| Tuesday, October 27, 2026 |
| Mississippi State continues work towards expanding Veterinary School | |
 | Mississippi State is home to one of the largest veterinary schools in the country. Ongoing construction will soon expand the size, along with the opportunities of the program. MSU Animal Health Center Director Heath King spoke on the progress. "First part of that project is actually building a new farm animal hospital and outpatient cattle handling facility," said King. "In conjunction with that, because of the location of that hospital we've moved the equine entrance to a new location on the facility, and we're in the process of putting in a laminitis evaluation area, immediately adjacent to that entrance." Construction also includes new private consultation rooms, and upgrades to the small animal hospital. The Small Animal Hospital is still in the early stages, but the current plans for it include the expansion of the ER & ICU, along with moving specialty services like oncology and dermatology closer to the patient waiting areas. The laminitis center will be the Nancy Fair Link Laminitis Center and will be a big factor for the school. |
| Oktibbeha 'just getting started' creating guidelines for new developments | |
 | The Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors is looking to take next steps in creating countywide development regulations, but it is still undecided on when the codes will take shape. The board is considering implementing a unified development code with three main areas of focus: regulating private roads, new builds and where development is allowed to go. The proposal was outlined to the board Monday by Nathan Willingham, owner of Oxford-based urban planning firm Slaughter and Willingham, which was contracted to create it. However, Board Attorney Rob Roberson remains concerned about public opinion on county code enforcement, and the board is not ready to enact any of the proposed legislation. "When you say the word zoning, there are people who are going to absolutely have a struggle," Roberson said during the presentation. "The intention is not to control them; it's to protect them. I get it. ... But the typical constituent doesn't. ... I can imagine our first public meeting on what zoning looks like. You're going to have every mad human being that lives in Oktibbeha County show up, and they're not going to listen to what you just said about protection." The plan presented Monday would focus on regulating new high-density residential builds as well as industrial and commercial developments. |
| Public outcry after 'Tina' the turkey was found shot | |
| Earlier this month, Rob Snell and his wife began seeing a domesticated turkey appear in their backyard off Day Lily Drive. The bird was certainly not wild and welcomed their advances, including snacks of grapes and seeds, Snell said. "My wife kind of got attached, and made my Tractor Supply (Company) bill go up because we're buying turkey food," Snell told The Dispatch on Monday. "... She loved to eat grapes, and she could fly. So it's like it's not like she was like in a pen or anything like that. She was foot loose and fancy free." Snell and his wife were hoping to locate the owner of the turkey, who they dubbed "Tina" after the bird spent several weeks roosting in their backyard. They called nearby poultry farmers, Mississippi State University's H.H. Leveck Animal Research Center and others, but to no avail. Snell said they thought they would find the owner at some point. But he could have never imagined their new backyard friend would be shot and killed, especially while living in their residential neighborhood. |
| Starkville man charged with aggravated domestic violence, kidnapping | |
 | A Starkville man has been arrested on aggravated domestic violence and kidnapping charges following a disturbance at a residence Friday night, according to the Starkville Police Department. Officers responded around 11:56 p.m. Oct. 23 to Wildwood Estates at 1384 Louisville St. after receiving a report of a disturbance in progress. Police said officers could hear an active disturbance coming from inside the residence when they arrived. Officers entered the home and arrested 40-year-old George Peterson of Starkville. Peterson was charged with domestic violence-aggravated assault and kidnapping. The victim declined medical treatment at the scene, according to police. The incident remains under investigation. |
| Trump campaigns in Mississippi, highlighting Republicans' challenges | |
 | President Donald Trump campaigned Monday in Mississippi, as he continued a closing midterm rally blitz that has highlighted Republicans' challenges ahead of an election that could drastically shift power in Washington and statehouses across the country. "I'm here because Cindy's doing great, but I just got to make sure. I can't take a chance," Trump told the crowd, his voice audibly hoarse, as he worked to boost Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, who is facing a surprisingly stiff challenge from Democrat Scott Colom. Colom was spotted at the rally site, too, creating the rare spectacle of Trump's staunchest supporters interacting directly with a figure the president would soon go on to denigrate as a "Marxist radical" and "fake" and "shameless phony who pretends to be a moderate" from the stage. Mississippi, among the nation's most reliably Republican states, is not where the Republicans envisioned needing a late-October stop from the president. But Colom is one of many Democratic underdogs who have managed to expand the House and Senate battleground maps because of widespread voter discontent over inflation, the Iran war and other aspects of Trump's second presidency. |
| Trump rallies support for Hyde-Smith, Republicans ahead of November 3 election | |
| President Donald Trump (R) hosted a rally Monday evening in Corinth in support of U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith's (R) re-election campaign. Mississippi Republican Party Chairman Mike Hurst, 1st District Congressman Trent Kelly (R), Governor Tate Reeves (R), and Hyde-Smith spoke before President Trump headlined the event. "The choice facing our country right now could not be clearer," Hyde-Smith said on stage, describing her run for re-election against Democrat nominee and Lowndes County District Attorney Scott Colom (D). "This is socialism versus capitalism, communism versus democracy, and big government versus the free market. It could not be higher stakes." Hyde-Smith also labeled Colom as "the transgender defender" and said that she has "never seen a candidate as radical as he is." She then touted her accomplishments during the past two years in the U.S. Senate. |
| Trump rallies for Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi: 'You like me' | |
| President Donald Trump rallied for Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi on Monday, urging his supporters not to take chances by staying home and allowing a potential midterm upset in a state he won handily. As Trump's approval ratings have cratered amid backlash to soaring consumer prices and an unpopular war in Iran, Democrats have grown hopeful that their nominee in Mississippi, Scott Colom, might flip a seat in what has been a Republican stronghold. Both national parties are sinking money and resources into the race in the homestretch, and national Democratic players have filed into Mississippi to campaign for Colom. At Crossroads Arena in the rural northeast Mississippi town of Corinth, Trump told an energized crowd that he had taken notice of the state's heated Senate race. "I'm here because Cindy is doing great, but I just have to make sure," Trump said. "I can't take a chance." |
| Trump rallies in Mississippi, makes case for Hyde-Smith ahead of midterms | |
| After hours of waiting in line, some from before the sun rose until the moment President Donald Trump arrived, thousands of Mississippians showed up in Corinth on Monday to hear the commander-in-chief campaign for Republicans seeking election. The Crossroads Arena, which seats just over 7,700, was packed with attendees, with some watching from the aisles and stairwells and thousands more following a video stream outside the building. The rally opened with a prayer, followed by the pledge of allegiance, and then a rendition of the national anthem by country singer Darryl Worley. A who's who of Mississippi Republican officeholders followed, taking turns stepping up to the podium to urge GOP voters to show up to the polls on Nov. 3. "The critical, critical thing I want you to hear from me tonight is we've got to get out and vote," said Republican U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, who is in Mississippi's most contentious race of the midterm cycle. |
| Obama's 'Cheesecake Factory' Jab Rankles Trump on Mississippi Campaign Stop | |
 | Former President Barack Obama has struck a nerve with President Trump. Mr. Trump took time from campaign issues to defend his fixation on remodeling the White House in his second term on Monday after Mr. Obama jabbed that "he's got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory." Mr. Trump spoke for several minutes about the remark on his way to a campaign swing in Mississippi, then delivered an extensive aside there on the White House ballroom, helipad and other projects. He was in the solidly Republican state, which has been shifting toward Democrats, as part of his swing through ruby red America to shore up candidates ahead of the midterms. Mr. Trump, whose approval ratings are at record lows, at times insisted he had spent "very little time" on redesigning the White House, parts of which he has demolished to make way for the new ballroom. But he also defended his focus on the renovations and eventually conceded that "I have fun doing it." "It actually relaxes me," Mr. Trump said in Corinth, asserting he was actually "fixing up the White House." He added, to cheers from the supportive crowd, "Isn't that a nice thing to do?" Mr. Obama delivered the Cheesecake Factory attack line at a rally in Ohio on Saturday, casting Mr. Trump as out of touch while needling at the president's extravagant sense of style. Saddam Hussein, the authoritarian leader of Iraq who was ousted by the 2003 U.S. invasion, was known for his love of gold. |
| Cindy Hyde-Smith Says There Is 'More Work to Do' for Mississippi in Reelection Bid | |
| U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith says her inspiration for public service through political office comes from her daughter, the sixth generation in their family to work as a cattle farmer in Brookhaven, Mississippi. As a farmer from a smaller town herself, the senator says she feels first-hand the struggles that many Mississippians are facing, like the cost of fuel increasing and rural hospitals struggling. "When you're involved in agriculture, you learn pretty quickly that decisions made in Washington affect real families back home," she said in an email that her campaign communications director sent to the Mississippi Free Press on Oct. 8. "When diesel goes up, we feel it. When cattle markets change, we feel it. When interest rates or input costs rise, farmers feel it. And when a rural hospital is in danger of closing, that's not some statistic on a government report. That's where your family, your employees, and your neighbors go when they need help. The commitment to solving those problems is what led me to serve as Mississippi's Commissioner of Agriculture and it's now why I serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee. I've always wanted rural Mississippi to have somebody at the table who actually understands rural Mississippi." |
| Frustrated farmers could become a midterm problem for Republicans | |
 | Farmers are a key voting group for Republicans, but their votes could be on the line, with the Iran war and President Trump's tariff and trade wars driving up production costs along with diesel and fertilizer prices. The Trump administration has been rolling out financial assistance packages and projects for farmers in hopes of shoring up the electorate in next week's midterm elections. Yet they may be right to be anxious about the voting bloc's turnout. "Yes, I think they're nervous. Yes, I think they should be, and yes, I think that farmers are pretty ticked off," said Amy Frederiksen, a former Minnesota Republican Senate majority leader. Frederiksen said farmers "don't want to vote for a lot of the Democrats' nonsense." "They want to vote for Republicans, but this is their business, these are their families, and it doesn't appear that anyone's listening," she said. |
| SpaceXAI facing $6.1M in potential environmental penalties | |
 | SpaceXAI is facing $6.1 million in potential civil penalties from the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality. According to its quarterly report with the Securities and Exchange Commission filed on Thursday, the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality issued notices of violation in August to MZX Tech, SpaceXAI's parent company. The notices claim the company disturbed the land across its three Southaven sites without stormwater permits from the state. MDEQ is seeking civil penalties of up to $25,000 per day, with preliminary claimed exposure of approximately $6.1 million. MZX said in the filing that it is cooperating with MDEQ and is in discussions to resolve the matters through a single agreed order. Separately, the NAACP has filed a lawsuit over the gas-fired turbines on Stanton Road, alleging violations of the Clean Air Act's environmental permitting requirements. On Tuesday, a federal judge in Mississippi rejected the federal government's attempt to end the NAACP lawsuit. |
| Defense priorities tied up in lame-duck jumble | |
 | Defense agenda items including the sweeping annual defense policy bill and the administration's goal of a $1.5 trillion defense budget are in the balance during what is expected to be a busy lame-duck session after the elections. In addition to a hefty to-do list awaiting Congress when it returns, defense hawks have increasingly warned that President Donald Trump's moves away from Ukraine and toward Russia could endanger his lame-duck agenda. Meanwhile, underscoring the uncertainty of the agenda, Republicans could try to load up bills with their priorities if they lose control of one or both chambers in November, and some fiscal hawks appear unconvinced at a major defense spending hike. Lawmakers left town to campaign for the midterm elections with numerous defense items up in the air, chief among the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act and full-year Pentagon funding. The NDAA has been tied up in partisan politics over the Iran war and the administration's Pentagon funding request, with Democrats balking at authorizing a record high budget and advancing a defense policy bill without any guardrails on the Iran war. |
| Israeli elections won't change much for Washington | |
| Israelis vote today in a closely watched election that could unseat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Even if Netanyahu loses, new leadership is unlikely to radically change Israel's trajectory on issues important to the US. "Any new government is likely to be constrained from making wholesale changes to its approach on Palestinian issues," Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow Elisa Ewers said. "To the extent that US public opinion is driven by Israeli government policy on the Palestinian file in particular, it's going to be difficult for a new Israeli government to demonstrate enough change quickly enough to overcome some of the challenges." Netanyahu's main challenger, former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, opposes Palestinian statehood and has pledged to destroy Hamas' military wing. |
| Fifth Circuit allows Mississippi's anti-DEI to take effect, calling Wingate's injunction sloppy and an embarrassment | |
| The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a preliminary injunction in Jackson Federation of Teachers v. Lynn Fitch, allowing Mississippi's anti-DEI law to take effect while litigation continues. Enacted in April 2025, lawmakers said HB 1193 prevents public K-12 schools and higher education institutions in Mississippi from utilizing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices when making decisions concerning school employment, academic opportunities, and student engagement. Such decisions are to be based on an individual's merit and qualifications rather than a person's race, color, sexual orientation, or gender. The law passed through both bodies in the State Capitol and then received the governor's signature in April. In July 2025, U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the law, citing First Amendment concerns. Judge Smith, in the Fifth Circuit majority opinion, called Wingate's proceedings a "botch job," saying that he "carelessly exercised his Article III power by issuing sloppy edicts based on falsehoods and fabrications." |
| 8 key questions about school district (and college) consolidation in Mississippi | |
| School consolidation, a perennial topic in Mississippi, is poised to be a top education policy debate during the 2027 legislative session. Mississippi has 138 school districts, 15 community colleges and eight public universities. State leaders want to shrink those numbers by merging students, administrators and --- in some cases --- closing schools. School districts are set to receive $3 billion in state funding next school year. Community colleges and public universities are set to receive more than $1.26 billion. Mississippi Today talked to legislators, educators and residents across communities that have experienced school district consolidation or may be targeted for consolidation next year. The reporting reveals fears, successes and other insights. |
| Rural communities push back on school consolidation efforts: 'They're just looking at numbers on the paper' | |
| Mississippi has lost thousands of public school students over the past decade, leaving fewer children enrolled in the state's 138 school districts and less money to go around. State leaders think they've found a solution: School consolidation. House Speaker Jason White has formed a select committee to examine how merging districts in Mississippi could benefit students. Lawmakers say the state has too many small, underperforming school districts that spend too much on administration. Representatives have identified several counties as potential candidates for consolidation, including Tallahatchie, Copiah, Washington and Bolivar. But state leaders are struggling to articulate a cohesive vision. It's not clear if their intent is to merge staff, close schools or both. House Education Chairman Rob Roberson, a Republican from Starkville, says the push is primarily about improving education while acknowledging that saving money is another factor. But people in communities across Mississippi worry that state leaders are only concerned about saving money without considering how school closures will affect their small towns. |
| Community Profile: What haunts Melanie Anderson? The stories hiding in Gothic literature | |
| Melanie Anderson grew up in historic homes in several cities in northern Kentucky during the 1980s and 1990s. While she always loved the architecture of the homes and the history they encompassed, what really interested Anderson as a child was the potential that those homes could be haunted by ghosts. "The house that we lived in Verona, (Kentucky) was built in the 1800s, and so there was always this idea of what could have happened here before I lived here, and what does that mean? Could this space be haunted?" Anderson said. "I don't have any specific ghost stories per se, but just like the spookiness. ... I think a lot of kids are just fascinated by that sort of thing." Anderson, 47, said that dozens of readings of the Sesame Street children's book "The Monster at the End of This Book" and seasonal rewatchings of the "Ghostbusters" movie planted a seed of interest for her in the supernatural. That seed sprouted in adulthood, setting Anderson on a track to teach Gothic literature as a professor at several universities, including her most recent stint at Mississippi University for Women, and discuss those supernatural stories on podcasts with colleagues. |
| Tupelo author Joe Edd Morris creates scholarship for future writers | |
 | A lifetime of adventures has taught Mississippi writer Joe Edd Morris that a good story can begin almost anywhere: on a front porch, aboard a Mississippi River barge, in a Scottish pulpit, above the Arctic Circle or in a chance conversation with a fellow storyteller. For decades, the University of Mississippi alumnus and New Albany native has collected such moments, transforming them into fiction, essays and books. With a $50,000 gift to the university's College of Liberal Arts, he hopes to help the next generation of writers do the same. The author, career psychologist and longtime United Methodist minister established a scholarship endowment supporting graduate-level creative writing students. The gift reflects both his lifelong love of storytelling and his desire to invest in emerging writers. Morris grew up surrounded by stories. His path to becoming a writer, however, was anything but conventional. |
| U. of Alabama celebrates its contributions to Artemis missions at Texas A&M game | |
 | The University of Alabama commemorated its role in NASA's Artemis II mission at this weekend's game against Texas A&M. NASA astronauts and U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., held a plaque honoring a university flag that traveled more than 685,000 miles to the moon and back as part of the mission. The university played a crucial role in the mission through software developed on campus that helps calculate and design spacecraft trajectories, according to a previous UA news release. The Astrodynamics Software and Science Enabling Toolkit, developed in Dr. Rohan Sood's lab, evaluates safe trajectories for NASA's ongoing and future missions, including Artemis I and II. NASA used the toolkit to analyze the trajectory of Artemis I's Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage, which helped boost the Orion spacecraft toward the Moon. "When they detach the ICPS, engineers need to know whether it may come back to Earth or can be safely disposed of in space," Sood said. |
| AU awarded $22 million to establish Kay Ivey Institute for Civic Leadership | |
| The governor's office announced that the State of Alabama awarded $27 million to Public School and College Authority (PSCA) projects on Oct. 21. Of the total, Auburn University will receive $22 million, and the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences will receive $5 million. A press release from the office of the governor said the funds came from interest that has accrued since the original issuance in 2020. They also note that this additional commitment and personal championing add to more than $1.9 billion in PSCA funds that Gov. Kay Ivey has donated during her 10-year tenure as governor. "The [PSCA] funding allows us to make generational investments in the classrooms that are fostering future generations. There is simply no task more important than equipping our young people with the best opportunities to succeed," Ivey said. The funds were officially approved during a meeting of the PSCA where President Christopher B. Roberts appeared with other representatives for a photo with Ivey. |
| Louisiana's public colleges face $4B deferred maintenance backlog | |
| Louisiana public colleges and universities face a maintenance backlog of over $4 billion, according to a presentation to the state's board of regents last week from consultants with building intelligence firm Gordian. Eliminating that backlog and addressing upcoming maintenance needs would take annual capital spending of $777 million over the next decade, according to the presentation. The board voted last week to request $702.1 million for over 70 capital projects in the fiscal 2028 year. The regents also plan to request $1.4 billion in general fund money from the state for the institutions, as well as an additional $26.9 million in one-time funds. The regents are seeking the most money for the Louisiana State University system, for which regents are requesting $279.8 million for 23 ongoing projects and one new one in fiscal 2028. |
| Oklahoma retains declining share of its college graduates | |
| Graduates of Oklahoma public colleges are remaining in the state's workforce at a declining rate, a new report shows. A year after graduation, 76.5% of graduates from all fields of study and degree levels were still working in Oklahoma, according to a 2025 Employment Outcomes Report the state Regents for Higher Education released Monday. That number has fallen from 83% in 2024 and 87% in 2023, previous editions of the report show. Even fewer remained five years after graduation. In 2025, 70.8% of graduates were still part of Oklahoma's workforce after five years, similarly showing a steady decline from 2024 and 2023. After 10 years, 65.8% remained. Those who were Oklahoma residents before college tend to stay at a higher rate, according to the report. The latest report shows 87.5% of Oklahomans who graduated in-state remained after one year. That dropped to 81% after five years and 75% after 10 years. |
| OU Parking to make nearly $50,000 in citations in six weeks | |
| University of Oklahoma Parking and Transportation Services has reported nearly $50,000 in parking ticket revenue so far in the 2026 academic year. According to an open records request, OU Parking has written 6,258 parking tickets as of Oct. 5, raising $49,212 in revenue so far. The university reportedly made $5,196,178 in parking permit sales this year, reporting a total of $5,245,390 in total revenue including citations. A breakdown of the type of parking permit sold to spaces available reveals housing and faculty permits nearly equal spaces available, but commuter permits show a wider gap. OU Parking and Transportation Services Director Kris Glenn wrote in an email to the Daily Wednesday that revenue from parking citations and permit sales is used for various expenses, including repairs, maintenance and bonds for existing parking garages. The open records office wrote in its response it is a common misconception that OU Parking is overselling permits, particularly commuter permits. Commuters are on campus different days of the week and not on campus all at one time, the response reads. |
| Clemson seeks to cut costs with hundreds of voluntary buyouts | |
| Clemson University is offering voluntary buyout packages to 452 full-time employees in an effort to further shrink spending. The 6,000-employee university has sought to cut costs the past couple of years as expenses grew faster than revenues. The buyout offers, announced Thursday, went out to employees who are at least 59 1/2 years old or eligible for full pension benefits in South Carolina's retirement system as of June 30. Employees have 45 days to consider the offer and seven days to back out if they change their mind. Those who accept will receive a lump sum payment equal to nine months of base pay. The program is part of a deep dive by the university into how and where it invests its resources "to plan for the future and identify opportunities to strategically invest in its mission." If no employees accept the offer, the university has no plans for mandatory layoffs. And the school has no target number of buyouts it needs to hit, said Clemson spokesman Joe Galbraith. |
| 'A Different World' Reboot a 'Masterful' Reflection of HBCUs | |
 | A new generation of students stepped onto the fictional Hillman College's lush Virginia campus this fall. For historically Black colleges and university alumni and researchers, the reboot of A Different World represents the challenges facing HBCUs and their students in 2026 without losing the magic of the original. Thirty-nine years after A Different World premiered on NBC as a spin-off of The Cosby Show and tackled issues like racism, the HIV/AIDS epidemic and drug use, the Netflix reboot digs into the pressures on today's HBCU campuses. Students, faculty and administrators -- including some original characters and their children -- navigate federal funding cuts, terrorist bomb threats and deportation risks to students. The new show is also part of a larger "HBCU investment and excitement era," said Walter M. Kimbrough, executive vice president of the United Negro College Fund. That investment includes large donations from philanthropists such as MacKenzie Scott, who has given more than $1 billion to HBCUs in recent years. Meanwhile, notable HBCU alumni such as former Vice President Kamala Harris and attention from celebrities, such as Beyoncé, who set her 2019 documentary Homecoming at an HBCU, have raised the profile of these institutions and contributed to growing enrollment at some HBCUs, even as many predominantly white institutions struggle to enroll students. |
| Students Question Colleges' AI Push as Institutional Enthusiasm Grows | |
| As colleges and universities accelerate their adoption of artificial intelligence, some students are questioning whether institutional leaders are prioritizing their interests in decisions about the technology. The concerns come as higher education institutions continue to develop AI strategies and integrate tools into their operations. But data suggest institutional momentum may not be matched by unqualified confidence among the people colleges serve. A 2025 survey conducted by researchers at San Diego State University for the California State University system collected more than 94,000 responses from students, faculty and staff, including more than 80,000 students. The system had invited its more than 470,000 students and 61,000 faculty and staff to participate. The survey found that 69% of student respondents believed AI would become essential to most professions. At the same time, 82% expressed concern about AI's impact on job security. The findings illustrate a tension between preparing students for an AI-shaped workforce and addressing their concerns about what that future may hold. |
SPORTS
| Urgency ramping up for Lebby, Mississippi State | |
| Saturday's loss was disappointing for Jeff Lebby. The film did not help matters. Lebby cited third-down conversions, not being able to make key defensive stops, execution and turnovers during Monday's press conference as big reasons why Mississippi State lost to Oklahoma 23-15 on Saturday. "It's all about the ball. I truly believe it," Lebbu said. "If we take great care of the ball. If we didn't have that turnover, we had a real chance for the game to be different. They made those plays. We didn't, and that's the difference in the game." If the maroon and white are going to compete at a higher level and win more games in the latter months of the season, Lebby feels that "it's about Saturday". "It ain't got anything to do with anything else," he said. "Saturday is an opportunity for us to go in, be the best that we've been all year. That's what it's going to take. As we continue to move forward, we need to continue to get better. We need to be better this Saturday than we were this past Saturday, and that's what's going to give us a chance to go win." |
| Lebby's lectures: With Taylor's availability unclear, Puckett and Swann battle for backup role | |
| Mississippi State will know "a lot more" about Kamario Taylor's availability in the next 48 hours, head coach Jeff Lebby said Monday. Taylor's return against Oklahoma lasted all of 15 minutes after re-aggravating a lower right leg injury he's dealt with for multiple weeks. He was out in MSU's 31-0 loss against LSU two weeks ago and was not fully healthy in the Bulldogs' loss to Alabama earlier this month. "We're still in the process of looking at everything," Lebby said. "He is doing good, his spirits are good." It'll be either Billy Puckett or AJ Swann filling the quarterback role if Taylor is not good enough to go at Texas. Puckett, a redshirt freshman who walked on at MSU last year, filled in for Taylor against LSU and Oklahoma. He's gone 41-64 with 368 yards, two interceptions and one touchdown. Swann transferred to MSU this offseason from Appalachian State, but started 12 games at Vanderbilt across the 2022 and 2023 seasons. He played in seven games last year at Appalachian State, throwing for 1,495 yards, 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions. |
| Everything Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said about Mississippi State, Kamario Taylor and more | |
| Out with one Mississippi school capable of putting a hurt on Texas. In with another. Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said a lot in his Monday press conference, mostly comments centered on his Longhorns and the state of his program coming out of a victory over then-No. 7 Ole Miss (5-2). But Sark also took time to preview this Saturday's game against Mississippi State (4-3), of course. And in some ways, it's a similar challenge to what the No. 11 Horns (5-2) just faced in combatting the Rebels' Trinidad Chambliss. If he plays (foot injury), MSU's Kamario Taylor can be just as much of a headache to contain as Chambliss was supposed to be heading into last weekend's matchup. It's not just Taylor, either. It's the slew of playmakers Mississippi State boasts and what that offense is capable of when it's humming, even if it isn't at the moment coming in with three consecutive losses. "I think the first thing with Mississippi State is fast," Sarkisian said. "It kind of blinks into my head. They play really fast. I think they snap the ball with an average of 27 seconds still left on the play clock. That's how fast they want to snap the ball. They spread you wide with their splits and they play fast on the perimeter. And I felt like that hurt us last year in the game at their place, their speed, their splits, their ability to play in space. And then the quarterback decision-making and the accuracy of the ball, I think, is something that helps their scheme. Kamario has that." |
| When Jeff Lebby said Mississippi State will know if Kamario Taylor can play vs Texas | |
 | Mississippi State football coach Jeff Lebby did not have a definitive update on star quarterback Kamario Taylor's injury status in his Oct. 26 news conference. "We're still in the process of looking at everything," Lebby said. "He is doing good. His spirits are good, but as we continue to move forward, I think we'll know a lot more here in the next 48 hours." Mississippi State (4-3, 2-3 SEC) plays at No. 11 Texas (5-2, 3-2) on Oct. 31 (6:30 p.m., ESPN). Lebby also announced starting linebacker Jalen Smith suffered a season-ending injury from the Oct. 3 game against Alabama. Lebby said Smith had surgery but did not reveal what the injury is. Mississippi State has not said what Taylor's exact injury is, besides that he reaggravated it against Oklahoma. Taylor watched the remainder of the game from the sideline with a boot on his right foot. |
| Prescott says NFC East 'right in front of us' as Cowboys end 2-game slide | |
| Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has been around long enough to know there was added importance to Monday night's game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Having lost two straight to fall to 2-4, Prescott helped make sure the streak ended, throwing three touchdown passes in the Cowboys' 38-21 win. The Cowboys averted a three-game losing streak, kept pace with the 4-2-1 New York Giants in the NFC East and at least temporarily interrupted the unease that was developing around the team. "We say the division's right in front of us. It is as long as we win," Prescott said. "And if you lose another game, then you're probably checking to see what New York's doing. You're probably checking and watching the other teams more than we should. So yeah, I mean you got to win games, got to win division games. How big of a game this was, understanding how much they're hurt on their offensive side, yeah, huge road win for us." |
| Ahead of Rome tipoff, basketball powerhouse Villanova embraces 'Pope Leo effect' | |
| At Villanova University, all roads -- or at least many of them -- seem to lead to Rome, thanks to famed alumnus Pope Leo XIV and the school's growing ties to the Vatican. Even its vaunted basketball program is getting in on the act. "We certainly have a bigger footprint there now than we used to," said the Rev. Peter Donohue, Villanova's president. "People do know who we are, just because it's the pope's school." The pope graduated from Villanova with a degree in mathematics in 1977. He belongs to the Augustinians, the religious order that founded the university near Philadelphia in 1842. Now his alma mater is finding new and inventive connections to his papacy. On Sunday, the men's and women's basketball teams from Villanova will open the season in Rome with a Catholic university matchup, playing Notre Dame 6 miles (9.6 kilometers) from the Vatican in what organizers are calling the Eternal City Tip-Off. The doubleheader comes only weeks after Villanova hosted a sustainability conference in Rome and awarded a cardinal with the inaugural Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal. |
| Pat McAfee blasts U. of Utah after 'College GameDay' visit: 'I think I hate this place' | |
| ESPN personality and "College GameDay" commentator Pat McAfee did not enjoy his visit to the University of Utah this past weekend. That seemed clear when McAfee ended the broadcast by saying, "I'll never see you again, hopefully." But he confirmed it on Monday during "The Pat McAfee Show." "I've enjoyed this college football season -- did not enjoy the University of Utah. Did not enjoy it," McAfee said. Why? A post from the University of Utah's official Instagram account. "Right before I go out there, I see that the university's Instagram page ... they put out a video, 'Can you do an impression of Pat McAfee?' "One kid goes, 'Ah, he's corny,' and another kid calls me 'creepy.' OK, if these kids would have done this on their own blogs, all good. Everybody's taking shots at me for everything. I get it. ... The university puts that out as I'm about to go do an infomercial for the place?" The Instagram post has since been deleted. |
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