Daily World du lieu suivant : Opelousas, Louisiana • Page 13

DAILY WORLD rm David Barham gets first win at WCA. 'See briefs below. SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 1996 oTrrvfrarn IB LSU's Hill burns Auburn Crusaders break losing streak BATON ROUGE -Brad Duckless had 21 rushes for 146 yards and three touchdowns to Tigers 2-0 after rare win on The Plains lead Westminster Christian Academy to a 36-16 victory over Louisiana School for the Deaf Friday in prep football action. The win is Westminster's first in two years and the first for new head coach David Barham. By EDDIE PELLS Associated Press Writer TCaylem Guidry also had 23 carries for 110 yards and one TD for the Crusaders.

Guidry scored on an eight-yard TD run ir the first quarter before LSD grabbed the lead on a 80-yard run from Doug Braxton. USM tames Cajuns HATTIESBURG, Miss. USL's Ragin' Cajun football squad, one week after the biggest win in its program's history, was rudely brought back to earth by Southern Mississippi's Golden Eagles here Saturday. More precisely, it was Golden Eagle quarterback Chris Windsor who brought the Cajuns back to the ranks of the mortal, with his three first-half touchdowns and four scores overall providing the impetus as USM rolled to an easy 52-27 win over the Cajun squad. USM, now 2-2 and taking its third straight win over the Cajun squad and scoring its most points ever against USL scored on four straight possessions in outscorihg USL, now 1-2, 29-0 in the second quarter to build a 36-7 halftime margin.

None of them were cheap scores, either, with the Cajuns committing no turnovers in that first-half blitz and all five USM scores coming on drives of at least 47 yards. The Eagles rolled up 311 yards in offense in the first half alone compared to only 67 for the Cajuns, who also hurt themselves with 10 first-half penalties. For the game, the Cajun squad was whistled 16 times in penalties totaling 144 yards. In all, USM scored on six out of seven possessions in the second and third quarters. USL, which one week earlier recorded the shocking 29-22 upset of 25th-ranked Texas in its home opener, never got its offense untracked until the second half, and by then it was too late to make up the first-half deficit.

Westminster answered with a four-yard scoring run by Duckless and a 52-yard TD pass from freshman quarterback Tommy Voitier to Derek Veverica. Braxton scored on a six-yard run to set up a 21-16 halftime lead for WCA. 111: tf Hi Auburn recovered the ensuing onside kick, but on the next play, Cooley who came on in the fourth quarter for a woozy Dameyune Craig suffered his third interception of the night. It was an appropriate payback to an Auburn team, which in 1994 won 30-26 on the strength of four defensive touchdowns, including three interception returns for scores in the fourth quarter. LSU didn't allow a touchdown in last year's 12-6 win over Auburn and held Auburn without a TD for the first three quarters of Saturday's game until Cooley led his team on a touchdown drive midway through the fourth quarter.

Auburn broke a 12-quarter touchdown drought against LSU on a 30-yard touchdown pass from Cooley to receiver Tyrone Goodson, But Jaret Holmes' extra point try was blocked his fourth missed kick of the night and LSU maintained a 10-9 lead. After the teams traded turnovers, Cooley tried to lead Auburn on a drive to tie the game. That's when Hill stepped in, intercepted the pass and went 39 yards to give LSU a 17-9 lead. LSU's only touchdown on offense was set up when the Auburn defense was called offsides twice in a row on fourth-down field-goal attempts. The first penalty gave Wade Richey a second chance after he missed from 30 yards.

He made the next, but coach Gerry DiNardo elected to take points off the board and give LSU a first down at the Auburn 4-yard line. Three plays later, quarterback Herb Tyler scooted in from the 2 to give LSU the lead. The sophomore quarterback finished just 14-for-25 for 151 yards, while running back Kevin Faulk had 76 yards -170 less than his school-record performance two weeks ago in LSD was shutout in the remainder as Duckless had scoring runs of 4 and 25 yards. AUBURN, Ala. While a piece of Auburn's athletic past went up in flames outside Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday, LSU defensive back Raion Hill produced some sizzling moments inside in a dramatic 19-15 win over Auburn.

Hill returned an interception 39 yards for a touchdown and returned quarterback Jon Cooley's pass on a game-tying 2-point conversion try for a 2-point "anti-conversion" as Auburn's late-game comeback came up short. It was the first win for LSU (2-0, 1-0 SEC) at Jordan-Hare since 1973 and gave the Bengal Tigers a huge edge over Auburn (3-1, 1-1) in the race for the SEC West title. The game's first three quarters were played against the backdrop of flames from Auburn's old Sports Arena. A fire broke out at the building about 50 yards outside the northeast corner of the stadium and shot flames about 30 feet into the air. Nobody was injured and none of the 85,214 fans were ever in danger.

Cooley led Auburn on a 12-play, 63-yard drive over the game's closing minutes, capped by Rusty Williams' 7-yard touchdown run to pull Auburn within two with 38 seconds left. After two Auburn timeouts, Auburn placed the ball on the left hashmark and Cooley came out in the shotgun. But Hill stepped in front of Cooley's pass and ran 98 yards to give LSU two points and the 19-15 lead. Greg Scheuermann had a 41-yard field goal. 'Veverica was WCAs top receiver with one catch for 52 yards and a TD.

AP Photo Auburn's Fred Beasley (23) dives on a loose ball in the first quarter Saturday as LSU's Anthony McFarland (94) defends at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. At left is Auburn's Victor Riley (68). -With a 1-2 record, Westminster hosts Waterproof Thursday night at Donald Gardner Stadium. Beau Chene boys second at meet "Shortly after torrential rains Auburn's old Sports Arena was built in the late 1940s and originally was used as an airplane hangar. A few years later it was converted into a basketball arena and all Auburn's home games were played there until the arena was replaced by Beard-Eaves Coliseum in 1969.

Until Saturday, the all-wood structure was the practice home of Auburn's See LSU Page 4B ended on Saturday morning, hundreds of cross country run a 35-34 win over Houston. Craig had his worst game as a starter, completing just 11 of 18 passes for 121 yards before being replaced. He suffered a crushing blow on a scramble in the third quarter and was lifted for Cooley a few drives later. Cooley finished 14-for-21 for 145 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions and the pick on the 2-point try. ners in hve seperate divisions took turns at slogging through a muddy course at the Episcopal of Acadiana in Cade.

The course became a quagmire in spots by the final race and shoes, uniforms, and bare legs took on the same drab col See Cajuns Page 4B Saints, Cards oring. It was the kind of experience runners will remember 20 years from now. get no respect Bv MarY FOSTER AP Starts Writer "4 yyAyy.yyyyyy-- yyyyy yyyyyyy: n-I I i 1 that matters." The Cardinals have lost 10 of their last 11 games, including last week's 31-0 loss to New England. Combined, the records lend an air of desperation to Sunday's meeting. "I dont think that anybody at this level is a pantywaist or said Arizona running back Derrick Moore.

"Everybody that lines up on Sunday is a good football player. If we take the field with the attitude that we're going out and win a football game, it's going to happen. I think we have the potential to do that." Both teams made personnel changes this week in their search for a first victory. The Cardinals benched four-time Pro Bowl quarterback Boomer Esiason for Kent Graham in.an effort to inject life into their offense. Graham will make the fifth NFL start in his five-year career.

"We've been playing without any spark, and I thought the simplest thing would be to change the quarterback," Cardinals coach Vince Tobin said. Graham, an eighth-round pick of the New York Giants in 1992, never got into a game last year with Detroit. Coming off the bench, he generated 10 quick third-quarter points for Arizona against the Miami Dolphins two weeks ago in a 38-10 loss. Esiason hasn't led the Cardinals to a score since the opener. Hoping to generate a running game, the Saints moved Ray Zellars to starting tailback this week.

See Saints Page 4B NEW ORLEANS They've heard the jokes, the snide comments, the disparaging remarks. When you're 0-3, that's about all you hear. The Arizona Cardinals-New Orleans Saints game in the Superdome, the site of the Super Bowl in January, is the closest either team is expected to get to that game. "A lot of teams, a lot of people around are not respecting us," said Arizona cornerback Aeneas Williams. "And until we come out and prove otherwise, I think those are going to be the scenarios we go into games with." Sunday's game will provide a mild shot of respect for one team, a heavy dose of disgust for the other.

Winning against an 0-3 team may not prove you're a contender, but losing to one will certainly show your team is in deep trouble. "Just a victory will give us lots of credit and a lot more confidence," Williams said. "Anytime you're able to get a win, I don't care how you get it, it adds that much more to your confidence." The Saints have had three straight non-winning seasons, have lost eight straight games in September and 10 of their last 11 in the first month of the season. The latest loss was a 30-15 whipping by the Cincinnati Bengals a team that was winless and struggling before the meeting. "We have got to play better," said Saints defensive tackle Wayne Martin.

"No, that's not right; we have to win. Playing good doesn't matter at this point. Winning is all When it was all over, the Beau Chene boys cross country team took home the second place trophy in the big school division (3A-4A-5A) of the ESA Invitional. Brother Martin, a perennial 5A powerhouse in cross country, won the big school division title along with the top individual title. Benji Terracina was the top individual finisher for the Gators, placing 10th among the 130 runners in his division.

Jourdain Castille was 12th, followed by Andre Gauthier (18), and Shelby Lafitte (20). Joby Stelly, Lathaniel Johnson and Adam Leger rounded out the varsity field for Beau Chene. The Gators came into meet ranked 8th in the state in the preseason coaches' poll. That ranking, however, was based on the strength of last year's second place finish in 4A. Last year's team featured Eric Harson, Travis Stoute and Bryan Leger, three of the best distance runners in all of Acadiana last season.

But all three graduated in May, along with four other seniors from last year's squad. This year figures to be a rebuilding year for the Gators, but the second place finish at a major meet has the team excited about this year's prospects. The Lady Gators, state champions in 4Alast season, did not fare as well as the boys in the meet but did manage a sixth place showing. Emily and Maggie Schwanz placed ninth and 10th, respectively to lead BC girls. Jeanne Vidrine, Gretchen Borne, Mia Mayer and Cassie Dugal rounded out the Lady Gator varsity field.

The BC girls were ranked seventh in the coaches' presea- son poll. Both the boys and girls teams travel to Breaux Bridge on Saturday for the Crawfish Invitational. Bam Morris picks Ravens over Saints ORLEANS -New Orleans lost its bid to sign free agent running back Bam Morris, who has apparently agreed to a two-year contract worth about $2 million with the Baltimore Ravens. Morris, who has been suspended from playing in the NFL until Oct. 13 for violating the league's drug policy, was expected to sign the contract Monday.

A spokeswoman for Baltimore could not confirm reports of a deal between Morris and the Ravens. "I'm disappointed," general manager Bill Kuharich said. Photo by Freddie Herpin On the loose Carencro quarterback Damian James (8) is chased from behind by Opelousas High linebacker Kenneth Johnson (56). James riddled the OHS defense for 247 yards rushing and four touchdowns as the fifth-ranked Bears dominated the Tigers 42-0 Friday. See details on page 3B.

For now, there's more to do on a Sunday The winless Saints may not be a bad thing Arizona is horrible and ranked near the A I ow that the New Orleans Saints are vir The NFL season is only three games old, but INSIDE REPORT HERMAN FUSELIER bottom of the NFL's offensive and defensive categories. If they can't win today, New Orleans should just cancel the season and finish 0-16. That would put them in the running for Peyton Manning, Tennessee's quarterback and the son of a former Saints you-know-who. But Peyton looked nothing like his Saintly father Archie Saturday against Florida, a 35-29 winner over the Vols. Manning was intercepted four times in the first half alone.

But this Heisman Trophy candidate bounced back with a school-record 492 yards and four touchdowns. Manning is expected to turn pro after this season and he'd be a prize for any NFL team. But the team with the worst record gets first crack at him in the draft. So if the Saints finish 0-16, that may not be such a bad thing. They're already well on their way.

Herman Fuselier is sports editor of the Dailv World. Ntually assured of a third-straight losing season, here are the top 10 things to do on a Sunday afternoon instead of watching the Saints: 10. Buy a satellite dish and watch a real football team. 9. Discover the bookmarks, coasters, charcoal lighters and other alternative uses for those Saints season tickets.

8. Listen to "The Front Porch Zydeco," every Sunday from 4-6 p.m. on KJJB 105,5 FM. (Todd and Joe, where's my $20 for the last plug?) 7. Buy offensive coordinator Carl Smith an one-way bus ticket to Timbuktu, Siberia, anywhere.

6. Send a message to the Saints defense -Next time you fight and are fined $28,000, at least land a few punches. 5. Run, Mario Bates, run! 4. Listen to the tape you made of Bayou Boogie, which airs every Saturday from 10-11 p.m.

on KRVS 88.7 FM. (Hey, I've got to the 0-3 Saints are already out of it. They can only lose four of their remaining 13 games just to have a winning season. The Saints still have the second-easiest schedule in the NFL, according to experts. But remember, this team struggled against Cincinnati and Carolina, so a winning record is looking pretty bleak at this point.

The Bengals were a bad team and had never won until last week. But they looked like a Super Bowl club against the Saints. Cincinnati forced four turnovers and converted them into 13 points en route to a 30-15 win. The Saints had cut the Bengal lead to 17-12 at one point. But that's when the three turnovers ended all hope.

The Saints rushing game is still stuck at the bottom of Lake Ponchatrain. New Orleans had just 27 yards on 15 attempts, an embarrassment for a professional football franchise. The Saints should win today against the Arizona Cardinals (0-3) today at home. The key word in that sentence is "should." plug my radio show, too.) 3. Write to Peyton Manning and see if he would live in a city with a high crime rate, crooked cops, homely strippers and football fans who are tired of losing.

(Oops, I'm sorry. He's already from New Orleans.) 2. Mario, get off your and run. 1. Practice the latest Superdome cheer -Who Date gonna be the new Saints coach? That should be enough to keep you busy on a Sunday afternoon.

There's no need to watch the Saints on TV or spend $200-plus on a trip to New Orleans..