The Advocate/Scott Rabalais

WASHINGTON — A memorable scene unfolds at the end of the 1972 political dramedy “The Candidate,” in which Robert Redford’s character, Bill McKay, has just won a surprising election to the U.S. Senate.

Before a crowd of reporters come barging into the hotel room where McKay is holed up, Redford’s character asks Marvin Lucas, the political consultant played by Peter Boyle who pushed him into the race, a simple yet telling question:

“What do we do now?”

Here, in this place where so much of the nation’s news happens, there is no significant news on the LSU/Will Wade front in the wake of the Tigers’ season-ending 80-63 loss to Michigan State in Friday’s NCAA East regional semifinals.

Instead, there is only the question drifting through the early spring air, rustling the cherry blossoms near the Potomac River.

What does LSU do now?

Oh, yes, there was the latest Yahoo! Sports report Thursday asserting that Shannon Forman was the go-between for Wade and Javonte Smart. It it had to be someone, didn’t it? It is a bit of information, the introduction of a new character in this ongoing Netflix-like miniseries that has become the Wade saga.

LSU has its own “House of Cards” to deal with, one that has yet to reach a dramatic conclusion or seen its own Francis Underwood — in this case, Wade — dismissed from the show.

It is clear what LSU’s intent is as far as Wade is concerned. There are certain things that just can not be tolerated, like his refusal to come in and talk to the school’s brass about the FBI wiretaps he is reportedly on talking to would-be sports agent Christian Dawkins (Update: even though I’m close by their headquarters, the FBI folks still don’t seem very keen on letting me in to hear said wiretaps).

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