| Thursday, March 29, 2018 |
| Business workshops offered through April with MSU-Meridian, EMBDC | |
 | A series of workshops is being offered through a partnership between the MSU Meridian Division of Business and the EMBDC. A session Wednesday focused on ways managers can improve their people skills and relate better to employees to bring out the best in them. The workshops coming up include improving safety, eliminating sexual harassment and utilizing social media. "I know when I'm in a group I want to see that my employees are contributing," said Trisha Niswander, human resources director for Lala Enterprises. "I want to see that they're able to thrive in their strengths and know how to perform to the best of their abilities because that really increases their confidence." ach workshop will be held at the MSU Meridian Riley campus downtown in the Deen Building Room 201. |
| Transform Section 18 emergency use exemptions: cotton, grain sorghum | |
 | More farmers will be able to use Transform insecticide to control insects in their cotton and grain sorghum following the issuance of Section 18 emergency use exemptions from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Section 18 emergency exemption process for 2018 began early for entomologists with the Mississippi Cooperative Extension Service, which sought the exemption to make sure their growers had the tools they needed to control insects such as sugarcane aphids in grain sorghum and plant bugs in the cotton. "No, the sugarcane aphids haven't gone away," said Dr. Angus Catchot, Extension professor of entomology at Mississippi State University, in response to a question about the pests. "What's gone away is our sorghum acreage." Catchot said there are reports Mississippi producers could plant more grain sorghum in 2018, but, in any event, growers need alternative chemistries to make sure they can protect their crops from severe losses. |
| City, county unemployment falls in February | |
 | Oktibbeha County and Starkville saw a drop in unemployment in February. According to preliminary data from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, Oktibbeha County's unemployment rate fell to 4 percent, and Starkville's unemployment rate fell to 3.5 percent. In January, Oktibbeha County's unemployment rate was reported at 4.5 percent, and Starkville's unemployment rate was reported at 3.7 percent. For February, Oktibbeha County's labor force, which is made up of everyone who is employed or is looking for a job, was reported to be 23,190, with 22,270 employed and 920 unemployed. Starkville's labor force for February was reported to be 12,650, with 12,210 employed and 440 unemployed. The Golden Triangle also saw a drop in unemployment, falling from 5.1 percent in January to 4.8 percent in February. |
| Sumner Davis sole applicant for SOCSD Board seat | |
| A single Starkvillian has applied to serve on the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District Board of Trustees. For the third time, Sumner Davis has applied to serve on the board, filling the seat left vacant by Melissa Luckett. Luckett resigned in February after she moved from the city of Starkville to Oktibbeha County, and was no longer allowed to serve in one of the three seats chosen by the Starkville Board of Aldermen. Davis lost the seat to Anne Stricklin on his first try and to current school board secretary Debra Prince on his second attempt. "I applied for the school board, because I believe in our school district," Davis said. "I believe in our school district. I believe in the good things it's doing, and I want to help try to maintain the level of excellence our school district has, and I felt like this is the right time and the right opportunity for me to help do that." |
| Local churches hold Stations of the Cross on Good Friday | |
| In honor of Good Friday, local churches in the community will hold the Community Stations of the Cross. "What we do is carry a cross from the front steps of First Methodist through town and end at St. Joseph Catholic Church and stop along the way and read portions of the Good Friday story," First United Methodist Church pastor Giles Lindley said. "Those are the Stations of the Cross to represent the steps Jesus took going to the cross." Lindley said this is the fourth year that the churches have participated in the Stations of the Cross, and around 250 to 300 people are expected to partake in the event. "Each station offers a meditation on something that happened on his way in carrying his cross," Associate Pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church Rusty Vincent said. |
| Meridian native Derron Radcliff to lead United Way of East Mississippi | |
 | Meridian native and stalwart civic leader Derron Radcliff will be formally introduced on Thursday, March 29 as the executive director of the United Way of East Mississippi. Radcliff, a member of the local United Way's Board of Directors since 2013, officially began his new professional role earlier this week, although the leadership announcement will be publicly announced at the annual meeting at Weidmann's Restaurant. He most recently worked for a dozen years as box office and patron services manager at the MSU Riley Center for Education and Performing Arts. Charlotte Tabereaux, the education director at the MSU Riley Center, has worked with Radcliff since the center reopened after a major renovation in 2006. She said his professionalism and drive to make a difference will help advance the United Way's mission. |
| 2018 session ends with transportation still unresolved | |
 | When both the Mississippi House and Senate voted to end the 2018 session Wednesday morning, a bill died on the Senate calendar that had the potential to provide additional funding for transportation needs. The bill, which died when the Senate leadership opted not to bring it up, would have transferred to transportation half of revenue growth above 2 percent each year. The House already passed the proposal. But considering that state revenue growth has not reached 2 percent since fiscal year 2015 and is not expected to for the current 2018 fiscal year or for the one following, it is highly questionable how much impact the proposal would have had on transportation needs totaling hundreds of millions of dollars each year. "We were really close" to reaching an agreement for enhanced spending on transportation, said Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, who presides over the Senate. |
| Mississippi legislative session had few accomplishments, much blame | |
 | The three-month 2018 Mississippi legislative session that ended Wednesday was a lackluster affair, resulting in little major movement in state policy, spending or law, save for a ban on abortions after 15 weeks that is already entangled in a federal lawsuit. Most major initiatives died when GOP leaders in the House and Senate couldn't agree among themselves on particulars. These included proposals to overhaul K-12 public education spending, allow more tax dollars to be spent at private schools, provide large increases in infrastructure spending and overhaul Medicaid to save money. Republican leaders with super-majorities in both the House and Senate also failed to agree on arming teachers, whether to ban or allow guns in university sports stadiums, providing free tuition for vo-tech training at community colleges, or what to do with millions of dollars from the state's settlement over the BP oil spill. |
| GOP leaders blame each other for legislative failures | |
 | Republican leaders, who manage a supermajority in both chambers and do not need a single Democratic vote to pass legislation, dwelled Wednesday on their missed opportunities on the final day of the 2018 legislative session. The two marquee legislative goals for Republicans this session -- infrastructure funding reform and public education funding reform -- died before deals were struck. As lawmakers traveled home Wednesday afternoon, their leaders hung their hats on legislation that failed to make it through the process. "Clearly we hit the ground running on our end, we did what we set out to do. Both of those measures died on the other end of the building," House Speaker Philip Gunn said, referring to the death of the education formula rewrite and road funding plans. Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves countered: "Other people in the building want to spend their money on walking trails and other things, and somebody has to be willing to stand there and say no." |
| Columbus-Lowndes restaurant tax: Legislators fail to reach tax agreement for CVB | |
 | The bill to extend Lowndes County's 2-percent restaurant sales tax is all but dead, as local business, government, economic development and tourism officials begin to absorb the bleak consequences. Barring a last-minute compromise and a suspension of the rules that would allow the bill to move forward even as legislators rush to complete their work and leave for home, the bill is practically done for. The dispute that will likely mean the end of the county's 2-percent restaurant sales tax came over whether the tax should be collected at all restaurants and businesses that sell prepared food and beverages. Under the current tax, it is collected from patrons only at businesses where those sales exceed $325,000 annually. When the city and county agreed to a joint resolution needed for a bill to extend the tax for four more years (the current tax expires June 30), both governments removed the $325,000 threshold. |
| New Mississippi senator Cindy Hyde-Smith meets with White House officials | |
 | Mississippi Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith, who was appointed to the seat longtime GOP Sen. Thad Cochran is vacating over objections from senior Republicans, met with top White House officials on Wednesday. The meeting, which according to two Republicans familiar with the visit included members of the White House political affairs office, came one week after the administration told Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant that President Donald Trump had no current plans to endorse or campaign for her. National Republicans are trying to block state Sen. Chris McDaniel, an outspoken conservative and tea party favorite, from winning the seat. McDaniel waged an unsuccessful 2014 primary bid against Cochran. Hyde-Smith is spending part of the week in Washington meeting with top Republicans. |
| White House officials to meet with Mississippi Senate appointee Cindy Hyde-Smith | |
 | White House officials planned to meet Wednesday with Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith, who received a frosty reception in the West Wing when she was appointed to the Senate last week. Hyde-Smith was slated to sit down with administration officials including White House political director Bill Stepien, according to three people familiar with the talks. But she was not expected to meet with President Trump. The people describing the talks spoke on the condition of anonymity because the talks had not been announced publicly. It was unclear whether the gathering would forge a thaw in the troubled relationship or move the president any closer to endorsing Hyde-Smith, as her supporters would like to see. The uncertain dynamic has complicated the outlook for Republicans in the midterm election, as they seek to defend their 51-49 Senate majority. |
| Senate Candidate Chris McDaniel Criticizes Group That Complained About Him | |
 | A U.S. Senate candidate in Mississippi said Wednesday that he's filing an Internal Revenue Service complaint against a group that complained to the Federal Election Commission about him. Republican Chris McDaniel said he believes the Campaign Legal Center is violating its IRS status as a nonprofit group by engaging in political activity. "I'd like to say that I've never seen a nonprofit take the brazen step of expressly engaging in political activities but CLC is well-known for using its status as a nonprofit as a cover for directly trying to influence the outcome of elections," McDaniel said in a statement. Adav Noti, senior director of trial litigation for the center, responded that the center has a long history of filing complaints against candidates, political action committees and organizations. |
| Lee County Democratic Party leader mulls Senate run | |
| Local attorney and former state representative Jamie Franks is eying an upcoming special election for the U.S. Senate, making him the second Northeast Mississippi Democrat known to be discussing a possible candidacy. Franks currently serves as chairman of the Lee County Democratic Party and holds a post in the statewide Democratic Party leadership ranks. He recently told some fellow county executive committee members that he has considered entering the race to replace the retiring Thad Cochran, according to sources with knowledge of the conversation. When reached by the Daily Journal on Tuesday, Franks acknowledged his interest. "Yes, I've seriously considered being a candidate for U.S. Senate," Franks said. "I think Mississippi needs a senator who's going to be concerned about the working man, not one who's going to be a tin solider who marches to the drum of the Republican Party." |
| Congress Takes A Brush To The Budget, Barring Federal Funds For Portraits | |
 | For many elected officials, it's something of a rite of passage: After getting to Capitol Hill, bearing their constituents' hopes and fears on their shoulders, virtually every politician finally decides to take a stand -- in front of a painter paid to make their portrait. Some even decide to sit for it. But either way, for a long time many of those official portraits were paid for by the same patrons: U.S. taxpayers. Not anymore. On Tuesday, President Trump signed into law the Eliminating Government-funded Oil-painting Act, also known as -- wait for it -- the EGO Act. Under the new law, federal funds can no longer be used toward official painted portraits for federal government officials or employees. (It remains a little unclear if watercolor painters can find themselves a loophole.) |
| Bernie Sanders coming to Jackson for a town hall with the mayor | |
| U.S. Sen. and 2016 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will join Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba in Jackson next week. Sanders and Lumumba will be commemorating the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr on April 4. The event, titled "Examining Economic Justice 50 Years Later," will be held from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Alamo Theater in the Farish Street District. The city's communications department plans to launch a multimedia campaign to gather public input this Friday. In August, Sanders joined Lumumba in support of unionizing workers at Nissan's Canton plant. |
| Fox News' Shepard Smith says Ole Miss prepared him for career | |
 | Before Shepard Smith became the chief news anchor and managing editor of Fox News Channel's Breaking News Division, where he just re-signed a multi-year contract, he was an Ole Miss student. Smith attended Ole Miss in the 1980s before leaving for an internship in Florida and never returning to finish his degree. Although he has lived in New York City for years, he still considers Oxford and Ole Miss his home. Smith was last in Oxford around three weeks ago for a baseball series and to visit his dad. He said he will hopefully be back for LSU weekend next month. Smith said his time at the university prepared him for the first steps of his career because students were taught a little bit of everything, from editing and writing to directing, anchoring and reporting. |
| USM's College of Business names Chuck Scianna Entrepreneur of the Year | |
 | Chuck Scianna has been chosen as 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year by the Business Advisory Council for the University of Southern Mississippi's College of Business. Scianna, a 1975 Southern Miss graduate, will be honored during a luncheon April 6 at the Trent Lott National Center. He is the owner, founder and president of Sim-Tex, a leading firm in the oil country tubular goods industry. "Chuck Scianna is an exemplar for the life of an entrepreneur," said Faye Gilbert, dean of the College of Business. "He does not seem to rest or stop learning. His drive to improve the industry, his community and his approaches to business seem to be tireless pursuits that keep him engaged in the industry and in making a difference in the lives of others. He says that he was in the right place at the right time. I would say he had the right set of skills and abilities to translate risky chances into viable opportunities." |
| Delta State athletics benefits from medical donation | |
| The first responders in Bolivar County constantly work together to better the community and ensure the safety of both residents and visitors. This team effort was shown with Pafford Ambulance Services, Bolivar County Emergency Management Agency, and Delta State University as they worked together to get a MedIte Medical Transport for Delta State athletics. Pafford Ambulance was the sponsor for this piece of equipment with a value of around $3,300. Abby Havard, assistant athletic director for sports medicine at DSU, said, "We're going to specifically use it for game transportation. If an athlete gets hurt we can immediately put them on the unit and take them to the ambulance off the field. We'll already be a step ahead and be ready for the ambulance when they arrive." |
| U. of Alabama theater group engineers a Maine attraction | |
 | Set in a winter landscape illuminated by the northern lights, "Almost, Maine" explores aspects of love through vignettes spread throughout the town of the title, each ending in a "magical moment." That's how playwright John Cariani describes the surprising conclusions of the 11 scenes, all happening simultaneously one deep night in the tiny town of Almost, a fictional composite of three tiny northern Maine towns. "It's a very sweet play, it's fun, it's romantic," said Allison Mollenkamp, a senior at the University of Alabama and advertising chair for College of Engineering Does Radical Theatre. "We've tossed around 'Almost, Maine' as a show and we finally found a director that could do it." CDA will perform "Almost Maine" Saturday in the Ferguson Theatre on the UA campus. |
| Auburn students mark president Steven Leath's installation with festivities | |
 | The campus green space next to Auburn University's student center was a hub of activity Wednesday, as students and faculty members gathered to celebrate the installation of Steven Leath as the university's 19th president. Some students posed for pictures at a photo booth, while others played a game of cornhole or ate the free food provided at the event. Leath himself mingled among the crowd, posing for pictures with students before he addressed them. "Thanks for everybody turning out," said Leath, who took office last summer after the retirement of former president Jay Gogue. "It's a wonderful day. We didn't really need an installation to do this, because it's fun to get everybody out and have a good time, especially on an Auburn spring day like this." |
| Controversial alt-right speaker Milo Yiannopoulos set to talk at LSU next month | |
 | Far-right author and controversial commentator Milo Yiannopoulos will speak at LSU next month. The student group LSU College Republicans posted the event on their Facebook page. Yiannopoulos will speak on Wednesday, April 11, at 6 p.m. at the LSU Union Theater. The event will be open to the public, according to the event page. WBRZ first reported last month that Yiannopoulos would speak on campus, but at the time, the LSU College Republicans president said the group was still working to finalize his appearance. The April event will mark Yiannapoulos' second appearance on LSU's campus. His first appearance in September 2016 touched on issues of free speech on campus. |
| Hackers targeted U. of South Carolina more than 100 million times last year (not a typo) | |
 | Brandon Alter was just trying to get ready for his first year of college. So when an email, signed "University of South Carolina Information Technology," told him he needed to back up his email to prevent it from being "closed down," he followed the link and entered his information. He thought everything was fine until he was eating lunch with his grandparents one last time before leaving for school in the summer of 2017 and his phone began vibrating non-stop with notifications. Alter's USC email inbox was flooded with "hundreds" of emails saying "this message could not be sent." Alter unwittingly had become the victim of a phishing scam, when attackers impersonate an IT department, friend of the recipient, coworker or a trusted company to obtain personal information or login credentials. In a given year, USC is bombarded with roughly 100 million emails -- most of which are blocked before reaching a spam folder -- seeking to trick recipients into giving away personal information, spokesman Jeff Stensland said. |
| U. of Florida pays county $67K for Richard Spencer event | |
 | The University of Florida has settled its squabble with Alachua County over payment for the Richard Spencer event hosted on campus last year. UF recently sent the county a check for $67,461.11 for costs officials felt were due for the event. The county previously billed UF $302,000 for event, which UF said it accidentally paid via wire transfer before requesting the money be sent back. County spokesman Mark Sexton said county officials had little say in the amount, though the money was accepted. "It wasn't a negotiation," he said. On Oct. 19, white nationalist Richard Spencer spoke on the campus. The controversial event attracted thousands of protesters and throngs of media. Spencer was ultimately drowned out by the audience with chants like "Go Home, Spencer," and "Let's go, Gators." Spencer responded by calling audience members "babies" and "pathetic" and ended the event early. |
| Kentucky legislation could limit tenure protections | |
 | Kentucky could soon significantly curb tenure protections in public higher education. A last-minute addition to the Senate version of the state's budget bill says that public universities could dismiss tenured faculty members due to program changes or eliminations, not just the traditional reasons related to serious misconduct or failure to perform their jobs, or an institution being on the verge of financial collapse. Similar legislation was floated earlier in the legislative session but was dropped. The return of the provision -- quite late in the legislative process -- has frustrated professors. The University of Kentucky released a statement indicating that it was not backing a change in tenure protections. The Kentucky debate comes at a time when many faculty members say tenure rights are being weakened elsewhere. |
| Sen. John Cornyn joins defense director in awarding Texas A&M System's counterintelligence research | |
 | U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and Director of the Defense Security Service Daniel E. Payne were in College Station on Wednesday to honor the Texas A&M University System with the 2017 Defense Security Service Award for Excellence in Counterintelligence. Payne said the A&M System ranked as just one of two entities to be selected for the award from among 13,000 corporate and academic institutions. It is an honor he said is only underscored by the severity of the "unprecedented" challenges facing the U.S. in protecting its technology and intellectual property as "our adversaries are out trying to steal our technology on a daily basis." Cornyn, who serves as a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he believes the A&M System's work in the intelligence arena is "public service at its finest." |
| Non-Tenure Track Research Professors Are Getting the Biggest Raises, Survey Finds | |
 | Non-tenure track research faculty members have earned higher raises than their tenure-track and non-tenure track teaching counterparts over the past two years, according to the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources. The 2018 CUPA-HR Faculty in Higher Education Report, released on Wednesday by the association, evaluated median yearly salary increases for 238,698 full-time faculty members from 2016 to 2018. The study found that annual pay for non-tenure track teaching faculty members rose around 2 percent. Non-tenure track research faculty members' salaries increased by around 2.5 percent. Faculty salaries overall grew by 1.7 percent. The study also found that as faculty ranks climb, from assistant professor to full professor, female and minority representation drops in all types of faculty members, tenure track or not. |
| Data suggest modest gains in faculty salaries in 2018 | |
| College faculty members are earning about 1.7 percent more this year than last year, according to a study released Wednesday by the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources. The figure is down slightly from the increase reported last year. As the chart below shows, the gains were greater for non-tenure-track faculty members than for those on the tenure track. But non-tenure-track faculty members tend to earn much less than do those on the tenure track, and they typically lack comparable benefits. A number of adjunct unions have been organized in the last two years, with some negotiating healthy increases in salaries and benefits. |
| Who Foots Most of the Bill for Public Colleges? In 28 States, It's Students | |
| A new milestone has been reached in the decades-long trend of state disinvestment in higher education, according to a new study. Tuition dollars, not state and local funding, have become the primary revenue source for public higher education in most states. It's the first time, according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers, that more than half of the states have relied so heavily on students to finance operations. During the 2017 fiscal year, the association reports, 28 states leaned chiefly on students, not on taxpayers. Tuition dollars, which amounted to $72.3 billion nationwide, accounted for 46.4 percent of overall revenue for public higher education, according to the association's report. |
| State support for higher ed increased in 2017, but so did tuition revenue | |
| The number of states leaning heavily on tuition to pay for instruction at public colleges and universities grew last year, surpassing a significant symbolic milestone. A total of 28 states used tuition to generate more than 50 percent of their total educational revenue in the 2017 fiscal year, according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers association's annual State Higher Education Finance report, which was released today. It was the first time more than half of states were recorded relying more on tuition dollars than on government appropriations. Exactly 25 states did so in 2016. "This number has been kind of slowly creeping up, and it's something we noticed this year," said Andy Carlson, vice president of finance policy and member services at SHEEO. "There were always a great number of states that were above it -- Vermont, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania, for example." |
| Report: Michigan State Spent $500,000 To Keep Tabs On Nassar Victims, Journalists | |
| Michigan State University spent more than $500,000 to keep tabs on the online activities of former Olympic gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's victims and journalists covering the case, according to the Lansing State Journal. The public-relations company Weber Shandwick billed the university $517,343 for more than 1,440 hours of work tracking social media in the month of January, the Journal reports. Michigan State's Office of Communication and Brand Strategy monitored social media and news media activity involving the Nassar case previously and concurrently with Weber Shandwick, the newspaper notes. The university is paying law firms millions of dollars for work responding to lawsuits and handling communications, the Journal reports. |
SPORTS
| 'Final Four, no doubt:' Child chooses Mississippi State basketball over Disney | |
| Wild hair and a flash of maroon run down up and down the bleachers at the Hump Coliseum in Starkville. If you manage to catch a glimpse of Kennedy Laine Harper, her "wild hair" might be all you're able to really make out. But you'll know it's her. Likely dressed in one of her countless maroon and white tee-shirts with a basketball or a cowbell in her hand, Thompson is arguably the biggest and loudest supporter of the women's basketball team at Mississippi State University. After all, she missed out on not one but two trips to Walt Disney World to watch the team in the Final Four the last two years. The Final Four starts Friday in Columbus, Ohio. Kennedy Laine will be there. Given the opportunity, she doesn't miss a game. |
| How Johnnie Harris earned Vic Schaefer's trust and became assistant coach of the year | |
| Should the story begin with Johnnie Harris as a foster parent, the random conversation with Kay Yow or the note passed on the bus from Vic Schaefer asking if the tandem could win in Starkville? Harris has made her way from a small-school volunteer to being named Assistant Coach of the Year last week. She's the recruiter and developer of post stars like Teaira McCowan. She's Schaefer's associate head coach. "We're family," Schaefer said Tuesday, three days before Schaefer, Harris and Mississippi State participate in a second-straight Final Four. But maybe the best place to start Harris' story is with her in an Arkansas gym just trying to help a student in the neighborhood. She was an administrative assistant at Arkansas-Little Rock, but she wanted to do more. The one thing she knew she could do was to get the most out of struggling kids. |
| Victoria Vivians adds another award to growing list | |
| Maturity and leadership were Vic Schaefer's biggest questions about the Mississippi State women's basketball team prior to the start of the 2017-18 season. Entering his sixth season at the school, Schaefer made a point to highlight those areas as keys to his team's ability to earn a return trip to the Final Four. Schaefer has seen a variety of ways seniors Roshunda Johnson, Blair Schaefer, Victoria Vivians, and Morgan William have provided those qualities in MSU's run to a second-straight appearance in the Final Four. On Sunday, Vivians offered another example of how she has matured into a leader when she crossed the lane and talked to Teaira McCowan after the junior center was called for a foul contesting a shot against UCLA. McCowan didn't agree with the call and could be seen saying, "That's not a foul." Instead of watching her teammate continue to get frustrated, Vivians talked to McCowan for a moment and encouraged her not to get frustrated by the call and concentrate on the next play. The brief talk didn't go unnoticed. |
| 'She's a hoot: The evolution of Mississippi State's Victoria Vivians | |
| Victoria Vivians sat with a plate of chicken fingers in a corner of the Mississippi State women's locker room last week after the Bulldogs' Sweet 16 win last week. She was alone with her phone out and her sneakers off. Her socks were worn inside-out. I asked for her participation in a brief interview. Vivians raised her eyebrows and smiled. For her, this is the start of a game; the question gives her an opportunity to goof around. Vivians was always known to the public as a basketball player. And as a scorer. And as the best player in Mississippi high school girls basketball history. She went about her business stoically, too. Emotion, particularly a smile on the court, was rarer than a bad performance for her. Then this year happened. Vic Schaefer saw it coming, too. At the end of one of his preseason press conferences, he paused, looked around the room and said, "Victoria Vivians is going to have a really special year for us, y'all." |
| UConn sets standard for excellence | |
| Even among the elite in women's college basketball, UConn stands out. The Huskies are back in the Final Four for an 11th straight season, breaking a tie with John Wooden and the UCLA men's program for the Division I record. UConn beat defending national champion South Carolina 94-65 on Monday night to earn the trip to Columbus, Ohio. Notre Dame, Louisville, Mississippi State -- all outstanding programs -- will try to block UConn's path to a fifth national title in six seasons. "I think the field is maybe the strongest I've seen in a long, long time, maybe ever," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said on Tuesday. "And the fans are in for a treat. I don't know if the coaches are, but certainly the fans are in for a treat." All three of the other teams may be capable of knocking off the Huskies, but there's no doubt Auriemma's group is a huge favorite. UConn has won 147 of its past 148 games going back nearly four full seasons. The only loss during that span was against Mississippi State in overtime during the national semifinals last season. |
| Mississippi State wraps up encouraging 25-win hoops season | |
| Mississippi State basketball took a big jump forward during coach Ben Howland's third season, giving the proud program much-needed hope after several frustrating seasons. The Bulldogs finished with a 25-12 record, advancing to the semifinals of the NIT before losing 75-60 to Penn State on Tuesday . Mississippi State had hoped to be a part of the NCAA Tournament field, but struggled in the regular season's final weeks to fall out of contention for an at-large bid. Still, the NIT marked a return to the postseason and a good experience for a team that should bring back all of its main contributors next season. |
| Bulldogs, Tigers renew rivalry in Baton Rouge | |
| The last time Mississippi State and LSU met on the diamond a trip to the College World Series was on the line. The Tigers bested the Bulldogs in the Baton Rouge Super Regional last year to advance ahead to Omaha but neither team is experiencing success to program standards this season. No. 21 LSU enters tonight's series opener with MSU with a 16-10 record and 3-3 mark in the Southeastern Conference while the Diamond Dogs are just 13-13 with a 1-5 showing in the league. The two teams renew their rivalry beginning tonight at 7 p.m. on the SEC Network. Friday's game will also start at 7 p.m. and Saturday's finale gets underway at 2 p.m. at Alex Box Stadium. "It's a great environment and they'll have a good team," said MSU interim coach Gary Henderson. |
| Mississippi State looks for successful road series at LSU | |
| It's a small sample size, but so far this season, the road has been unkind to Mississippi State. The Bulldogs have played two true road series this year. They were swept at Southern Miss to start the season and lost two of three at Missouri last weekend. Now, with a three-game road test at No. 21 LSU beginning Thursday night at 7 p.m., Mississippi State is on a mission to show it can be victorious on someone else's turf. "We've got to go out and prove that we can win a series on the road," MSU interim head coach Gary Henderson said. "We have to prove that to ourselves." f ever there was an ideal place for a team to prove itself on the road, it might just be at LSU. Henderson is ready to see how the Bulldogs respond against the Tigers (16-10, 3-3). |
| Jordan Westburg gives Mississippi State baseball team lift | |
| It was in the sixth inning of the March 11 game against Vanderbilt when the Mississippi State baseball team desperately needed a run. Down 4-2 to the Commodores with the threat of being swept, MSU turned to Jordan Westburg -- with a rousing five collegiate plate appearances to his name, 20 games into the season. There was no conversation with Westburg to warn him this might be coming. This was the understanding all along. "I think it was known by me and the coaching staff I had to be ready at all times. I was the next man up," Westburg told The Dispatch. "I never knew when my name was going to get called; it happened to get called that Sunday in a big spot, I was ready and did something good." Westburg has started every game since. |
| LSU trying to solve its approach problem with SEC rival Mississippi State coming to town | |
| A saying exists among college coaches that nothing good happens after midnight, and yet here were Paul Mainieri and his star outfielder Antoine Duplantis, sitting in Mainieri's office after the clock struck 12. It was just a few hours earlier when Duplantis -- the exact person LSU wanted at the plate -- failed to deliver the big blow in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday against UL-Lafayette. With the tying run in scoring position, Duplantis did the exact thing he told himself not to do. Duplantis told himself to look for a changeup. After taking two changeups for balls, he decided to look for a fastball. He already committed to his swing when he got a third changeup. His weight shifted too early to his front foot. He made weak contact and was an easy final out. Ballgame. The Ragin' Cajuns won 3-1. With one of its most bitter Southeastern Conference rivals coming to town this weekend in Mississippi State, LSU's offense is in a weird place. |
| How the injury bug has affected LSU baseball in 2018 | |
 | While sitting in his office on Monday afternoon, a reporter asked LSU coach Paul Mainieri about the injuries his team has faced this season. Mainieri jokingly responded that it might be easier to answer with the players who are fully healthy. Indeed, the 2018 Tigers have been bitten by the injury bug and that -- along with transfers from fall ball -- has created depth issues across the board. It's why it took LSU a while to figure out a weekend rotation. It's why LSU has started a senior pitcher who hadn't swung a bat in three years at designated hitter, first base and second base this season. |
| Mississippi State conducts its pro day | |
| Mississippi State held its annual pro day event in front of numerous NFL scouts on Wednesday and most of the buzz centered around offensive lineman Martinas Rankin. Rankin was among 18 former Bulldogs who went through various drills, which also included tight end Jordan Thomas. Both Rankin and Thomas competed in the NFL Combine last month and had another opportunity to exhibit their skills in what Rankin referred to as a "job interview." Rankin did not participate in the 40-yard run on Wednesday nor the bench press. He did post a 29-inch vertical with a 9-foot broad jump. "Just transitioning to understanding this is a job and this is my livelihood, and how I have to pay the bills," said Rankin. "At the same time, I am embracing it and it is something I've wanted my entire life. It is a dream and it right there. It still hasn't hit me yet but I am just embracing this process and taking it all in." |
| Martinas Rankin, Jordan Thomas lead Mississippi State group at pro day | |
| Mississippi State held its annual pro day event in front of numerous NFL scouts on Wednesday, and most of the buzz centered around offensive lineman Martinas Rankin. Rankin was among 18 former Bulldogs, including tight end Jordan Thomas, that went through various drills. Both Rankin and Thomas competed in the NFL Combine last month and had another opportunity to exhibit their skills in what Rankin referred to as a "job interview." Other notables at pro day for the Bulldogs included linebacker Dez Harris, who posted a 4.47 time in the 40 and had a 30-inch vertical. Former Bulldog cornerback Lashard Durr posted a 4.48 40 time while former safety/linebacker J.T. Gray had a 4.48 40 time and a 33.5-inch vertical. |
| Montez Sweat eager to continue growth in senior season at Mississippi State | |
| Montez Sweat is an elite pass rusher in a sport that values them more than any other time in its history. Pass rushers of Sweat's projected ability can easily makes tens of millions of dollars before their 30th birthday and Sweat had every opportunity to join them in April's NFL Draft; instead, he's spending this spring practicing as a Mississippi State Bulldog. After a junior season that ended with Sweat atop the Southeastern Conference in sacks (10.5) and tied for the lead in tackles for a loss (15.5), Sweat chose to return to MSU for his senior season. Sweat discussed that decision after MSU's practice Tuesday, ironically enough doing so the day before MSU's Pro Day event for NFL scouts. "It was decision I made with my family and coaching staff. We all thought it was the best decision for me to come back, get my degree in December, have another great season and take it from there," Sweat said. |
| Martinas Rankin shines at MSU Pro Day | |
| Martinas Rankin's last action at center came with two caveats: he knew it was most likely temporary and therefore would likely never do it in a regular season game. Those reps came in spring practice before his senior season; a year later, Rankin was in the corner of the Palmeiro Center snapping once again, this time trying to play center in the National Football League. Rankin, widely projected as a talent worthy of selecting in the first three rounds of April's NFL Draft, was the primary draw to Mississippi State's Pro Day Wednesday after a senior season at left tackle. Part of Rankin's training over the winter has been to prepare for any position a NFL team may throw him into, and he's hoping Wednesday's position drills showed that. "I wanted to show that I'm a good football player all-around and I'm going to do what it takes to get on the field wherever I go," Rankin said. "I've heard it all. They continue to ask which one I prefer, but I want to be a guy that can come in and play all five." |
| All 32 NFL teams watch Jordan Thomas, other MSU players at Pro Day | |
| Jordan Thomas couldn't help but smile on Wednesday morning. The Mississippi State tight end got another opportunity to impress National Football League scouts at MSU's Pro Day and was thankful to be able to show off his skills once again. "It's been a great experience and I wouldn't trade it for anywhere else," Thomas said. "If you asked me in high school, 'would I be in the position I am today?' I would probably tell you no. I'm enjoying everything about it from the (NFL) Combine to Pro Day." All 32 NFL teams were represented in Starkville on Wednesday and a total of 41 scouts or staff members were from those organizations. |
| MSU Pro Day Notebook: J.T. Gray happy for chance to perform | |
| Former Mississippi State safety J.T. Gray entered Wednesday's Pro Day with just one National Football League team in contact, the Arizona Cardinals, after weeks of preparing for a possible roster spot. He left Wednesday with a business card from the Seattle Seahawks in hand. It's possible more attention will come for Gray after his stellar showing at Pro Day, held in MSU's Palmeiro Center. Gray impressed with measureables that would have fared well at the NFL Scouting Combine if he were invited and got to that performance by staying close to home. "With me still being in school, there was no other place for me to workout," Gray said, adding he worked out with former MSU linebacker Dez Harris and occasionally with cornerback Lashard Durr. |
| Mississippi State's Strahinja Rakic named SEC Player of the Week for men's tennis | |
 | For the second time during the 2018 dual match season, a member of the Mississippi State men's tennis team has received Southeastern Conference weekly honors. Junior Strahinja Rakic earned SEC Player of the Week laurels after a stellar weekend on the court that saw him go 4-0 combined, helping lead the Bulldogs to a pair of key ranked victories in SEC action over No. 19 Vanderbilt and No. 21 Kentucky. The award marks the 86th-ranked Rakic's first career SEC Player of the Week award and his first career SEC weekly award. His award marks the second by an MSU player in three weeks, with sophomore Giovanni Oradini claiming the same honor two weeks ago. |
| Ole Miss close to hiring new women's hoops coach | |
 | It may have been the DeSoto County Touchdown Club Ole Miss Athletic Director Ross Bjork was speaking to Monday noon, but basketball was still fresh on his mind. "Excuse me if I keep looking at my cell phone," Bjork quipped to the room at the Southaven Holiday Inn. "It may be a (women's) coaching candidate that is calling." That call didn't come in the hour the sixth-year Ole Miss AD, or Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics, as is his official title, spoke to the group of DeSoto County football fans. Bjork did touch on football coach Matt Luke and the job he's done in Oxford since the school took the "interim" tag away and made him the Rebels' full-time football program leader. But basketball has made the biggest Rebel splash in recent weeks and Bjork said he felt Ole Miss was very close to getting someone to replace Matt Insell, fired in early March in his fifth year on the job. "Any day, I hope we're getting close on a few of our key candidates and I hope we will be getting an answer any day now," Bjork said after the meeting. |
| Missouri baseball struggles in attendance compared to other SEC schools | |
 | Missouri baseball does not draw as many fans as other Southeastern Conference schools, and it's not particularly close. The Tigers ranked last in the conference in attendance in 2017 and were No. 72 nationally. The next closest SEC school was Tennessee at No. 47. When looking at attendance figures, it's important to keep in mind the quality and legacy of SEC programs. The conference featured the top five drawing teams in the country in 2017, and an SEC team has appeared in the College World Series finals nine of the past 10 years. There are 297 Division I programs across the country, and Missouri is in the top 25 percent nationally, according to D1baseball.com. The Tigers just lag compared to other teams in their conference. A number of reasons could explain Missouri's attendance struggles when compared to other SEC schools. |
| Auburn AD Allen Greene 'absolutely' intends for Bruce Pearl to remain as head coach | |
| Auburn athletics director Allen Greene offered his strongest public support yet for Bruce Pearl on Wednesday, saying that he "absolutely" intends for Pearl to remain as Auburn men's basketball coach barring any new information about the program coming to light during the NCAA and FBI investigations into college basketball. Greene's comments, made on the WJOX Roundtable radio show, come days after he said Pearl has been "excellent" in his compliance with the investigation. They're consistent with what Pearl said following the NCAA Tournament, which is that he wants to remain as head coach and expects to "as long as there are no major findings that are tied to me." Auburn University president Steven Leath backed up Greene's comments and offered his support as well. |
| Here Are the Hottest College Sports -- and the Ones in Decline | |
| Citing budget woes, officials at Eastern Michigan University announced plans last week to cut four of the institution's sports teams: women's softball, women's tennis, men's swimming and diving, and men's wrestling. The decision has drawn consternation -- and pleas for support -- from on and off campus. In choosing to eliminate teams like women's tennis and men's wrestling, Eastern Michigan is swimming with the tide. Over the course of the last decade, colleges' athletics departments at all levels have dropped those and other sports in decline. The Chronicle reviewed participation data from the U.S. Department of Education to examine which sports were in the ascent and which have been commonly dropped. The data demonstrate how colleges are shifting their priorities to meet the evolving interests of potential students. |
| With new golf tournament, Mississippi becomes bigger player on PGA tours | |
| Syndicated sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: "Five states hold the distinction of hosting tournaments on all three PGA golf tours: The PGA Tour, the Champions Tour and the web.com Tour. Four of those states are easy to guess: Florida, California, North Carolina and Georgia. The fifth? Mississippi. The North Mississippi Classic debuts on the web.com Tour April 18-22 at Country Club of Oxford, joining the Sanderson Farms Championship (Country Club of Jackson) on the PGA Tour and the Rapiscan Systems Classic (Fallen Oak near Biloxi) on the Champions Tour. ...Like the Sanderson Farms Championship, the Oxford tournament will be for the benefit of Century Club Charities, which has raised more than $12 million for Mississippi charities through the Jackson-based PGA Tour event." |
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