Spring game set for Saturday: LSU is still ranked No. 1 in the Sporting News early college football rankings for 2011. “Until someone beats the SEC in the biggest game of the season, we’ll go with the best team in the best conference,” says Matt Hayes, a college football writer. Oregon is ranked third, and LSU opens up the 2011 season against the Ducks in a nationally televised game that will be played in Cowboys Stadium. Alabama is ranked fifth, the only other SEC team in the early poll. Fans will have a chance to see LSU play the National L Club Spring Game at 3 p.m. Saturday in Tiger Stadium. Admission is free and there will be a host of events going on along with the game, including live music and an autograph-signing session with former Tiger greats, including Tommy Casanova, Jerry Stovall, Bert Jones, Kevin Faulk and Glenn Dorsey. All of the action starts at 12:30 p.m. Saturday. For more details, click here.
Support the teams: The LSU Tiger Tour will make its local stop at 6 p.m. July 28 at the Lod Cook Alumni Center. LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri will be on hand, along with Steve Kragthorpe, the new offensive coordinator for the LSU football team. The tour, which is sponsored by the Tiger Athletic Foundation, LSU Alumni Association and LSU Foundation, kicks off April 27 in Shreveport and hits major cities in Louisiana and across the Gulf Coast before wrapping up in Baton Rouge. At each stop, guests will meet with coaches, enjoy a buffet and have the opportunity to participate in a trivia contest and a silent auction. Individual tickets are $60. For more details, click here.
Woods currently six back : Rory McIlroy has another first-round lead at a major championship, opening the Masters with a 7-under 65. Now, he’s got to show he can follow up. The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland went to the clubhouse at Augusta National two shots clear of the field today—a reminder of his start last year at the British Open. There he opened with a 63 but slumped to an 80 in the howling wind of the second round, rallying for a third-place finish at St. Andrews. He also finished third at the PGA Championship and helped Europe reclaim the Ryder Cup. Trying to get his game in order, Tiger Woods made the turn with a 1-under 35, but slipped back to even with a three-putt bogey at No. 10. At press time, he was on the 15th hole, one stroke under. Woods is in the midst of the longest winless streak of his career—20 tournaments over 17 months—but usually contends at Augusta National, where he’s captured four green jackets and finished fourth a year ago.
