| Monday, January 8, 2018 |
| Andy Cannizaro to headline Breakfast with the Bulldogs | |
 | Mississippi State head baseball coach Andy Cannizaro will be the guest speaker for Breakfast with the Bulldogs, scheduled for 7:30 a.m. Jan. 11 at Starkville Cafe. All MSU Alumni and friends are invited to attend the dutch treat breakfast meeting. Cannizaro became Mississippi State's 17th head baseball coach on Nov. 16, 2016. In his first year at the helm of the Diamond Dawgs in 2017, Cannizaro became just the second first-year head coach in program history to notch a 40-win season and reach the NCAA Super Regional round. It was a historic first year in multiple ways as Cannizaro's club became the 22nd team in the current 64-team NCAA Tournament format to win a regional after losing the opening game as MSU won four games in two days to claim the Hattiesburg Regional. Breakfast with the Bulldogs is held monthly and is sponsored by the Oktibbeha County Chapter of the MSU Alumni Association. |
| Golden Triangle communities plan MLK Day events | |
 | On Monday, Jan 15, Mississippi State University will host the 24th annual Unity Breakfast at 8 a.m. at The Mill located at 600 Russell St. A 9 a.m. program follows featuring former Rep. Tyrone Ellis, recently retired after serving Mississippi's District 38 for 38 years in the Mississippi House of Representatives. Doors open at 7:30 a.m.; seating is first-come, first-served. At the conclusion of the program, participants are encouraged to take part in a Day of Service at nonprofits in the community from 10:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Transportation to sites will be provided after the Unity Breakfast. Volunteers are asked to register in advance at mlkdaystarkville.com or call 662-325-2150. |
| Mississippi arboretum looking for milkweed hunter-growers | |
 | Mississippi State University's arboretum is looking for gardeners who know where milkweed's growing wild and want to help monarch butterflies. Crosby Arboretum director Pat Drackett hopes gardeners around Mississippi will both experiment with seed from local plants and send seeds to the arboretum. "This is a great type of project that concerned gardeners anywhere in the country can do," Drackett said. The 70 or so U.S. milkweed species include 15 native to Mississippi, said Drackett, who is leading a Mississippi State University Extension Service project to find which are best for gardens in the state. It started because so many people called to ask about milkweed in 2015, as word spread about historically low monarch butterfly populations. |
| Mississippi State's Keith Coble: Stable Forecast for U.S. Crop Prices | |
 | U.S. grain prices and crop demand for 2017-2018 will likely show no major changes, according to Dr. Keith Coble, former chief economist for Senate Agriculture Committee Republicans and the head of the Agricultural Economics Department at Mississippi State University. Coble spoke to workshop attendees during the American Farm Bureau Federation's 2018 Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show about global crop trends and the U.S. farm policy outlook for the upcoming year. Trends for 2018 will be similar to 2017, unless a major disruption occurs, such as weather or foreign market changes, Coble said. "We are really not seeing anything that is significantly moving the markets up or down in the short-term," said Coble. "Markets are going to see mostly sideways movement. Cotton is the most promising of the commodities." |
| Poultry industry on the rise in Mississippi | |
 | Agriculture is a 7.6 billion dollar industry in Mississippi according to recent Value of Production estimates reported by the Mississippi State University Extension Service. Agricultural productions are the highest it's been since 2014. The state's poultry productions netted 330 thousand dollars more than its 2016 estimate. The net growth for poultry is primarily driven by increases in prices. Brian Williams is with the Mississippi State University Extension Services. He says the price of broiler hens increased seven cents per pound and the average price of a dozen eggs rose from $1.91 to $2.27. "As farmers do well in our rural communities, they take the money they're making and invest it in local communities and it really just helps the community as a whole and helps our state economy as a whole," says Williams. |
| Mississippi State campus brief: The 'real-world' of Ripley reimagined | |
 | Mississippi State University's Carl Small Town Center has collaborated with students in the university's College of Architecture, Art and Design to reimagine a popular site in Ripley as part of a proposed master plan for the Tippah County town. The center solicited help from MSU Assistant Professor Fred Esenwein's fourth-year architecture studio class to generate ideas for the 50-acre First Monday Trade Days and Flea Market site in Ripley, a project for which the center has been working on a master plan since August. Ripley residents and center staff provided feedback to students over the course of the project. The architecture students received words of praise when they recently presenting their completed projects to Ripley stakeholders at the Carl Small Town Center in MSU's Giles Hall. The center will incorporate the students' design recommendations into a master plan fostering economic growth and community development in Ripley and Tippah County as a whole. |
| How to defeat a nerve agent | |
| The long-term effects of nerve agents remain uncertain, but with the right antidotes, these poisons need not be an immediate death sentence. Janice Chambers, a biologist at Mississippi State University in Starkville, together with her late husband, Howard Chambers, created a novel oxime with a fat-loving group that should help it traverse the blood-brain barrier. It alleviated symptoms in rats exposed to nerve agent surrogates and is undergoing further testing. |
| Flu season and cases rampant in Golden Triangle, state | |
| While not everyone has the flu, this year's flu season has been seen more cases than normal, based on data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and the Mississippi Department of Health. Mississippi's flu rate spiked considerably last month, more than doubling from 6 percent to 12.2 percent. The percentage is based on the number of patients reporting flu symptoms compared to other patients. The 12.2 percent is the highest in the state in at least four years, according to the data. Teena Young, a nurse at Laird Clinic of Family Medicine in Starkville, said treating flu patients had become a daily occurrence. "Even people who have had flu shots are coming in with symptoms," Young said. "But that doesn't mean you shouldn't get a flu shot. We still recommend it. You might still get the flu if you have the vaccine, but it's not going to be as severe." |
| Airbus: Lakota contract needed to keep employees working | |
| Airbus Helicopters took the first step Thursday is securing a new contract for UH-72 Lakota light utility helicopters that may ensure the viability of the Lowndes County facility that assembles the aircraft. Company officials announced it has responded to a U.S. Army "sources sought" notice for bids on 28 new helicopters. Congress approved $187 million for the purchase of helicopters. Although bids are open to all manufacturers, Airbus officials believe the company's track record in supplying UH-72s to the U.S. Army puts them in a favorable position. Although company officials were not available for comment, the company released a statement noting the importance of landing the new contract to the local facility, which assembles the helicopters. |
| Back To School: Policymakers talk education issues for 2018 session | |
| With the Legislature now in session and a new chairman announced for the House Education Committee Friday, education issues will be among those facing towns across Mississippi. Last year, state legislators voted to lower education funding statewide by more than four percent, forcing Mississippi school districts to make across the board cuts in their 2017 budgets. The main education item on the table this session is a possible new funding formula based on recommendations from consulting firm EdBuild, which first presented to legislators in October 2016. There is a chance a voucher program may also be discussed. Rep. Rob Roberson, R-Starkville, who also serves as Vice-Chair of the House Education Committee, said he didn't expect the House's education discussions to deviate too far from the funding formula, due to Rep. Richard Bennett, R-Long Beach just being appointed chairman. |
| Bill aims to curb Mississippi Delta teacher shortage | |
| Former Mississippi Gov. William Winter has often said, "The only road out of poverty runs by the schoolhouse door." In the Mississippi Delta, the schoolhouse doors might be aged and battered, but they are open. And chances are more often than not that the resource-poor school districts housing those weathered frames are fighting to recruit teachers. Adding to the woes is a shrinking pool of applicants. The number of elementary degrees awarded through the state's traditional teacher programs has decreased by more than 30 percent since 2010. Last month, Higher Education Commissioner Glenn Boyce acknowledged to reporters, "we absolutely have a serious, serious teacher crisis going on in the state of Mississippi." |
| Freshman Jay Hughes could try to run statewide despite odds | |
 | Speaker Philip Gunn, R-Clinton, saw Rep. Jay Hughes D-Oxford, at the end of a recent session of the Mississippi House and warned him that he has heard a reporter is doing a story on him. "See, we get along," Gunn says as the two legislators and former University of Mississippi Law School classmates stand side-by-side as if posing -- albeit stiffly -- for a photo. The freshman Hughes took the bold, and some would say suicidal, step of filing a lawsuit against the speaker earlier this term to try to force bills to be read at a slower and more understandable pace by a computer reading application being used by the House leadership. The lawsuit went all the way to the state Supreme Court before Gunn prevailed. Speculation is that Hughes, an Oxford attorney/real estate developer, is vying to be in position where he and Gunn would be on a more level playing field, politically speaking. The not-so-secret talk in the Capitol is that Hughes is planning to run in the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor in 2019. |
| Hospitals reach for lucrative Medicaid contract in draft tech bill | |
| Lawmakers are reviewing a draft proposal that would give a chunk of the lucrative Medicaid contract awarded in June to a provider-sponsored health plan -- of which one exists in Mississippi. This follows several months of contention over the Division of Medicaid's award of a new $2 billion managed care contract to Magnolia Health Plan, UnitedHealthcare and Molina Healthcare instead of Mississippi True, a provider-sponsored health plan formed by 65 local hospitals. The early draft of the Medicaid bill includes revisions prepared by several health care stakeholders, which have been meeting in a discussion group facilitated by the Mississippi Hospital Association since the summer. It has not yet been filed. |
| Analysis: Opponents say school merger won't save money | |
| Residents trying to prevent consolidation of the Richton and Perry County school districts are trying a new argument -- that combining the two would cost more money and not less. Lawmakers last year appointed a study commission of people from the two districts to suggest plans for a merger. That's a common tactic when local lawmakers are fighting consolidation. Such committees often reject the mandate to plan for a combination and instead fight. For a time, it appeared Perry and Richton County would work together on a plan. But while the report they sent back does lay out a skeletal merger plan, commission members ultimately decided they too wanted to fight to preserve their districts' autonomy. |
| Workforce Readiness, Infrastructure Top Business Priorities in Mississippi | |
| Infrastructure funding and workforce development are the two primary legislative goals for the state's business community, Mississippi Economic Council Chairman William Yates said at the organization's "Capital Day" on Thursday, Jan. 4. State business leaders had the annual meet-up with lawmakers and legislative leaders at the Jackson Marriott and the Mississippi Capitol. "We asked the leaders in our MEC (listening) tour if they would be willing to spend money to help preserve and improve our infrastructure, and 95.4 percent said they would," Yates, the chief executive officer of Yates Construction, said at the Jackson Marriott on Thursday. |
| Political corruption helped drive DMR employee to suicide, judge concludes | |
 | Michaela Hill knew what her boss was doing at the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources was wrong. She tried to stop Bill Walker, the DMR executive director. Not only did she fail, but she found out at a DMR meeting with Walker and other executives in May 2012 that she could be blamed for his wrongdoing. She left the building and never returned to work. Her family said it was as if a light switch shut off in Hill's head. She became a different person. Hill attempted suicide two days after that fateful meeting. The 52-year-old grandmother succeeded in killing herself on Aug. 18, 2012, two days before she was due back to work from medical leave. Details surrounding her suicide are included in a Mississippi Workers' Compensation Commission order. The judge in the case, Robert J. Arnold III, found evidence "clear and convincing" that Hill suffered from "mental derangement" that her employer inflicted on her, leading to her suicide. |
| Justices won't step into Mississippi gay rights legal fight | |
| The Supreme Court is refusing to intervene in a legal fight over a Mississippi law that lets government workers and private business people cite their own religious beliefs to deny services to LGBT people. Opponents say the law could lead to discrimination against those who support same-sex marriage. The legal battle is not over, though. A federal judge has allowed the law's challengers to try to find people who have been denied services under the law because they would be able to make a strong legal claim that they have been harmed. The justices did not comment Monday in their decision to leave in place a federal appeals court ruling that allowed the law to take effect. |
| Unexpected vacancy quickly draws first candidate in race for Gregg Harper's seat | |
| A little more than 24 hours after shoo-in incumbent Rep. Gregg Harper announced he would not run for re-election this year, the first candidate to replace him qualified for the seat. Michael Guest, a Brandon native who has served as district attorney for Madison and Rankin counties since 2008, qualified Friday afternoon to run for Mississippi's third congressional district. "I've been talking to friends and family and praying about it," Guest told Mississippi Today on Friday afternoon, minutes before qualifying at the Mississippi Republican Party headquarters. More candidates are expected to enter the race. Filing deadline is March 1, party primaries are June 5 and the general election is Nov. 6. |
| McConnell dances on Bannon's grave | |
 | Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his allies rang in the new year with a week-long celebration of Steve Bannon's self-immolation. But the festivities may prove to be short-lived. The Republican leader still has a slate of brutal GOP primaries looming in the first half of this year that could jeopardize his party's hold on the Senate -- even with Bannon out of the picture, assuming that his breakup with President Donald Trump and the wealthy Mercer family lasts. Still, McConnell's team believes -- probably with good reason -- that their job in 2018 is now significantly easier without Bannon to marshal insurgent forces against incumbent Republican senators and cost the party crucial Senate seats. That's precisely what they blame him for doing in Alabama, where the party nominated Bannon-backed Roy Moore only to watch him blow a seemingly can't-lose race. |
| Farmers fret over disappearing profits, hope Trump will hear their concerns | |
| More than pestilence, dying livestock or rotting crops, trade and immigration reform are front of mind for many American farmers, who have seen profit margins dwindle in recent decades. As President Donald Trump comes to Nashville on Monday to speak before the American Farm Bureau Federation's annual conference, that's the message the nation's farmers want him to hear. Will Rodger, a policy expert for the American Farm Bureau Federation, the nation's largest farm organization, said the farmers who remain in business have done so because they've adjusted to changes that have reshaped the industry. Technological advancements in nearly every aspect of the industry have allowed fewer farmers to work more land and harvest more crops, but these large bounties and economies of scale have pushed out small operations and at times flooded the market. |
| As Trump Appeals to Farmers, Some of His Policies Don't | |
 | President Trump will head to Tennessee on Monday to appeal to farmers, a key demographic that helped elect him, as he promotes his tax law and previews a new White House strategy to help rural America. But back in Washington, some of the economic policies his administration is pursuing are at odds with what many in the farm industry say is needed, from a potentially drastic shift in trade policies that have long supported agriculture to some little-noticed tax increases in the $1.5 trillion tax law. American farmers are facing some of the most challenging times in a generation. |
| MUW's Jim Borsig to step down in June | |
| Jim Borsig announced today he is stepping down as Mississippi University for Women's president. Borsig will leave MUW in June, six and a half years after taking the position. He made his announcement at the 2018 faculty and staff convocation at Nissan Auditorium on MUW's campus today. "It's been a great honor to serve this university as president," Borsig said. Borsig did not give a reason for leaving the university but said he is "refocusing" not retiring. |
| MUW President Jim Borsig to step down in June | |
 | Mississippi University for Women President Dr. Jim Borsig announced Monday he will leave the university in late June. Borsig was appointed to lead the university on Nov. 30, 2011. He will step down on June 30, 2018. "Anticipating your questions, I want you to know that I am healthy, in good spirits, and looking forward to what comes next," he stated in a letter to the university. He stated the university is in a good place and has a bright future. "Serving as president of The W is without question the highlight of my career, and I am grateful for every day I have worked with you to change the lives of our students." He finished by stating he and his family will live in Maine. |
| MUW president Jim Borsig steps down | |
| Upon accepting the position of president at Mississippi University for Women in Columbus in 2011, Jim Borsig said he hoped his presidency would be "an inflection point placing the university on a path to embrace its 21st century identity". Seven years later, the school's 14th president stated he was content with the work he had done during his time at The W and therefore was ready to step down from his position. "Since this job doesn't come with an expiration date or a win-loss record, it's up to the president to know when it's time," Borsig said in this month's presidential letter to the university. "For me, that time is now." Borsig informed the Commissioner of Higher Education and Board of Trustees of his decision last week and notified faculty and students during a school convocation earlier today. He added he and his wife, Kate, will move to Maine and he plans to maintain his connection to Columbus through the non-profit organization, Global Connections. |
| Pine Belt colleges, universities work with first-generation students | |
 | Southern Miss sophomore Brandon Rue is doing something no one else in his family has ever done -- he's going to college. Rue, like a majority of students at the University of Southern Mississippi, is a first-generation college student. Because of that distinction, he has found college a little more difficult than students whose parents have college degrees. "I didn't have the proper resources at home," he said. "It was a struggle to know who to talk to, what to look for in a college, how to choose a college. I didn't know what to expect or how to handle situations college students go through. I talked to adults on campus about it, but the struggle was finding those people." Amy Miller, Southern Miss vice provost for academic affairs, said the university's first-generation students may feel alone in their struggles. "We try from orientation on to acknowledge that we are proud to serve a large first-generation student body," she said. "A lot of times, they don't realize their challenges aren't unique. |
| Jackson State University delays move in for students until Jan. 13 | |
| Jackson State University will be closed Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 8-9, due to continuing water-pressure issues after a long period of subfreezing temperatures have caused water mains around the city to break. The campus is scheduled to resume normal operations Wednesday, Jan. 10, officials said. Students moving in will have to wait until Saturday, Jan. 13 at 9 a.m. Classes will begin on Tuesday, Jan. 16. The deadline to complete registration will also be extended by one week, leaders said. JSU's closure will help alleviate the stress on the water system. |
| Dickerson to serve as keynote speaker at Meridian Community College's King celebration | |
 | Entrepreneur Learnard G. Dickerson will be the keynote speaker when Meridian Community College's MLK Commemorative Celebration gets under way at 1 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 11. The event, hosted by the College's Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Celebration Committee, will be held in the McCain Theater located in Ivy Hall on the MCC campus. The theme: "Get Involved and Make a Difference." The public is invited to attend. Dickerson is chief executive officer and president of DACO LLC, a public relations and marketing firm which offers a broad range of services including event planning, strategic planning, printing, apparel and graphic design. He holds a bachelor's degree in physics from Xavier University of Louisiana and a master's of business administration from Mississippi State University. |
| Hinds Community College closes one campus, moves classes to another location | |
| Hinds Community College's Jackson Campus-Nursing/Allied Health Center on Chadwick Drive is closed Monday, January 8th, because the campus has no water, officials say. All classes will meet and are being moved to alternate locations. Students should check their college email for specifics. Monday is the first day of classes for the spring semester. |
| New U. of Kentucky dining hall set to open in renovated student center | |
 | The University of Kentucky's massive $201 million student center renovation won't be finished until May. But starting Sunday, a newly finished dining area will be serving food to students, faculty, staff and whoever wants to stop by. "Champions Kitchen" is a 750-seat dining hall, which will offer food for many tastes, including a bakery, a breakfast station, a salad bar and something called a "worry-free zone," where food is made in a kitchen without any exposure to gluten, peanuts, tree nuts or shellfish. The facility will offer some local foods, as required by UK's contract with corporate giant Aramark, which operates all of the school's food services. The student center renovation will add about 140,000 square feet to the former student center. |
| South Carolina colleges have millions in building needs: Will they get any money from the state? | |
 | South Carolina's colleges and universities want less this year from the Legislature. But the answer could be the same: No. Colleges and universities made it a priority a year ago to get a bond bill through the S.C. Legislature that would allow them to pay for their long-term maintenance needs for campus buildings. However, that push failed when lawmakers balked at $1.1 billion in borrowing requests, and Gov. Henry McMaster threatened to veto the bond bill if it passed. When lawmakers return to Columbia on Tuesday, the dollar amount the colleges are seeking this year has been winnowed down to $500 million and, with road repairs addressed in 2017, the competition for state money should be less. But lawmakers are unsure even a smaller borrowing bill for higher education can win passage. |
| UGA, other campuses delay opening or closed today | |
 | The University of Georgia will delay the opening of classes this morning due to weather conditions. According to a university spokesman, the campus opens at 10 a.m. today with the first class starting at 10:10 a.m. All campuses of the University of North Georgia will delay opening until 1 p.m. today, according to its website. The National Weather Service noted on its website there is a chance for freezing rain before noon in the Athens area and a possibility of rain continuing into the afternoon. |
| Andrea Jones named Extension Specialist of the Year for work at U. of Missouri | |
 | Andrea Jones was named 2018 Extension Cotton Specialist of the year for her work as a research associate at the University of Missouri. The award is sponsored by Bayer and presented each year at a dinner during the Beltwide Cotton Conferences. Jones, the first woman to earn the honor, accepted the award during the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in San Antonio Thursday. "She took that position and became the de facto cotton specialist for Missouri through hard work, dedication, and commitment to helping anyone in need," says Darrin Dodds, Extension cotton specialist for Mississippi State University. Jones left the University of Missouri in July and is working for an ag industry company is a sales role. |
| New book argues most colleges are about to face significant decline in prospective students | |
 | Yes, everyone in admissions knows that certain groups of students -- those who graduate from good high schools and have parents able to pay a significant share or all of their tuition and other college expenses -- are shrinking in number. And the situation is more severe in the Northeast and Midwest, where populations are shrinking, than in other parts of the country. Those demographic realities, known for years, have led colleges to adjust strategies: new programs to attract adult students. Online education. More outreach to parts of the country where the population is growing. Attracting full-pay international students. Some combination of those and other ideas will work for most institutions, enrollment professionals have said. But what if they are wrong? What if the demographics are about to get much worse for higher education than the experts have expected? Optimists and plenty of others in higher education may be concerned by Demographics and the Demand for Higher Education, in which Nathan D. Grawe suggests a bleak outlook for most institutions when it comes to attracting and enrolling students. |
| Congress Changed 529 College Savings Plans, And Now States Are Nervous | |
 | If you're like most Americans, you don't have a 529 college savings plan. If you're like most Americans, you don't even know what it is. All the more reason to keep reading. That's because, with the new tax law, Republicans have made important changes to 529 plans that will affect millions of taxpayers, not just the ones saving for college. After Congress' rewrite of the tax code, parents can now use 529 plans to cover tuition not only at colleges and universities, but also at private elementary and high schools. That's a big, sudden expansion, and it has some experts worried. |
| Engaging introverts | |
| Angela Farmer, an assistant professor of educational leadership at Mississippi State, writes: "As the school semester begins again, it is a great time to consider the personality types of students within the classrooms. As is most often the case, students with extraverted personalities are much like the wheel that squeaks and gets the grease, these students secure the most feedback. For actively engaged students with such vivacious tendencies, school is set up to reward their behavior. Rather it is viewed as class participation for most energetically interacting with the teacher's posits, consistently asking questions for better understanding or simply sitting near the front of the class and demonstrating consistent classroom feedback, extraverts get the teacher's eye. While these behaviors are easily recognizable and provide the teacher with clear guidance on that particular student's cognition, there is an equally populace group of students for whom such interactions are more challenging." |
| The ABCs of economic development for small towns | |
| Columnist and consultant Phil Hardwick writes: "Mayors of just about all small towns are part-time individuals interested and willing to serve their communities. They do not get paid very much and most are not holders of college degrees in economic or community development. They learn quickly that there is a lot to learn about being the CEO of a small town. One of the many resources for small town mayors to learn about economic development and other functions of local government is the Mississippi Municipal League, especially the League's Annual Conference. There are dozens of educational opportunities for local officials at the event. One of the presentations that I make at the conference is entitled 'The ABC's of Economic Development for Small Towns.'" |
| Local government at risk from online sales, store closings | |
 | Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford of Meridian writes: "Stagnant tax policies and anti-tax fervor coupled with the Legislature's inattention to changing business patterns will play havoc with local government financing over the coming years. ...Surging online sales are also beginning to impact city and county property taxes as more and more retail outlets close. This is a double whammy for municipalities as they lose both sales and property taxes. ...Fast changing business patterns have dire implications for traditional local government financing. Stagnant tax policies, which are totally under control of state legislators, need to be modernized and reformed with regard to local government." |
| Turning down federal money hurts our state | |
| Mississippi newspaper publisher and columnist Wyatt Emmerich writes: "A New year! 2018. That marks 28 years of columns, 1,456 in all. That's the equivalent of writing 16 books. Whew! Mississippi is not off to a good start. The Census Department is reporting that our state has lost population three years in a row. The losses are just a few thousand, but it means for the first time in 50 years, Mississippi has stopped growing. The state economy is also in the doldrums, with the tenth lowest economic growth rate. Much of the loss comes from cutbacks in government. Like it or not, government is a big part of our economy, responsible for about 20 percent of the jobs in Mississippi. When you cut government, you cut jobs. People leave. ...It is a paradox for our state. What may be good for the nation is bad for our state. Federal government sector growth needs restraining, but this restraint is killing Mississippi's economy." |
| Legislature has eventful first week | |
| The Clarion-Ledger's Geoff Pender writes: "The House Republican leadership wasted no time in rushing out three road-and-bridge funding bills in the first week of the Mississippi legislative session, although they would provide scant money in the short term and may be on a road to nowhere in the Senate. The bills, passed by the full House late Thursday, would borrow $50 million for city and county bridges, halt new state road construction in favor of maintenance on existing roads and divert potential future state revenue growth to roads and bridges. Another bill, passed by committee but still pending a full House vote, would divert future growth in voluntarily paid online sales taxes to infrastructure. The bills appear to be more symbolic of House Speaker Philip Gunn's wish to address infrastructure needs and to try to get the ball rolling than to provide the several hundred million more dollars a year that business and transportation leaders say is needed." |
SPORTS
| Teaira McCowan Leads Unbeaten No. 5 Mississippi State Past LSU | |
| Teaira McCowan was out of position and out of sorts in the first half of No. 5 Mississippi State game with LSU Sunday, but the 6-foot-7 junior center reasserted herself in the second to finish with 31 points and 20 rebounds in an 83-70 victory. McCowan had 23 and 12 rebounds after intermission to keep Mississippi State unbeaten at 17-0, 3-0 in Southeastern Conference play. McCowan wasted little time getting on track, scoring her team's first nine points of the second half to expand a nine-point halftime lead to 53-37. LSU (10-4, 2-1) got no closer than 10 points the rest of the game. McCowan made only three of 10 shots in the first half as LSU kept her uncomfortable by pushing her off the block |
| Teaira McCowan too much for Lady Tigers to handle in 83-70 loss to No. 5 Mississippi State | |
 | LSU's game plan going into Sunday was to limit Teaira McCowan's play around the rim. If the Lady Tigers had any hope of upsetting No. 5 Mississippi State, it couldn't let the 6-foot-7 center reach her comfort zone down low. They were not successful. McCowan doubled up on her claim as the only SEC player since at least 2000 to score 30 points and 20 rebounds in a single game when she burned LSU for 31 points and 20 rebounds on Sunday. She also recorded an assist, a block and a steal against LSU. And just as LSU feared, with McCowan rolling, so, too, did Mississippi State. LSU's eight-game win streak snapped with an 83-70 loss on its home court. |
| Roses and thorns: 1/7/18 -- A rose to Mississippi State men's and women's basketball | |
| A rose to Mississippi State's men's and women's basketball programs, which have a combined record of 29-1 entering the weekend. The MSU women, ranked third in the nation, are undefeated at 16-0, mirroring the women's start last year, when the Bulldogs begin the season 21-0 en route to the national finals. The MSU men's performance is a bit more surprising. The Bulldogs are 13-1 and coming off an upset of then-22nd ranked Arkansas in their SEC opener. Although the MSU men haven't played the toughest of schedules to date, the win over Arkansas suggests the Bulldogs are headed in the right direction. It should be a fun season of basketball for both the men's and women's teams. |
| Mississippi State's Jace Christmann earns Freshman All-American status | |
| After years of inconsistency at kicker, Mississippi State had a turnaround at that position this year with the emergence of Jace Christmann. On Monday, Christmann named a Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America after converting 12 of 14 field goal attempts and all 42 extra points. The Houston, Texas native took over the placekicking duties during Week 2 against Louisiana Tech and finished third in the SEC in field goal percentage. The Bulldogs have had back-to-back FWAA Freshman All-Americans as Christmann follows up linebacker Leo Lewis from last year. |
| Montez Sweat will return to Mississippi State for senior season | |
| The Southeastern Conference's sack leader usually enjoys a lofty NFL draft selection. Montez Sweat could have joined other college seniors and early draft entrants in April after leading the SEC with 10 1/2 sacks. Instead, he'll take one more year with the Bulldogs. MSU's hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker announced Saturday he will return for his senior season, his second at MSU after transferring from Copiah-Lincoln Community College. "In just one year, I've seen Starkville and Mississippi State are extremely special to me and so many people," Sweat said in a statement. "It's been a blessing in so many ways, and while we accomplished a lot in 2017, I know 2018 can be something special. With that being said, I am excited to announce I am returning to Mississippi State for my senior season in 2018. Can't wait to get back to work with my brothers! Hail State!" |
| Montez Sweat returning to Starkville for senior season | |
| Joe Moorhead and Mississippi State received some good news Saturday as first team All-SEC defensive end/ outside linebacker Montez Sweat announced he was returning for his senior season. Sweat led the SEC with 10.5 sacks and 15.5 tackes for loss during his initial season with the Bulldogs after transferring in from Copiah-Lincoln Community College and Michigan State. The 6-foot-6, 241-pounder from Stone Mountain, Georgia earned three SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week awards and finished sixth on the team with 46 tackles and recovered a fumble. |
| Montez Sweat turns down NFL, will return to Mississippi State | |
| Bob Shoop's job just got a little bit easier. Defensive end Montez Sweat announced Saturday that he's returning for his senior season at Mississippi State, giving new defensive coordinator Shoop and the rest of the Bulldogs back the SEC's leading pass-rusher in 2017. "While we accomplished a lot in 2017, I know 2018 can be something special," Sweat said in a statement. "With that being said, I am excited to announce I am returning to Mississippi State for my senior season in 2018." Sweat recorded 10.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss this season, his first in Starkville after starting his career at Michigan State and Co-Lin Community College. Both totals are tied for the SEC lead and were the most at Mississippi State by a significant margin. |
| Former player feels Luke Getsy will be good fit at Mississippi State | |
| Luke Getsy deserves a lot of credit for the success of Patrick Smith, both the 14-4 touchdown to interception ratio as a college football player and the five-year career in athletic administration that's happened since. At least, Smith is convinced of it. Now Getsy will try to do the same for Mississippi State. MSU announced Getsy as its wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator Friday evening, doubling as the final offensive hire to complete head coach Joe Moorhead's first staff. Getsy comes to MSU after four years with the Green Bay Packers, the first two as an offensive quality control coach before the last two as the wide receivers coach. "They're getting a tremendous coach. I have the utmost respect for Coach Getsy," Smith told The Dispatch. Smith played quarterback for Getsy for two years at Indiana University-Pennsylvania (IUP), where Getsy was the offensive coordinator in 2011 and 2012. |
| Mississippi State brings on three staffers with NFL ties, Baker and Buckley return | |
| The Mississippi State football coaching staff is gaining some NFL flair this season. The program officially announced three additions with NFL ties to new head coach Joe Moorhead's first staff Friday: Tem Lukabu as linebackers coach and Andrew Warsaw as director of football operations, in addition to the previously reported news of Packers receivers coach Luke Getsy as offensive coordinator and receivers coach. Defensive line coach Brian Baker and cornerbacks coach Terrell Buckley will also continue in their current positions. |
| Overtime Sports Names Mississippi State Alum Keair Edwards Head Groundskeeper at MGM Park | |
| Overtime Sports has announced the hiring of Keair Edwards to serve as the Overtime Sports head groundskeeper for events at Biloxi's MGM Park. That includes all High School, Jr. College, College, Conference USA Championship Tournament games and other events at the facility. Edwards currently serves as the Sports Field Manager of the 75 acre Gulfport and Goldin Sportsplexes for the city of Gulfport, MS. These sportplexes features 8 international size soccer / football fields, and 13 multi use natural grass softball / baseball fields and 6 synthetic turf softball fields. Keair is a 2012 honors graduate of Harrison Central High School and in 2016 received a Bachelors of Science in Agronomy - Sports Turf Management from Mississippi State University. |
| Longtime USM athletics fixture 'O.B.' Bowen dies | |
| Owen "O.B." Bowen III, who spent 42 years as an assistant within the Southern Miss football program, died early Sunday. He was 65. Former Southern Miss athletic director and retired Maj. Gen. Jeff Hammond was Bowen's roommate while Hammond was part of the Golden Eagle football team. "Those who knew him learned lifelong lessons from him," Hammond said Sunday. "The world lost a special type of human being today. Man, this hurts. He cared about everyone and he touched our hearts. Not many people can you say that about at the end of their life." Long before his retirement following the 2015 season, Bowen became known as a Golden Eagle institution and was inducted into the Southern Miss M-Club Hall of Fame in 2008. |
| Ole Miss athletics preparing for financial hit coming from GOP tax bill | |
| Early in December, Ole Miss sent notices to its donors informing them that the tax break they usually get on annual donations made toward priority seating at athletic events was likely going away, urging them to contribute before the end of the year if they still wanted the deduction. The school wanted to be proactive just in case. "Probably about six months," Ole Miss Athletics Foundation Executive Director Keith Carter said of how long the foundation has been preparing for the Republicans' tax overhaul. "We've known it's been on the table for a while." It's the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and Ole Miss is among the schools nationwide that will soon feel the effects of a new tax bill that will have a significant financial impact on college sports. |
| Dawn Staley ejected as USC drops chippy road contest to Mizzou | |
| South Carolina women's basketball dropped its second game of the season in a controversial 83-74 road loss against No. 15 Missouri on Sunday, as head coach Dawn Staley was tossed with two technical fouls and star senior forward A'ja Wilson fouled out for just the fourth time in her career. The No. 4 Gamecocks (13-2, 2-1 SEC) led for most of the game's first 2:30, but the Tigers (14-2, 2-1 SEC) took advantage of early foul trouble for Wilson and redshirt junior forward Alexis Jennings to grab the lead, and they never looked back, leading the rest of the way. Within four minutes from the start the game, both Wilson and Jennings had drawn two fouls and were on the bench, not to return for the rest of the first quarter. After the game, Staley said the calls against Wilson were not right and blasted the officiating. |
| Missouri football hires Derek Dooley as offensive coordinator | |
 | Missouri announced Friday afternoon that it will hire Derek Dooley as its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, filling the vacancy left by Josh Heupel's departure to coach Central Florida. Dooley, a 21-year coaching veteran, will have to learn on the fly. He hasn't been an offensive coordinator or quarterbacks coach at any of his seven previous stops -- although he does boast six years of head-coaching experience and two years' experience as an athletic director. Dooley's contract details were not immediately released. Heupel was the Tigers' highest-paid assistant at $700,000 per year. For the last five seasons, Dooley has coached wide receivers for the Dallas Cowboys, but the 41-year old has Southeastern Conference roots -- starting with the fact that he's a native of Athens, Ga., and the son of former Georgia coach Vince Dooley. |
| Arkansas in '17 waved off foundation's $12.7M; fundraising for stadium tops expectations | |
| The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in the past year released the Razorback Foundation from $12.7 million in pledges the nonprofit made to Razorback Stadium renovations and to debt from building the 4-year-old football operations center, officials said. UA waived the booster-funded cash commitments because fundraising for the stadium expansion exceeded expectations and because of the athletic department's "overall solid financial position," said Clayton Hamilton, chief financial officer for UA's athletic department. At least $5 million of the foundation's $12.7 million in commitments has been set aside for a potential land purchase, according to emails Hamilton exchanged with Razorback Foundation staff members last year that were obtained by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette through open-records requests. |
| War Eagle Nova 'holding steady' months after diagnosis | |
 | Nova, Auburn University's "War Eagle VII," didn't have the opportunity to soar above Jordan-Hare Stadium before football games during the 2017 season. But that hasn't stopped him from making public appearances, and staff at the Southeastern Raptor Center say there's been no change in the heart condition that sidelined him. "We did our re-check in October, and there's been no change," said Dr. Seth Oster, the primary veterinarian at the raptor center. "He's holding steady, which doesn't sound exciting. But from a cardiology standpoint, most heart diseases are progressive, and they will always get worse. The fact that we've been able to halt the progression of this disease is encouraging for his long-term prognosis." After Nova's diagnosis, pre-game flight duties went solely to Spirit the bald eagle. The two eagles had shared that responsibility since 2004. |
| Michelle McKenna-Doyle no longer pursuing Auburn AD vacancy | |
| Michelle McKenna-Doyle will not be the new athletics director at her alma mater. The chief information official for the National Football League confirmed to the Montgomery Advertiser late Saturday evening that she informed Auburn president Steven Leath that she was no longer pursuing the job of the highest ranking athletics officer. "I pulled out of the running as time went on," McKenna-Doyle said. "I am fully committed to the NFL and to continuing to support Auburn as a fan." A source very close to the school's athletics director search said "there's a scenario (Leath) may name somebody (as the next athletics director) in a week or two. And there's another (scenario) that will take much longer". The same source certainly didn't rule out the possibility that McKenna-Doyle would be used as valuable resource for the athletics department's new regime. |
| Sankey aware of Aranda's new LSU contract, but conference can't limit schools going after coaches | |
| Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey said Sunday he is well aware of escalating salaries of football coaches in his league, such as the new $2.5 million per year contract for LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda. "Dave remaining at LSU obviously captured a lot of attention," Sankey said. While he believes there is a ceiling for coaching salaries somewhere, he doesn't know what or when that will be. "I think there is an end," Sankey said, speaking to reporters after the CFP Championship Game coaches news conference at the Sheraton Atlanta Hotel. "Where is the end? Resources and leadership drives that." Aranda's new deal, which guarantees him $10 million over four years, makes him the first college football assistant to make more than $2 million per season. |
| Trump to address farm conference, attend college football championship game | |
| In his first foray into the arena of agricultural policy, President Donald Trump goes to Tennessee on Monday to address a convention of the American Farm Bureau Federation, as the White House says Mr. Trump will outline ideas on how best to spur new economic growth in rural areas of the United States, which have not shared in recent job gains. "While other sectors of the American economy have largely recovered from the Great Recession, rural America has lagged in almost every indicator," says a new report from the Trump Administration. "The administration recognizes that those challenges exist, and is committed to not overlooking them or ignoring them," said Ray Starling, a special assistant to Mr. Trump who deals with farm affairs. After making that farm speech, the President will then fly to Atlanta, where he will attend the national championship college football game between the University of Georgia and the University of Alabama. |
| As Atlanta prepares to host Trump for NCAA football title game, city won't forget insults | |
| When President Donald Trump swoops into Atlanta for a VIP seat at college football's biggest game, he'll enjoy the Southern hospitality of a city he disparaged a year ago as "falling apart" and "crime infested." The insults tweeted by Trump a week before his inauguration may seem like ancient history to most Americans who follow the president's voluminous stream of online invective. But Atlanta hasn't forgotten. Trump plans to be among 72,000 attending the College Football Playoff Championship game Monday evening. The stadium sits in the heart of downtown Atlanta, a place Trump targeted in a pair of tweets Jan. 14 last year. He was punching back at Democratic Rep. John Lewis. |
| Georgia, Alabama players keep focus on football, not politics | |
 | President Trump plans to attend the national championship game Monday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, news that brought mixed reactions from those vying for a ring. Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith said, "That's great and all, but I'm not focused on politics." Alabama offensive lineman Jonah Williams claimed Trump will just be "another person in the crowd." Alabama coach Nick Saban, citing his respect for the office, said it would be an honor to have the president attend, regardless of who occupied the position. Georgia coach Kirby Smart termed a potential Trump appearance "a political event," and therefore, something he's not concerned about. The 45th president of the United States carried Alabama and Georgia in his 2016 win, but it was likely not due to a surge of Trump votes from Tide and Bulldogs football players. Multiple Alabama and Georgia players who spoke with USA TODAY Sports at Media Day on Saturday said though eligible, they chose to not vote in the 2016 election. In fact, they prefer to not even discuss politics in the locker room. |
| Rain could dampen tailgating at Monday's national championship game | |
| Georgia football fans and Alabama's alike are famous for their tailgating, but tailgaters going to Monday's national championship game at Atlanta's new Mercedes-Benz Stadium should have a plan B, such as gathering inside at one of the stadium's many food vending areas. According to the early weather forecasts for Jan. 8, temperatures may finally warm up to something like average for this time of year -- a high of around 53, according to the National Weather Service -- but probably rainy. The $700 million stadium has "the best stadium food on the planet" available from its many food venues, according to the stadium website. Tailgating is constrained anyhow on the asphalt surrounding Mercedes-Benz. Much of the parking available close to the stadium is in parking decks, where tailgating is prohibited. |
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