BATON ROUGE, La. -- Russell Gage didn't wait for permission to leave. The LSU wide receiver only knew that his family was in danger when historic flooding hit his hometown, and he desperately scrambled to do whatever he could to get them to safety.
Gage grabbed roommate Devin Voorhies and took off without informing his coaches he was leaving LSU's preseason camp -- Gage would later describe that as a "boneheaded decision," since he had no clue about the extent of the flooding in the area -- and raced home to help. When he and Voorhies arrived, they discovered a rapidly rising water level and no way to drive out.