| Tuesday, January 3, 2023 |
| Oktibbeha's Year in Review: A coaching legend passes, Starkville grows, county lake gets federal help | |
 | "I'm going to miss you, Coach." Those words from Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers at Humphrey Coliseum encapsulated the feelings of a community and so many others across the college football world as they mourned the loss of a coaching legend. A month before, MSU's athletic director jumped ship for Auburn. Other issues making headlines in Oktibbeha County in 2022 included movement toward fixing the county lake dam, retail and industrial development, a new superintendent for Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District and the creation of a new court. Here's a look at some of this year's top stories. |
| Shirley recognized as outstanding grad student at MSU-Meridian | |
 | A fourth-generation educator is the Outstanding Graduate Student for the Division of Education at MSU-Meridian for the fall semester. Dunnam Shirley of Meridian is in his second year of teaching eighth-grade science at Southeast Middle School. At home in his white lab coat in a room filled with flasks and beakers, Bunsen burners and balances, Shirley actually never intended to be an educator. Instead, he spent summers during his youth at veterinary camps and working after school at local veterinary clinics -- anticipating the day he would attend veterinary school at Mississippi State. His plans changed during his senior year of high school. "Nothing dramatic happened to steer me away from my dream of becoming a vet," Shirley said. "I can't really explain it other than I just woke up one day and knew it was not for me. I believe the idea of becoming an educator was planted in my head by my principal at Southeast Lauderdale High School, Mr. Russell Keene. He was my mentor and suggested more than once I should combine my love of school and learning with my passion for animals and science -- and I realized he was on to something." His career path set, Shirley attended Meridian Community College, and then went on to Mississippi State's Starkville campus -- earning an undergraduate degree in secondary education with a concentration in biology in 2021. He had several job offers after graduation, but the opportunity to come home to his alma mater and impact the next generation in the same community he grew up in was hard to pass up. |
| Admin complex tapped as county's moonshot for state funds | |
| Supervisors on Monday handed their lobbyist a "moon" and a "star" in projects for which to request state funding at the upcoming legislative session in Jackson. The "moon," as it were, is money toward a new county administration complex at the site of the old Felix Long Hospital. If the county misses that mark, "the star" would be funds to improve up to six miles of Crawford Road. The board reached this consensus at its last meeting of 2022 after a brief discussion with Austin Barbour of the lobbying firm Clearwater Group. While Barbour at first urged supervisors to get behind one project, he later advised it might be better to have requests for a large brick-and-mortar project and a road project, which would be less expensive to complete, on "parallel tracks." That way, if the legislature balks at the large project, the county has a fallback that might get some money. "It's never easy to pick just one priority in a county that is growing as much as Oktibbeha County," he said. Barbour also urged the county to approve a unanimous resolution solidifying those lobbying priorities no later than Jan. 15 and provide detailed project descriptions, estimated costs and how much of the funding the county intends to match. |
| Two charged after Thursday night shooting in Starkville | |
 | A Lowndes County man and an Oktibbeha County juvenile are facing felony charges after they started shooting at each other Thursday night Starkville police were called to Orchard Lane near Reed Road after 10:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 29, for a report of shots fired with a victim. Responding officers learned that the single gunshot victim had already been carried to the OCH Regional Medical Center for treatment. The investigation determined that the shooting was related to a fight call between female juveniles occurring at the same time. The investigation led to the arrest of Jaleen Young, 22, of Columbus; and Ladarius Jordan, 16, of Starkville; who police believe were the primary shooters in this event. Young was arrested in Lowndes County and charged with aggravated assault and shooting into dwelling house. Jordan was treated for a gunshot injury and charged with aggravated assault when he was released into police custody. More arrests are expected related to this incident. If you have information about this, or any other incident, please contact the Starkville Police Department at 662-323-4131 or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at 800-530-7151. |
| UPDATE: Tornado watch for East Mississippi until 5 p.m. | |
| The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch until 5 p.m. Tuesday for 33 counties, including Clarke, Jasper, Kemper, Lauderdale, Neshoba and Newton. The NWS said severe storms could produce strong tornadoes, damaging winds in excess of 70 mph and up to half dollar-sized hail. The storms are expected to impact the Lauderdale County area by around noon and continue into Tuesday evening. Mississippi Emergency Management Agency encouraged residents to make sure they could hear emergency alerts, had a safe space identified and had a way to keep up to receive weather updates from local forecasters or the National Weather Service. Lauderdale County residents can sign up for emergency alerts from Lauderdale County Emergency Management Agency online at lemaonline.com or by texting their zip code to 888777. City of Meridian residents can also sign up for the city's CodeRED alert system at meridianms.org or text "MERIDIANMS" to 99411. A link to sign up can also be found on the city's social media. |
| Severe weather with possible tornadoes, damaging winds, hail forces some school closures | |
 | Just a few days into the new calendar year and severe weather could delay some Mississippi students from returning to class from the holiday break. Tornado watches have been issued for parts of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee until 5 p.m., along with multiple thunderstorm warnings as well. University of Southern Mississippi operations and offices in Hattiesburg will close at noon today, Tuesday, Jan. 3, in anticipation of severe weather, to potentially include tornadoes, hail, high winds, heavy rains, and flash flooding," USM announced in a press release. "At this time, Coastal operations are expected to continue as regularly scheduled. The Eagle Alert emergency communications system will again be activated should regularly scheduled Coastal operations also be affected. "The National Weather Service (NWS) has placed Forrest and Lamar counties, including the Hattiesburg campus, under a Tornado Watch until 5 p.m. South Mississippi, including the University's Hattiesburg campus and all Coastal Operations, are at an enhanced risk (3 out of 5) for severe weather." |
| Power failures amplify calls for utility to rethink gas | |
 | A federal utility's decision to resort to rolling blackouts after coal and natural gas units went offline during dangerously cold conditions has intensified questions about the Tennessee Valley Authority's recent decision to double down on fossil fuels. TVA experienced its highest ever winter peak-power demand on Dec. 23 as an arctic blast brought blinding blizzards, freezing rain and frigid cold from Maine to Seattle. The Tennessee Valley Authority said in an email that a combination of high winds and freezing temperatures caused its coal-burning Cumberland Fossil Plant to go offline at one point when critical instrumentation froze up. A second coal-burning plant, Bull Run, also went offline, TVA spokesman Scott Brooks said in an email, although he did not provide details. The utility "had issues at some of our natural gas units" as well, Brooks said. The utility was already facing scrutiny for its recommendation to replace some aging coal-burning power plants with natural gas, instead of renewables and energy conservation measures -- like solar, wind, heat pumps and LEDs. Already, TVA is facing a lawsuit that claims it violated federal law by approving a gas-power plant that is under construction at the retired coal-burning Johnsonville Fossil Plant without properly assessing the environmental and climate impacts. TVA has declined to comment on the lawsuit filed this month. |
| Longtime economic developer, former CDF leader Harry Martin dies | |
| Harry A. Martin, the longtime head of the Community Development Foundation who helped lead economic development efforts for Tupelo and Lee County, died Friday night, leaving behind a legacy that has touched the lives of anyone who calls Tupelo home. He was 97. The CDF got its start in 1948 with Martin behind the scenes. He was named its chief executive eight years later and spent the next 44 years steering the community to great economic heights. He retired in 2000 and was named president emeritus. One of the people who knew him well was Julia Houston, who worked with Martin at his office the past couple of years. He was a broker along with his daughter, Janet, at Martin Select Properties. "I'm helping finish up what he started, and I'm in his office seeing a lot of alligators," she said. "Some people saw him as being tough, but he was really kind and generous and loved to laugh." Martin kept alligators in his office to remind himself of keeping grounded. He once told the Daily Journal that every day he faced competition from every other economic development organization in the country and abroad. They would have loved to have made him gator bait, he said. "There's always alligators out there, you know. If you don't watch out, they'll always try to get you," he said. Martin was born in Quitman in Clarke County in 1925 and got his agricultural administration degree from what was then Mississippi State College. He became familiar with Tupelo when he was a student there. Martin was also a generous philanthropist. Among his passions was endowing funds at Mississippi State and providing scholarships to students. |
| New businesses springing up after opening of revamped Ellis Theater | |
| Dr. Daniel Barnard said it was the intention to create a big splash with the opening of the Ellis Theater in Philadelphia. Mission accomplished. Phase one of the $40 million project that will eventually house Marty Stuart's immense collection of country music artifacts, opened its doors in December with a four-night grand reopening weekend. "Marty Stuart, Ricky Skaggs and Bill Gather in four days was quite the scene," said Barnard, the executive director of the Congress of Country Music. "There were a lot of people in town that came for the entire week. I think we created the splash we intended to." The Ellis Theatre was originally built as a silent movie theater in 1926 by the late Henry Bell Hutchison. In recent years it has served as a performance space for the Philadelphia-Neshoba County Arts Council. "Now, it's more of a long-term situation as we are waiting to see the impact on the community as we go forward," Barnard said. The long-term impact seems to be in good position as a new restaurant is opening just steps away from the Ellis Theater on the square in Philadelphia. Barnard also says the David Vowell and the Community Development Partnership of Philadelphia is in negotiations with multiple hotel chains to build and open a hotel in the downtown footprint. "Many of the people came for the grand opening stayed at the reservation at the Golden Moon and that is fine," Barnard said. "But there really is a need for a hotel in Philadelphia and this seems to be the tipping point for that and many other economic development opportunities." |
| MDA outlines 2022 accomplishments | |
| As a new year approaches, it's a good time to reflect on events and accomplishments of 2022 with the Mississippi Development Authority. MDA Deputy Executive Director Laura Hipp says the state has experienced a phenomenal year in terms of economic development, with companies announcing significant new investments in communities throughout the state. "Additionally, through these investments, thousands of Mississippians will be given opportunities to work for these companies in good-paying jobs," she said. Listing the year's highlights, she focused on companies such as Steel Dynamics, Nissan and Artemis. "The recent announcement from Steel Dynamics' $2.5 billion investment is the largest corporate investment project in the state's history," she said. "It will create 1,000 jobs to support the growth of its Golden Triangle campus, which includes the addition of a $1.9 billion aluminum flat rolled mill. That is certainly a highlight of 2022." Hipp says the state had an extremely varied mix of companies choose to locate or expand in Mississippi in 2022. "We are a state where any industry can find success. Over the last year, however, we have welcomed several new agribusiness/timber-related announcements throughout the state." Those include Enviva, Carpenter Pole and Piling and CLAW Forestry as a few of the companies that have announced new investments in the timber-related sector. She says agribusiness is a major economic driver for Mississippi, and MDA doesn't anticipate its growth slowing down any time soon. |
| Mississippi Economic Council's annual Capital Day returns Thursday | |
 | The Mississippi Economic Council will hold its annual Capital Day this Thursday, Jan. 5 to help kick off the 2023 legislative session. Attendees will get a chance to intermingle with business, community, and state leaders to discuss ideas and issues that could help propel Mississippi forward. This year's speakers include Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann, House Speaker Philip Gunn, as well as a handful of other lawmakers. During a recent interview on The Gallo Show, MEC President Scott Waller discussed some of the council's priorities going into this year's session, one of which is finding additional ways to provide Mississippians with an opportunity to acquire high-paying employment without having to obtain a four-year college degree. Waller believes industry certifications could bolster the state's workforce with individuals who would typically not get a chance in some fields due to educational requirements. "We're starting to see a real emphasis being put on increasing educational attainment at the secondary level, but we're valuing every one of the steps equally. An industry certification that gets someone into a high-paying job should be equally as valuable as that bachelor's degree," Waller said. "There are so many opportunities, so many different pathways for people to be successful and we've just got to change the stigma that if you're not getting that four-year college degree, then you're not being successful." |
| Lawmakers will gavel in Tuesday for the legislative session. Here's what they'll tackle. | |
| Conventional wisdom and political history show that when state lawmakers gather at the Capitol during an election year, not much is expected to happen. But when Mississippi's 52 senators and 122 House members convene in Jackson on Tuesday to kick off the 2023 legislative session, they'll arrive in a capital city dealing with water issues and voters who are still clamoring for a way to place issues on a statewide ballot. "Some politicos say the agenda during an election year is always pared down to bare necessities," Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann penned in a recent opinion piece. "Not this year." The legislative session will begin on the same day that candidates can qualify for state offices. Political jockeying will undoubtedly cast a shadow over the Capitol, but a number of key issues are still expected to appear before lawmakers, including tax breaks, the revival of the initiative process and the distribution of federal stimulus money. |
| Mississippi legislators could debate tax cuts again in 2023 | |
| Mississippi legislators return to the Capitol on Tuesday, and their three-month session could be dominated by debates over taxes. This is the final year of a four-year term. Most members of the Republican-controlled House and Senate are expected to seek reelection, but the Republican speaker of the House, Philip Gunn, announced months ago that this will be his final year in office. During the 2022 session, legislators passed and Republican Gov. Tate Reeves signed a plan to reduce the state income tax over four years -- the state's largest tax cut ever. That reduction starts this year. Gunn says he wants legislators this year to finish the job of eliminating the income tax. He points to a budget estimate that shows Mississippi with a surplus of about $1 million. Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said in a separate pre-session interview that he has a different plan for taxes. He wants to give rebates to people who have paid state income tax, at a cost of about $270 million. This would not permanently erase the income tax. "If you paid a dollar, you get a dollar back," Hosemann said. "If you paid $200, you get $200 back, until you run out of money. So if you pay $400, you get $400 back. And at some point in time, which I think is around $500 or so, that would be the maximum left after we started from bottom, giving everybody the dollars back." |
| A look at where state's record surplus originated and how it can be spent | |
| The Mississippi Legislature will begin the 2023 session on Jan. 3 with a mind-boggling $3.9-billion surplus, according to information compiled by the staff of the Legislative Budget Committee. To put the surplus in perspective, it is little more than half as large as the overall state-support budget of $7.9 billion for the current fiscal year. State support refers to the funds derived primarily from general taxation, such as the sales tax on retail items and the income tax. The state also has other special fund agencies, which receive taxes or fees designated solely to run their agency, such as the fee barbers pay for their regulatory board or the motor fuel tax to operate the Transportation Department. The state has an overall budget, including all state and federal funds appropriated by the Legislature, of $26 billion for the current fiscal year with 45% of the total funds being provided by the federal government. By any metric, the surplus the state has is unprecedented. These funds fall into different categories with different guidelines of how they can be appropriated by the 2023 Legislature. But it should be stressed that in most cases the Legislature can vote to change those guidelines and it is almost a certainty the Legislature will not appropriate all the surplus funds this session. |
| Election integrity, anti-ESG, food security among legislation state officials championing during 2023 session | |
| On January 3rd, lawmakers will gavel in for the 2023 Mississippi Legislative session. Statewide elected officials spoke with Y'all Politics about legislation ideas from their offices as well as policy issues they will be supporting this session. As for Agriculture and Commerce, Commissioner Andy Gipson told Y'all Politics that as a former member of the Legislature, he greatly appreciates the lawmakers. He added that it is a huge job crafting policy for the State of Mississippi, but it is a job that is incredibly important for the state's future. At the Mississippi Department of Agriculture, Gipson said they have a few technical amendments to their agriculture law enforcement statutes they would like to see updated by the Legislature to provide further protections for Mississippi farmers against agriculture related crimes. "We are also in discussions with legislators about important investments for capital improvements to rebuild Mississippi's food security infrastructure and livestock facilities that will benefit Mississippi youth and agriculture education, and our State, for generations to come," Gipson said. "I believe we need to invest in our future leaders -- our statewide 4H, FFA livestock and equine exhibitors, and we have a unique opportunity to do so this year." Gipson said he is also convinced it is time to closely examine foreign ownership of agricultural lands in Mississippi to ensure there is no threat to the state or country's food security. He wants to strengthen laws to make sure the state has the tools in place to prevent and restrict foreign ownership of the state's most valuable resource -- Mississippi farmland. |
| What to expect for the 2023 legislative session | |
| Lawmakers are preparing to head back to the State Capitol for the 2023 legislative session. Although there are typically surprises when it comes to the issues that rise to the top, here are some of the expected debate issues. The first anticipated topic is really a continuation of last session. "I do know that there, obviously, are still some ongoing debates about tax policy," said Sen. Joey Fillingane (R). The Governor and others plan to again push for full elimination of the state income tax. There was even some debate among Republican leaders on the issue last year. "This debate is what you want in our republic," noted Sen. Brice Wiggins (R). "And so, should we completely eliminate it? Or should we, you know, stick with what we have? But if we eliminate it, then do we have the money to find the needs that the government is responsible for funding?" It's a move that House minority leader Rep. Robert Johnson thinks is inappropriate. He has a different priority. "What I hope to see happen is that we do something long term for healthcare and hospitals, but at the very least, do something short term to make sure that people have access to health care and keep our hospitals open," added Johnson (D). |
| 2023 Mississippi legislative session preview: What you can expect lawmakers to consider | |
 | As millions of Americans are popping bottles of sparkling wine or lighting fireworks into the skies above, members of the Mississippi Legislature may have their minds elsewhere. They will be just days away from reconvening for the 2023 session. When senators and representatives arrive in Jackson from across the state on Tuesday, Jan. 3, they will do so with bills they'd like to see pass and goals they'd like to accomplish. Over the next three months, some of those bills will pass. Some of those goals will be accomplished. Many, however, will die in committee, fail on the chamber floor or simply slip between the cracks as time runs out. Here is a look at some of the biggest issues that are likely to be discussed during the 2023 legislative session: Rural Hospital Crisis; State Income Tax; A "new pro-life agenda"; Crime; Initiative Petitions; and Infrastructure. |
| Session Outlook: Lawmakers to take on crime, infrastructure and gender ideology during the 2023 session | |
| House of Representatives District 73 Rep. Jill Ford said much was accomplished in 2022's legislative session, and she is looking forward to another successful year in 2023. In this previous session, the Madison delegation was able to secure $15 million through appropriations. For Ford, the most notable of the funding secured was $2.5 million for the widening of Bozeman Road, $1 million for the city of Madison's Performing Arts Center and $1 million for the city of Gluckstadt's Police Department. Additionally, they were also able to secure $6 million for Holmes Community College Ridgeland Campus Applied Sciences Building, $2.5 million for the city of Ridgeland's Commerce Park Connector Road, $1 million for the city of Flora's water and sewer infrastructure, and $1 million for the Magnolia Speech School. The biggest task before Ford this year is to get her "passion project" passed in the 2023 Legislative Session. This three pronged approach with three initiatives focuses on fighting radical gender ideology. Ford said it is a long game strategy state-level response to the Biden Administration's attack on the civil rights of (one) women, (two) parents, and (three) children. The priorities of the Jackson legislative delegation for the 2023 session remain the same as what they were for the 2022 session: funding for water infrastructure improvements and crime prevention efforts, according to one state senator. "The top priority is the water-sewer system," said David Blount, who represents District 29-Hinds in the Mississippi Senate. "I'm optimistic that with the federal takeover of Jackson's water system the system will be capably managed, and the city and state can have confidence that investments in the system will be well spent. " |
| Mississippi legislators: Education, infrastructure, healthcare, income tax break among top priorities for 2023 | |
 | The 2023 Regular Session of the Mississippi Legislature begins very shortly after the New Year holiday, at noon on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. With the session so close on the horizon, we asked legislators representing Adams County their take on a few hot-button topics, starting with what their priorities are for this session. One thing on each of their minds is directing $300 million left in the American Rescue Plan Act fund and a $1.4 billion surplus in state funds to help Mississippi residents in the best possible way, but their ideas differ on what those ways should be. District 97 House Rep. Sam Mims V, R-McComb, said he plans to use his position as a member of the appropriations committee to focus on ways to help Mississippi residents who are struggling due to inflation. "Our economy is doing very well. However, we have to be very mindful of what is on the horizon," Mims said. "I've never seen more of a disconnect between what is happening at Jackson and what is happening in Washington, D.C. We have to understand people are still struggling due to inflation. Gas prices and mortgages are higher, and there are supply chain disruptions that affect everyone. I plan to focus a lot of my time on appropriations as a member of that committee on how we spend our normal state budget." District 37 State Sen. Melanie Sojourner, R-Natchez, agreed with Mims on the elimination of the state's income tax. On the flip side, District 94 House Rep. Robert Johnson III, D-Natchez, said there are several issues in Mississippi -- particularly in healthcare and infrastructure -- that will require a lot of money to fix. These should take priority over cutting out the state income tax, he said. |
| Here are the governors' races to watch in 2023 | |
 | Three Southern states are gearing up for governors' contests in 2023 that could give an early indication of the way the political winds are blowing ahead of the presidential election in 2024. Louisiana, Kentucky and Mississippi will all be holding off-year gubernatorial elections. While Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) is term-limited and unable to run again, Govs. Tate Reeves (R) in Mississippi and Andy Beshear (D) in Kentucky are up for reelection. Over in the Magnolia State, Reeves is vying for another run at the governor's mansion after winning his first term in 2019 against Democrat Jim Hood, then the state's attorney general. Though no Republicans have officially announced intentions yet to run against Reeves, there's still plenty of time ahead of the Aug. 8 primary for Reeves to draw a primary challenge. Reeves has struggled with low approval ratings during his time as governor. Earlier this year, a survey from Morning Consult also found that Reeves was one of eight governors to have a general approval rating under 50 percent. Still, there's reason to believe that Reeves will prevail in the August GOP primary given his incumbency advantage. The Daily Journal also noted that Reeves has a formidable financial advantage, and one strategist told the news outlet that trying to oust Reeves from a GOP primary would be no small task. The general election is Nov. 7. |
| Arkansas plan of insurance for poor more agreeable than Medicaid expansion for key lawmaker | |
| State Senate Medicaid Committee Chair Kevin Blackwell, R-Southaven, is not the first politician to look to Arkansas as an example of how to provide health care coverage to more Mississippians. "No, I don't believe in it," Blackwell said of Medicaid expansion after a recent legislative hearing on the financial crisis facing Mississippi hospitals and their possible closure. Blackwell was echoing the positions of many Republican politicians in Mississippi who say they oppose Medicaid expansion that would provide health care coverage for primarily the working poor. But then Blackwell went on to say that "there might be some alternative to Medicaid expansion for the state to consider." The alternative that Blackwell described was taking the federal funds the state would receive through the expansion of Medicaid to help Mississippians purchase private health insurance coverage. The private health insurance route is what was taken in 2014 by neighboring Arkansas. Instead of expanding Medicaid to provide health insurance to primarily the working poor -- up to $18,500 per year for an individual -- with the federal government paying 90% of the costs, Arkansas draws down those funds to help people purchase private health insurance policies. |
| Even Mississippi lawmaker feels strain of Jackson water woes | |
| In Mississippi's capital city, where intermittent periods without running water have become a fact of life for residents, a new disruption to the long-troubled water system persists just days before lawmakers are set to arrive for the state's 2023 legislative session. Amid frigid weather that upended infrastructure across the Deep South, pipes in Jackson broke and the city's water distribution system failed to produce adequate pressure. Crews have spent days working to identify leaks, but pressure still hasn't been fully restored and a boil water notice remained in place Friday. City leaders said the water system remains vulnerable to weather-related disruptions, and Jackson-area legislators face the prospect of returning home from the Capitol building each evening without access to water in their homes. Democratic state Rep. Ronnie Crudup Jr., who has represented south Jackson since 2019, was preparing for the Legislature's upcoming return to session on January 3. Then, on Dec. 24 -- just three months after a breakdown in Jackson's water system left many in the city of about 150,000 without water to drink, cook, bathe and flush toilets -- it happened again. On Christmas Eve, after the last of Crudup's running water went down the drain, his spirits sunk along with it. Ted Henifin, the manager appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice to help fix the long-troubled water system, said he intends to make substantial progress over a one-year period on a list of projects that will protect the city from future disruptions. As the wait for a reliable system continues, Crudup Jr. said he will encourage Jackson residents to talk through their frustrations with one another. |
| Welfare scandal sharpens contrasts in long-poor Mississippi | |
| In Mississippi, where elected officials have a long history of praising self-sufficiency and condemning federal antipoverty programs, a welfare scandal has exposed how millions of dollars were diverted to the rich and powerful -- including pro athletes -- instead of helping some of the neediest people in the nation. The misuse of welfare money rankles Nsombi Lambright-Haynes, executive director of One Voice, a nonprofit that works to help economically vulnerable communities in Mississippi. "It's shameful and disgusting, especially when we've been a state where we hear discussion every year about poor people not needing resources and poor people being lazy and just needing to get up to work," she said. The state has ranked among the poorest in the U.S. for decades, but only a fraction of its federal welfare money has been going toward direct aid to families. Instead, the Mississippi Department of Human Services allowed well-connected people to fritter away tens of millions of welfare dollars from 2016 to 2019, according to the state auditor and state and federal prosecutors. Former Human Services Director John Davis has pleaded guilty to charges tied to welfare misspending in one of the state's largest public corruption cases. Some of the money that was intended to help low-income families was spent on luxury travel for Davis and on people close to him, drug rehab for a former pro wrestler and boot camp-style gym classes for public officials. In contrast, some welfare recipients say they found little relief but plenty of bureaucratic headaches from collecting modest monthly TANF payments. |
| Mississippi gets $60 million to widen miles of Interstate 10 as Buc-ee's comes to the Coast | |
 | President Joe Biden's bipartisan infrastructure bill includes $60 million for the state of Mississippi to widen Interstate 10 from Diamondhead to Long Beach, according to a press release from Republican U.S. Senator Roger Wicker. The funding will support widening the interstate from four to six lanes, starting just west of Diamondhead to just east of County Farm Road in Harrison County where an existing 6-lane segment ends. "This grant funding will have a lasting effect for the people and businesses all along the Gulf Coast that rely on I-10 every day. Widening I-10 from four to six lanes will help to remove a major bottleneck and reduce delays, while additional improvements along the route will help keep all drivers safer," Wicker said in the release. "Projects like these are the primary reason I have made supporting infrastructure one of my top priorities in Congress." Notably, the project encompasses the Menge Ave. interchange where Bucc-ee's will be building a new location. The funding is one of two projects that are planned that will help alleviate traffic around the site of the mega-convenience store known for driving heavy traffic. The grant will also support intelligent transportation system improvements in the area. According to the release, the project is expected to relieve traffic and provide more jobs for Mississippians. |
| Divided Government Set to Return With Start of 118th Congress | |
 | A new era of divided government dawns this week as the 118th Congress begins, with Republicans looking to deploy their power with a fragile majority in the House and Democrats doing the same in the Senate. The House of Representatives will convene on Tuesday, a date designated by the 20th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution that stipulates Congress should begin each new session at noon on Jan. 3. The opening session is expected to kick off two years of intense political battles over everything from immigration policy to inflation to domestic energy production. With the economy cooling down and the war in Ukraine continuing, the two parties are also expected to spar over the amount of money dedicated to strengthening the U.S. military's position against Russia and China, the best way to stimulate U.S. manufacturing sectors and what role the U.S. government should play in preventing supply-chain problems. As a result, the pace of new legislation is expected to slow compared with what advanced under Democratic President Biden's first two years on issues such as healthcare, climate, infrastructure, veterans' care and gun control. Political analysts say congressional leaders could still find common ground on bipartisan issues such as confronting China's economic dominance and reining in Big Tech, whether by breaking up large companies through antitrust measures, coming up with privacy rules for handling user data, or changing consequences they face for hosting controversial content. |
| McCarthy releases House rules package, still short speaker votes | |
 | A proposed House rules package Republicans released late Sunday includes a few olive branches from Kevin McCarthy to Freedom Caucus members who have yet to commit to supporting him for speaker. The gestures from McCarthy include proposals to reduce to five the number of Republicans it would take to force a vote on ousting the speaker, create a select Judiciary subcommittee to centralize investigations into the executive branch, limit bills to a single subject and make it harder to waive the germaneness rule for amendments. But those proposals did not appear to be enough to win over many members who have opposed making him speaker. McCarthy has yet to secure the 218 votes he will likely need to be elected speaker. The Republican Conference is scheduled to meet Tuesday morning before the 118th Congress convenes at noon. After a recorded quorum call to determine how many members are present, the first order of business is the speaker's election, followed by a vote on the rules package. One of the most significant provisions in the rules package outside of the measures McCarthy included to appease his skeptics is a move to strip House employees' collective bargaining rights. Democrats adopted a resolution in May that granted nearly 9,100 House staffers the ability to form unions, but Republicans put language in the rules saying that resolution shall have no force or effect during the 118th Congress. |
| 2024 contest comes into view with hurdles for both parties | |
| Both political parties are opening the new year confronting critical questions about the people and policies they want to embrace as the next election speeds into view. The challenges are particularly urgent for Republicans, who hoped to enter 2023 with a secure grip on one, if not both, chambers of Congress. Instead, an underwhelming midterm election yielded only a thin House majority that will expose fierce intraparty divisions this week as California Rep. Kevin McCarthy fights for the speakership. And before the end of the month, the Republican National Committee must resolve a divisive leadership battle of its own. A central figure in virtually everything is Donald Trump, the former president who transformed the GOP more than seven years ago and is still fighting to exert his will over Republicans in Congress, the RNC and Republican voters just as the next presidential primary season begins. RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel acknowledged, in an interview, that her party's greatest political challenge ahead may come from within as party leaders navigate Trump's outsized role. "There's so much at stake we can't afford to be divided heading into 2024," McDaniel said, promising that the RNC would be neutral in the looming presidential nomination process. "If we are divided, we will lose." For now, at least, Democrats appear to be far more united than their Republican counterparts. But much depends on Joe Biden and whether the 80-year-old president will follow through on his plan to seek reelection. |
| Inside the Jan. 6 committee's massive new evidence trove | |
 | The Jan. 6 select committee has unloaded a vast database of its underlying evidence -- emails between Trump attorneys, text messages among horrified White House aides and outside advisers, internal communications among security and intelligence officials -- all coming to grips with then-President Donald Trump's last-ditch effort to subvert the 2020 election and its disastrous consequences. The panel posted thousands of pages of evidence late Sunday in a public database that provide the clearest glimpse yet at the well-coordinated effort by some Trump allies to help Trump seize a second term he didn't win. Much of the evidence has never been seen before and, in some cases, adds extraordinary new elements to the case the select committee presented in public -- from voluminous phone records to contemporaneous text messages and emails. Trump lawyers strategized which federal courts would be likeliest to uphold their fringe constitutional theories; Trump White House aides battled to keep unhinged theories from reaching the president's ears; as the Jan. 6 attack unfolded, West Wing aides sent horrified messages about Trump's incendiary tweets and inaction; and after the attack, some Trump allies discussed continued efforts to derail the incoming Biden administration. |
| How Russia's War on Ukraine Is Worsening Global Starvation | |
 | An enduring global food crisis has become one of the farthest-reaching consequences of Russia's war, contributing to widespread starvation, poverty and premature deaths. The United States and allies are struggling to reduce the damage. American officials are organizing efforts to help Ukrainian farmers get food out of their country through rail and road networks that connect to Eastern Europe and on barges traveling up the Danube River. But as deep winter sets in and Russia presses assaults on Ukraine's infrastructure, the crisis is worsening. Food shortages are already being exacerbated by a drought in the Horn of Africa and unusually harsh weather in other parts of the world. The food shortages and high prices are causing intense pain across Africa, Asia and the Americas. U.S. officials are especially worried about Afghanistan and Yemen, which have been ravaged by war. Egypt, Lebanon and other big food-importing nations are finding it difficult to pay their debts and other expenses because costs have surged. Even in wealthy countries like the United States and Britain, soaring inflation driven in part by the war's disruptions has left poorer people without enough to eat. "By attacking Ukraine, the breadbasket of the world, Putin is attacking the world's poor, spiking global hunger when people are already on the brink of famine," said Samantha Power, the administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID. The U.S. government spends about $2 billion per year on global food security, and it started a program called Feed the Future after the last big food crisis, in 2010, that now encompasses 20 countries. |
| Wheat, Soybean, Corn Prices Expected to Have Choppy 2023 | |
| Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent U.S. grain futures soaring early in 2022 before their recent retreat. The new year promises to be another volatile one. Futures for wheat and soybeans reached record highs earlier in 2022, and corn futures notched their highest level in more than a decade. The war stifled supply, and so did dry weather in many crop-growing areas. Now, grain prices have fallen close to where they started 2022. The decline tracks with an overall easing of prices for commodities from natural gas to cotton and lumber, which have slipped in recent months after surging. More interest-rate boosts by the Federal Reserve and other central banks to cool economies -- a process many analysts say could result in at least a modest recession in 2023 -- are expected to keep a lid on demand. For grain prices, the outlook is uncertain, in part because they hinge so much on a war for which no end seems to be in sight. Russia's February invasion jammed up grain exports out of the Black Sea region and led to a standoff between Russia and Western nations over Russia's energy exports, sending ripples through the global economy. China, the world's leading grain consumer, also will affect the outlook for agricultural futures in 2023. The country recently said it would rescind its strict measures to control the spread of Covid-19. |
| Nursing profession facing challenges | |
| The ongoing national nursing shortage is creating challenges not only for hospitals but also nursing schools which are getting more applications than they can handle. Some schools are also facing their own staffing shortages as educators retire or take other jobs. The well documented shortage of nurses stems from several factors, including a growing number of aging people who need medical care, a wave of nurses reaching retirement age and nurses leaving because of the crushing stress they felt working on the front lines during the pandemic. "The pandemic took a toll on the nursing profession, and it opened our eyes to what nursing is really all about -- determination, perseverance and caring for others in any situation," said Dr. Tina Martin, associate dean for administration and a professor of nursing at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Dr. Brandy Larmon, dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Mississippi University for Women, said, "There was a nursing shortage before Covid, but the pandemic definitely exacerbated the existing problem. Mississippi has not and continues to not be immune to this national issue." Over the next 10 years, the nursing profession will continue to see significant growth of 7 to 9 percent annually in openings for registered nurses due to retirements and patient demand increases, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Schools of nursing, however, have limitations to increase enrollment to address workforce demands and turned away almost 92,000 qualified applicants in the U.S. in 2021, Martin said. In Mississippi, that number was 1,183. Reasons include insufficient clinical sites, budget constraints, nursing faculty shortage and nursing faculty salary discrepancy compared to clinical nurses. |
| UMMC researchers join fight against gun and domestic violence | |
| Gun and domestic violence research at the University of Mississippi Medical Center is seeking to better understand the causes of both and find ways to help those scarred by their impact. Two federal grants awarded in September totaling $7.5 million from the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services are funding the research. "Each grant will enhance the other," Dr. Lei Zhang, professor and associate dean in UMMC's School of Nursing, said in a statement. "Gun violence and intimate partner violence are deeply interconnected." Mississippi has the highest firearm mortality rate in the country (28.6 per 100,000 population), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the highest prevalence of domestic violence, based on data from 2009-2015 collected through the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System. One grant will establish the Mississippi Violence Injury Prevention Program at UMMC to address gun violence involving 11 investigators from multiple departments, including emergency medicine, psychiatry and preventative medicine. Zhang said the program represents a mindset change in how gunshot victims are treated. The focus will be more holistic and community based and on prevention. Dr. Matthew Kutcher, an associate professor of surgery, trauma and critical care, said another focus is addressing underlying conditions that lead to violence such as poverty, structural racism, housing insecurity and more. |
| A growing campus: Is there enough affordable housing for UM students? | |
 | In 2022, the University of Mississippi experienced record growth in the freshman class and outlined plans to accommodate that growth, however it remains to be seen whether housing will be adequate for students next year. The university has a residency requirement for all freshman students, and the 2022-2023 freshman class is the biggest in the university's history, totaling 4,480. Ole Miss' enrollment has increased 5.1% since fall semester 2021, passing all other public universities in the state, each of which saw enrollment fall. "Now our university has to manage the growth effectively, and university leaders are evaluating what's needed to do that," Eduardo Prieto, vice chancellor for enrollment management, said. An increase in freshman students decreases the number of beds available for upper-classmen on campus. "If we have an increase in first-year students, we might have to look at more upper-class students to live in the (campus) apartments, Campus Walk and Northgate, and fewer upper-class students in the residential buildings," Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Director of Student Housing John Yaun said. With the growing enrollment, the university is racing to ensure that there is adequate housing for all students. One housing plan includes tearing down Kincannon Hall, which is unoccupied, and building three residential halls in its place. The three halls, designed to have 950 to 1,000 beds for students, would not be ready until fall 2026. The university is also looking into developing a master lease. |
| As applications swell 43%, UT plans competitive smaller first-year class in fall 2023 | |
| The University of Tennessee-Knoxville has never been more popular, or more competitive, for first-year applicants. In the lead-up to the first release of admissions decisions on Tuesday, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions released statistics on the first round of applications for fall 2023, painting a picture of just how rapidly UT's applicant pool has grown in the wake of positive national publicity in fall 2022. The office also announced that next fall's first-year class would be smaller than this year's record freshman class of 6,846 students. Though the acceptance rate in 2022 was already seven percentage points lower than in 2021, it is expected to drop again for the most competitive year of applications in the university's history. UT received 38,483 applications by the early action deadline of Nov. 1, a 43.2% increase representing 11,601 more early action applications than in 2021. According to the Office of Enrollment Management, the university received a total of 36,290 applications in 2022. Of this fall's early action applicants, 25%, or 9,609, were in-state students and 75%, or 28,874, were out-of-state or international students. The increased popularity comes as UT leadership heralds a "university on the rise." The success of the football program, which had its first 10-win season in nearly two decades and defeated Alabama in a home game that drew 11.5 million viewers, brought international attention back to Neyland Stadium and to UT. Chancellor Donde Plowman has said athletics success goes hand-in-hand with campus growth, including growth in research expenditures, student success programming and higher rankings for the university. |
| 'We matter': U. of Tennessee group amplifies Black voices on campus for 50 years | |
 | This January, the Commission for Blacks at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville celebrates its 50th anniversary. Chancellor Archie Dykes initially formed the group in 1973 as the Task Force on Blacks, made up of faculty, staff, and 12 students. "The overall goal, to me, was really for the campus to be welcoming to Black (people)," said Maxine Davis. She served on the Commission and championed student success as the assistant vice chancellor for student life and the first female and African American Dean of Students during her 35-year tenure at UT. It was a critical group formed at a crucial time: the first Black student at UT was Gene Mitchell Gray in 1952, the first Black undergraduate student was Theotis Robinson Jr. in 1961 and the first Black administrator joined UT in the 1970s. The group was the eyes and ears of the Chancellor, providing information on what Black students, faculty and staff were experiencing on campus. Today, that goal is still the same. "I feel like the needs are still the same as far as continuing to ensure the visibility of Black faculty, staff and students on campus, that they have a place where they feel like they matter and belong, that we're still pushing, promoting, implementing, executing and evaluating policies and procedures that impact certain groups," Commission for Blacks chair JaNay' Turner said. |
| Educator Anne Reber retires after 28 years at Texas A&M | |
 | On her final day after 28 years at Texas A&M University, most recently as associate vice president for student affairs, Anne Reber reflected on what her time in education has meant to her. Her simple conclusion is the people made it all worthwhile. "I love the students, and that's what we're there for, but it's the people I worked with and watching them problem solve and meet these challenges head on," Reber said. "It's hard at the time as you're going through it, but when you get to the outcome and the end you're like 'All right, we did good work today.'" Originally from Upstate New York, Reber followed her future husband to Texas in 1983 and began teaching in the Bryan school district. Eventually moving into administration, Reber completed her master's degree in 1991 and left the school district in 1994 to pursue her doctorate full time, which she earned in 1999. "I loved public education and thought I would return, but once I got to A&M, I started working with college students with disabilities, which was my career path: special education," Reber said. Within A&M, she continued to move up in administrative positions until she became dean of students in 2010. In 2016, "associate vice president for student affairs" was added to her title. Every day was different in the role of dean, Reber said, but the focus was always on the students. |
| How the Fate of a 'Racial-Justice Center' Ensnarled Penn State's New President in Controversy | |
 | During her first few months as president of Pennsylvania State University, Neeli Bendapudi began to have doubts about a planned multimillion-dollar Center for Racial Justice that had been envisioned by her predecessor, Eric J. Barron, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in the summer of 2020. Bendapudi's skepticism, honed over a two-month listening tour, essentially boiled down to a belief that a $3.5-million center that would centralize antiracism research and advise the administration on equity-related policies would not address the university's most urgent needs. How Bendapudi arrived at and conveyed her decision to scrap the center, through a series of ill-timed, tense, in-person and virtual meetings with a rolling cast of administrators, faculty, and students, has resulted in widespread confusion, roiling protests, and a ubiquitous belief among faculty and students that she is not earnestly committed to racial justice. Her decision, faculty members said in a petition now signed by 400 people, adds to a "long list of broken promises on issues of racial justice by Penn State." The Chronicle spent several days at University Park, Penn State's largest campus, speaking to administrators, faculty, and students, and poring over emails, campus announcements, and videos of news conferences and town halls to piece together the series of events that left this sprawling system sharply divided over how to fight racism and placed its new president on the defense. |
| U.S. News & World Report to Revamp Parts of Its Law-School Ranking | |
| U.S. News & World Report is revamping some elements of its law-school ranking, capitulating to pressure after deans at more than a dozen top law schools publicly challenged the value of the closely followed list. In a letter sent Monday to deans of the 188 law schools it currently ranks, U.S. News said it would give less weight in its next release to reputational surveys completed by deans, faculty, lawyers and judges and won't take into account per-student expenditures that favor the wealthiest schools. The new ranking also will count graduates with school-funded public-interest legal fellowships or who go on to additional graduate programs the same as they would other employed graduates. U.S. News said its rankings team held meetings with more than 100 deans and other law-school administrators in recent weeks. They embarked on the listening tour after Yale Law School -- perennially ranked at No. 1 -- said it would no longer provide information to help U.S. News compile its list. Harvard Law School followed suit the same day, and by the end of that week the law schools at Georgetown, Columbia, the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford joined in the movement to disengage from the rankings. Ultimately, 12 of the top 14 schools said they wouldn't provide U.S. News with any additional information it might use to run the rankings. Some law schools that said they would continue to share the requested information also offered sharp criticism of the existing system. Robert Morse, U.S. News's chief data strategist, and Stephanie Salmon, senior vice president for data and information strategy, spent much of December in Zoom meetings with scores of deans. |
| Which Universities Spend the Most Money on Research? | |
| Academic institutions spent $89.9 billion on research and development in the 2021 fiscal year, up 4 percent from the year before. Nearly all of the $3.4-billion increase in research spending was funded by the federal government, according to a report on the National Science Foundation's newly released Higher Education Research and Development survey. As in previous years, universities that had at least $1 billion in research and development expenditures in the 2021 fiscal year dominated the top 30 institutions that reported the highest spending totals. No longer in that top group is the University of California at Berkeley. New to the top 30: Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, which moved from 31 to 24 after accounting changes that contributed to a $115-million increase in spending, the report says. Federally supported research and development rose 6.6 percent in the 2021 fiscal year to $49 billion, and now accounts for 55 percent of research funding at all universities. The next largest source of research-and-development funds, 25 percent, came from institutions themselves, for a total of $459 million. That's a 2.1-percent increase from 2020. The foundation collected data for the survey from 910 institutions that award bachelor's degrees or higher and that spent at least $150,000 on research and development in the 2021 fiscal year. The survey is sponsored by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. |
| More money for Pell Grants, research in federal budget | |
 | Congress is sending more than $1.5 billion to colleges and universities thanks to earmarks and pouring millions more into student success grant programs as part of the $1.7 trillion spending package for fiscal year 2023 that lawmakers approved late last month. The bill signed into law by President Biden increases the maximum annual Pell Grant award to $7,395 -- a $500 increase that will begin in the 2023–24 award year. It's the second increase in as many fiscal years and the largest in a decade. Advocates and higher education groups said the $500 bump is significant and will help more students afford a college education. The U.S. Department of Education is receiving nearly $4 billion more in discretionary funds, although the Biden administration had requested $13 billion more. The adopted budget does increase funding for a range of federal higher education programs, including $137 million more for historically underresourced institutions, but it keeps funding flat for the Office of Federal Student Aid. Higher education groups praised the Pell Grant increase and other provisions in the spending bill. However, the Biden administration, advocates and interest groups had hoped to see higher increases across the board. Higher education groups wanted to see additional funding for science programs to support the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which was signed into law in August and called for investments in research and technology. In the end, Congress gave $2.5 billion more to the National Institutes of Health and an additional $1 billion to the National Science Foundation, which will help with implementation of the CHIPS and Science Act. |
| Gunn ushered in budget rule limiting influence of rank-and-file members | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: When the Mississippi Legislature convenes at noon Tuesday, it will mark the final time for House Speaker Philip Gunn to gavel to order a regular session. The 2023 regular legislative session will be the swan song for Gunn's historic tenure as speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives. The Clinton Republican has announced he will not seek reelection for a sixth term in the House in 2023. He will leave office as the first Republican speaker since the 1800s, as the third longest serving speaker in state history and as the guiding force of legislation in 2020 retiring the state flag that incorporated the Confederate battle emblem prominently in its design. He also is one of the leading architects of a legislative rule that arguably gives the leaders of the House and Senate unprecedented power over the budgeting process. The question is whether that rule -- one of the Legislature's most authoritative rules in recent history -- will end with Gunn's retirement. That rule strips away nearly all, if not all, of the power for rank-and-file legislators to have a say in carrying out their most basic function: deciding how to appropriate state funds. |
| Can state count on rosy outlook this time? | |
| Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford writes: The turning of the year is traditionally a time to look ahead. For state government that "look ahead" horizon tends to be pitifully short. Especially when it comes to finances. In 1999, times were good. So good the Legislature revamped the state retirement system (PERS) to spread the wealth to retirees. Not just future retirees. Expanded benefits were backdated to cover existing retirees too. Oops. Twenty-three years later, that generous expansion is costing the state dearly. The PERS board in December jumped the employer contribution rate by five points to 22.4%. It was the fourth such increase since 2011 when the rate was 12%. Each time previously PERS promised the increase would resolve PERS' funding shortfalls. Each did not. So we get the largest jump ever this year. Also, in 1999 state leaders created the Health Care Trust Fund. Annual tobacco lawsuit settlement funds -- forecast to be $4 billion in 25 years -- were to be deposited into the trust fund and remain inviolate. Only investment earnings were to be expended. Oops. It didn't take long for the first violation to occur. "In 2005, legislation was passed to take $240 million from the trust fund to plug a Medicaid deficit," explained Bobby Harrison in a Mississippi Today article. That withdrawal and future ones were supposed to be repaid. Instead, the trust fund was depleted. The Legislature deleted the "inviolate" language from the law in 2013. Times are again good in 2023. Gov. Tate Reeves, House Speaker Philip Gunn, and their allies have looked ahead and believe times are so good the state can afford to fully abolish personal income taxes. The move would wipe out about $2 billion of state revenue a year. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State rallies to win ReliaQuest Bowl, honors Leach | |
| Massimo Biscardi made a 27-yard tiebreaking field goal with four seconds left, Marcus Banks returned a fumble 60 yards for a touchdown on the game's last play and No. 24 Mississippi State rallied to beat Illinois 19-10 on Monday in the ReliaQuest Bowl in the Bulldogs' first game since coach Mike Leach's death. "Obviously, Mike Leach has been leading this program for three years, and he was out there leading us today," said Zach Arnett, who was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach three days after Leach's death. "Emotional game, obviously." Banks' score came on Illinois' fifth lateral following a completed pass after the Fighting Ilini got the ball at their own 29. There was a scrum on the field as the game ended, but order was restored after a couple of minutes. Will Rogers was 29 of 44 yards for 261 yards and one touchdown for Mississippi State (9-4, No. 22 CFP). Simeon Price had 68 rushing yards, including a key 28-yard dash on the go-ahead fourth-quarter drive, on seven attempts. "Football isn't always a pretty game," Rogers said. "I know Coach Leach would probably be a little upset at some of the decisions, but we fought hard and stayed together as a team. He was with us all the way. He's been with me all the way. I really, really miss him." |
| 'A great win for Coach Leach': Mike Leach's impact, legacy felt as Mississippi State beats Illinois in ReliaQuest Bowl | |
| Will Rogers expected a "butt-chewing" as he walked toward Mike Leach on the sideline after the Mississippi State quarterback committed a crucial fumble against Ole Miss in the Nov. 24 Egg Bowl rivalry game. But instead of the tongue-lashing Rogers anticipated, his head coach offered words of encouragement. "Nothing that has happened now matters," Leach reminded the junior signal-caller. "The only thing that matters is the next play. When we get the ball, if we need to go score to win, you're going to do it." Rogers recalled Leach's words Monday, more than a month later, with his coach mentor no longer there to deliver them. In Monday's ReliaQuest Bowl at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium, there was a Leach-shaped hole on the Bulldogs' east sideline and in the hearts of Mississippi State players, coaches and fans. Tough as it was, it couldn't stop the Bulldogs from posting a 19-10 win over Illinois in Tampa. In fact, the loss of Leach served as a motivating factor; prior to the game, MSU players and coach Zach Arnett pledged to play as hard as they could in Leach's honor. |
| Mississippi State honors Mike Leach with pirate flag on helmet | |
| Mississippi State set aside its traditional school logos in order to honor former coach Mike Leach during the ReliaQuest Bowl on Monday against Illinois. The Bulldogs unveiled a special helmet design, which features a pirate flag on the side, on Monday morning. Leach, who was nicknamed The Pirate, died Dec. 12 from a heart condition. He was 61. The Bulldogs ended up beating the Illini 19-10, and Leach remained on their minds afterward. "Obviously, Mike Leach has been leading this program for three years, and he was out there leading us today,'' said Zach Arnett, who was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach three days after Leach's death. "Emotional game, obviously." Many schools competing in bowl games, including some that had no direct connections to Leach, made use of helmet stickers to pay tribute to the coach who helped revolutionize the game by spreading the popularity of the Air Raid offense. As a nod to its former coach, Texas Tech lined up in the Air Raid formation -- four receivers, one tailback and wide splits among the offensive linemen -- at the beginning of its Texas Bowl game against Ole Miss. |
| Mississippi State football assistant gets engaged after ReliaQuest Bowl win | |
| Mississippi State football's thrilling win in the ReliaQuest Bowl ended with a commitment Monday. A commitment to be wed. All because of Mike Leach. After the Bulldogs' 19-10 win over Illinois in Tampa, Florida, Mississippi State running backs coach Jason Washington popped the question on the field to Mary Yeomans, a learning specialist for football and women's basketball on the Mississippi State athletics academic staff. Yeomans said yes to the proposal, and Washington was quick to give credit to Leach, who died Dec. 12 between the end of the regular season and the bowl game. "If it wasn't for Leach, I wouldn't have had the chance to meet her," Washington said. Washington came to MSU in 2020 after Leach hired him from Texas. Yeomans, the granddaughter of former Georgia coach Wally Butts, has been at MSU since 2018. |
| Mike Leach has barstool in his honor hanging at Capt. Tony's in Key West | |
 | Joey Faber, the owner of Capt. Tony's Saloon, one of the most famous landmarks in a town filled with them, knew it was time. The mourning period for Mike Leach, the head coach at Mississippi State and one of Key West's most beloved figures, had entered its next phase. The bar stool bearing Leach's name had been removed from the stage. As had the memorial candle. And the symbolic drink preferred by Leach -- grape vodka and water. It was time to find a spot in the ceiling to hang that stool. Capt. Tony's, a legendary hangout located just feet from another famous Key West landmark, Duval Street, was Leach's favorite spot to tell stories. The 171-year-old building was a morgue, cigar factory and bordello, among other businesses, back in the day. It is where Jimmy Buffett got his start and Hemingway came to drink. It's the site of the original Sloppy Joe's and is famously known for its bar stools stamped with the names of iconic people who regularly occupied them such as Bob Dylan, Ted Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, Al Pacino, Dan Marino and, of course, Mike Leach. Monday, with Mississippi State playing its first game since Leach died at the age of 61 after suffering a heart attack, Capt. Tony's became a place for those to do what Leach did best after walking the half mile from his home to Capt. Tony's. Tell stories. And nothing pleased Leach more than telling stories. Capt. Tony's was filling up by the time Mississippi State kicked off against Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl, a game filled with tributes to Leach, who took over the program in 2020 after eight years at Washington State. At the end, after the Bulldogs' come-from-behind, dramatic 19-10 win, the place erupted. |
| Tennessee basketball vs. Mississippi State: Prediction, scouting report | |
| Tennessee basketball is opening the new year at home. The No. 9 Vols (11-2, 1-0 SEC) host Mississippi State (11-2, 0-1) at Thompson-Boling Arena on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2). Guard Josiah-Jordan James is "doing better" as he works back from knee soreness that has kept him out of eight of 13 games this season. "He is starting to work his way back in," coach Rick Barnes said. "We will see what that leads to." James has not played since Dec. 7 against Eastern Kentucky. He is averaging 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds. James played in the first three games of the season before sitting out four games. He returned for two games before sitting out the past four. Barnes and guard Santiago Vescovi lauded the work of guard Jahmai Mashack defensively at Ole Miss against Rebels guard Matthew Murrell. The Vols held Murrell to five points on 1-for-11 shooting. He was averaging 15.6 points entering Wednesday. Mashack has earned a prominent role because of his defensive abilities and mentality, which he said leads him to want to guard an opposing team's best player. Mississippi State rolled through the start of the season, winning its first 11 games under first-year coach Chris Jans. The Bulldogs topped Marquette 58-55 in the Fort Myers Tipoff for their marquee early season win. "They know how they want to play," Barnes said. "Extremely well coached. Change defenses, play really, really hard switching. Really trying to make you think. The fact of the matter is, they do a terrific job of knowing exactly what they want on the offensive end. And defensively, they do the things that good defensive teams do. They pressure, they'll mix their defenses and they rebound the basketball." |
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