| Monday, May 13, 2019 |
| Nebraska to Noxubee: Mississippi State welcomes latest artist-in-residence | |
 | A young creative from Nebraska is bringing his talents to the Magnolia State as Mississippi State's newest artist-in-residence. On the 48,000 acres of the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge, Jake Hebbert is spending nearly two weeks exploring his passion for sculpture and painting. On Thursday, Hebbert led a free oil painting demonstration at the new Idea Shop in downtown Starkville. The annual artist-in-residence program is a collaborative effort of MSU's Department of Art, the Refuge and its Friends of Noxubee Refuge support organization, as well as the Starkville Area Arts Council. Lori Neuenfeldt, MSU art instructor and gallery director, said the program plays an integral role in promoting the creative process for innovative visual, performance and literary artists. |
| Starkville weighing regulations for Airbnb properties | |
| Julie Baca, who lives in Oktibbeha Gardens, wasn't very familiar with Airbnb. That changed a few months ago, when the owners of a nearby house began using the online service to regularly rent it out to visitors. Baca, speaking to the Starkville Board of Aldermen on Tuesday, said roughly 17 guests have stayed at her neighbors' home in a six-week period. This concerns her about the neighborhood's safety, she said, as well as noise problems with so many people coming and going. "No one would call that a neighbor," Baca said. Starkville, with its proximity to Mississippi State University and its athletics programs, is a popular destination on Airbnb. There are more than 100 properties in the city limits listed for rent on the website -- compared, for example, to just 15 in nearby Columbus. A press release from Airbnb said property owners registered with the site hosted more than 1,700 guests in the city of Starkville during MSU's 2018 football season, generating nearly $300,000 in supplemental income for owners. |
| Starkville officials pitch 1-percent tax at forum | |
| Local leaders made their cases for a new 1-percent tourism tax to support Starkville's parks and recreation system -- including the construction of a new $20 million-plus recreation facility with tournament-ready fields at Cornerstone Park -- at a Thursday night forum. The forum, hosted by the Starkville Daily News, focused on the tax ahead of an approaching May 30 referendum. The city is looking to add 1 percent to its restaurant and hotel/motel sales taxes, revenue from which would support Cornerstone Park's construction and improvements at Starkville's existing parks. Cornerstone Park would be built near the southwest intersection of Highways 12 and 25 in west Starkville. In order to pass, the tax must garner voter approval of at least 60 percent. If passed, it would raise the city's total restaurant and hotel/motel sales tax to 3 percent. |
| Oktibbeha sheriff's race nets $6K-plus in fundraising | |
| Two candidates in the Oktibbeha County sheriff's race have raised more than $6,600 in campaign funding, according to campaign financing reports submitted to the circuit clerk's office by Friday's filing deadline. John Rice has outraised and outspent incumbent Steve Gladney, according to the reports. Rice, a deputy who has worked with OCSO since 2013, reported $3,513.23 in campaign contributions and $3,472.46 in expenses. Rice's itemized contributions, which identify donations of more than $200, are from himself, Jack Walters and Dan Camp. His finance forms, which appear to have been filled out using an online form, cut off the name of one donor, who is listed as a self-employed engineer from Columbus. Gladney reported raising $3,100 and spending $2,934 on his campaign. His filing lists only one itemized contribution -- a donation from Dixie H. McMinn. Brandon Gann, a former Starkville Police Department officer who is also running for sheriff as a Democrat, did not file a report by Friday's deadline. |
| Lauderdale County's changing population: Some leave, while others stay or return | |
 | Amanda Cook, an assistant professor of criminology and sociology at Mississippi State University-Meridian, has studied broader trends of crime in Meridian since 2015. "If you ask people on the street, or even in a college classroom, how many people were murdered in Meridian last year, they always guess a number much higher than what occurred in reality. When you tell them the actual number, they quickly follow with, 'That can't be right,' or 'I don't believe it,'" Cook said via email during the university's finals week. "We are convinced that we are living and working in a dangerous place, and we gravitate to media releases that claim to offer "evidence" of that dangerousness." U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, who announced a project to combat crime in Meridian in February, said he would use Cook's data when implementing crime prevention measures. Cook, at the February announcement, said she would work with departments to help them analyze their data and trends. |
| Eagle Lake residents race clock to fight rising waters, save homes from catastrophic flood | |
 | A red Case IH tractor sits in two feet of standing water on Bonelli Circle near two homes that are just inches from the floodwater's edge. Billy Whitten, a 72-year-old farmer who owns a farm several miles away in Valley Park and a weekend home a mile or so downhill from the tractor, borrowed a neighbor's water pump that attaches to the back of the tractor. The pump, connected to several dozen yards of pipe, pulls the water from the flooded area and deposits it into the lake two blocks away. Whitten is one of a couple dozen homeowners at Eagle Lake who, with limited assistance from government agencies, have taken matters into their own hands to limit the effects of the worst flood here since 1973. Eagle Lake, an unincorporated community about 15 miles northwest of Vicksburg, is built on an oxbow off the Mississippi River. The rising floodwaters threaten about 400 full-time residents and close to 700 homes, ranging from single-wide trailers to million-dollar lake houses. |
| In 2019 governor's race, Reeves and Hood flex large fundraising totals as Waller catapults into the fold | |
| Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood outraised their respective primary opponents in the first four months of 2019, boosting their candidacies going into the August primary and fueling speculation of a formidable November general election bout. Reeves, the second-term lieutenant governor who has been endorsed by Gov. Phil Bryant and other GOP officials, raised $1 million between Jan. 1 and April 30, giving himself $6.7 million in cash to spend moving forward. Hood, the fourth-term attorney general who observers consider the Democratic Party's best shot at the Governor's Mansion since 2003, raised $755,000 in the first four months of this year, giving himself $1.2 million cash on hand. Bill Waller Jr., the former chief justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court who is running in the Republican primary, raised $583,000 in just eight weeks of fundraising since publicly announcing his bid. Of that figure, his campaign spent $69,000, giving him $513,000 cash on hand. |
| Hosemann enters summer with strong war chest for lieutenant governor; Hughes not deterred | |
| Republican Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann has $2.7 million in his war chest as the summer campaigning season nears in his quest to win the office of lieutenant governor. Hosemann's Democratic opponent, state Rep. Jay Hughes of Oxford, has $414,777 in campaign reserves. But Hughes does not seem worried about the differential. The first term state legislator already has loaned close to $1 million to his campaign -- this year and through 2018 -- and Hughes said he is willing to contribute more to his underdog effort to become the first Democrat to win the office of lieutenant governor since 1999. "Whatever it takes to win," he said, adding he is willing to spend the money because investing in the state is the best investment he could make. Friday was the deadline for state and local candidates seeking office this year to file campaign finance reports with the Secretary of State's office for the first four months of 2019. |
| More 'Heartbeat' Abortion Bans Advancing in South, Midwest | |
 | If a new Mississippi law survives a court challenge, it will be nearly impossible for most pregnant women to get an abortion there. Or, potentially, in neighboring Louisiana. Or Alabama. Or Georgia. The Louisiana legislature is halfway toward passing a law -- like the ones enacted in Mississippi and Georgia -- that will ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, about six weeks into a pregnancy and before many women know they're pregnant. Alabama is on the cusp of approving an even more restrictive bill. State governments are on a course to virtually eliminate abortion access in large chunks of the Deep South and Midwest. Ohio and Kentucky also have passed heartbeat laws; Missouri's Republican-controlled legislature is considering one. Their hope is that a more conservative U.S. Supreme Court will approve, spelling the end of the constitutional right to abortion. |
| Trump Administration Ratchets Up Tariffs, So Far Without Retaliation From China | |
 | The Trump administration imposed new higher tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods on Friday morning after trade talks failed to yield a deal. But to the surprise of many, China has yet to retaliate with new tariffs of its own. Larry Kudlow, Trump's top economic adviser said on Sunday that he is among those expecting a reaction from China. But so far "the expected countermeasures haven't yet materialized," Kudlow said on Fox News Sunday. "I reckon they will. We'll see what they come up with." President Trump had struck a genial tone in tweets on Friday, calling the talks "candid and constructive." But he struck a very different note Saturday, when he came out swinging at a number of targets. Kudlow was considerably more measured on Sunday. He emphasized the talks' ongoing nature, and discouraged the term "trade war," saying that the tariffs were simply part of the negotiations. |
| Five big Supreme Court decisions to watch | |
 | The Supreme Court is set to go back into session on Monday to begin issuing some of its biggest decisions of the year. From high-stakes rulings for the Trump administration to revisiting battles over the separation of church and state, here are five big decisions to watch for. |
| The W announces free tuition program for Mississippi National Guard | |
| Earning the 2019-2020 Military Friendly Schools Designation, Mississippi University for Women announced The W Free Tuition Program Tuesday, furthering its support of service members. The cooperative agreement between The W and the Mississippi National Guard will ensure free tuition to participants enrolled full time at the university. The opportunity also extends to full- time Army members. The memorandum of understanding states the National Guard "seeks opportunities to improve our men and women's ability to solve complex problems at home and abroad. Higher education is a critical piece of that formula. We work diligently to educate service members on the benefits of a college education." W President Nora Miller and Maj. Gen. Janson D. "Durr" Boyles, Mississippi's adjutant general, were present at the ceremony held on The W's campus. |
| CAFB commander encourages MUW grads to grow | |
 | Samantha Weeks, commander of the 14th Flying Training Wing at Columbus Air Force Base, addressed graduates Saturday at Mississippi University for Women's commencement ceremony. Her charge to graduates: be bold and grow. Approximately 430 students applied for May graduation. Conferring of degrees for participants of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences was held at 10 a.m., and the conferring of degrees for students of the College of Arts, Sciences and Education and the College of Business and Professional Studies was held at 2 p.m. in Rent Auditorium, Whitfield Hall. Col. Weeks congratulated the graduates for their accomplishments and the inspiration they have provided to herself, the university and the Columbus community. Noting that she and the graduates had many things in common, Col. Weeks pointed out that they both belong to a long blue line and were motivated by professors, counselors, family and friends. |
| Retired Maj. Gen. Augustus Collins challenges UM Graduates to 'be bold' | |
| Retired Maj. Gen. Augustus Leon Collins told University of Mississippi graduates on Saturday to focus on the things that define them and to "be proud, be bold, be open-minded, be determined and be wise," as they wrap up their journeys through college and into the professional world. Collins, former commanding general of the Mississippi National Guard and president of the Ole Miss Alumni Association, encouraged the approximately 12,000 people in The Pavilion at Ole Miss for the university's 166th Commencement to be proud of their achievements, be bold in their pursuits, be open-minded to new challenges life throws at them, be determined to give a little bit extra to achieve greatness and be wise about what is important in life. Finally, he urged graduates to be benevolent, give back and serve as worthy ambassadors for the university. |
| Next Generation Manufacturing Challenge going on at MCC | |
 | The Next Generation Manufacturing Challenge has set up shop at Meridian Community College this weekend. The project sets out to address the number one crisis facing the U.S. manufacturing industry, and that's a critical shortage of skilled workers. The challenge is a series of competitions in which teams, comprised of a mentor and students, compete against each other in five-axis machining and welding skills. "Beyond the individual career path, the sound of that machine tool that you hear in the background, that is an economic freedom for the individual, an economic opportunity for the region and it's the sound of national security for our country," said Adele Ratcliff with the Department of Defense. |
| 'The best 11 years of my life,' U. of South Carolina's Harris Pastides gives last graduation speech | |
 | For 11 years, University of South Carolina President Harris Pastides has stood before more than hundreds of thousands of soon-to-be Gamecock alumni. Friday and Saturday, Pastides stood inside Colonial Life Arena, clad in a garnet and black robe addressing thousands of USC students for his last graduation as president. "This is the hardest commencement address I ever had to write," Pastides said. "These have been the best 11 years of my life." Pastides' farewell commencement speech focused on the theme of moving on. "You've made me not only a better president, but a better person," Pastides said. "Finally moving on is hard. It's hard for you and it's hard for me." At the conclusion of his Friday afternoon and Saturday morning speeches, the crowds gave him standing ovations. This spring, USC graduated 8,075 students from all eight of its campuses, 6,378 of which graduated from the school's main campus, USC spokesman Jeff Stensland said in an email. |
| For Nicholas S. Zeppos, a farewell to the 2019 Vanderbilt University class and his days as leader | |
 | After more than a decade as leader of one of Nashville's most distinguished institutions, Nicholas S. Zeppos kept his final commencement speech short. Zeppos, Vanderbilt University's chancellor since 2008, made his speech Friday before the more than 25,000 people in attendance and 3,826 graduates from the school's 2019 class. He will step down in August due to health concerns. His eight-minute speech passed on to the graduates the brief words that Zeppos said have helped carry him to success leading the university. "The secret simple code to life. The secret simple code to happiness and success --- eight words: Do your homework. Take responsibility. Think of we." The eight words, he said, will help guide the graduates to be prepared. The words will help them be better people and better leaders that take ownership of their actions. And his words will help them think about not just themselves, but their community and world around them. Zeppos worked to pour millions into financial aid, campus buildings and research during his tenure. Zeppos plans to return as a Vanderbilt law professor. |
| What makes a Louisiana mama happy? Her kids graduating LSU -- all 11 of them | |
 | There's a saying that if mama isn't happy, nobody's happy. That's not a problem this weekend for at least one south Louisiana family. This weekend is not only Mother's Day, but Cathy Thompson is spending it with her 11th and youngest child after having followed a family tradition -- graduating from LSU. When Mac Thompson picks up his bachelor's degree in history on Friday, he joins older siblings Catherine, Owen, Tricia, Charlie, Anna, Jimmy, Louise, Elizabeth, Maggie and Frances in getting their degrees from LSU. Mom Cathy and dad Bruce Thompson also attended LSU. If that weren't enough, the six siblings who have wed are married to LSU graduates. The Thompsons are Tigers through and through. |
| LSU graduates more students than ever before | |
| LSU graduated its largest class in history Friday at the 298th commencement exercises. A record 4,442 degrees were awarded. The overall class of 2019 had 7,047 degrees, including students receiving degrees in summer and fall commencements combined. "You are needed to make the world a better place. You have the tools, the skills, and the talent to do so, and the benefits you reap can impact not only your own life, but have a ripple effect around the globe," LSU President F. King Alexander told to the graduates. The class of 2019 also was the most diverse. LSU awarded the most degrees ever to female students, 3,826; African-American students with 766 degrees; Hispanic students, 418 degrees; and Asian students, 271 degrees. |
| Thousands get UGA degrees in a day of graduations | |
 | Friday wasn't graduation day so much as a day of graduations on the University of Georgia campus as the university marked the end of another academic year and sent thousands of new graduates out into the world. The campus was the site for convocations, receptions and other events throughout the day. Those led up to the big event Friday night in Sanford Stadium, when UGA graduate and ABC News correspondent Deborah Roberts was the featured speaker for as many of the eligible 5,697 undergraduates who cared to participate in the colorful spectacle. Graduate students also had their own separate commencement Friday morning, when UGA President Jere Morehead shook hundreds of hands as new Ph.D. and master's graduates marched across the Stegeman Coliseum stage one by one as their names were called. Outside on the Coliseum concourse after the ceremony, vendors sold flowers, T-shirts, necklaces and other mementos as family and friends snapped thousands of photos with their smart phones, in laughter and in tears. |
| UT-Knoxville holds graduation ceremonies: over 4,200 students graduate | |
 | Just over 4,200 students graduated from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville this week, with ceremonies held each day since Wednesday. On Saturday morning, over 1,000 students received degrees at the College of Arts and Sciences ceremony. UT-Knoxville held 14 graduation ceremonies this week, where 4,228 degrees were awarded, including 3,253 undergraduate degrees, 783 graduate degrees, 110 law degrees and 82 veterinary medicine degrees. Commencement speaker Nancy-Ann DeParle, a 1978 UT-Knoxville graduate and deputy chief of staff for policy for President Barack Obama, encouraged the graduates to not be afraid of failure. "Don't be afraid to fail and know that when you do, when life hands you a tough decision or a loss, you have the resilience, the grit, to get back up and go at it again," DeParle said. |
| With expanded veterans center, U. of Missouri celebrates campus ROTC | |
 | Patriotic music, shouted commands, speeches and the sound of marching feet on Friday filled MU's Francis Quadrangle as MU completed its Pass in Review ceremony. Members of the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force ROTC programs stood at attention under the gaze of officers and Provost Latha Ramchand, this year's reviewing official. Lt. Col. Gary Kerr introduced Ramchand and thanked those who helped put the event together. He said from personal experience, it can be difficult to organize so many people for such a display. Putting the event together "is no small task, especially with my own Army cadets, who can set an ambush with their eyes closed but often struggle to put their left foot down when we say left," he said. Following the ceremony was a ribbon-cutting for the expansion of the MU Veterans Center in Memorial Union. Kevin Owens, vice president of the Mizzou Student Veterans Association, said the center brings veterans together and helps them access various resources, such as housing. |
| Army Secretary Mark Esper on hand as 49 Aggie cadets are commissioned | |
 | The secretary of the U.S. Army was on the Texas A&M campus Friday to commission 49 A&M graduates as Army second lieutenants, part of a day in which 126 Corps of Cadets members were commissioned as officers in various branches of the military. The new officers were recognized at the 2 p.m. graduation ceremony at Reed Arena and received their diplomas. Army Secretary Mark T. Esper visited with the new Army officers and their families before delivering remarks in front of more than 400 people inside Rudder Auditorium at noon, two hours before the larger commissioning. "Starting today, you will begin to take on your most important responsibility: leadership," Esper said as the Army officers-to-be sat to his right on the stage. "Texas A&M University has been producing Army leaders since the school was first established in 1876," Esper said. "And very soon, you will step in front of a formation of your soldiers for the first time. It will be both an inspiring and a nerve-wracking experience -- and one that you must be ready for." |
| U. of Oklahoma president announces resignation | |
| University of Oklahoma President Jim Gallogly, whose short tenure at the state's flagship university included a sexual misconduct probe of its longtime former president and bitter student reaction to a racist incident on campus, announced his resignation on Sunday. A former energy industry CEO and major OU donor who began his tenure on July 1, Gallogly said he informed the university's regents that he would step down once they have a transition plan in place. Brought in to help tighten the university's finances, Gallogly soon found OU embroiled in an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against former President David Boren, a former Oklahoma governor and U.S. senator who led the institution for 24 years. |
| A professor accused of misconduct admits to it and resigns | |
 | In an unusual move that's drawn praise and criticism, legal scholar and alleged sexual harasser Ian Samuel publicly resigned from his faculty job at Indiana University at Bloomington Friday. He shared his resignation letter on Twitter, in it writing that the case against him forced him to examine his life -- ultimately for the better. "The truth is that the university's investigation, in addition to doing justice, probably had the side effect of saving my life," he wrote. "I was becoming an ugly man, and I needed nothing so much as a clean mirror and someone brave enough to make me look at it." Chuck Carney, university spokesperson, said the university's Title IX investigation concluded May 1, but he declined to share the findings, saying that it was a personnel matter. The university's statement says that Samuel resigned, effective Friday, and is no longer a faculty member. |
| Senior housing among growing needs for affordable housing | |
 | Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford of Meridian writes: So, my conservative friends, what is the ideological difference between a tax subsidy for the wealthy and a financial subsidy for the poor? We hear concerns from some conservatives about corporate welfare where the tax code benefits select corporate interests, but not so much about tax code welfare for the wealthy. My question arises from a study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Admittedly the Center is a left-leaning think tank, but its work is cited by Bank of America in ads touting the bank's activities to finance affordable housing. "The federal government spends nearly $200 billion per year on housing assistance programs, but the vast majority of it is allocated, via tax deductions, to households earning more than $100,000 per year," reads the ad in Axios.com. A footnote points to the Center's article entitled "Chart Book: Federal Housing Spending Is Poorly Matched to Need." |
| Reeves' Republican foes in governor's race must find way to overcome his statewide name recognition advantage | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: Drive through parts of Jackson where Bill Waller Jr. grew up and still lives or even through parts of south Madison County and it is not unusual to see signs touting his campaign for governor. No doubt, Waller is a known commodity in much of the Jackson metro area. He served as a justice on the Mississippi Supreme Court for 21 years, 10 years as chief justice, being elected to the position by voters from the Central District. But in terms of statewide name recognition, Waller is at a decided disadvantage against fellow Republican -- Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, who has run and won four statewide campaigns and has a far superior campaign war chest. A third Republican gubernatorial candidate, freshman state Rep. Robert Foster of DeSoto County, is at an even larger disadvantage. |
SPORTS
| Diamond Dawgs sweep Ole Miss in Oxford | |
 | Trailing by one after three innings, the No. 5 Mississippi State baseball program scored nine runs in the fourth on its way to a 11-5 victory and a Southeastern Conference series sweep of No. 11 Ole Miss at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field on Sunday. The series sweep is the third in SEC play this season for the Diamond Dawgs and first SEC sweep on the road since taking all three games against the Rebels during the 2017 season in Oxford. In the history of the series, it is the first time that Mississippi State (42-10, 18-9 SEC) has swept back-to-back three-game series at Ole Miss (32-20, 15-12 SEC). In 2019, MSU has swept Alabama, Georgia and Ole Miss in conference play, with UGA and UM each being ranked at the time of the meetings. |
| Bulldogs break out brooms as Mississippi State baseball secures SEC series sweep of Ole Miss | |
 | There is a "Solo Cup Race" at Swayze Field in the middle of the fourth inning during every Ole Miss home game. People dressed in party cup costumes race down the first-base line, and the winner gets a prize. The powder blue cup won Sunday. What happened mere minutes before prevented the Rebels -- whose jerseys are the same color --- from emerging victorious in a far more meaningful event. A nine-run fourth inning powered No. 6 Mississippi State to an 11-5 victory over No. 14 Ole Miss. The Bulldogs (42-10, 18-9 SEC) completed a series sweep of the Rebels (32-20, 15-12) for the second-straight time in Oxford. The Rebels hadn't been swept at home since the Dogs took all three games in 2017. Mississippi State hadn't won six-straight games in Oxford since the Dogs did so in three two-game series from 1948-50. "We came in here with one goal in mind: win the first one," MSU junior catcher Dustin Skelton said. "Then if we can win the first one, we can win the second one. If we can win the second one, we can win the third one. It just going out there and getting after them each and every day to the best of our ability." |
| Ole Miss relievers falter in fourth as Mississippi State sweeps | |
| The Rebels were in it in the fourth inning when the rapid descent to Broom City began. In an unfortunately familiar recent theme, the No. 11 Ole Miss bullpen crumbled in a competitive game, and No. 5 MSU won 11-5 on Sunday before an announced Swayze Field crowd of 8,572. The Bulldogs (42-10, 18-9 SEC) become the first team to sweep the Rebels (32-20, 15-12 SEC) at home since MSU did so in 2017. It's the first time Ole Miss has been swept this season. The Bulldogs are 14-2 against the Rebels over the last three seasons. "We came in here with one goal in mind, win the first one," MSU catcher Dustin Skelton said. "If we could win the first one we could win the second one. If we could win the second one we'd win the third one." |
| Another mid-game blowup leads to Mississippi State's sweep of Ole Miss | |
| Another day at Swayze Field and another long, big inning for Mississippi State that doomed the Rebels. Ole Miss gave up nine runs in a fourth-inning blowup, losing game three of the series 11-5 to the Bulldogs. With the three-game sweep, Ole Miss is now 2-14 against Mississippi State dating back to 2016 and 0-6 at Oxford-University Stadium. "It's a really bad weekend for us. It's just a shame," said head coach Mike Bianco. "So much riding on the weekend and you're playing your arch rival and you just play awful." For the second game in a row, Ole Miss scored first and held a slim lead mid-way though the game before the bullpen imploded. Again. After giving up six runs in the seventh Saturday night to blow a two-run lead, Ole Miss decided they were going to one-up themselves on Sunday. Ole Miss and Mississippi State came into the weekend tied for second in the SEC West at 15-9. Three days later, Ole Miss is now 15-12 and tied with LSU for third in the West. |
| Bulldogs continue domination of Ole Miss | |
| Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: In the eighth inning of the third game of a dark, damp weekend series here Sunday, drizzling rain started blowing in from left field again, chasing hundreds of the remaining Ole Miss diehards to the exits. One team's misery is another team's bliss. Mississippi State, leading 10-3 at the time, would go on to an 11-5 victory and a weekend sweep of the Rebels. The Bulldogs have now won 14 of their last 16 against their arch-rivals including all four meetings this year. So when, you ask, was the last time Ole Miss was swept at Oxford-University Stadium? Why that would be 2017, the last time State came here. Last time State won six straight baseball games at Oxford? That would be 1950. Truman was president. Bear Bryant won 11 games -- at Kentucky. |
| Coach Joe Moorhead making Road Dawgs Tour stop in Starkville | |
| Mississippi State's annual Road Dawgs Tour continues with a hometown luncheon in Starkville on Monday. Coach Joe Moorhead will be the featured speaker at the event held in the Leo Seal Jr. Football Complex on the Bulldogs' campus. The luncheon begins at 11:30 a.m. and Moorhead will speak at noon. Cost is $15 per person in advance and $20 at the door. The Road Dawgs Tour has already made a stop in Nashville and will continue Monday evening in Birmingham, Alabama, Tuesday in Olive Branch and Stoneville, Wednesday in Biloxi, Thursday in New Orleans and Dallas and conclude on June 16 with the Summer Extravaganza in Jackson. |
| Mississippi State softball secures 15th NCAA Tournament bid; earns Seattle Regional berth | |
| For the seventh time in the last eight seasons and the 15th time overall in program history, Mississippi State softball (33-21) is NCAA Tournament bound as the Bulldogs' road to Oklahoma City begins in the Seattle Regional. MSU will open the double-elimination regional on Friday, May 17 at 6:30 p.m. CT against Seattle at the Husky Softball Stadium. Along with the Bulldogs and the Redhawks, the Seattle Regional features the host team of Washington, which earned the third overall national seed, and Fordham. The two squads will round out the opening round of play on Friday at 9 p.m. CT. State earned the two seed in the Seattle Regional, marking the second consecutive season for head coach Vann Stuedeman's squad to earn the two-seed ranking at a regional site. The Bulldogs first game of the regional will be aired national on ESPN3, which can be accessed online through WatchESPN or the ESPN app. Television assignments for the remaining games of the regional will be announced later this week. |
| Bulldogs collect five medals on final day of SEC Outdoor Championships | |
| Mississippi State recorded one of its best finishes of the decade at the SEC Outdoor Championships with a combined 94 points between the men and the women. MSU's men finished eighth with 57 points, their highest total since 2012 and best finish since 2015. The Bulldog women scored 37 points to finish 11th. Both teams posted their third-highest score since 2010. The combined total is behind only 2015 (103 points) and 2010 (100 points) in that span. The Bulldogs won medals in five events on Friday to collect nine over the span of the competition. "Every single event group performed at a high level today, from sprints to jumps to throws to distance to close the night," interim head coach Chris Woods said. "I'm extremely proud of how we finished off our regular season. We started this year without a lot of expectations and here we are with our highest finish on the men's side since 2015." |
| Mississippi State men's tennis drops home Super Regional to TCU | |
| Another storybook season ended for the Mississippi State men's tennis team on Saturday, as the seventh-ranked Bulldogs dropped a close 4-2 decision to No. 9 TCU in the NCAA Round of 16 at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. MSU was one of only eight national hosts for the new NCAA Super Regional format introduced this season in college tennis. State (24-4) fought valiantly after dropping the doubles point and came out firing in singles to take a 2-1 lead after a lengthy weather delay, but the Horned Frogs (22-6) held strong and captured a pair of three-set decisions down the stretch to close it out and move on to the NCAA quarterfinals this Thursday in Orlando. "TCU played a great doubles point and made it tough for us to close out some sets and matches," head coach Matt Roberts said. |
| Former Mississippi State baseball player, current priest has many roles | |
| Father Burke Masters of Joliet, Illinois, was in Tupelo recently, speaking at a Catholic Charities fundraising event at St. James Catholic Church. Even in a black suit and white clerical collar, the 52-year-old Masters looked youthful, fit and athletic, which shouldn't surprise those who know his background. And it should come as no surprise that while he was here, Masters found his way to Starkville to watch the Mississippi State Bulldogs play baseball. "It worked out great," he said in an interview at St. James. "Being here gave me an excuse to stop by Starkville." Before he became "Father Burke," Masters played second and third base at Mississippi State University from 1987-1990, during the tenure of legendary former head coach Ron Polk. Masters said those were especially good years for baseball for the Bulldogs. "This is the 30th anniversary of the '89 team," he said. Masters said the Bulldogs were particularly strong that year, narrowly missing a national championship. |
| Southern Miss head softball coach Wendy Hogue resigns after 5 years | |
 | The University of Southern Mississippi announced head softball coach Wendy Hogue resigned Friday after five years at the helm. "What an honor and blessing it has been to be a part of Southern Miss Athletics for the past five years," she said in a news release. "The opportunity to lead your softball program has been so very rewarding in most every aspect." Hogue said she was leaving to spend more time with family. She mentioned her two children -- a daughter and son. The Golden Eagles amassed a 124-146 record over Hogue's five-year tenure, featuring a pair of wins over Ole Miss, a doubleheader sweep of No. 11 Louisiana and another victory over No. 21 South Alabama. "I want to thank Wendy Hogue for her leadership of the Southern Miss softball program," said Jeremy McClain, Southern Miss director of athletics. "She has had a positive impact on those around her, and there is no doubt that she has left this program in a better place than it was four years ago when she arrived." |
| Reports: Auburn nearing fundraising goal for football-only facility | |
 | A long-discussed football-specific facility could soon take the next step toward becoming a reality at Auburn. Auburn athletics director Allen Greene has been working to fund-raise for the complex, which is expected to cost approximately $60 million to complete, and he hopes to soon be able to present the project to the Auburn board of trustees, according to multiple reports. "It's a project that we all know we need at some point," Greene told AuburnSports.com. "We have a number of members of the Auburn family who are stepping up and contributing. We have a board meeting coming up here soon; I'd love to push the ball further along at that point." Auburn's next board meeting is June 7. Materials for that board meeting are due by Wednesday, while a meeting to review the agenda is set for May 23. A football-specific complex has been a subject of interest for several years now. |
| Oregon's Rob Mullens withdraws from Texas A&M athletic director search, per source | |
| Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens has withdrawn his name from consideration for the same position at Texas A&M, according to a source with knowledge of the search. Mullens, who is in his ninth year at UO, was at or near the top of a short list of leading candidates at Texas A&M as of last week but removed himself from the search process this week, according to the source, who requested anonymity because they're not authorized to discuss the process publicly. Texas A&M, which recently lost athletic director Scott Woodward to LSU, appointed former Aggies football coach R.C. Slocum as interim athletic director. Slocum also serves on the College Football Playoff selection committee, which Mullens currently serves as the chairman. Texas A&M announced it does not have a deadline to make a hire. |
| What legal online sports betting in Tennessee means for college and pro teams | |
| Tennessee Titans center Ben Jones figures that sometime next season, teammate Ryan Succop will make fans some money. He'll convert a field goal that will result in a gambler winning a wager. Succop doesn't know about all that, but he expects legal online sports betting in Tennessee to ratchet up interest in football. It's one thing to root for your favorite team to win. It's an altogether different experience to have money on the line. "I'm sure we'll probably have more people watching games," Succop said. Sports teams and colleges across the state are preparing for the change with mixed emotions. Tennessee athletic director Phillip Fulmer said in a statement that UT is working with its Office of Government Relations "to gain a thorough understanding" of how legal sports betting will affect UT athletics. "As we learn more, we'll be deliberate about properly educating student-athletes and staff to ensure compliance," Fulmer said. Vanderbilt's athletic department said in a statement that sports betting is covered as part of compliance education with athletes, coaches and department staff. Legal sports wagering heightens the importance of that education. |
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