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Never Forget 31-0
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College footballLSU
Louisiana steeped in Tigers lore
Through highs and lows, fans follow team with a fervor
Sunday, December 23, 2007 3:31 AM
By Bill Rabinowitz
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Erby Aucoin, Jr.New Orleans Times-Picayune
Billy Cannon's "Halloween Run" against Mississippi was a big step toward his winning the Heisman Trophy in 1959.
More LSU lore
Can't forget Katrina
The tragedy of Hurricane Katrina two years ago has only added to the connection Louisianans have for their beloved Tigers.
Baton Rouge absorbed many of the evacuees. Skyler Green said 22 relatives of his and his fiancee's relatives stayed in his two-bedroom apartment for two weeks.
The New Orleans Saints played their games elsewhere that year. All that was left was LSU.
"Katrina clarified things for everybody," author John Ed Bradley said. "It hurt everybody. If it didn't take your home away, it cut into your spirit and did its damage. Football has helped us recover from it. It has brought us together. It has given us something else to focus on and to love and value and cherish."
Mike the Tiger
Since 1936, LSU's mascot has been a live tiger named Mike, named in honor of athletic trainer Mike Chambers, who lobbied the school to purchase a live tiger.
Mike I lived until 1956 and has been succeeded by five subsequent Mikes. Mike V died May 18. Mike VI was born in 2005 in Indiana and donated to the school.
Mike the Tiger's cage is strategically placed near the opponents' locker room in Tiger Stadium so visiting players must walk past him.
Accompanied by cheerleaders, he rides through the stadium before the game.
Dietzel's Ohio ties
Paul Dietzel, the coach of LSU's 1958 national championship team, considered Paul Brown one of his great influences. Dietzel played against Brown's Massillon High School teams while a player at Mansfield.
"My sophomore year, I think they beat us 73-0," Dietzel said. "My junior year, it was 38-0. My senior year, we tied them 6-6."
Because Mansfield finished that year undefeated, Dietzel said, the school considered itself mythical state champions.
Dietzel later went to Brown's clinics and said he patterned his organizational philosophies after him.
Dietzel later coached with Vince Lombardi at Army and Bear Bryant at Kentucky.
Bill Rabinowitz
[email protected]
To understand the appeal of Louisiana State football, one must understand Louisiana.
The first thing to know is that there really isn't one Louisiana, author and former LSU center John Ed Bradley said. It's more accurate to describe Louisiana as three entities.
Northern Louisiana is Bible Belt country, mostly Protestant and conservative. Southern Louisiana is mostly Catholic and is populated mainly by Creoles and Cajuns of French descent. Then there's New Orleans, a melting pot of various ethnic groups.
Not much unites the state -- except for LSU football.
Continued....
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