Lakefront Arena at the University of New Orleans may fall silent if athletic programs are cut. (Mylan Cannon/NYT Institute)

In the wake of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s proposed budget cuts, the University of New Orleans may have to ax its athletic program.

Under the governor’s fiscal 2009-10 budget plan, UNO is facing $15.3 million in budget cuts, including $1.4 million in athletics funding. All institutions of higher education in Louisiana will lose a total of $218 million in funding.

The proposed budget is yet another blow to the athletic program. On May 1, UNO students voted 53 percent to 47 percent against doubling the fee for athletics, to $200 per credit hour. If the vote had gone the other way, the school’s cash-strapped athletic department could have survived. Now, the department’s fate rests with the Louisiana Legislature.

“I’m still holding out hope to get money into higher education,” said UNO basketball coach Joe Pasternack. “Hopefully, we don’t have to raise a penny.”

UNO received $70.8 million in state funding during the 2008-9 school year. Under the proposed budget cuts, the school will receive$ 59.7 million next year.  By contrast, LSU received $239.6 million in state funding last year. Next year, however, the school will receive $201.9 million.

“I would imagine that UNO has decided to not allocate state funding to athletics because it can be used elsewhere,” said Meg Casper, assistant to Sally Clausen, the commissioner of the Louisiana Board of Regents. “This is a prioritized decision. Each individual school is given a certain operating amount and then the school decides how to divide it.”

Some UNO students had mixed reactions Wednesday to the news of the potential shutdown of the athletic program.

“I wanted the school to keep athletics just so we would have sports, but no one goes to the games anyway,” said Barry Kelly, a graduate business administration student and Baton Rouge native who voted against the tuition increase.  ”The teams aren’t that good, and I didn’t want to pay $100 for them to hang around.”

Kelly said he attended one only athletic event last year, the homecoming basketball game against North Carolina State, which was the first game the UNO basketball team played in  Lakefront Arena since 2005.

“There may have been 500 people there,” Kelly said. “The team isn’t good. If they were better, people might go.”

Nagendrajumar Beeravolu, 23, a graduate student studying electrical engineering at UNO, was in favor of the tuition increase.

“Paying $100 more won’t hurt me because I am on scholarship,” Beeravolu said. “Besides it’s not that much of an increase, and some people come here for athletics. If there is no athletic department, it will definitely hurt the school.”

Before Katrina, UNO had 14 NCAA-sponsored sports. Eight sports, including men’s and women’s track and field, cross country and women’s golf, were cut when the school reopened after Katrina, and men’s and women’s swimming and diving were added last year. The university also suspended men’s and women’s tennis but reinstated them last year, giving the school a total of  nine sports- five short of the standard for Division I schools.

UNO has partnered with New Orleans Hornets owner George Shinn in an effort to raise funds for athletics. Pasternack said the school’s first fundraiser with the Hornets will be a season ticket drive. Pasternack said the department’s potential budget cuts haven’t hurt basketball recruiting.

“A lot of big-time people in the city have jumped on board, so we’re excited about it,” he said.

The Super Bowl is coming back to the Big Easy.

After a six-month-long process, the city of New Orleans was awarded the 2013 Super Bowl, beating out the Phoenix and South Florida competition.

It wasn’t much of a surprise, since New Orleans was the heavy favorite. Nonetheless, on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in Lafayette Square, the New Orleans Saints will hold a pep rally to celebrate. Cheerleaders, coaches, administrators, the host committee and a few players will attend.

The final vote was at the NFL owners meeting Tuesday in Tampa, Fla. At a press conference announcing the decision on Tuesday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said: “We are thrilled and excited in the
NFL to say that Super Bowl XLVII will be played in the great city of New Orleans. I think this is a great statement about the spirit and people of New Orleans, and the great relationship the Saints and the
NFL have in that community. We’re thrilled to be coming back there and look forward to being there.”

After Goodell delivered the good news, the only thing left to do was celebrate. Sam Joffray, vice president of communications for the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, which mounted the bid, said: “The bid team and community are flying really high right now and we saw this as a hat trick for the past year. We were awarded the 2012 Men’s and 2013 Women’s Final Four also. We’re extremely successful; we couldn’t ask for more.” But there is more: the game will be played in a renovated Superdome.

This is a colossal win for New Orleans, which last hosted the Super Bowl in 2002. It will be the 10th Super Bowl in the city of New Orleans, tying South Florida for the most hosted. And this will be the seventh that will be held in the Superdome; games in 1970, 1972 and 1975 were played in Tulane Stadium.

The Super Bowl is expected to bring in about $300 million.

“New Orleans provides an atmosphere that creates fantastic memories, and there is nothing like a Super Bowl to give a city the opportunity to show the world what it is capable of,” said Rita Benson LeBlanc, Saints owner and executive vice president, in a press release. “The NFL loves to come to our city for Super Bowls. And just by the way we entertain the world, there is a tremendous trickle-down effect economically – to our hotels, our restaurants, our vendors, all businesses. We will all benefit from today’s announcement.”

As part of the bid, the state legislature has pledged $85 million in upgrades and renovations for the Superdome, including additional seating, new suites and wider concourses.

The Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, which now becomes the host committee, will start collaborating with the NFL to stage the big game, scheduled for Feb. 3, 2013. Everything from volunteers, fundraising, game day operations and media relations will start now.

In the presentation to NFL owners, Steve Perry, president of the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau, said he touted the city’s advantages. “New Orleans has got some great assets, and you’ve always thought of three great assets for New Orleans as a Super Bowl City.

It’s the food, its music and nightlife, its architecture, but I’m here to tell you that the three greatest assets for New Orleans are proximity, proximity, proximity.”

The Super Bowl is coming back to the Big Easy

The Louisiana Superdome, seen here in a recent image, will host the 2013 Super Bowl in New Orleans. (Ray Tyler/New York Times Student Journalism Institute)

The Super Bowl is coming back to the Big Easy.

After a six-month-long process, the city of New Orleans was awarded the 2013 Super Bowl, beating out the Phoenix and South Florida competition.

It wasn’t much of a surprise, since New Orleans was the heavy favorite. Nonetheless, on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in Lafayette Square, the New Orleans Saints will hold a pep rally to celebrate. Cheerleaders, coaches, administrators, the host committee and a few players will attend.

The final vote was at the NFL owners meeting Tuesday in Tampa, Fla. At a press conference announcing the decision on Tuesday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said: “We are thrilled and excited in the
NFL to say that Super Bowl XLVII will be played in the great city of New Orleans. I think this is a great statement about the spirit and people of New Orleans, and the great relationship the Saints and the
NFL have in that community. We’re thrilled to be coming back there and look forward to being there.”

After Goodell delivered the good news, the only thing left to do was celebrate. Sam Joffray, vice president of communications for the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, which mounted the bid, said: “The bid team and community are flying really high right now and we saw this as a hat trick for the past year. We were awarded the 2012 Men’s and 2013 Women’s Final Four also. We’re extremely successful; we couldn’t ask for more.”But there is more: the game will be played in a renovated Superdome.

This is a colossal win for New Orleans, which last hosted the Super Bowl in 2002. It will be the 10th Super Bowl in the city of New Orleans, tying South Florida for the most hosted. And this will be the seventh that will be held in the Superdome; games in 1970, 1972 and 1975 were played in Tulane Stadium.

The Super Bowl is expected to bring in about $300 million.

“New Orleans provides an atmosphere that creates fantastic memories, and there is nothing like a Super Bowl to give a city the opportunity to show the world what it is capable of,” said Rita Benson LeBlanc, Saints owner and executive vice president, in a press release. “The NFL loves to come to our city for Super Bowls. And just by the way we entertain the world, there is a tremendous trickle-down effect economically – to our hotels, our restaurants, our vendors, all businesses. We will all benefit from today’s announcement.”

As part of the bid, the state legislature has pledged $85 million in upgrades and renovations for the Superdome, including additional seating, new suites and wider concourses.

The Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, which now becomes the host committee, will start collaborating with the NFL to stage the big game, scheduled for Feb. 3, 2013. Everything from volunteers, fundraising, game day operations and media relations will start now.

In the presentation to NFL owners, Steve Perry, president of the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau, said he touted the city’s advantages. “New Orleans has got some great assets, and you’ve always thought of three great assets for New Orleans as a Super Bowl City.

It’s the food, its music and nightlife, its architecture, but I’m here to tell you that the three greatest assets for New Orleans are proximity, proximity, proximity.”

New Orleans Zephyrs infielder Craig Matt hits a home run that gave the Zephyrs their only score, as the Portland Beavers handed the Zephyrs their fifth consecutive loss, 5-1, on Tuesday in Metairie, La. (Ray Tyler/The New York Times Student Journalism Institute)

METAIRIE — What started as a pretty day of baseball ended in a murderer’s row of inconsistent pitching for the New Orleans Zephyrs on Tuesday.

In front of a fairly empty stadium with sun-washed seats, the Zephyrs lacked the depth and run support to outlast the visiting Portland Beavers as they emerged victorious 5-1. The loss was the Zephyrs’ fifth consecutive loss, and their fourth straight loss to the Beavers. The Zephyrs’ record is now 14-25.

In the series Portland pitchers have retired the Zephyrs side in order 18 times.

What’s the problem?

Three players were injured. Dave Matranga (hamstring), Cameron Maybin (strained groin) and Michael Ryan (strained rib) all played hurt. Zephyrs manager Edwin Rodriguez said only 10 players on the roster are healthy. That has contributed to the team’s having problems winning at home, and going 4-15 this season.

To make matters worse for the Zephyrs, four pitchers scattered five runs on just seven hits, and their infield committed two errors. Meanwhile Zephyr batters left three men on base as the game ran 2:22, the shortest time all year.

“First it was the pitching, now it’s the hitting,” Rodriguez said. “That’s taking a toll on our hitting because there are only so many healthy players.”

Daniel Barone, one of the few healthy Zephyrs, turned in what could have been a winning pitching performance had there been better run support. In six innings Barone (2-4) surrendered two runs on five hits and struck out three.

Only four Zephyrs pitchers have lasted through the sixth this season.

“It was good to see Barone give us the game that he did,” Rodriguez said. “He needed that and so did our team.”

The Beavers’ three pitchers gave up only five hits. Zephyrs infielder Matt Craig was the only batter to score a run, smashing a home run over the center field fence off Lake Charles native Wade LeBlanc on a 1-2 pitch in the second inning. Craig was also the only Zephyr batter with multiple hits. More impressive, his home run came batting right handed and his base hit left handed.

LeBlanc, on a 40-pitch count, threw just two innings because of bicep tendinitis. His last start was May 9.

“You want to get your hits but you also want to win,” Craig said. “I’m disappointed we didn’t win.”

“It’s just the way the game goes. You would like to put more runs on the board, but you go through your ups and downs. We’re kind of at a down point because a few of our key hitters are injured.”

Up 3-1 heading into the ninth, the Beavers scored two runs and left one on base without a hit. Beavers pitcher Josh Banks pitched six innings with two hits and six strike outs on 65 pitches. He didn’t allow a walk.

“I knew I needed to go as far as I could and keep us in the game,” said Banks, who entered in the third inning with the Beavers up 2-1. “When I came in there was no room for error, so I didn’t want to give up a big inning.”

The Beavers edged the Zephyrs Monday, 3-2 in 12 innings. The Zephyrs have had only 14 hits in three games and have been outscored 16-7 in four losses to Portland.

“The bullpen pitched well the whole series,” Beavers manager Randy Ready said. “For those guys to sweep the series and throw a bunch of zeros up there showed we were able to take advantage of their offense.”