| Wednesday, November 20, 2024 |
| MSU Veterans Center helps both former soldiers and their families | |
 | Only moments after a group photo at Coffee with a Cop, Army Reservist Sgt. Ethan Gilley was going over some paperwork with Diego Soto, student experience coordinator at the GV Sonny Montgomery Center for America's Veterans at MSU. The Center has been ranked as a national leader in providing comprehensive support for veterans and their dependents. "We support and advocate for veterans and military connected students. From financial aid, benefits, resources, counseling, we do it all here," said Andrew Rendon, executive director of Veterans and Military Affairs. The center even helped start an equine therapy program for veterans that now also welcomes law enforcement officers. For Diego Soto, helping connect veterans and their family members to a wide range of services is one more way he can show his appreciation to the nation and fellow veterans. "First, the staff here is very helpful, selfless. They give everything they have for students. Never thought I'd be able to assist military connected students and veterans. It's been great. MSU has done a great job for many years," Soto said. |
| MSU brainstorms ideas to implement scooter policies on campus | |
 | The Mississippi State University Parking and Traffic Regulation Committee is working on new regulations for electric scooters and bicycles that might be enforced on campus in the coming semesters. MSU's campus has seen a drastic increase in electric scooter usage over the last few years. With this increased usage, there has also been an increase in accidents between scooters, pedestrians and cars. Currently, there are rules in place to protect against accidents. Scooter riders and cyclists must dismount their vehicles on sidewalks when pedestrians are present. They also must dismount their vehicles when crossing crosswalks to allow motorists time to stop. They should also use bike lanes when available. Furthermore, electric scooters and bikes are not allowed inside any buildings on campus. However, many scooter riders and cyclists have not abided by these rules. Regina Hyatt, the vice president of Student Affairs, described the challenges with enforcing the rules. Hyatt said that while the committee does not want campus police to have to constantly chase down violators, the hindrance to public safety caused by heedless scooter and bike operators is too significant to ignore. "I'm not sure that's the way we want to go, but we've got to figure something out because there are obvious safety issues," Hyatt said. |
| USDA, Cooperative Extension & APLU Award 2024 Top Honors in Extension Excellence and Diversity | |
| Recognizing visionary leadership and diversity in educational programming, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Cooperative Extension and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) have announced its 2024 awards for Extension Excellence and Diversity. The awards were presented at the APLU Annual Meeting, which NIFA and Cooperative Extension have sponsored since 1991. "Each year, these awards showcase the fundamental, transformative difference Cooperative Extension continues to make in our society," said Dr. Manjit Misra, NIFA director. "This important partnership and excellent programs like these are a testament to the true value of Cooperative Extension capacity funds more than a century after the Smith-Lever Act created this unparalleled system of outreach and education that enriches every community across the nation." The Excellence in Extension Award for an Individual is given annually to one Cooperative Extension professional who excels at science-based programming, provides visionary leadership, and makes a positive impact on constituents. Daryl Jones is an Extension professor of wildlife, fisheries, and aquaculture at Mississippi State University. His programming involves innovative engagement with private landowners and producers to diversify incomes and enhance conservation on the land base. Nearly 12,000 landowners have attended his workshops. Using gained knowledge, they have initiated over 2,500 wildlife recreational enterprises on 3 million acres across 28 U.S. states while earning $39 million annually. |
| Students discover the world of forestry at MSU's Wood Magic Science Fair | |
 | Excitement filled the air on Oct. 23 at Mississippi State University as third and fourth graders from across the state gathered to experience the 31st annual Wood Magic Science Fair. Hosted by MSU's Department of Sustainable Bioproducts within the College of Forest Resources, the fair aims to foster an understanding of the vital role forestry and wood products play in everyday life. For these young students, the Wood Magic Science Fair offers an opportunity to learn outside the classroom through hands-on activities and demonstrations. Throughout the day, they explored the renewable nature of wood, its recyclability, and the essential role it plays in many common products. The fair also introduces them to over 2,000 products made from wood, from the lumber in their homes to paper products, and even less obvious items like toothpaste and ketchup. "This fair is designed to be the field trip that every kid remembers," said Dr. Dan Seale, a professor with MSU's College of Forest Resources who has been involved with the fair since its early years. "We want them to see, touch, and even smell wood. It's all about engaging as many senses as possible so they walk away understanding that wood impacts our lives every day." |
| MSU opens new Patent and Trademark Center on campus | |
| MSU students and faculty and area residents will now have a head start on getting their original ideas into the market. The Patent and Trademark Resource Center, or PTRC, at Mitchell Memorial Library officially opened on November 19. The PTRC is part of a nationwide network associated with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and offers free trademark and patent assistance to the public. Representatives can show people how to use patent and trademark search tools, explain the application process, help them access the directory of patent attorneys, and find patent and trademark owner information among other things. The service was designed to help creators, inventors, researchers, and entrepreneurs navigate the patent process with more ease and less expense. "This helps the libraries support our mission of empowering users with the best resources available," said David Nolen, Assoc. Dean of MSU Archives and Special Collections. |
| Miss. State one of three universities to offer a bachelor's degree in AI | |
| Mississippi State University (MSU) is one of three higher institutions in the U.S. to offer an undergraduate degree in artificial intelligence (AI) this year, in a bold move that signals the future of the educational experience. The AI degree program builds on strengths already in place; MSU previously had an AI concentration within its computer science degree program. Dr. Andy D. Perkins, professor and associate department head, in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE), chatted exclusively with the Magnolia Tribune about the brand-new degree program. Perkins earned computer science and mathematics degrees from Murray State University in 2001, a master's degree in mathematics from Murray State in 2003, and a doctoral degree in computer science from the University of Tennessee in 2008. He joined MSU in 2008 as an assistant professor and moved to his current position in 2020, when he won the Bagley College of Engineering Service Award. The year before, he had been named to the Bagley College of Engineering Academy of Distinguished Teachers. Computational biology, graph theory, and high-performance computing are his research fields of interest. |
| Research with Real World Impact: Stitching Strengthens Aerospace Components | |
| In February 2023, the National Science Foundation launched the Accelerating Research Translation (ART) program, designed to encourage faster translation of university research into practical applications. That goal is embraced by many researchers in the composites field. Researchers at Mississippi State University's Advanced Composites Institute (ACI) are involved in a multi-year, Federal Aviation Agency-funded project to quantify the advantages and disadvantages of using stitched resin infusion (SRI) composites for aerospace components. Their work, funded through 2025, will help determine if SRI technology is suitable for the next-generation, fuel-saving blended wing body (BWB) aircraft, which have no clear division between the wing and the body. In SRI, a robot uses thread made from Kevlar®, astro-thread, quartz and glass fiber or carbon fiber to stitch through layers of dry fabric at the joining point on a part, which is then infused with resin. This process reduces or eliminates the need for bolting or bonding sections together, which makes assembly easier. ACI researchers have been studying SRI through multiple research programs since the Boeing Corporation donated equipment for the technology to the university in 2015. |
| Tax abatement deal could draw unnamed $10M hotel | |
 | If the county approves its part of a proposed tax abatement deal at the beginning of next month, the city may be getting a new $10 million hotel, creating few jobs but almost a hundred desperately-needed hotel rooms. The board of aldermen already approved the city's part of a 12-year tax abatement deal at its Tuesday meeting after hearing from Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins during executive session. If approved by the county board of supervisors at its next meeting, both entities will offer tax abatements for the construction of a hotel with about 85 rooms, Mayor Lynn Spruill told The Dispatch after the meeting. The board kept much about the proposed tax abatement deal under wraps, including the name of the hotel company involved in the deal. The location also went unspecified, although Spruill said it would be "on the west side of the city." Starkville hotels currently boast a cumulative 875 rooms, Spruill said, but during sports games or music events peak demand is closer to 1,200. "We're in desperate need of additional hotel rooms in this community," Spruill said. "We're short almost 300 rooms. For our events, and in particular for the Cornerstone Park sports events. We're in need of additional hotel rooms which is what this would bring to the community." |
| The Amazon impact: Industry looks at Mississippi differently after AWS announcement | |
 | Amazon Web Services made waves in January when it announced it will occupy two Madison County locations for the historic buildout of hyperscale development centers. Everyone knew it was a big deal when Mississippi lawmakers completed the $259 million incentive package for the Amazon Web Services' $10 billion project in Canton and Madison County. The long-term impacts may end up having as much impact as the immediate jobs and economic inflow. In the short term, people such as Chico Patel of Wealth Hospitality have jumped into developing more hotels in the Jackson area, specifically because of what building the data centers will bring to the area. That's the short term. The long view or looking at it from a macro perspective vs. micro may mean more big projects for Mississippi down the road. Joey Deason, the executive director at Madison County Economic Development Authority, who spearheaded the deal to bring AWS into Madison County and Central Mississippi, said AWS could be just the tip of the economic-development iceberg. "The AWS announcement has pulled the blanket off of Mississippi," Deason said. "Because of that, there are numerous other companies and entities that are now interested in the state. And when I say the state, I mean all 82 counties, not just Madison." |
| Mississippi Gulf Coast to get two new hotels for nearly $50 million | |
 | Ridgeland development company Wealth Hospitality, which has multiple projects going around the Jackson metro area as well as around the nation, is making waves on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. In the latest project from Chico Patel of Wealth Hospitality, there are two new extended-stay hotels under construction. Both are expected to break ground in 2025. "The market of Biloxi, obviously it is a leisure market with casinos and family options and there is also (Keesler Air Force Base)," Patel said. "It's hard to believe but there is not one extended-stay hotel in that market. If you look at all the hotels, there are no extended-stay options for a person to spend several days with their family with a kitchenette or just an extended get away." So, Patel jumped in with two projects. One will be a Home2Suites by Hilton, a $20 million project which will be located at 612 Beach Boulevard. It will be a 105-room, extended-stay hotel that is within walking distance from the beach on the Mississippi Sound. Second, and just down the street, Wealth Hospitality is also working on at Residence Inn by Marriott, a $24 million project, at 964 Beach Boulevard in Biloxi. This extended-stay six-story facility will have 100 rooms and also be within walking distance of the beach. |
| Foreign shrimp 'dumped' on U.S. market face taxes to level playing field for U.S. product | |
 | South Mississippi shrimp processors hope more customers will buy U.S. shrimp now that federal agencies have finalized a new tax, or duty, on shrimp from four foreign countries. The U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. International Trade Commission have ruled that frozen shrimp from Indonesia are being "dumped" on the U.S. market, or sold at less than fair market value. The agencies say the countries of Ecuador, India, and Vietnam. are subsidizing their shrimp imports. Because of the unfair competitive advantage, duties of varying amounts will be imposed on "warmwater" shrimp from those countries, meaning American buyers will pay more and, theoretically, be more likely to buy shrimp caught in American waters. "Warmwater" shrimp also applies to those caught off the U.S. coastline. The tariffs will remain in place for five years, when the federal agencies will determine whether they are still needed. Bethany Fayard, vice president of Ocean Springs Seafood, buys shrimp from Coast docks and sells them to restaurants and other distributors. "The tariffs are finally starting to take effect," she said. "We're finally starting to see it. They don't close the gap (in prices)," she said, "but it's better than nothing." Frank Parker, a sixth-generation fisherman who specializes in shrimp at Fair Maiden Seafood in Ocean Springs, told the Sun Herald that the United States has been imposing duties on shrimp since 2006, "but it hasn't helped one bit." He said diners and other buyers need to pay more attention to where their shrimp is from. "We need restaurants held accountable. Sadly, our legislators bend to the restaurants' powerful lobby. When we go to Jackson, it's on deaf ears." |
| Hyde-Smith, Wicker praise decision to impose upped taxes on imported shrimp | |
| Mississippi U.S. Senators Cindy Hyde-Smith and Roger Wicker are lauding a decision by the federal government to impose increased taxes on imported shrimp from four foreign countries. The United States International Trade Commission affirmed antidumping and countervailing duty petitions against frozen warmwater shrimp coming from Ecuador, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Federal authorities discovered that the countries had either sold shrimp below market cost or benefitted financially from government subsidies. Government officials concluded that these foreign actors have caused material injury to the U.S. shrimping industry. Hyde-Smith, a Republican lawmaker, further added that the countries' actions harmed Mississippi shrimpers and producers. As a member of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, Hyde-Smith has also pressured Biden administration officials on its handling of shrimp imported from nations like Ecuador. According to Wicker, between 2020 and 2022, there was a 9% increase in shrimp consumption in the United States. However, the domestic industry's share of total consumption declined from 7.4% in 2020 to 5.9% in 2022, underscoring an unfair market. |
| 'That won't fly': Fifth Circuit orders District Court to dismiss Jackson's airport takeover challenge | |
| A long legal battle over who will control the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport could be coming to an end. On Tuesday, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a lower court's decision allowing two new members of the airport commission to be added to the suit, saying the commissioners lack standing. The circuit remanded the case back to the District Court with instructions to dismiss. "This suit is nothing more than a political dispute between state and local governments over control of an airport and the land around it. One side has dragged that fight into federal court by tricking it out in equal protection colors," the Fifth wrote. "That won't fly." The decision comes eight years after the city and the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority filed suit in federal court to block the implementation of S.B. 2162. The bill would do away with JMAA and replace it with a new authority made up of state, regional, and city appointees. The city has long opposed the measure, in part, saying the legislature's motives were racially motivated. The Fifth's ruling marks the fourth time the appeals court has ruled on the case. Previously, the court ruled that the case was moot because none of the original intervenors who filed the 2016 suit were still on the JMAA board. |
| Bill to provide prenatal care to low-income women still inaccessible as 2025 legislative session looms | |
| Nearly five months after a new law to make prenatal care more accessible to low-income women was supposed to go into effect, its fate remains unclear. The state is still in negotiations with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services -- the federal agency responsible for approving the state plan -- according to Matt Westerfield, spokesperson for the Mississippi Division of Medicaid. CMS is supposed to take no more than 90 days to approve or reject a plan, but that 90-day clock has been suspended indefinitely since issues have been raised with legislation Mississippi lawmakers wrote last session. Presumptive eligibility for pregnant women allows temporary and immediate Medicaid coverage for low-income expectant mothers while they wait for their official Medicaid application to be approved -- a process that can take months. Nicole Boyd, R-Oxford, who leads the Senate Study Group for Women, Children and Families, has been checking in weekly with Medicaid about the status of the policy. In a committee hearing Monday, Boyd followed up twice with newly appointed Medicaid Executive Director Cindy Bradshaw at the beginning and end of the meeting to try to gain clarity on the status of the policy. Boyd asked Bradshaw whether the 2024 legislation could be salvaged or whether lawmakers would need to redo legislation to enact the policy in 2025. Bradshaw said both that she hopes the state and federal agencies can come to an agreement, and also that she'd feel better with new legislation. |
| As Elon Musk Moved to the Right, His Businesses Moved to Texas | |
 | Elon Musk had long been drifting away from the political culture of California, railing against its regulations and pandemic-era lockdowns. So, four years ago, he decided to move to Texas, eager to embrace its wide-open business culture and be embraced by its Republican leaders. Since then, Mr. Musk and his companies have spread across Texas with accelerating speed, transforming ranches into factories outside of Austin, using coastal lands as a launch site for space travel near Brownsville and turning farms outside Corpus Christi into what will soon be the state's first lithium refinery, for his electric cars. The headquarters of X is moving to Texas. Mr. Musk's largest factory for Tesla vehicles arrived in 2022, east of Austin. His tunneling company, the Boring Company, has its own small bedroom community of mobile homes and is testing its technology with a pair of tunnels under a farm road outside the city of Bastrop. Mr. Musk has done more than simply move businesses from a blue state to a red state. His growing presence in Texas has been part of a high-profile political transformation -- from a Democratic electric car evangelist to perhaps the most significant backer of President-elect Donald J. Trump -- that could help further expand his businesses in the state. Bit by bit, Mr. Musk has transformed parts of Texas so quickly, even by the standards of the development-friendly state, that it has taken many locals by surprise |
| U.S. Military Selects Little-Known Utah Supplier for Drone Program | |
 | The U.S. Army is bypassing some of venture capital's best-funded drone makers to buy technology from a little-known Utah manufacturer. Salt Lake City-based Teal Drones has been selected as the winner of a military program to provide thousands of small surveillance drones, according to a regulatory filing and an Army document viewed by The Wall Street Journal. The program will arm U.S. soldiers with backpack-size drones similar to what the Ukrainians have deployed in vast numbers in the war with Russia. The Army has said it needs around 11,700 drones for its Short Range Reconnaissance program, its largest effort yet to acquire small surveillance aircraft. That size of purchase could give Teal roughly $260 million in revenue in the coming years. Teal, which was founded a decade ago by a teenage drone racer, didn't have the venture-capital clout and slick marketing of some of its bigger peers, and has almost no record as a defense supplier. Now, it is poised to become the recipient of potentially the largest-ever U.S. military contract for small uncrewed aircraft. The Defense Department says it wants to ramp up the use of drones, but hasn't bought many of them, making Teal's deal with the Army an exception. The Pentagon accounts for less than 2% of all the commercial and government drone system sales each year in the U.S., according to the Defense Innovation Unit, a branch of the Defense Department that works with startups trying to sell to the Pentagon. |
| Trump nominates Dr. Oz to head Medicare and Medicaid and help take on 'illness industrial complex' | |
 | President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday he plans to nominate Mehmet Oz, a celebrity heart surgeon and former daytime television host, as administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Oz, a 64-year-old cardiothoracic surgeon, has no experience running a government agency, and has been accused by many U.S. physicians and other health experts of peddling pseudoscience. Trump said Oz would work closely with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom the former president nominated last week to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. The son of Turkish parents, Oz graduated from Harvard before getting his medical degree and master's of business at University of Pennsylvania. He went on to serve as a professor of surgery at Columbia University. After rising to fame as a celebrity physician on Oprah Winfrey's talk show, Oz hosted "The Dr. Oz Show" from 2009 to 2022. In 2008, Time magazine included Oz on its list of "100 Most Influential People." But Oz is a controversial figure in the medical world whose television appearances have drawn criticism from fellow physicians who say he backs questionable alternative medicine and unproven weight loss products. Lawrence Gostin, a law professor at Georgetown University who specializes in public health law and directs the World Health Organization's Center on Global Health Law, said Oz was unfit to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. "He peddles conspiracy theories on vaccines & fake cures," Gostin posted. "He profits from fringe medical ideas. By nominating RFK Jr & Mehmet Oz, Trump is giving his middle finger to science. Having worked for 40 years in public health, it's utterly disheartening." |
| How Science Lost America's Trust and Surrendered Health Policy to Skeptics | |
| The rise of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from fringe figure to the prospective head of U.S. health policy was fueled by skepticism and distrust of the medical establishment -- views that went viral in the Covid-19 pandemic. People once dismissed for their disbelief in conventional medicine are now celebrating a new champion in Washington. Scientists, meanwhile, are trying to figure how they could have managed the pandemic without setting off a populist movement they say threatens longstanding public-health measures. Lingering resentment over pandemic restrictions helped Kennedy and his "Make America Healthy Again" campaign draw people from the left and the right, voters who worried about the contamination of food, water and medicine. Many of them shared doubts about vaccines and felt their concerns were ignored by experts or regarded as ignorant. Kennedy merged a crowd of Covid-era skeptics with people who long distrusted mainstream medicine and food conglomerates. Together, they helped return Donald Trump to the White House. With the president-elect's selection of Kennedy to head the Department of Health and Human Services, the medical establishment is bracing for an overhaul of U.S. health policy. Much of Kennedy's popularity reflects residual pandemic anger -- over being told to stay at home or to wear masks; the extended closure of schools and businesses; and vaccine requirements to attend classes, board a plane or eat at a restaurant. |
| A GOP lawmaker introduces a Capitol bathroom rule before her trans colleague arrives | |
 | Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina is defending a measure she recently introduced that would ban transgender women from women's bathrooms in the U.S. Capitol. It is unclear if the effort will get a vote or if rules in the Capitol will be changed, but the move comes just two weeks after Democrat Sarah McBride became the first openly transgender person elected to Congress. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Mace characterized this specific measure as an attempt to protect women's rights. "I know how vulnerable women and girls are in private spaces," she said. "So I'm absolutely, 100 percent, going to stand in the way of any man who wants to be in a women's restroom, in our locker rooms, in our changing rooms, I will be there fighting you every step of the way." But when asked if McBride's arrival was the catalyst, Mace was clear. "Yes and absolutely and then some," she said. Republicans have increasingly amplified anti-trans messaging in recent years and it's morphed into a common political talking point. Now, the conversation is playing out within the halls of Congress. Other House Republicans have pushed back, arguing members instead focus on pressing policy issues before the end of the term. "I'm not getting involved in a bathroom debate. It's not what I came to Congress for," said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla. "We ought to be doing disaster relief and appropriations bills." |
| Students react to Mississippi College name change announcement; discontinuance of football team | |
| WLBT 3 On Your Side caught up with students on Mississippi College's campus to get their reactions after learning about some major changes. "It's a pretty big shock. We were not expecting to get an email like that," said Will Shea. "I'd love to see the college last, so if these are the steps that need to be taken, that's ok," Austin Lambing said. The decision comes after the school's Board of Trustees approved a name change to Mississippi Christian University. Board members said in a statement Monday that they want to be known as a university recognized for academic excellence and commitment to the cause of Christ. "Everybody was talking about it," Lambing said. "First of all, with the name change, going to Mississippi Christian University emphasizes what the college is about, but it's still surprising to go that hard and that route." The institution also says it will discontinue its football program as part of a realignment of its athletic department. The institution says the changes were based on recommendations from a task force of university trustees. Now, some are afraid of losing other programs. "I have a lot of friends who are in the marching band. They are really worried about their future at MC. Especially for incoming people who were going to do the marching band, that's a lot of worrying, " Lambing said. |
| U. of Alabama student Katie Herndon earns Rhodes Scholarship | |
 | A University of Alabama senior was named as one of 32 Americans to receive a Rhodes Scholarship, the 17th UA student to earn the honor. "I am thrilled to be a Rhodes Scholar and so excited to be a part of this vibrant community," said Katie Herndon in a Nov. 18 news release from UA. Herndon, a native of Newburyport, Massachusetts, is a University Honors Program student majoring in criminal justice and history, with a concentration in legal history. The Rhodes Scholarship covers all expenses for at least two and up to four years of study at the University of Oxford in England. "I look forward to expanding my studies at Oxford through an international lens with hands-on access to archives and resources pertaining to my work," Herndon said. Herndon was the first-ever recipient at UA of the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service, and she earned the John Fraser Ramsey Premier Award, UA's highest student honor. Her academic research has explored the lessons of the past to better understand and shape current policies and laws, according to UA. "Looking toward my future, I am excited to form a global community of peers and support as I seek answers to the problem of domestic violence," Herndon said. |
| From campus to combat: Auburn University celebrates Military Appreciation Week | |
| On Nov. 13, Auburn University's campus hosted various interactive displays of the Alabama National Guard for Military Appreciation Week. Every year Auburn celebrates and recognizes those who serve The United States by dedicating a week to their heroic causes. Students and members of the community visited Nichols Lawn, West Thatch Concourse, Cater Lawn and the North Stadium Lawn to engage with members of the military community and to learn more about their purpose during the week of recognition and support. The interactive displays included a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, an Army Adventure Mobile Simulator Semi, a M777 Artillery Howitzer, a rock climbing tower and more. The displays showed students and local community members a glimpse of what the military might look like. All across campus students climbed rock walls, on-campus organizations raised money for the National Guard and soldiers spoke about their own personal experiences within the military. Even Aubie, the University's mascot, took pictures in his camo gear. Auburn offers a Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program that allows students to pursue their education full-time while simultaneously serving in the military. There is an average of 144.1 enrolled in ROTC each year at Auburn, and 70.6 earned an ROTC commission. |
| Man convicted of murder in killing of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley | |
| A Venezuelan man has been convicted of murder in the killing of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, a case that fueled the national debate over immigration during this year's presidential race. Jose Ibarra was charged with murder and other crimes in Riley's February death, and the guilty verdict was reached on Wednesday by Athens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard. Ibarra, 26, had waived his right to a jury trial, meaning Haggard alone heard and decided the case. Haggard found Ibarra guilty of all 10 counts against him: one count of malice murder; three counts of felony murder; and one count each of kidnapping with bodily injury, aggravated assault with intent to rape, aggravated battery, obstructing an emergency call, evidence tampering and being a peeping Tom. Riley's parents, roommates and other friends and family cried as the verdict was read. Ibarra didn't visibly react. The killing added fuel to the national debate over immigration when federal authorities said Ibarra illegally entered the U.S. in 2022 and was allowed to stay in the country while he pursued his immigration case. Prosecutor Sheila Ross told the judge that Ibarra encountered Riley while she was running on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22 and killed her during a struggle. Riley, 22, was a student at Augusta University College of Nursing, which also has a campus in Athens, about 70 miles (115 kilometers) east of Atlanta. |
| U. of North Texas faculty slam university for removing references to race and equity in course names | |
| Katherine Mansfield found out that the title of her spring semester course at the University of North Texas had been changed via email. The graduate level class that she taught to seasoned teachers who were trying to earn a master's in educational leadership used to be called "Race, Class and Gender Issues in education." Now, it would be called "Critical Inquiry in Education." The course description was also tweaked. Before the course said students would learn how to be "culturally responsive" to their own students and how to "debunk stereotypes and negative views" about students going to school in places where "race, class and gender inequalities exist." Now, the course says students will "critically examine current topics related to providing leadership for various student groups." The course change was one of at least 78 edits that UNT, the Denton campus with 47,000 students, made to course titles and descriptions in the College of Education's graduate program. The university also made around 130 edits to undergraduate courses in the same college. In an email obtained by the Tribune and first reported by the student newspaper, NT Daily, the changes were made after administrators learned of a directive that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick gave to state lawmakers ahead of the upcoming legislative session to examine programs and certificates at public higher education institutions that maintain diversity, equity and inclusion policies and "expose how these programs and their curriculum are damaging and not aligned with state workforce demands." |
| International students contribute record amount to U.S. economy | |
| International students contributed a new record amount to the U.S. economy, almost $44 billion during the last academic year, according to data published by NAFSA: Association of International Educators. They figure the country's 1.1 million international students are key to some 378,000 jobs. That's through housing costs, tuition and fees, according to NAFSA CEO Fanta Aw. "It's not only just the faculty, and it's not just the staff, it's even the sort of the vendors that are part of university, in many ways, are being supported through that," she said. Roughly half of international students are from China or India -- and many are grad students or recent graduates permitted to work on a student visa for a time after graduation. Josephine Khamisi Vitta with University of Texas at Dallas said STEM is the big focus for their international students. "We have most of them studying computer science, mathematics, engineering fields," said Vitta. Around 6% of all university students in the U.S. are international, according to the Institute of International Education. In other wealthy, English speaking countries that share is many times higher. |
| Trump's second term has experts wondering about international students' future | |
| Last year marked a record high number of international students who enrolled in a college or university in the United States. With the re-election of former President Donald Trump, concerns are growing, according to the Los Angeles Times. The Times cited a report from the Institute of International Education, which found that the United States has been home to 1.1 million international students during the 2023-24 academic year -- a 7% uptick from the previous year. Trump's re-election, however, has experts concerned about the availability of visas for international students. During Trump's first term, foreign enrollment dropped by 15%, when it usually increases each year. That was seen as part of a larger trend observed during his first term when he also implemented a travel ban on nationals from several Muslim-majority nations and initiated a trade war with China that led to reports of delays with visas for Chinese academics, according to the Times. So far, Trump has said he wants to issue a ban on refugees and travelers from "Gaza, Syria, Somalia, Yemen or Libya or anywhere else that threatens our security." Yet, his campaign has also promised that international graduates of U.S. universities will receive a green card. |
| For college grads, the labor market grows a bit weaker | |
| The labor market got a little weaker for recent college graduates in the third quarter of 2024, according to new data from the New York Fed. College grads are faring better -- but not a whole lot better -- than young workers without college degrees, unlike what we've seen historically. At 5.3%, the unemployment rate for young university graduates is at its highest in around three years, said New York Fed economist Richard Deitz. "Recent college graduates are having a little bit of a tougher time in the labor market recently than they've had in quite a while," Deitz said. That's as the labor market is pretty solid overall, which has benefited young workers without bachelors degrees. Alí Bustamante, an economist at the University of New Orleans and director of Worker Power and Economic Security at the Roosevelt Institute, said college degrees carry less of an employment benefit than they have before. "There was once upon a time a college degree really meant a huge improvement in your employment opportunities and your wage," Bustamante said. Still, overall, college graduates fare better than people who don't finish school -- especially in the long term. "The college degree has benefits over your entire life. Where are you going to be three years, five years from now?" Deitz said. |
| Is the FAFSA Ready for Prime Time? | |
 | This year's Free Application for Federal Student Aid is now widely available to students and is set to launch officially any day now -- Education Department officials said in a press call last week that they expect it will be live by Friday. After bringing in outside help and putting the form through two months of rigorous testing, the department opened the 2025–26 FAFSA to all students on Monday, in what it called "Expanded Beta Phase 4." Department officials clarified to Inside Higher Ed that the form was still technically in the testing phase but was functionally open and had been expanded to ensure the system could handle a large volume of users. Since Monday, students have submitted more than 50,000 FAFSA forms and partially completed 100,000 more, on top of the roughly 17,000 forms submitted throughout the testing period. Colleges say that so far, the system is working with relatively few hitches. The University of Illinois Chicago helped the department test the FAFSA over the past month. In that time it received 1,200 student forms and has already processed about two-thirds of them. Kiely Fletcher, UIC's vice provost for enrollment management, said only 3 percent of submitters experienced technical glitches that stalled completion. And in the two days that the form has been available to the public, she's yet to see any major issues arise. She helped a student fill one out on Tuesday morning and described the process as quick and easy. |
| Trump has called for dismantling the Education Department. Here's what that would mean | |
| Throughout his campaign, President-elect Donald Trump heaped scorn on the federal Department of Education, describing it as being infiltrated by " radicals, zealots and Marxists." He has picked Linda McMahon, a former wrestling executive, to lead the department. But like many conservative politicians before him, Trump has called for dismantling the department altogether -- a cumbersome task that likely would require action from Congress. The agency's main role is financial. Annually, it distributes billions in federal money to colleges and schools and manages the federal student loan portfolio. Closing the department would mean redistributing each of those duties to another agency. The Education Department also plays an important regulatory role in services for students, ranging from those with disabilities to low-income and homeless kids. Indeed, federal education money is central to Trump's plans for colleges and schools. Trump has vowed to cut off federal money for schools and colleges that push "critical race theory, transgender insanity, and other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content" and to reward states and schools that end teacher tenure and enact universal school choice programs. Federal funding makes up a relatively small portion of public school budgets --- roughly 14%. Colleges and universities are more reliant on it, through research grants along with federal financial aid that helps students pay their tuition. |
| A Former Trump Cabinet Official and Pro-Wrestling Magnate Is Tapped as Education Secretary | |
 | Linda McMahon was nominated on Tuesday by President-elect Donald J. Trump as education secretary. The businesswoman is co-chair of Trump's transition team and led the Small Business Administration under his first term as president. Much of McMahon's career has been spent at World Wrestling Entertainment, or WWE, the world's largest professional-wrestling promotion. She co-founded the company with her husband, Vince McMahon, and served as its chief executive. In a statement on Tuesday, Trump touted McMahon's "decades of leadership experience" and "deep understanding of both education and business." Trump and his allies have said that colleges are flouting such laws by, among other things, maintaining diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, protecting transgender students, collaborating with researchers in China and other non-U.S. allied countries, teaching certain race- and gender-related topics in classrooms, and tolerating pro-Palestinian protesters. McMahon hasn't made many public statements about higher education. In September, she wrote an op-ed in The Hill arguing that Congress should make Pell Grants, the financial-aid awards for low-income students, available to people in workforce-training programs. |
| With a Republican trifecta in Washington, a new era of college oversight is on its way | |
 | There's an irony to how some Republicans are thinking about policing the nation's colleges. On the one hand, conservatives believe in small government and fewer regulations. An executive order issued by President Donald Trump in 2017 directed every federal agency, including the U.S. Department of Education, to "alleviate unnecessary regulatory burdens." Before he secured a second term this month, Trump called for the Education Department to be dismantled. On the other hand, Republicans have become increasingly critical of "liberal indoctrination" on campus and are pitching big ideas about reforming how colleges work. But some of those proposals would likely require more government intervention, not less. With the Republican Party set to control all the levers of power in Washington on Jan. 20, its plans to overhaul higher education are on a collision course with other GOP efforts to limit the federal government's authority. Big changes may be hard to effect given Republicans' slim margins on Capitol Hill and recent Supreme Court rulings limiting government intervention. But all indications in Washington point to a new era of college oversight. |
| No DEI. No 'transgender movement.' No women's studies. Trump World wants to 'reclaim' universities. | |
| They are right-wing activists and conservative congressional staffers. They include higher education specialists at the Heritage Foundation who contributed to the audacious Project 2025 governing plan, and lawyers who specialize in attacking diversity and inclusion bureaucracies. They are leaders of the very few institutions of higher education that fit the Trumpian view of what a college should offer. As Donald Trump prepares to take office in January, a new conservative higher education cognoscenti, espousing views long considered fringe by the liberal-leaning academic world, are ascendant. They see this moment as one of extraordinary opportunity: Higher education is rarely more than a blip in presidential politics, but Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, made elite schools -- their cost, their culture, their politics -- a red meat issue in their campaign. Trump vowed to "reclaim" the university from "radical leftists," and Vance went so far as to applaud the state takeover of public universities in Hungary by that country's authoritarian leader. Trumpian critics of academia are determined to rescue universities from the Marxists and social justice warriors they say unduly influence them. They aim to use federal funding, accreditation boards, taxation, congressional investigations, and, potentially, changes to the Higher Education Act to achieve their goals. These conservative thinkers share a view of "higher education as hostile to the kind of society they think they ought to have," said Brendan Cantwell, professor of education at Michigan State University. For the sector, he said, it "brings a great deal of uncertainty." |
| Postelection Uncertainty Looms Large for Presidents | |
| With Donald Trump set to re-enter the White House in two months, many higher education professionals have more questions than answers about what his education priorities will be, a sense reflected in the palpable uncertainty among the nearly dozen college presidents who convened in Manhattan Monday evening. The annual press dinner, hosted by Arizona State University president Michael Crow, featured questions on a wide range of topics, including the incoming Trump administration, artificial intelligence and student mental health. But politics seemed to dominate the discussion, as reporters pressed the presidents on their views of Trump's re-election, especially in light of his frequent attacks on higher education. Presidents also fielded questions about which Trump policies most concern them. The president-elect has threatened not only to abolish the Department of Education but also to "fire" accreditors and go after diversity, equity and inclusion programs, though given his penchant for explosive campaign-trail rhetoric, it's unclear whether he'll follow through. Still, presidents in the room expressed concerns about all of the above, in addition to worries about how much the federal government may wade into curriculum. Taylor Randall, president of the University of Utah, struck an optimistic tone, arguing that even in deeply Republican states there is room for agreement on higher education priorities like economic development. Randall said institutions should maintain focus on areas within their expertise, whether that's artificial intelligence, energy or matters that "play a role in national security." |
| Trumps's election likely to renew Medicaid expansion efforts by state legislative leaders | |
 | Columnist Sid Salter writes: The 2024 regular session of the Mississippi Legislature ended with a failure to reach consensus between Senate and House conferees on an effort to expand the state's Medicaid program. That after Senate and House leaders engaged in a good faith debate of Medicaid expansion for the first time since former President Barack Obama's administration implemented the program. In 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or "Obamacare" was enacted by Congress -- then the biggest public policy overhaul and coverage expansion of public healthcare since the 1965 enactment of the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Today, Mississippi remains one of 10 states that has not adopted some form of Medicaid expansion to draw down additional federal funds to pay for health care for the working poor. The 10 states include Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The failed 2024 Mississippi Medicaid expansion effort would have expanded Medicaid coverage to about 200,000 people who earned up to 138% of the federal poverty level, or $20,120 annually for one person. Facing deadlines in the waning hours of the 2024 session, legislative conferees simply could not achieve a compromise on the question of applying a work requirement to Mississippi's proposed Medicaid expansion plan. |
SPORTS
| Women's Basketball: Mississippi State Welcomes Mercer On Wednesday | |
| Mississippi State women's basketball closes out its season-opening five-game homestand inside Humphrey Coliseum when it hosts Mercer on Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 6:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network+. Fans who are not in attendance can the follow action on SEC Network+ with talent Bart Gregory (play-by-play) and Brittany Lange (analyst) or through their affiliate radio station with Jason Crowder. Head Coach Sam Purcell will have the chance to earn the 50th win of his career and at Mississippi State. Purcell would be the fastest head coach to 50 wins at Mississippi State, reaching the mark in 73 games, which stands eight faster than the next. Mississippi State leads the all-time series 3-2 overall and 2-1 inside Humphrey Coliseum. Mississippi State last played and defeated Mercer, 97-66, inside Humphrey Coliseum on Nov. 14, 2014. Mercer enters the match up with a 2-2 record after it defeated North Carolina A&T, 46-38, on Sunday, Nov. 17. Head Coach Michelle Clark-Heard, who served in an Assistant A.D. of Women's Basketball / Assistant Coach role at Mississippi State in 2023-24, is in the midst of her first season at the helm. The Bears are also guided by Assistant Coach Blessing Freeman, formerly Blessing Chekwa, who played at Mississippi State from 2002-06. |
| Mississippi State handles Southern In Round One, but What's Next? | |
| The Mississippi State women's soccer team handled Southern University 7-0 on Saturday night to advance to the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament in complete domination of the Jaguars. All seven Bulldog goals came off the feet of a different player, while goalie Maddy Anderson and Katelyn Carroll's efforts combined into yet another shutout victory for the regular season SEC Champions. Not only did Mississippi State crush its first round opponent, but the Bulldog faithful showed up in droves as well. 3,461 fans attended the first round matchup -- a number good enough for the largest crowd in Mississippi State soccer history, and the highest attendance number recorded for any first round NCAA matchup across the entire country. With round one taken care of, the Bulldogs turn their heads towards Washington in round two. The good news is that Mississippi State will host the Huskies on Friday. The bad? Washington stood fairly tall throughout its Big 10 schedule. The Huskies are no Southern, and will prove to be a taller task for Mississippi State than its previous opponent. "We watched [Washington] yesterday as a staff," said head coach James Armstrong. "They played at 3 o'clock central time, so we got to watch that game. Obviously they did a really good job of neutralizing one of the most potent offenses in the country in Utah State at Utah State, so obviously the travel will have taken a bit of a toll on them, but they came through with flying colors. [Washington is] one of the best defensive teams in the country." Assuming Mississippi State wins that matchup, the Bulldogs will take on the winner of Notre Dame/Kentucky. |
| Isaac Smith has embraced leadership role in year two | |
| Maturity and a high IQ led to early playing time last season for Mississippi State Isaac Smith, but he wasn't quite ready for the spotlight. The freshman safety from Fulton took his lumps on special teams and as a reserve defensive back and he made 15 tackles in 12 games. It was a season of learning and developing and it led to what has been a tremendous sophomore campaign with the maroon and white. 15 total tackles last season have transformed to nearly 15 tackles a game for Smith this season. He leads the SEC in total stops, but most importantly he's leading the Bulldogs through a tumultuous time in its football program. His steadiness in the room has been one of the few bright spots in what has been a tough year for the State defense and for the team as a whole. "I've always had that role growing up in high school. Last year seeing a bunch of the older guys do it, it prepared me for this year especially being able to lead the guys," Smith said of his leadership. "I feel like if I come and lack some days, it's not going to be good. But if I come every day with the same energy, never change and be myself, I'm perfect for that role." e's been pacing the conference for the lead in tackles most of the way and he's on track to give State the SEC's leading tackler for a third-straight season. His work hasn't gone unnoticed, either, as the Bulldogs made him the team's nominee for the C Spire Conerly Trophy -- the award that recognizes the state's best collegiate football player. |
| Jeff Lebby offers his impressions of Missouri on film | |
| Sitting at 0-6 in conference play, Mississippi State could desperately use a win on Saturday against Missouri. On Monday, Bulldogs head coach Jeff Lebby previewed Missouri. "Both sides of the football, they've been dominant on third down," Lebby said of the Tigers. "Situationally, they've been really, really good. So that'll be huge for us on Saturday. We have to be able to stay on the field on third down, offensively. Be able to pitch and catch, play with great anticipation at the quarterback position. Then, defensively, we've got to get them into some third and longs to be able to go get off the field." Lebby is spot-on in his assessment. Missouri is only allowing its opponents to convert 29.6% of their third downs this season, the seventh-lowest rate in the country. Conversely, Missouri knows how to find a first down. The Tigers' offense boasts the 24th-best third-down conversion percentage in the nation, with 45.6%. |
| Mizzou football looks for third bounce-back win of the season against Mississippi State on Saturday | |
 | Mizzou football lost a road game for the third time this season, falling 34-30 in a Mayor's Cup clash against South Carolina on Saturday. The Tigers look to secure a bounce-back win at 3:15 p.m. Saturday versus Mississippi State at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi. Missouri (7-3, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) has not lost back-to-back bouts since 2022, when the Tigers fell 21-17 to Kentucky and 66-24 to then-No. 6 Tennessee on Nov. 5 and Nov. 12, respectively. Bouncing back from rough losses has become a hallmark of coach Eli Drinkwitz's tenure in Columbia, but as the Tigers prepare to play their second consecutive SEC road game for the first time this season, the pressure will be on for Mizzou. The Tigers have not faced the Bulldogs (2-8, 0-6) since MU fell 51-32 in a road tilt Dec. 19, 2020, which left a bad taste in the mouth of the Tigers' program. "I know the last time we went to Starkville was in 2020, and (we) did not play a good game, quite honestly," Drinkwitz said Tuesday. "Didn't play nearly as well as we need to. So, it's a very challenging road environment and a very challenging game for us." |
| 'We don't have a job, we don't have a program anymore': MC coach, player react to school ending football program | |
| "This is not a decision they make overnight." Mississippi College head football coach Mike Kershaw said he was blindsided when he found out the school was cutting the football program Monday. "Initially you're in shock because you're like there's no way a school that has this much tradition is going to drop the program out of nowhere," Kershaw said Tuesday. "This morning you do wake up, you're like okay, we don't have a job, we don't have a program anymore." Kershaw said he found out about the school's decision around 1:15 Monday afternoon, just a short time before the news went public; he broke the news to his coaching staff and players shortly after. "[The players were] pretty angry yesterday when they heard the news," he said. "They just got told that they don't have a place to play football here anymore. The school just kind of said, 'Thanks, but no thanks. We don't want you anymore.'" In total, 105 coaches and players now have to look for a new home in the coming months. Kershaw used a lot of emotions to describe his feelings about the decision to cut the football program: shock, sadness, anger; his biggest issue was the way the decision, and the notification of the team on the decision, was handled, and how, he believes, the people in the program were not considered in the process. "These are real people. We brought coaches here, moved them all over the country to bring them here to coach this football program, and now they're sent home. We got players from all over the country to play football here, and now they're sent home," he said. "All we kind of got was, 'Hey, sorry guys we're shutting the program down. Appreciate it.'" |
| Mississippi College head coach speaks out on football program discontinuation | |
| Since 1907, the Robinson-Hale stadium has been home to the Mississippi College Choctaws. That 117-year legacy is now coming to a sudden end. In February of 1942, the board of trustees decided that intercollegiate football and baseball should be discontinued for the duration of World War II. In 1945, the program was reinstated after the war ended. Now in 2024, the program is no more. The announcement comes suddenly as the college will be changing its name to Mississippi Christian University and planning to focus on other athletic programs. Now the entire team is looking for a new home. "Initially, you're in shock, right? Like there's no way that a school that has this much tradition is just going to drop the program out of nowhere because they think they're in financial distress, you know? Destroy it, and it's then, when you kind of wake up, you're like, 'Well, this morning, you do wake up.' You're like, 'Hey, we don't have a job. We don't have a program anymore,'" said Head Coach Mike Kershaw. Preston Godfrey is a freshman running back from Fairhope, Alabama. As a new student with hopes and dreams like many others, came to Mississippi College to play football but to also get a good education. "It's the only sport I play. I mean, me and my family, financially, we can afford school, but I mean, this is really all my scholarship. I really went to. It's really just crazy. I'm just so it's, it's just crazy." said Godfrey. |
| Exploring all the many facets of Mississippi College's decision to end football | |
| Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: Monday's news that Mississippi College -- soon to be Mississippi Christian University -- will no longer field a football team seemed to come out of nowhere. "Shocking" is the word many have used to describe the news. "I feel like I just lost a family member," said Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer Fred "Fast Freddie" McAfee, one of the two most famous football players in Mississippi College history. "I remember playing my last regular season game against Delta State before an overflow crowd. I remember winning a national championship. I just can't believe it has come to this." ... There are many losers with this decision: the coaches, who no longer have a job; long-time Mississippi College football fans who no longer have a favorite team; and even Delta State, which loses its arch-rival. Delta State football coach Todd Cooley, whose Statesman defeated MC 20-14 on Nov. 16 in what apparently is the last football game MC will ever play, called the MC decision "very disappointing" and added, "I just hate it for the players and the coaches." But make no mistake: The biggest losers are the MC football players, who really do play for the love of the game. They must decide if they love it enough to play it somewhere else and, if so, then find a school that will take them. Dr. Blake Thompson, the Mississippi College president in his seventh year at the helm, says he hurts for those players but at the same time strongly believes that the decision to drop football -- along with the name change -- are in the best, long-term interest of the school. One primary reason is economics. |
| Every William Carey fall sport set to compete for national championship | |
| William Carey Athletics is continuing a successful year with every Crusader fall sport poised to be represented in the upcoming NAIA National Championships. The private university out of Hattiesburg will look to compete for a title on the pitch in both women's and men's soccer. Coach Danny Owens' women's soccer team is currently ranked No. 3 in the latest NAIA poll on the heels of another Southern States Athletic Conference Championship. The defending NAIA runners-up are hoping to make another run at a national championship and duplicate the feeling of hoisting the red banner again for the first time since 2018. The men's soccer team will host the NAIA's opening round on its home field. The Lady Crusader cross country team is bound for the NAIA National Championship in Columbia, Missouri after winning the SSAC Championship. The men's cross-country team placed third at the SSAC Championship, but Nathan Sury finished in the top five earning him the opportunity to compete unattached at the NAIA National Championship. In what may be considered the biggest surprise of the fall season, Carey's volleyball team has punched its national championship ticket. |
| A&M students brave grueling conditions for ticket pull. Will university reexamine policy? | |
 | Texas A&M student Vincent Meyer spent 16 hours waiting in line to pull tickets for the upcoming University of Texas football game, braving rainy weather, unruly crowds and more to get his ticket for the biggest A&M game in years. "It was a mosh pit, but for the most part, the actual grouping was civil. It was just everything outside of the lining up that was chaotic," Meyer said. "If I wasn't prepared for it, it would have been a very unsafe situation out there." Thousands of students lined up outside the north end zone of Kyle Field to pull their tickets for the Nov. 30 game. Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, ticket pull began on Monday morning nearly two weeks before the regular-season finale with many students camping out on Sunday night. With the game being a landmark return of the rivalry between UT and A&M, the ticket pull line was one of the longest of the entire season and a record 30,000 tickets were pulled. According to Texas A&M University officials, the University Police Department was on site to monitor the event and the university president and vice-president for student affairs visited the area multiple times Sunday and Monday. Being a junior, this was not Meyer's first ticket pull and he knew exactly what to expect, bringing plenty of supplies. "We brought chairs, I brought a cooler and we had multiple blankets. We also had a Christmas welcome mat to welcome people to our humble abode," he said. "We also had towels, games, everything we could possibly think of. There was not a single thing we didn't use." |
| CFP chair: Teams that make conference title games in 'high esteem' to playoff committee | |
| The SEC has spent much of the 2024 college football season beating up on each other, with all but one of the 16 teams in the newly expanded 16-team conference nursing at least two losses. For the College Football Playoff, that could present some issues, particularly for teams who may enter the SEC championship game with two losses -- and fear that a third defeat would knock them from playoff consideration. It's a concern that looms entering the final weeks of the regular season and one that playoff selection committee chair Warde Manuel addressed Tuesday night after the third set of playoff rankings were revealed. "We're not going to speculate on what will happen, but we have a lot of value for the teams that make a championship game," Manuel said in an interview with ESPN's Rece Davis. "That says a lot, playing 12 games in a season. Making your championship game is a really valuable data point." On Monday, Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin verbalized what's becoming an increasingly common sentiment that it's more advantageous for a team to miss its conference title game and avoid tacking on another loss. Though it may not ultimately mean much, anxious SEC teams at least have a reassurance from Manuel that finishing in the top two of the league standings and making it to Atlanta for the SEC championship game is something that will be valued. |
| New era of college football could help other teams replicate Indiana's remarkable rise | |
| Indiana has made the type of turnaround that had only happened once before at the power-conference level over the last decade. But this new era of college football with unbalanced schedules and loosened transfer restrictions might make such dramatic transformations more common. "I think any P4 school with the proper commitment is capable of being successful and being ultimately successful because really the difference between victory and defeat in most of these games is very slight, slim," Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said. "It's all attainable." Cignetti just agreed to terms on an eight-year contract as No. 5 Indiana prepares for arguably the biggest game in program history, a showdown Saturday at No. 2 Ohio State. Cignetti's new deal gives him an annual salary of $8 million plus a $1 million annual retention bonus. He earned that raise when Indiana won its first 10 games this season after going 3-9 the year before his arrival. "What he's done is utterly amazing," said Jimbo Fisher, the former Florida State and Texas A&M coach who now hosts a show on SiriusXM Radio. "I think it's the best job in college football right now. I think he's national coach of the year." Indiana's emergence has come in a season featuring many other dramatic rises and falls, whether it's Vanderbilt going from 2-10 in 2023 to beating Alabama and becoming bowl eligible this year, or Florida State winning just one game thus far after posting an undefeated regular-season record a year ago. |
| Forever a basketball school, Curt Cignetti has awakened a 'sleeping giant' of a football program at Indiana | |
| On the practice fields of West Virginia University, in the late 1970s, the son of the Mountaineers head football coach served as a problematic scout team quarterback. Frank Cignetti's boy insisted on throwing passes to whoever he wanted, disregarding the scout team cue cards that a young assistant coach named Nick Saban flashed toward him. An angry Saban kept reminding Curt Cignetti to follow the play as drawn on the play cards with the intended receiver circled. This is where you throw the ball! "He was such a competitive guy, he wanted to beat the defense," Saban remembers. "He'd throw it wherever he thought he had the best chance to make a play." Saban was there to remind Curt that this wasn't a pro football tryout. "You ain't gonna make the New York Jets down here!" Saban once snapped at him. More than 40 years later, that young, feisty scout team quarterback sits on a leather couch in his new office within Indiana's football stadium. He's now 63 years old, is finally a head coach in major college football and is in the midst of leading the Hoosiers to the greatest season in school history -- the architect of one of the most improbable turnarounds ever witnessed in the sport. |
| Can Florida State football recover from its historic collapse? | |
| It was easy to wonder if there might be a little bit of a hangover this season. Mike Norvell weathered a strange, stair-stepping climb to greatness with Florida State -- his Seminoles went 3-10 in his first 13 games, then 9-6 in the next 15, then won 19 in a row -- but endured one of the most gut-wrenching season finishes you'll ever see. First, the unbeaten Noles were snubbed out of a spot in the final four-team College Football Playoff; then, with a number of starters having either opted out or opted for season-ending surgery, they got completely humiliated 63-3 by Georgia in the Orange Bowl. Norvell said all the proper things in spring ball, and despite 14 new starters, his reputation for finding difference-makers in the transfer portal got FSU ranked 10th in the preseason AP poll. But instead of a hangover, or a slow start, his Noles have completely no-showed in 2024. Florida State's win percentage has fallen by 82.9 percentage points at the moment, from 0.929 to 0.100. In the history of top-division college football, there have been 14,788 teams; only three have had their win percentage fall by more than that, and two played during World War I: 1917 Colorado State (from 6-0-1 to 0-7-1), 1919 Colorado Mines (from 4-0 to 0-4-2) and 2012 Southern Miss (from 12-2 to 0-12). The Seminoles are likely to finish 2-10, beating Charleston Southern this coming weekend and then losing to rival Florida. Those results would drop them to merely the eighth-largest win percentage collapse ever, behind four more teams from 1950 or earlier. |
| Penalize NIL deal-breaking athletes under new law, Sen. Tuberville says | |
 | For years you've seen college athletics administrators, conference commissioners, coaches and athletes in Washington D.C. The economics of the industry and who'll benefit financially from the cash windfall flowing are at stake. So far, none of the photo ops, town halls or hearings produced a thing. Forget a White House signing ceremony; they're still trying to get a bill to a vote in the halls of Congress. The push and pull between the administrators and athletes for their respective piece of the pie, however, might be inching closer to resolution. And the fact the balance of power shifted right is good news for the administrators. U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville spoke about the state of NIL legislation when visiting the Monday Morning Quarterback Club in Birmingham. He co-sponsored an NIL-related bill last year with retiring Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia that never made it to the floor. The former Auburn football coach said he knows they have to go back to the drawing board now that revenue sharing is set to enter the arena thanks to legal settlements. But it's the Name, Image and Likeness deals and marketplace that has Tuberville's attention. And he's got a few new ideas that weren't included in the PASS Act he co-sponsored with Manchin. |
| Ohio governor signs executive order related to NIL: Here's what it means for the state's colleges | |
| Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order Monday that allows colleges in the state to directly pay student-athlete's for their name, image and likeness. The executive order comes as the NCAA and various athletic conferences have entered a proposed settlement for a variety of antitrust lawsuits. Among the changes likely headed toward college sports is revenue sharing. It would allow schools to directly allocate revenue to student-athletes. Athletes can currently earn revenue from NIL. However, the money is coming from third parties such as collectives or through sponsorships -- for example, Ohio State football's Caleb Downs has partnered with apparel company Rhoback. The executive order, which is written to be effective immediately, allows schools to directly compensate -- or offer compensation -- to athletes for their NIL. "We appreciate the governor's support as the college athletics landscape continues to evolve," an OSU spokesperson said in a statement to cleveland.com. The executive order is set to expire when the settlement comes into, "full operational effect." |
| College NIL Revolution Keeps Cheerleaders on the Sideline | |
| The most marketable athlete on the campus of Texas Tech has more than 427,000 followers on TikTok and 447,000 on Instagram. She has starred in a popular streaming series, appeared on Dancing with the Stars and regularly performs before tens of thousands of fans on Saturdays at Jones AT&T Stadium. And yet, she hardly makes a ripple on the Red Raiders' radar and has had no engagement whatsoever with The Matador Club, the school's NIL collective. To the extent that the athletic department has offered her any guidance on how to leverage her name, image and likeness, it is the casual recommendation to check out Opendorse, the athlete endorsement marketplace. That's been about it. This is supposed to be the new era in college athlete economic empowerment, when institutions of higher learning are supporting the financial prerogatives of their most physically gifted. But for Division I college cheerleaders like Maddy Brum -- who boasts 120,000 more Instagram followers than star Texas quarterback Arch Manning -- the big revolution has brought very little thus far. To be sure, Brum still has managed to do a number of deals during her time at TTU, with companies such as T-Mobile, Halara and Under Armour. But none of that, she insists, owes to the school whose uniform she wears. "Texas Tech doesn't help get me any brand deals, I hate to say," said Brum, 23, who is studying media and communications. |
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