| Monday, July 25, 2022 |
| MSU Riley Center Announces 2022-2023 Fall-Winter Season | |
 | The Mississippi State University Riley Center for Education and Performing Arts (MSU Riley Center) announces a new slate of shows for the 2022-2023 Fall-Winter season. The season is full of headlining musical acts, complemented by a Broadway star and a ubiquitous comedian. The season kicks off on September 17 with The Gatlin Brothers, followed by Jessica Vosk on September 30. Best known as Elphaba, the green-skinned witch from the Broadway hit Wicked, Vosk's powerhouse vocals are sure to shine when matched with the theater's unparalleled acoustics. Jay Leno, a man who needs no introduction, will deliver his side-splitting standup on Friday, October 7. Blurring the lines between funk, soul, R&B, and psychedelic rock, New Orleans musical legend Trombone Shorty and his band Orleans Avenue will take the stage on November 19. Released in the spring of this year, Lifted is his first new album in five years. After much anticipation, the album is an excellent indicator of what to expect on stage. The beloved singer-songwriter and folk icon Emmylou Harris will perform with her band, filling the MSU Riley Center's Grand Opera House theater with sage wisdom and eloquent lyrics like only she can on Friday, December 9. Rounding out the season on January 21, The Temptations and The Four Tops are sure to pack the house with Motown mania. "We are selling more tickets each season than we ever have, far exceeding pre-pandemic levels," said Terry Dale Cruse, Associate Vice President and head of Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus. |
| Jay Leno, The Temptations to perform at Riley Center | |
 | Jay Leno and The Temptations are two of many performers coming to Mississippi for the Fall-Winter season at the Mississippi State University (MSU) Riley Center in Meridian. The season will kick off on September 17 with The Gatlin Brothers. Their breakthrough 1976 single "Broken Lady" kicked off a string of hits including "All the Gold in California," "Houston (Means I'm One Day Closer to You)," "I Don't Wanna Cry," "I Just Wish You Were Someone I Love," "Statues without Hearts," "Love Is Just a Game," and "Night Time Magic." Leno, the former host of the Tonight Show, will deliver his side-splitting standup on Friday, October 7. This fall, he and co-host Kevin Eubanks will bring back the classic comedy TV game show You Bet Your Life, teaming two strangers to answer trivia questions. Rounding out the season on January 21, The Temptations and The Four Tops are sure to pack the house. "We are selling more tickets each season than we ever have, far exceeding pre-pandemic levels," said Dr. Terry Dale Cruse, Associate Vice President and head of MSU-Meridian Campus. "While we've been steadily presenting shows for over 15 years now, the energy and renewed interest in downtown and our community's collective arts and culture offerings is palpable. To anyone considering a show or coming downtown for a weekend, my advice is do not hesitate." |
| White nose syndrome threatens Mississippi coast bats | |
| Fifteen bat species are found throughout Mississippi. Often misunderstood creatures, the bats only feast on insects in the state. Bats roost during the day in a variety of different places, including trees, caves, and man-made structures such as culverts, bridges, and abandoned buildings. There are event bats along the Mississippi coast, where caves are nonexistent. Most bats on the coast prefer man-made structures or a tree habitat, according to the Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service. In a year-long monitoring effort done by a MSU graduate student, some species of bats were shown to be active year-round on the coast. This activity could have much to do with the mild winters the Mississippi coast experiences compared to other parts of the state. However, the bats are facing many threats, including habitat loss, roost destruction and human prejudices. Another major hazard is white nose syndrome (WNS), according to MSU Extension Service officials. WNS is a disease that causes hibernating bats to become active when their energy and fat reserves are low. An MSU graduate student at the MSU Coastal Research and Extension Center is monitoring bat presence and activity within coastal pine savannah forests. |
| MEC: State's image needs to change for better growth | |
 | The Mississippi Economic Council hosted the Starkville leg of its MEC tour Wednesday at the Mill at MSU. The council, which is a private organization that dubs itself the state's chamber of commerce, focused on what businesses and the state of Mississippi as a whole can do to foster economic growth. From 51 small group listening sessions across 18 Mississippi communities, MEC identified some of the things that are stifling economic growth in Mississippi. From what it learned in these sessions, MEC developed a strategic initiative: Securing Mississippi's Future: A Vision for Economic Growth. "In doing all of this, we said, 'What is our next step to make sure that we're charting a new course for our state?' and kind of reimagining what Mississippi could look like if we go forward. And that led to the development of Securing Mississippi's Future: Vision for economic growth," Scott Waller, MEC president and CEO, said. Some of the problems MEC identified included the stigmas surrounding postsecondary education that does not come from a 4-year college, transportation issues (both roads/infrastructure and access to public transit) and effective communication to potential workers about what opportunities are available for them in Mississippi. In addition to presenting its own findings, MEC led the room of about 70 business owners and community members in some research questions. They were asked what the biggest challenges facing Mississippi companies were, outside of workforce issues, to which 68 percent said Mississippi's image/perception. |
| Mill and Russell street intersection to become 3-way stop | |
| The intersection of Mill and Russell streets will be converted to a three-way stop. The installation of stop signs will begin at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday. Cody Burnett, city engineer, explained that the changes are in large part to promote safety. Currently, the intersection allows Russell Street traffic to pass through without stopping. "From a safety standpoint, it's just to provide some traffic calming and to provide a place for pedestrians to cross eventually," he said. Burnett also indicated there are sight-distance issues, particularly for drivers approaching Russell Street from the west. "I believe it's probably due to the on-street parking on the south side of the road (on Russell Street, next to Mugshots)," he said. "There's some difficulty seeing out for approaching vehicles from the west. And so providing that stop would also give the benefit of making sure you can exit those streets safely." Drivers are being encouraged to use caution in the area while the community becomes familiar with the change. According to Tiara Cole, street department administrative assistant, traffic will not be rerouted while the signs are being installed. |
| No tax increase expected for Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District | |
| Oktibbeha County residents will not see a tax increase from the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District this year. The district's chief financial officer Tammie McGarr gave the first public presentation to the board Thursday night for the Fiscal Year 2023 budget, reporting SOCSD can meet its funding obligations without increasing the millage rate for ad valorem taxes. That's in spite of the fact the district will request almost $1.2 million more from local sources this year to fund operations, debt service and Millsaps Vocational Center. The total ad valorem SOCSD intends to request is $29,877,373. Most of that ($24,897,925) is for operations, while $4,526,771 is for debt service and $452,677 will fund Millsaps. This will be collected with 66.16 mills of ad valorem taxes, which are based on assessed private property values in the district. McGarr told the board since property values rose within SOCSD over the past year, the mill value increased, meaning it will collect more taxes without the rate having to be raised. For example, the amount one mill collected in 2022 was about $434,000, according to numbers McGarr presented. In Fiscal Year 2023, it is expected to collect roughly $451,000. After the meeting, board president Wes Gordon lauded the city and county growth that drove the increased mill value. "We're fortunate to live in Starkville where people are constantly moving here and (we're getting) new construction," Gordon told The Dispatch. |
| Heat Wave Hits U.S. Farms, Stressing Crops and Ranchers' Herds | |
 | Intense heat and dry conditions are stressing U.S. agriculture, threatening corn, soybeans and other crops, as well as cattle herds. Scorching temperatures this past week have put swaths of the U.S., especially in the South and West, under excessive-heat warnings and advisories. The hot weather is hitting during an important period of the Midwest crop-growing season, analysts said, and just as some commodity prices ease amid concerns about global food supplies. The heat is also exacerbating longer-running drought conditions in parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and other states, risking harm to livestock, parching pastures and leading ranchers to spend more on supplemental feed for cattle. In Iowa, which produces more corn than any other U.S. state, temperatures are forecast to hit 100 degrees in the western part of the state, according to the National Weather Service. Major livestock-producing states, including Texas and Oklahoma, are expected to see temperatures hit 104 degrees over the weekend. Some places in the region have had extremely hot and dry weather for prolonged periods. Eddie Sanders, a fourth-generation corn grower in Franklin, Tenn., said he expects to harvest only roughly one-third to one-half of his corn crop this year, because of the hot and dry weather. He said he is hoping to be able to salvage his soybean crop, but if the hot weather persists into August, that too might be at risk. "We're burned up here," he said. "We're at the mercy of a rain every 10 days." |
| Air conditioning driving up demand, and price, of natural gas | |
 | It's hot right now in much of the country. And in a lot of places, very humid too. There have been heat warnings in more than half the states in the union, across the South and Midwest and on the East Coast. And this heat wave is driving up demand for -- and the price of -- natural gas. What do you do when temps are in the 90s (or hotter) and the air is extremely humid? Turn on your air conditioner, if you're lucky enough to have one. "What we see in the middle of these heat waves is increasing demand for energy, particularly electricity," said Melissa Lott at Columbia's Center on Global Energy Policy. She said much of the country's electricity is generated by natural gas -- about 40%. "So as temperatures rise and we start to crank up our AC, we see demand for natural gas go up as well," Lott said. This week it's way up, said Juan Alvarado at the American Gas Association. "Yesterday, the U.S. set an all-time record for demand for power generation for natural gas," Alvarado said. And -- as we know -- when demand for something goes up, so does the price. Alvarado said that's happening now with natural gas. "We're seeing prices that are higher than they've been in a long, long time," he said. The highest they've been since 2008. That, in turn, is reflected in a lot of people's electricity bills, which are also very high right now. |
| Second day of Neshoba County Fair | |
 | The Neshoba County Fair started Friday and people were out Saturday enjoying all the festivities. People are coming from near and far to shop at the Farmer's Market, checking out the crafts on Founders Square and last, but certainly not least riding some carnival rides. Micha Carr is a Louisville resident and said she's been coming to the fair since she was a child and attending is a family tradition. "I mean the fair is a great place. It brings people together. It brings families together for sure, I think. It is just a great place to be. You meet new people; you meet new friends, of course. You can go to the horse races, go ride rides, and play games, and stuff. It's just a fun place to be at. It's a great atmosphere to be around," said Carr. Another fair attendee, Soren Voges-Haupt, said this year was his first time attending the Neshoba County Fair and was surprised to see how friendly all the people were. "I am more like a city person. It's just a little new to me, but I think it's exciting how well people get along here. It seems like everybody gets along here," said Voges-Haupt. The Neshoba County Fair will continue until Friday, July 29 with different events ranging from musical performances, an antique car show, art exhibits and much more will be happening every night at the fair. |
| Weeklong Neshoba County Fair begins, political speakers set for Wednesday and Thursday | |
 | The Neshoba County fair began Friday morning, with the usual mix of politics, entertainment, food, and socializing set to take place over the following week. The annual event, which was first staged in 1889, will see the state's top political leaders speaking, including the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house, attorney general, state auditor, secretary of state, state treasurer, and more. Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann will join fellow Republican Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney in speaking Wednesday morning. That day's slate also features state representatives Michael T. Evans, I-Preston, and C. Scott Bounds, R-Philadelphia, and state Sen. Jenifer Branning, R-Philadelphia. One of only two Democrats speaking at the fair will also be on Wednesday. Shuwaski Young is running against incumbent Republican Michael Guest to represent Mississippi's Third Congressional District in Congress. Thursday's speakers will include most of Mississippi's statewide elected officials. Gov. Tate Reeves, Speaker of the House Philip Gunn, Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner Andy Gipson, Secretary of State Michael Watson, Auditor Shad White, Treasurer David McRae and Public Service Commissioner Brent Bailey will all be speaking Thursday. As will Attorney General Lynn Fitch, fresh off her legal victory in overturning Roe v. Wade. The lone Democrat speaking Thursday will be one of the state's transportation commissioners, Willie Simmons. |
| Mississippi Fires Lawyer Trying to Recoup Misused Welfare Funds | |
 | A lawyer working for a Mississippi state agency and trying to recoup tens of millions of dollars in misused welfare funds was fired on Friday after he issued a subpoena that could turn up details about the involvement of prominent Mississippians -- including the former Governor Phil Bryant and the retired football star Brett Favre -- in one of the ugliest scandals to shake the nation's poorest state in recent years. The lawyer, J. Brad Pigott, a former U.S. attorney, had been working for the Mississippi Department of Human Services, the agency that distributes Mississippi's federal welfare block grants. A state audit in 2020 found that as much as $94 million in federal funds may have been misspent in Mississippi. Instead of going to poor families, the audit found, much of the money ended up in the pockets of prominent Mississippians, including Mr. Favre, a Mississippi native, who was paid $1.1 million for speaking engagements he did not attend. Mr. Favre eventually paid $1.1 million back to the state, but the state auditor continues to demand $228,000 in accrued interest. More recently, an allegation surfaced in court documents that Mr. Bryant, a former two-term governor, directed the $1.1 million payment to Mr. Favre, a claim Mr. Bryant reportedly denies. Both Mr. Bryant and Tate Reeves, the current governor, are Republicans. The firing of Mr. Pigott, first reported by the online news outlet Mississippi Today, is connected to another component of the scandal: $5 million in welfare money that went to the construction of a volleyball facility at the University of Southern Mississippi, in Hattiesburg. A few days before his firing, Mr. Pigott -- who drafted a lawsuit on the agency's behalf seeking the return of more than $20 million from 38 entities and people, including Mr. Favre -- filed a subpoena, directed at the university's athletic foundation. The subpoena asks for documents connected to the funding of the volleyball building. |
| Inside the Pentagon slugfest over the future of the fleet | |
 | The Navy of the future needs 316 ships. Actually, make that 327. No, more like 367. You know what? Let's make it 373, or maybe even 500. At different points this year, the Pentagon and Navy leaders have floated all five numbers as the desired size of the Navy, the result of a high-stakes -- and still raging -- internal battle among top Navy, Marine Corps and Pentagon leaders. And the discord at the top has real-world consequences for America's sea service, denying lawmakers a number to shoot for as they figure out how many ships to buy in the fiscal year that starts in October, and beyond. The debate comes at a fraught time for the Navy as it struggles to grow the size of its fleet amid a series of shipbuilding failures that have drained congressional confidence in the service's ability to both put new ships in the water and maintain the ships they have. Differing opinions at the top of the Pentagon and Navy leadership chains is nothing new. But what is new is the lack of a united front in public when numbers are supplied to Congress. "The longer they wait to get on the same page, the higher the risk will be for our sailors and our nation," Mississippi Republican Sen. Roger Wicker, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement. His home state includes Ingalls Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. |
| One thing voters agree on: Fresh voices needed in politics | |
 | In a nation faltering along seemingly every conceivable divide, there's a shared desire among Democrats and Republicans for a new generation of political leadership. The conversation is most pronounced when it comes to the White House as Trump considers another campaign and President Joe Biden confronts skepticism about his ability to mount a reelection bid in 2024 when he is 82. "There's just a sense of like, that rematch between these two old guys seems ridiculous to people," said Sarah Longwell, a Republican strategist who conducts almost weekly focus groups with voters across the country and political spectrum. There are recurring calls for youth and change in U.S. politics. Bill Clinton's appeal for a new generation of leadership helped him rise from governor of Arkansas to the first baby boomer president in 1992. In 2008, Barack Obama's relative youth was an asset in his primary campaign against Hillary Clinton and during the general election against Arizona Sen. John McCain. A new Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll shows 83% of U.S. adults say the country is on the wrong track. Only 36% approve of Biden's leadership overall, while 62% disapprove. Polling from AP-NORC in recent months captured deepening pessimism among members of his own Democratic Party about Biden, the direction of the country and t he state of the economy. A January AP-NORC poll found just 28% of those surveyed and 48% of Democrats said they want Biden to run for reelection in 2024. |
| Gov. Ron DeSantis, Republican leaders tout tough stance against Democrats and avoid Trump | |
 | Gov. Ron DeSantis declared: "I am not backing down one inch." Some of the nation's leading Republican figures portrayed a country in crisis Friday during an event in Tampa, and promised to stand up to the left, showcasing a party still spoiling for a fight after the combative Trump years that culminated with a mob storming the U.S. Capitol violently refusing to accept the 2020 presidential election results. The message was well received among the crowd of 5,000 young conservatives gathered for the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit at the Tampa Convention Center. Founded by conservative Charlie Kirk in 2012, Turning Point is a Trump-aligned group that organizes young people on college campuses to oppose liberal interests. They protest Democratic policies as socialism and promote unsupported claims of fraud in the 2020 election. As a non-profit, it raised nearly $40 million in 2019-2020. DeSantis had the prime speaking slot Friday. He generated the most enthusiastic reception as his star power continues to grow within the GOP and there is constant buzz about him running for president, possibly even challenging Trump in a primary. The culture war battles received particular attention from DeSantis and the other speakers Friday as the GOP becomes increasingly focused on such issues, and on finding leaders willing to aggressively push back against liberal social values. |
| Trump v. DeSantis: Young conservatives debate GOP's future | |
| When former President Donald Trump took the stage before a crowd of more than 5,000 young conservative activists in Tampa this weekend, he received the rock star's welcome he's grown accustomed to over the seven years in which he's reshaped the Republican Party. One night earlier, it was Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis who had the crowd on its feet as he headlined the day's program at Turning Point USA's annual Student Action Summit. "To be honest, it's like choosing between your favorite child," said Leo Milik, 19, who lives in Barrington, Illinois, when asked whom he'd like to see as the party's next nominee. Milik, wearing a "Trump was Right" baseball cap, said both Republicans "have their pros, they have their cons." For now, he said, he's leaning toward Trump. That sentiment reflects the soul searching underway inside the GOP as an invisible primary for the 2024 presidential nomination begins to take shape, dominated at least for the moment by Trump and DeSantis. There's little doubt that Trump is moving closer to announcing a third presidential campaign. But there's genuine debate over whether he's the party's best candidate to take on President Joe Biden, who is otherwise seen as a vulnerable incumbent heading into the next campaign, weighed down by soaring inflation, sinking popularity and questions about his capacity to manage the U.S. into his 80s. |
| Ginni Thomas might be subpoenaed by Jan. 6 committee | |
 | Rep. Liz Cheney, vice chair of the Jan. 6 committee, said the panel could subpoena Virginia "Ginni" Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, for testimony. "The committee is engaged with her counsel, we certainly hope that she will agree to come in voluntarily, but the committee is fully prepared to contemplate a subpoena," Cheney, R-Wyo., told Jake Tapper of CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. "If she does not, I hope it doesn't get to that. I hope she will come in voluntarily." Ginni Thomas, a conservative activist, allegedly corresponded with former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and John Eastman, former President Donald Trump's attorney, about manipulating the results of the 2020 presidential election. She also attended Trump's "Stop the Steal" rally on the morning of Jan. 6, 2021. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., the committee's chair, said in June that Thomas would be pursued for testimony. Cheney said the committee has not decided whether to make criminal referrals to the Justice Department, but Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., the only other Republican member on the committee, told Jonathan Karl on ABC News' "This Week" that there seems to be significantly more movement in the DOJ since the committee began presenting its evidence in June. Kinzinger went on to mark the difference between prosecuting the last administration for political vengeance and not prosecuting an administration "that literally attempted a failed coup." |
| Oxford police make arrest in connection with missing Ole Miss student | |
 | Oxford police say they have made an arrest in connection with the disappearance of a missing Ole Miss student. Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr., 22, of Grenada has been charged with murder in connection with the July 8 disappearnance of Jimmie "Jay" Lee, the Oxford Police Department announced on Friday. According to a release from the police department, investigators have yet to locate Lee's body. As of Friday afternoon, Herrington was being held without bond. "This is still an ongoing investigation and updates will be given at a later date," the release reads. Lee is a Jackson native and public policy major. He's a graduate of Murrah High School. |
| Oxford police charge recent Ole Miss grad with murder in Jay Lee case | |
| Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr., a recent graduate of University of Mississippi, has been charged with murder in the case of Jimmie "Jay" Lee, a 20-year-old Black student who was well-known in Oxford's LGBTQ community. The Oxford Police Department announced the arrest in a press release Friday night. OPD did not provide the date or time that Herrington was booked or a motive. A bond has not yet been set. Herrington's charges are not yet posted to Lafayette County's online court records database. OPD asked anyone with information to contact police, who are "still working to locate Lee's body." It's not clear if Lee was visiting Herrington. Social media accounts belonging to Herrington show that he had just graduated from UM with a bachelor's degree in real estate. His family is from Grenada, and his uncle is Carlos Moore, who was elected president of the National Bar Association last year. |
| Cochran attorney Carlos Moore to represent murder suspect in disappearance of Jimmie 'Jay' Lee | |
| Cochran Firm attorney Carlos Moore will be representing Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr., 22, of Grenada, Mississippi. Herrington has been charged with murder in connection with the disappearance of Jimmie "Jay" Lee, a University of Mississippi student who disappeared two weeks ago. "I have been retained to represent Tim Herrington along with Kevin Horan," said Moore in a social media statement. "Although he has been charged with a serious crime he is presumed innocent. We will vigorously defend him and look forward to clearing his good name." Moore is the Managing Partner of The Cochran Firm - Mississippi Delta located in Grenada. Moore's cases focus on criminal defense, civil rights, police brutality, catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death, premises liability, worker's compensation, social security disability, and nursing home negligence. Herrington was being held without bond on Friday. |
| New USM Interim President Joe Paul shares his vision for university | |
 | If you aren't familiar with The University of Southern Mississippi's new interim president, Joe Paul, there is one thing you need to know, he bleeds black and gold. "Well, I had the privilege of being an undergraduate student at Southern Miss and earned a master's degree before getting a doctorate at Alabama," Paul said. Then, in the fall of '76, his working relationship began at his Alma Mater. He said his work only fueled his passion for the school. "I worked at the university for 41 years -- dean of students for the middle part of my career and vice president of student affairs for the last 21 years," Paul said. "In that capacity, I worked under five university presidents." Paul retired from the university in 2015, but he said when the university called him to step in as interim president, he didn't hesitate. "So, if somebody says, 'Come step into the breach during this interim time,' I'm just like, 'sign me up!'" Paul said. Paul said this might be a temporary role, but he plans for his work, however long his stay may be, to yield lasting rewards for the university. He said that starts with students. "I hope to focus a great deal of my energy on student recruitment," Paul said. "Southern Miss is too great of a place for undergraduate and graduate students not to be bursting at the seams." |
| WCU to host retirement reception for Dr. Tommy King | |
| William Carey University invites the public to attend a retirement reception for Dr. Tommy King, who has served the university as its president for more than 15 years. The reception will be Thursday, July 28, from 4:30 p.m. until 6 p.m. at the King Student Center on WCU's Hattiesburg campus. Dr. King became president of William Carey University in 2007, but his service to WCU goes back six decades. He is a WCU alumnus, a campus leader during his student days and the first Carey graduate to become president of the university. Before ascending to the presidency, he served as a WCU trustee, adjunct professor, department chair, and executive vice president. King led WCU's recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed the university's first Gulf Coast campus. He chose the location, and directed the construction, of a new campus in Tradition. At the same time, WCU applied to open the WCU College of Osteopathic Medicine, which admitted its first class in 2010 at the Hattiesburg campus. In January 2017, an EF3 tornado inflicted catastrophic damage to the Hattiesburg campus. Only one building was left unscathed. Six buildings were demolished, including the original Tatum Court. King led the rebuilding effort and cut the ribbon on the final tornado recovery project, new Tatum Court, in July 2019. King was instrumental in establishing the WCU School of Pharmacy at the Tradition campus, a physical therapy doctoral program in Hattiesburg, and a new nursing school in Baton Rouge. During his tenure as president, King oversaw unprecedented growth in enrollment. |
| 4 LSU professors awarded National Science Foundation's most prestigious early-career grant | |
 | Four LSU assistant professors have been awarded the most prestigious grant offered by the National Science Foundation for early career faculty nationwide. The foundation's Faculty Early Career Development Program award recipients are Yu April Chen in education; Matthew Hiatt in oceanography and coastal sciences; Rui Han in mathematics; and Don Zhang in psychology. Chen will receive $497,713 from the foundation over five years to study the four-year degree completion rate of racial minority transfer students and to promote racial equity in STEM fields. Hiatt will receive $480,917 over five years to research complex coastal hydrological processes essential to predicting future effects of coastal restoration strategies. Zhang will use $430,000 to study risk-taking behavior in the workplace. The impetus behind his work, Zhang said, comes from research he and his colleagues have conducted over the past five to 10 years profiling people who take risks and trying to measure risk preferences. Han will receive $464,836 over five years for his project, "Schrödinger operators on lattices." He will research electrons in a lattice material structure, such as graphene, under external magnetic fields. |
| Campus anti-abortion groups may find mission changes this year from activism to aid | |
| Anti-abortion groups on Louisiana college campuses may see their efforts shift this year, in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. But their workloads won't diminish. The outcome in that Mississippi case, announced by the high court in June, overturned Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that guaranteed women a right to an abortion. The outcome sends abortion back to the individual states to decide how to handle the issue. Kandace Landreneau, director of colleges, youth programs and north Louisiana for Louisiana Right to Life, has helped establish many of the Louisiana Students for Life chapters at colleges. At least initially, she said, while abortion clinics remain open because of court appeals, campus chapters may remain involved in distributing literature and talking to people outside operating abortion clinics. If the state's "trigger law," passed in 2006, wins out in court and the clinics are closed, Landreneau said, students may shift their full attention to service to "student moms." Alexander Arman, a rising senior and incoming president for LSU Students for Life, said he expects that student group, which typically has about 100 members, will probably do "more tabling" this year -- setting up tables and graphics in Free Speech Alley on campus and talking with students who have questions or even points of contention about the anti-abortion position. |
| Tennessee universities won't detail how they'll offer abortion training amid new laws | |
 | Current and future medical professionals are raising the red flag about the ripple effects the Supreme Court's abortion ruling will have on medical students' training. But Tennessee universities aren't disclosing how they'll navigate the new laws and keep their programs in the good graces of accreditation systems. Tennessee has banned abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy, and soon, a near-total abortion ban will go into effect. Abortion and abortion training is a complicated issue, especially when a medical school is state-funded. Medical schools in Tennessee are figuring out how to offer mandated abortion training as courts sort through how the laws apply to women and health care providers. "That does put ... their residency program into a very compromising kind of position," said Dr. Kimberly Looney, a physician and assistant professor at Meharry Medical College and chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi. "While your institution cannot participate in abortion care, you still have a charge to educate your residents wholly." A lack of access to abortion training could mean fewer trained abortion health care providers in the state, less comprehensive care for patients, and could perpetuate a workforce shortage of OB-GYNs. Because of the bans, obstetrics and gynecology residents in Tennessee will have fewer opportunities to learn abortion-related procedures as abortion providers suspend their services. To maintain good standing, all obstetrics and gynecology residency programs must provide access to abortion training at some point during their program, according to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. But the medical school cannot require residents to participate in abortion training. Residents with "religious or moral objections" can opt-out. |
| First Lady Jill Biden visits summer learning program at U. of Georgia | |
 | First Lady Jill Biden and Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona ended a three-state tour of summer learning programs with a visit on Thursday to the University of Georgia, where around two dozen elementary students participated in outdoor activities before showing off their swimming skills. The tour comes as part of an effort to highlight summer programs funded through President Joe Biden's American Rescue Plan, which will aid students disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Jill Biden, a long-time educator, and Cardona watched as students participated in activities as part of Horizons Atlanta's summer program, its first at the University of Georgia. The free, six-week program focuses on literacy, math, and swimming. Biden said it was great to see the work being done by the youth as part of the program. "Just like you and your students, I was teaching over Zoom and so I saw how hard it was for my students to keep them devoted, and keep their attention," she said. "You parents were the ones at home trying to keep your kids on a steady path. ... It was a really tough time for kids." Cardona echoed glowing sentiments about the Horizons program and its importance in helping students disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. |
| Texas A&M researchers report low unemployment rate and uptick in B-CS housing market | |
 | Texas A&M's Private Enterprise Research Center released the July 2022 edition Economic Indicators report Thursday, and researches say the Bryan-College Station economy is on the uptick with low unemployment and an increase in housing prices, despite inflation and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Overall, the local economy is doing fine," Andy Rettenmaier, PERC's executive associate director, said. "We are keeping a close eye on real or inflation adjusted taxable sales, and the inflation adjusted wages, just given how rapidly prices are rising. We know that at the individual level, real wages have declined during this period of inflation. When we think about all workers in the economy, they have been able to stay up with inflation. But individually they have declined, so we are going to keep an eye on those two as we go forward." After diving into the current state of the economy based on monthly numbers through May, Rettenmaier said the Business-Cycle Index increased 0.2% from April to May; the local unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.3% in May; local nonfarm employment in May decreased by 0.3% from April but was 1.87% higher than its pre-pandemic high in February 2020; local real (inflation-adjusted) taxable sales increased by 0.3% from April to May and were 7.2% higher than the same month in 2021; and the local housing prices have risen substantially since the beginning of 2021, similar to the statewide pace. |
| A controversial plan will reshape Texas A&M's Qatar campus | |
 | Major changes announced at Texas A&M University's Qatar branch campus will fundamentally reshape the role of liberal arts faculty, kicking professors off renewable rolling contracts in favor of fixed term deals and consolidating power under one dean. Critics argue that the plan -- first floated in November -- undermines academic freedom and will result in an exodus of talented employees. Some believe the main campus in College Station, Texas, is imposing unwanted and unneeded changes by fiat, and worry about the professional consequences they and their colleagues may face as a result. University leaders are casting the move as a more efficient use of resources, and a way to establish cross-campus consistency, which will help Texas A&M hit key performance indicators set in their contract with the state-led, nonprofit Qatar Foundation, which partners with Texas A&M on the program. Texas A&M administrators declined to share the details of its contract with the Qatar Foundation, including key performance indicators. The administrators are fighting an Inside Higher Ed public records request made under the Freedom of Information Act, appealing to the Texas attorney general to keep the contract secret because it contains proprietary information. The reorganization plan at Texas A&M Qatar largely resembles the proposal advanced last fall. |
| Defense attorney in Mizzou Fiji felony hazing case seeks to move trial, cites heavy media coverage | |
 | Citing heavy media coverage in Boone County, the attorney representing one of two felony defendants charged with hazing freshman Phi Gamma Delta pledge Danny Santulli is seeking another location for a trial. Brent Haden, attorney for Thomas Shultz, filed a motion for a change of venue Thursday in Boone County Circuit Court. Shultz, of Chesterfield, and Ryan Delanty, of Ballwin, are each charged with a felony under Missouri's anti-hazing law for the October 2021 incident at the University of Missouri fraternity house resulting in alcohol poisoning of the freshman pledge. Shultz also is charged with felony tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution. Misdemeanor charges of supplying alcohol to a minor and possession of alcohol by a minor were filed against Alec Wetzler, another member of the fraternity also known as Fiji. Santulli is at home in Minnesota with his parents but has severe brain damage, is blind and unable to walk or communicate, a family attorney has said. Shultz was vice president and treasurer of the local fraternity. "Inhabitants of Boone County are prejudiced against the defendant due to the nature and extent of media coverage addressing key issues in this case from October 2021 to the present day," Haden wrote in his motion. It cited in excess of 70 stories published or broadcast about the incident. |
| Eight more charged with felony hazing in Fiji case | |
 | Eight more men face criminal charges of life-endangering hazing after an October incident last year at the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity that left an MU freshman unable to walk, talk or see. The felony charges, filed Friday afternoon by Boone County prosecutors, bring the number of men facing possible criminal penalties to 11. Among those newly charged are the fraternity's live-in supervisor --- who was an MU employee at the time of the incident -- and its then-president. Samuel Lane was president of Phi Gamma Delta -- commonly known as Fiji -- at the time, while Jack O'Neill served as the chapter's "house dad" and worked for the journalism school at MU. An MU spokesperson previously confirmed that O'Neill is no longer employed by the university, though it's not clear if his departure was voluntary. Also charged Friday were Blake Morsovillo, Benjamin Parres, Samuel Morrison, Samuel Gandhi, Benjamin Karl and Harrison Reichman. The charges stem from a "pledge father reveal" party Oct. 19 at the Fiji fraternity house, where Daniel Santulli, a former MU student, was found unresponsive due to alcohol poisoning. When he was taken to University Hospital, his blood alcohol content was 0.486 percent, six times the legal limit to drive. In May, Santulli's family settled a civil lawsuit with 23 defendants for undisclosed amounts. |
| These Professors Were Thinking About Quitting. So They Turned to Social Media. | |
 | At colleges across the country, faculty members -- from longtime tenured professors to adjuncts -- are looking for a potential way out of academe. And often they are trying to find it through communities on social media. The posts aren't just "quit lit," the first-person Twitter threads, blog posts, and other online media detailing why faculty members left their institution or academe. Instead, those community-focused social-media forums, most often on Facebook and Reddit, are filled with posts from people in limbo. "Who's thinking of quitting?" one reads. "Help me decide if I should quit LOL," says another. The Chronicle spoke to several professors who had recently used Facebook groups or subreddits as they considered leaving higher education. Their stories are similar and increasingly common: As stressors piled up during the pandemic, they realized that even a tenured professorship wasn't what they thought it was. An associate professor at the University of Southern Mississippi wrote the post asking others to "Help me decide if I should quit LOL." The professor, who requested anonymity because she is still considering leaving her university, said in an interview that by the time she got tenure, she was "disenchanted" by the job. She wanted to pursue her research but found she spent more time teaching, advising, and filling service roles than she had expected. In recent months, someone at the U.S. Department of Defense approached her about an open research position that would enable the professor to do work related to her interests. With the thought of leaving her university for a new career now in mind, she started in "The Professor Is Out" Facebook group, then found her way to Reddit. |
| More Than Half of Campus Staff Members Are Thinking About Quitting, Survey Finds | |
| Results of a new survey paint a grim picture for higher ed's hopes of retaining staff members: More than half of them are considering leaving their job in the next year. That's according to staff members polled in May by the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources; initial results of the survey were released this month. About 35 percent of the 3,815 staff members surveyed by CUPA-HR said they were either likely or very likely to seek a new job in the next year, and 22 percent said they were somewhat likely to do so. That's an increase over last year, when those proportions were 24 percent and 19 percent, respectively. The results of the CUPA-HR survey, and another one recently conducted by The Chronicle, serve as yet another reminder that colleges are facing large-scale dissatisfaction within their work forces. Campus staff members' reasons for considering an exit are fairly clear-cut -- and familiar. Two-thirds said they sought a salary increase, and remote-work opportunities and flexible schedules were also high on their wish lists. At their current institutions, staff members said, they're not given enough latitude in their work arrangements. Thirty-seven percent of respondents reported having a totally remote or hybrid setup, but 71 percent said most of their work could be done remotely. The CUPA-HR survey, too, contained some bright spots. Sixty-two percent of staff members in the survey said they were satisfied with their job. Two-thirds would recommend their department as a place to work, and 60 percent said they'd recommend their institution. Three-quarters said they felt their work had purpose, while two-thirds said they felt valued, such as being able to bring up problems, and had a sense of belonging. |
| Ransomware attacks against higher ed increase | |
| "You can collect that money in a couple of hours," a ransomware hacker's representative wrote in a secure June 2020 chat with a University of California, San Francisco, negotiator about the $3 million ransom demanded. "You need to take us seriously. If we'll release on our blog student records/data, I'm 100% sure you will lose more than our price what we ask." The university later paid $1.14 million to gain access to the decryption key. Colleges and universities worldwide experienced a surge in ransomware attacks in 2021, and those attacks had significant operational and financial costs, according to a new report from Sophos, a global cybersecurity leader. The survey included 5,600 IT professionals, including 410 from higher education, across 31 countries. Though most of the education victims succeeded in retrieving some of their data, few retrieved all of it, even after paying the ransom. "The nature of the academic community is very collegial and collaborative," said Richard Forno, assistant director of the University of Maryland Baltimore County Center for Cybersecurity. "There's a very fine line that universities and colleges have to walk between facilitating academic research and education and maintaining strong security." That propensity of colleges to share openly and widely can make the institutions susceptible to attacks. |
| College-shopping students have a new query: Is abortion legal there? | |
 | Teenagers ponder many questions when they draw up college application lists. Should they go for rural or urban? Cold or warm? Big or small? Public or private? Pricey or affordable? Near home or far away? Now comes, suddenly, another variable. Abortion: Protected or banned? "It's so incredibly disheartening," Charlotte Hawthorn said. The 17-year-old from Orinda, Calif., doesn't want to rule out colleges based on regional politics. She cares about weather -- "I want somewhere that isn't Arctically cold," she said -- and wants a place that will challenge her liberal beliefs. Ideally, she said, it would be a school "that isn't just a bunch of super-politically-correct California kids." But the Supreme Court decision last month that overturned Roe v. Wade, erasing the constitutional right to abortion, scrambled her calculations. Upset over the ruling, she is torn over whether to apply to a well-known university in a state that is moving to ban most abortions. She finds strict antiabortion laws disturbing. "It's really hard to ignore," she said. The rapid emergence of state abortion bans in the South, Midwest and elsewhere has jolted many parents and college-bound students, forcing hard questions within families about what matters in the college search. Many schools in abortion-banning states, meanwhile, face the risk of losing potential students from huge swaths of the country that favor abortion rights. Several prominent schools in this situation declined requests for interviews about how they would respond to prospective students concerned about abortion access. But some acknowledged the issue in written statements. In Texas, leaders of Rice University wrote last month that the court's ruling "has serious consequences for women," imposing new hurdles to the effective management of reproductive health. The state has banned abortion, with narrow exceptions. |
| Democrats ask for extra guidance on pregnant students and Title IX | |
| A group of Democrats in Congress are calling on the Education Department to clarify how Title IX protects pregnant students from discrimination, including whether students can be referred to law enforcement for seeking an abortion. Title IX, the law that protects students from sex-based discrimination, requires all colleges that receive federal funding to provide specific accommodations for students who are pregnant or are parents. This can be anything excused absences for doctors' appointments to basic protections from discrimination. These protections have been codified into Title IX since 1975, and include language prohibiting discrimination for students who receive or are recovering from abortions. As some states across the nation move to enact strict bans on abortion, catalyzed by the recent Supreme Court ruling that overturned the federal right to abortion, many women's rights advocates as well as Title IX experts are concerned on how these protections will operate as the country becomes increasingly hostile towards abortion. The new Title IX proposal from the Biden administration that was released in June does go further to clarify the types of accommodations that students who are pregnant, parenting or seeking an abortion are able to request from their college, such as what constitutes a "pregnancy related-condition" under Title IX. However, after a 60-day public comment period, it could take as long as a year for the proposal regulations to become law. |
| Fate of student loan payment pause, debt relief remains unclear | |
| The clock is ticking for the Biden administration to let borrowers know whether it plans to extend the pause on federal student loan payments, which is currently set to expire on Aug. 31. If the pause is not extended, 45 million borrowers will have to begin making payments on their federal student loans after a break of over two years. The department has not yet communicated to borrowers or loan servicers whether it plans to extend the Aug. 31 deadline. However, if history repeats itself, recent actions by the department in communications with student loan servicers could hint at the possibility of an seventh extension to the pause that began in March 2020. According to Scott Buchanan, executive director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance, which works with loan servicers who oversee 95 percent of all federal student loans, in recent communications between servicers and the Education Department, which Buchanan said happened over the phone, some loan servicers have been told to hold off on sending billing statements to borrowers. After more than two years of not being required to make payments on their federal student loans, borrowers might not be aware that the pause is even lifting, and without the ability for loan servicers to warn borrowers of the upcoming deadline, borrowers might be surprised when repayment resumes and not be financially prepared to tackle new monthly expenses. |
| Mississippi in midst of historic times in terms of available state revenue | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: Late in the 2021 session, legislative leaders set a revenue estimate of $5.93 billion. That estimate represented the amount of revenue the state was expected to collect in the upcoming fiscal year and the amount anticipated to be available to fund the budget. That fiscal year ended on June 30, and the state in reality -- based on early numbers -- collected $7.38 billion or about $1.46 billion more than the estimate set way back at the end of the legislative session in April 2021. In other words, lawmakers budgeted based on expected revenue of $5.94 billion, but the state collected $7.38 billion instead, resulting in the surplus. According to data compiled by the staff of the Legislative Budget Committee, revenue collections for the fiscal year that began on July 1, 2021, and ended on June 30 increased 9.5% year over year. That spike in revenue collections comes on top of an increase of a record-breaking 15.9% for the prior fiscal year. It is important to note that in most fiscal years growth in revenue collections is 3% or less. In terms of state revenue collections, these are truly historic times. The only time in recent memory when the state experienced similar growth was in the 1990s with the start of casino gambling and all the construction related to the new industry and in the 2000s in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the construction that ensued after the Gulf Coast was pummeled. The above average growth for the 1990s lasted for much of the decade while the growth after Katrina was more short-lived, lasting only a couple of years. Time will tell how long the current revenue growth spurt lasts, but the past two-year period is unprecedented even when compared to what occurred during the casino boon and what happened after Katrina. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State AD John Cohen hints at south end zone plan, Davis Wade Stadium renovation | |
| Mississippi State's construction of The Balconies -- which bring the outfield lounges of Dudy Noble Field to the upper deck of Davis Wade Stadium -- shows the athletic department's image for the future of its football home. The Bulldogs are looking to build in a modern fashion while maintaining a foundation of one of college football's oldest stadiums. Built in 1914, New Athletic Field has turned to Scott Field and now Davis Wade Stadium, but its foundation remains standing. And MSU athletic director John Cohen told the Clarion Ledger that'll remain the case. However, he doesn't believe it'll leave Mississippi State behind its counterparts in creating a stadium and environment worthy of attendance. Creating premium seating in traditionally non-premium areas is a start. "There's so many special things that have happened in that facility, and we love that facility," Cohen said in a July 12 interview with the Clarion Ledger. "But it needs some work, just like Humphrey Coliseum needed some work. We want to make it better for our fans who have been there through thick and thin." The Balconies sold out to Bulldog Club members before being available to the general public. Atop the west side of the stadium, Mississippi State created a space where socializing and football-watching should work in harmony. It's a move to combat nationwide trends of fans electing to watch games from their couch instead of bleachers. The next action for the Bulldogs is obvious. The south end zone is outdated and unconnected to the rest of the stadium. While the athletic department is quiet about what the plan is, it's no secret something is coming. |
| Scouting the schedule, Game 2: Mississippi State heads out to the desert to face Arizona | |
| On paper, Mississippi State's only nonconference matchup against a Power Five team doesn't seem too bad. Arizona went just 1-11 last season and appears slated to be one of the weaker teams in FBS football yet again. But a lot can happen in the desert, particularly in a night game set to mess with the Bulldogs' circadian rhythms. MSU will be expected to take care of business in Tucson, but Mike Leach teams are known to lose games they shouldn't. Add in the setting and the start time, and the recipe is there for a potential ugly upset; it'll be up to the Bulldogs to prove they're better than that. Mississippi State will face Arizona at 10 p.m. Central on Sept. 10 at Arizona Stadium. The game will be televised on FS1. Mississippi State and Arizona have never met on the football field. The Bulldogs have only played three games ever against Pac-12 opponents. MSU is 0-2 against Oregon and won its only matchup with Washington. |
| Scouting the schedule, Game 3: Trip to Baton Rouge opens SEC play for Mississippi State | |
| Mississippi State will not only begin Southeastern Conference play a week earlier than usual. The Bulldogs will have to do it in some of the unfriendliest confines in the league -- if not the entire sport. MSU opens SEC play with a road game in "Death Valley," home to LSU. The Bulldogs have won there before -- upsetting the Tigers to start the 2020 season, for instance -- but it's never an easy task. After a second-half surge powered LSU to a win in last year's SEC opener in Starkville, MSU will be looking to set itself on the right foot in the conference standings. But a new-look Tigers team led by former Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly will stand in the way. Mississippi State will play LSU at 5 p.m. Sept. 17 at Tiger Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPN. LSU has historically been one of Mississippi State's toughest opponents. The Tigers are nearly doubling up the season series, winning every matchup with the Bulldogs between 2000 and 2013 before Dak Prescott led a win on the bayou in 2014. MSU has averaged only 12.3 points in its 112 meetings with LSU all time and has been outscored by an average of nearly 10 points per game. But MSU has won two of its past five games against LSU, including the season-opening upset in 2020 in Baton Rouge. |
| Scouting the schedule, Game 4: Mississippi State gets a respite from SEC play with Bowling Green visiting | |
| After back-to-back road games at Arizona and LSU, Mississippi State will get about as much of a break as the Bulldogs can get. No, MSU won't have a bye week, but facing Bowling Green at home is just about the next-best thing. The Bulldogs will take on one of the worst teams in FBS with a prime chance to relax in the first of three home games. And Bowling Green is neither Texas A&M nor Arkansas: The Falcons' four wins last season were their most since 2016. Mississippi State will certainly hope for a more comfortable win than its one-point margin of victory against Bowling Green back in 2013. But that was a 10-win Falcons team. This one isn't. Mississippi State will face Bowling Green on Sept. 24 at Davis Wade Stadium. Bowling Green's 2021 season started out with a 38-6 loss at Tennessee, and it didn't get much better. The Falcons struggled to a 4-8 campaign and a paltry 2-6 record in the Mid-American Conference. Buffalo and Toledo represented Bowling Green's only conference win. BGSU did manage to eke out a win at Minnesota on Sept. 25 in Minneapolis. The Falcons' other win came against Murray State. |
| Before turning around Bulldogs, Bob Tyler was a prep football savant | |
| Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: (On July 30, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame inducts its Class of 2022. What follows is Part IV of a series detailing the achievements of the eight inductees, today featuring coaching legend Bob Tyler.) ... Soon-to-be Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer Bob Tyler gained his most fame as the program-reviving head football coach at Mississippi State in the 1970s, but some older experts believe Tyler might have been the state's greatest high school football coach. Mac Barnes, who qualifies as an expert having won more 333 games himself as a high school coach, is one of those. Barnes played one season for Tyler at Meridian High School. "In my opinion, Coach Tyler earned Hall of Fame status before he ever became a college coach," Barnes said. "He turned Mississippi high school football upside down. He really did change the landscape. He showed everybody how it could be done." What Tyler did was win. He spent his last three years (1965-67) as a high school coach at Meridian. His Wildcats for those three seasons won 38 games, lost zero and tied one. Nobody's perfect. While 99% of Mississippi high school teams in that era ran the ball 90% of the time, Tyler's Meridian teams threw it all over the field. Said Barnes, "Nobody could stop us. Coach Tyler was light years ahead of everyone else in terms of offensive scheme and preparation. He was the smartest coach around." |
| Deion Sanders talks MEAC/SWAC merger, re-alignment | |
| Unlike most coaches at SWAC Media Day, or any other media day, Deion Sanders isn't afraid to talk beyond Xs and Os. When Sanders sat down on the couch to talk to HBCU Gameday in Birmingham on Thursday, he talked as much about business as he did about the five-star talent he brought in Travis Hunter. Here's what Deion Sanders had to say about merging the MEAC and the SWAC, conference re-alignment and the possibilities for Jackson State and the rest of the conference. |
| SEC commissioner says Nick Saban ruined his day by attacking Jimbo Fisher, Deion Sanders | |
| Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey appeared as a guest on "The Paul Finebaum Show" on Thursday at the end of the 2022 SEC Media Days. Sankey offered up that Alabama football coach Nick Saban ruined his day by attacking Texas A&M football head coach Jimbo Fisher and Jackson State football head coach Deion Sanders with comments in mid-May. Saban said that Fisher had "bought every player on their team" to obtain the top-ranked 2022 recruiting class. Saban also said, "Jackson State paid a guy a million dollars last year that was a really good Division I player to come to school. It was in the paper. They bragged about it. Nobody did anything about it." On Thursday, Sankey and Paul Finebaum were discussing the conference realignment that occurred in June with USC and UCLA going to the Big Ten Conference. That led to discussing the ensuing rumors of new teams joining the SEC, and Sankey talked about how much the rumors bothered him. "I had a friend a long time ago -- it was actually around a Honey Badger story in Sports Illustrated about something around recruitment that wasn't entirely informed or accurate -- and so one of my friends, we were working out, said, 'Does that just like ruin your day?'" Sankey said. "I said, 'There's a time that it would.' And there are certain things that do ruin my day." "I don't want to ask what those are," Finebaum said in response. "Well, I'll tell you in mid-May I was in New York City, it was 11 o'clock at night and I'd been at an awards event," Sankey said. "I didn't win the award and neither did our league win the award. And then the phone rang about something that got said in Birmingham. So there's an example of a ruined day." |
| Jimbo Fisher mentions Mississippi St. as possible permanent opponent in future SEC scheduling | |
| The Southeastern Conference has been discussing possible football schedules for when Texas and Oklahoma join the league in 2025, including one that features nine league games per year with each team facing three permanent opponents annually. Texas, LSU and Mississippi State could be Texas A&M's permanent opponents in this new 3-6 format, Aggie head coach Jimbo Fisher said at the Southeastern Conference Media Days on Thursday. Fisher said he would prefer to see the Aggies face Texas, LSU and Arkansas every season but added that Arkansas wasn't in the preliminary plans discussed in May during the SEC's spring meetings in Destin, Florida. "Our third team in our gambit, if I'm not mistaken, was Mississippi State," Fisher said. "It's another [SEC] West team. I believe that is the way it was. I'm trying to think off the top of my head." An A&M football spokesperson clarified Fisher's comment, saying it came from talks at the spring meeting in which nothing was decided. A&M athletics director Ross Bjork confirmed the three schools were part of discussions that took place in Destin as well as other scheduling matters. SEC and school officials also discussed other potential scenarios as every program brought options for who it would like to be partnered with permanently, Bjork said. On Tuesday at the media days, Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach reiterated his love for playing at Kyle Field and the importance of the Bulldog's win over the Aggies last season. Leach is no stranger to College Station, namely from his time as the head coach at Texas Tech. |
| Tennessee football receives notice of allegations in recruiting scandal under Jeremy Pruitt | |
| The University of Tennessee now knows exactly what it's up against in the NCAA investigation of football recruiting violations under fired coach Jeremy Pruitt. In a notice of allegations presented Friday to the university, the NCAA lists 18 violations and almost $60,000 of cash or gifts provided to players and their families by Pruitt, his wife and numerous coaches, recruiting staff and at least one booster. Knox News obtained the 51-page document Friday. In the notice of allegations, the NCAA credited Tennessee for self-reporting violations and its "exemplary cooperation" in the investigation. It also did not find the university lacked institutional control, a significant decision that likely removes Tennessee from program-crippling levels of punishment. The NCAA contends Pruitt and his staff gave players cash and gifts throughout his tenure with the Vols from 2018-21. And it says that his wife, Casey Pruitt, paid more than $15,000 in rent and car payments for a Tennessee player and his mother over 2½ years. All 18 violations are Level I, the most serious in the NCAA's four-level infractions structure. They include infractions allegedly committed by Jeremy and Casey Pruitt; assistant coaches Derrick Ansley, Shelton Felton and Brian Niedermeyer; and recruiting staff members Drew Hughes, Bethany Gunn and Chantryce Boone. The NCAA goes out of its way to praise the way university leaders have handled the scandal, saying "the actions taken by the institution during the investigation should be the standard for any institutional inquiries into potential violations." |
| Georgia football coach Kirby Smart rewarded with long-term deal after winning national championship | |
| More than six months after Kirby Smart delivered Georgia football its first national championship in 41 years, the school finally announced a new, long-term contract Thursday that will make Smart the highest paid college coach in the sport at a public school. Georgia will pay Smart $10.25 million in the first year of a new deal that runs through the 2031 season. The 10-year contract will have annual increases and go up to $12.25 million in the final year. It is worth $112.5 million over the 10 years. UGA president Jere Morehead said in late May that he expected a deal to be finalized in the weeks ahead and that the athletic board would be presented terms to approve in writing before an announcement. "I am pleased that Coach Smart has made a long-term commitment to the University of Georgia," Morehead said in a statement Thursday. "I look forward to seeing his continued success with the Georgia Bulldogs for many years to come." Smart is the sixth coach to be paid at least $9 million, according to figures kept by USA Today. His new salary is ahead of Alabama's Nick Saban ($9.9 million), Michigan State's Mel Tucker ($9.5 million), Ohio State's Ryan Day ($9.5 million), LSU's Brian Kelly ($9.5 million) and Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher ($9 million.) |
| 'It's here much faster than we thought:' How NIL forced a reckoning in high school sports | |
 | Former TSSAA executive director Bernard Childress wasn't prepared for how quickly the name, image and likeness craze reached high school sports. Barely a year after the state of Tennessee passed a law allowing NIL monetization at the college level, the state's high school sports association is considering addressing the issue as early as December. "It's here and it's here much faster than we thought," said Childress, who retired July 1. When the Supreme Court ruled in NCAA v. Alston last June that the collegiate sports organization's policy was a violation of antitrust law, the NCAA allowed athletes at member institutions to monetize their name, image and likeness. While NIL use for college athletes had bipartisan support nationwide, allowing it at the high school level is more controversial. Karissa Niehoff, the CEO of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), said the organization supports athletes' profiting from their NIL as long as it is not connected to their participation in high school sports. She believes a professional contract tied to a high school would undermine the values of amateurism. Similar rationale was used to justify banning NIL use in college athletics prior to last summer. However, Niehoff argues that NCAA sports were never truly amateur in the way high school sports are, considering factors like multi-million dollar facilities and ever-increasing coaching salaries. Nine states allow high school athletes to monetize their name, image and likeness: Alaska, California, Louisiana, Kansas, Utah, Colorado, Nebraska, New Jersey and New York. Eleven others are actively reviewing proposals to allow NIL use at the high school level, and the Ohio High School Athletic Association rejected a proposal May 17. |
| Newsom demands that UCLA publicly explain deal to leave the Pac-12 | |
 | California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday demanded that UCLA explain how its Pac-12 exit for the Big Ten will benefit all of its student-athletes and honor its relationship with UC Berkeley -- the only UC campus that will be left behind and will likely take a big financial hit in a conference weakened by big-name defections. "The first duty of every public university is to the people -- especially students," Newsom said in a statement. "UCLA must clearly explain to the public how this deal will improve the experience for all its student-athletes, will honor its century-old partnership with UC Berkeley, and will preserve the histories, rivalries, and traditions that enrich our communities." Newsom made an unusual appearance Wednesday at the San Francisco meeting of the UC Board of Regents, where he serves as an ex-officio member, to join the board's closed-door discussion on the issue. The decision by UCLA -- along with USC -- to leave the Pac-12 Conference in August 2024 has left Cal and other remaining conference teams reeling over the threat of losing millions in media rights revenue, not to mention the holdovers' viability as a major player in the rapidly shifting college sports landscape. UCLA and UC Berkeley have declined comment on the issue. The expected windfall from a new Big Ten media rights deal -- which is expected to yield in excess of $1 billion -- could more than double the yearly payout the Bruins would have received by remaining in the Pac-12, while sparing the school from a doomsday scenario -- the elimination of some Olympic sports teams -- it potentially faced by standing pat with diminished resources. |
| Penn State QB Sean Clifford, Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren discuss improving benefits | |
| Big Ten football players have had conversations with league commissioner Kevin Warren this week about giving athletes a bigger voice in the future and about improving a variety of benefits for players. Warren also spoke with the leader of a nascent players' association about the possibility of having an independent group represent the players in conversations with the league. Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford said the conversations with Warren have been a positive, collaborative start to giving players a seat at the table in future decisions with the league. He said he and the other players he has spoken with have no intention of creating a union or entering a contentious negotiation with the league at this point. Warren issued a statement later Friday saying that the Big Ten has, indeed, started "the process of formalizing the Big Ten Student-Athlete Advisory Committee to seek input from our student-athletes, including Sean Clifford, about the changing landscape of college athletics." He added that the conference "has not had any negotiations with the CFBPA, or any players' organization, and do not have any scheduled." |
| Washington State brass: Be patient | |
| Washington State's leaders are offering words of encouragement for Pac-12 supporters. "Really, I'm very optimistic moving forward," WSU president Kirk Schulz said Friday. "With every week that goes by, that sense of optimism probably increases. "The conference is as unified as I've seen it in my six years here." Speculation regarding the Pac-12's fate has been swirling since June 30, when USC and UCLA gave the West Coast power conference a major gut punch --- the Los Angeles schools officially will drop out of the Pac-12 in 2024 and join the Big Ten. Many began to fear for the Pac-12's stability without its stronghold in L.A. Would more members defect in search of lucrative options in other conferences? "When the announcement first came out, obviously there was a sense of, 'Oh, maybe everybody's out for themselves,'" Schulz said. "But over the last couple of weeks, there has been a strong focus on moving ahead strategically. What can we do to make the Pac-12 stronger than it is now? That's been the focus of our conversations." Three weeks into this round of conference realignment, the 10 remaining schools are holding steady. "Our membership is committed to being together," WSU athletic director Pat Chun added. "Obviously, we had two members that weren't committed. "Being in these meetings, there is positivity. We are united and there is a pathway forward for the Pac-12. ... Where we sit today, I honestly think the Pac-12 is well-positioned for its next chapter, and that's good news for Washington State." |
| Should College Athletes Be Paid? A Once-Radical Idea Gains Momentum | |
| College sports are in the midst of a wild period of transformation that could ultimately lead to what some see as the wildest shift of all: paying salaries to college athletes. In the last two years, athletes have won the ability to transfer freely between schools, sign endorsement deals and earn academic stipends of up to $2,990 per semester. Up next could be reclassifying college athletes as employees who share in the revenues they help generate for their universities. "I don't know how exactly, I don't know when exactly, but I think it's safe to say [athlete employment] is the direction that the entire national landscape is pointing," says Casey Schwab, chief executive of college-athletics consulting firm Altius Sports Partners and former head of business affairs for the NFL Players Association. "The weather vane is clearly pointing towards this athletes' rights movement continuing to get bigger and bigger and bigger." These developments have people seriously contemplating what an employment model could actually look like in college sports. Teams might form unions to bargain on working conditions and wages with their coaches or perhaps even split off from academics altogether -- changes that could have a major impact on what fans will be watching 10 years from now. The National Collegiate Athletic Association has for decades fought to protect its founding principle of amateurism, defined in its constitution as competition for athletes who "have not profited above his/her actual and necessary expenses or gained a competitive advantage in his/her sport." In the 1950s, NCAA President Walter Byers coined the term "student-athlete" to differentiate college athletes from professionals. It's a fight that has become harder and harder for the NCAA to justify as college sports turned into a billion-dollar business in the 21st century. |
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