| It seems like every Monday brings us more good news on the LSU women's basketball team, and this warm, gorgeous Monday was no exception. Three wins over Southeastern Conference foes this past week helped LSU move up three spots in the AP poll to No. 11 in the rankings that were released Monday afternoon. Wins over Ole Miss, No. 17 Georgia and Texas A&M impressed the pollsters, of course, but more importantly the mini-streak strengthens the Tigers' chances of playing the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament in front of the home folks in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. With the warm weather we mentioned earlier comes more softball and baseball on the LSU campus. Beth Torina's softball team went 4-2 to open its season over the weekend, but that wasn't acceptable to the Tigers at all. So when LSU wrapped up play in the Tiger Classic on Sunday, first baseman Georgia Clark grabbed her role as the team's vocal leader by the horns and called a players-only meeting to help get her team on the right track. LSU has a few days to prepare for its next assignment at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational, but Clark wanted to make sure her team knew it didn't present itself the way it should in its season-opening event. On the baseball front, beat writer Leah Vann has the story of Blake Money, the older brother of Cash Money (yes, that's his real first name), and Blake's bid to earn a spot in new coach Jay Johnson's rotation. Then, we have follow stories on Super Bowl LVI, which didn't go so well for former Tigers stars Joe Burrow and Odell Beckham Jr. Columnist Scott Rabalais, like a lot of LSU fans, are pleading with the Cincinnati Bengals to get Burrow some offensive line help after he was sacked seven times and repeatedly hurried in a 23-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Then, there's Beckham, who reportedly tore the ACL in his left knee, the same one he injured while playing for the Cleveland Browns in 2020. At least Beckham got a ring after helping the Rams reach the Super Bowl and win it — scoring the first touchdown of the game — before departing the game just before halftime. FINALLY: HERE’S A GREAT DEAL If you can’t tell from this newsletter, our sportswriters are the hardest-working folks in show business. They’ll keep you up to date on the latest news at LSU (and elsewhere). Support their work, and stay on top of everything. If you’re not a subscriber, come join us. Thank you for reading. | 