Embed

Banner carousel full

Unbiased news on the field and on the Hill.

Where sports and politics meet.

Football field at dusk with a state capitol dome behind it

Recent blog posts

Recent News

<p>No. 7 LSU just put Louisiana Tech in the rearview, and Saturday is the real one — Kiffin walking back into the Grove with College GameDay in the trees and ABC on the clock.</p><p><br></p><p>By Rhett Landry</p><p><br></p><p>WBRZ has it straight this morning: Lane Kiffin’s Tigers are No. 7 after a 2–0 run through Tiger Stadium, and the first road trip of the year is straight into No. 8 Ole Miss at Vaught-Hemingway. Kick is 6:30 p.m. CT Saturday on ABC — Ole Miss Athletics and LSUsports both have the window locked. Stripe Out in Oxford. College GameDay setting up in The Grove. First SEC game. First away game. The whole circus is pointed at one man walking into the stadium he left.</p><p><br></p><p>Kiffin is due at the podium after Monday practice around 11:15 a.m., per WBRZ, to talk about the 45–14 Tech win and the week that actually matters. You already know the box from Saturday. Tech made the first half ugly. LSU made the second half a statement. Oxford won’t grade on a curve. The Rebels are 2–0 too. This isnt a soft landing into conference play. It’s the Magnolia Bowl with national TV and a coach who used to call that sideline home.</p><p><br></p><p>While purple sorts film and travel, the league around them didn’t sit still. AL.com’s Week 3 SEC power board — published this morning — has Georgia first, Texas second, LSU third, Ole Miss fourth after a weekend that still feels loud. Texas took down Ohio State 24–23 in Austin. Georgia hung 70 on Western Kentucky. Alabama went into Lexington and beat Kentucky 45–17. Ole Miss handled Charlotte 41–9 in Oxford. Tennessee beat Georgia Tech 45–24 on the road. That’s the neighborhood LSU just entered with a 2–0 record and a target already painted on the bus.</p><p><br></p><p>And the other LSU noise finally cooled a notch. New Orleans CityBusiness reported today that SEC presidents and chancellors met Thursday, took no vote on membership, and announced no sanctions after the expulsion threat that had hung over the program. The league said talks continue toward “an appropriate resolution.” The federal lawsuit is still pending. Kiffin had already left DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris off the opening-week roster — the practical fight that lit the fuse. Baton Rouge can breathe for a week. Oxford still gets the ball Saturday.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Saturdays SEC board is a meat grinder even before purple kicks: Georgia at Arkansas on ABC in the morning window, Florida at Auburn at night, Kentucky at Texas A&amp;M in the afternoon. LSU’s game is the one the cameras will live on. Kiffin Bowl. Magnolia Bowl. Call it whatever you want. The Grove is going to be loud, GameDay is going to be smug, and 2–0 only buys you a seat on the plane.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Purple’s undefeated. The calendar just got mean. Five days until Oxford finds out if the hangover talk was real or if Kiffin’s Tigers are ready for the night that actually counts.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Related:</p><p>- 2–0 tastes fine: <a href="https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/2-0-tastes-fine-oxford-wont-care-about-the-first-half">https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/2-0-tastes-fine-oxford-wont-care-about-the-first-half</a></p><p>- Week 1 didnt whisper: https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/week-1-didnt-whisper-it-yelled</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p>

Baton Rouge woke up 2–0. Oxford already has the lights on.

<p>Caleb Williams and Josh Allen lit the board, Ja’Marr Chase went quiet, and the first waiver scramble already has names attached.</p><p><br></p><p>By Rhett Landry</p><p><br></p><p>Fantasy’s opening Sunday did not ease anybody in. Chicago dropped a record 59 on Carolina in the highest-scoring Week 1 game in NFL history, per Field Level Media, and Caleb Williams — two passing scores, two on the ground, 269 through the air and 65 on his feet — led all early-window quarterbacks with 37.26 fantasy points, ESPN’s Matt Bowen had it. D’Andre Swift punched in three rushing touchdowns and 124 yards. Kyle Monangai added a 100-yard day with a long score of his own. The Bears’ run game looked like a problem for Week 2, not a one-week fluke.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Buffalo answered in Houston. Josh Allen put up 35.66 fantasy points — four touchdowns, two through the air and two with his legs&nbsp; and beat the Texans 36–31 for the first time in twenty years, Field Level Media reported. DJ Moore, the new No. 1 in blue, finished with 21.0 fantasy points on five catches for 100 and a score. Dalton Kincaid went for 130 yards. Tristan Cockcroft noted Allen’s output was 15.06 more than any quarterback scored in a game against Houston last season. That Bills offense is humming heading into Detroit.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Baltimore’s Derrick Henry led early-window backs with 35.3 fantasy points on 144 yards and three scores, Bowen wrote, while Lamar Jackson piled up 324 passing yards and a rushing touchdown in a 4123 win at Indy. Zay Flowers caught five for a career-high 150 and a score before a hamstring ended his night early — an injury ESPN flagged for Week 2 monitoring, with Mark Andrews the likely volume sponge if Flowers sits.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Las Vegas got what it drafted Ashton Jeanty to be. Jeanty scored 32.7 fantasy points — two receiving touchdowns from Kirk Cousins, 102 on the ground, six catches — with 29 of Las Vegas’s 58 touches and 73% of the offensive snaps in a 27–13 win over Miami, per ESPN’s Cockcroft. Brock Bowers was already on the shelf after a meniscus trim; Michael Mayer filled the TE gap before the opener, and Jeanty’s dual-threat day made the wait for Bowers feel longer.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Then there were the gut punches. Ja’Marr Chase finished with two catches for 12 yards and 3.2 fantasy points against Tampa Bay — the second-worst score of his career, Cockcroft noted — even as Cincinnati won 3327. Drake London sat through Cooper Rush’s ugly debut in Atlanta after Tua Tagovailoas oblique sidelined him in practice; London managed 5.5 fantasy points on four targets in a 20–13 loss to Pittsburgh. Cockcroft’s counsel on Chase is patience — September has never been his month. Londons Week 2 value rides on whether Tagovailoa is back against Carolina.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Injuries already reshaped the wire. Kyler Murray’s Vikings debut ended in the first quarter on a concussion; Carson Wentz threw three touchdown passes and Minnesota closed with 29 unanswered to stun Green Bay 39–22, Field Level Media had it. Justin Jefferson caught eight for 92 and two scores. If Murray doesn’t clear protocol, Wentz draws Chicago in Week 2 — a streamer only if the starter stays down, Bowen wrote. Ladd McConkey left the Chargers’ loss to Arizona with a chest injury after 19.2 fantasy points; Bowen pointed to Quentin Johnston and deeper-league Tre’ Harris if McConkey misses the Raiders.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>On the add list that already has receipts: Panthers receiver Jalen Coker caught eight for 138 and two touchdowns for 33.8 fantasy points in that Charlotte shootout and sits as a must-add ahead of Atlanta, rostered in just over half of ESPN leagues per Bowen. Giants tight end Isaiah Likely&nbsp; eight catches, two scores, 27.8 fantasy points in a 28–20 win over Dallas — led the position for the week and was still available in nearly 20 percent of ESPN leagues, Cockcroft wrote. Devaughn Veles 19.9-point Saints outing (seven catches, a score) showed up on Sports Illustrated’s early Week 2 wire board as a flex with Jordyn Tyson still out.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Monday night still has Broncos at Chiefs on ESPN. The rest of Week 1 is in the books. The waiver claims that matter already have names on them — Coker, Likely, maybe Wentz if Murray stays foggy — and the stars who went quiet Sunday still get the benefit of one bad week before anybody starts rewriting September.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Related:</p><p>- 2–0 tastes fine: <a href="https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/2-0-tastes-fine-oxford-wont-care-about-the-first-half">https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/2-0-tastes-fine-oxford-wont-care-about-the-first-half</a></p><p>- It’s Saturday. Purple night: https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/its-saturday-purple-night-the-hangover-talk-ends-at-kickoff</p>

Week 1 didn’t whisper. It yelled.

<p>Saudi Arabia shut its East-West pipeline after weekend attacks. Gulf talks with Iran on Hormuz were postponed. Monday crude jumped more than 3%, and U.S. diesel printed a new high above $6.23 a gallon.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>By Victor Lin</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>The market did not need a speech. It needed a pipe.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Saudi Arabia’s East-West line — the main land bridge that moved Gulf crude to Red Sea ports without threading the Strait of Hormuz — is temporarily closed after drone attacks Riyadh tied to Iran-backed fighters in Iraq, Reuters reported. Space images show sections damaged by fire. Riyadh has not put a firm reopen date on the board. Traders told Reuters the shutdown could cut off as much as 4% of global oil supply if it stays dark for days.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>That is the bypass. The choke is still Hormuz. A merchant vessel was hit in the strait on Sunday, killing one crew member and injuring three, Iranian authorities said, per Euronews. Oman postponed Monday’s planned meeting of Iran and Gulf states on managing the waterway “in the interests of consensus,” Oman’s foreign minister said. Iran said Saudi Arabia asked for the delay. Tehran also published a list of 77 ships it said violated its Hormuz protocols, with fines, detention, or confiscation on the menu for repeat trips, Reuters reported.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Monday’s tape priced the weekend. Euronews had Brent for October and November crossing $108 a barrel, up more than 3%, with WTI around $103, also up more than 3%, after both benchmarks reclaimed $100 last week. Reuters matched the more-than-3% jump when markets reopened. The National had Brent near $107.95 and WTI near $103.19 in early Monday trade. U.S. retail diesel hit a new all-time average above $6.23 a gallon, Reuters said — the political price that travels faster than a barrel print.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Euronews, citing Lipow Oil Associates, put the arithmetic this way: about 1.2 million barrels a day of diesel disruption around Hormuz versus roughly 800,000 from Russia’s export ban after Ukraine hit Russian refineries. Crude flows through the strait have fallen from around 20 million barrels a day before the war to about 7 million in that same reporting. Yemens Houthis said Monday they fired on a Saudi airbase near the border; they also seized Perim Island at the Bab el-Mandeb last week, Reuters reported — a second choke on the Red Sea side of the map.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>President Donald Trump, speaking over the weekend, said he expects the Iran war to end shortly after the November midterms, after which oil would drop like a rock,” per Reuters. He also told reporters Ukraine should stop hitting Russian diesel targets. The Monday screen is still pricing pipes and ships, not the calendar.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>My take: $108 Brent with the East-West dark is a two-route premium. Hormuz was already the rationing valve. Closing the land bypass turns a shipping risk into a volume risk. If the pipeline reopens in days and Oman gets ministers back in a room, the three-handle on Brent can fade. If Yemen stays hot and the 77-ship list starts filling berths, the diesel number at American pumps is the midterm price. Watch the reopen notice and the next weekly stocks.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Related:</p><p>- Brent cleared $100: <a href="https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/brent-cleared-100-wti-settled-96">https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/brent-cleared-100-wti-settled-96</a></p><p>- Diesel set the record: https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/diesel-set-the-record-gasoline-second-punch</p>

The bypass just closed. Brent cleared $108.

<p>No. 8 LSU beat Louisiana Tech 4514, then the NFL Week 1 board opens — and next Saturday is already the Kiffin Bowl.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>By Rhett Landry</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Death Valley sold out again — 102,321, per LA Techs box — and No. 8 LSU walked out 2–0 with a 4514 win that looked like a hangover for a half and a statement after it. Sam Leavitt threw three interceptions. Tech’s Jordan McRae took one 100 yards the other way for a program-record pick-six that made it 107 at the break. The Associated Press had it clean: Leavitt answered with three rushing touchdowns, Trey’Dez Green finished with six catches for 104 and a score, and the Tigers piled up 528 yards while holding Tech to 140 and minus-3 on the ground. Princewill Umanmielen, the edge who followed Kiffin from Oxford, had three sacks. Seven sacks as a defense. Four LSU turnovers. Ten LSU penalties. A win is a win. Film won’t lie about the red zone.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Lane Kiffin wanted Clemson energy for an in-state Saturday. He got it in the second half. He also got a reminder that Week 2 against a mid-major can still turn your stomach before it turns your scoreboard. Tech forced four first-half turnovers and left with a moral and a 67-yard Mickens bomb in the fourth. LSU left with 2–0 and a short week into No. 9 Ole Miss&nbsp; the program Kiffin walked away from, the one that already talked after beating Louisville. Call it the Kiffin Bowl if you want. The AP already framed next Saturday that way. Oxford won’t care that Tech only put up 14. Oxford will care that Leavitt put three balls in the other jersey.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>While Baton Rouge was sorting its second half, Austin stole the national night. No. 4 Texas erased a 20-point fourth-quarter hole and beat No. 1 Ohio State 24–23 on Hollywood Smothers’ one-yard run with 25 seconds left, per ESPN and Texas Athletics. AP No. 1s don’t usually survive that kind of math. The SEC just put a dent in the top of the poll without LSU touching the ball.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Now the NFL Week 1 board is live, Mountain clock. Early window: Bills at Texans, Jets at Titans, Bears at Panthers — CBS and FOX splitting the noon-ish starts. Later: Packers at Vikings on CBS. Sunday night is Cowboys at Giants on NBC. Monday night is Broncos at Chiefs. For this desk, Houston and Dallas always matter, and so do the former Tigers scattered across those rosters. Watch the Texans open at home. Watch the Cowboys under the lights. Then circle Saturday — LSU at Ole Miss — because 2–0 only buys you the right to walk into Oxford with a target on the chest.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Purple got the win it needed. Film got the problems it needed. The Magnolia Bowl doesn’t grade on a curve.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Related:</p><p>- It’s Saturday. Purple night: <a href="https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/its-saturday-purple-night-the-hangover-talk-ends-at-kickoff">https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/its-saturday-purple-night-the-hangover-talk-ends-at-kickoff</a></p><p>- Death Valley sold out again: https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/death-valley-sold-out-again-tech-gets-the-hangover-test</p>

2–0 tastes fine. Oxford won’t care about the first half.

<p>No. 8 LSU hosts Louisiana Tech in a second straight Death Valley sellout — 6:30 CT on SEC Network+.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>By Rhett Landry</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>The SEC Zoom cooled Thursday. The lawsuit can wait for another filing. Friday was the preview. Today is the night. Louisiana Tech at No. 8 LSU, Tiger Stadium, 6:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network+, purple encouraged, second sellout in two weeks. LSUSports.net locked the window at 6:32 with Clay Matvick, Rocky Boiman, and Laura Stickells on the call. LA Tech Athletics lists the same 6:30 CT kick on their game center. Wear the color. Get in the seat. The rest is noise.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Last Saturday the Tigers buried Clemson 51–10&nbsp; 644 yards of offense, 145 allowed, Sam Leavitt and Dilin Jones both over 100 on the ground, Winston Watkins Jr. at 110 receiving, Jordan Ross walking one back 30 yards. Three SEC weekly awards on three LSU debuts. That tape is public. Tech’s tape is public too: 806 over Northwestern State, Blake Baker for 232 and three scores, Jalen Mickens needing three catches for 133 and a touchdown. Kiffin already said scoring 80 means you’re doing something right, and he called their 3-3-5 “really unusual. Crescent City Sports and Tech’s own preview note it’s the first back-to-back LSU–Tech meetings since 1940–41. Last year’s 23–7 was the fewest points Tech has allowed LSU since 1913. Different LSU then. Different LSU now.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Kiffin’s challenge, on the record all week: last Saturday doesn’t buy tonight. Same prep. Same standard. Don’t let the opponent decide how you practice. He challenged the crowd the same way — electric for Clemson, bring it again. Sonny Cumbie’s bunch is 1-0 and driving into Death Valley for an in-state night that matters in Ruston whether the national graphic cares or not. Treat it like a shrug and they will make the evening longer than anybody in purple wants. Treat it like Clemson and the place sounds like what the ticket stub promised.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Elsewhere on the board, No. 1 Ohio State is at No. 4 Texas tonight in Austin — third straight year these two meet, ABC window, the game half the country will argue about at breakfast. Fine. Watch it if you want. In Baton Rouge the only ranking on the jersey is No. 8, and the only visitor that counts is Louisiana Tech. Ole Miss is Sep 19. Oxford already talked loud after beating Louisville. First you have to clear Saturday without looking past it.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Death Valley sold out again. Kick is tonight. Make it sound like one.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Related:</p><p>- Death Valley sold out again: <a href="https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/death-valley-sold-out-again-tech-gets-the-hangover-test">https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/death-valley-sold-out-again-tech-gets-the-hangover-test</a></p><p>- No. 8 LSU / Ole Miss / Tech Saturday: https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/no-8-lsu-no-9-ole-miss-tech-is-still-saturday</p>

It’s Saturday. Purple night. The hangover talk ends at kickoff.

<p>Trump’s midterm convention was a loyalty test. Texas is the competence test.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>By Camille Reid</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Dallas spent two nights proving the MAGA room still works. That was never the hard part. The hard part is November, when the ballot does not say Trump and half the country is tired of being told the midterms are a personality referendum.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Republicans wrapped their first midterm convention this week betting the president can pull base turnout while inflation and a foreign war sit on the kitchen table. Reuters and The Hill both clocked the gamble: some House and Senate candidates in competitive seats skipped the show rather than weld their races to a president whose job numbers are underwater. Decision Desk HQ’s Friday read gave Democrats a 68 percent chance at the House and called the Senate a coin flip. Trump’s approval in that same DDHQ average was roughly 40 percent, with 57 percent disapproving. Fresh CPI held at 3.4 percent. That is not a vibe. That is the math candidates have to carry.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Then came the shiny object. Trump pledged a $5,000 “dividend” to adult citizens if Republicans keep Congress — a line The Hill flagged as the convention’s biggest news and an instant argument about whether it is policy or a campaign flyer with a dollar sign. Culture loves the spectacle. Competence asks whether you can explain how it is paid for without treating voters like extras in a rally tape.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Texas makes the national problem local. An AARP poll of likely Texas voters put Democrat James Talarico at 48 percent and Attorney General Ken Paxton at 44 — within the margin, and with Paxton still stronger among voters 50 and older. The Texas Tribune reported Senate Leadership Fund finally jumping in with a major ad buy after sitting out the summer, while Trump’s operation and other big spenders scrambled to catch up. At the Dallas stage, Trump endorsed the race and still mocked Paxtons look and delivery, per KERA and AP. Abbott, Patrick, and Cruz did not even say his name in their convention speeches, according to KERA. That is not “energy.” That is a party asking Texas to save the Senate while treating its nominee like a punchline between fundraisers.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>I am not asking Republicans to stop loving Trump. I am asking them to stop confusing a Dallas roar with a governing argument. Midterms punish parties that cannot separate loyalty from persuasion. If the pitch is “treat November as a referendum on me,” Democrats will take that gift and run. If the pitch is competence — prices, freight, borders, and a Senate map that does not assume Texas is automatic — say that in English to people who did not buy a convention ticket.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>The Hill story this morning is not whether the room in Dallas clapped. It clapped. The story is whether anyone walking a swing district, or a Texas Senate race that suddenly looks real, can give voters a reason that survives the parking lot.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Related:</p><p>- Missouri’s map mess: <a href="https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/missouris-map-mess-two-courts-one-midterm-zero-clarity">https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/missouris-map-mess-two-courts-one-midterm-zero-clarity</a></p><p>- Mail ballots and the Court: https://capitolandcleats.com/blog/mail-ballots-and-the-court</p>

Dallas Cheered. Swing Seats Still Need a Reason.

<p>Death Valley sold out again. Tech gets the hangover test.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>No. 8 LSU hosts Louisiana Tech Saturday night after the SEC cooled off — Kiffin wants Clemson energy, not a Week 2 shrug.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>By Rhett Landry</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Thursday night the SEC presidents got on a Zoom, talked about “expectations and responsibilities,” and hung up without a sanction, without an expulsion vote, without anything that would keep Saturday from happening. Field Level Media / Reuters had it: the meeting ended, the statement was soft, and the football calendar stayed intact. Wade Rousse already told Greg Sankey the Wright–Harris roster fight was “moot.” Aidan Anding and Gabriel Reliford filled the last two spots. The 105 is locked. The lawsuit noise can wait for another filing. Tiger Stadium does not.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Saturday is Louisiana Tech at No. 8 LSU, 6:32 p.m. CT on SEC Network+, second straight sellout, purple night. LSUSports.net posted the home notes Friday. Last Saturday the Tigers dropped Clemson 51–10 with 644 yards of offense and 145 allowed. Sam Leavitt: 16-of-28 for 230, one passing touchdown, 113 rushing yards and two more scores. Dilin Jones matched him with 113 and two on the ground. Winston Watkins Jr. had seven for 110 and a score. Jordan Ross took one 30 yards the other way. The league stuck Offensive Player, Offensive Lineman, and Defensive Lineman of the Week stickers on three LSU debuts — Leavitt, Jordan Seaton, Ross. That’s the tape Tech has to live with.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Kiffin’s Monday message, per LSUSports and the AP wire: last week is over. Same prep. Same standard. Don’t let the opponent dictate how you practice. He even challenged the crowd — electric for Clemson, bring it again for the in-state game. He also tipped his hat at Ruston. Tech put up 80–6 on Northwestern State. Blake Baker threw for 232 and three scores. Jalen Mickens needed three catches for 133 and a touchdown. Kiffin called the Bulldogs’ 3-3-5 “really unusual,” said you rewrite a lot of rules to play it, and said scoring 80 means you’re doing something right on offense no matter who lined up across from you. Crescent City Sports notes its the first back-to-back LSU–Tech meetings since 1940–41. Last year’s 23–7 in Death Valley was the fewest points Tech has allowed LSU since 1913. That version of LSU is gone. This one just chewed up a Power program in purple.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>National board noise still matters for the reader who watches more than one TV. No. 1 Ohio State at No. 4 Texas is Saturday’s headline elsewhere. Missouri at Kansas is tonight’s Border War warm-up. Fine. Enjoy it. In Baton Rouge the only ranking that counts this week is No. 8 on the chest and a Ruston team that just hung 80 and thinks it earned a night under the lights. Ole Miss is Sep 19. Oxford already talked. Tech is the gate.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Wear purple. Show up loud. If LSU treats this like a hangover, Sonny Cumbie’s bunch will make the night longer than the scoreboard wants. If LSU treats it like Clemson, Death Valley gets what it paid for — another sellout that sounds like one.</p>

Death Valley sold out again. Tech gets the hangover test.

<p>Say the names. Keep the silence. Do not look away.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>By Everett Kane</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Twenty-five years ago this morning, nineteen men turned four airliners into weapons. The North Tower was struck at 8:46. The South Tower at 9:03. The Pentagon at 9:37. United Airlines Flight 93 went into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, at 10:03, after passengers and crew fought back. Both towers fell. Nearly three thousand people were murdered that day — office workers, firefighters, passengers, soldiers, a child on a plane.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>At the National September 11 Memorial in lower Manhattan, families will read aloud 2,983 names: those killed on September 11, 2001, and in the February 26, 1993, bombing of the World Trade Center. Six moments of silence mark the strikes, the collapses, the Pentagon, and Flight 93. This year, for the first time on the anniversary plaza, a seventh silence follows the reading — for first responders, recovery workers, and neighbors who later died from 9/11-related illness. The Memorial made that tribute permanent.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>That is not politics. It is a ledger.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Remember what was done. Remember who did it. Remember the people who ran toward the fire and the people who never came home. A country that forgets invites a rematch. A country that softens the names into a mood piece has already started losing.</p><p><br data-mce-bogus="1"></p><p>Stand still for the bells. Then live like the dead were owed more than a hashtag.</p>

Twenty-five years

<p>The expulsion vote cooled overnight. Tech did not.</p><p><br></p><p>Rousse called it moot. Sankey’s Thursday Zoom still happens. Saturday is still Death Valley.</p><p><br></p><p>By Rhett Landry</p><p><br></p><p>The Southeastern Conference is no longer expected to vote on kicking LSU out of the league on Thursday, an Associated Press source told Brett Martel on Wednesday night. The presidents and chancellors still meet by Zoom this afternoon. The nuclear item is not expected to be on the table the way Tuesday’s filing made it sound. Sports Business Journal had the same de-escalation: vote suspended, temperature down, meeting still on.</p><p><br></p><p>That is not peace. That is a pause with a paper trail.</p><p><br></p><p>LSU President Wade Rousse sent Sankey a one-page letter the AP obtained. The spine of it is blunt: “The roster is now locked for the season. LSU complied with SEC rules. This issue is moot.” He wrote that he called Sankey last Friday afternoon to say DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris would not be on the roster, that the school filled the last two spots Tuesday night with eligible guys, and that LSU will not challenge, disrupt, or try to cancel Thursday’s meeting. AL.com carried the same letter language. Under the threat, Baton Rouge chose the lock. Wright and Harris stay out. Anding and Reliford got the chairs. The Reveille already framed that as survival over the lawsuit names.</p><p><br></p><p>Sankey’s conference has not kissed and made up. The AP piece still has him on the record from the amended complaint era: consensus among leaders that LSU’s continued membership would be “inconsistent with the publicly stated values and principles” of the league even if the former pros never dress, plus the institutional-control shot at Rousse, Verge Ausberry, and how much leash Kiffin has. SBJ noted the league could still hunt a penalty for the chase of those players. So Thursday’s Zoom is not a pep rally. It is a room that almost voted on ending a founding membership and is now deciding how loud the leftover anger gets to be.</p><p><br></p><p>None of that cancels Saturday. No. 8 LSU hosts Louisiana Tech at 6:30 p.m. CT in Tiger Stadium on SEC Network+. Kiffin already told the Monday desk everything’s got to be the same as the Clemson night. Tech scored 80. Oxford is still Sept. 19. Wear purple. Watch the Zoom if you must. Then fill the bowl like the program that just jumped to No. 8 still has to beat the Bulldogs before it gets to be mad at Mississippi.</p>

The expulsion vote cooled overnight. Tech did not.

<style>
.cac-lines{font-family:Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;background:#111418;color:#e8e4dc;padding:28px 20px 36px;max-width:920px;margin:0 auto;line-height:1.45}
.cac-lines *{box-sizing:border-box}
.cac-lines h2{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;letter-spacing:.12em;font-size:13px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;color:#d4af37;margin:0 0 6px;border:0}
.cac-lines h3{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;letter-spacing:.16em;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;color:#9aa3ad;margin:28px 0 12px;padding-bottom:8px;border-bottom:1px solid #2a3038}
.cac-lines .cac-kicker{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;color:#8b939c;margin:0 0 22px}
.cac-card{background:#1a1f26;border:1px solid #2c333c;border-radius:6px;padding:16px 18px;margin:0 0 12px}
.cac-card header{display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;justify-content:space-between;gap:8px 16px;align-items:baseline;margin-bottom:8px}
.cac-card .cac-match{font-size:18px;font-weight:700;color:#f3efe6;margin:0}
.cac-card .cac-line{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:15px;font-weight:700;color:#d4af37;white-space:nowrap}
.cac-meta{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;color:#8b939c;margin:0 0 10px}
.cac-chat{font-size:15px;margin:0;color:#d5d0c6}
.cac-chat a{color:#c9b36a;text-decoration:underline}
.cac-cite{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:11px;color:#6e767f;margin:18px 0 0;line-height:1.5}
.cac-cite a{color:#8a8070}
.cc-lines{font-family:Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;background:#111418;color:#e8e4dc;padding:28px 20px 36px;max-width:920px;margin:0 auto;line-height:1.45}
.cc-lines *{box-sizing:border-box}
.cc-lines h2{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;letter-spacing:.12em;font-size:13px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;color:#d4af37;margin:0 0 6px;border:0}
.cc-lines h3{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;letter-spacing:.16em;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;color:#9aa3ad;margin:28px 0 12px;padding-bottom:8px;border-bottom:1px solid #2a3038}
.cc-lines .sub,.cc-lines .note{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;color:#8b939c;margin:0 0 22px}
.cc-lines .note{margin:18px 0 0;line-height:1.5}
.cc-lines .row{display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;justify-content:space-between;gap:8px 16px;align-items:baseline;background:#1a1f26;border:1px solid #2c333c;border-radius:6px;padding:14px 16px;margin:0 0 10px}
.cc-lines .g{font-size:17px;font-weight:700;color:#f3efe6}
.cc-lines .g a{color:#f3efe6;text-decoration:none}
.cc-lines .g a:hover{color:#e2c789}
.cc-lines .m{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;color:#8b939c;margin-top:4px}
.cc-lines .l{font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:15px;font-weight:700;color:#d4af37;white-space:nowrap}
</style>
<section class="cc-lines" id="this-weeks-lines">
  <h2>This Week’s Lines</h2>
  <p class="sub">Mon Sep 14, 2026  DraftKings via ESPN · Lines move · 21+</p>
  <h3>College Football — Week 3</h3>
  <div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401856688" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No. 7 LSU at No. 8 Ole Miss</a></div><div class="m">Sat Sep 19, 5:30 p.m. MT · ABC</div></div><div class="l">LSU -3 / O/U 58.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401856811" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No. 22 Houston at No. 13 Texas Tech</a></div><div class="m">Fri Sep 18, 6:00 p.m. MT · FOX</div></div><div class="l">TTU -7.5 / O/U —</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401858230" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No. 16 SMU at No. 23 Louisville</a></div><div class="m">Sat Sep 19, 1:30 p.m. MT · ESPN2</div></div><div class="l">LOU -1.5 / O/U 59.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401856687" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Florida at Auburn</a></div><div class="m">Sat Sep 19, 5:00 p.m. MT · ESPN</div></div><div class="l">FLA -2.5 / O/U 52.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401858229" target="_blank" rel="noopener">North Carolina at Clemson</a></div><div class="m">Sat Sep 19, 10:00 a.m. MT · ESPN</div></div><div class="l">CLEM -3.5 / O/U 44.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401856686" target="_blank" rel="noopener">No. 2 Georgia at Arkansas</a></div><div class="m">Sat Sep 19, 10:00 a.m. MT · ABC</div></div><div class="l">UGA -24.5 / O/U 54.5</div></div>
  <h3>NFL — Week 2</h3>
  <div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401872934" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cincinnati at Houston</a></div><div class="m">Sun Sep 20, 11:00 a.m. MT · CBS</div></div><div class="l">HOU -3 / O/U 46.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401872944" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Washington at Dallas</a></div><div class="m">Sun Sep 20, 2:25 p.m. MT · FOX</div></div><div class="l">DAL -3.5 / O/U 50.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401872933" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Carolina at Atlanta</a></div><div class="m">Sun Sep 20, 11:00 a.m. MT  FOX</div></div><div class="l">CAR -1.5 / O/U 43.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401872940" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jacksonville at Denver</a></div><div class="m">Sun Sep 20, 2:05 p.m. MT · CBS</div></div><div class="l">DEN -2.5 / O/U 44.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401872932" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit at Buffalo</a></div><div class="m">Thu Sep 17, 6:15 p.m. MT · Prime</div></div><div class="l">BUF -4.5 / O/U 53.5</div></div>
<div class="row"><div><div class="g"><a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401872936" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Green Bay at N.Y. Jets</a></div><div class="m">Sun Sep 20, 11:00 a.m. MT · FOX</div></div><div class="l">GB -4.5 / O/U 44.5</div></div>
  <p class="note">LSU / Texans / Cowboys always on the board. Closest NFL: CAR, DEN, BUF, GB. Houston–Tech O/U not out yet. Source: DraftKings via ESPN. Never invent.</p>
</section>

Call to action

Unbiased news on the field and on the Hill. Sports and Capitol coverage from Trinity, Texas.

News of USA, press and  journalism concept. Microphone and newspaper on the map in colors of the flag of USA.

Capitol and Cleats News

Where sports and politics meet.

Recent News

Baton Rouge woke up 2–0. Oxford already has the lights on.

Week 1 didn’t whisper. It yelled.

The bypass just closed. Brent cleared $108.

2–0 tastes fine. Oxford won’t care about the first half.

It’s Saturday. Purple night. The hangover talk ends at ki...

Dallas Cheered. Swing Seats Still Need a Reason.

Death Valley sold out again. Tech gets the hangover test.

Twenty-five years

The expulsion vote cooled overnight. Tech did not.

This Week’s Lines

College Football — Week 3

NFL — Week 2

Where sports and politics meet.