LSU drops Louisiana from baseball, softball schedules.
LOUISIANA BR - If the University of Louisiana and LSU play each other in baseball or softball in the near future, it will have to happen in the postseason. The Ragin' Cajuns will not be on LSU's schedules in either sport until tensions and animosity between the programs has eased, LSU coaches said Friday.
"We just thought it would be in the best interests of both clubs to just break it off for a little bit," LSU baseball coach Smoke Laval said. "We just didn't want to play them because someone might get permanently injured. We want to let cooler heads prevail."
LSU defeated Louisiana 12-2 twice on the last day of the NCAA Baseball Baton Rouge Regional in June to win the regional. One player from each team was ejected during the first game, as was Louisiana head coach Tony Robichaux. Tempers flared and both benches emptied -- without leading to blows.
LSU's softball team played in the NCAA regional at Louisiana, where there were no such incidents on the field but plenty of verbal jousting between fans on both sides -- and a bizarre chapter was added to the rivalry in the days leading up to the regional.
A plaque in honor of former Louisiana coach Yvette Girouard -- now the coach at LSU -- disappeared from Louisiana's Lady Cajun Softball Park.
In published reports, Louisiana officials disavowed knowledge of the removal of the plaque, and in some cases they said they had no knowledge of how the plaque even came to be placed on the Wall of Honor years ago.
Girouard, who built the program at Louisiana from scratch and turned the Cajuns into one of the nation's top teams, declined to talk about the plaque in a brief explanation about why LSU is dropping Louisiana from its schedule.
"We're not going to play. We'll resume when the game is about the kids again," she said. "That's all I want to say."
UL coach Stefni Whitten-Lotief, who played for Girouard at Louisiana, could not be reached for comment. Nor could Nelson Schexnayder, Louisiana's athletic director.
Skip Bertman, former baseball coach and now athletic director at LSU, said he supports his coaches in their decisions not to play Louisiana until things cool off.
"I'm going to back up Smoke on whatever he decides is right," he said. "And I applaud Yvette too. I think it's a wise decision."
Robichaux said the suspension of the baseball series is something he wanted to avoid, but he said he and Laval amicably agreed to halt play between the teams for awhile.
"I think they feel a breather is probably warranted," Robichaux said of LSU. "We obliged them."
The Cajuns were scheduled to play a single game against LSU in Baton Rouge next season, Laval said Friday.
Neither Laval nor Robichaux had a target date in mind for resuming the series between the schools.
"There's no timetable set to resume, but I hope we get back to playing again soon and playing baseball the right way," Robichaux said. "Both of us probably did some things we're not proud of during the series, and I just want to get back to playing baseball."
Robichaux, who coached seven seasons at McNeese State until he became Louisiana's coach in 1995, said in the 13 seasons in which he's coached against LSU, there were never any incidents until this year.
"It's not like we have a history of problems between us," Robichaux said. "So I hope the fans don't take this and try to twist it again and to get it all started again. Smoke and I are good friends. I respect what he and Skip built at LSU. I respect their program. We know how they feel, and we would like to come back to the table and try to renew the series again."
Bertman, well known for playing games against state schools while he coached at LSU, became A.D. in 2001 and made headlines with his plan to add the state's Division I-A schools to LSU's football schedule.
The Tigers will play host to Louisiana on Oct. 5 in the first such game. That will be the schools' first football meeting since 1938.
LSU renewed a men's basketball series with the Cajuns last season, but Bertman said basketball and football are different than softball and baseball.
"In those other sports, you can't do things like throw at the hitter," Bertman said. "We're going to do whatever it takes to protect LSU's student-athletes."
Although there were no on-field incidents at the softball regional, Bertman said taunting among the fans crossed the line.
"I thought it got too personal in the stands for an athletic event when both teams know each other like we do," Bertman said. "I was uncomfortable with the things that were being yelled. I'm all for the fans rooting and all for large crowds, but I just don't like it when it gets personal."
Bertman said when LSU lost to Arizona State in the championship game, there was a "hard-core" number of Louisiana fans who cheered against LSU -- and were personal in their taunts and jeers.
"One of the things I always felt the most proud about," Bertman said, "was that during a regional tournament at Alex Box Stadium, when scores were announced, our fans always cheered when another SEC team was ahead, and they always cheered when a Louisiana team was ahead.
"At some other schools around here, if LSU's losing, they cheer, or if LSU's winning, they boo. You know, nobody ever got anywhere by hating anybody. I am proud our fans don't generally act like that."
LSU has zero effect again
Quote
Matt Heath a UL supporter ?
Ragin' Cajuns top Tulane, 6-3
Originally Posted by NewsCopy
