on this date:

In 1473, astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus was born in Torun, Poland.

In 1847, the first rescuers reached members of theDonner Party,who had been snowbound in the Sierra Nevada near the California-Nevada border for nearly four months.

In 1878, inventor Thomas Edison was issued apatent for thephonograph. In 1945, Operation De-

tachment began during World WarIIasthe first wave of U.S. Marines landed at Iwo Jima, where they commenced asuccessful monthlong battle to seize control of the island from Japanese forces.

In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford, calling the issuing of the 1942 internment order forpeople of Japanese ancestry “a sad day in American history,” signed aproclamation formally confirming its termination.

In 2003, an Iranian military plane carrying members of the elite Revolutionary Guards crashed in southeastern Iran, killing all 275 people on board.

In 2008, an ailing Fidel Castro resigned the Cuban presidency after nearly ahalf-century in power; his brother Raúl was later named to succeed him Fidel Castro died in 2016 at the age of 90. In 2025, the ocean liner

often took two cycles to dry anormal load of clothes. Many newer dryers have built-in safety features that are designed to prevent overheating and reduce the risk of fires, which can cause them to shut off early In many cases, this problem is caused by a clogged or arestricted dryer vent pipe that prevents the proper airflow If there isn’tacompany in your area that specializes in cleaning dryer vent pipes, consider contacting achimney sweep service as they often provide this type of cleaning as well. Keeping vents clear can improve the drying time and help the dryer run moreefficiently —Elaine C. Williamson, via email

Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.

SS United States, which shattered the transatlantic speed record on its maiden voyage in 1952, departed Philadelphia’sDelaware River waterfront under tow forMobile, Alabama, forprep work before officials sink it off Florida’s Gulf Coast to create the world’slargest artificial reef

Today’sbirthdays: Singer Smokey Robinson is 86. Rock musician Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath) is 78.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb.19) High energy, trust andbeliefinyour abilities will lead to the strength and couragetoexcel What youachieve is for your own happiness, not others'. Challenge anyone who triestotakeadvantage of you.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Take pride in what you do and what you say. Life is aboutmaking sacrifices to getthe best outcome for everyone.Step outside your comfort zone, andthe feeling of freedom will exhilarate you.

ARIEs (March 21-April19) Look into home improvements, loweringyour overhead or applying for grantsthatfavor the cost efficiency changesyou wanttomake. Upgrading your skills will encourage youtolanda position that pays more.

TAuRus (April 20-May 20) Study situations before you spring intoaction. It's necessary to have everything in place if you intend to meet your expectations. Share your feelings andintentions with someoneyou love

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Takeiteasy,be observant, ask questions and get the informationnecessary to make thebest choices. Dismiss suggestions that lack integrity or leaveyou questioning their feasibility.

cAncER (June 21-July22) It'suptoyou to manifest opportunities. Sitting back and waiting for things to happen will leave you empty-handed. Friendship and romance look promising.

LEo (July23-Aug. 22) Learn as yougo. Put more thought,timeand energy into partneringwith someone whohas

as muchtooffer as you. Set high standards anduse your skills to promote your interests.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Showdiscipline in maintaining alifestyle thatfulfills yourneedsand makes you happy and gratefulfor allyou have. Put greater emphasis on love andnurturing the most meaningful relationships.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) You are in abetter position than youthink. Don't hide; getout andmingle,and the networking youdowill payoff. Gaining insight into howothersworka room will help you choose whoyou approach scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Don't waste valuable time over something youneed to put behind you. Learnyour lessons andmovealong. Attend events that offer social interaction andpeople who can enrich your life.

sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Get what you want in writing. Someone will offer far more than intended to grab your interest. Trustfacts, not hearsay. Change requires time,energy and desire.

cAPRIcoRn(Dec.22-Jan. 19) Extend a helping hand, insight or support to someone, and the response will be awelcome surprise.Attitude and gratitude go hand in hand andcan turn anegative into apositive.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. ©2026 by NEA, Inc dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with severalgiven numbers. The object is to place thenumbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 boxcontains thesamenumber only once. Thedifficultylevel of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

By PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

Benjamin Franklin Fairless, asteel companyexecutive who died on the first dayof1962, said,“What is the recipe for successful achievement? To my mind, there are just four essential ingredients: Choose acareeryou love, give it thebest there is in you, seize your opportunities, andbeamember of the team.”

What is therecipefor success in this four-spadecontract?Westcasheshistwo tophearts, then shifts to the club king. The bidding was instructive.North’s redoubleindicated at least 10 high-card points. Then,when he raised spades on the next round, he showed exactly three-card support. (With four spades or more, he would haveresponded two no-trump.)

East’stwo-heartadvancedidnotpromise any values.Bythe logicofthe auction, he was known to be weak.Hewas just saying that he hadadefinite preferenceforheartsoverdiamondsandclubs. West raised hearts with four-card support anda full-weight takeout double.

South’s four-spade bid was ambitious, but the vulnerable game bonus was a powerfullure

Declarer has six black-suit winners. Ergo, the essential ingredient forsuccess is taking four diamond tricks, which might require three finesses. And if so,speed is of the essence. At

wuzzles

trick four, South must play adiamond to dummy’s 10. Then, he cashes the spade queen, leads aspade to his 10, repeats thediamondfinesse,returnstothespade king, takes athird diamond finesse, and claims. Before playing from the dummy at trick one, count losers and winners. ©2026 by NEA, Inc.,dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Each Wuzzle is aword riddlewhich creates adisguised word,phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOONGOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

InsTRucTIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters.2.Words that acquire four letters by the additionof“s,” suchas“bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional wordsmade by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns,slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

ToDAy’sWoRD coRPoRAL: KOR-por-ul: Anoncommissioned officer.

Averagemark 20 words

Time limit 30 minutes

Canyou find26ormore words in CORPORAL?

yEsTERDAy’s WoRD —AuTonoMous

“They

BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS

Nvidia leads the U.S stock market higher

The U.S. stock market ticked higher on Wednesday, led by its most influential stock, Nvidia.

The S&P 500 rose 0.6% and pulled a bit closer to its all-time high set late last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 129 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.8%.

Nvidia helped lift the market and climbed 1.6% after Meta Platforms announced a longterm partnership where it will use millions of chips and other equipment from Nvidia for its artificial-intelligence data centers.

“No one deploys AI at Meta’s scale,” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said. Because his company is the most valuable on Wall Street, Nvidia’s stock was the single most powerful force pulling the S&P 500 higher

That performance demonstrated the upside of AI development for the U.S. stock market

But investors have also focused on the potential downsides recently, which has led to sharp swings for Wall Street Moderna says FDA will consider new flu shot

WASHINGTON The Food and Drug Administration will consider whether to approve Moderna’s new flu vaccine after all, resolving a dispute that had blocked the company’s application for the first-of-its-kind shot.

Moderna announced the change Wednesday, about a week after revealing that the FDA’s vaccine chief was refusing to review the new vaccine, made with Nobel Prize-winning mRNA technology

The dispute centered over a 40,000-person clinical trial that concluded Moderna’s new vaccine was more effective in adults aged 50 and older than one of the standard flu shots used today In the FDA’s rare “refusal to file” letter vaccine director Dr Vinay Prasad faulted the trial for not including another brand specifically recommended for people 65 and older

Moderna publicly objected. It said that while the FDA had recommended that approach, the agency ultimately agreed to the study’s design — and that the company shared additional comparison data from a separate trial that used a highdose shot for older people. Nor did the FDA identify any safety concerns.

Still, Moderna said Wednesday that in a compromise, it is seeking full approval for the vaccine’s use in adults 50 to 64 and accelerated approval for those 65 and older

The FDA is targeting a decision on the application by Aug. 5, and Moderna said it hoped to make the vaccine available later this year

Buffett’s company invests in N.Y. Times

OMAHA, Neb Six years after Warren Buffett sold off all of Berkshire Hathaway’s newspapers and predicted unending declines for most of the industry, Berkshire disclosed a new $350 million investment in The New York Times on Tuesday The somewhat surprising move highlighted the quarterly update Berkshire filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission about the company’s stock holdings in Buffett’s last quarter as CEO.

Berkshire also increased its investment in Chevron just before President Donald Trump ordered the arrest of Venezuela’s president, and the Omaha-based company continued selling off more of its Bank of America and Apple shares. At the time Buffett sold off Berkshire’s dozens of newspapers in 2020 he concluded the industry was “toast.”

But even then he suggested that newspapers with a national brand like the Times or The Wall Street Journal might still do well.

THEADVOCATE.COM/news/business

Minutes reveal a divided Federal Reserve

BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP economics writer

WASHINGTON Many Federal Reserve officials want to see inflation fall further before they would support additional interest rate cuts this year, particularly if the job market continues to stabilize, minutes of last month’s meeting show

The “vast majority” of the 19 participants on the Fed’s ratesetting committee said that there were signs the job market has stabilized, after the unemploy-

Southwest customers grouse about new seating reality Inflation must fall further before a rate cut, most say

ment rate rose in late 2025, the minutes said. And most of the officials agreed that the Fed’s key rate is close to a level that neither stimulates nor restrains the economy The minutes were released Wednesday three weeks after the central bank’s Jan. 27-28 meeting.

Fed officials at that meeting agreed to keep its key rate steady at about 3.6%, after cutting it three times late last year Two officials Fed governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller — voted instead to cut another quarter-point.

The minutes underscored the deeply divided nature of the committee, with several camps emerging: “Several” officials said additional cuts will “likely be appropriate” if inflation continues

to decline. But “some” officials favored keeping rates unchanged “for some time,” suggesting a longer pause. And several other officials said they could have supported language in the statement issued after the meeting that would signal the next move by the Fed could be either a cut or a rate hike, if inflation remains above their 2% target.

The support for signaling an openness to a potential rate hike appears to be a significant shift from previous meetings. Chair Jerome Powell said after meetings last year that the idea of a rate hike wasn’t on the table.

Powell signaled after January’s meeting that the Fed could wait for a few months before cutting rates again. He said at a news conference that the economy and hiring had improved since the central bank had previously met in December, and added that the Fed was “well positioned” to evaluate how the economy evolves in the coming months before making any further moves.

‘I

The decision to keep rates unchanged defied a stream of demands from President Donald Trump for the Fed to reduce its key rate to as low as 1%, a level few economists endorse. When the Fed cuts its key rate, it can over time lower borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans, and business loans, though those rates are also influenced by financial markets. Grandson of Reese’s inventor accuses Hershey of cutting corners

BY JORDAN PARKER

The Dallas Morning News (TNS)

Washington, D.C., area resident Brad Todd was stunned when a Southwest Airlines

flight attendant barred him from switching seats on a mostly-empty flight from Kansas City to Reagan National Airport on Feb. 11.

Todd, a Republican media consultant who frequently flies for work, said he paid for a seat in row two before attempting to move one row back — in order to spread out after a passenger had purchased the middle seat next to him.

Then, he found out that wasn’t allowed even though, as he estimated, only 43 passengers were slated to travel on the aircraft.

“She goes, ‘Well, you have to go back to your assigned seat or we can’t leave,’” Todd said “Five rows wide-open behind me It couldn’t be a weight and balance issue to sit one seat back or it wasn’t a price issue, I’d already paid.”

After Todd documented his experience in a social media post that garnered 4 million views on X, more than 3,000 people chimed in with their own thoughts — the majority of which slammed Southwest. The dominant carrier at Love Field Air-

port first announced the switch to assigned seating in 2024, part of a series of moves the carrier made to increase revenue. CEO Bob Jordan previously said that a majority of customers and potential customers preferred the ability to pick a seat.

But experiences like Todd’s are one of many horror stories since the Dallas-based airline scrapped open seating in favor of assigned seating on Jan. 27. And judging by a public outcry that’s gone viral on social media, the transformative switch is off to a turbulent start.

“I’m for assigned seating,” Todd said. “I think it’s a good thing for Southwest I’m somebody who buys a ticket last minute, and I’m willing to pay more for a better seat.”

When asked if he would continue to fly the airline if changes aren’t made, Todd said he “would definitely fly them less.”

Henry Harteveldt, a longtime aviation analyst and founder of Atmosphere Research Group, said flight attendants not allowing passengers to switch seats is where Southwest “potentially made a mistake.”

“Any time you make a major change to a policy, as Southwest did after 54 years, there are inevitably going to be teething pains and some unhappy people. And in the age of social media, where everyone has a microphone, you’re going to hear a lot of people grousing.”

Many complaints have focused on those passengers being forced to place carry-on bags in compartments way to the back of

the plane, a different experience from the prior boarding process. A frequent criticism is that nonpreferred passengers were boarding ahead and taking up available overhead space. Families have also complained about children being separated from them.

Harteveldt said he was “surprised” when he heard of the issues with family boarding, saying the airline “clearly overlooked the need for family seating, and I’m hoping that they will address that.”

There have also been reports that A-list Preferred customers, who are supposed to board in either group one or two, are boarding in later groups, also leading to bin space troubles.

Todd added that Southwest’s new boarding process seemed to create confusion among passengers “Going to this assigned seating system without requiring people to use the bin that’s over their seat is going to cause mass chaos and the quick turn won’t be possible,” he said.

In response to early complaints, company spokesperson Chris Perry said the airline was making a “series of early adjustments designed to smooth operations and reduce friction designed to smooth operations and reduce friction.”

Southwest still has not specified what the adjustments are going to be and declined to comment beyond its original statement.

TWU Local 556, the union that represents Southwest’s flight attendants, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

BY DEE-ANN DURBIN Associated Press

The grandson of the inventor of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups has lashed out at The Hershey Co., accusing the candy company of hurting the Reese’s brand by shifting to cheaper ingredients in many products.

Hershey acknowledges some recipe changes but said Wednesday that it was trying to meet consumer demand for innovation High cocoa prices also have led Hershey and other manufacturers to experiment with using less

chocolate in recent years. Brad Reese 70 said in a Feb. 14 letter to Hershey’s corporate brand manager that for multiple Reese’s products, the company replaced milk chocolate with compound coatings and peanut butter with peanut crème.

“How does The Hershey Co. continue to position Reese’s as its flagship brand, a symbol of trust, quality and leadership, while quietly replacing the very ingredients (Milk Chocolate + Peanut Butter) that built Reese’s trust in the first place?” Reese wrote in the letter, which he posted on his LinkedIn profile.

He is the grandson of H.B. Reese, who spent two years at Hershey before forming his own can-

dy company in 1919. H.B. Reese invented Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups in 1928; his six sons eventually sold his company to Hershey in 1963.

Hershey said Wednesday that Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are made the same way they always have been, with milk chocolate and peanut butter that the company makes itself from roasted peanuts and a few other ingredients, including sugar and salt. But some Reese’s ingredients vary, Hershey said.

Brad Reese said he thinks Hershey went too far He said he recently threw out a bag of Reese’s Mini Hearts, which were a new product released for Valentine’s Day The packaging notes that the heart-shaped candies are made from “chocolate candy and peanut butter crème,” not milk chocolate and peanut butter

“It was not edible,” Reese told The Associated Press in an interview “You have to understand. I used to eat a Reese’s product every day This is very devastating for me.”

“As we’ve grown and expanded the Reese’s product line, we make product recipe adjustments that allow us to make new shapes, sizes and innovations that Reese’s fans have come to love and ask for, while always protecting the essence of what makes Reese’s unique and special: the perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter,” the company said.