Memphis returns to New Orleans for the first time since its 2003 New Orleans Bowl appearance.
After playing the Green Wave in Memphis in 2004, Tulane rotated off the Tiger schedule in 2005 and 2006.

On to the one-liners:

*** Memphis is averaging 42.6 points in its last three games against Tulane.

*** Close games have not been the hallmark of this series. The last seven games have been decided by an average of 24.6 points.

*** Memphis used to have a larger contingent of Louisiana natives on its roster, but will go into Saturday’s game with only two: Baton Rouge products Taz Knockum, a seldom-used senior receiver and freshman offensive lineman Ronald Leary.

*** The Tigers have forced 13 turnovers in their past five games and committed only two.

*** Memphis ranks 116th nationally (of 119 teams) in third-down efficiency defense.

*** The combined record of the three teams the Tigers have beaten is 6-16; 1-AA Jacksonville State’s 5-3 mark keeps the record from being worse.

*** Saturday’s attendance at the Louisiana Superdome could be in the same range as last weekend’s announced crowd of 11,122 at Rice, a number that was somewhat generous.

The coach that led Melrose to its only two state football titles in school history in 1996 and 1998 returns tonight as the head coach of a Fayette-Ware team that already this season has set a state record for total yards amassed in a game.

Thompson says he knows they’ll be a few unkind words for him, but he’s expecting most Melrose fans to “show lots of love” toward him in his return to his high school alma mater.

I’m very interested in what sort of reception Thompson will get tonight from Melrose’s homecoming crowd. After all, he was practically a hero in Orange Mound a decade ago, when he became the first Shelby-Metro football coach since 1985 to lead his team to a state title.

One thing’s for sure: If Fayette-Ware does come into Orange Mound and hands it to the Golden Wildcats, the always vocal Thompson is going to make sure they don’t forget about it anytime soon.

THE BIG STORY

LSU All-American defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey was more frightened than hurt after his right knee was injured on an illegal chop block at the knees by Auburn right guard Chaz Ramsey Saturday.

“Yeah, at first I thought it was a serious injury and it hurt at first,” Dorsey said to reporters after LSU’s practice Thursday night. “But really that came from me being scared a lot, too, of being hurt.”

Dorsey is expected to be one of the first players picked in the next NFL draft. He said his family has purchased insurance. Dorsey likely would have gone in the first round in the last NFL draft, but he opted to stay at LSU for his senior year because of a late-season shin injury that would have affected his NFL pre-draft workouts.

Dorsey said he expects his sprained right knee to be OK for LSU’s next game, which is Nov. 3 at Alabama. He has been held out of all three of LSU’s practices this week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and he said he would probably not play if LSU had a game this Saturday. All three of those practices were closed to the media.

“I’ve just been rehabbing,” he said. “I’ve got a good chance of playing against Alabama. Without a doubt, the bye week couldn’t have come at a better time.”

Dorsey said other offensive linemen have gone for his knees but none succeeded.

“They tried to, but I never got caught like that,” he said.

LSU coach Les Miles said he remains hopeful to have Dorsey when the No. 3 ranked Tigers (7-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) play No. 22 Alabama (6-2, 4-1 SEC) for first place in the SEC West at 4 p.m. on Nov. 3 on CBS.

“He’s a great leader,” Miles said. “He was the team captain for that game (the Auburn game) and will probably end up being a captain for the year. No question, he inspires his teammates in how he works, how he plays and who he is. There’s no question he’s a leader of our football team.” Read the rest of this entry »

It’s off to the Big Easy, the Crescent City or simply New Orleans. I always like going to NO. Funny thing is I don’t drink. So how does a guy who doesn’t drink enjoy NOLA? Just watching the people there especially the Saturday before Halloween is off the charts. I’ve been around the world a couple of times and nothing compares to Bourbon Street on a Saturday night.

Congrats DH on your new addition. Another little Tiger enters the world.

The Tigers have never lost to Tulane under Tommy West. I hope I didn’t jinx them there but that is the truth.
Read the rest of this entry »

On Thursday afternoon in the Division 2 Region Cross Country Championships at Shelby Farms, the wind blew, the rain fell and it was cold and muddy, but for the runners racing 5 kilometers in a race to qualify for state — it was worth it.

In the girls D2-AA race St. Agnes’ Kacey Nobert (left) ran an 18:33.5 time to win the individual championship and lead
the Stars to the region title. Teammates Kyle Weaver (3rd), Ryan Weaver (4th) and Aidan Shea (5th) also finished in the top 5 for Coach Jay Mathis. Only St. Benedict’s Elizabeth Altizer was able to breakup the sweep by the Stars. Altizer’s finish helped SBA place second while ECS edged St. Mary’s to earn the third and final qualifying spot for the state. ECS was led by Emily Griesbeck (15th), eighth-grader Carley Lane (18th) and Devin Scruggs (19th). The girls D2-A race was dominated by Harding. The Lions’ Leah Raich finished sixth overall (21:23.2). Lausanne and FACS also qualified for the state.

The boys D2-AA race as expected was won by Coach Nick Dwyer’s CBHS squad. Five of the top 11 finishers were Purple Wave runners, led by race winner Zack Turner (left). He ran a 17:13.3. Mat Kenwright from SBA was second with a time of 17:29.9. Kenwright helped the Eagles qualify for state by finishing second. The third and final state team qualifier was ECS. The Eagles tied MUS with 63 points after you counted the top five runners on each team. But, the tie-breaker is whose sixth runner did the best, and the Eagles edged the Owls to earn the spot at state.

In the D2-A race, Harding and St. George’s also tied with 35 points with the Lions winning the tiebreaker. Both teams advance to state along with Lausanne, FACS and Tipton-Rosemark. Ben Jenkins was the top runner for Harding, while Stephen Williams paced the Gryphons.

To qualify for state in Division 2-AA a team had to finish in the top three in Thursday’s meet, while individually only the top 10 finishers qualify for the state championships to be held in Nashville next Saturday, Nov. 3. In Division 2-A, all teams and the top 10 finishers qualify.

Top 30 Girls

Place AA Place A Place Runner School Score Time

1 1 Kacey Nobert St. Agnes 1 18:33.5
2 2 Elizabeth Altizer St. Benedict 2 19:41.1
3 3 Kyle Weaver St. Agnes 3 20:42.3
4 4 Ryan Weaver St. Agnes 4 20:46.2
5 5 Aidan Shea St. Agnes 5 21:12.8
6 1 Leah Raich Harding Academy 6 21:23.2
7 6 Victoria Darling St. Benedict 7 21:26.2
8 7 Hunter Mitchell St. Mary’s 8 21:29.3
9 8 Ashley Hall Briarcrest 9 21:33.2
10 9 Emily LaForce St. Benedict 10 21:41.4
11 10 Mary Elisabeth Tipton Hutchison 11 21:50.1
12 2 Kalena Baskin Harding Academy 12 21:54.0
13 11 Loren Bruce Briarcrest 13 22:00.3
14 12 Allison Connell St. Mary’s 14 22:06.5
15 13 Emily Griesbeck ECS 15 22:10.2
16 14 Rachel Atkins Hutchison 16 22:25.9
17 3 Chelsea Essary Harding Academy 17 22:36.9
18 15 Carley Lane ECS 18 22:44.5
19 16 Devin Scruggs ECS 19 22:48.5
20 17 Kaitlyn Stoddard St. Benedict 20 22:55.6
21 18 Lydia Hyatt St. Benedict 21 23:01.7
22 19 Colleen Scheurz St. Mary’s 22 23:11.9
23 20 Caroline Seward ECS 23 23:18.7
24 21 Julia Gates St. Agnes 24 23:21.0
25 22 Sarah Beasley ECS 25 23:27.4
26 23 Connor Robinson Hutchison 26 23:29.2
27 24 Megan Marchant Hutchison 27 23:31.9
28 25 Kendall Person ECS 28 23:36.8
29 4 Mallory Sharp Harding Academy 29 23:38.8
30 26 Courtney Seward ECS 30 23:41.9

Top 30 Boys

Place AA Place A Place Runner School Score Time

1 1 Zack Turner CBHS 1 17:13.3
2 2 Mat Kenwright St. Benedict 2 17:29.9
3 3 Joseph Welsh ECS 3 17:36.7
4 4 Matt Rider CBHS 4 17:41.6
5 5 Matt Grisham MUS 5 17:43.6
6 6 Josh Vieira MUS 6 17:44.5
7 7 Tyler Catterton CBHS 7 17:50.6
8 8 Jonathon Mace ECS 8 17:51.8
9 1 Stephen Williams St. George’s 9 17:54.5
10 9 Charles Christiansen St. Benedict 10 17:59.6
11 10 Morgan Prince CBHS 11 18:00.8
12 11 Jack McNelis CBHS 12 18:06.9
13 12 Brad Pitawankwat St. Benedict 13 18:09.2
14 13 Jared Elmer St. Benedict 14 18:10.9
15 14 Shea Gabrielleschi MUS 15 18:14.6
16 15 Jordan Griesbeck ECS 16 18:15.7
17 2 Ben Jenkins Harding Academy 17 18:17.3
18 16 Bryan Glazer CBHS 18 18:21.5
19 17 Matthew Murphy MUS 19 18:29.2
20 18 Ben Chandler ECS 20 18:29.5
21 19 Bradley Roelofs ECS 21 18:32.9
22 20 Alex Firehammer St. Benedict 22 18:34.9
23 21 Alan Blount MUS 23 18:38.5
24 22 Adrew Murphy CBHS 24 18:43.5
25 23 Jordan Cole ECS 25 18:45.9
26 3 Oliver Lange St. George’s 26 18:49.4
27 4 Andrew Garner Harding Academy 27 18:52.6
28 24 Mark Miller ECS 28 19:03.6
29 5 John Williams St. George’s 29 19:08.7
30 25 Kyle Treece St. Benedict 30 19:13.2