Gustav forces SLU to adjust

• By JASON RUSSELL
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Sep 5, 2008 - UPDATED: 9:15 a.m.

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After snapping a 12-game road losing streak with a 34-28 victory over Alcorn State last week, the Southeastern Louisiana football team hoped that a normal week would get them prepared for the tough task of facing Southeastern Conference foe Mississippi State.

So much for normal.

With Hurricane Gustav slamming into south Louisiana earlier this week, the Lions traveled to Camp Lake Stephens in Oxford, Miss., on Sunday and have been practicing on the Ole Miss campus since Tuesday.

“We’ve had good practices,” SLU coach Mike Lucas said. “Our kids have been focused. Ole Miss has been great to us to allow us to use their practice facility and weight room.

“We brought all of our video equipment with us so we could be having meetings and watching tape on Mississippi State.”

The Lions have been staying at Camp Lake Stephens in Oxford, a campground that Lucas said has been pretty comfortable for the team.

“It’s actually been better up here than I thought it would be,” he said. “I really didn’t know what to expect as far as this campground is concerned, but it’s really been better than I anticipated.

“Each cabin has eight beds in it and ceiling fans and air conditioning and private showers. So the kids the have had a decent place to stay. The people here at Camp Lake Stephens have fed us all of our meals and the meals have been great. We’ve got just about everything we need.”

Of the 60 players who made the trip, Lucas said about half had families back in Louisiana that had to evacuate because of Gustav.

“Once the storm was over, and they know their families are OK, there were still some whose homes have some damage and whose families can’t get back,” he said. “We know everybody’s safe and there wasn’t any bodily harm to anyone, family-wise.”

With the worries over family members and others, one might think the focus of the team wouldn’t be anywhere near football. Lucas said that is not the case.

“Our focus has been fairly good and the time together has been good for our team camaraderie and things like that,” he said.

And staying back in Hammond would have caused more trouble than good, Lucas said.