BATON ROUGE - LSU postponed its football game against Troy after Hurricane Gustav damaged Tiger Stadium and battered Louisiana's capital city far worse than anticipated.
The university made the decision Wednesday after having a full day to get a handle on damage to the stadium and the community.
"We would have loved to play the game, but it's not possible and the city of Baton Rouge is in too bad shape to take resources away to play a football game," LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva said. "The welfare of the people of Baton Rouge, the uncertain power issues facing all of us and the condition of Tiger Stadium were all factors in making this decision."
The seventh-ranked Tigers' game against the Trojans will be played Nov. 15.
"We are fortunate that both schools had a common open datelater in the year," Alleva said. "I am appreciative of the cooperation of the good people at Troy for their understanding of this situation."
Classes at LSU are canceled through the end of the week, with only part of campus on power generated by the school's emergency backup power plant.
LSU's football team met at the Tigers' on-campus training center Tuesday afternoon, then went ahead with practice. The Tigers practiced Wednesday afternoon at their indoor facility.
The most noticeable damage at Tiger Stadium were torn awnings that, along with their metal supports, were ripped off of upper deck facades.
Tropical Storm Hanna also is causing schedule changes this weekend. The Colgate-Coastal Carolina football game has been moved from Saturday night to Sunday at 1 p.m. in Conway, S.C.
Sports, Pages 22 on 09/04/2008