| Thursday, May 16, 2019 |
| U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker Talks UAS Progress at Hearing | |
 | On May 8, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss. -- chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee -- convened a hearing to consider the challenges of incorporating unmanned aircraft systems and commercial space launch vehicles into national airspace. Wicker invited Dallas Brooks, director of the Raspet Flight Research Laboratory at Mississippi State University, to share how Mississippi State is leading the development of UAS research and development. In his opening statement, Brooks highlighted how Mississippi State's Raspet Flight Research Laboratory has built out unmanned systems infrastructure that has made the university a hub for flight research. Mississippi State University also leads the FAA's UAS Center of Excellence. "We operate the newest, largest and most technically advanced fleet of unmanned aircraft in academic use today," Brooks said. |
| Farmtastic being held through Friday at Lauderdale County Ag Center | |
 | An opportunity for children to learn all about agriculture and even get some hands-on experience is this week. Farmtastic is going on at the Lauderdale County Ag Center. There are many things for kids to do at Farmtastic including animal petting, learning about trees, cotton gins, where plants and animals come from, and more. "It's a program to bring agriculture to children's fingertips, a lot of children are not exposed to agriculture anymore and this is a whole new experience: it's educational, it's exciting, it's Farmtastic!" exclaims Shani Hay, the Lauderdale County extension agent for Mississippi State University. The program is put on each year across the state by the Mississippi State University's Extension Services. "Extension's job is to educate, we are the bridge between Mississippi State University and the public," Hay says. "So we try to reach out and bring education to the public, and we are an agricultural state and an agricultural university." |
| Warren Central STAR Student sets sights on Mississippi State and computer science degree | |
| In one week Chris Greene will walk across the stage and receive his high school diploma. While this will mark a milestone for Greene, another achievement the senior has received is being named Warren Central High School's STAR Student for the class of 2019. "I was ecstatic and honored when I was notified that I earned Star Student. My mind was going 100 mph, but I can remember thinking of how proud my family was going to be," Greene said. The STAR Student program is sponsored by the Mississippi Economic Council's M.B. Swayze Foundation and recognizes the senior in each graduating class with the highest ACT. Greene scored a 31 on the ACT and has a 4.0 GPA. Greene chose Eleanor Phillips as his STAR Teacher. "Chris is an outstanding student across the board and when a great student chooses me, it is just the highest honor I can think of," Phillips said. Greene plans to attend Mississippi State University in the fall and study computer science. |
| Regional hospitals earn As, Bs for patient safety | |
 | Six Northeast Mississippi hospitals made the honor roll in the latest round of hospital safety grades from Leapfrog Group. Earning A grades from the national nonprofit organization committed to improving health care quality and safety are Baptist Memorial Hospital-Union County in New Albany, Gilmore Memorial Hospital in Amory and North Mississippi Medical Center-Tupelo. Out of 35 hospitals in Mississippi with enough data to be graded, nine received As, 11 received Bs, nine received Cs and five received Ds. No Northeast Mississippi hospitals scored lower than a B. Earning B grades were Baptist-North Mississippi in Oxford, Magnolia Regional Health Center in Corinth and OCH Regional Medical Center in Starkville. |
| Sweet Potato Council gets new home thanks to BancorpSouth | |
| The Mississippi Sweet Potato Council will have a permanent home, with BancorpSouth donating its former branch building to the organization. BancorpSouth is moving into a new building and donated its old office at 205 W. Sweet Potato St. to the council this month. "It is important for us to support the Mississippi Sweet Potato Council's efforts because sweet potato production is vital to the economic growth of Calhoun and Chickasaw counties," said BancorpSouth Houston, Mississippi Market President Don McCarver. "The council's work to educate growers on ways to improve their product and their livelihood should be commended. This donation is our way of showing our appreciation for the impact they've made for more than 50 years." Sweet potatoes are the ninth-largest crop in the state's $7.72 billion agriculture industry, valued at about $118 million. Some 29,000 acres were harvested last year. |
| World's largest wood pellet plant planned in Lucedale. Residents, environmental activists at odds | |
 | Residents of Lucedale who showed up in force to a public hearing Tuesday already made up their minds about the largest wood pellet mill in the country locating in their town. They wore stickers announcing their position. And they weren't swayed by speakers who came mostly from outside the area, arguing that while Enviva might be good for the bottom line, it might not be good for the health of the community. The company proposes building a $140 million pellet plant in the George County Industrial Park in Lucedale and a $60 million shipping terminal in Pascagoula. The state Legislature appropriated more than $2 million to fix the rail spur between the two. Tuesday's meeting was the last step in the review process before the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality decides whether to approve the pollution control equipment. Much of the timber is on land owned by families who consider the trees another crop like corn and cotton, said state Rep. Manly Barton, R-Hurley. The pellet plant will be in his district. It will be the largest industrial facility in the county and add jobs and tax revenue for the county and school district, he said. |
| Geoffrey Yoste has fundraising lead in Transportation Commission race | |
| In the race to win the northern district's seat on the state highway commission, Republican Geoffrey Yoste has a strong fundraising advantage. According to campaign finance reports released last week, Yoste has raised about $105,000, a little more than $40,000 more than his nearest opponent. Yoste is in a Republican primary with four declared opponents seeking a post on the Transportation Commission, which governs the Mississippi Department of Transportation. Among those opponents, Trey Bowman reported a fundraising total of about $62,000, but he loaned his own campaign $25,000 of that reported total. Jeremy Martin reported fundraising totals of about $50,000, but loaned himself $20,000 of that total. John Caldwell raised about $32,000. Republican candidate E.A. Hathcock did not submit any campaign finance disclosures by the required deadline. |
| Medicaid reform: Will GOP embrace expansion by another name? | |
 | Call it Medicaid reform, not Medicaid expansion. That's part of the Mississippi Hospital Association's latest effort to get Republicans to accept federal money and provide health insurance to now-uninsured adults. The association on Monday unveiled a plan it calls Mississippi Cares. By combining payments from people who get coverage and hospitals, the association says Mississippi can avoid spending any of its own tax dollars to match federal money. The association envisions beneficiaries paying up to $20 a month and proposes that beneficiaries without jobs would enroll in training or volunteer work to qualify for coverage. "Our objective is to get as many people covered as we can legitimately get covered, and to make sure hospitals and doctors get reimbursed fairly," said Tim Moore, the association's president and CEO. |
| Jim Hood poll shows he's up slightly on Tate Reeves in governor's race | |
 | A new poll released by the Jim Hood campaign shows the Democrat in a strong position ahead of the August gubernatorial primary, and with a slight edge in a possible general election against Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves. It reveals the attorney general has more than a 50-point cushion over his nearest Democratic competitor in the primary. And it shows a 45% to 40% lead for Hood in a head-to-head matchup with Reeves. The telephone survey of 604 likely voters earlier this month, conducted by Hickman Analytics, had a margin of error of 4%. A memo did not provide details on the demographics of those polled. In the context of recent public polling, support for the two leading candidates appears essentially neck-and-neck. One Reeves-commissioned survey of likely voters found the lieutenant governor up 51% to 36% over Hood, "when leaners are included." |
| The Homeland and the Wetlands: The Yazoo backwater fight rages | |
| While the Delta always floods this time of year, what's happening now is unprecedented. Just north of Vicksburg sits the Steele Bayou Control Structure, a set of gates that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers closes when the Mississippi River rises above the water level inside the structure, preventing the river from backing up into the South Delta. The disaster has led some state leaders, farmers, and other Delta residents to call for the revival of the Yazoo Pumps project, news that is deeply concerning to conservationists across the country. The Corps conceived the pumps to protect constituents against flood events like this. In the design, the pumps would turn on once the backwater reaches 87 feet, shooting the water into the Yazoo River until the pool falls below that level. Opponents argue, however, that the project is intended to maximize agricultural production, all at the cost of depleting an already impaired system of wetlands. In the meantime, residents like Anderson Jones say they're caught in the crosshairs and on their own. |
| Alabama abortion law sparks fears Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade | |
 | New strict abortion laws in states like Alabama and Georgia are setting the stage for a legal fight that could make its way to the Supreme Court, sparking fears that the court's conservative majority could reverse Roe v. Wade. Legal experts have previously cast doubt on the possibility of the Supreme Court revisiting the landmark ruling in Roe v. Wade anytime soon. But Justice Stephen Breyer appeared to raise the possibility this week in an opinion opposing conservative justices' reversal of an unrelated 1979 ruling. "Today's decision can only cause one to wonder which cases the court will overrule next," Breyer wrote, in what many viewed to be a warning against a potential Roe v. Wade reversal. The court overturning the 1979 ruling, coupled with Breyer's remarks, has intensified fears among abortion rights supporters who say a conservative-leaning Supreme Court could also overturn Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide in 1973. |
| Alabama governor invokes God in banning nearly all abortions | |
| Alabama's Republican governor has signed the most stringent abortion legislation in the nation, making performing an abortion a felony in nearly all cases. "To the bill's many supporters, this legislation stands as a powerful testament to Alabamians' deeply held belief that every life is precious and that every life is a sacred gift from God," Gov. Kay Ivey said in a statement after signing it into law on Wednesday. The law's sponsors want to give conservatives on the U.S. Supreme Court a chance to gut abortion rights nationwide. Democrats and abortion rights advocates criticized the legislation as a slap in the face to women. Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio and Georgia recently approved bans on abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can occur in about the sixth week of pregnancy. Missouri's Republican-led Senate voted early Thursday to ban abortions at eight weeks, with no rape or incest exceptions. The Alabama bill goes further by seeking to ban abortion outright. |
| Trump prepares to unveil broad immigration plan but shows no signs of tempering hard-line rhetoric | |
 | President Trump on Wednesday warned again about the dangers of undocumented immigrants, signaling no plans to temper his rhetoric even as he prepares to unveil a broad proposal aimed at balancing public perception of his administration's hard-line agenda. Trump is scheduled to use a Rose Garden speech on Thursday to throw his support behind a plan developed with his son-in-law and White House adviser, Jared Kushner, to move U.S. immigration toward a "merit-based system" that prioritizes high-skilled workers over those with family already in the country. Several Republican senators are expected to attend, officials said. The proposal, previewed by Kushner and other Trump aides in private briefings on Capitol Hill over the past week, already is facing skepticism from lawmakers in both political parties, and there appears to be no clear path toward advancing the plan through Congress. |
| UMMC Empowering Through Base Pair | |
| At least a dozen large corkboards on wheels, each containing diagrams, data, charts and more, fill a room in the University of Mississippi Medical Center. It's hard to hear over the noise of students presenting research projects on everything from potential cancer treatments to things that can restrict the growth of fetuses. The students, all of whom are from Murrah High School, are part of Base Pair, a program that lets them work on research projects with doctors at UMMC. The initiative, which has been around for 27 years, started with a simple question: "How can the sole academic medical center for this state help advance science education in the public schools, specifically Jackson Public Schools?" says Dr. Rob Rockhold, UMMC's deputy chief academic officer. The success of the Base Pair students speaks volumes about the potential available in public schools, Rockhold says. "If we don't harness that, we have lost a tremendous opportunity to advance the city, to advance the state," he says. "It would be just a terrible waste not to be able to take the fullest possible advantage of that resource." |
| USM Center for Child Development closure leaves parents scrambling for other options | |
 | Parents who drop their children off at USM's Center for Child Development in Pass Christian told WLOX that the center provides exactly what they're looking for in a daycare and pre-kindergarten learning program. "It's like having a second family," said Ashley Hessell, a mother of two. Many of the parents, including Hessell, were stunned to receive a letter saying the center would be closing at the end of June. "I was extremely upset, I cried like a baby," Hessell said. Currently 67 children are enrolled with almost another 100 on a waiting list. The center operated by USM is also used as a training ground for students pursuing child and family sciences degrees, but many of those programs are moving online, and students aren't being required to work in the university-operated facility which led to the closure. The facility is owned by the Pass Christian School District and was being leased to USM. According to Pass Christian Superintendent Carla Evers, the district is looking for other daycare operators to potentially use the building. |
| East Central Community College receives $74,646 grant to offer summer GenCyber camps for girls | |
| East Central Community College in Decatur has received a $74,646 grant from the National Security Agency and National Science Foundation to offer free GenCyber Camps for girls this summer in four locations throughout the college's district. The grant is part of the National Security Agency's GenCyber Program 2019. The free camps for girls entering grades three through five in fall 2019 are designed to get more females interested in careers in the computer science industry. "This grant is important because it allows us the opportunity to get more girls interested in computer science at an earlier age and hopefully that translates into more women in the field of cybersecurity in the future," said Ken Ethridge, computer science instructor at ECCC and Cyber Warriors GenCyber program director. Each camp will provide hands-on learning activities that will allow participants to learn cybersecurity vulnerabilities, cybercrime, and how attention to safe online behavior is crucial to their personal safety. |
| U. of Tennessee-Knoxville students likely to see 2% tuition increase | |
 | Students at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville are likely to see a 2% tuition increase for the next academic year. The increase would put total tuition and fees at $13,264 for in-state students for the 2019-2020 academic year. The campus advisory board unanimously approved the proposed increase, which will go before UT's Board of Trustees for approval at their June 21 meeting in Knoxville. The board also unanimously recommended the $1.245 billion proposed 2019-2020 operating budget, a 2.4% increase over last year's budget. The 2% tuition hike would be one of the lowest tuition increases in the university's history and amount to an increase of $258 per student for in-state tuition and fees. The increase is based on recommendations from the Tennessee Higher Education Coalition, which recommended a tuition increase between 2 and 2.5%, according to Senior Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Chris Cimino. |
| U. of Kentucky journalism professor takes aim at bosses in federal lawsuit | |
 | University of Kentucky journalism professor Buck Ryan has sued four top officials at UK, saying they defamed him and then retaliated against him when he fought their efforts to fire him. The federal lawsuit names UK Provost David Blackwell; Derek Lane, interim dean of communications; Mike Farrell, interim director of the UK School of Journalism; and Joseph Reed, executive director of the audit department. The suit asks for punitive and compensatory damages for Ryan, who has been on leave from teaching since January. The lawsuit is the next step in a long line of conflicts between Ryan, a long-time tenured professor, and the UK administration, starting in 2016. UK officials said they looked forward to arguing their case in court. "Our response to this baseless lawsuit is straightforward and simple -- the truth," said spokesman Jay Blanton. |
| Texas A&M's Bhimu Patil honored with University Professorship | |
 | The inaugural University Professorship at Texas A&M University has been awarded to Bhimu Patil, professor and director of the Vegetable Improvement Center and U.S. Department of Agriculture National Center for Excellence in College Station. The honor recognizes Texas A&M faculty members who have significant, sustained accomplishment in their discipline and have gained national and international recognition. Honorees also have a commitment to inclusivity and diversity, and excel in teaching and service. He received the award in recognition of his research, distinguished teaching and leadership in administration. His research accomplishments have centered on improving human health by examining health-promoting bioactive compounds in fruits and vegetables. The professorship honor is the highest academic award that the university can bestow on a faculty member. |
| 'Not a perfect baby': U. of Missouri faculty, staff question new budget model | |
 | University of Missouri faculty and staff expressed concerns Wednesday about the effects budget changes could have on graduate studies, disparities among campus spaces and research. The new Resource Allocation Model announced Tuesday will shift financial responsibilities from the campus level down to the level of individual schools, colleges and units. Funds will be allocated based on specific performance criteria, such as number of credit hours, the amount of campus space used and the number of students enrolled in each program. The new model will also require that 10 percent of allocated funds unused by the end of the fiscal year be returned to MU's central funds. Provost Latha Ramchand, who has been working to develop the new model since she came to MU about 10 months ago, compared its unveiling to giving birth. |
| CFPB Chief Says Education Department Is Blocking Student Loan Oversight | |
 | The director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says the Trump administration's Education Department is getting in the way of efforts to police the student loan industry. The revelation, in a letter obtained by NPR, comes at the same time that lawsuits allege widespread wrongdoing by student loan companies is costing some borrowers thousands of dollars. CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger explained the problem in an April letter responding to questions from Sen. Elizabeth Warren and other lawmakers about whether the federal regulator had "abandoned its supervision and enforcement activities" related to more than $1 trillion in student loans. A central issue is that companies that manage student loans, known as student loan servicers, are refusing to share information that the CFPB says it needs to perform proper oversight. |
| Everyone Wants to Measure the Value of College. Now the Gates Foundation Wants a Say. | |
 | Perhaps never before has there been such a need for postsecondary credentials but such skepticism about whether a college education is worth the cost. That, according to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is the paradox that prompted it to create a national research group, to be publicly convened on Thursday. The Commission on the Value of Postsecondary Education is the latest national effort to measure and seek to convey clearly just how much someone gains -- economically, anyway -- from a college credential. The goal is to provide useful, understandable information to help colleges "take a critical look at how and how well they are contributing to economic opportunity for today's students; aid policy makers in gauging what the public gets for its investment in higher education; and equip students and families as they consider where and what to study," the foundation said in announcing the commission. Gates officials say the result will be more comprehensive than existing measures, like the College Scorecard, a program introduced by the Obama administration as a way to help increase transparency in higher education. |
SPORTS
| State seeks to finish the regular season strong | |
| Mississippi State has likely already locked up a spot as a national seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. Baseball America and D1Baseball.com both project the Bulldogs to be the No. 4 overall seed, which would secure home field advantage for MSU during the regional and super regional rounds. However, the fifth-ranked Diamond Dogs are not taking anything for granted and are going into the final series of the regular season against South Carolina as eager as ever. "I feel like we still have to do some work and even if you do have a national seed, don't you want to be the second or third national seed," asked MSU coach Chris Lemonis. "All we can control is our next game. I know that's very coach speak but for our guys it's trying to win the next one and finish it out." The series with the Gamecocks gets underway at 6:30 tonight, continues Friday at 6:30 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m. |
| SEC series finale: What's at stake for Mississippi State baseball against South Carolina | |
| There's a running joke among Mississippi State baseball fans that has to do with Kendall Rogers, the co-managing editor of D1Baseball.com. Bulldog fans often bug Rogers -- who is highly respected in the college baseball media community -- on Twitter with questions like, "Kendall, is Mississippi State going to host?" The past two seasons, the answer was always no. Mississippi State hasn't hosted a regional since 2016. This season has been a different story. Much different. Late Tuesday night, while Mississippi State was putting the finishing touches on a 7-3 win over Louisiana Tech, Rogers Tweeted, "I'm going to go out on a huge limb here: Mississippi State will host." Rogers thinks that will be the case no matter what No. 5 Mississippi State (43-10, 18-9 SEC) does against South Carolina (27-25, 7-20) in a three-game series that starts at Dudy Noble Field on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. |
| Mississippi State's Mangum, Small tabbed Golden Spikes Award semifinalists | |
 | As the final regular season weekend of 2019 approaches, Mississippi State baseball student-athletes senior Jake Mangum and redshirt-junior Ethan Small added another honor to the list, as the duo was tabbed as two of the 25 semifinalists for the 2019 Golden Spikes Award, presented by USA Baseball in partnership with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation. Mississippi State's history with the Golden Spikes Award began in 1984, when Rafael Palmeiro was named a finalist for the award. In 1985, Will Clark produced the only Golden Spikes Award-winning season in program history. Since the award began naming semifinalists in 2007, only three other Diamond Dawgs have been named semifinalists for the award. Dakota Hudson (2016), Brent Rooker (2017) and Chris Stratton (2012) have each earned the semifinalist distinction, with Rooker being named just the third finalist in program history, joining Clark and Palmeiro. Fan voting, which will account for five percent of the final award process, is open from Wednesday, May 15 through Sunday, May 26. |
| Southern Miss football schedule 2019 includes Mississippi State, Alabama | |
 | The Southern Miss football team is coming off a winning campaign in 2018. The Golden Eagles went 6-5 overall and 5-3 in Conference USA last season. USM starts the season by hosting Alcorn State on Saturday, Aug. 31. Marquee games on the schedule include trips to Mississippi State on Saturday, Sept. 7 and to Alabama on Saturday, Sept. 21. |
| Smaller crowds, fewer wins. How South Carolina diehards survived historically bad baseball season | |
 | The Gamecocks defeated USC Upstate 1-0 in Founders Park in their final home game of the season to improve to 27-25 overall. The only guaranteed games left on the schedule are three on the road this week against No. 5 Mississippi State, which puts South Carolina in danger of its first losing record since 1996 and just its fourth since 1963. When Mark Kingston was hired to replace Chad Holbrook two years ago, he was put in charge of South Carolina's marquee athletics program. The Gamecocks baseball team has won two national championships and has 32 NCAA Tournament appearances and long has served as a salve for the USC fan psyche when other sports gave them nothing to crow about. The Gamecocks haven't won fewer than 33 games in a season since 1996, but Kingston's second season will end well south of that barring an unexpected run to close the year. That's a tough blow for what has arguably been the university's most loyal fan base. |
| SEC title not focus for Hogs | |
| The University of Arkansas baseball team finds itself in a four-team race for the SEC championship going into the final weekend of the regular season. Vanderbilt (20-7) has the SEC overall lead followed by Arkansas (19-8), Georgia (18-9) and Mississippi State (18-9). The Razorbacks are going for their third SEC championship. They also won in 1999 when they were 22-8 and in 2004 when they were 19-11. Arkansas junior second baseman Jack Kenley said the players are focused on playing at Texas A&M -- where they open a three-game series at 6 tonight on ESPNU -- rather than being on the verge of winning the SEC championship. "That's not really what we're thinking about too much," Kenley said. "It's pretty much just winning ballgames. Every game is weighted the same in the W column. Obviously, we want to get down to College Station and really get after it." |
| No. 19 Texas A&M baseball team hoping to boost NCAA tournament resume against No. 4 Arkansas | |
| With No. 4 Arkansas headed to College Station to close out the No. 19 Texas A&M baseball team's regular season slate, the Aggies have their eyes on a prize that lies just beyond the horizon. Sitting at the forefront of the minds of A&M players and coaches is the dangling carrot of hosting an NCAA tournament regional should the Aggies have success in the three-game series that begins Thursday. "The opportunity to host is still there," A&M head coach Rob Childress said. "We have a great weekend, I feel like we've got a shot to do that." The Aggies have the RPI to back their claim, entering the weekend series at No. 13. The top 16 seeds as picked by the tournament selection committee get to host four-team regionals to open the tournament. It's been a fight for the Aggies to push back into the NCAA host conversation. |
| What's at stake for LSU in big home series vs. Auburn? Postseason seeding, regional spot | |
 | The latest projections released by Baseball America and D1 Baseball on Wednesday had LSU as a host for the first round of the NCAA tournament, but that's contingent on future results. LSU begins a three-game set against Auburn on Thursday night, the final series of the regular season. The Southeastern Conference tournament begins next week. As the postseason approaches, the last couple spots for hosting an NCAA regional are wide open. LSU, ranked No. 20 by Collegiate Baseball, is sitting in the middle of it. The Tigers have 17 wins against RPI top 50 teams, tied for fifth-most in the country. LSU enters Thursday night's game 15-12 in the conference. It is tied with Ole Miss for third in the SEC Western Division. Ole Miss travels this weekend to Tennessee. There's a lot at stake. |
| Auburn heads to LSU fighting for tournament bid | |
 | Auburn doesn't want to be stuck waiting outside a closed door, leaving its fate to chance in the hands of a selection committee somewhere in a meeting room. The Tigers are determined to take charge of their destiny on the playing field -- starting this weekend on a diamond down by the bayou. The Auburn baseball team takes on LSU for a season-finale three-game series starting tonight in Baton Rouge, La., which could go a long way for both teams in determining their postseason fates and chances at making the NCAA Tournament. Auburn (31-21, 13-14 SEC) is No. 20 in college baseball's RPI and LSU (32-21, 15-12) is No. 21. Tonight's first pitch represents a chance for Auburn to solidify its tournament bid and leave little to chance later this month when the tournament's selection committee convenes to award at-large bids. Auburn has the ninth-best record in the SEC, placing the orange-and-blue Tigers near the fringe of entries in a conference that sent 10 teams to the NCAA Tournament last season. |
| UF's Dan Mullen addresses negative perception | |
 | For the first time since the spring game, Florida football coach Dan Mullen met with the media prior to his speech Wednesday to the Tampa Gator Club at Armature Works. From the accusations against former UF quarterback Jalon Jones to the recent transfer of cornerback Chris Steele, Mullen addressed the recent offseason troubles that have unfolded in the public eye. Jones, whom Mullen recruited since his freshman year of high school, was accused of sexually assaulting two female students April 6. The women declined to press charges against Jones, but he entered the NCAA transfer database late last month regardless. Mullen also answered questions regarding the ongoing legal troubles surrounding Florida cornerback Brian Edwards and director of player personnel Otis Yelverton. Edwards was arrested earlier this month on a misdemeanor battery charge for allegedly grabbing his girlfriend by the neck when she tried to leave their apartment during an argument. Edwards pleaded not guilty. Yelverton, 51, is facing a third-degree felony for aggravated cyberstalking. |
| Tennessee football to offer cheaper season-ticket option | |
| Tennessee for the first time is offering a season-ticket style pass that will allow fans to attend every home football game, but would not ensure them the same seats for each game. The pass is dubbed the Vol Pass and sells for $280. It is available now and will cover all eight home games for 2019. The pass has been offered the past three seasons for men's and women's basketball. Fans with the pass would secure their seats through an online selection process before each home game. The seat inventory for each game will be available to view Monday morning of each game week until noon ET on Friday. During the seat selection process, fans will have the opportunity to purchase additional single-game tickets, if available, at face value. |
| U. of Alabama approves five-year deal for Nate Oats | |
 | The University of Alabama System compensation committee on Wednesday approved a five-year contract for new UA head basketball coach Nate Oats and a two-year deal for his assistant, Antoine Pettway. "We are all excited about the future of our basketball program and just all the outstanding achievements within the athletics department," said UA Trustee Kenneth Vandervoort, chairman of the board's compensation committee. Oats will make about $2.5 million annually before bonuses, according to documents released by UA after the vote. Pettway's salary is $325,000. During a conference call, the committee unanimously approved the contracts, which were previously signed by the coaches and Athletics Director Greg Byrne in late April. The agreement approved on Wednesday included paying a $750,000 buyout owed to Buffalo. |
| Michigan AD: Big Ten title 'deserves to put you in position to play for the national championship' | |
 | Over the last two seasons, when it comes to the College Football Playoffs, the Big Ten has been on the outside looking in. The league is ready for that to change. A couple of the conference's athletic directors sounded off on the topic this week during the league's spring meetings in Chicago. "I'm open to the consideration and to looking at it and to thinking about it," Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel said Monday. CFP executive director Bill Hancock has said there are immediate plans for expanding the CFP field. |
| How Tiger Woods Won the Back Surgery Lottery | |
 | Few would have predicted that Tiger Woods would be playing in the P.G.A. Championship this week. He had three failed back surgeries, starting in 2014. He had taken opioids. His astonishing career seemed over. Then he had one more operation, a spinal fusion, the most complex of all, in 2017. And last month he won the Masters, playing the way he used to. An outcome like his from fusion surgery is so rare it is "like winning the lottery," Dr. Sohail K. Mirza, a spine surgeon at Dartmouth, said. The lesson that most surgeons say Woods's experience teaches isn't that fusion surgery is a panacea but how much active rehabilitation and physical therapy the procedure requires for it to work. Tony Delitto, chairman of physical therapy at the University of Pittsburgh, says he tries to warn patients seeking fusion surgery for a deteriorated disk not to expect too much. "I would be very, very hesitant, and most surgeons would be very, very hesitant to tell patients that after fusion they would be pain-free," he said. |
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