The GOAT Era

David Rainey • February 10, 2023

        Who is the G.O.A.T?  Who is the greatest player of all time? Who is the greatest athlete of all time? 


        It’s a debate we love to have for every sport.  It’s one of the most popular arguments amongst friends in bars all over the country and the world.  Whenever an all-time great athlete reaches a new milestone, social media is either quick to crown them the greatest of all time or tell you he or she could never reach that status.  It’s a debate that has spanned across generations and will do so until the end of time. 


        Most recently, we all got to witness Lebron become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.  A feat that many when he came into the league almost 20 years ago thought was unattainable.  However, he surpassed any and all hype and now holds that record which certainly feels unattainable for anyone else.  Naturally, however, Lebron’s accomplishment immediately sparked the G.O.A.T debate between him and Michael Jordan.  We’re not going to get into that here, but it did get me thinking:  Did we just live through the greatest era in sports history?  Did we just live through The GOAT Era?


        I am 29 years old and was born in 1993.  I believe that everyone that is part of my generation or earlier was lucky enough to live through the greatest era in almost every major sport, and at the same time, witness the greatest player of all time in every major sport.  Let’s go sport by sport.


Basketball


         Since the GOAT debate in basketball is so relevant right now, let’s start there.  Let me preface this by saying I know that some people don’t consider Lebron to be in the discussion for the greatest of all time and will even go as far to say that he’s not in their top 5.  To that I say, you’re wrong.  Amongst most fans, the GOAT debate in the NBA is between MJ and Lebron.  But no matter what side of the fence you fall on, if you’ve watched the NBA anytime between 1984 and now, you were able to witness the careers of the two greatest NBA players of all time.  Between the two of them there are 16 Finals appearances, 10 NBA Championships, 9 MVPs, 10 Finals MVPs, and 70,000 points.  Those numbers are otherworldly, and we were lucky enough to witness it all. 

           

I’m going to leave some players out here, but we also had the privilege of watching guys like Kobe, Shaq, Allen Iverson, and Tim Duncan.  Who’s the greatest shooter of all time? Steph Curry? Reggie Miller? Ray Allen? We saw them all.  No doubt the NBA is in good hands going forward, but we witnessed the greatest. 

           

Did you notice I labeled this section “Basketball” and not just “NBA?”  Let me ask you another question: Who’s the greatest WNBA player of all time?  Is it Sue Bird? Is it Diana Taurasi? There are a couple other women that belong in that conversation, but again, it doesn’t matter because we experienced them all.  The greatest era in the history of basketball happened during our lifetimes.


NFL


        Speaking of G.O.A.Ts, Tom Brady finally decided to hang up the cleats.  We’ve had the honor of seeing a lot of great players take the field in the NFL.  For 22 years, Tom Brady was on our televisions winning more Super Bowls than any franchise in the NFL and breaking the following records:

  • Games Started
  • Passing yards 
  • Passing Touchdowns 
  • Wins by a starting QB
  • Completions
  • Division titles
  • And about 30 more 


Numbers that we will likely never see any other player come close to.  We’ve seen a lot of greatness on Sundays in our lifetime, but I want to focus on one position specifically: Quarterback.  With Tom Brady deciding to call it a career, the greatest era of quarterback play in the history of the NFL has come to an end.  Since 1998, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Eli Manning, and Ben Roethlisberger all graced our TV screens.  It was a truly special time to be a fan of football.


 MLB


 

      Now baseball gets a little tricky, because the GOAT debate is a difficult one to pin down.  There are so many different angles you can take and variables to consider.  So, I’ll just list the players we saw take the diamond.  Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr., Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Pedro Martinez, and that’s just to name a few.  Say what you will about some of those guys and what they may or may not have done but growing up in that era of baseball was a beautiful thing.

       

 We experienced the excitement of McGwire and Sosa’s home run record race in 1998.  We witnessed Bonds break the record in 2001.  Ken Griffey Jr. made me fall in love with baseball and made baseball cool for a generation of kids.  Mariano Rivera was the most dominant closer of all time.  Forget about the steroids and anything else, that was the golden era of baseball. 


Everything Else


        We haven’t just seen the greatest player of all time in the major American sports, this discussion goes much deeper than that. 

           

         Lionel Messi became THE soccer icon and GOAT right before our eyes through the years.  Serena Williams not only became the greatest tennis player of all time, but you could make the argument that she’s possibly the most dominant athlete of our generation. 

           

        And speaking of tennis, the only reason Roger Federer  isn’t unanimously considered the greatest of all time is because he just happened to play in the same era as Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

           

        While we’re on the topic of individual sports, let’s talk about golf.  Tiger Woods.  The greatest, most dominant, and most influential golfer of all time.  Most of the people in my generation are only fans of golf because of what Tiger Woods accomplished while we were growing up. 

           

       Finally, here’s some lagniappe.  Wrestling.  This may not apply to everyone, as everyone isn’t a fan of wrestling.  However, if you were a fan of the WWE between the years 1997 and 2002, you experienced the single greatest era of sports entertainment to date.  The Attitude Era.  The Rock, Stone Cold, The Undertaker, Kane, Mankind, D-Generation X.  The list goes on.  Wrestling has never, and likely will never, be that great ever again. 


        So, have your GOAT debates if you want to, but I’m going to choose to just be appreciative.  I’m choosing to be thankful that when my sons grow up and ask me about Brady, Manning, Brees, Jordan, Lebron, Tiger, Bonds, Griffey, Serena, and anyone else I may have neglected to mention, I’ll be able to say I saw them all.  I experienced all the highs and all the lows, but mostly, I experienced all the greatness.  WE experienced it all together.  We should be thankful because we lived the Greatest Sports Era of All Time.



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LSU Salvages Game 3 Over Vanderbilt

By David Billiot Jr • March 16, 2026
Sunday Afternoon Recap There aren’t any must-win games this early in the season, but Sunday felt like a must-bounce-back game for LSU. Following the emotional roller coaster that was game 1 on Friday night, the Tigers got steamrolled in game 2 on Saturday. Jay Johnson did not get the response he was hoping for from his team after their heart was ripped out by Logan Johnstone when he hit a 2 out, 2 run walk off homerun two nights ago. Today, the response was great, especially early. The first four LSU hitters reached base to start the game, leading to a 4 run 1st inning. After adding two more in the 2nd, the Tigers were rolling with a 6-0 lead. That lead evaporated, though, and those bad feelings that this team may be in trouble started creeping back in. To their credit, LSU refused to lay down this time. They went blow for blow with Vanderbilt, but back to back 5 run innings in the 7th and 8th innings helped salvage the final game of SEC opening weekend and the Tigers improved to 14-7 with a 1-2 start in the SEC. Pitching For the second straight week, William Schmidt’s line doesn’t do his performance justice. Vanderbilt made him work inning after inning and it eventually led to his early exit. The start got off to a great start, though, pitching around a double to record three groundouts with only 7 pitches. In the 2nd, he allowed a leadoff homerun, but recorded a couple of outs before stranding a 2 out walk. The 3rd was where Schmidt had to battle the most. He hit the first batter and then allowed a 3-2 walk after Johnstone fouled off pitch after pitch to stay alive. That approach by Commodore hitters is what stretched Schmidt’s pitch count. With runners then on 1st and 2nd and no one out, he struck out the next three to slam the door on the threat. Vanderbilt went down in order for the first time in the 4th, but finally found a way to get Schmidt out of the game the very next inning. Another leadoff homerun brought the game slightly closer at 6-2 and that was the beginning of the end. After starting his final hitter 2-0 with a couple of high fastballs, Cade Arrambide called time to go to the mound and check with his pitcher. Jay Johnson and Head Athletic Trainer Isaac Trujillo also came out to talk to Schmidt, then left him in to finish the at bat. Once back in the dugout, the broadcast showed him a few times and he seemed to doing just fine without a trainer in sight. After the game, Koki Riley reported that Jay confirmed everything is ok. He said Schmidt had some slight back tightness that he was trying to fight though and could have continued to, if needed, but it wasn’t worth it. Final line: 4.0 IP / 3 hits / 3 runs / 6 Ks / 3 BBs / 1 HBP / 84 pitches (51 strikes, 61%) Mavrick Rizy was first out of the bullpen and it turned in to his worst outing of the year. Upon entering with a runner on 2nd and no outs, Rizy gave up back to back RBI doubles. Both doubles came off of decently executed pitches, but were just more examples of the good hitting Vanderbilt displays. Back to back strikeouts would get Rizy close to escaping the inning, but a 2 out double off of the left field wall would chase him from the game and LSU’s lead was down to 6-5. Final line: .2 IP / 3 hits / 2 runs / 2 Ks / 0 BB Santiago Garcia was tasked with shutting down the Commodores 4 run 5th inning. He walked the first guy he faced, but froze Korbin Reynolds to end the frame. Tommy Goodin led off the 6th with his second homerun, Vanderbilt’s third lead off blast of the game and the LSU lead had vanished. Garcia then went strikeout, double, strikeout, and that would be the end of his SEC debut. Final line: 1.0 IP / 2 hits / 1 run / 3 Ks / 1 BB Deven Sheerin entered with the go-ahead run on 2nd, but was able to induce a pop out to John Pearson in foul territory to let his offense get back to work. They did just that, exploding for 5 runs and giving Sheerin a comfortable lead to back out with in the 7th. He struck out the first hitter, then a slow chopper got past Steven Milam for an infield hit. A tailor-made double play ball was then hit right to defensive replacement Jack Ruckert at second base, but he booted it and failed to record a single out. As they did all weekend, Vanderbilt made LSU pay. A 3 run Mack Whitcomb homerun got the Commodores right back in to it. A strikeout and a walk would bring the tying run to the plate, when Jake Brown made a diving catch on a blooper in shallow right field. It was originally called a no-catch, but was challenged and correctly ruled the third out. Sheerin would cruise from that point, returning in the 8th to retired 4-5-6 in the Vanderbilt lineup after a Pearson error to leadoff the inning. Final line: 2.1 IP / 2 hits / 3 runs / 4 Ks / 1 BB Cooper Williams entered to record the final 3 outs with LSU up 16-9 and it went just about as well as it could’ve for the lefty. He’s had a very disappointing start to his sophomore season, but hopefully this outing could be the spark that he needs going forward. He retired Vanderbilt 3 up, 3 down and struck out the final two. Final line: 1.0 IP / 0 hits / 0 runs / 2 Ks / 0 BB Hitting With the offense back in a big way, there should be no surprise that Jake Brown was in the middle of all of it. He is a legitimate Golden Spikes candidate right now. Brown hit his 11th homerun of the year, which was his 2nd of the weekend. Both of them were 3-run bombs. This one came after Milam had just driven in the go-ahead run to steal back the momentum after the Tigers choked a 6-0 lead. The big swing from Brown went off of the batter’s eye, re-extending the lead to 4 runs. He finished 2-4 with 6 RBI and scored twice. Cade Arrambide quietly had a good weekend, hitting .384. On Sunday, he went 2-5 with a double, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored. Despite a few mishaps, his defense behind the plate slightly improved over the weekend. The much-welcomed return of Chris Stanfield kept rolling on Sunday as the senior leftfielder provided another multi-hit game. He finished 2-4, while also drawing a walk. One of his hits was a single off of the big wall in left field, that very well may have been a homerun in other parks. Stanfield also drove in a run and scored twice. Steven Milam’s 1-4 line may not seem massive, but it was his one hit that retook the lead for LSU after their collapse halfway through the game. He also walked, while scoring 3 runs, despite only recording the one hit. Derek Curiel also only went 1-4, but his one hit was a triple where he got to show off his speed. The ball went to left-center and Vanderbilt still didn’t come close to keeping him from getting to third base. Curiel also drew a walk and scored 3 runs of his own. John Pearson got the start at third base and made the most of it. Despite one throwing error in the 8th inning, he played a great all-around game. Even the error wasn’t a big deal, as it came with him shifted way out of position. He finished 0-1, but Pearson drew 3 walks and was also hit by a pitch. Those four times on base led to 3 runs scored. I would be surprised if Pearson is not back in the starting lineup once again on Tuesday. Although Seth Dardar finished hitless with an 0-3 stat line, he deserves to be pointed out for a few good at bats. After LSU had taken a 2-0 lead in the 1st, Dardar drove home another run with a ground ball for an RBI. Later in the 7th after Curiel tripled, Arrambide was unable to get him in with 0 outs because the Commodores brought their infield in and he hit the ball hard right to the second baseman. They remained in for Dardar and after falling behind with an 0-2 count, he found a way to drive the ball deep enough to left field for the sacrifice fly and his second RBI of the game. Those little things matter, especially for a struggling team. Omar Serna had a good day in his first SEC start on Saturday when catching Cooper Moore, so Jay rewarded him with a start in the DH spot. In the 1st, he hit a laser in to left field where Mancini made a crazy leaping catch. That brought in the 4th run of the inning with a sacrifice fly, but the ball was drilled. Serna finished 1-4 with an RBI single that drove in the final run of the game, as well. Up Next LSU will return home where they will remain for an eight game homestand. That will start on Tuesday as they welcome Grambling for a 6:30 pm central first pitch. The Tigers come in with a 5-13 record, following a 2-1 series win at Alabama St. Pitchers to watch for potential work for LSU include Dax Dathe, Grant Fontenot, Danny Lachenmayer, Connor Benge, and DJ Primeaux.

Vanderbilt - 11, LSU - 3

By David Billiot Jr • March 15, 2026
The big question following LSU’s heartbreaking loss on Friday night was how they would respond. Game 1 was a rollercoaster of emotions, starting with the Tigers scoring first, giving up the lead, Jake Brown crushing a homerun to retake the lead, then the pitching staff collapsing to fall behind 10-4, followed by 8 unanswered runs by LSU, only to be walked off in the 9th inning while being just an out of securing the dramatic comeback victory. Having that happen will test a team mentally under normal circumstances, but considering the timing, it was an even bigger challenge. It happened on the road, in the first game of SEC play, and on the heels of a pretty bad multi-week stretch for the Tigers. LSU was going to need a quick start on Saturday night to regain momentum, but Vanderbilt beat them to it by scoring first while Wyatt Nadeau carved up Jay Johnson’s lineup the first time through the order. The Tigers answered back to tie the game, but as Cooper Moore battled through the early innings, he was also playing with fire. He finally got burned in the 5th inning and things went downhill in a hurry for LSU. Before you knew it, they were down 10-1 and, again, in deep trouble. What was most concerning was Saturday’s results seemed to indicate that what we watched transpire on Friday had more to do with the Commodores choking, rather than the Tigers storming back on their own merit. LSU would go down quietly this time, dropping their first series of conference play. Pitching Cooper Moore entered Saturday coming off of his worst start of the season thus far. It wasn’t bad last week, but it was a far cry from his first three. He looked good early against Vanderbilt, breezing 1-2-3 through the 1st inning. Despite getting in to early trouble in the 2nd, Moore battled out of a 2nd and 3rd with 0 outs situation by only allowing 1 run. That was a massive win in the moment. The leadoff hitter got on base in the 3rd, but, again, he fought through it and didn’t allow the baserunner past 2nd base. We saw more of the same in the 4th, as the inning started with an infield hit, a single, then the chopper that bounced high over Zach Yorke’s head and rolled down the 1st baseline to give Vanderbilt a 2-1 and, once again, put runners on 2nd and 3rd with 0 outs. Moore struck out Ryker Waite, who came in to the series with a .560 on base percentage. Then, thanks to the magician that LSU has playing shortstop, a double play ended yet another big threat. Korbin Reynolds hit a laser right at Steven Milam, who was playing on the grass with the infield in. The ball go on to Milam so quickly, he had to fall backwards to catch it, but his impeccable reaction time somehow allowed him to snag the ball, fall to his butt, and toss it Trent Caraway at 3rd base. Unfortunately for Moore, the trouble would catch up to him in the 5th, though. A four pitch walk to the Commodores 9-hole hitter was the omen of bad things to come, as that was followed with a perfect sacrifice bunt attempt that no one fielded as they hoped it would roll foul, and then another single loaded the bases with 0 outs and Moore’s night was over. The first inning was the only inning that he was able to pitch from the windup, as the leadoff hitter was on base for the next four innings. Despite the talent of starting pitchers, that will forever be tough to overcome, especially against good teams. Final line: 4.0 IP / 7 hits / 5 runs / 4 Ks / 2 BBs / 79 pitches (48 strikes, 61%) Ethan Plog entered in an impossible situation and promptly got he ball he was hoping for. A high chopper ground ball made Yorke leave his feet, but he snagged it and fired home for the force out attempt. Unfortunately, the throw was poor and Omar Serna was unable to go down and get it, scoring a run and the bases remained loaded with no outs. Plog would then walk a hitter and give up a sacrifice fly, pushing Vanderbilt’s lead to 5-1. Chris Maldonado then stepped to the plate to pinch hit and blasted a 3 run homerun over Derek Curiel’s leaping attempt in dead center and the Commodores had blowing things open with 6 run 5th inning. Plog has been fantastic, but that’s where his first SEC appearance would come to an end. Final line: .1 IP / 1 hit / 3 runs / 0 K / 2 BBs Freshman Zion Theophilus was called upon to try and finish off the disaster of an inning for LSU pitching and he did just that, recording a strikeout and a flyout to end the 5th. Back for the 6th, he recorded the leadoff hitter for the first time since the 1st inning, but was unable to record another out after that. He then issued 3 walks (1 intentional) and a hit by pitch and his day was done. Final line: 1.0 IP / 0 hits / 2 runs / 1 K / 3 BBs From one high promise freshman pitcher to another, Reagan Ricken entered with the bases loaded and 1 out. He did exactly what Jay Johnon called upon him to do, drawing a ground ball to record an out and striking out Waite looking to keep the damage from getting worse. Even though a run scored on the groundout, LSU pitchers have struggled to simply record outs in some of these tough spots, which allows things to get worse and worse, much like we saw in the 5th. Ricken returned for the 7th and despite allowing a solo homerun and 2 two out walks, was able to navigate through the entire inning and get out of trouble. Ricken continues to flash plenty of traits to very excited about as he grows as a Tiger. Final line: 1.2 IP / 1 hit / 1 run / 2 Ks / 2 BBs With LSU down 11-3 and the tensity of the moment being low, Jay Johnson inserted Marcos Paz for the 8th inning in a great spot to get his feet wet. As he continues to come back from Tommy John surgery, he’s flashed his talent that made him a possible draft risk, while also battling through rust. In his first SEC appearance, he looked fantastic. Despite a walk, Paz struck out the side, including Maldonado that hit the big homerun earlier. Final line: 1.0 IP / 0 hits / 0 runs / 3 Ks / 1 BB Hitting There isn’t a lot of offensive production to get to, so this will be quick. Steven Milam followed up his 3 hit performance on Friday with a 1-4 game, including a fantastic piece of opposite field hitting for a double. Derek Curiel, Cade Arrambide, and Omar Serna each had a single hit, to give you the 4 total LSU hits. Arrambide’s was a double and Serna’s was a 2 run single that brought his RBI total for the week up to 6. Jake Brown entered the game with only 9 strikeouts so far this season, but Nadeau’s stuff was so good, he was able to get LSU’s offensive MVP twice. Brown did draw 2 walks, finishing the night 0-2. Up Next LSU and Vanderbilt will wrap up SEC opening weekend tomorrow. First pitch will be at 3 pm central. William Schmidt will take the mound for the Tigers as they look to avoid being swept on SEC opening weekend for the first time since 2006 when Arkansas took three in Alex Box during Smoke Laval’s final season. The Tigers have fallen to 13-7, which matches Vanderbilt’s record after back to back wins to start the series. The Commodores will send Nate Taylor to the mound on Sunday, who has started all four Sundays for them this season. Taylor has a record of 0-3 with a 4.91 ERA. His batting average against is the highest of any of the top Vanderbilt pitchers that LSU has seen so far at .242. Taylor has given up 12 runs in 18.1 innings of work, so the opportunities for the Tiger offense to get back on track could be there.
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