| Thursday, April 17, 2025 |
| The South's No. 1 small town is in Mississippi, survey says. Why it's special | |
 | A Mississippi city topped the list of must-visit locales for travelers in search of small-town charm, according to USA Today. The city of Starkville packs plenty of it, as told by readers who voted it the No. 1 small town to visit in the South, per the outlet's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards list, published April 9. Known as "Mississippi's college town," it was the only Magnolia State municipality to earn a spot on the top 10 list highlighting the region's best cities with populations under 25,000. But what it lacks in size, it makes up for in history and charm, according to USA Today. So what makes it special? "You'll find a thriving arts scene, multiple historic districts, many opportunities for birdwatching, and plenty of great food," editors wrote. "Be sure to check out the Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library, a treasure trove of artifacts and correspondence." Starkville offers visitors a "unique blend of history, college sports, culture, natural beauty, and community spirit," the city's website says. There's a smorgasboard of family-friendly attractions. It's also home to Mississippi State University, where visitors can catch a football game or peruse a collection of more than 1.6 million insect specimens at the entomological museum. |
| Sweet Potato Grows Into the Official Vegetable of Mississippi | |
| The sweet potato has really grown on the State of Mississippi -- literally! The storage root formally becomes the "Official Vegetable of Mississippi" on July 1, after Gov. Tate Reeves signed Senate House Bill 2383 into law this past month. Considered a specialty crop, sweet potatoes have a statewide production value of $82 million annually -- small potatoes compared to yields of soybeans and corn, according to Mississippi State University Agriculture Economist Will Maples. However, Maples said Mississippi is known as a major producer in the U.S. of the fibrous plant. "We are third to North Carolina and California as a domestic producer," Maples says. "Of these big three, we're also third in number of farms with 156, while the other two have 528 and 202, respectively." Most prominently grown in Mississippi is the orange-colored, majestically named 'Beauregard' variety on between 28,000 and 30,000 acres yearly, with the town of Vardaman as the epicenter of production. Known as "The Sweet Potato Capital of the World" to those endeared to the root, the community first grew the plant there around 1915, which thrived in the soil and climate. |
| Mall tax incentive 'giant waste of everyone's time' | |
 | When Hull Property Group struck a deal with the city and the county three years ago, establishing about $3 million in economic incentives for the rehabilitation of the former Leigh Mall property, the deal seemed like a no-brainer. But in a letter sent to the Hull Group on Wednesday and forwarded to Columbus City Council members, Lowndes County supervisors and local media outlets, Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said the deal now "seems like a giant waste of everyone's time." "They are the reported experts with malls all over the southeast," Higgins told The Dispatch on Wednesday afternoon. "If what they signed, they couldn't do, why the hell did they sign it?" Georgia-based Hull Property Group purchased the mall for $3.5 million via online auction in October 2019 and obtained a $3.1 million economic incentive package from the city and county in May 2022 to start renovations. The LINK advised the parties throughout the creation of the deal, following a new structure outlined in the Mississippi Regional Economic Development Act (REDA), Higgins said. Other tax incentive structures wouldn't have applied, he said, since the Hull Group could not provide names or sizes of potential tenants for the mall at that time. |
| GE Aerospace expanding operations in Batesville with $11 million investment | |
| GE Aerospace is expanding manufacturing capacity at its Batesville location with an $11 million investment, according to a Wednesday release from the Mississippi Development Authority. The American aircraft engine supplier plans to use the expansion to add industrial equipment, precision measuring tools, and high-precision tools. It will also add inspection technology, enabling the Batesville site to maintain quality as it increases the production of components used in narrowbody and widebody aircraft engines, military fighter jet, and military helicopter engines. The Mississippi Development Authority is assisting with the project through the Mississippi Flexible Tax Incentive program, along with helping with building improvements and equipment relocation. Accelerate MS, Panola Partnership, Tennessee Valley Authority, and Northwest Mississippi Community College are also playing a role in ensuring the expansion comes to fruition. Combined with other projects underway at GE Aerospace in Batesville, the $11 million expansion is expected to create 100 new jobs to be filled over the next three years. |
| GE Aerospace moving at warp speed in Batesville | |
| GE Aerospace will boost its Batesville Composites Operation with an $11 million investment and the creation of 100 jobs to increase production of its popular jet engine parts. "This latest investment ensures 100 more Mississippians can find rewarding, good-paying work with this global aerospace leader right here at home," said Governor Tate Reeves. "Great things are happening in Mississippi, and this latest win once again shows the world that we have the talent, the resources and the pro-business attitude that make companies like GE Aerospace want to grow here." Batesville employees are trained in team building and advanced manufacturing processes, with assistance from Northwest Mississippi Community College. "Northwest Mississippi Community College is proud to support GE Aerospace's expansion in Batesville," said NMCC president Dr. Michael Heindl. GE Aerospace has teamed with Mississippi State University's (MSU) College of Engineering and its Raspet Flight Research Laboratory to demonstrate the highly technical manufacture of composite components. It's part of GE's investment of $1 billion annually in jet propulsion R&D programs. The Mississippi investment is part of a broader strategy to meet increasing demand for aerospace products and services. |
| Mississippi paying to be in Michelin restaurant guide. Here's how much, and why | |
 | Mississippi and other Southern states will pay to be part of the new Michelin guide to southern dining. Announced earlier this month, the new Michelin Guide American South will encompass six states -- Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, plus the Atlanta area. Anonymous restaurant inspectors are already in southern states hunting for the best food, chefs and restaurants to be awarded a prestigious star in this first guide outside major U.S. cities, the company said. The inaugural issue will be available later this year. Mississippi's total investment will be $375,000 over the next three years. Visit Mississippi, the state's tourism promotion agency, will contribute $150,000 -- or $50,000 each year in 2025, 2026, and 2027. The remaining funds will be paid by local destination marketing organizations throughout the state, said Katie Coats, director of the office of marketing and communications for Visit Mississippi. The money will cover some of the costs incurred in establishing the Michelin Guide in a new location, Coats said, and promote the guide and Mississippi's restaurants to readers worldwide. |
| Mississippi River surge forecast to hit Bonnet Carre Spillway operations trigger | |
 | The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it will begin practice operations on the Bonnet Carre Spillway on Monday (April 21), as the latest forecast from the National Weather Service shows the Mississippi River nearing the threshold for opening. According to the NWS, the river is expected to reach a flow of 1.25 million cubic feet per second -- the benchmark that typically triggers the opening of the spillway to relieve pressure on the levee system and maritime traffic. Corps spokesman Ricky Boyett confirmed Wednesday that engineers have not yet made a final decision. The Corps has already launched Phase One of its flood fight, which includes twice weekly surveys of the levees. The Bonnet Carré Spillway is designed to divert excess river water into Lake Pontchartrain to prevent flooding. While the system plays a critical role in regional flood protection, openings often raise concerns among fishermen, environmentalists, and coastal communities due to the effects of freshwater on marine life and water quality in the lake and the Mississippi Sound. |
| Mississippi named America's most endangered river as flooding grows, Trump calls for killing FEMA | |
| The Mississippi is America's most endangered river, a national environmental group says, with more extreme and devastating flooding occurring as President Donald Trump calls to dismantle the federal agency that aids Iowa and other states along the waterway during disasters. American Rivers said in its 40th annual report identifying endangered waterways, released April 16, that the health of the Mississippi River and the safety of Americans are at risk with Trump's call in January to dismantle the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency has targeted hundreds of FEMA jobs for elimination and Trump signed an executive order in March requiring a 240-day review of FEMA and the country's emergency preparedness. It said protecting the health of the 2,320-mile Mississippi is critical: 20 million people in 10 states rely on it for drinking water; farmers and businesses ship about $400 billion in corn, soybeans, fertilizer, coal and other goods on it annually; and it provides outdoor recreation that supports more than 400,000 jobs and generates $25 billion in spending annually. But decades of changes threaten the river's health. |
| Lt. governor: Mississippi needs to plan for lean budget as President Trump 'rights the ship' | |
 | Mississippians will have to tighten their belts for a while as President Donald Trump tries to "right the ship" and get government spending under control, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said in a recent interview with the Hattiesburg American. "Our president is doing what we asked him to do," Hosemann said. "We needed to clean house and I'm proud of him doing that." "We collect about $7 billion to run the state," Hosemann said. "The federal government gives us about $14 billion." While Hosemann said he supports the progress made on reducing government spending, the cuts will affect Mississippi. Hosemann said he has met with University of Southern Mississippi President Joe Paul to talk about how the Legislature can help the university meet its financial needs. "That's a priority for me," Hosemann said. "The university is the mainstay of the town. It's done really, really well and it's brought young people to town." Hosemann said by providing opportunities for more people to come to Hattiesburg also means more people will be spending money in the Hub City, including the downtown area with its many restaurants and shops. |
| State Defender hopeful pilot program will receive funding in special session | |
| There is little, if any, chatter about a funding measure for a pilot program overseen by the Mississippi Office of State Public Defender to provide better legal representation for indigent defendants in one of Mississippi's worst "legal deserts." The Office's proposed Fiscal Year 2026 budget for a pilot program in the 5th Circuit District, encompassing Attala, Carroll, Choctaw, Grenada, Montgomery, Webster, and Winston counties, is $838,000. The proposed pilot program was being considered to help reduce local public defender caseloads, giving them more time to visit clients, conduct investigations, negotiate cases, and prepare for trial. It would employ four full-time attorneys, an investigator, and an administrative assistant. The counties in the 5th Circuit District are among the most rural in the state. Alleged offenders often struggle to find affordable legal representation in the area, said State Defender Andre de Gruy. "We believe the pilot [program] would give us an opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of active representation in the early stages of cases -- before indictment," de Gruy said, adding research and experience suggest it would lead to lower jail populations, faster dispositions, and better appearance rates. |
| Federal judges rule DeSoto County redistricting effort fails to meet standards of Voting Rights Act | |
| A federal three-judge panel is again ordering the State Board of Election Commissioners to redraw state senate districts in northeast Mississippi to allow fair opportunity for Black voters to elect preferred candidates. The panel ordered the state to redraw 10 Senate voting districts and five House districts in response to a 2022 NAACP lawsuit that alleged voting power for the black voting age population (BVAP) was diluted in Mississippi due to gerrymandered district lines. A primary aim of the redrawn lines was to increase Black-majority districts in a way that more accurately reflects the state's 38% Black population. Before reorganization measures were passed by both the state Senate and House, 29% of Senate districts and 34% of House districts were majority Black. Many Black leaders in the state celebrated the 2024 ruling but were dissatisfied with two of the three voting maps passed by the legislature in the 2025 regular session. "Black voters still have less opportunity to elect candidates of choice to the Senate and House, respectively, as compared to white voters," said ACLU attorney Ari Savitzky, who represents the Mississippi NAACP in the case, one week before the latest order. "The opportunities they create are illusory." |
| Congressman Thompson endorses Horhn in Jackson mayor runoff | |
| Congressman Bennie Thompson (D) publicly endorsed State Senator John Horhn (D) for Jackson Mayor Wednesday afternoon. The endorsement could be yet another blow to incumbent Mayor Chokwe Lumumba's re-election efforts as he was already battling through being indicted for bribery last October. Horhn led the crowded field in the April 1 Democratic Primary, pulling in 48 percent of the vote. Lumumba, who drew 70 percent in the primary four years ago, only mustered 17 percent this cycle. In a statement released Wednesday, Thompson praised Horhn for his ability to face Jackson's many issues. "Our capital city requires a leader at city hall who can work with the federal and state government, which currently isn't happening. Given the many challenges facing Jackson, I am convinced that John Horhn is better suited to handle these challenges," the Congressman said. Lumumba's campaign did not immediately return a message seeking comment. His eight years in office have seen a series of problems arise in Jackson, ranging from the federal takeover of the city's water system to high crime and murder rates to him and two other city officials being indicted on bribery charges. Public disputes between his administration and the Democratic controlled city council have also plagued his tenure. |
| An influential GOP senator is contradicting Trump's team -- and getting away with it | |
 | Sen. Roger Wicker, the high-profile Armed Services Committee chair, has proven a reliable ally to President Donald Trump by shepherding through his most controversial Defense Department choices and unabashedly praising many of his decisions. But even as he provides support, Wicker is quietly emerging as the Pentagon's unlikely foil. And it seems to be working. The Mississippi Republican, in recent months, has swatted down a potential withdrawal of U.S. troops from Europe (others now warn against it); criticized Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for undercutting Ukraine in peace talks (a rare public shaming of a top Trump official); and sought an investigation into officials' use of Signal to discuss military operations in Yemen (the Pentagon's inspector general has since launched a probe). Wicker's actions -- unusual from a top lawmaker in any administration -- are especially rare under Trump, who now wields unfettered influence over the GOP. But the longtime lawmaker has made himself integral to Trump's agenda -- such as seeing through Hegseth's contentious confirmation -- and carefully placed blame on "mid-level officials" for Pentagon policies with which he disagrees. Wicker's delicate dance reflects how traditional GOP defense hawks are learning to navigate the administration's isolationist moves while trying to achieve their own more traditional agendas. The senator argues that he and Trump are in sync, particularly on Pentagon spending. |
| Trump lashes out at Fed chair: 'Powell's termination cannot come fast enough' | |
 | President Donald Trump slammed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, saying his "termination cannot come fast enough!" a day after Powell warned about the impact of Trump's tariffs. "Unemployment is likely to go up as the economy slows, in all likelihood, and inflation is likely to go up as tariffs find their way and some part of those tariffs come to be paid by the public," Powell said April 16, in remarks to the Economic Club of Chicago. Powell suggested the Fed could face a conflict – a "challenging scenario," he called it -between meeting its goals of low inflation, and a sturdy economy and job market. He suggested that all things equal the Fed's priority should be stable prices -- a view that could mean delaying interest rate cuts. He added, however, that the Fed would focus on whichever is the biggest trouble spot, implying the Fed would cut rates if the economy were in or tipping into a recession. Powell noted in his Economic Club speech that the Fed's independence is "a matter of law" and that the central bank makes decisions "based on our best thinking, based on our best analysis" and not "any political pressure." "People can say whatever they want," Powell added. "That's fine. That's not a problem. But we will do what we do strictly without consideration of political or any other extraneous factors." |
| Internal budget document reveals extent of Trump's proposed health cuts | |
 | The Trump administration is seeking to deeply slash budgets for federal health programs, a roughly one-third cut in discretionary spending by the Department of Health and Human Services, according to a preliminary budget document obtained by The Washington Post. The HHS budget draft, known as a "passback," offers the first full look at the health and social service priorities of President Donald Trump's Office of Management and Budget as it prepares to send his 2026 fiscal year budget request to Congress. It shows how the Trump administration plans to reshape the federal health agencies that oversee food and drug safety, manage the nation's response to infectious-disease threats and drive biomedical research. The 64-page document calls not only for cuts, but also a major shuffling and restructuring of health and human service agencies. While Congress often ignores the president's budget request, this has not been a typical transition to a new administration. Trump and his allies in Congress have made clear they want to smash the status quo by drastically reducing the size of the federal government and scrubbing it of programs and research efforts seen as wasteful or contrary to administration priorities. Rural programs formerly under the Health Resources and Services Administration appear to be hard-hit. The rural hospital flexibility grants, state offices of rural health, rural residency development program and at-risk rural hospitals program grants are listed as eliminations under AHA. |
| 'Homegrowns are next': Trump hopes to deport and jail U.S. citizens abroad | |
 | President Trump says his administration is actively exploring a proposal to detain U.S. citizens and send them to prisons in El Salvador. Speaking Monday, minutes before a press briefing alongside El Salvador's president, Nayib Bukele, Trump could be heard embracing the concept. "The homegrowns are next, the homegrowns. You've got to build about five more places," Trump said to Bukele, an apparent reference to prison space that would be needed in El Salvador to house U.S. citizens. El Salvador is already holding hundreds of people in a maximum-security prison. They were flown from the U.S. in recent weeks after being detained for allegedly lacking legal status or having gang affiliations. Critics say many of those individuals were deported with limited or no due process, some in defiance of court orders by U.S. judges. Responding to Trump on Monday, Bukele suggested his country is prepared to incarcerate U.S. citizens. "Yeah, we've got space," El Salvador's president said. The proposal has drawn condemnation from some legal scholars, who said it would represent an unprecedented encroachment on the civil liberties of U.S. citizens. "It's obviously unconstitutional, obviously illegal. There's no authority in any U.S. law to deport U.S. citizens and certainly not to imprison them in a foreign country," said David Bier of the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank based in Washington, D.C. "The problem of course is [Trump] already has illegally deported hundreds of people by just not giving the courts an opportunity to stop him," Bier added. "I think that's the real fear, now that he is going to try to evade judicial review of deportations of U.S. citizens." |
| Trump brushes aside courts' attempts to limit his power | |
| Donald Trump's second presidency has been defined by his conviction to govern alone, with escalating disregard for the courts or Congress. As he approaches his 100th day in office, Trump appears increasingly emboldened to push the boundaries of executive power. He and his top advisers argue he is acting with a broad mandate from American voters as he drives an agenda to remake American society and the global economy, even amid many legal challenges. But as courts challenge Trump's drive for unilateral authority, the White House is increasingly circumventing unfavorable decisions with a tone of defiance. Trump's moves are the culmination of a decades-long conservative movement to expand the power of the executive branch after it was significantly curtailed in the wake of Watergate. But many legal scholars and experts are expressing alarm over the heated clashes between the White House and the courts. Legal experts have warned that Trump's actions threaten a foundational premise of American democracy: that governance is divided among the legislative, executive and judicial branches to prevent any single branch from holding too much power. Stephen Vladeck, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center, said there is arguably more overt hostility between the White House and the courts than at any point in American history. But he said it remains to be seen if the charged rhetoric from the White House translates into Trump disregarding orders from the Supreme Court. "I don't think there's any question we're in a separation of powers crisis," Vladeck said. |
| China Research Spending Outstrips U.S. Despite Faltering Economy | |
 | China continues to prioritize research and development despite the country's slowing economy, with the drive for scientific self-sufficiency superseding economic development alone, according to analysts. Recent figures from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development show China's R&D spending grew at a faster rate in 2023 than it did in both the U.S. and E.U., as well as all OECD member states. Growth in China reached 8.7 percent, compared with 1.7 percent in the U.S. and 1.6 percent in the E.U. According to China's National Bureau of Statistics, spending continued to increase in 2024, exceeding 3.6 trillion yuan ($489.9 billion) and up 8.3 percent year on year. This accounted for 2.68 percent of China's gross domestic product in 2024, up 0.1 percentage point from the previous year. It comes despite China's wider economic slowdown, triggered in part by the collapse of the real estate sector in 2021, which is still struggling to recover. The Asian superpower also now has to contend with the export tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. However, analysts expect that R&D spending will continue to grow in spite of these economic barriers. |
| U.S.-China trade war threatens to upend not only the American economy but the global order | |
 | As President Trump pushes the United States into a trade war with China, the trade-offs are often described as higher consumer prices and inflation versus the potential to bring back manufacturing jobs that Americans lost over the last three decades. But the economic showdown between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is about much more than the price of an iPhone or a pair of Hoka shoes. An extreme, protracted trade war between the two global superpowers brings profound risk that, economists say, could destabilize the world economy, trigger a global recession and plunge millions into poverty. It could also transform the balance of global power in ways that fundamentally undermine U.S. standing in the world. "There is a good chance that this is something that isn't just printed in the newspapers today, but is in history books decades from now," said Jason Furman, professor of the Practice of Economic Policy at Harvard Kennedy School and former chair of then-President Obama's Council of Economic Advisors. "This undermines the core of American power," Furman said. "The United States has had on its side of the ledger a set of alliances that are much deeper, much more enduring than any alliances that China has. This is severely testing that big advantage that the United States has had by infuriating our allies in a way that we may not be able to recover from." Many economists across the political spectrum are skeptical that the chaotic trade war Trump has unleashed will usher in the production of significantly more U.S. goods or jobs. They warn that the president's frenetic rollouts of tariffs -- only to walk some of them back -- could harm the U.S. economy and jeopardize its future as a high tech hub. |
| Fight over Space Command HQ continues with new watchdog report | |
 | The fight over the location of the U.S. Space Command headquarters chugs on after a new report from the Pentagon's watchdog revealed uncertainty behind the scenes in choosing the permanent spot and several major questions left unanswered. In a heavily redacted 54-page report, released Tuesday by the Defense Department's Office of Inspector General (IG), investigators found a break between then-Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall and Army Gen. James Dickinson, who was commander of Space Command at the time, over whether the headquarters should stay at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo., or be moved to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala. The biggest concern over a move, the inspector general found, was that roughly 1,000 civilian employees would not relocate from Colorado to Alabama and that setting up the needed facilities at Redstone Arsenal would take up to four years, risking Space Command's readiness. The document is the latest piece in a basing decision that has stretched back more than four years to when President Trump, late in his first term, chose Alabama over Colorado for the command's headquarters. Lawmakers in both Colorado and Alabama understandably continue to closely follow the saga given that Space Command headquarters has an estimated $1 billion annual economic impact and provides roughly 1,400 jobs. |
| Vatican opens solemn run-up to Easter with recovering Pope Francis on the sidelines | |
 | The Vatican on Thursday opened the most solemn period of Holy Week with a recovering Pope Francis largely on the sidelines, as cardinals were designated to take his place presiding over the most important liturgical services leading up to Easter. The 88-year-old Francis was a no-show at Holy Thursday Mass in St. Peter's Basilica. But there were unconfirmed reports in the Italian media that he hoped to visit Rome's central prison later in the day to keep an appointment he has maintained throughout his 12-year papacy: to commemorate Christ's Last Supper before his crucifixion with the least fortunate. The Vatican declined to confirm or deny the reports, which stressed that any such outing would be private and depend on Francis' condition. But it also seemed plausible, given Francis' emphasis on ministering to prisoners, particularly during the 2025 Holy Year which both opened and will close with special papal events for inmates. Francis has delegated the demanding Holy Week liturgical celebrations to hand-picked cardinals, but the Vatican says the pope himself composed the meditations that will be read aloud by others during the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) procession on Friday night at Rome's Colosseum. It remains to be seen how Francis will handle Easter Sunday's traditional "Urbi et Orbi" (Latin for "to the city and the world") speech and blessing after Mass. |
| Researchers uncertain about future of NIH funds | |
 | University researchers who rely on grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are facing uncertainty while NIH funding cuts are being reviewed by federal courts. The NIH is the primary public health research institution in the United States. While the University of Mississippi's Oxford campus received less than 6% of its research grant funding from the NIH last fiscal year, according to Director of News and Media Relations Jacob Batte, the appeal to District Judge Angel Kelley's block has set departments and researchers who rely on those grants on edge. Joshua Sharp, acting associate dean of research for the School of Pharmacy, explained that for the 2023 fiscal year, 44% of the School of Pharmacy's research expenditures came from the NIH. Indirect costs are funds that help researchers pay for infrastructure and administrative costs, Sharp said. "Our indirect costs rate is around 45%, so if it was cut to 15%, we wouldn't be able to function," Sharp said. "These indirect costs support the infrastructure that we use to perform cutting-edge research, train students as the next generation of scientists and serve the people of Mississippi and the greater community. Their loss would be a huge setback for the research, education and service missions of the University of Mississippi." |
| Ole Miss researchers use machine learning to predict exercise adherence | |
 | Sticking to an exercise routine is a challenge many people face. But a University of Mississippi research team is using machine learning to uncover what keeps individuals committed to their workouts. The team -- Seungbak Lee and Ju-Pil Choe, both doctoral students in physical education, and Minsoo Kang, professor of sport analytics in the Department of Health, Exercise Science and Recreation Management -- hopes to predict whether a person is meeting physical activity guidelines based on their body measurements, demographics and lifestyle. They have examined data from about 30,000 surveys. To quickly sort through such a huge data set, they've turned to machine learning, a way of using computers to identify patterns and make predictions based on the information. The group's results, published in the Nature Portfolio journal Scientific Reports are timely, Kang said. "Physical activity adherence to the guidelines is a public health concern because of its relationship to disease prevention and overall health patterns," he said. "We wanted to use advanced data analytic techniques, like machine learning, to predict this behavior." |
| Oral cancer rates rise in young adults: UMMC | |
 | The University of Mississippi Medical Center's (UMMC) Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery offered free oral cancer screenings on Wednesday at the Jackson Medical Mall. According to health officials, oral cavity and oropharynx cancers are on the rise, especially in adults younger than 45 who have no history of risk factors such as tobacco or alcohol consumption. "These are people who have never used tobacco and are not alcohol users," said Dr. Gina Jefferson, head and neck surgical oncologist at the UMMC. "The rise of oral cavity cancer is primarily among young adults." Cancers of the oral cavity and oropharynx most commonly appear on the tongue, tonsils, soft tissues of the throat, gums and the floor of the mouth. They can also occur on the lips, roof of the mouth and minor salivary glands. The American Dental Association recommends a dental checkup every six months. Dentists and hygienists are often the first to notice abnormal lesions or ulcers that could be signs of early cancer. Symptoms to watch for include non-healing sores in the mouth, sore throat, difficulty or pain while swallowing, coughing up blood, trouble managing saliva, a muffled voice or persistent one-sided ear pain. |
| Club will dedicate Blue Star Memorial marker on USM campus | |
| The Hub City Garden Club and The Garden Clubs of Mississippi, Inc., will dedicate a Blue Star Memorial marker. The event will take place at 10:00 a.m. Friday, April 25 at the Center for Military Veterans, Service Members and Families on The University of Southern Mississippi's Hattiesburg campus. Veterans, civic leaders, garden club members and the public are invited to attend. The Blue Star Memorial Program has been part of the garden club movement for more than 80 years. "Our garden club is proud to have this marker placed at the Center for Military Veterans on the campus of Southern Miss as a recognition of all veterans," said Hub City Garden Club President Jutta White. |
| Jones College teacher awarded 2025 Humanities Teacher of the Year | |
 | The Mississippi Humanities Council honored a Jones College music teacher on Wednesday as its "2025 Humanities Teacher of the Year." This year's recipient for JC was Dr. Victoria Johnson. "We have a wonderful faculty here, and every teacher is absolutely deserving of this award, so to be pointed out for it just means a lot to me," said Johnson. Johnson teaches class piano, applied piano, and music appreciation at the college. She has written several pieces of music and presented at numerous national conferences. Each year, the humanities council awards a teacher at each of the state's junior colleges and universities. "It's a great way for us to recognize those teachers [who] are shaping the next generation from a humanities standpoint," said George Bassi, Mississippi Humanities Council board member. "So, we're talking about everything from the arts to English, writing, all different kinds of levels." The awardee is asked to make a presentation on a humanities-related subject. On Wednesday, Johnson chose to present the "Life and Music of Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel." |
| DOGE targets a community service program in its latest cost-cutting effort | |
| A 30-year-old community service program that sends young adults to work on projects across the U.S. was the latest target of the Trump administration 's campaign to slash government spending. AmeriCorps' National Civilian Community Corps informed volunteers Tuesday that they would exit the program early "due to programmatic circumstances beyond your control," according to an email obtained by The Associated Press. The unsigned memo to corps members said NCCC's "ability to sustain program operations" was impacted by the Trump administration's priorities and President Donald Trump's executive order creating the Department of Government Efficiency. Members would be officially dismissed April 30. AmeriCorps NCCC, which completed its 30th year last year, employs more than 2,000 people ages 18 to 26 participating for a roughly 10-month service term, according to the program's website. The teams of corps members are tasked with working on several projects related to education, housing, urban and rural development, land conservation, and disaster relief, driving from one assignment to another across the country. Funding for AmeriCorps and NCCC has long been scrutinized when Congress talks of budget trims. The federal agency's budget showed NCCC funding amounted to nearly $38 million last fiscal year. |
| 'Our bats really need our help': U. of Tennessee Arboretum supports bat conservation | |
| Experts say that it is time we rethink our relationships with North American bats, as about 90% of their populations have declined within the past 15 years. Erin Cord of Bat Conservation International explained that bats are vital as they support our local ecosystem. She noted that all 16 bat species in Tennessee eat harmful crop pests, which helps keep us safe. Michelle Campanis described what UT has done to help protect local bat species in Knoxville. "The UT Arboretum has installed some bat houses to support habitat for bats," Campanis said. "We are also committed to community education that helps people understand why bats are important." The program is part of the arboretum's larger goal to bring awareness to misunderstood animals like bats, which has seemingly been successful in disseminating information on these animals. "When people understand a plant, animal or ecosystem, they become more invested in protecting it," Campanis said. "This is our second bat program in 2025, and people have been enthusiastic about both, with over 150 people signing up for each program." |
| U. of Missouri researchers are using AI to improve pedestrian safety | |
 | Missouri recorded a historic high for pedestrian deaths in 2024 -- 148 -- a 16% increase from 2023 and the highest ever reported in the state, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation. A new research project at the University of Missouri is looking to make streets safer for everyone. Harnessing the power of light detection and artificial intelligence, researchers at MU's College of Engineering hope to eliminate traffic fatalities among vulnerable road users like pedestrians and bicyclists. The initiative is part of the federal "Vision Zero" program. "We've seen increasing fatalities involving pedestrians and cyclists who share the road with cars," associate professor Yaw Adu-Gyamfi said. "This project helps autonomous and traditional vehicles better understand human behavior in traffic scenarios." Adu-Gyamfi is leading the project alongside graduate student Linlin Zhang. "This isn't just about futuristic technology," Adu-Gyamfi said. "It's about using data to save lives today." |
| Texas A&M names U. of Florida's Hu new College of Architecture dean | |
 | Texas A&M University announced Tuesday the appointment of Lingqian (Ivy) Hu as the next dean of the College of Architecture, effective July 1. Hu is chair of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning and associate director of the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning at the University of Florida's College of Design, Construction and Planning. An expert in the intersection of transportation and land use, Hu's research has significantly advanced the understanding of how planning and policy can promote economic prosperity, environmental sustainability and public health, according to an A&M news release. An author of more than 40 peer-reviewed articles in leading urban planning and transportation journals, Hu has served as principal investigator or co-principal investigator on research projects totaling over $5.2 million in funding, according to the release. |
| Texas law students warn that bill to quash 'terrorist activity' in universities could trample free speech rights | |
| Law school students and civil rights organizations warned senators on Wednesday that a measure that would require universities to report students accused of supporting terrorist activities to federal authorities could turn their schools into immigration enforcement agencies. More than half a dozen students from the University of Texas at Austin testified against Senate Bill 2233. The bill, authored by Sen. Adam Hinojosa, a freshman Republican from Corpus Christi, would require universities and colleges to prohibit their visa-holding students and employees from publicly supporting or persuading others to support terrorist activities related to an ongoing conflict. The bill, which took up a majority of the K-16 Education Committee's time Wednesday morning before they adjourned to the Senate floor, uses the federal government's definition of terrorist activity. The bill does not define what would constitute as supporting terroristic activity. Under SB 2233, the universities would be required to suspend students for one year for the first violation and expel or terminate them for a second violation. Higher education institutions would also be required to report the students' and employees' suspensions, expulsions or terminations to the Department of Homeland Security and no other university or college in the state would be permitted to admit or hire them. Everyone who testified before the committee Wednesday was in opposition to the bill. |
| More oversight of state colleges, rollback of faculty influence clears Texas Senate | |
| An effort to give politically connected appointees more control over state universities -- including over what's taught and how schools are following laws -- advanced in the Texas Senate Tuesday. The Republican-priority bill would give governor-appointed regents more power to determine which courses are offered and regulate what's included in lessons, such as monitoring what students learn about history and race. A new ombudsman's office, appointed by the governor, would investigate concerns at state schools, such as allegations that they are getting around the state's DEI ban. The role of faculty senates would be significantly decreased under the bill. Professors have called the bill an attack on faculty governance and academic freedom. They worry placing curriculum decisions in the hands of politically-connected governing boards would threaten their ability to teach controversial topics, as well as students' freedom to study certain subjects. On the Senate floor, Democrat lawmakers said they worried professors would avoid topics about race and equity under the increased oversight. Sen. Molly Cook, D-Houston, described the regents' power to eliminate courses as "censorship." |
| Antisemitism bill, bill to eliminate DEI in Oklahoma higher education advance out of committee | |
| Two bills impacting higher education in Oklahoma advanced out of the House Education Oversight Committee on Wednesday morning. Senate Bill 796 is an effort to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, efforts on public college and university campuses in Oklahoma. If this law were to pass, universities could not mandate any person to disclose their pronouns nor could they require DEI statements on applications or DEI-related trainings and education. "Are we taking away a tool universities have used to try to meet the needs of every student who comes in their doors," State Rep. John Waldron, D-Tulsa, asked. "I don't believe so because what we will still have is the opportunity to learn the history, but we won't continue to use taxpayer resources to promote a potential philosophy," State Rep. Denise Crosswhite Hader, R-Piedmont, said. Another bill, Senate Bill 942, takes a stance against antisemitism in public schools and higher education by requiring the Oklahoma State Department of Education to designate a Title VI coordinator to monitor antisemitic discrimination and investigate complaints. |
| Colleges use this federal safety guidance for study abroad. Now it's gone. | |
 | The Trump administration's changes to the U.S. Department of State travel and security guidance, including the deletion of information on safety concerns based on race, gender, and sexual identity, have alarmed colleges that rely on the reports for study-abroad programs. The Overseas Security Advisory Council, or OSAC, a public-private partnership within the State Department that provides risk assessment and best practices to business, academic, and other American organizations abroad, took down country-specific security reports soon after President Trump's inauguration, according to global health and safety directors for colleges and education-abroad program providers. (They asked that The Chronicle not publish their names or institutions because of worries about the repercussions of speaking out.) When the reports were reposted, advice for women and LGBT travelers had been removed, along with guidance for travelers with disabilities and those from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. Websites across the federal government have eliminated references to diversity, equity, and inclusion in response to presidential orders. For example, an earlier version of a country report for Jordan included seven paragraphs of information for female travelers, advising that visitors to the Middle Eastern country "should be mindful of cultural differences; some Jordanians may see seemingly innocuous behavior such as riding in the front seat of a taxi or even polite conversation with the opposite sex as forward and/or inviting." |
| Many HBCUs need government funding, but some are preparing for a future without it | |
 | Colleges across the country are facing battles with the federal government over funding, but similar cuts and the potential elimination of the Education Department may be existential for historically Black colleges and universities, according to at least six college administrators and leaders who spoke with NBC News. Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University's (FAMU) college of pharmacy lost a $16.3 million federal grant in late March, as the Trump administration has threatened cuts at American colleges over diversity, equity and inclusion on campus. The moves are causing several Black colleges to consider what their budgets may look like with less or no federal funding. "We're at this position where we realize that our ancestors did not rely on federal money in order to get the work done," said Fatima Brunson, an assistant professor for education at Spelman College, a private women's HBCU in Atlanta with about 2,600 students. Black colleges contribute roughly $15 billion to their local economies in addition to tens of thousands of jobs, according to the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. |
| Can Universities Still Diversify Faculty Hiring Under Trump? | |
| Before Donald Trump retook office, advocates of a more demographically diverse U.S. professoriate were already criticizing existing hiring efforts as inadequate. One late-2022 paper in Nature Human Behaviour noted that, at recent rates, "higher education will never achieve demographic parity among tenure-track faculty." One example of the disparity: As of November 2023, only 8 percent of U.S. assistant professors were Black, according to the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources. That's significantly less than Black representation in the U.S. population, currently estimated by the Census to be 13.7 percent. And the CUPA-HR data showed that the Black share of tenure-track and tenured professors decreases as rank increases -- only 5 percent of associate professors and 3.6 percent of full professors were Black. Efforts that institutions have made to racially diversify their faculties drew political backlash well before Trump regained the White House, with activists, organizations and some faculty criticizing university hiring practices and state legislatures passing laws banning affirmative action and/or diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The goal of a more representative faculty slipped further out of reach starting on Inauguration Day, when Trump issued executive orders targeting DEI, including what he dubbed "illegal DEI discrimination." |
| 'None of these goals are illegal': Universities struggle to respond to funding threats | |
| Public universities are quickly backtracking on decades of diversity initiatives to avoid the ire of the Trump administration and protect billions in federal funding -- even though there's little evidence those moves will shield them. President Donald Trump is seeking to punish universities that allowed pro-Palestinian student encampment protests and touted efforts to attract a more diverse student body. He's launched dozens of investigations led by the Justice and Education departments and has frozen billions in federal funding to several schools. In response, many flagship universities -- which are often the largest and best-resourced public institutions in their states -- have shuttered their campus diversity offices or restructured them to avoid drawing attention. More than 30 universities have changed how their diversity programs or offices operate since 2021, when opposition to those efforts began percolating across the country, according to a POLITICO analysis of the 50 flagship schools nationwide. Fourteen have closed their diversity offices entirely, while another 15 schools renamed or restructured their programs. |
| Trump Administration Asks IRS to Start Process to Revoke Harvard's Tax-Exempt Status | |
 | The Trump administration has requested that the Internal Revenue Service start the process of revoking Harvard University's tax-exempt status, according to people familiar with the matter. Officials at the Treasury Department asked the IRS's acting chief legal counsel, Andrew De Mello, to move ahead with a plan to revoke Harvard's key status, which lets donors get tax deductions for contributions and keeps the university from paying taxes on any net earnings. Harvard is exempt from federal income tax as it operates as a 501(c)(3) educational institution. The move would be an extraordinary step for the government to take against a major university, akin to a long IRS battle with Bob Jones University over its racial policies. Revocations of tax-exempt status typically happen only after a detailed IRS audit, and the process would likely lead Harvard to contest any IRS revocation in court. The tax code prohibits the president and other senior officials from directly or indirectly requesting certain investigations of particular taxpayers. "I don't see how it's kosher," said Ellen Aprill, a retired professor at Loyola Marymount University Law School. "There's criminal penalties, possibly a fine or prison," she added. The financial implications for Harvard, should the government move ahead, would be devastating, said Robert Kelchen, head of the department of educational leadership and policy studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. |
| Donald Trump plans to target elite university endowments over investments in China and ESG | |
| The next phase of the Trump administration's pressure campaign on elite universities will focus on their financial investments, particularly in areas disfavored by the White House like clean energy and China, people familiar with the plans said. The White House's war on top universities, which it accuses of antisemitism and fostering progressive ideology, began two weeks ago with frozen federal funding, and escalated Wednesday to a threat to revoke the nonprofit status of Harvard University and others, a move first reported by CNN. The new acting director of the IRS has been preparing internally to challenge the tax-exempt status enjoyed by universities, even those with huge endowments -- Harvard's is $53 billion, Princeton's is $34 billion -- that operate more like hedge funds than charities. A third phase would put university endowments themselves under the microscope. White House officials plan to examine investments in China and ESG-related stances inside these investment shops, the people said. Congress is also examining ways to tax endowment profits, some of the people said. Elite universities' endowments are huge and notoriously secretive. Research from Future Union, a bipartisan think tank with a hawkish national-security bent, has tracked hundreds of millions of dollars from university endowments, including Princeton's and Stanford's, into Chinese funds or US funds that invest in China, but the actual number is likely far larger, said Future Union's executive director, Andrew King. |
| Science caught in crossfire of Trump's fight with universities | |
| Harvard scientist Dr. Donald Ingber, who works where medicine and engineering meet, saw federal funding for some of his projects frozen this week as his university clashed with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. While Trump and his advisers portray the freezes as a temporary measure employed to force Harvard to make policy changes and address antisemitism on campus, Ingber and other scientists see long-term negative impacts on a tradition of partnerships between the government and university researchers dating back to World War II that made the U.S. the most technologically powerful country on earth. Scientists say the damage is already aiding competitive rivals like China. "We're killing the Golden Goose of innovation that has let America be the scientific leader in the world," said Ingber, the founding director of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. "This is destroying our competitiveness. He has seen two government research contracts worth over $20 million halted since the Trump administration announced a $2.3 billion funding freeze against Harvard this week. One focused on assessing and developing drugs to combat radiation damage in humans. The work can be the basis for drugs to help cancer patients cope with the side effects of radiation therapy, and it could be used to protect soldiers and civilians alike in the case of nuclear war or during a nuclear plant explosion. |
| NSF halts grant awards while staff do second review | |
| The National Science Foundation (NSF) has put a cork in its grantmaking pipeline after billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) set up shop at the agency this week. Effective Wednesday, sources tell Science, NSF's division of grants and awards is returning all grant proposals previously approved for funding and awaiting final signoff to the program officers who oversaw the initial review. In the meantime, according to those sources, NSF will not make any new awards. The NSF staffers, each of whom oversees a portfolio of grants in their field of expertise, have been asked to determine whether the project can be "mitigated" to avoid running afoul of any presidential directive. Those executive orders prohibit federal agencies from funding research on a range of topics deemed to be discriminatory or at odds with the priorities of President Donald Trump's administration, including research on fostering diversity in the scientific workforce and combating climate change. "There is a lot of confusion among the staff," says one program officer who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak for the $9 billion agency. In 2023, NSF reviewed 38,340 competitive proposals and made 11,056 awards. One NSF-funded researcher who also requested anonymity confirmed today that their pending grant proposal is undergoing what they were told is a "secondary review" after it received a green light from both the program officer and their boss. |
SPORTS
| Football: Everything You Need To Know: 2025 Maroon & White Spring Game | |
| Mississippi State fans will get their first look at the 2025 football team Saturday as the Bulldogs take the field for the annual Maroon & White Spring Game at Davis Wade Stadium. Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. CT, with gates opening at 11 a.m. Admission is free, and all fans are encouraged to attend as the Bulldogs wrap up spring practice with a live scrimmage in front of their home crowd. Coach Jeff Lebby and the program are also excited to welcome many Bulldog letterwinners back to Starkville, with several expected to be in attendance throughout the day. The game is scheduled to last one hour and will feature a standard scoring system. The coaching staff and rosters will be split Maroon vs. White, though rosters and personnel groupings are not reflective of a formal depth chart. The format allows for balanced reps across positions and is not intended to designate starters or rankings. While the spring game will not be televised, fans can still follow the action live through the Bulldog Sports Network radio broadcast, available on select affiliates and streaming at HailState.com. Coverage begins at 11:30 a.m. This aligns with the rest of the SEC, where only one school is airing its spring game on TV. Fans attending the spring game are also encouraged to support the Diamond Dawgs, who will host the Florida Gators for a key SEC baseball series this weekend. |
| Mississippi State football spring game: Top three things to watch | |
| More college football teams are opting out of hosting traditional spring games, but Mississippi State isn't. "Our guys need to play," second-year coach Jeff Lebby said at the start of MSU's spring practices. "We've got such a new roster and different roster. There's been so much turnover. Our guys need to be in competitive situations and go play and be put in positions to make the play or guys not make the play. We need to be able to evaluate that for 15 true practices. The more game-type situations I think we can be in, the better for us." Kickoff is scheduled for noon on April 19 at Davis Wade Stadium. Mississippi State's running backs appear to be a strength of the team. Leading rusher Davon Booth is back and so is second-leading rusher Johnnie Daniels. MSU also added South Alabama transfer Fluff Bothwell, who was an All-Sun Belt second team selection as a freshman last season. Seth Davis is returning after missing all of 2024 with an injury, and MSU also has underclassmen Xavier Gayten and Kolin Wilson. |
| Canon Boone sees competition heat up in spring for Bulldogs | |
| A breakthrough appeared to be coming for Canon Boone in the middle of last season. The Texas native had worked his way up the ladder across his first three and a half seasons and saw it paying off as he was splitting reps on the interior of the offensive line. After becoming a regular in SEC play, Boone would go down with a knee injury against Arkansas and his season came to an end. It was a tough outcome for Boone, but he didn't lose hope. The offseason has been about rehabbing with hard work and he's gotten back into the fight this spring. "I feel like I'm doing pretty good. I had that injury last year that cut me short, but coming into spring I'm getting better and better each day," Boone said. "I was focusing on how my body felt every day and adapting and adjust and getting my body right to get back on the field." |
| Women's Golf: Bulldogs Advance To Match Play At SEC Women's Golf Championship | |
| The Mississippi State women's golf squad left nothing in doubt on Wednesday, as they finished the stroke play portion of the SEC Championship in fifth place. The Bulldogs, along with the rest of the top eight, will advance to the match play portion of the tournament. The Bulldogs entered the day one stroke above the projected cut line of 8-over par. The team finished with the low round of the day at 6-under par and climbed from as low as T10 back to fifth. Chiara Horder and Izzy Pellot were a huge part of why State was able to make the jump back on top of the cut line and earn the best round of the day. The duo of Horder and Pellot both finished with 3-under rounds, which was the best round of both golfers throughout the three rounds. After starting her day with a pair of bogeys through six holes, Horder finished her round six birdie, five of those coming in her last seven holes of the day. The score tied Horder's best round in relation to par during her two seasons as a Bulldog. The Bulldogs will enter match play as the fifth seed after finishing fifth in stroke play. They will match up with the fourth-seeded Ole Miss Rebels. The winner of the match between Mississippi State and Ole Miss will advance to the semifinal round, which can be streamed live on SECN+. The winners of the semifinals will advance to the championship match on Friday, which will broadcast live on the SEC Network. |
| Jackson State After Deion: Less Revenue, More Subsidies | |
| When Deion Sanders left Jackson State for Colorado at the end of the 2022-23 football season, JSU athletic director Ashley Robinson said the coach had elevated the football program to "unprecedented heights." In the year after Sanders' departure, the school leaned on subsidies to stay at those heights, despite a notable drop in revenue. In fiscal 2023, Sanders' last season with the Tigers, the Jackson State athletic department reported $5.2 million in student fees and direct institutional support, according to revenue and expense disclosures submitted annually to the NCAA. Those subsidies jumped to $8.5 million in fiscal 2024. The increase offset a drop in revenue, much of which was likely related to the departure of Sanders, whose celebrity status and headline recruits made Jackson State a rare FCS football program to draw national attention. In the Tigers' first year without Sanders, football ticket revenue fell from $3.2 million to $2 million. Department revenue from programs, parking and concessions fell from $415,000 to $128,000. Despite that hit and what were arguably predictable revenue declines, the JSU football spending rose by 5% in the first fiscal year following Sanders' departure---from $14.1 million to $14.8 million. The added costs were largely spread across the balance sheet, although Sanders' replacement, T.C. Taylor, was initially paid less than his predecessor. The university's interim director of communications did not respond to a request for comment, and, through an athletics spokesperson, Robinson declined to participate in an interview, citing a busy schedule. |
| Lee Corso retiring from ESPN 'College Gameday': When is final headgear pick? | |
| Lee Corso is hanging up his headgear. The legendary former college football coach and ESPN "College Gameday" fixture for the past five decades announced Wednesday that his final appearance on the show would be during the Week 1 episode of the 2025 college football season. ESPN has billed it as Corso's final headgear pick, a nod to his signature closing move on "College Gameday" when he dons mascot headgear to signal his pick for the game at the site in which the show is being broadcast from that week. ESPN said a location for Corso's final "College Gameday," scheduled for Saturday, August 30, will be determined at a later date. ESPN will also present special programming to honor Corso in the days leading up to his last show. Corso, who turns 90 in August, debuted on ESPN's college football pregame show in 1987. His first headgear pick -- Ohio State's Brutus Buckeye in Columbus, Ohio -- happened on Oct. 5, 1996. Corso joined ESPN following a 28-year coaching career at the college and professional levels, including 17 seasons as a head coach at Louisville (1969-72), Indiana (1973-82), Northern Illinois (1984) and with the USFL's Orlando Renegades (1985). He is the only personality from the original "College Gameday" cast still with the show. |
| NCAA approves rule changes to combat players faking injurie | |
| In an effort to curtail players faking injuries, a concern that has permeated throughout college football for years, the NCAA announced Thursday that its Playing Rules Oversight Panel has approved changes to the injury timeout rules starting this fall. Under the new rule approved Wednesday, if medical personnel enter the field to evaluate an injured player after the ball is spotted by the officiating crew for the next play, that player's team will be charged a timeout. If the team doesn't have any timeouts remaining, a five-yard delay-of-game penalty will be assessed. The proposal to adjust the injury timeout rule resulted from teams faking injuries to stop their opponents' momentum or avoid using an allotted timeout. The rule change for next season will provide an in-game way to curtail the faking of injuries because "Football Rules Committee members think these actions negatively affect the overall perception of the game," according to the NCAA's release. The panel on Wednesday also approved a rule change regarding overtime timeouts. If a game reaches a third overtime, each team will have one timeout beginning with the third overtime until somebody wins. Previously, each team had one timeout for each overtime period. At the start of the third overtime, teams alternate running two-point plays until there's a winner. The intent is to keep the action moving once a game reaches the third overtime. |
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