Louisiana
Louisiana High School Football Week 9 Notebook
In less than two weeks, the playoff brackets will be released for Louisiana high school football, so let’s get busy and take a look at a few hotspot games in Week 9.
Karr (8-0) and John Curtis (7-0), the top two in the Louisiana High School on SI football rankings, are also the only undefeated Catholic League clubs. The question has been asked: “is Karr beatable?” While acknowledging the Cougars’ greatness, no team is infallible, and the Patriots have just the coaching staff to throw some kinks at Karr, which fell behind 14-0 last year in the quarterfinals to St. Thomas More.
A two-touchdown deficit against Curtis would be even tougher to overcome. The key matchup seems to be the Patriots’ offensive line vs. Richard Anderson and the Karr DL. The Curtis OL took some criticism after the win over Holy Cross. We’re not predicting games until the playoffs, but with the way the Patriots’ runners have been chewing up massive yardage, the criticism regarding blocking could be off base. The big men up front will have to be on point for Curtis, which has gotten timely passing from sophomore QB London Padgett. Don’t forget: the Patriots have been without 2028 WR Jarvis Stevenson.
You have to tip your hat to Lafayette Christian. The Class 2A Knights strap it up against a schedule that includes Carencro, Central-Baton Rouge, Westgate, Archbishop Rummel and Archbishop Shaw, its only defeat.
And that’s not counting District 6-2A games vs. Notre Dame and Lafayette Renaissance.
2027 LSU quarterback commit Peyton Houston, the state’s top passer, and the Evangel Christian Eagles challenge LCA in Lafayette this week. Last year, the Eagles won in Shreveport. The Knights (7-1) are No. 1 in Division III select. Earlier in the year, LCA OL Kaleb Campbell and DB Sky Ryan were out with injuries. Defender Josh Wilson was banged up at the beginning of the season. He is a long, lean athletic player who turned heads at a combine at rival school Lafayette Renaissance during the summer.
LCA quarterback Braylon Walker has been on fire outside of the road loss to Shaw on the West Bank. Sophomore Caiden Bellard and Walker have been among the area’s leading rushers all season. The duo has combined for 1,800 yards and 20 touchdowns. Belard is over 1,000 yards.
With defending Division III select champion Catholic New Iberia losing to Loreauville, the power ratings got a shakeup. Lafayette Renaissance (7-1), which only lost to LCA , is No. 5. Catholic NI is No. 10. Notre Dame (No 2, 6-2) hosts Lafayette Renaissance this week.
Random thought, but Lafayette Christian’s decision to promote Matt Standiford from within – first to interim and then head coach – has been a great decision. The Knights parted ways with Zach Lochard after last year’s loss to Archbishop Shaw. Standiford, who takes a calm, positive approach, kept the ship upright in 2024 and has surpassed realistic expectations for 2025. The road win at defending Division I nonselect champion Central-BR was huge.
Can Teurlings Catholic solve the riddle that is St Thomas More? The Rebels lost the District 4-4A matchup each of the past three years and come into this week’s tilt with a new coach in Michael Courville. Rebels’ quarterback Alex Munoz leads the team in rushing, sporting sub-4.6 speed with a fullback’s toughness, and the senior has thrown only one interception. The game will be on the northside at Teurlings Catholic.
Two weeks ago, Eli DeBoisblanc was Teurlings Catholic’s top running back. Last week, it was Spencer Meche and Ian Schwander. Cason Evans, who only carried sparingly in last week’s 64-29 win over East Ascension, could be ready to erupt.
St. Thomas More, as usual, has a tough defense. The Cougars don’t have flashy names, just a blue-collar mentality. Their secondary will be tested by Nicholas Celestine, Andrew Viator and tight end A.J. Price. Quinn Simon has also been coming on strong, catching touchdown passes in recent weeks for the Rebels (8-0).
Meanwhile, STM quarterback Cole Bergeron (1,950 yards, 22 TDs, seven INT) has found his stride and the Cougars have won six straight (6-2) as they prepare to defend their league title. You can trust that Bergeron will know where Teurlings Catholic 2027 CB Kaden Chavis is. The junior had a pick-six last week and will hopefully (from a Teurlings Catholic standpoint) field more punts and kicks in the future. I’d wager that Chavis will get familiar with STM WR Christian Breaux (42-732, 12 TDs). Jacob Dean is another ballhawk in the Rebels’ secondary.
Southside got a lot of talk in the preseason as the District 3-5A favorite. The Sharks are still in the mix for a share of the title, but coach Jess Curtis’ team dropped a 17-14 decision last week to an Acadiana team that has won five straight. On Thursday, the Sharks will try to hand Carencro (6-2) its first district loss. The question is, how do you slow down 2028 QB Carson Guzzi and the Carencro offense?
The obvious answer, of course, is to control time of possession with a flexbone offense that features QB Parker Dies and running backs Justin Williams and Kollen Francois. The trio has combined for 2,000 yards rushing and 29 touchdowns. Will Carencro senior Chantz Babineaux tip the scales in favor of the Bears? They get Acadiana next week. Southside (6-2) doesn’t want to drop lower than its current No. 11 spot in the Division I nonselect power ratings.
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Louisiana
Louisiana Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for March 2, 2026
The Louisiana Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 2, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing
02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from March 2 drawing
3-9-9
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from March 2 drawing
4-1-1-0
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 5 numbers from March 2 drawing
0-5-2-9-5
Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Louisiana Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at Louisiana Lottery offices. Prizes of over $5,000 must be claimed at Lottery office.
By mail, follow these instructions:
- Sign and complete the information on the back of your winning ticket, ensuring all barcodes are clearly visible (remove all scratch-off material from scratch-off tickets).
- Photocopy the front and back of the ticket (except for Powerball and Mega Millions tickets, as photocopies are not accepted for these games).
- Complete the Louisiana Lottery Prize Claim Form, including your telephone number and mailing address for prize check processing.
- Photocopy your valid driver’s license or current picture identification.
Mail all of the above in a single envelope to:
Louisiana Lottery Headquarters
555 Laurel Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70801
To submit in person, visit Louisiana Lottery headquarters:
555 Laurel Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, (225) 297-2000.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Louisiana Lottery.
When are the Louisiana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3, Pick 4 and Pick 5: Daily at 9:59 p.m. CT.
- Easy 5: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.
- Lotto: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Louisiana editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Louisiana
National Guard deployment in New Orleans extended for six months
NEW ORLEANS — The Louisiana National Guard announced Monday that 120 troops will remain deployed in New Orleans through August.
The six-month extension comes after 350 Guard members deployed to New Orleans in late December, in the run-up to New Year’s and other high-profile events like the Sugar Bowl. The troops, which had mainly clustered in the city’s historic French Quarter, had been scheduled to depart in the aftermath of Mardi Gras.
New Orleans is one of several Democrat-run cities, such as Washington and Memphis, Tennessee, where the federal government deployed armed troops under the administration of President Donald Trump. Hundreds of federal agents also converged on Louisiana in December as part of a separate immigration crackdown in and around New Orleans.
During his State of the Union address last week, Trump touted the deployment in New Orleans as a “big success.” In January, Trump credited the troops with reducing the city’s violent crime within a week of their deployment. City police data shows violent crime rates have significantly declined over the past three years in parallel with national trends.
According to a press statement from the Louisiana National Guard, the remaining guard members will serve as a “visible presence to deter criminal activity in New Orleans.”
New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno, a Democrat who initially opposed the deployment, said that the troops would benefit the city in the coming weeks. She pointed out that National Guard troops had assisted the city during last year’s Mardi Gras in the aftermath of a vehicle-ramming attack in the French Quarter that killed 14 people on New Year’s Day.
“I continue to support the partnership with the LA National Guard to assist in our major events and there are several coming up in the next few weeks,” Moreno said in a statement.
While Moreno did not address which events she referred to, visitors flock to New Orleans in the spring for events like the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a Republican and staunch Trump ally, requested the deployment of the National Guard last September, citing rising violent crime rates in New Orleans despite the data showing crime was down.
“This continued deployment will help us combat violence in New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana,” Landry wrote on the social platform X on Monday, noting Louisiana had also sent National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., last year.
Kate Kelly, a spokesperson for Landry, said the federal government would cover the cost of the extended deployment. She did not respond to a question about whether Guard members would be deployed outside New Orleans.
Maj. Gen. Thomas Friloux, adjutant general of the Louisiana National Guard, said in a statement the troops had already worked closely with other city, state and federal agencies to improve public safety during a stretch of high-profile events in the city, including the flood of visitors over Mardi Gras and the city’s carnival season.
“We remain committed to those partnerships as we continue supporting efforts to keep the City of New Orleans safe for residents and visitors,” Friloux said.
Louisiana
Jury selection begins Monday in one of Louisiana’s largest auto insurance fraud cases
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Jury selection begins Monday in what prosecutors describe as one of the largest auto insurance fraud cases in Louisiana history, with two local attorneys set to stand trial on charges that include fraud and obstruction of justice.
Attorneys Vanessa Motta and Jason Giles are accused in an alleged scheme in which drivers — referred to as “slammers” — were paid to intentionally crash into 18-wheelers, file injury lawsuits and allow attorneys to collect the settlements. Both have pleaded not guilty.
63 people have been charged in the case. Many have already pleaded guilty. Motta and Giles are being tried together.
Criminal defense attorney Craig Mordock, who is not directly involved in the case but has been following it closely, said the scope of the litigation is significant.
“You have 10 years of personal injury cases and almost… almost a billion dollars in recovery. That’s all at issue,” Mordock said. “So yeah, this could go two to three weeks.”
Motta’s defense team has advanced a narrative that she was manipulated by a co-defendant.
“There is a compelling narrative that’s been advanced by Vanessa Motta’s lawyer in terms of her being manipulated by one of the co-defendants… about being manipulated by him and him having a prior federal conviction for fraud,” Mordock said.
Motta’s team originally claimed she did not know the crashes were staged. In 2024, her team told FOX 8 she is the victim.
Mordock said Giles faces a more difficult defense.
“I don’t see a favorable juror for one of the other lawyer defendants, Jason Giles. There’s not a clear theory of innocence. This is basically a standard white-collar prosecution where knowledge and intent are going to be the issue,” Mordock said.
The case carries what Mordock described as a shadow. In September 2020, key witness Cornelious Garrison was killed in New Orleans four days after his name appeared in an indictment. Garrison’s admitted killer, Ryan Harris, is expected to testify.
The judge in the case is also allowing the slain witness’s recorded descriptions of the alleged scheme to be admitted at trial.
Mordock said Louisiana drivers have a direct stake in the outcome.
“As your average Louisianan, the idea would be you would save… because the people committing this fraud have been wrapped up. The insurance companies are going to know how to look for this,” Mordock said.
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