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TIGER TRIUMPH
Mond ay, Ja nu a r y 12 , 2 02 6
LSU women’s basketball is back on track after dismal conference start with win over No. 2 Texas.
Photo by Alexis Persicke
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HORNS GO DOWN
B-16 Hodges Hall Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, La. 70803
Women’s basketball capsizes No. 2 Texas in statement win
BY ISABELLE CALLAHAN Staff Writer It was clear from the moment the ball went up into the air at 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon that the No. 12 LSU Tigers versus the No. 2 Texas Longhorns was never going to be decided by comfort and rhythm. This game demanded toughness — and LSU answered, turning the PMAC into one of the most hostile environments in college basketball and delivering a statement performance that let the collegiate basketball world know that both its recent bounce back wins were built on elite defensive execution. “I thought they were really tough today,” Texas head coach Vic Schaefer said. “I thought that they played much harder than we did, and I thought they were way tougher than we were today.” Against the No. 2 team, known for its poise and offensive balance, LSU quickly disrupted passing lanes, forced contested looks late in the shot clock and made every possession feel like a grind. Texas rarely found clean driving angles, and when it did, LSU’s interior defense collapsed quickly, challenging shots without fouling and limiting rebounds to finish the shot.
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LSU women’s basketball junior guard Mikaylah Williams (12) and sophomore forward Kate Koval (13) try to rebound Jan. 11 during the 70-65 win against Texas at the PMAC in Baton Rouge, La. But what really separated LSU defensively was its ability to sustain intensity for all four quarters. Players like Mikaylah Williams, Jada Richard and Amiya Joyner answered every call for them on the court. Williams tallied up 20 points, 14 rebounds and went 7-for-13 on shot attempts. An
ALEXIS PERSICKE / The Reveille
LSU women’s basketball freshman forward Grace Knox (2) gets the ball Jan. 11 during the 70-65 win against Texas at the PMAC in Baton Rouge, La.
unprepared Texas team played constant catch-up, trying to limit not only her defensive aggression, but also her offensive ability to shoot and score wherever she is on the court. “I think if anybody knows coach Mulkey, she’s really big on defense, and that’s something she has been riding us on since I’ve been at LSU, and that’s something I wanted to improve on,” Williams said. “I know it needs to continue to improve to be great in this level, and good on the next level, so that’s something I really came into the game taking personally.” There were no extended lapses — no stretches where Texas could settle into a flow. LSU mixed physical man-to-man defense with timely switches, closing out hard on shooters and forcing the Longhorns to beat them one-on-one with the tough lineup of seniors on the Texas starting lineup. Possession after possession, Texas was pushed deeper into the clock, a testament to LSU’s communication and collective effort, but also the team’s relentless hope. It entered the game 1-2 in SEC conference play after not finishing through against Kentucky and Vanderbilt. The atmosphere only amplified the defensive edge. The PMAC was electric, pulsing with energy on every stop, every deflection and every forced turnover, with a completely sold-out crowd in the annual white-out game. Crowd noise peaked during defensive stands, creating a feedback loop that fueled LSU’s momentum by creating a visibly rattled Texas team during crucial late-game possessions. It felt less like a regular season contest and more like a
postseason Final Four battle — the kind where every stop carries weight. “If you go back to those two games [we lost], we had a ninepoint lead [against Kentucky], then we go to Vanderbilt late,” head coach Kim Mulkey said. “We had a seven, five-point lead, but we didn’t know how to finish it. It’s not about missing shots; we didn’t know how to get that rebound, we didn’t know how to block out … they are reminding each other, ‘Hey, we’ve been here before.’” Offensively, LSU didn’t rely on fireworks. Instead, the Tigers capitalized on the opportunities the defense created — converting turnovers into points, executing in half-court sets when it became detrimental and delivering timely baskets to maintain control. During the first period, Texas led LSU for seven minutes, but after that, it seemed to have completely switched over, and LSU went on to lead for almost 27 minutes and ultimately took home the much-needed win before another road game on Sunday. Late in the game, LSU’s composure matched its intensity, executing defensive stops when Texas made its final push, but the Longhorns just weren’t tough enough to follow through to the win. This wasn’t just the finest matchup on LSU’s schedule — it was a measuring stick game, and it passed the mark with grit and toughness. By winning with defense, effort and composure in one of the season’s biggest atmospheres, the Tigers sent a clear message: LSU can win ugly, LSU can win loud and LSU can win against anyone.
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CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS The Reveille holds accuracy and objectivity at the highest priority and wants to reassure its readers the reporting and content of the paper meets these standards. This space is reserved to recognize and correct any mistakes that may have been printed in The Daily Reveille. If you would like something corrected or clarified, please contact the editor at (225) 578-4811 or email editor@lsu.edu.
ABOUT THE REVEILLE The Reveille is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. A single issue of The Reveille is free from multiple sites on campus and about 25 sites off campus. To obtain additional copies, please visit the Office of Student Media in B-39 Hodges Hall or email studentmedia@ lsu.edu. The Reveille is published biweekly during the fall, spring and summer semesters, except during holidays and final exams. The Reveille is funded through LSU students’ payments of the Student Media fee.
NEWS LEGACY LIVES ON
LSU music therapy program thrives in honor of deceased professor
BY CHLOE VIDRINE In April 2024, LSU became the only public university in the state to offer a bachelor’s degree in music therapy, a program that combines music and psychology courses to train students for therapeutic work. But less than a year after launching, the program faced a setback when its founder and coordinator, Kamile Geist, died. Geist was recognized as a leading expert in the field of music therapy, and she began building the program from the ground up when she joined the LSU faculty in 2022 as the first Ava & Cordell Haymon Endowed Chair of Music Therapy. She curated the curriculum, partnered with local healthcare facilities to provide clinical training for students and created a supportive community within the music program. After Geist’s death in February, the LSU School of Music named Penny Roberts, a board-certified music therapist, as the interim director of the music therapy program. Roberts has a doctorate degree in aging from Tulane University School of Medicine and specializes in working with older adults. “My main concern is how do we take what she so lovingly and carefully built and add on to it in a way that makes the most sense,” Roberts said of her efforts to advance Geist’s work. Administrators also hired Molly Austin, who has a doctorate in music education with an emphasis in music therapy, as an assistant professor of music therapy. Austin joined LSU
with over a decade of experience, ranging from work with preschool children to older adults to inmates at corrections facilities. “This semester is about jumping back in in a way that honors the legacy that Dr. Geist left behind,” Austin said. As a way to do just that, the music therapy administration created the Dr. Geist Memorial Library and Music Therapy Resource Room in the School of Music. The room enables students to continue to benefit from Geist’s extensive knowledge. In the room, students can find an array of instruments and a vast collection of Geist’s music therapy resources, donated by her family from her home. Annalise Pitts is one of seven music therapy students who studied under Geist’s administration. As Pitts began her senior year this semester, she reflected on the hardships that helped the program grow and brought her closer to her classmates. She attributes the success of the program to the efforts of Geist, the current administration and her fellow students. “We have this program because of her,” Pitts said of Geist. “If it wasn’t for her, Dr. Roberts and Dr. Austin would not be here. We are able to have such incredible faculty, and have all these instruments ready for practicum, and all these sites set up for us and a degree plan that was already laid out.” Pitts said students and faculty have a common goal of looking out for one another. She said the program is unique because of the enthusiasm they all share.
page 3 COMMUNITY
Local salon empowers cancer survivors BY JAIDON COTTON
“I’m just excited to get going and really get into the classes,” she said. “I have one music therapy class right now, and it’s the highlight of my week.” Music therapy programs generally help students understand what is happening in the body, brain and spirit when a patient is listening to music or playing an instrument. All
The buzz of blow dryers and the scent of hairspray carry a different meaning inside EGGIE Salon Studio. For owner Rachel Eggie Gibbs, the work goes far beyond styling. It’s about helping women reclaim a piece of themselves during one of the hardest chapters of their lives. Gibbs and her team offer consultations, personalized wig fittings and upkeep sessions for cancer patients across Baton Rouge, creating a space where clients feel supported, seen and cared for. “It’s really amazing when you turn them around to the mirror and they are in shock with tears running down their face because it’s like, ‘Wow, I feel like me again,’” Gibbs said. According to the American Cancer Society, nearly 1 million women in the United States receive chemotherapy each year for cancer treatment. About 65% of women experience some degree of hair loss. Margee Fawley was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of breast cancer in 2004. The disease eventually spread to her lymph nodes, causing her to endure two intense rounds of chemotherapy. After her first round, she lost al-
see MUSIC THERAPY, page 4
see TRANSFORMATION, page 4
PHOTO COURTESY OF CHLOE VIDRINE
Annalise Pitts plays the drum, one of many instruments found in the Dr. Geist Music Therapy Resource Room, which was created in honor of the late professor who built the program. “I don’t even feel like a student in this program,” Pitts said. “I feel like a person who is passionate about getting out there and helping people.” Sadie Smith can attest to the familial bond among the students in the music therapy program. When she began her first semester in August, she said she found the program to be well-established and organized.
STUDENT LIFE
Collegiate 100 promotes development of young Black leaders BY JORJA ETHRIDGE Staff Writer The LSU Collegiate 100 is a service and mentor-based student organization that supports the efforts of its sponsor chapter, the 100 Black Men of Metro Baton Rouge. The 100 Black Men organization helps prepare the next generation of Black male leaders. However, the LSU Collegiate 100 is made up of both male and female students. Pre-med biology junior Kylen Chretien is the president of the LSU Collegiate 100. He said his organization’s four core initiatives mirror those of the 100 Black Men: mentoring, health and wellness, education and economic empowerment. Chretien said that LSU’s chapter helps the 100 Black Men organization with its flagship program, Project Excel. This program focuses on mentoring Black male students from
ages 8 to 18 in the Baton Rouge community. Chretien said they meet for Project Excel twice a month. Through this program, the LSU Collegiate 100 works with 100 Black Men to help local youth develop leadership skills, civic responsibility and tools for academic success. LSU’s Black Student Union named the Collegiate 100 the “most impactful Black student organization” at LSU this year. Collegiate 100 member and art and design senior Darnesha Binn said she thinks mentoring young students in the community is what makes the organization so impactful. While Collegiate 100 members make a difference in the lives of the youth they mentor, the youth also impact the members. “We get to learn from them and see the perspectives of the generation coming after us,” Binn said. “We have to make sure we are showing
up consistently and being the kind of role models they will be proud to follow.” Furthermore, the 100 Black Men of America named LSU’s chapter the Collegiate 100 Chapter of the Year at the 39th Annual 100 Black Men of America Conference on June 5. This title is a major accomplishment for the LSU Collegiate 100, considering the organization is less than three years old, Solé Jackson, Collegiate 100 secretary and pre-med biological sciences junior, explained. He said LSU chartered its Collegiate 100 chapter on Feb. 7, 2023. “We have already reached incredible heights,” Jackson said. “Being named Chapter of the Year for 2024-2025 is a true testament to our growth, dedication and leadership.” In addition to Project Excel, the Collegiate 100 does community service and also hosts educational events for its members and other students throughout the year.
For example, Jackson said he participated in a spelling bee and a finance education night that focused on teaching students how to budget, save and invest. Jackson added that he and the Collegiate 100’s head chair created
the Bayou Bounce line dancing event. The second annual Bayou Bounce took place in September. Chretien said that when it comes to accepting new members, students
see COLLEGIATE, page 4
PHOTO COURTESY OF KYLE CHRETIEN
Monday, January 12, 2026
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SENIOR WHO SAVES How an LSU senior balances medical service with student life
BY TORI BONIN Staff Writer Meet the LSU senior who spends time saving lives and uniting students while pursuing her degree Between attending classes and running a sorority, one LSU student spends her time saving lives. Britney Tobar, a psychology and French senior, transferred to LSU in 2023. Since then, Tobar has been involved in not only campus life but in the Baton Rouge community as a whole. Tobar has been working as an EMT for Acadian Ambulance Services since September of 2024. One day, Tobar was sitting behind an ambulance at a red light that said ‘Become a medic’ on it. “I was like, ‘You know what?’ I took a picture of it and I went home and Googled it.” Tobar said. Then, she started taking classes. Tobar said she always knew she wanted to go to medical school and be involved in the medical field. Tobar has not let her job or school work hold her back from becoming involved in campus life. She is a founding member of LSU’s Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Inc., where she serves as the vice
president. She is also the president of LSU’s Latin American Student Organization. Becoming an EMT has made Tobar more compassionate. She said this has helped her be a better leader for all student organizations she is involved with. “It’s not necessarily about bossing people around or telling them what to do, but it’s leading with integrity, leading with compassion,” Tobar said. Tobar started her education at West Texas A&M University. She said she decided to transfer to LSU after getting some encouragement from her mom. “I think another part of it is because it was my brother’s dream school, but during that time my parents couldn’t afford to send him out here. So it was like well now we can do this for you, so let’s do it and fulfill his dream too,” Tobar said. One thing that confused her when she moved is the lack of unity at LSU and the Baton Rouge community. Tobar said to this day she is still unsure why everything is separate. “It just makes everything so much better to have everybody together. It makes projects go smoother and makes academics better,” Tobar said. Tobar continues to encourage uni-
ty with her work in her sorority. Destiney Esquibel, a new LTA member, remembers one of her first interactions with Tobar and feeling inspired to join. “We ended up talking for two hours and I just met her,” Esquibel said. “She was so welcoming and inspiring with her stories. She made me feel like we’ve been friends forever and is what truly brought me into joining LTA.” Tobar plans to attend medical school after taking a gap year to continue to working as an EMT. She said that being an EMT has influenced her work ethic and is why she continues to work so hard. When things get tough, she said she keeps going because she owes it to her patients to become the best version of herself. She hopes to use her work experience to become a trauma physician. Courtney Locco, Tobar’s supervisor at Acadian Ambulance, said that Tobar is a reliable worker who brings calmness and curiosity to the work environment. “She’s incredibly quick to learn, asks thoughtful questions, and communicates clearly, which is essential in EMS,” Locco said. “Her ability to speak Spanish has also been a tre-
mendous asset when we care for patients who might otherwise struggle to communicate.” Tobar’s time at LSU is slowly coming to an end and she wants students to know the importance of picking one’s own path. She said it can be
easy to get caught up in what other are doing. “If I really let it get to me, I would be struggling and trying to figure out how to get into medical school next year. That’s not what I wanted to do,” Tobar said. “I made my own story.”
COLLEGIATE, from page 3
MUSIC THERAPY, from page 3
must have at least a 2.5 GPA to be eligible, and the organization is particularly concerned with students’ volunteer work and community involvement. Chretien, Binn and Jackson all emphasized the family aspect of the LSU Collegiate 100 and how its members support one another. “My favorite part of LSU’s Collegiate 100 chapter is the way that we are always there for each other, and it feels like a family,” Binn said. “I love seeing how each of the members have evolved into better leaders from the beginning of joining until now.”
music therapists must be able to play the piano, guitar and a percussion instrument. They also must be able to at least carry a tune, Roberts said. Each student is required to take four piano classes as part of the music therapy degree plan. To receive a degree, students also must take 14 to 17 hours per semester, along with a year-long internship. LSU has partnered with Baton Rouge General and Our Lady of the Lake hospitals and Southdowns Pre-K Center to provide students field experience. Those experiences may range from shadowing health-
care providers on an oncology unit to working with older adults who have neurocognitive disorders. “Wherever there is healthcare or treatment needed, you can find a music therapist,” Austin said. Samantha Johnson, a sophomore, said music therapy is even used in the neonatal intensive care unit of a hospital. She said the work of these therapists, who use frequencies of sounds to help premature babies digest formula, is like magic. “Certain frequencies assist the baby in lowering its heart rate, and it allows them to digest food,” Johnson said. “That’s just something you
have to see in real life.” Taleya Jordan spent some of her junior year in the oncology unit of Our Lady of the Lake, fulfilling her practicum hours. Jordan became an LSU Tiger the same year the music therapy program was initiated. Seeing it in every stage, Jordan said she is thankful for all the opportunities the program has offered her, leading to her senior year. “I feel like I’ve expanded myself as a musician,” she said. Jordan said the intimacy of the small program does not leave much room for competition and that all students want to see each other succeed. Since 2024, the student popu-
lation of the program has more than doubled to about 20. The School of Music aims to continue this trend as more people learn about the widespread practice of music therapy. “As music therapists, we are working to use music in an evidence-based way to help people meet their treatment needs no matter where they’re at, so I’m excited to be here at LSU to help students do just that,” Austin says.
SALON, from page 3
The Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center reached out to Gibbs in 2022. “I was actually approached by Mary Bird Perkins to start donating the first post-chemo haircut to some of their patients,” Gibbs said. According to the cancer center’s website, Dr. William Varnado, a medical oncologist at the cancer center, enlisted Gibbs’ help after hearing the traumatic hair stories of his patients. “I told Rachel the story of my patient and what I thought we could do better,” Varnado said. “A big part of that is hair.” When first accepting chemotherapy clients, Gibbs took her commitment even further. “I actually shaved my head so that I could start teaching them how to grow it out and really understand what they go through during that whole process. It felt empowering to learn about what
women experiencing chemo go through,” Gibbs said. By experiencing it herself, Gibbs said she could better teach them how to care for new growth, manage changes in texture and navigate the emotional challenges that come with starting over. At the salon, Gibbs and her team strive to ensure every customer walks out feeling beautiful regardless of hair type, texture or style. Salon manager Emmie Carriere oversees the operations of the studio. She reaches out to customers after their salon visit to make sure they received the best service at one of three locations. “EGGIE Salon Studio strives to make sure that all women and men who walk through our doors walk out feeling confident, beautiful and satisfied with their experience. We also strive to create an environment for both stylists and clients
that is welcoming and empowering,” Carriere said. For Gibbs, that goal takes on a deeper meaning. She dedicates one day each month to working exclusively with post-chemo clients, helping them begin the emotional and physical process of hair regrowth. She offers product recommendations, gives encouragement and provides their first haircut free of charge. According to Gibbs, each appointment is tailored to restore confidence, whether it is matching a wig to a woman’s natural look or gently guiding her through hair loss for the first time. The women return to the studio every other month to keep up with growth and help style it. A study by the American Cancer Society estimated the number of people receiving chemotherapy across the world will rise to 15 million by 2040. Gibbs and her studio
are working to help a portion of those patients feel confident and beautiful again. In 2023, Gibbs expanded her partnership with the Ochsner Institute and is already planning to develop her own haircare line, furthering her mission to help women rebuild confidence from the inside out. What began as a small effort driven by inspiration and partnership has grown into a full, committed plan to support women through their post-chemo journeys. A single story sparked an innovation that brings in over 100 women into the salon every year, a reminder that one person can inspire change and create something extraordinary.
most all her hair in what she describes as a “traumatic experience.” “I was very upset to lose my hair and I was like, ‘This is going to be my biggest struggle,’” Fawley said. “It was just a terrible time not having any hair and then your eyelashes and eyebrows fall out too.” For Fawley and many other women, hair loss can make them feel less beautiful or unworthy of public attention. “I kind of like just wanted to stay in the shadows. I did not want to be out in front of people,” Fawley said. The post-chemo experience particularly resonated with Gibbs. After meeting clients who shared stories similar to Fawley’s, Gibbs made it part of her mission to help restore confidence for women dealing with hair loss caused by chemotherapy.
PHOTO COURTESY OF BRITNEY TOBAR
Chloe Vidrine is an LSU mass communication senior. This story was produced as part of the Manship School’s digital print capstone course.
Jaidon Cotton is an LSU mass communication sophomore. This story was produced as part of the Manship School’s newspaper and online journalism course.
ENTERTAINMENT LSU resources that can help you keep your New Year’s resolutions PUZZLES
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BY LAURA ALLEN Entertainment Editor
The new year is finally here, and with it comes all of the resolutions so many of us will try and fail - to adhere to for the next 12 months. According to a 2023 poll by Forbes Health, only 1% of people said that their resolutions lasted through the end of the year, a number that can be discouraging for those of us trying to better ourselves in 2026. One of the main reasons behind broken resolutions is that people set vague goals with no real game plan on how to achieve them, but that doesn’t mean this year has to fall into the same pattern. Here are some resources on LSU’s campus that can help you stick to your New Year’s resolutions.
Health and fitness The UREC is a great place to start your health journey. With its three-story Student Recreation Complex, rock climbing wall and indoor pool, the UREC offers the space and equipment necessary to get in a good workout any day of the week. Workout classes are also a fun way to exercise with friends or learn a new routine in a supportive group setting. GroupX hosts classes every day on a wide variety of exercises, including pilates, cycling, barre, yoga, Zumba, dance and boxing. No matter your skill level or prior experience, there is a class for you. The center is open every day, so fitting in some strength training or cardio around your busy class schedule is doable. And the best part? Full-time students au-
tomatically get free access to the UREC, so no need to worry about purchasing a membership.
Academics Staying on top of your grades can be difficult, especially when trying to balance coursework with extracurriculars or jobs. Still, prioritizing studying now can save you from the pain of cramming an entire semester’s worth of material into an all-nighter before an exam. Luckily, LSU offers plenty of resources to help improve your academic A-game - get it ? -. For STEM majors, the Center for Academic Success provides smallgroup tutoring for specific math and science courses. Located at the Shell Tutorial Center in room 141B of the LSU Library, these peer-led tutoring sessions can help you gain a deeper understanding of a subject through one-on-one instruction. Supplemental Instruction, or SI, sessions are also offered for “historically difficult courses,” as described by the Center for Academic Success page on the LSU website, even those outside of the STEM umbrella. These courses are led by peers and are open to anyone taking that course. Information about SI sessions and peer tutoring at the Shell Tutorial Center can be found on the Center for Academic Success page on the LSU website.
Hobbies and extracurricular activities Whether you are hoping to try something new or get back into
an old hobby, there is no shortage of campus clubs and organizations that will encourage your creativity. You can find every club the university has to offer on TigerLink, where you can then sift through organizations based on category, including interest and hobby-based organizations. From ballroom dancing to crochet and fiber arts, there is a club for almost anything. Don’t be afraid to step into a new hobby this year alongside others who share your same passions.
Wellness Wellness is a comprehensive term that encapsulates multiple dimensions of a person’s health, including physical, cultural, social, financial, environmental, intellectual, emotional, sexual, occupational and spiritual wellbeing, according to the LSU Student Health Center. Essentially, wellness cannot simply be limited to physical health. Prioritizing wellness and mental health is key in avoiding burnout, minimizing stress and overall boosting your happiness and productivity. Taking time to yourself to meditate can relieve some of the academic pressure experienced during the school year. Going on walks around the LSU lakes, relaxing in the sun on the Parade Ground or sitting outside in the Greek Theater are all great ways to spend time with yourself while still enjoying some fresh air. If you are looking for more structured support in your wellness journey, check out the resources listed for each wellness dimension on the LSU website.
DYLAN BOREL / The Reveille
Three LSU students wave battle ropes Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022, at the UREC Outdoor Fitness Space.
FOR RELEASE JANUARY 12, 2026
THE Daily Commuter Puzzle by Stella Zawistowski ACROSS 1 Bow of a boat 5 Not together 10 Soda holders 14 Bart Simpson’s sis 15 Allude (to) 16 Be next to 17 Curved path 18 Compassionate forgiveness 19 Traveled by horse 20 Defeats 22 “Kampground” brand 23 Cheek cosmetic 24 Crazy as a __ 26 Book of holy songs 28 Strong lock 32 ’90s music holders: Abbr. 33 Car or truck 34 “Hooray!” 36 Insurance type: Abbr. 39 Brasserie first course: 3 wds. 42 Horror director Williams 43 Be offended by 44 Leave out 45 __ for the course 46 Pittsburgh NFL team 48 Workplaces 52 Programmers, for short 53 Building material 54 Tummy muscles 57 Deep-fried Japanese dish 60 Mystical glow 61 Set of rooms 63 Tolerate 64 __ America 65 Below 66 Director Fritz 67 “__ girl!” (“You go!”) 68 Spaghetti, e.g. 69 Boundary DOWN 1 Thick hunk
1/12/26
Created by Stella Zawistowski
2 Car’s wheel 3 Got more intense 4 Extinct elephantlike creature 5 Long __ of the law 6 Sneak a look 7 High-volume hairstyle 8 Summary 9 Attempt 10 Christmas song 11 “It’s __ time!” 12 Gentle push 13 Take the wheel 21 Cry loudly 23 Hazardous gas 25 Middle of __ 27 Moved over 28 Out of one’s mind 29 Money in Spain 30 Bathrooms in the U.K. 31 Color variations 35 Clue 36 Pioneer’s home 37 Preservationist John
Saturday’s Puzzle Solved
©2026 Tribune Content Agency, LLC All Rights Reserved.
38 Makes a choice 40 Snide remark 41 Decipherable 45 Old Google photo app 47 “I’m scared!” 48 President Barack 49 Apple or peach 50 Initial
1/12/26
51 Steam bath 55 Auction offers 56 Editor’s marking 58 Performed a tune 59 Strong desire 61 Have dinner 62 Pitching stat: Abbr.
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Monday, January 12, 2026
MIKE page 7
Monday, January 12, 2026
Mike the Tiger looks over his shoulder inside his enclosure at LSU on Nov. 10.
Photo essay by Luke Ray | Design by Riley White
A sign for the Tiger Habitat sits outside Mike the Tiger’s enclosure at LSU on Nov. 10.
Mike the Tiger’s enclosure is seen from the outside at LSU on Nov. 10.
Mike VII may be one of the most recognizable symbols on LSU’s campus, but the work behind maintaining his presence is quieter and more intentional than most fans ever see. Ginger Guttner, spokesperson for Mike VII, handles all media relations and manages his presence on social media. Any request involving footage, interviews or public messaging about the live mascot goes through her. “I post for him seven days a week, 365 days a year,” Guttner said. “If we don’t post, people think something’s wrong.” Guttner serves as the link between Mike and the public, shaping how people understand the tiger who has become a cultural landmark on campus. For those who only see Mike from across the habitat, Guttner describes him simply: “goofy and silly.” Even with the prestige of being the only live tiger mascot in the country, she said his playful demeanor always shines through. Guttner has worked with Mike VI and Mike VII, and the interactions with the felines that stay with her are the ones that show recognition and familiarity. “Anytime they recognize me and come up, and I can tell they are acknowledging me, that doesn’t get old,” she said. “It never gets old. It’s really cool.” To the LSU community, Mike represents more than school pride. He reflects the identity and values of the university. “Mike represents everything that is great about LSU,” Guttner said. “He is beautiful, he is strong and I think he is a fabulous representative of the university. For tiger conservation, it is one thing to tell people that we need to take care of tigers in the world. It is different when you can see this every
day. It just makes it more real.” Only about 56 universities in the United States have live animal mascots, most of which are more conventional animals like dogs or horses. Mike VII remains the only live tiger mascot in the country, and Guttner believes that privilege carries responsibility. “It is an honor for us to have him,” she said. “The fact that we are able to provide him this incredible home and the great care he gets from the veterinary school makes all of it even more special. But it is not something we should take for granted.” Standing at the habitat, it becomes clear that Mike is not just a mascot who appears on game day. He is a living reminder of strength, history and shared pride for students who pass by on their way to class or visitors seeing him for the first time. Mike represents what it feels like to belong to something larger than yourself. He is a tiger, but he is also a tradition, a story and a point of connection for every person who calls LSU home.
The statue of Mike the Tiger sits outside his enclosure at LSU on Monday, Nov. 10.
SPORTS MENS BASKETBALL
Men’s basketball loses third SEC game BY RAMI BURKS Staff Writer LSU men’s basketball’s Achilles’ heel hurt it against No. 11 Vanderbilt as it dropped its third straight SEC game on Saturday, 84-73. For most of the 2025-26 men’s basketball season, the Tigers have played sluggish defense, but throughout the nonconference season, it only came back to haunt them once. However, SEC play has been a different story, especially with leading scorer Dedan Thomas Jr. out with a lower-leg injury. The silver lining to Thomas’ absence is that Max MacKinnon has had a chance to stand out from the rest of the team. While he has consistently held the team together on the defensive front he has also put up several 3-point shots of his own. Versus Vanderbilt, the Australia native scored 27 points, going 9-for-16 from the field with three of his shots coming from behind the 3-point line, and he scored 14 more points than the next highest scorer for LSU. Before LSU entered conference play, head coach Matt McMahon said it was going to need MacKinnon, and every bit of that statement has rang true since conference play started. “[Max has] been really, really consistent, so we’re going to need him,” McMahon said. “We’re going to continue to count on him for his 3-point shooting, but also his playmaking and decision making on the floor.” McMahon has said throughout the season that this team just isn’t as strong defensively as it is offensively, and because of that, the players would have to be more solid from the offensive and foundational standpoints. “I don’t think we’re going to be a team that forces 15 to 18 turnovers a game, so we have to be really fundamentally sound on that end of the floor, and that field goal percentage stat has to carry us,” McMahon said after the Southeastern Louisiana game. “We cannot give up double-digit second-chance opportunities on the defensive glass.” Since the game versus Southeastern, LSU has lost Thomas due to injury, which has hurt the team on the offensive front. Thomas averaged 16.2 points so far this season, which led the team. His injury has forced other players stepping up big time to make up the difference, and the
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PORTAL ROUNDUP HINESLEY BRYANT / The Reveille
LSU football head coach Lane Kiffin addresses the audience during his opening press conference Dec. 1 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. BY ROSS ABBOUD Deputy Sports Editor The 2026 NCAA transfer portal has been open for a week now, and LSU has already secured 18 transfers in, just two shy of the program’s largest portal class ever. LSU is in a more dire need for transfers this year than last, losing 30 players to the transfer portal and at least a dozen more due to expiring eligibility or pursuit of NFL dreams. The story of mass exodus for the Tigers is due to major coaching changes, as head coach Lane Kiffin cleaned house in the offensive staff before his first season at LSU. Here’s where the portal haul stands as of time of print. Retooling on defense LSU’s defense will remain largely unchanged, retaining key players like linebacker Whit Weeks, cornerback DJ Pickett and safety Tamarcus Cooley. The retention of defensive coordinator Blake Baker and nearly all of his staff helped the players want to stay on that side of the ball. That
hasn’t stopped Kiffin and Baker from making splashes on defense in the portal. The departure for the NFL of defensive linemen Bernard Gooden, Jack Pyburn and Patrick Payton left holes to fill. So LSU went and made the additions of three top-10 defensive linemen in the portal, including Tennessee’s Jordan Ross, Auburn’s Malik Blocton and Clemson’s Stephiylan Green. With a need to replace a mix of a safety starter and some depth players, LSU landed Boise State’s Ty Benefied, who was an all-conference selection last season. Filling holes at wide receiver Another position LSU hit hard in the portal so far is wide receiver. LSU saw four receivers head to the NFL and four receivers enter the transfer portal. That left LSU with just a handful of receivers on the roster, all with very little experience. But Kiffin went out and landed seven receivers, including three with over 1,000 yards and double digit touchdowns in their college careers: Florida’s Tre Wilson, Kan-
sas State’s Jayce Brown and Hawaii’s Jackson Harris. A wild QB hunt But there hasn’t been sunshine and rainbows for every position. LSU’s quarterback room is in a very tough spot, with only one quarterback on the roster, walk-on freshman quarterback Emile Picarella III. However, LSU landed a commitment Sunday night from Elon quarterback Landen Clark, choosing the Tigers over Kentucky, Michigan and JMU. Clark projects to be a backup. LSU has also hosted the top two players in the portal on campus, quarterbacks Brendan Sorsby and Sam Leavitt, but let them leave without commitments. Sorsby signed with Texas Tech the night he left Baton Rouge, and Leavitt departed Baton Rouge for a visit to Tennessee as LSU reportedly turned its sights onto Washington’s Demond WIlliams. WIlliams has since announced that he is staying at Washington, and Leavitt has visited Tennessee and Miami since his visit to LSU. While Leavitt isn’t out for LSU,
it begs the question of if the way things ended on his visit affected how he views the Tigers in his recruitment. The Tigers have reportedly hosted USC freshman and former five-star Husan Longstreet since Leavitt’s departure from town. Patching up the offensive line Another spot of worry is the offensive line, with seven players transferring out at that position, including five players who started multiple games this season. LSU did have the third-worst graded offensive line, according to PFSN College, so there was a need for major overhaul at the position. But as the transfer portal hits the halfway mark, LSU has brought in two offensive lineman, NC Central’s Ja’Quann Sprinkle and Tennessee’s William Satterwhite. Kiffin is no stranger to the transfer portal, with over half of his last team at Ole Miss joining from the portal. He has been especially good at finding gems, like former Division II quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, who finished top-10 in Heisman voting this season.
GYMNASTICS
Gym opens with tiebreaker loss to Oklahoma BY DELANEY POTTHAST Staff Writer LSU gymnastics opened up its season as the runner-up in the annual Sprouts Collegiate Quad against No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 4 UCLA and No. 5 Utah. Named as the No. 2 team in the preseason rankings, the Tigers tied Oklahoma for first at the end of the fourth rotation, but an exciting tiebreaker gave the defending national champions the win. Even then, the outstanding performance gave the Baton Rouge team a 0.500-point lead over UCLA and nearly a two-point lead over Utah. On top of that was an allaround win by sophomore Kailin Chio with a total score of 39.600. Starting off rotation one on the floor exercise, senior transfer Emily Innes took the lead in the Tiger lineup and earned a 9.875. Freshman Nina Ballou followed, posting a strong score of 9.825. A 9.775 from Denver transfer Madison Ulrich and a fall on a double-back pass by Amari Dray-
ton only gave a low score of 9.025 to LSU’s total, placing them behind UCLA and Oklahoma. Chio was next on the floor for the Tigers, seeming to pick up right where she left off from the previous season. She put up a score of 9.900 before anchor Kaliya Lincoln rounded out the rotation for LSU with a score of 9.850. Headed to vault for rotation two with a composite score of 49.225, the Tigers were ahead of the Utes by 1.450 points, who suffered three falls on beam. Taking the leadoff spot on vault for the Tigers was sophomore Lexi Zeiss, competing a one-and-a-half Yurchenko full for a starting event score of 9.850. Behind her was Ulrich, and a stuck landing made way for a score of 9.900. Strong landings by Victoria Roberts and Courtney Blackson added scores of 9.850 and 9.825, but a second fall by Drayton earned another low score of 9.250 before Chio stepped up to the runway to close out the event. Also competing a Yurchenko
one and a half, the reigning NCAA vault champion posted a final score of 9.900, giving LSU an event total of 49.325 and moving them up to second place, just 0.225 points behind Oklahoma. Taking on uneven bars for the third rotation, Zeiss led off once again for the Tigers. A slight step on the landing was forgiven as she started off the event with a strong 9.875. Making her meet debut was senior Ashley Cowan, a senior who has been historically strong on the bars for the Tigers. A near stick earned her a score of 9.900, followed by another 9.900 from Ulrich. At the same time, the Bruins seemed to excel on the floor exercise, a staple for the team, while Utah started to find its footing with three phenomenal vaults to open the rotation. Taking the final three spots of the Baton Rouge bar lineup were Chio, Blackson and junior Konnor McClain. An excellent release move by
Chio helped earn a 9.850, followed by a 9.950 from Blackson with a perfect stick. McClain, the 2025 WCGA uneven bars All-American, showed out for the Tigers with a final bars performance of 9.925 just as Utah earned the first and only perfect 10 of the night following Avery Neff’s outstanding vault. As the Tigers moved into their final rotation, they narrowed the Sooners’ lead to 0.175 and prepared to take on the balance beam, an event that historically hasn’t been the strongest for LSU. Junior Kylie Coen began with a solid performance, earning a 9.900 for the Tigers and giving them a one-point advantage over the Sooners. Zeiss was next with a 9.850 due to a possible missed connection during the routine. Lincoln and Ulrich filled in the middle of LSU’s beam lineup, adding a pair of 9.825s to the team’s total. Needing outstanding routines
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Monday, January 12, 2026 FOOTBALL
Nonprofit founded by Kyren Lacy’s mother keeps legacy alive BY DELANEY POTTHAST Staff Writer In Baton Rouge, former LSU wide receiver Kyren Lacy’s name is often associated with heartbreak after his death. However, his legacy continues to give back to the community, chiefly through the Kyren K2 Foundation. Founded by his mother Kandace Washington, the K2 Foundation was created as a way to help her cope with his difficult passing. “I was talking with my therapist and she was saying to me that I have all this love and care for Kyren and she said, “You have to put it somewhere,” Washington said. “So that’s kind of how it started, through talking with my therapist and trying to find ways to heal and to just put my love for Kyren into something that he would really want to do if he was still here.” With this push to carry on his legacy, her mission wasn’t to emphasize the tragedy but to turn her grief into purpose and reach out to those going through the same mental health struggles. Instead of focusing on the loss, she wanted to spread his love. “I want people to know that Kyren was a gentle giant, he had a huge heart.” Washington said. “He loved people. He loved his community, and anytime we needed anything he was there. He always liked to make people laugh … and loved being around his family and
friends. He was just a really good, kind soul to be around.” Knowing that Lacy had so much to offer to the community, she wanted to do the same with the K2 Foundation. Her biggest mission is just being the voice of reason that those in the dark need. “The core message is, and the mission is to always be a simple thing of changing your perspective,” Washington said. The first initiative the K2 Foundation offers is counseling sessions to student athletes. If an athlete has insurance but can’t afford a copay, then the foundation covers the copay cost. If the athlete isn’t insured, the K2 Foundation will pay in full for up to five counseling sessions. “I think a lot of times when situations happen, especially with athletes and on such a big collegiate level as Kyren, not being able to have the support that they need is a big issue,” Washington said. “So our foundation is based on offering support for athletes.” More than ever, mental health matters to athletes in atmospheres like that of college football. Factors like NIL and social media have added unbelievable pressure to athletes who at the end of the day are students and regular people. “I think social media is the biggest issue right now, because one second you’re doing something good, you’re a hero,” Washington said. “And the second you do some-
thing wrong, the things that people say online are really atrocious … They still have their schoolwork, they still have practice, they still try to find a social life. So it’s a lot that goes into being a student athlete, and it’s not as easy as people make it out to be.” Aside from providing support services for athletes, the K2 Foundation makes it a mission to give back to the Baton Rouge community. “We have done a back-toschool drive, we’ve done a hygiene drive,” Washington said. “We have, of course, done a turkey drive. We’re going to be working with other organizations and with suicide awareness and mental health awareness programs.” Kalayna Walker, the LSU 2025 Homecoming Queen, also recently worked with the K2 Foundation to help spread positivity on campus and bring awareness to the cause. “We made affirmation cards to give to kids around school to just feel better because you never know what someone’s going through,” Walker said. “I wanted to use my platform to recognize any and every single organization that feels unseen, so if God gave me this platform, I’m going to use it for the good things.” Walker’s support and spotlight of the foundation is exactly what it’s looking for, Washington said, to help boost a non-profit with big plans for the future.
COURTESY OF KANDACE WASHINGTON
“We have a landing page, we’re working on our website … but we’re always needing extra hands, so if they want to volunteer, they can show up, and we will welcome them with open arms,” Washington said. “The biggest contribution is people donating and helping out … so being able to get help from other companies or organizations and partnering with other people has really been a help for the foundation to go above and beyond.” Going above and beyond has allowed Washington to shift her own perspective and have reassurance in knowing she’s both honoring Lacy’s legacy and showing that the tragedy can be transformed into a message. The true success for her is see-
ing the impact the foundation can make on even just one athlete. “I would really like to see the foundation be one of the biggest resources for athletes … just being able to be there for them and have therapists on our team to really help them to navigate the space of sports,” Washington said. Every step Washington takes is shaped by the reason the foundation exists in the first place, and that connection is something she carries with her at every event. “I feel him every time I do something at every event that we have,” Washington said. “I think he would be very proud of the work and the family coming together and just making sure that this is a really successful foundation.”
GYMNASTICS
How gymnast Haleigh Bryant is stepping into her dream career BY GABBY GRAY Staff Writer When gymnastics fans hear the name Haleigh Bryant, a purple and gold history of national records and accomplishments comes to mind. The two-time NCAA champion competed for the LSU Tigers for five years, racking up 105 individual competition titles while also helping lead her team to the 2024 NCAA championship victory.
Now an LSU alumna, she’s helping the program’s gymnasts in a way that puts her on the other side of the competition. As a member of the team’s coaching staff, Bryant now serves as LSU gymnastics’ assistant coach. “I’ve coached camps for a while, but getting to coach the top athletes in the country has been really cool,” Bryant said. “Just being able to meet them where they’re at and give them what they need to be the best version of themselves,
PAYTON PRICHARD / The Reveille
LSU gymnastics all-around graduate student Haleigh Bryant yells while performing on floor during LSU’s SEC Championship win on March 22 at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Al.
both on and off the floor.” Gymnastics has been a part of Bryant’s life for as long as she can remember, having been involved in the sport since she was 4 years old. Two years later, she met someone who turned out to be one of the most influential people in her life — Jay Clark, who has served as the Tigers’ head gymnastics coach since 2021. Clark joined LSU’s coaching staff in 2013 under former head coach D-D Breaux, acting as the associate coach before being promoted to co-head coach alongside Breaux in 2020. “I’ve known him since I was 6 years old when I lived in Georgia,” Bryant said. “So originally, I had my heart set on Georgia. I was like, ‘I’m going to Georgia. I’m not going anywhere else.’ And then he obviously got the job here at LSU, and I’m like, ‘I’m going to LSU and nowhere else.’” Bryant competed under Clark’s guidance during her entire time at LSU, and described being able to serve as an assistant coach to his team as a dream. “If you would have told me when I was — don’t even know, the first time I saw him at my gym — so 6 or 7 years old, that I would be working alongside him, I would have told you guys that you were crazy,” Bryant said. The 33-time All-American
gymnast said that Clark has taught her everything she needs to know, and has described her first year on staff thus far as a bit of a “whirlwind” in terms of adjusting to coaching life. However, one of her favorite things that has come with the adjustment has been her involvement in recruiting. Through recruitment, Bryant has been able to spread the passion she has for LSU gymnastics to other gymnasts, in hopes that they will one day call the bayou their new home. Bryant noted that her recruiting and commitment journey as an eighth grader was vastly different from how recruiting operates today, and she takes pride in playing a pivotal role in prospective gymnasts’ commitments to LSU. “It’s been really fun to watch and show off everything LSU has to offer,” Bryant said. “Then seeing them [recruits] commit and wanting to come to this university has been really cool and really rewarding, of course.” On top of working in recruiting, Bryant has also taken time to craft her coaching style — one that she describes to be different from Clark’s and the rest of the staff. Having come straight from the competition floor, Bryant is very aware of how her team functions in the world of student athletics. Whether it’s balancing classes or perfecting routines, she finds
that it’s best to calmly relate to her gymnasts in an organized approach. “I think all of our coaching styles are very different, and it kind of shows but it all works together,” Bryant said. “I’m more the kind of chill, wanting to calm everybody down [coach], because that’s how I was as an athlete. I’m trying to relate to them, but also trying to meet them where they’re at.” Another part of the transition from gymnast to coach that Bryant is facing is the dynamic change between her and her former teammates. She emphasized the change in dynamic specifically between her and all-around graduate student Chase Brock, who was in Bryant’s undergraduate class. “The dynamic definitely has changed — I mean it kind of has to change,” Bryant said. “But also, we know each other’s roles now, and we know what needs to get done.” Bryant said that having a common goal as a team has made the transition in her role smoother, crediting her gymnasts for being respectful and knowing the steps they need to take in order to reach their goals. And what is that common goal? Bringing another national championship back to LSU.
see BRYANT, page 10
Monday, January 12, 2026
page 10 CLUB SPORTS
How this junior is promoting women’s wrestling in the bayou BY GABBY GRAY Staff Writer For a sport that’s been around for hundreds of years, wrestling is a competition like no other. As history shows, lots of the grit and teamwork poured into the sport has been traditionally maledominated with women urged toward what society has deemed as “feminine” sports, ones that don’t require the combative measures seen on the wrestling mat. While there are recognizable female wrestling names such as Olympic gold-medalists Amit Elor and Yui Susaki, there’s still a fight being led for women at the national level when it comes to collegiate wrestling. Leading that fight for LSU is forensic psychology junior Julia Bustamante, captain of the women’s team for LSU’s Wrestling Club. “Wrestling has given me an escape,” Bustamante said. “When I wrestle, my flight or fight skills kick in in a way that enables me to stop thinking about whatever stress is on my shoulders.” Bustamante has leaned on the refuge found in the sport since her junior year of high school, where she first set foot on a wrestling mat, a decision taken without informing her parents. “It was something I wanted to do my freshman year, but my parents said no,” Bustamante said. “So when we got back from COVID during my junior year, I decided to join the team and just didn’t tell them.” At the time, Bustamante was also playing varsity golf, giving her the perfect cover-up as she attended wrestling practice. That is, until she had to purchase equipment for the sport and had no choice but to share her new passion with her
FIRST MEET, from page 8 to secure the lead, the Tigers looked towards Chio and McClain to close out the last rotation. Leaning into the pressure was a beautiful routine by Chio, who earned 9.950 after a stuck landing, taking the individual all-around lead from Olympian Jordan Chiles. As LSU watched McClain take the last performance, a technically flawed routine earned a harsh score of 9.650, putting the Tigers’
BRYANT, from page 9 “I think this team is hungry and determined,” Bryant said. “I know they want to win a national championship. This staff wants to win a national championship, and we’re going to do everything in our power, from the staff’s perspective, to get them where they need to be.” With Bryant taking on this new role, her strength as part of what makes LSU gymnastics the program it is today follows her in waves that continue to influence the next generation of gymnasts. From placing first in the all-
COURTESY OF JULIA BUSTAMANTE
parents. “They’re my biggest fans now,” Bustamante shared. “They were just worried about me getting hurt and the process of weight cutting.” When it comes to wrestling, weight cutting is defined as losing or “cutting” weight over a rapid window of time to compete against those in other weight classes. “A lot of the older generation has a negative connotation around wrestling and weight cutting, especially for girls, because I guess they feel like it goes against the norm for us to be aggressive and wanting to be combative,” Bustamante said. The ideas that women can be aggressive and combative are factors that fuel women’s wrestling and its competitors, along with a sense of dedication. That dedication followed Bustamante from the west coast to the bayou as she attended her first interest meeting for LSU’s wrestling club as a freshman. Yet, there was something dif-
ferent as she walked into her first club meeting — she was the only woman in the room. “I’m from California, where there’s a massive women’s wrestling presence,” Bustamante said. “Every school has a full women’s team, so when I came here, I was shocked to be the only girl.” Despite that, Bustamante continued to show up to meetings, practicing occasionally as a freshman before officially picking up the sport with LSU’s club as a sophomore. She competed and trained alongside her male team members, crediting them for their sportsmanship and encouragement to bring more women to the team. “I think people have this preconceived notion that these guys are unfair and cruel,” Bustamante said. “But honestly, they’re some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. They’re so sweet and so supportive.”
event total at 49.350 and a meet total of 197.500 to tie the Sooners. To find a winner, scores were recalculated by adding dropped routines back to the total, squeaking out an Oklahoma win by 1.425 points. Despite the disappointment for the Tigers, the close finish sets high expectations for the start of the season and gives LSU high hopes for its next meet against the Georgia Bulldogs on Friday, Jan. 16, in Athens.
VANDERBILT, from page 8
around for two different Nastia Liukin Cup competitions to being named a two-time NCAA allaround champion, Bryant’s career speaks for itself. Now that she’s coaching collegiate gymnastics, she said what her advice for aspiring young gymnasts would be. “You’re gonna get to where you want to go if you don’t give up and keep working hard, using your resources and just working hard every single day,” Bryant said, “It’s also really important to be your true, authentic self, and just to know your journey might be different than somebody else’s and that’s okay.”
Tigers have yet to have something thrown to the wall and stick. Since SEC play has started, the opposing teams have changed their strategy against the Tigers. Previously, Marquel Sutton and Thomas were opponents main focus, but now that Thomas is out, MacKinnon has taken over the role nicely. During this tough stretch of games, one thing has remained consistent: LSU is still fighting. In each game of the losing streak, the Tigers have fought until the buzzer, and the game against the Commodores was no different. Even after trailing for most of the game, there were still efforts to make scrappy plays to try and turn the ball over in their favor. Nonetheless, LSU couldn’t overcome the shootout with the Commodores, which marked the third straight loss in SEC play. The Tigers will look to try and break up the losing streak as they take on Kentucky on Wednesday in the PMAC at 6 p.m.
Bustamante commented on the fact that her male teammates wrestle at her level understood her boundaries with the mutual knowledge of how hard they can push each other on the mat. With her teammates’ support, Bustamante has brought a massive wave of growth to LSU’s club wrestling, serving as a social media coordinator for the team and, of course, the women’s team captain. Her hard work quickly paid off during her first year on the team, where she competed at the national level. Even though she and her team made it to nationals, Bustamante feels like she’s reached an accomplishment greater than that for her team, one that brings her dedication to the sport full circle. “I think the biggest accomplishment has been growing the women’s team,” Bustamante said. “We’ve gone from eight members to nearly having a full team and were
able to send people to nationals last year.” She added that incoming freshmen are constantly sending messages to the team’s Instagram for more information on how to join when they arrive at LSU. Despite the work she and her teammates have put in, they still have their challenges as a team, with Bustamante describing the largest one being pushbacks from LSU’s University Recreation Center. “There’s so many things we want to be able to do, but we’re unable to because we’re not recognized as an official LSU club sport,” Bustamante said. “They recognize us as a club but not a club team.” Without the official recognition as a club sport, LSU’s wrestling club deals with a lack of resources like mat space and transportation used to travel to tournaments. Given the lack of provided amenities, Bustamante said she and her teammates are responsible for funding their own equipment. To contribute to funding, Bustamante has made it a goal to not only return to the national competition, but allocate sponsors for the team. “Hopefully by improving our [Instagram] following and getting sponsorships and recognition, we can show LSU that we should become a team,” Bustamante said. As Bustamante and her team work toward team recognition, she’s made a priority to expand this sport to women all around LSU, hoping they find the love that she’s found for the competition. “Come as you are — we’ll accept you and we’ll take anyone,” Bustamante said. “We’ll adapt to you, you don’t have to adapt yourself to us. We want you. We need you, and we would love to have you on our team.”
HINESLEY BRYANT / The Reveille
LSU men’s basketball graduate student forward Pablo Tamba (8) dunks the ball during the Tigers’ 89-77 win over SMU Dec. 13 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.
OPINION
page 11
The Trump administration doesn’t have a plan for Venezuela THOMAS’ TAKES THOMAS BERGERON Columnist In the early hours of the morning on Jan. 3, the United States Armed Forces performed a worldclass raid into Venezuela to capture dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. While Operation Absolute Resolve will go down in the annals of military history as one of the greatest air-assault raids ever performed — putting Russia’s “three-day Special Military Operation” to utter shame — what else does history associate with American-backed regime change? Certainly, it must be the establishment of strong democracies and thriving economies, right? Iran, 1953. The U.S.’s Central Intelligence Agency and the United Kingdom’s MI6 orchestrated Operation AJAX, which instigated a coup d’état to overthrow Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh and replace him with Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in order to halt perceived Soviet influence and retain Western access to Iranian oil. The 1953 coup, followed by decades of mismanagement and repression under Pahlavi, helped lay the groundwork for the 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution, resulting in the despotic authoritarian regime that governs Iran today.
Guatemala, 1954. The CIA launched Operation PBSuccess to overthrow the democratically elected president, Jacobo Árbenz, for appearing too “communist,” largely due to his land-reform policies. The American United Fruit Company also took significant issue with these reforms and lobbied heavily for U.S. intervention. The CIA-backed Carlos Castillo Armas invaded Guatemala with U.S.-trained mercenaries, air support and psychological operations, forcing Árbenz to resign. Castillo Armas established a military junta bent on eliminating left-wing dissent, eventually culminating in a bloody 36-year civil war beginning in 1960, killing up to 200,000 people. Iraq, 1968. The Arab nationalist Ba’ath Party seized power in a military coup, establishing a regime the U.S. viewed as useful in countering Soviet influence in the region. While direct U.S. involvement in this coup is debated, Washington went on to engage with and tolerate the Ba’athist government as it consolidated power. That regime eventually elevated Saddam Hussein to the presidency in 1979. Under Hussein’s leadership, Iraq endured decades of repression and war, including the IranIraq war, culminating in the U.S.led invasion of Iraq in 2003. This direct action dismantled the Iraqi state, creating a power vacuum that fueled sectarian violence and insurgency, later forcing U.S. troops
to surge again in 2007 to combat Islamist extremism. Between 2002 and 2021, 4,418 Americans have been killed in action, with 31,994 wounded. Panama, 1989. The U.S. military launched Operation Just Cause to depose rogue CIA intelligence asset, drug kingpin and dictator Manuel Noriega. The U.S. ground invasion was an unsurprising military success, ending in Noriega’s capture and prosecution in the United States. This military success, however, also displaced roughly 20,000 Panamanians, killed up to 500 civilians and undermined the rulesbased order the U.S. government claimed to uphold. Among these cases, only Panama avoided prolonged civil war or direct long-term blowback against the U.S. Even when significant blood and treasure were spent attempting to stabilize Iraq over the past two decades, little durable progress appears to have been made — leaving a grim legacy of U.S. interventionism. With these examples in mind, this year demonstrates a watershed moment for the future of the United States and Venezuela. On Jan. 3, President Donald Trump stated, “We will run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.” On Jan. 4, Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested that the U.S. would not directly govern Venezuela, but instead, continue to
coerce the remaining Maduro regime with an “oil quarantine.” So, which is it? At the moment, de facto interim President Delcy Rodríguez appears, at least on the surface, to have little interest in cooperating with Washington, while opposition leaders like internationally recognized 2024 election winner Edmundo González and Nobel Prize winner María Corina Machado appear to be largely uninvolved in the notional transitional period. The most concrete extent of planning made public thus far appears focused on prioritizing access for the U.S. petroleum industry to begin infrastructure reconstruction. Will oil executives be the ones administering to the Venezuelan people, then? The Trump administration
needs to create an effective transition plan — and fast — to oversee Venezuela’s future without becoming another Iran, Iraq or Guatemala. As days go by, domestic dissident factions and criminal elements like cartels may increasingly test the resolve of the shaken post-Maduro state — assuming the regime’s inner circle is as consolidated as it appears to be. From Iran to Venezuela, the U.S. has demonstrated a highly capable military and a professional intelligence service but has a far less stellar record in successful nation-building. It is easy to win the war but far harder to win the peace. Thomas Bergeron is a 25-yearold graduate student from Baton Rouge, La.
EVAN VUCCI / AP Photo
President Donald Trump points to a reporter for a question during a meeting with oil executives in the East Room of the White House, Jan. 9 in Washington.
Sometimes a nostalgic TV show is the best medicine for you AVA’S POV AVA FRANCIS Columnist As someone who takes selfcare, relaxation and vitamin C very seriously, I rarely find myself under the weather. From cold sweats to sniffles, body aches and the worst cough imaginable I wondered if I was suffering from pneumonia. Thankfully, it was just a good old fashioned fever. There’s only so much one can do in a sickly state. I love that being “out of order” comes with a valid reason to do absolutely nothing at all. I did have to pause my recovery and muster up the strength to email my employers and professors
about my absence; it’s obviously the courteous responsible thing to do. I readied myself for chicken noodle soup prepared by Meredith Grey — or maybe that was just my mother, who happened to be in town just in time to nurse me back to health, one hydration drink and bowl of soup at a time. So there I was down and out, with a dangerously high temperature, probably contagious, wondering how I would endure this discomfort and recuperate quickly. Once my delirium had settled, my first move was to get comfy on the couch. My second was to retrieve the remote. Then I was in business. My choice of entertainment for my week of fever bingewatching was the iconic, some-
times problematic, incredibly unserious, heartwarming series known to many as “Glee.” “Glee” probably once broke the internet and now it was breaking my fever. Alongside Vicks VapoRub, a cooling eye mask, Kleenex and Artie Abrams cover of Mario’s “Let Me Love You,” I was on my way to healing. The first time I binged “Glee” in its entirety was almost a decade ago during my freshman year of high school. This was fitting because like the students of McKinley High, I, too, was a part of a group of teenagers from different branches of the social hierarchy. Sure, I was a part of the theater troupe but there were so many similarities to a glee club — trust me. Originally, I was under the
impression that watching one episode would be enough to soothe me during my delicate state but once I found myself invested in the lives of Finn, Rachel, Mercedes, Kurt, Santana, Britney and Sam there was no turning back. To think, all it took for me to feel a rush of serotonin was the voices of a show choir from Lima, Ohio. I feel alive, I’ve rejoined the land of the living. I really hope this column finds its true audience so these references don’t go to waste. This type of passion won’t be understood by anyone except the gleek community. Once more, I am immersed in all things “Glee”. Just when I thought my fangirl days were in the past, I was mistaken. Alongside binging the series I have watched old interviews, award
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show acceptance speeches given by the cast and behind the scenes moments. Who knew “Glee” would be the most eventful part of my fever-driven week. Well aside from my visit to the doctor’s office where my doctor resembled a cast member from “Grey’s Anatomy.” Of all the days where I had to look my absolute worst, sore throat, full body sweats and all. Win some, lose some I guess. With that being said, “Glee” is the ultimate comfort show and I highly recommend binge watching, especially when a fever spikes. “Glee” is truly the gift that keeps on giving and healing. May your days be full of “Glee” and perfect harmonies. Ava Francis is a 22-year-old journalism major from New Orleans.
Quote of the Week “Every day brings new choices.” Martha Beck Author 1962 — present
Monday, January 12, 2026
page 12
RESOLUTIONS Set achievable goals Celebrate your little wins Don’t freak out about all things 2026. Take a deep breath and keep in mind it’s only January — you have time. When reviewing your lists of resolutions you might want to include this little tid bit from yours truly: this year try celebrating your little wins, not just the ones that come with a trophy. Sometimes all you have to show for your wins in life is the simple fact that you showed up, you persisted and made it through. If we focus on attainable achievements we won’t feel defeated if the big ones take a little longer or don’t happen at all. Little wins can be as simple as keeping up with a daily goal or having a consistent routine, such as a healthy workout schedule or cooking a new recipe every week. Attending a concert once a month or visiting new places are also great ways to feel accomplished this year. Ditch putting pressure on yourself and focus on whatever a little win looks like to you.
A resolution I’m working towards is less a specific goal and more a broader approach to my goals: taking measured steps. It’s an old pop-psychology cliche, but still a valuable lesson: small, gradual steps towards your goals prevents burnout. Too often, those without much structure in life may feel like jumping right into the deep end is the only way forward. I tried that freshman year, and I ended up back in bed binging as usual. So, instead of trying to force yourself into the gym every day for hours on end, studying until your brain goes numb or lining up a full bevy of household chores every day, breathe and relax yourself. You don’t need to climb a mountain in a day, just as long as you move a little further next time. Gordon Crawford is a 19-year-old political science major from Gonzales, La.
Ava Francis is a 22-year-old journalism major from New Orleans.
Rebuke crazy health trends You can grow through discomfort I had a friend in engineering who told me, “Engineers exist because people are naturally lazy.” While I don’t disagree, there is a strange dichotomy among engineers: despite building things that make life easier, there is significant front-end suffering in becoming one. It may sound cliché, but there’s something important about doing the hard things to make life easier. While it’s no one’s fault, humans tend to take the easy route when possible. Advertisements for “get rich quick” or “get fit quick” schemes appeal to our instinct to maximize pleasure while minimizing pain. But now, with automation and artificial intelligence seeping into every aspect of our lives, it’s important to choose difficulty when we can. In 2026, I urge you to take on the hard tasks to become stronger, more patient and, most importantly, more confident. As Lucius Seneca wrote, “As fire tests gold, suffering tests brave men.”
Last year was nothing short of rambunctious; it seems I will be the only one to miss her. I welcome 2026 with an open heart, mind and wallet. Something feels different this year, though, and I have chalked it up to Gen Z’s unhealthy obsession with health. From the rising trend of pilates to Trader Joe’s coconut cult and everything you can practically pop a pill to enhance, it sounds more like a collective psychosis to me. This New Year, I want you to drown out the noise and make decisions that aren’t influenced by TikTok. You want a resolution? Here are two you’ll always need: drink more water and go outside. Blair Bernard is a 22-year-old theatre major from Lafayette, La.
Thomas Bergeron is a 25-year-old graduate student from Baton Rouge, La.
Remember that you’re more than your mistakes In the last year, I’ve changed in a multitude of ways that I was entirely unprepared for. Only a year ago, I was a senior in high school, envisioning the perfect first year of college. I was set on continuing the way I always had, pushing myself to achieve as much as possible. During my senior year, I exhausted myself with countless extracurriculars, honors and AP courses and on top of everything served as student body president. I was burnt out and pushing through without giving myself room to rest and recover, and in my delusion, I thought I could carry the same mindset over into my freshman year. Instead, I found myself suffering from severe medical insomnia that left me immunocompromised and exhausted and led me to appeal to retroactively drop a class I was failing. I felt devastated and powerless despite knowing the circumstances were out of my control. After spending winter break recovering and contemplating what the next year would look like, I realized the standards I used to hold myself to were unrealistic. My failure brought me freedom, and this year, I would encourage you to give yourself grace to fall and get back up again. You will make many mistakes, but your mistakes are hardly the sum of your worth. Riley Sanders is a 19-year-old biology major from Denham Springs, La.
Stop letting social media define you While reading “The Secret History” by Donna Tartt, I was struck by one of the first lines of the first chapter. “Does such a thing as the fatal flaw exist? I think that mine is this: a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.” These words are said by Richard Papen, a man who has a more romanticized outlook on the environment around him. Papen’s mindset is also the mindset of the internet. If it’s not “aesthetically pleasing,” it’s not worth looking at. If the people we see don’t pose in every aspect of their lives and act as if they aren’t, then we don’t care for their existence. Our consistent connection to this “picturesque” state fosters our entrapment in who we are publicly. We can’t dance at parties or walk down the street without worrying about being ridiculed online. But the good news is this: the online world doesn’t matter in the real world. We all need to stop putting too much emphasis on online comments because a lack of internet connection can immediately stop us from seeing any of it. I want to stop acting as if the internet matters to the decisions I make in life, and you should, too. Michaiah Stephens is a 22-year-old english major from Durham, N.C.