There are three jerseys hanging from the rafters inside the PMAC, and after Sunday there will be four. If this isn’t a big enough deal already, Seimone Augustus will become the first female athlete to have her jersey retired at LSU. She is quite possibly the most deserving athlete of the last few years to have her number retired except for Chris Jackson, but that is a whole different animal. Augustus was one of the most highly touted women’s basketball recruits ever. She graced the cover of Sports Illustrated at 14 years old, and when she signed with LSU, a buzz began to float around the program. Augustus changed the face of LSU women’s basketball. Being a Baton Rouge native, fans were able to see the program grow with a home-grown product. She started all of the 140 games she played at LSU and put up some ridiculous numbers in those games. She is No. 2 on LSU’s all-time scoring list with 2,702 points, trailing only Joyce Walker’s 2,906. She is LSU’s career leader in free-throw percentage, sinking nearly 86 percent of her free throw attempts as a Lady Tiger. Augustus was able to earn her degree in just three years while throwing up those great numbers, a testament to her hard work. Not to mention the Lady Tigers were 121-19 during Augustus’ four years at LSU of eligibility on the team. She also led the Lady Tigers deep into the NCAA tournament in all four of her college seasons. LSU made the Elite Eight while Augustus was a freshman then went on to make three straight Final Fours during the remaining years of her college career. Augustus also led LSU to its first ever Southeastern Conference regular season championships in 2004-05 and 2005-06. Both the Elite Eight appearance and the Final Four appearances were, at the times, the deepest LSU had gone in the NCAA tournament. Her play garnered her more awards than any other woman to put on a Lady Tiger jersey. She was a two-time SEC Player of the Year and won the Wade Trophy, Wooden Award and the Naismith Award all twice. She was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2006 WNBA Draft and earned the Rookie of the Year award after scoring nearly 22 points per game and shooting nearly 90 percent from the free-throw line. Augustus is easily the most recognizable former Lady Tiger in program history. Some may argue’ Sylvia Fowles is a bigger name, but that’s because she is more recent in the memories of some fans, and her Final Four appearances are fresher on the minds than the play of Augustus. But Augustus ushered in a new tradition of dominance in LSU women’s basketball. What Augustus did and how well the Lady Tigers played when she was there catapulted LSU to the upper echelon of women’s basketball programs – a burden today’s Lady Tigers have to carry and play with. The Lady Tigers receive nearly every team they play’s best shot or are routinely the victim of every team’s ‘Pack the Arena’ promotion. LSU is often the biggest game on each of its opponents’ schedules, and Augustus was an intricate part of that.’ Augustus’ jersey retirement also brings attention to one of the most dominant programs on campus. In addition to the Final Four appearances, the Lady Tigers haven’t had a losing season since 1995’s 7-20 campaign. Now when fans look at the west end of the PMAC, they won’t just see the names of Bob Pettit, Pete Maravich and Shaquille O’Neal. They will see Augustus’ name and be reminded of a great player who did great things at LSU. Amos Morale is a 22-year-old history major from Houston. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_AmosMorale3. —– Contact Amos Morale at [email protected]