Monday, March 12, 2018   
 
MSU-Meridian students connect across cultures
A room full of future teachers sat in their classroom at Mississippi State University-Meridian this week and watched a video of young Russians holding signs with the college students' names. The students here had never visited Russia, nor had the eastern European teenagers ever visited Mississippi. The only connection between the students in St. Petersburg, Russia and Meridian was Ksenia Zhbanova, an educator focused on exposing the future teachers to people they likely had never met. "When we teachers work with our students, we need to be able to see how different and unique they are and see it as something to be celebrated," said Zhbanova, an assistant professor of education at MSU-Meridian. In an increasingly diverse world, chances are that most classrooms will include a student from a different country, background or culture.
 
Everything Garden Expo ushers in spring March 24-25
Spring is only days away and it's time to plan gardens and get hands dirty. Beleaguered gardeners from across the state are weary of winter and yearning to get outdoors to begin spring cleanup and planting. Thanks to the Oktibbeha County Master Gardeners and Mississippi State University, help and inspiration are on the way. The 2018 edition of the Everything Garden Expo will be staged March 24-25 at the Mississippi Horse Park in Starkville. Vendors of virtually every facet of gardening will be on hand to present the latest in plants, supplies and techniques. The two-day Expo will fill the sprawling Mississippi Horse Park off South Montgomery Street and include almost 60 vendors. Plants and tools will be available for purchase and visitors can stroll the venue leisurely, selecting seminars and activities that most interest them.
 
Rose Garden a hidden treasure at Mississippi State
Mississippi State University is well known for its agronomy and horticulture departments. When Brittany Elliott, of West Point, decided she wanted to study agronomy at MSU, she thought she would be eventually working with row crops. Instead, her degree brought her to her dream job of being a gardener at the Veterans Memorial Rose Garden. "After graduating with a degree in agronomy, I had begun working in research with corn crops and did that for two years," Elliott said. "I really enjoyed the work, but I love working with plants. When the position of gardener opened up for the Rose Garden, I quickly applied." The Veterans Memorial Rose Garden was established in 2007, as a Mississippi State University MS Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. There are more than 30 types of roses growing in the garden. It has grown to include many ornamental trees and shrubbery in addition to the roses.
 
MSU Riley Center presents Danu
The Mississippi State University Riley Center will present Irish ensemble Danu at 7:30 p.m. on March 13 to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. "They are a traditional Irish ensemble and do traditional Irish music," box office manager Darron Radcliff said. "They'll do Irish music, a little bit of Irish dance and all of that good stuff in line for St. Patrick's Day." According to the Riley Center website, Danu is one of today's leading traditional Irish ensembles made of four Irishmen. "We strategically planned this show for before St. Patrick's Day instead of after so having it the week of St. Patrick's day will add a little kick to the performance," Radcliff said. The Riley Center is located at 2200 5th St. in downtown Meridian.
 
Calf and feeder prices soften
Although demand remains strong for calves and feeders -- especially cattle suited to grazing -- bearishness surrounding looming late spring and summer supplies of fed cattle helped pressure cattle futures and buyer psychology this week. "Despite increases in both domestic beef consumption as well as beef exports, the USDA is projecting slightly lower cattle prices for 2018," says Brian Williams, livestock economist at Mississippi State University, in the latest issue of In the Cattle Markets. "A big part of the reason for lower projected prices is the 5.9% increase in total beef production for 2018 (forecast), which would be a new record (27.7 billion pounds)."
 
MSU students weigh in on Starkville Pride victory
On Tuesday night, the Starkville Board of Aldermen voted in favor of the proposed Starkville LGBTQ Pride parade, reversing its previous decision against the parade. News of the parade's approval was met with celebration outside Starkville City Hall, and prominent voices on both sides of the issue taking to social media to express their views. Not long after the initial vote against the parade, Mississippi State University officials told the SDN it was not taking a side on the issue. Following the vote in favor of the parade this week, the SDN asked MSU students what they thought.
 
Pride and prejudice: Starkville activist fights for what she believes in
Bailey McDaniel is not one to shy away from a fight. The 22-year-old Mississippi State University senior admittedly already had a reputation around campus for being an outspoken activist before the past few weeks -- before being at the center of a lawsuit with the city of Starkville. "I just wanted a parade," McDaniel said of recent tension surrounding her and the city she lives in. "I just want my rights." Originally from Corinth, McDaniel's beliefs in equal rights came from her upbringing with her grandparents, who she said instilled in her that you treat the CEO of a company the same as you do the man who picks up the garbage. "That's just how things were," she said. Majoring in criminology at MSU, McDaniel said she always wanted to help in any way she could.
 
Peak Campus to Manage Haven 12
Student housing operator Peak Campus has been tabbed to manage Haven 12. The 536-bed student housing community, developed by Haven Campus Communities, serves students at Mississippi State University in Starkville, Miss. "The timeline of a transition is always a challenge, and assuming management in March means that there are only two months left in the school year to maintain high traffic and leasing numbers," Peak Campus chief operating officer Casey Petersen told MHN. A number of factors led to the decision to have Peak Campus manage Haven 12 in Starkville. "Peak's operating platform focused on operational excellence, ability to mobilize quickly, leasing and sales track record, our customer service focus, and our relationship with our clients," Petersen said.
 
SOCSD joins Mississippi Innovation Labs Network
The Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District is officially part of the Mississippi Innovation Labs Network. The Innovation Labs Network is a new Mississippi Department of Education initiative that will allow certain school districts across the state to work together to improve education, whether through teaching, scheduling or other means. SOCSD Superintendent Eddie Peasant announced the district's acceptance into the program during Thursday's board of trustees meeting. The district, according to the commitment letter from MDE, is part of the network for the remainder of the 2017-18 school year and 2018-19. Peasant also noted the program will allow SOCSD a degree of freedom in how it schedules classes. It will also primarily focus on science-related fields, though there's potential for use for fine arts and other subjects.
 
BCBS promotes health and fitness for students
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi began its Get Ready to Run School program in the Golden Triangle and surrounding area with a student event at Henderson Ward Stewart Elementary School on Friday. Students participated in an activity involving running down the gym court, placing a tennis ball on top of a traffic cone and stacking cups on top of each other. This activity helps establish better concentration, hand-eye coordination and fitness. Health and Fitness Coordinator for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi Eugenia King said the group's main goal of this program is to encourage students to be physically active and to promote healthy lifestyle habits. Twenty-eight schools around the Golden Triangle have signed up to participate, which will reach more than 12,600 students. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi are preparing the students for the Get Ready to Run Kids' One-Mile Fun Run on Mississippi State University's campus on April 14.
 
Revenue improving at opportune time for legislators
As legislators begin their final weeks of work on developing a budget to fund state government, revenue collections continue to be solid -- not necessarily by historical standards but when compared to recent years. Through February, eight months into the fiscal year, all state revenue collections are up $56.15 million or 1.7 percent over the amount collected during the same time last year. When just accounting for general tax collections, such as the sales tax on retail items, the income tax and others that make up the bulk of state revenue, collections are up a more impressive $90.2 million or 2.95 percent. The bottom line is not as impressive because the collections for the prior year included such items as $21 million in transfers to the general fund from reserves to offset sluggish revenue collections.
 
Mississippi Legislature kills rewrite but school funding still a fight
A proposed landmark overhaul of Mississippi's school funding formula that opponents feared would leave districts more cash-strapped than the current formula is dead. But questions remain about what districts should expect as lawmakers begin to tackle budget work. The Senate faces a Tuesday deadline to take action on a House appropriations bill that will determine the amount that K-12 education receives in state aid for the 2019 fiscal year, which starts on July 1. In previous legislative sessions, the MAEP has been one of the few budgets spared from cuts, with lawmakers agreeing to level funding. But because the MAEP annually adjusts for inflation, many school administrators have argued that level funding still has the effect of a cut because instructional costs for school systems enshrined in state statute like step pay increases for teachers increase year over year.
 
Special session for MAEP rewrite -- just rumors, at least for now
Within days of the legislative leadership's proposed rewrite of the Mississippi Adequate Education Program school funding formula being killed in the Senate, speculation began that there would be a special session to try to revive the proposal. When asked about a possible special session, Clay Chandler, a spokesman for Gov. Phil Bryant, said, "There are no current plans for a special session, but Gov. Bryant is always willing to listen to (legislative) leadership." And Speaker Philip Gunn, R-Clinton, the author of the proposed rewrite, said, "I think there is a better way of funding education obviously. I don't think a special session will happen, though, unless we get an agreement." Gunn said it has been the custom of Bryant not to call special sessions unless there was an agreement between the House and Senate on the proposed subject of the special session.
 
Columbus facility receiving $273.2 million Army helicopter contract
Airbus Helicopters Inc. of Columbus will recieve a $273.2 million U.S. Army contract to produce 35 UH-72A helicopters, U.S. Sens. Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker and Congressman Trent Kelly announced Friday. The Army is initially dedicating $136.6 million in FY2017 and FY2018 aircraft procurement appropriations toward the contract for all work on the helicopters to be produced in Columbus. Cochran, Wicker and Kelly, all of whom serve on defense committees, worked to authorize and provide funding to procure additional UH-72 Lakota Light Utility Helicopters for the Army. "I appreciate the Army moving forward with this contract. The delivery of these UH-72A helicopters will help meet an unfunded priority need for the Army. I am confident our excellent workforce in Mississippi will manufacture high-quality aircraft for the Army in a timely manner," said Cochran, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and its Subcommittee on Defense.
 
Mississippi governor names 4 more members to College Board
Gov. Phil Bryant is nominating four people to the board that oversees Mississippi's eight public universities, making him the first governor to appoint all 12 trustees. The nominees include Hattiesburg radiologist Dr. Steven Cunningham; Ocean Springs businesswoman and Republican Party official Jeanne Luckey; Meridian insurance agent Bruce Martin; and Flowood lawyer Powell Ogletree Jr. If confirmed by the Senate, they would begin 9-year terms on May 8. Because of a quirk in a constitutional overhaul of the board that voters approved in 2003, Bryant could be the only governor who gets a chance to appoint all the board members.
 
Bryant appoints Martin, others to College Board
Gov. Phil Bryant announced four appointments Friday to the Board of Trustees of the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning. Bruce Martin of Meridian, along with Dr. Steven Cunningham, Jeanne Luckey and Powell "Gee" Ogletree, Jr., will begin their 9-year terms May 8. Martin, who will represent the First Supreme Court District, was appointed to the Mississippi Community College Board by former Gov. Haley Barbour in 2006. He received his bachelor's degree in finance and insurance from Mississippi State University. Martin serves as the president of insurance firm Meyer & Rosenbaum, Inc., in Meridian. Rotating off the Board are trustees Alan W. Perry, Christy Pickering, Dr. Doug W. Rouse and Board President C.D. Smith of Meridian.
 
Bryant makes historic College Board appointments
Gov. Phil Bryant has announced his four nominees to the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning. When those nominees are confirmed by the Senate, it will give Bryant all 12 appointments to the panel that oversees Mississippi's eight public universities. The second-term Republican governor announced the appointees Friday via a news release. They are Steven Cunningham, a Hattiesburg physician; Jeanne Luckey, owner of an Ocean Springs real estate holding company; Bruce Martin of Meridian, president of an insurance firm; and Powell "Gee" Ogletree Jr., a Jackson attorney. The diversity of the College Board members often has been an issue. Leaving the Board will be an African American and a woman. Bryant's nominees announced Friday include a woman and an African American. And Cunningham also has an undergraduate degree from a historically black public university, Jackson State. No current members of the Board are graduates of one of the three state-supported historically black universities.
 
Southern Foodways Alliance director to give Wolfe Lecture at MUW
On Thursday, March 22, the Nell Peel Wolfe Lecture Series hosted by Mississippi University for Women's Gordy Honors College will feature John T. Edge, director of the Southern Foodways Alliance and author of "The Potlikker Papers: A Food History of the Modern South." Southern Living says that in "The Potlikker Papers," published in 2017 and now out in paperback, Edge "offers the most honest, brutal, beautiful, and insightful discussion to date on the country's most complicated cuisine -- from the food that fueled the Montgomery Bus Boycott to the Mexican, Vietnamese, and other international dishes that feed the New South." This event begins at 6 p.m. in Nissan Auditorium, Parkinson Hall, and is free and open to the public.
 
MUW Alumni Awards
The Mississippi University for Women Alumni Association announced the recipients of its four annual alumni awards on Wednesday, March 7. The university will honor the winners during its homecoming convocation ceremony in Rent Auditorium at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 24. Hayley Gilmore, who won the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award, graduated from MUW with a bachelor's degree in graphic design in 2008 and later received a master's degree in the subject from the University of Memphis. She currently works for the Office of Public Affairs at Mississippi State University. She designed posters for the 2017 Women's March on Washington, and one of her pieces with the slogan "A Woman's Place is in the Resistance" went on to become part of the Library of Congress' archive of American protest art. She founded the group Ladies Who Design, which aims to build up the community of female designers and creators through mentoring, collaboration and support.
 
'Know Your Numbers' is theme of MUW's Imagine, Inspire, Challenge Symposium
With a focus on factors that affect heart health, the 2018 Imagine, Inspire, Challenge (II+C) Symposium at Mississippi University for Women will feature outstanding researchers in the field as well as faculty experts. The theme for the second annual event is "Know Your Numbers." All sessions will be held in Rent Auditorium of Whitfield Hall. The symposium begins Monday, March 26 at 7 p.m. with a keynote address by Dr. Doris A. Taylor, a 1977 alumna and director of Regenerative Medicine Research at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston, Texas. The importance of numbers such as blood pressure, blood cholesterol and sugar levels and body mass index will be emphasized. But new treatments and technologies will also be discussed.
 
Ole Miss releases Pay Equity and Advancement Report
The Chancellor's Commission on the Status of Women at the University of Mississippi recently released the 2017 Pay Equity and Advancement Report. The report presents data compiled from 2007 to 2015, and illustrates the differences between salaries of employees in each school, from clerical jobs to the most senior professor positions. Dr. Laura Antonow, one of the professors who worked on the report, said the team's goal is not to analyze the data but to collect it and present it as a call to action for the university. "The systemic nature of it, if you look at it within comparable ranks of time, the same department, if you look at things across the board, there does seem to be a trend that women, with the same time in rank, tend to be paid less," Antonow said. "The goal is to be on top of that, making sure that if that is the case, there's some kind of intentionality behind why there's a pay difference like that."
 
Cleveland aldermen urged to participate in training at Delta State
The Delta State University Local Government Leadership Institute is bettering local government officials through workshops and training. Dr. Temika Simmons, program director for the Center of Community and Economic Development, appeared before the Cleveland Board of Aldermen to invite them to the DSU Winning the Race Conference on March 26-27 as well as to their new leadership program. "We have a brand new program at Delta State, primarily put into place because you as elected officials and DSU President (Bill) LaForge has said 'What can Delta State do to help us do our jobs better.'" Simmons explained the program provides basic governance training for elected officials across the Mississippi Delta, all the way up to DeSoto County.
 
Racial healing through music: Program expands in Delta communities
What began in 2013 as an effort by Delta State University to promote racial reconciliation through music and songs for young men in the Delta region has since made a difference in the lives of countless youths and is now expanding to include the voices of young women. From Hip Hop to Rock: Healing with a Groove -- now Healing with a Groove 2.0 -- is a six to eight week program dedicated to promoting racial healing through creating and producing original songs in addition to helping young people to connect with their community and each other. "With young men and women, there are common issues they face and gender issues they have concerns about," said Tricia Walker, director of the Delta Music Institute, singer/songwriter, and project director of Healing With A Groove. The project, which began in Bolivar and Sunflower counties, is presented by DSU's Delta Music Institute and DMI Mobile Music Labs and is funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
 
Hinds Community College moving its workforce training center into Metrocenter mall
Hinds Community College is officially moving its career-technical and workforce training center into the Metrocenter mall. The college will train workers for the advanced manufacturing, transportation and hospitality and tourism industries. It will offer training from basic employability skills to two-year technical degree classes. College President Clyde Muse said in a news release that the programs would benefit residents without a high school diploma who need to upgrade their skills to get a job. "We've got about 80,000 people in the Jackson metro area who could benefit from this kind of help," he said. The 1,250,000-square-foot Metrocenter, once the largest mall in the nation when it opened in 1978, has experienced a decade-long decline and in recent years the complex has struggled, losing several anchor stores.
 
Meridian's Any Given Child initiative a model for arts integration in other cities
If the Meridian Public School District was a student, he would be a solid D student, with years of similar results. Like an underperforming kid who needs attention from mentors and other supporters, the district has a group of partners resolute in seeing progress. This group is known as the Community Arts Team -- a key ingredient of an exceptional partner in education the district has in the Washington, D.C.-based John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The partnership is an initiative called Ensuring the Arts for Any Giving Child. Meghan Millea, an economics professor who served for six months as interim dean of Mississippi State University-Meridian, also sees the potential and impact of what can happen in the community through arts integration. Even after moving to North Carolina to work at East Carolina University, the macroeconomist decided to continue collecting data for Any Given Child in Meridian.
 
U. of Alabama students test drive electric 'muscle' car
The white Chevrolet Camaro with the University of Alabama script A on the front still sounded like the muscle car that the name implies as it sped around the airport tarmac Friday, but under the hood, its guts have transformed during the last four years as a team of students converted it into an electric-hybrid. "When you think of a muscle car, you don't think of electricity. You think of power and burning gasoline," junior electric engineer major Jacob Machnica said. "But this is a muscle car." Where once there was a six-cylinder gasoline engine, now there is a smaller four-cylinder and two electrical motors connected to a bank of lithium-ion batteries in the trunk. Machnica, who led the sub-team of students working on the electrical systems, and his teammates are part of the final UA team working on the EcoCar3 challenge.
 
U. of Florida set to receive $50M for data science building
Florida's university system will continue to see a significant increase in funding next year as part of a multi-year effort to increase the quality and stature of the state's universities. The funding is boosting university budgets across the state, from large institutions such as the University of Florida to the smallest one, New College of Florida. The University of Florida is getting a $14 million boost in recurring general revenue as lawmakers try to push it from a Top 10 public university into the Top 5 nationwide. Florida is receiving $50 million for a data science and information technology building.
 
U. of Tennessee student code changes lead to more education, fewer sanctions
Violations of the student code of conduct at the University of Tennessee are increasingly being resolved with educational sanctions as opposed to disciplinary action under a new code implemented last fall. In 2016-2017, 65 percent of violations resulted in educational sanctions. In the fall of 2017 -- the first semester of implementing the new code at the Knoxville campus -- almost 83 percent of violations ended in educational resolutions. "The violations themselves are not substantially different under this new code of conduct but it's how we're adjudicating them that's the critical piece," said Betsy Smith, director of UT Knoxville's Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards. "We're trying to work on our recidivism rates and educate students on what they did to violate the code so they can make better decisions going forward."
 
Texas A&M ready for second year at SXSW
Texas A&M is set to make its sophomore outing at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin this week, showcasing the ongoing research and expertise available at the university. A&M will have a presence at the festival today through Tuesday, beginning with live entertainment in partnership with the '47 Brand to close out the weekend. Amy Smith, vice president for marketing and communications at Texas A&M, said the university's main goal at SXSW is to expose the festival's global audience to the broad spectrum of work being done across the university. She said since SXSW takes place just over two hours away from Aggieland, she believes the festival's reach -- and the potential impact made by those who participate -- has been somewhat underestimated.
 
Sigma Phi Epsilon sued for negligence at U. of Missouri
A lawsuit filed this week accuses the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity of negligence and three members of the University of Missouri chapter with assault for an incident in September that left one student with a broken jaw and another needing dental work after being beaten near the fraternity house. The lawsuit, filed by MU freshmen Sean Freihaut and Benjamin Poss, states that the national fraternity organization ignored hazing, criminal activity and abuse of alcohol and drugs at the MU chapter in order to maintain the flow of dues money -- $200,000 a year -- and keep the chapter from going into default on its $1.6 million mortgage. Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity Inc., the national governing organization, had numerous opportunities to prevent the assault and should have shut the fraternity down, the lawsuit states.
 
U. of Missouri students, staff rally in Jefferson City against cuts to higher ed
A small crowd of protesters gathered Saturday in front of the governor's mansion -- a cowbell and snare drum thumping to the beat of their chants. The protesters repeatedly shouted, "Students and faculty, let's unite. Education is a right." They held signs with "Stop the cuts" and "College graduates use less public assistance." The group included University of Missouri students, MU employees and Columbia residents who traveled to Jefferson City to participate in a Stop the Cuts Coalition rally. The coalition, or SCC, protested Gov. Eric Greitens' call for almost $98 million in cuts to the state budget for higher education and the legislature's proposal to increase the tuition cap. "It wasn't easy for me to get here," MU junior Ningyuan Hu, an international student from China, said in a speech directed toward the protesters.
 
Students value diversity, inclusion more than free expression, study says
College students value a diverse and inclusive environment more than free speech rights, according to a new study on student attitudes on free expression. The report from Gallup and the Knight Foundation comes at a turbulent time on college campuses nationwide, where students have challenged the principles of the First Amendment -- they have called for controversial campus speakers to be disinvited, and when they disagree with speakers' message, have shouted them down. They've also called for administrators to invest more in diversity initiatives and are demanding clear statements from them against speech they deem hateful. Asked to select which is more important, about 53 percent of the students interviewed for the study picked diversity, versus 46 percent who chose free speech. This data is based on telephone interviews with 3,014 traditional-age students (18 to 24) at 100 four-year institutions, both public and private.
 
College Students Want Free Speech -- Sort Of
Though most college students say they value freedom of expression, a new Gallup poll shows they are more committed to free speech in the abstract than in reality. Fifty-six percent of college students say protecting free-speech rights is extremely important to society, according to the poll of 3,014 college students that was conducted in the fall of 2017. They also say they overwhelmingly favor an open learning environment that allows all types of speech on campus over one that imposes limits on words that might be considered offensive. But respondents' commitment to open debate was inconsistent: Nearly half of students say they favor campus speech codes; nearly two-thirds do not believe the U.S. Constitution should protect hate speech; 73 percent support campus policies that restrict hate speech like racial slurs; and 60 percent say the same about those that discourage stereotypical costumes.
 
Legislature has flubbed responsibility for good schools
Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford of Meridian writes: "With all the noise about school funding, school choice, vouchers, and teacher shortages, perhaps a look at some fundamentals would be helpful. Remember 2015? The Initiative 42 referendum to put full funding for the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP) in the state constitution? That initiative and the Legislature's alternative both failed. So Section 201 of the Mississippi Constitution remains unchanged. It reads, 'The Legislature shall, by general law, provide for the establishment, maintenance and support of free public schools upon such conditions and limitations as the Legislature may prescribe.' That means it is our legislators' duty to provide us free public schools, and puts the onus on them to make our free schools good schools."
 
Does Mike Espy have what it takes to win Thad Cochran's Senate seat?
The Clarion-Ledger's Jimmie Gates writes: "For an African-American to win statewide in Mississippi, it will require a candidate with broad appeal to voters, political experts say. The model often used as an example is former 2nd District U.S. Rep. Mike Espy, who was in Congress from 1987 to 1993. He was then appointed as the first black U.S. Agriculture Secretary by then-President Bill Clinton. Leslie McLemore, a retired Jackson State University political science professor, has said for an African-American to win a statewide election will require a candidate who appeals to black voters and white voters. He said Espy was an example of just that when he ran for Congress. Millsaps College political science professor Nathan Shrader also has said he believes an African-American candidate could win statewide in Mississippi, but it will require a candidate with mass appeal. Now, Espy has announced that he will be a candidate in the special election to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran."
 
Will Chris McDaniel's big-money backers let him jump to other race?
The Clarion-Ledger's Geoff Pender writes: "State Sen. Chris McDaniel jumped into a primary race against incumbent U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, but he left the door open to switch to the special election for the seat Sen. Thad Cochran is vacating. McDaniel might be up for a 'moveable feast,' but would his big-money backers follow him? Those contributing large amounts to conservative candidates to take on the GOP establishment appear more interested in 'draining the swamp' in D.C., i.e., purging Congress of incumbent Republicans they see as not conservative enough. So far, most of the support for McDaniel has been to the Remember Mississippi super PAC, and mostly from large out-of-state conservatives."


SPORTS
 
Bulldogs hosting Nebraska to open NIT
Mississippi State is making its first postseason appearance since Rick Stansbury's final season in 2012. The Bulldogs are the fourth seed in the National Invitation Tournament and play host to No. 5 seed Nebraska Wednesday at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. "We're excited to be in the postseason, it's a good step for us," said MSU coach Ben Howland. Wednesday will mark just the second meeting between the two schools in a game that counted. The Bulldogs claimed a 69-66 victory against the Huskers as part of the 1995 Ford Far West Classic in Portland, Oregon. State's women's basketball team will learn its NCAA Tournament destination tonight. The team is hosting a watch party inside Humphrey Coliseum for the selection show which starts at 6 p.m. on ESPN. Doors open at 4:45 p.m. and admission is free.
 
Mississippi State reaches NIT, plays Nebraska in rematch of exhibition game
Mississippi State is getting the chance to play postseason basketball once again following a six-year absence. The Bulldogs learned on Sunday night that they will host Nebraska on Wednesday at 8 p.m. in the first round of the 2018 National Invitation Tournament. It marks the first time State has appeared in any postseason tournament since it played in the 2012 NIT. "We're excited to be in the postseason," MSU head coach Ben Howland said. "This is a good step for us. We're disappointed it's not the NCAA Tournament, but the NIT is a great tournament." The Bulldogs (22-11) are somewhat familiar with their first-round opposition in the event. They hosted Nebraska (22-10) in an exhibition game prior to this season. The Cornhuskers defeated State 76-72. Yet Howland says the two teams' first meeting doesn't hold much weight at this point.
 
Mississippi State men's basketball NIT opponent, bracket announced
Mississippi State is in the NIT for the first time since 2012. Mississippi State (22-11), as a No. 4 seed will host fifth-seeded Nebraska (22-10) at 8 p.m. Wednesday (ESPN2). Nick Weatherspoon (hip) will not play Wednesday, but Ben Howland didn't rule out a return of MSU makes it to Madison Square Garden. The Bulldogs were among the first four out on mainstream NCAA tournament brackets or at least in the conversation for about a month before their hopes ended with a loss against Tennessee in an SEC tournament quarterfinal on Friday.
 
Weatherspoon released from the hospital
Mississippi State freshman guard Nick Weatherspoon was released from Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis around midnight after suffering a neck injury during the Bulldogs' SEC Tournament quarterfinal game against Tennessee on Friday night. Weatherspoon was moving all of his extremities and showed no signs of a concussion. He traveled back to Starkville with the team on Saturday and was scheduled to undergo a CT scan for a possible pelvic fracture. "I'd like to thank my HailState fans for wishing me luck last night and keeping me in their prayers," Weatherspoon said. "I just want y'all to know that I'm all good."
 
Freshmen deliver in State's home baseball win
There might come a day where Mississippi State's young, freshman hitters hit a wall at the plate. For now, though, the No. 21 Bulldogs are leaning heavily on the bats of their newcomers. They did again on Sunday when MSU used four RBI from Tanner Allen and Rowdey Jordan to lead them to a 5-3 win. Jordan's three-run homer in the fourth inning proved to be the difference for State in the rubber match as the two-out hit gave them the lead for good. "I feel like we can hit anybody," Jordan said. "When you have confidence, you're going to succeed most of the time. We're just trying to keep our bodies healthy and prepared for a long season." MSU travels to Biloxi's MGM Park on Wednesday for a match up with Southeastern Louisiana (11-6) at 6:30 p.m. before returning home for Southeastern Conference play against Vanderbilt.
 
Jordan's three-run blast lifts Bulldogs
Rowdey Jordan's three-run home run in the fourth inning proved to be the difference Sunday as No. 21 Mississippi State secured a 5-3 victory over Utah Valley to take the weekend series. Jordan jumped on a 1-0 fastball from Walker Ramsey with two outs and sent it over the right field wall for the freshman's second shot of the season. "It was good to get the lead and take the pressure off everybody," Jordan said. "Playing with a lead is a lot easier. It was a good at bat. I just slowed the game down and had a successful at bat." Jordan's blast gave the Bulldogs a 4-1 lead after Tanner Allen provided an RBI double in the prior frame. Hunter Stovall extended the lead in the fourth with a run-scoring single up the middle.
 
How far can these freshmen help take Mississippi State baseball?
For a veteran coach like Gary Henderson, a couple of things are expected when it comes to freshmen hitting a wall at some point of the season. First, it's going to happen. Second, it will probably occur right around finals week. So, breathe, Mississippi State fans. It's only March. The point in asking now about the proverbial wall, though, is because it has become clear that Mississippi State's success in the SEC will be largely determined by an influx of freshman holding prominent roles. How far will the Bulldogs go? How far can four emerging freshmen position players help take them?
 
No panic as Bulldogs regroup after loss
Mississippi State guard Blair Schaefer said the Bulldogs didn't need to lose a game to be properly motivated heading into the NCAA Tournament later this month. It happened anyway. The program's 32-game winning streak was stopped last Sunday in the SEC Tournament title game when South Carolina beat Mississippi State 62-51. Bulldogs' coach Vic Schaefer agreed with his daughter, saying his team always knew it wasn't invincible, but the disappointing loss helped make that fact completely clear. "What happened is what I've been worried about for 32 games and it became reality in game 33," Vic Schaefer said. "We didn't make shots. So when you're not making shots, what else can you do to help us win?"
 
ESPN selects McCowan, Vivians as All-Americans
ESPN selected two Mississippi State players to its Women's Basketball All-American Team on Sunday. Junior center Teaira McCowan was selected to the first team while senior guard Victoria Vivians earned a spot on the third team. McCowan ranks third nationally in rebounds at 13.2 and also averages 17.7 points. The Brenham, Texas native has totaled 23 double-doubles on the year. Vivians sits third in the SEC scoring 19.6 points and has posted double figures in all but one game this season. The Carthage native named a first team All-American by USA Today on Wednesday. The Bulldogs and UConn were the only two teams with multiple players picked as All-Americans by ESPN.
 
Moorhead's passing attack will challenge defenses down field
Michael Nebrich saw Joe Moorhead's practices in two different stages of his career, first in Moorhead's final year as the quarterbacks coach at UConn before the first three of his head-coaching tenure at Fordham. One theme stands out: deep throws, and a lot of them -- not all that different from the offense Moorhead uses in games. For others, throwing the ball downfield may be testing luck and the laws of probability. It's never been that for Moorhead. When Moorhead installs his offense this spring leading up to his first season as Mississippi State's coach, it's highly likely all involved will be working on deep passes more than it ever did with Dan Mullen. "A lot of spread offenses use the run game to set up the quick slants or the outs, those intermediate throws. Joe, he's a gambler," Nebrich told The Dispatch.
 
Repetition key to learning Moorhead's style
Joe Moorhead ascended to the title of offensive coordinator for the first time in 2003 at Georgetown; since then, his climb up the coaching ranks has taken him to a coordinator or head coaching role at five other schools, most recently the head coach job at Mississippi State. All of it has given him extensive experience in installing his trademark offense to a new group of players -- a process he has down to an exact science. As MSU players get their hands on the Moorhead offense in winter meetings and spring practice, they'll work their way through a learning process carefully manicured by Moorhead. It's one he designed to specifically fit how players best learn an offense like his, one in which plays change postsnap thus one play call can mean any number of outcomes.
 
Numbers, angles, grass key elements of Moorhead's running game
When Joe Moorhead and his 2016 Penn State offense were the toast of college football on its run to the Rose Bowl, most of the fervor surrounded its aerial attack. The Nittany Lions had the best passing offense in the Big 10 by yards per game and completion percentage on top of ranking third in the nation in both passes of 30 or more yards (48) and passes of 40 or more yards (30). It was only half of the picture. Moorhead is much more than a passing savant. Throughout his career, Moorhead has shown a desire and ability to facilitate an effective rushing attack, one he said he plans on bringing with him to year one with Mississippi State. The Moorhead run game revolves around three principles: numbers, angles and grass.
 
Breiner has extensive background with Moorhead
Andrew Breiner is still in his early thirties but already owns a fairly extensive coaching resume, including two years as a college head coach. Most of Breiner's coaching background has been alongside Joe Moorhead, which is why he gave up his head coaching post at Fordham to join him at Mississippi State as passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach. "Seven of the last nine years I've worked side-by-side with Joe," Breiner said. "There's a genuine personal relationship there. If I was going to leave a head coaching position, I wouldn't do it unless it was someone I believed in and trusted and had the same feelings coming back towards me. Joe was a major factor."
 
Auburn's rolling of Toomer's Corner named best sports tradition
It's a lofty ritual rooted in victory and celebration -- a paper roll and a toss of the hand unique to Auburn University and now recognized as the nation's top sports tradition. The rolling of Toomer's Corner at Auburn has been named today as the nation's "Best Sports Tradition" by the USA Today 10Best Readers' Choice travel award contest. The tradition is one in which Auburn fans of all ages have celebrated football wins for decades by throwing rolls of toilet paper onto the branches of the oaks at the intersection of College Street and Magnolia Avenue. The result is a view of white paper-plastered trees resembling a snowy landscape. Auburn’s tradition ranked first in a top 10 list that included, among others, such traditions as Ohio State's band forming the word Ohio in script, Mississippi State University's cowbell, Oklahoma's "Sooner Schooner," Texas A&M's "Midnight Yell" and Florida State's "Planting of the Flaming Spear."
 
Tennessee AD Phillip Fulmer outlines vision for athletics
The job title remains relatively new to Phillip Fulmer, but he's found that the job itself feels familiar. "It's like coaching," Tennessee's athletic director said during an interview with USA TODAY Network-Tennessee on March 1, which marked his three-month anniversary on the job. And, like coaching, Fulmer enjoys the work. "If you had my job and you were able to be around our staff and particularly these young people, it's fun," Fulmer said. "It's really a lot of fun. You have your challenges that are obviously the public things that come up from time to time, but I've got a great job." Fulmer, 67, inherited a mess when, on Dec. 1, Tennessee ousted John Currie and anointed Fulmer.
 
Georgia confirms that it fired Mark Fox
The University of Georgia announced Saturday night the firing of men's basketball coach Mark Fox. In a statement, UGA athletic director Greg McGarity said, "Days like today are very difficult, especially when you are talking about someone like Mark Fox. We have worked alongside each other for eight seasons, and I have the utmost respect for Mark, his staff, our student-athletes and the support staff. They have always represented the University of Georgia in a professional manner. I know I speak for all Bulldogs to say 'thank you' to Mark and Cindy for the time and effort they have devoted to the University of Georgia. In the end, I felt like we have not reached our full potential as a basketball program. I really thought we were on the way to turning the corner this year. We just did not achieve the level of success as a program that I believe we should at the University of Georgia."
 
Graduation rates for black athletes lower than most students', study shows
After years of studying black male athletes, Shaun R. Harper has learned a frustrating lesson -- the inequity among these men in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's five most powerful conferences isn't disappearing. Harper, executive director of the University of Southern California's Center on Race and Equity, has released a new study highlighting the disparities in graduation rates among black male athletes compared to the rest of the student population. A little more than 55 percent of black male athletes at the Power 5 colleges graduated within six years, versus 60 percent of black men in the overall undergraduate population and about 76 percent of all undergraduates. Only three institutions in the Power 5 -- the University of Louisville, Mississippi State University and the University of Utah -- graduated black male athletes at rates higher than or equal to their undergraduate populations.



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