| Monday, October 24, 2022 |
| $15M+ facility to replace McCarthy Gym at MSU | |
 | In the midst of improvements and new construction, Mississippi State University will soon see another new project near the heart of campus. Beginning early next year, McCarthy Gymnasium will be no more as MSU makes way for a multi-million-dollar, 100,000-square-foot building to house the university's Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic (ADDC), Department of Kinesiology and various programs for disabilities. McCarthy Gymnasium sits on Creelman Street across from the Drill Field. It is currently an indoor tennis facility and the home of the Department of Kinesiology. Saunders Ramsey, executive director of Campus Services, said McCarthy needs replacing to accommodate equipment and facility upgrades for the Department of Kinesiology, which has the largest enrollment of any university program of study. "I believe just the condition and the ability to upgrade the condition of the facility, plus provide (the Department of Kinesiology) with state-of-the-art equipment and modernize their program will be incredibly beneficial," Ramsey told The Dispatch. The new building's size will almost double McCarthy's roughly 56,000 square feet. It will be built through a $15 million donation from brothers Jim and Tommy Duff of Columbia, per a university press release. Most of the trees and all of the buildings around where McCarthy is now should not be harmed, and Ramsey said there is new parking on the south side of campus to make up for the lost parking where the new building is going. It is part of a larger plan to make another quadrangle similar to the Drill Field. |
| Monday Profile: New Hope STEM teacher making difference at her alma mater | |
| When Susie Oglesby entered college at Mississippi State University to study marine biology, she never imagined she would end up teaching high school. "I took an education class in college ... and fell in love with it while I was at Dauphin Island teaching kids," she said. "I thought, 'Well, I'll just be a teacher because I can make a difference with children.'" After graduating, she moved around, teaching at different schools. She eventually found her way home to her alma mater, New Hope High School. "I started out teaching in Tupelo, and then I moved to Bowling Green, Kentucky," she said. "I loved teaching there. My husband got a job at MSU, and that moved us back to Mississippi. I wanted to come back to the school I went to. I actually graduated from New Hope and I felt it was important to be back in my community." Oglesby has taught Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) for 17 years. She said she is in a unique position to, hopefully, directly improve her community through her students. "I want to plant a seed because our community is STEM,'' she said. "All of our industry, everything we have, is hands-on. If we don't introduce these kids to something that is hands-on, they won't be able to do any of the industry work. Not everybody is meant for college. But STEM can also be used for college, I want to make sure that's clear." |
| More than 500 area absentee ballots cast for November election | |
| With a little more than two weeks to go until election day, more than 500 voters have already cast ballots. Absentee voting is underway and will run through Nov. 5 for this year's general election, which features two contested circuit judge races for Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Clay and Noxubee County voters. Golden Triangle ballots will also feature a contested U.S. House race in the 1st or 3rd District, and some will include a special election for District 37 Mississippi representative. In Oktibbeha County, three candidates are vying to become the first county court judge. Election day is Nov. 8, where polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Those 65 and older, or those who will be out of town or working on election day, can cast absentee ballots in person or by mail through the circuit clerk's office in their county. Voters with permanent disabilities can also vote absentee, either in person or by mail, and students studying somewhere other than where they are registered to vote can vote absentee by mail. Voters can cast absentee ballots from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on weekdays. Courthouses also will be open from 8 a.m. to noon Oct. 29 and Nov. 5, both of which are Saturdays. Absentee voters must present a valid photo ID. Oktibbeha County Circuit Clerk Tony Rook urged voters to make sure their address information on the voter rolls is up to date. "That information determines where you vote, and we also want to make sure that voters are able to receive correspondence from our office," he said. "That can't happen if we have an old address." Rook said the absentee count is around 170 right now, which is higher than he expected at this point. "This is just speculation on my part, but it's probably the judicial races driving it," Rook said. |
| High-tech farming helps automate the job -- except when the equipment gets hacked | |
 | Tractors, combines and other farm equipment have become computers on wheels. They're bluetooth-enabled as well as connected to the internet, which, as Dina Temple-Raston of the "Click Here" podcast explains, makes them incredibly vulnerable to hackers. on Abbott lives and works on a farm in Milledgeville, Georgia. Population: 17,000. It's about two hours southeast of Atlanta, and I visited him there to talk about a farm staple: the tractor. "Growing up, I was used to riding on the older tractors that were just a straight shift diesel engine tractor that really the only electrical wiring on it was from the battery to the starter and headlights," said Abbott. But that's not how tractors work these days. "Now the tractors can basically control themselves," he said, "and you can just be up there in case something malfunctions." Or, in case your tractor gets hacked by someone. Jen Easterly is the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). And part of CISA's job is to protect critical infrastructure, anything from power plants to "K-12 schools, small hospitals, water facilities," she said. And, it turns out, tractors. I asked her if a tractor is considered critical infrastructure, and she said yes, "John Deere, part of critical manufacturing. I mean, you'd be surprised. There's not much that's not critical infrastructure, frankly." Easterly said that if all tractors went down at once, "It'd be a disaster." |
| $10.8M awarded to Golden Manufacturing to make trousers for Army and Navy | |
| U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., have praised a $10.8 million contract award to Golden Manufacturing Co., Inc. in Tishomingo County. The deal is designed to produce trousers for the U.S. Army and Navy. The contract represents the continuation of Department of Defense contracts dating from 2019 for the Golden-based company to produce uniform items for the military services. "Golden Manufacturing Co. has a strong track record of providing quality uniforms to the U.S. military, and I appreciate that the Department of Defense has recognized those contributions," Wicker, a senior member of the Armed Services Committee, said. "This contract award will help to keep Mississippians employed and our service members equipped with the basic necessities they need to do their jobs." Included in the agreement is a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract, with an October 23, 2023, ordering period end date. |
| Longtime judge, state senator Fred Wicker dies | |
 | Former circuit court judge, state senator and father of U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker Thomas Frederick "Fred" Wicker has died. He was 98. Wicker died Friday morning at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, according to a release from Sen. Roger Wicker's office. "My father spent his life in service to our country and our family," Sen. Roger Wicker said in a statement. "A World War II veteran, a public servant, a dedicated husband and father, and faithful Christian, he was a role model for many -- and he was my hero. Our family is devastated to lose him, but we are grateful for a life well-lived, the wisdom he instilled in us, and the many years we spent together. On behalf of the entire Wicker family, Gayle and I deeply appreciate the expressions of sympathy and prayers we have received." Wicker had a long and distinguished career as city attorney and county prosecutor for 12 years, state senate for three years, and was appointed by Gov. John Bell Williams as Circuit Judge for the 1st Judicial District in 1970. He served in that capacity for 20 years and retired in 1990. Wicker carried on his public service after retirement as an active member of the American Legion, the Rotary Club, Sons of the American Revolution, and Sons of the Confederate Veterans. He served as a deacon and Sunday school teacher at First Baptist Church, Pontotoc, Mississippi. In addition to his children, Judge Wicker is survived by five grandchildren and eleven great grandchildren. |
| 'Change has come': Mississippi unveils Emmett Till statue | |
 | Hundreds of people applauded -- and some wiped away tears -- as a Mississippi community unveiled a larger-than-life statue of Emmett Till on Friday, not far from where white men kidnapped and killed the Black teenager over accusations he had flirted with a white woman in a country store. "Change has come, and it will continue to happen," Madison Harper, a senior at Leflore County High School, told a racially diverse audience at the statue's dedication. "Decades ago, our parents and grandparents could not envision that a moment like today would transpire." The 1955 lynching became a catalyst for the civil rights movement. Mississippi has the highest percentage of Black residents of any state, now about 38%. Democratic U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, whose district encompasses the Delta, noted that Mississippi had no Black elected officials when Till was killed. He said Till's death helped spur change. "But you, know, change has a way of becoming slower and slower," said Thompson, the only Black member of Mississippi's current congressional delegation. "What we have to do in dedicating this monument to Emmett Till is recommit ourselves to the spirit of making a difference in our community." Greenwood and Leflore County are both more than 70% Black and officials have worked for years to bring the Till statue to reality. Democratic state Sen. David Jordan of Greenwood secured $150,000 in state funding and a Utah artist, Matt Glenn, was commissioned to create the statue. |
| The big recession risk that no one is talking about | |
 | President Joe Biden is cheering a record plunge in the federal budget deficit, but the numbers belie a troubling trend that could come back to haunt him: The cost of government debt is skyrocketing. The Federal Reserve's relentless campaign to crank up interest rates to kill the worst inflation in four decades is also driving up debt costs. The U.S. in the latest fiscal year spent more on interest payments than it did on veterans' programs and food and nutrition services combined -- $475 billion, a 35 percent increase. And the number is only expected to grow. That could limit the government's ability to respond if the economy tumbles into a recession, potentially throwing millions of Americans out of work, as many economists expect next year. During recent downturns, Congress helped cushion the blow by flooding the economy with stimulus checks and other relief. But doing that now while inflation is raging -- even if it were politically possible -- would pile on even more debt and could rattle investors wary of policies that could stoke higher prices. That's a lesson that outgoing British Prime Minister Liz Truss learned the hard way. "Any more big additions to the deficit are really risky," said Jason Furman, who served as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Barack Obama. "We saw the U.K. heavily punished for that, and so I think that would be quite problematic." |
| Western countries reject Russian claims about 'dirty bomb' in Ukraine | |
 | Officials in Kyiv and several Western countries rejected claims made without evidence by the Kremlin that Ukraine is planning to use a "dirty bomb" -- an explosive weapon designed to scatter radioactive material -- on its own territory, characterizing them as an attempt by Russia to create a pretext for escalating the conflict. "We all reject Russia's transparently false allegations that Ukraine is preparing to use a dirty bomb on its own territory," foreign ministers from the United States, France and the United Kingdom said in a Sunday joint statement, after Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu made the unfounded claim in conversations with the countries' defense ministers. "The world would see through any attempt to use this allegation as a pretext for escalation," the Western diplomats added. According to summaries of Shoigu's calls posted by the Russian Ministry of Defense, he told defense officials Sunday that he was concerned about "possible provocations by Ukraine with the use of a 'dirty bomb,' " and noted that the situation in Ukraine is "rapidly deteriorating." Ukrainian officials immediately rejected Shoigu's claims and accused Russia of making false threats to justify its own escalatory attack on Ukrainian territory. Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's foreign minister, said he extended a formal invitation to U.N. nuclear inspectors to independently establish that Ukraine has "nothing to hide." The incident has thrown Western and Ukrainian fears of a Russian nuclear attack into sharp relief, as the conflict hits the eight-month mark Monday, and frustrations grow within Russia that what officials initially conceived as a quick victory is turning into a protracted and costly conflict. |
| Book Talk: Five questions with Steve Yarbrough | |
| Like William Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha County, contemporary novelist Steve Yarbrough keeps coming back to his fictionalized Mississippi setting of Loring for his books. His most recent novel "Stay Gone Days" opens in this familiar terrain. While Yarbrough's Loring is a reference to his Delta hometown of Indianola, he is no stranger to the Golden Triangle. Yarbrough returns to Columbus this week as the keynote speaker at the Eudora Welty Writers' Symposium at Mississippi University for Women. This will be Yarbrough's fourth appearance at the annual gathering, which is celebrating its 24th year. Yarbrough's ties to the area, however, date back to his youth. In an interview with The Dispatch, Yarbrough recalled having a grandparent from Eupora, as well as traveling to Macon in his teenage years to play high school football games. For Yarbrough, who now lives in Boston, connection to a place is key to his writing. "I've got to feel an attachment to geography to set anything there," Yarbrough said, which he described as "a peculiarly southern trait" exemplified by one of his own favorite writers, the legendary Mississippian Elizabeth Spencer. Yarbrough's presentation, which is open to the public, will take place on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in Poindexter Hall on the MUW campus. |
| JSU fund receives $100K check from candy company on GMA | |
| A group of people at Jackson State University was surprised Friday morning on ABC's Good Morning America when they were presented with a check for $100,000 by Michael Strahan. GMA's Strahan was at JSU on Friday, Oct. 21, to talk with Head Football Coach Deion Sanders and highlight JSU's homecoming celebration. Strahan said the president of Mars Wrigley, North America, Anton Vincent, is a Jackson native, and his parents also taught at JSU for decades. Mars Wrigley is a subsidiary of Mars Incorporated. Since joining Mars, Vincent is now over portfolios that include iconic candy brands. When the company found out that GMA was coming to Jackson, they stepped up, Strahan said. The famous television personality presented the check to Rachel James-Terry, the director of public relations, and Alonda Thomas, chief communications officer and associate vice president for marketing and communications. The money was said to go toward the JSU Gap Emergency Fund. "... A little bit of money can really help ... and that's what this money is going to go towards. So, thank you so much," said Thomas in the video. Strahan said almost 80% of all students at JSU rely on financial aid. To help the students make ends meet, JSU offers the gap fund. |
| Teacher shortage crisis in Mississippi not slowing down | |
 | Mississippi is seeing a record high teacher attrition rate. Those who have left the profession are claiming lack of resources, inadequate pay, and little to no support from administration as reasons for the ongoing problem. A report from advocacy group Mississippi First reveals that some teachers are leaving for higher pay in neighboring states, and that students graduating with college debt don't make enough on a teacher salary to pay that debt consistently. Melanie King taught English for seven years to middle school students, and said she left the profession after she was assaulted by a parent last year and didn't get the support she needed from her superiors. While King agrees that low income is pay an issue, she says that wasn't the reason she left a job she loved. "It's not the money," King says. "It's the way we are treated as if we have no value... like we don't matter, like [the administration] can replace us at any time." Christy Hardy now has an online business but taught in Mississippi for 13 years. She resigned from teaching elementary school in Northeast Mississippi last year citing unresolved behavioral problems from certain students that made her feel unsafe. She says she loved the administration she worked for, but not even they could help her with certain students and issues. "I was going to school and I felt like I was going to battle," Hardy says. "I felt like I never knew what the day was gonna bring me... if someone was going to get into a fight, if someone was going to cry... it was very difficult." |
| Test scores show historic COVID setbacks for kids across US | |
| The COVID-19 pandemic spared no state or region as it caused historic learning setbacks for America's children, erasing decades of academic progress and widening racial disparities, according to results of a national test that provide the sharpest look yet at the scale of the crisis. Across the country, math scores saw their largest decreases ever. Reading scores dropped to 1992 levels. Nearly four in 10 eighth graders failed to grasp basic math concepts. Not a single state saw a notable improvement in their average test scores, with some simply treading water at best. Those are the findings from the National Assessment of Educational Progress -- known as the "nation's report card" -- which tested hundreds of thousands of fourth and eighth graders across the country this year. It was the first time the test had been given since 2019, and it's seen as the first nationally representative study of the pandemic's impact on learning. "It is a serious wakeup call for us all," Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, a branch of the Education Department, said in an interview. "In NAEP, when we experience a 1- or 2-point decline, we're talking about it as a significant impact on a student's achievement. In math, we experienced an 8-point decline -- historic for this assessment." Researchers usually think of a 10-point gain or drop as equivalent to roughly a year of learning. |
| U. of Alabama celebrates homecoming | |
 | The University of Alabama wrapped up homecoming festivities on Saturday with the theme "Legends Live Forever." One of the highlights of homecoming was the parade Saturday afternoon on University Boulevard, which began in downtown Tuscaloosa and proceeded to the UA campus. Former UA track athlete Lillie Leatherwood, who won two Olympic medals before serving more than two decades with the Tuscaloosa Police Department, served as the parade's grand marshal. At halftime of the game against Mississippi State University, Ellery Hill, a senior from Hanover, Michigan, was crowned as the 2022 homecoming queen. The homecoming court also included Megan Abrams, a graduate student from Lafayette, Louisiana, Olivia Bruno, a senior from Franklin, Tennessee, Olivia Burleson, a junior from Winfield, and Bayley St. Clair, a senior from Mobile. On Friday night, UA held a pep rally on the Quad, which featured the Million Dollar Band, cheerleaders and Big Al. The pep rally ended with a bonfire. |
| Ben Sasse piques conservative students' interests, disappoints some | |
| While UF student and faculty protesters stomped on the floors of Emerson Alumni Hall in opposition of Sen. Ben Sasse Oct. 10, other more conservative UF students are interested in getting to know the university presidential finalist a bit better. Although Sasse has piqued their interest with his political beliefs, he's not the conservative representation they expected. Sasse was critical of Trump's administration, and his disagreement with Trump got him in trouble with Nebraska Republican supporters. Sasse also voted to impeach Trump during his second impeachment trial. Some students like Harrison Feld, a member of the UF Young Americans for Freedom, knew of Sasse from his politics on Capitol Hill. He admittedly wasn't expecting the presidential search committee to choose someone from Nebraska, Feld said. But in the end, he just wants someone who's going to improve the school, Feld said. Maintaining UF's top five public university status is important to him, the 20-year-old UF political science junior added. "Obviously, I'm going to like him," Feld said. "He's a Republican. He's not the best Republican, but he's there." Students who are protesting Sasse don't have to worry about his politics, Feld said, because he doesn't think Sasse is a "far-right kind of guy." |
| Southern Baptist Seminary Votes Only Men Can Be Pastors | |
 | Trustees at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., unanimously passed a resolution last week that men and women can receive theological training but only men can hold the title of pastor, CBN News reported. "It is further resolved that this Board encourages The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary administration and faculty to continue its theological training with this stated conviction -- graduating both men and women for service to the church, but with men alone reserved for the office and function, and thereby title of pastor," the resolution stated. The resolution falls in line with previous comments made by seminary president Albert Mohler. He argued at the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in June that Scripture limits the role of pastor to men. Mohler helped to craft the Baptist Faith & Message 2000, the official statement of beliefs for Southern Baptists, which takes the same position. |
| A Rare Court Victory That Protected 4 Tenured Professors' Jobs Just Got Reversed. Here's Why. | |
 | The College of Saint Rose didn't violate its own policies when it dismissed four tenured faculty members, according to a ruling Thursday by a New York appellate court. The unanimous decision overrules a lower court's ruling last year that reinstated the four professors. In the prior decision, a New York Supreme Court justice ruled that the private college in Albany had violated its own faculty manual by dismissing four longtime members of its music department. Saint Rose told the professors in December 2020 that they and about 30 other tenured faculty members would be laid off in 2021 as part of a cost-cutting plan that included eliminating 25 academic programs and $5.97 million in academic expenses. The college had retained less-senior faculty members, in what Justice Peter A. Lynch of the Albany County Supreme Court called a "select, narrow, and erroneous interpretation" of the faculty manual, seemingly "by design." It was a resounding, and rare, legal victory for tenured faculty members who get laid off. But it was also a short-lived one. The state's second-highest court found on Thursday, after a hearing last month, that Saint Rose had in fact not violated its faculty manual in terminating Yvonne Chavez Hansbrough, Robert S. Hansbrough, Bruce C. Roter, and the department chair, Sherwood W. Wise. While Thursday's ruling shouldn't have broader repercussions outside of New York, it does offer an example for other institutions trying to lay off tenured faculty members. |
| Economic future of U.S. depends on making engineering cool | |
| On a recent afternoon, an unusual group of visitors peered through a window at Purdue University students tinkering in a lab: two dozen executives from the world's biggest semiconductor companies. The tech leaders had traveled to the small-town campus on the Wabash River to fix one of the biggest problems that they -- and the U.S. economy -- face: a desperate shortage of engineers. Leading the visitors on a tour of the high-tech lab, Engineering Professor Zhihong Chen mentioned that Purdue could really use some donated chip-making equipment as it scrambles to expand semiconductor education. "Okay, done. We can do that," Intel manufacturing chief Keyvan Esfarjani quickly replied. Just weeks before, his company broke ground on two massive chip factories in Ohio that aim to employ 3,000 people. Computer chips are the brains that power all modern electronics, from smartphones to fighter jets. The United States used to build a lot of them but now largely depends on Asian manufacturers, a reliance that the Biden administration sees as a major economic and national security risk. Hefty new government subsidies aimed at reshoring manufacturing are sparking a construction boom of new chip factories, but a dire shortage of engineers threatens the ambitious project. By some estimates, the United States needs at least 50,000 new semiconductor engineers over the next five years to staff all of the new factories and research labs that companies have said they plan to build with subsidies from the Chips and Science Act, a number far exceeding current graduation rates nationwide, according to Purdue. Additionally, legions of engineers in other specialties will be needed to deliver on other White House priorities, including the retooling of auto manufacturing for electric vehicles and the production of technology aimed at reducing U.S. dependence on fossil fuels. |
| Companies lure hourly workers with college tuition perks | |
| When Daniella Malave started working for Chipotle at 17, the main benefit she was seeking was free food. As it turned out, she also got a free college education. While working full time for the chain, Malave completed two years of community college with annual stipends of $5,250 from Chipotle. After that, she enrolled in the company's free online college program, through which she earned a bachelor's degree in business management from Wilmington University in 2020. "I didn't have to pay for my education," said Malave, 24, who now works as a recruiting analyst for Chipotle in New Jersey. "Every time I say it out loud, I'm like, 'Is this real?'" Chipotle is one of more than a dozen companies that have launched free or almost-free college programs for their front-line workers over the last decade. Since 2021 alone, Walmart, Amazon, Target, Macy's, Citi and Lowe's have made free college available to more than 3 million U.S. workers. Companies see the programs as a way to recruit and retain workers in a tight labor market or train them for management positions. For hourly employees, the programs remove the financial barriers of obtaining a degree. Thousands of people are now taking advantage of the benefits. Starbucks, which operates an online college program through Arizona State University, says 22,000 workers are currently enrolled in its program. Guild Education, which administers programs for Walmart, Hilton, Disney and others and offers online programs at more than 140 schools, says it worked with 130,000 students over the last year. |
| Debt Relief Blocked, for Now | |
| The Biden administration is encouraging borrowers to keep applying for student loan forgiveness despite a temporary stay issued by a federal appeals court Friday night that blocked the administration from discharging any debt. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, which granted the request for an emergency stay from six Republican-led states, will hear the challenge on an expedited timeline with briefs due today and tomorrow. In a video posted to Twitter, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said the legal challenges to the student debt–relief plan are "baseless" and that the administration was not deterred. He also defended the plan in an op-ed published over the weekend in USA Today, noting that the stay doesn't prevent the administration from reviewing applications for forgiveness. "Amidst Republicans' efforts to block our debt relief program, we are moving full speed ahead to be ready to deliver relief to borrowers who need the help," Cardona said in a statement. "As we continue our preparations in compliance with this order, we continue to encourage working- and middle-class Americans to apply for debt relief at studentaid.gov. President Biden and this administration are committed to fighting for the millions of hardworking students and borrowers across the country." The emergency stay comes after the Biden administration thwarted several legal challenges. A federal district judge dismissed the lawsuit from the Republican-led states because the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue. The plaintiffs quickly appealed to the Eighth Circuit. |
| National politicos can look to Mississippi for answers on impact of disabilities on elected officeholders | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: The Mississippi Legislature was in the midst of what was known as "the special session from hell" 20 years ago this month, debating whether to give businesses and medical providers more protection from lawsuits. Legislators ultimately did. A key player in that special session that spanned a record-setting 83 days was Sen. Bennie Turner, a Democrat from West Point. Turner was respected in the Mississippi Legislature for his thoughtful analysis, civility and even-keeled approach to legislating. He also had a serious hearing impairment. A recent NBC national news interview with Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who is the Democratic nominee in a closely watched U.S. Senate race, stirred a debate about disabilities and serving in key electoral office. Fetterman suffered a stroke earlier this year. Because of the stroke, he insisted the NBC interview be done in a manner that allowed him to read the reporter's questions as they were being asked. Apparently at times, Fetterman's comprehension of audio communications can be troublesome, though he said the condition should improve in the coming months. Whether it does or does not improve, though, should not be viewed as a factor in determining his qualifications to be in the U.S. Senate, some contend. Others argue it should. |
SPORTS
| Men's Hoops Meets Jackson State At Mississippi Coliseum | |
| Mississippi State men's basketball announced the final piece of its 2022-23 schedule on Monday and will return to the capital city for the eighth time during the last nine seasons as the Bulldogs square off with Jackson State in a mid-December matchup. The two programs will meet for the second time over the last three seasons on Wednesday, December 14th at the Mississippi Coliseum. Tip time is slated for 6:30 PM CT. Ticket information for the Jackson game will be available at a later date. All tickets will go on-sale and can be purchased through the Mississippi Coliseum. The Jackson game is not part of Mississippi State's season ticket package. Fans can be the first to know about ticket information for the Jackson game by filling out this form at https://hailst.at/3VWYqjt. In two weeks, the Bulldogs will open its 2022-23 campaign and play its first game of the Chris Jans era versus Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Nov. 7 – 6:30 PM – SEC Network+), a 2022 NCAA Tournament participant from the Southland Conference, at Humphrey Coliseum. Fans can purchase season tickets through Mississippi State's Athletic Ticket Office starting as low as $155 at www.HailState.com/tickets or by calling (662) 325-2600/(888) 463-2947 (GO DAWGS) for the program's much-anticipated first season under Coach Jans. |
| Premiere venues like Pebble Beach, Seminole and Baltusrol are hosting women's college golf events | |
| This week in women's college golf, teams competed across the country on an enviable slate of courses including Seminole Golf Club, Baltusrol (both Upper and Lower), The Merit Club and Medinah (No. 2). It's a trend that has trickled down from the LPGA, where each season the women play more historic and celebrated venues. "It gives the student-athletes a sense of pride knowing that on the women's side, that they matter. that they see the equality happening," said Ohio State head coach Lisa Strom, who hosted the Barbara Nicklaus Cup earlier this year at Muirfield Village. Strom notes that it takes visionaries to push the envelope, like longtime OSU coach Therese Hession, who started the Palos Verdes event more than 25 years ago and created the Muirfield event, which debuted last year as a mixed tournament. "Junior golfers are looking at the sport at an entirely different level when they're looking at schedules that say Pebble Beach, Baltusrol, Seminole," said Mississippi State coach Charlie Ewing. "I just think that really changes the entire perspective of what college golf is like, especially on the women's level." In early October, Arkansas hosted the third annual Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods at Blessings Golf Club. The event, televised on Golf Channel, features men's and women's teams playing together in fivesomes. Mississippi State won the women's team title. |
| Bulldogs Clinch Spot in SEC Tournament in Final Road Match of Season | |
| For only the second time on the road, the Mississippi State soccer program (10-4-3, 4-4-1 SEC) came up short against its opponent, falling 2-1 to Vanderbilt (11-2-3, 5-2-2 SEC) on Sunday evening. Despite the loss, the Bulldogs secured its fifth SEC Tournament appearance with a game still to play in the regular season. It's the third time in the last four years that MSU will head to the Gulf Coast for postseason play. "Another great effort versus a quality opponent where, unfortunately, we just came up short," head coach James Armstrong said. "We have to put this one behind us and get ready for Thursday." State now sits in a three-way tie for 5th place, overall, in the conference standings, tied with South Carolina and Georgia with 13 points in league play. MSU and Georgia will square off in State's final, regular season match next Thursday, October 20, in Starkville. The Bulldogs will return home for Senior Night next Thursday, Oct. 23, for its final regular season match against Georgia (11-5-1, 5-3-1 SEC). The match will kickoff at 6:30 p.m. CT and will air on SEC Network+. The 10 Bulldogs getting honored are: Miranda Carrasco, Madison Cotta, Alyssa D'Aloise Gwen Mummert, Jojo Ngongo, Hannah Pimentel, Olivia Simpson, Hannah Telleysh, Andrea Tyrrell and student assistant coach Peyton York. |
| Snoop Dogg celebrates in locker room with Deion Sanders' Jackson State team | |
 | Deion Sanders and Jackson State had a lot to celebrate on Saturday. Not only did the Tigers win their homecoming game against Campbell, 22-14, but they also held on to their undefeated record and advanced to 7-0 on the season. Pretty impressive. And nothing says victory like a dance party with Snoop Dogg, who was at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium for the day's festivities. After Jackson State came out on top in the homecoming matchup, the Tigers celebrated with the rapper with a locker room dance party that looked like a blast. And thanks to Deion Sanders Jr. tweeting a video -- along with photos in an Instagram post from Prime Time -- fans caught a glimpse of the team's postgame celebration. About Snoop Dogg, Sanders wrote in his Instagram caption: "When the Dogg show up it's a must that we show out. @snoopdogg we've been down ever since Sonny was with Cher. I love my brother 2 life. His love for kids and his heart for the Community is unmatched. This is Family here." |
| ESPN's 'College GameDay' Reveals Jackson State as Week 9 Location | |
| College Gameday will forego its usual Power 5 destination and instead be on hand for iconic HBCU rivalry game in Week 9. ESPN's signature pregame show announced it will head to Mississippi next weekend for a FCS tilt between undefeated Jackson State and Southern. The game, also known as the BoomBox Classic, features two of the premier SWAC programs and has been played every year since 1958. Southern holds a 35–30 historical advantage over Jackson State in the annual matchup, but the Tigers ended an eight-game losing streak last season with a come-from-behind, 21–17 win. Coached by NFL legend Deion Sanders, Jackson State has rapidly developed into an FCS powerhouse, having raced out to a 7–0 record in 2022 following a homecoming victory over Campbell on Saturday. Southern's start to the 2022 campaign has been a bit more tepid, having gone 5–2 with losses to LSU and the SWAC's Texas Southern. However, the Jaguars have rattled off four consecutive wins, including Saturday's 51–7 drubbing of Virginia University of Lynchburg, setting the stage for a competitive matchup in Jackson next weekend. College Gameday will begin live from Jackson at 8 a.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 29. Kickoff against Southern is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET |
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