| Wednesday, August 7, 2019 |
| Mississippi State hosts conference to talk about mental health resources for students | |
 | Homework, studying, and sometimes just life can all be overwhelming for any college student. With a new semester only weeks away, there's one conversation Mississippi State University's Department of Health Promotion and Wellness is pushing: mental health. The department put together a conference to talk about resources available for students going through a stressful time. "If you look at statistics, depression and anxiety are the top two reasons students become stressed and feel overwhelmed throughout their freshman and even up to their senior year," said event coordinator Santee Ezell. Ezell said they're covering a wide variety of topics to ensure student health and safety. Blake Schneider, of Collegiate Recovery Community, said it's beneficial to educate students on these topics, as it plays a major role to student success. "It's important from a perspective of getting more knowledge, getting more information that we can take back to our respective workplaces and help with health and well being," said Schneider. |
| 'Thunder and Lightning' sculptor speaks at Rotary | |
 | The Starkville Rotary Club heard from the man behind the "Thunder and Lightning" sculptures at the entrance to Dudy Noble Field Monday. Dr. Rusty Reid, a pediatric dentist and sculptor, crated the statues of legendary MSU baseball players Rafael Palmeiro and Will Clark, known collectively as "Thunder and Lightning." The 1 1/3 scale likenesses of the players greet fans on their way into the stadium. Reid is an MSU alumnus, and began sculpting as a hobby in Brookhaven before being encouraged to hone his craft by Mississippi sculptor Bruce Brady who saw his potential as a sculptor. He also listed Mississippi sculptor and physician Dr. Kim Sessums as an influence. The monuments were dedicated in February after approximately a year and a half of work. After practicing dentistry from Monday through Thursday, Reid would drive to Starkville and work on the sculptures in a studio on Stark Road during the weekend before returning home Sunday night to go back to his practice Monday morning. |
| Sheriff's race too close to call as affidavits remain | |
| Today will decide if the three-candidate race for Oktibbeha County sheriff will see an outright winner in the Democratic Primary or go to a runoff in a couple of weeks as affidavit ballots remain to be counted on Wednesday. Incumbent Sheriff Steve Gladney finished the night with 2,700 votes or 50.42%, while former Deputy John Rice finished with 2,469 or 46.11%. Former SPD officer Brandon Gann rounded out the field with 182 votes or 3.40%. Of the 121 affidavit ballots remaining to be counted, 92 were cast for the Democratic Primary, which will decide the outcome of the race. For instance, if Rice nets all 92 affidavit ballots, it would lower Gladney's percentage of the vote to 49%, forcing a runoff. For Gladney to win the primary outright, he would need 39 of the affidavit ballots cast for him if all 92 votes are valid, which would meet the 50% plus one vote threshold. |
| McLean in lead against incumbent Smith in District 39 state rep race | |
 | Dana McLean is leading incumbent Jeff Smith in the Republican primary for House District 39. According to data released from Lowndes County Circuit Clerk's Office, McLean led in Lowndes County 1,810 votes to Smith's 1,690, including absentee votes. Approximately 80 affidavit ballots are expected to be counted in Lowndes County Wednesday, with another 90 in Monroe County. Smith was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1992, representing Lowndes and part of Monroe counties. In the House District 38 race, incumbent Rep. Cheikh Taylor has defeated challenger Lisa Wynn in the Democratic primary en route to re-election. Taylor tallied 2,639 votes to Wynn's 907 after machine and absentees were tallied in Oktibbeha, Clay and Monroe counties. |
| Caldwell, Yoste head to runoff election for Northern District Transportation Commissioner | |
 | John Caldwell and Geoffrey Yoste will compete in a runoff election for the Republican nomination for the Northern District Transportation Commissioner after no single candidate received a majority of the votes cast in a crowded five-person Republican primary race on Tuesday night. Caldwell, a former Desoto County Supervisor, received 33% of the vote as of 11:45 p.m. Tuesday. He has campaigned on the idea of building better roads and bridges to expand economic activity in the state. "We're just proud to be in the conversation at this point, so we can make these next three weeks happen," Caldwell told the Daily Journal by phone. Yoste, a defense contractor and a retired officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from Lafayette County, captured 26% of the vote as of 11:45 p.m. Tuesday. He has campaigned on improving the state's infrastructure, but said he doesn't think it's appropriate for the transportation commissioner to try and legislate the policy for funding the transportation department. |
| Tate Reeves, Bill Waller head to runoff for Republican governor primary | |
 | Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and former state Supreme Court Justice Bill Waller Jr. are headed to a runoff for the Republican nomination for Mississippi governor. Reeves, long considered the heir apparent to the governorship, received nearly 49 percent of votes, according to unofficial election results early Wednesday morning. Waller picked up more than 33 percent, and first-term lawmaker Robert Foster finished with almost 18 percent. Reeves had tried to ignore his primary opponents, but will now face off with Waller in an Aug. 27 runoff election. In the Democratic race, Attorney General Jim Hood easily advanced to the general election, garnering 69 percent of votes. |
| Reeves, Waller headed for a runoff after first ballot doesn't settle GOP governor's primary | |
 | Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves didn't mention Bill Waller Jr.'s name when he spoke to supporters around 11:30 on Tuesday night to acknowledge a runoff between the two Republican candidates for governor. Waller, the former chief justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court, effectively kept the perceived front-runner from earning the more than 50 percent necessary to avoid an Aug. 27 runoff. "Whether it's tonight or in three weeks ... I can tell you tonight that I am going to be the Republican nominee for governor. I can tell you tonight we are going to beat Jim Hood in November," Reeves told the 50 or so supporters still in attendance at his watch party at Table 100 in Flowood. When Waller and Reeves face off in three weeks, Waller will need to hold on to almost all of his and Foster's voters to best Reeves, something he said he thinks he can do. Waller said he had spoken to Foster not long before taking the podium Tuesday night, and he thought he'd be able to count on his former opponent's support. |
| Mississippi Republicans head to gubernatorial runoff | |
 | Mississippi Republicans will take a second chance to pick their party's nominee for governor after the leading candidate failed on Tuesday to score a high enough percentage of the vote to win a contested primary outright. With 97 percent of precincts reporting, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves (R) led two challengers with 49 percent of the vote, according to The Associated Press. He will face the second-place finisher, former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. (R), who garnered 33 percent, in an August 27 runoff. "Obviously, avoiding a runoff would save a couple million dollars against the left's candidate," said Henry Barbour, a top Mississippi Republican strategist and the nephew of the former governor. The Republican Governors Association will mount a quick ad blitz against Hood while state GOP voters make their final choice, the group's spokeswoman told The Hill. An advertisement set to launch Wednesday morning accused Hood of aligning himself with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), a group it calls the "radical liberal resistance." |
| Hood cruises to victory in Democratic primary for governor, tells crowd 'we're halfway home' | |
| Four-term Attorney General Jim Hood easily won the Democratic nomination for governor over seven lesser known candidates. Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith was the only other Democratic candidate for governor to hold an elected office. With about 40 percent of the vote counted, media outlets called the election for Hood. Late Tuesday, it looked as though Hood had garnered just less than 70 percent of the vote. Lorman minister Michael Brown has just over 11 percent. Shuler Smith had about 7 percent. "We can do this. We are halfway home," Hood told an enthusiastic crowd at his watch party at Duling Hall in Jackson. To win in November, Hood will need a strong turnout among black voters and a higher percentage of white voters than other Democrats running for governor have been able to garner in recent elections. Ronnie Musgrove in 1999 was the last Democrat to win a gubernatorial election. |
| GOP primary for Mississippi governor heads to runoff | |
 | The race for the Republican nomination for governor in Mississippi will go to a runoff later this month, with the winner facing Democratic state Attorney General Jim Hood in the general election. In Tuesday's Republican primary, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves finished with 49 percent of the vote -- just shy of the majority needed to win the nomination -- according to The Associated Press. Instead, he will face former state Supreme Court Justice Bill Waller, who won 33 percent of the vote, in the Aug. 27 runoff. A third candidate, state Rep. Robert Foster, had 18 percent. Even while they wait for voters to pick the party's nominee, national Republicans wasted no time attacking Hood. The Republican Governors Association's affiliate in the state, Mississippi Strong, began airing a new TV ad on Tuesday night attacking Hood for "standing with the radical liberal resistance" against President Donald Trump's agenda. "Jim Hood likes to talk the talk of a moderate, but his record shows he's walked the walk of a typical liberal Democrat for decades," said RGA Executive Director Dave Rexrode. |
| Mississippi Attorney General's race: Fitch heads to runoff with Taggart | |
| State Treasurer Lynn Fitch and attorney Andy Taggart are headed to a runoff in the attorney general's race, preliminary results Wednesday morning showed. Through late Tuesday night, it remained unclear whether Taggart or state Rep. Mark Baker would be facing Fitch in the runoff, with the two running neck-and-neck for second place. With 97% of votes counted statewide, Taggart led Baker by about 4,500 votes, according to preliminary results. The Aug. 27 runoff will determine who will face Democrat Jennifer Riley Collins in the general election in November. The winner of November's election will be Mississippi's first new top law enforcement official in 16 years. Current Attorney General Jim Hood, who was first elected in 2003, is seeking higher office and handily secured the Democratic nomination for governor on Tuesday against seven opponents. |
| Fitch leads field for AG, but can't avoid runoff against Taggart | |
| Two term state Treasurer Lynn Fitch won the most votes Tuesday in the hotly contested Republican primary for the open seat of attorney general, but did not garner the majority needed to avoid a runoff. Late Tuesday night, Fitch had garnered 45 percent of the vote compared to 28.2 percent for Madison County attorney Andy Taggart in unofficial returns. State Rep. Mark Baker of Rankin County had 26.8 percent of the vote -- about 5,000 less than Taggart. The Fitch-Taggart runoff will be held Aug. 27. Baker came up just short in his effort despite the fact an independent group spent at least $900,000 on radio and television advertising during the final weeks of the campaign in support of his effort. Taggart, who had a son take his life in the midst of a battle with drugs, said he is running for attorney general to put an emphasis on fighting drugs. |
| McRae wins Republican nomination for treasurer | |
| After investing more of his own money into his campaign than any other 2019 candidate, Madison businessman David McRae easily won the Republican nomination for state Treasurer over Sen. Buck Clarke, R-Hollandale. McRae, who unsuccessfully vied for the nomination against current state Treasurer Lynn Fitch in 2015, donated $1.7 million to his campaign, spending nearly $1 million of it on statewide television ads. "There's nothing I would change about this primary campaign. We worked hard, held events in over 40 counties, and built a strong grassroots network across the state," McRae said in a statement. "Mississippi Republicans have said they want fresh faces and fresh ideas at the State Treasury, and I plan to deliver for them." "I'm proud of the campaign. We ran hard, we circled the state, we met a lot of good people," Clarke told Mississippi Today. "And I feel good about the state moving forward." |
| Sen. Michael Watson takes GOP secretary of state nomination after bitter primary | |
| Michael Watson defeated Sam Britton on Tuesday in the Republican primary for secretary of state, a race that featured the most mudslinging of the statewide primaries. Watson, a state senator from Pascagoula, focused his campaign messaging on highlighting the fact that Britton ran for the state House of Representatives as a Democrat in 2003 and donated to the campaigns of former Democratic Gov. Ronnie Musgrove in 2003 and 2008. Britton, a public service commissioner from Laurel, hit Watson in several ads and political appearances that focused on Watson's donations to a political action committee that worked to keep Donald Trump from receiving the Republican nomination in 2016. Britton used social media to thank his supporters. |
| Calvert, Smith unseat Snowden, Shirley in Mississippi House races; McCaughn, Tate win Senate primaries | |
 | Billy Adam Calvert and Troy Smith unseated incumbents Greg Snowden and Williams Shirley in Republican primaries Tuesday night. Calvert edged Snowden in District 83 with 2,598 votes or 52 percent of the vote. Snowden received 2,352 votes. Smith defeated Shirley, 3,573 to 1,375, gaining 73 percent of the vote in District 84. Shirley has held the office since 2011. Republicans Tyler McCaughn and Jeff Tate advanced in Senate District 31 and 33. McCaughn had 6,657 votes, 73 percent, to Hampton Gardener's 2,421 votes. Tate had 8,460 votes, 84 percent, to Erle E. "Bubby" Johnston's 1,623. In a July interview, McCaughn, an attorney and farmer, said he planned to build on existing industry in his district, combat a "spread" of gang violence from Meridian and Jackson, and support agriculture. He will face Democrat Mike Marlow in November. |
| Senate: Doty defeats Brown, Davis in District 39 | |
 | State Sen. Sally Doty, of Brookhaven, in unofficial results Tuesday, won the District 39 contest. The district includes Lincoln, Lawrence, Copiah and Walthall counties. All three candidates ran on the Republican ticket. No other candidates ran in the Senate race. In Lincoln County, Doty received 51.23 percent -- 4,281 votes. Beth Brown received 40.41 percent -- 3,377 votes -- and Josh Davis received 8.33 percent, or 696 votes. District-wide Doty had 53 percent to Brown's 34. Doty said Tuesday night she had worked "tremendously hard" for the two terms she's already served. "I just want to thank everyone for supporting me, encouraging me and praying for me. We ran a very hard race this summer, but in reality my race has been for the past eight years," she said. "I'm so glad that I will have the opportunity to continue that work for the next four years." |
| Biloxians' battle comes down to 33 votes | |
 | The Republican primary for the District 50 Senate seat provided the closest contest on the Mississippi Coast on Tuesday night. With all precincts in, Rep. Scott DeLano held a 33-vote lead over Biloxi City Councilwoman Dixie Newman. There is no Democratic opposition, meaning DeLano will win the race as long as affidavit votes don't erase his lead of 3,029-2,996. DeLano declared victory late Tuesday evening. "I'm very excited to be able stand in front of us 33 votes ahead," he said. "We knew it was going to be razor-thin, did exactly what we had to do to get out and win. I'm very happy for the people that worked with me, very happy of South Mississippi to be able to back and represent them in Jackson. We'll have to have this election certified tomorrow, hopefully we'll get that moved out of the way and go to work right away." DeLano was confident that affidavit votes would not change the outcome of the race. |
| Espy Calls for Gun Reforms, Targets 'Rise of Violent White Nationalism' | |
| The Democrat who lost to U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi's 2018 U.S. Senate special election, Mike Espy, broke his post-campaign silence to call for action on gun reform and against "violent white nationalism" in an email to supporters on Monday. "I know you haven't heard from me in a while, but this was just too important. Our country is hurting after two heartbreaking mass shootings in the span of 24 hours this weekend in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio. And both of these tragedies came just a week after a mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in California," Espy, the former U.S. secretary of agriculture, wrote. The death toll for those three shootings stands at 34 but could rise further. On Monday, employees returned to work at a Walmart in Southaven, Miss., where a disgruntled employee shot multiple people, killing two, on July 30. "As a lifelong gun owner, even I believe in common sense gun reform. In the past two decades, things have drastically changed as gun safety measures like the ban on assault weapons were rolled back, and mass shootings have become the norm," Espy wrote. |
| Immigration Raids Under Way at Mississippi Food Plants | |
 | U.S. immigration officials have launched raids at several Mississippi food processing plants. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official said Wednesday that search warrants were executed at seven locations across the state targeting several companies. They include the Morton plant of poultry producer Koch Foods Inc., which has no relation to Charles and David Koch. The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details of the operation were not intended for publication. The official says owners as well as employees are targeted in a federal criminal investigation. |
| Feds rounding up illegal immigrants at Canton plant, mayor says | |
| Homeland Security agents descended upon several sites in Mississippi Wednesday, including Peco Foods in Canton. "After speaking with the agents, I now know that they are identifying illegal immigrants, versus those who are legal, and rounding them up, putting them in buses and carrying them away," said Canton Mayor William Truly. A Homeland Security official at the scene said agents are executing a federal search warrant in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney's Office. "It's part of a larger operation," said Lindsay Williams, with Homeland Security public affairs. "It's an ongoing search. I can't specify or disclose what we're looking for, or how the operation is progressing, just yet." |
| Foreign aid funds put on hold for review | |
 | The Trump administration has temporarily frozen and ordered a review of several key foreign aid funds that Congress has already approved, in a move that critics fear could lead to another attempted rollback of foreign aid. The Office of Management and Budget sent a letter to the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development on Saturday, notifying them of the action, which took effect one minute before midnight that day. The OMB asked the agencies for a balance sheet of foreign aid projects that have not yet been funded. Michael P. Duffey, the associate director for national security programs at OMB, wrote that no more money can be obligated from those funds until three days after OMB receives the numbers, a process that could take days if not weeks. The letter, viewed by The Washington Post, lists eight areas that cover a variety of assistance: international organizations; peacekeeping operations and activities; international narcotics control and law enforcement; development aid; assistance for Europe, Eurasia and Central Asia; economic support funding; foreign military financing programs; and global health programs. |
| Small dollars a big deal as GOP sees untapped potential in Trump supporters | |
 | Convinced there is untapped potential with conservative grassroots donors, Republicans have long bemoaned their lack of a fundraising tool for small-dollar donations as pervasive as the Democrats' ActBlue. But since Republicans rolled out their own centralized platform earlier this year, there's been grumbling within the party that the effort runs afoul of conservative free-market ideas. At the Republican National Committee's annual summer meeting last week, Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel confronted rumors that she and others are insisting campaigns use the new platform, called WinRed, because they're personally profiting from it. WinRed is endorsed by President Donald Trump and all of the national GOP campaign committees. But it's not the only platform on the right, and its rivals -- even those that argue they don't directly compete -- are upset that the party apparatus is trying to freeze them out. |
| Happy Hemp Day? Alabama's first legal cannabis crop growing well, farmers report | |
 | One of the first industrial hemp fields planted in Alabama in mid-May, just below Chandler Mountain in St. Clair County, has an herbal scent, almost like a hint of basil. Its neat rows of mostly thriving plants range from two feet to four feet tall. They appear almost jolly. "It looks like a field of 3-foot-tall Christmas trees," said Ed Glaze, who oversaw the planting of the crop. "They look very cute." Fran Summerlin, owns the former horse farm that now has a five-acre hemp field, walks through the rows with her dogs, Zella and Zeke. Deer prints are evident in the dirt between the plants, but there's no evidence that they've eaten any of the leaves. "Deer don't like hemp," Glaze said. "We can't see where they have eaten anything." The hemp farmers are more than halfway through the growing season for the first legal crop of industrial hemp, which looks like marijuana, but is a species of cannabis that lacks anything but the tiniest trace amounts of THC. The Department of Agriculture keeps a logbook of GPS positions for its hemp farmers and shares that with law enforcement. So far, there have been few problems with security. |
| $163 million given in fiscal 2019 to support U. of Arkansas, Fayetteville | |
| Giving to the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville totaled $163.4 million in the 12-month period that ended June 30, continuing an overall trend of increased contributions to the state's largest university. Top support areas were capital improvements, which made up $64.3 million, or 39%, of the funds raised in fiscal 2019, and student scholarships and academic programs, making up $50.6 million, or 31% of the giving total, according to UA's announcement Tuesday. "We're just very thankful for every gift of every size, because it truly does make a difference," said Mark Power, UA's vice chancellor for university advancement. The $163.4 million fundraising amount fell short of the fiscal 2018 total of $292.7 million, which included unprecedented gifts for arts education of $120 million from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation and $40 million from the Windgate Foundation. |
| Colleges using big data to track students in effort to boost grad rates, but it comes at a cost | |
| When Keenan Robinson started college in 2017, he knew the career he wanted. He'd gone to high school in a small town outside Atlanta. His parents had never finished college, and they always encouraged Robinson and his two older siblings to earn degrees. Robinson's older brother was the first in the family to graduate. "My parents always stressed how powerful an education is and how it is the key to success," Keenan said. When Robinson arrived at Georgia State University in Atlanta, he wanted to major in nursing. "I always knew I had a passion for helping people," he said. Biology had been his best subject in high school. "My dad, my mom would always kind of call me like the king of trivia because I'd always have just like random science facts," he said. During his freshman year, Robinson earned a B average. But the university was closely tracking his academic performance and knew from 10 years of student records that Robinson wasn't likely to make the cut for the nursing program. Georgia State is one of a growing number of schools that have turned to big data to help them identify students who might be struggling -- or soon be struggling -- academically so the school can provide support before students drop out. |
| Stennis to play key role as NASA moves 'Forward to the Moon' | |
 | Rick Gilbrech, director of NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, writes: On July 20, we recognized a pivotal moment in my life, the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission that landed the first humans on the Moon. It is one of the most extraordinary feats of humankind, an embodiment of ingenuity and desire for exploration. As a child of the Apollo generation, I know firsthand the excitement of the nation when at the age of seven, I witnessed Americans and the world rally together with enthusiasm for mankind's first steps on another heavenly body. That event set my life onto a new and unalterable path to work for NASA and be part of human exploration. Stennis Space Center played a critical role in my career and in that historic accomplishment. Stennis was built to test the very rocket stages that launched those first humans to the Moon. On April 23, 1966, the site conducted its first test of Saturn V rocket stage on the A-2 Test Stand. Mississippi had officially entered the Space Age, and our nation was on its way to the Moon. |
| Will Supreme Court revisit Heller case ruling? | |
| Syndicated columnist Sid Salter writes: It's been 20 years since mass shooting gun violence became part of the national lexicon in America after the Columbine, Colorado massacre. As is the case in the El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio shootings that left a total of 30 dead and dozens wounded in shootings less that 24 hours apart over the weekend, members of Congress expended a lot of commentary on their "thoughts and prayers" for the victims and their families. But Congress has been particularly impotent on the question of actually formulating laws that might have the impact of keeping us all safer from gun violence. The 2012 Sandy Hook shootings, with primarily children among the 27 victims, didn't spur action. Neither did the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting in the shadows of a major casino that left 58 dead and 500 injured produce congressional action. Not even a shooting that injured a congressman at a practice for the annual congressional baseball game brought about any movement in the political stalemate over gun legislation that has paralyzed the Congress for a quarter-century. |
SPORTS
| Five to be enshrined into Mississippi State Sports Hall of Fame | |
 | Five new inductees into the Mississippi State Sports Hall of Fame will officially be enshrined Sept. 20-21 when the football Bulldogs host Kentucky on the MSU campus. The five-member Class of 2019 includes: All-American defensive back Frank Dowsing Jr. (1969-72, posthumously), All-SEC running back Michael Haddix (1979-82), All-SEC outfielder Mike Kelley (1976-79), volleyball and softball's Tina (Burcham) Seals (1981-84, 2004-08) and All-SEC men's basketball standout Darryl Wilson (1994-96). The annual MSU Sports Hall of Fame Gala will be held Friday, Sept. 20, at The Mill Conference Center beginning at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at msumclub.org for $100 per person, with proceeds benefiting the MSU M-Club Alumni. The class will be recognized the following day in Davis Wade Stadium when the Bulldogs host Kentucky in their 2019 SEC opener. |
| Mississippi State's Keytaon Thompson welcomes quarterback competition | |
| Keytaon Thompson has been biding his time behind Nick Fitzgerald at Mississippi State for the past 2 1/2 years. Thompson even made a pair of starts at quarterback in the 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl and the 2018 season opener and led the Bulldogs to victory both times. However with Fitzgerald now graduated, coach Joe Moorhead didn't just hand the reins of the offense over to Thompson. Instead, the junior is going to have to fight for it in fall camp after MSU brought in Penn State graduate transfer Tommy Stevens during the summer. Thompson stated that the coaching staff kept him and the rest of the Bulldog signal callers in the loop as they pursued a graduate transfer quarterback and welcomed the competition. "It's a position where you always want to go out and get better no matter who is out there behind you or in front of you," Thompson said. "You still want to get better and be the best player that you can be." Although Thompson and Stevens are in the midst of a position battle, the two have become close and worked together since Stevens' arrival in June. |
| Call from a legend: How Tommy Stevens found mentors in Archie and Peyton Manning | |
| Mississippi State quarterback Tommy Stevens was in the shower when his phone rang. Checking his notifications, Stevens listened to the voicemail that had been left. "I had no idea what the number was," Stevens told The Dispatch. "Pull it up and it's a voicemail from Archie Manning. I about dropped my phone in the sink." He returned the call shortly thereafter, only to find out the former Ole Miss legend had invited him to be a counselor at the prestigious Manning Passing Academy in June at McNeese State. "He was awesome," Stevens said of Manning. "As good of a man as I've ever met and couldn't be thankful for the Manning family for letting me be a part of something like that." For years, the former Penn State signal caller wanted to attend the MPA as a collegiate quarterback. He previously took part in the camp as a junior at Decatur Central in Indianapolis despite not having any college offers at the time. |
| Mississippi State football: Why wide receivers could be better in 2019 | |
 | A Band-Aid is used when a wound needs to heal, when the body needs to get better. It's defined as a "temporary solution." Mississippi State senior wide receiver Deddrick Thomas probably didn't have that in mind when asked about graduate transfer Isaiah Zuber on Monday, but his comment created a metaphor that might have a great deal of truth to it. "He's like a Band-Aid," Thomas said of Zuber. "You can put him anywhere and he'll look good." If Mississippi State's passing offense -- one that ranked No. 13 out of 14 schools in the Southeastern Conference last season and No. 112 out of 130 in the FBS -- is the wound, then perhaps Thomas is right. Zuber could be the Band-Aid that prevents the Bulldog aerial attack from bleeding any further. Or one of the Band-Aids, at least. |
| George Bryan's dream takes center stage at 2019 U.S. Women's Amateur | |
| As the wee hours of Saturday morning's practice rounds for the 2019 Women's U.S. Amateur began, a thick fog coats the entrance to Old Waverly Golf Club. Passing the guardhouse and heading down Magnolia Drive, the course is deathly silent. Play does not begin for another few minutes. There's a peaceful serenity to the scene as the clubhouse comes into view. Guarded by a circular patch of flowers and shrubbery, the columned building is aptly reminiscent of that of Augusta National Golf Club -- home of The Masters. "If you look at Augusta they probably do it the best," said Wilkes Bryan, Old Waverly's chief operating officer said. "And we strive to do the best and they're just a great model to try to follow." For nearly 31 years Old Waverly has harbored this placid beauty and challenged golfers from around the world on one of the country's most prestigious courses -- one conceived by Wilkes' father and founder George Bryan. "Some days it seems like it was yesterday and, when you think about it, it's been a long time," he said. "But it's been a lot of ups, mostly highs." |
| Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper shrug off money talk | |
| Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott pretends he can't hear questions about a new contract, while wide receiver Amari Cooper steadfastly says he simply doesn't think about his negotiations. Both reported to training camp on time as they prepare for the final year of their deals, unlike running back Ezekiel Elliott. The two-time rushing champion has been holding out for more than a week, seeking a new contract with two years still left on the existing one. But there was never any talk about Prescott, the former Mississippi State standout staying away from California. He acknowledged during the offseason that "generational money" was coming -- his deal could surpass $30 million annually -- and he had faith an agreement could be reached. "I'm not here to talk about my contract and that stuff," Prescott said early in camp. "For me, it's to come out here and focus on this, not be distracted." |
| Criticism of former Mississippi State QB Dak Prescott is 'insane,' Michael Irvin says | |
| Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones agrees: Dak Prescott has the intangibles and leadership that Jones wants for his next franchise quarterback. But Jones wants to clarify the leadership praise that Prescott, former quarterback at Mississippi State, has drawn from his coaches, teammates and more throughout training camp. "So often you'll have a player that, because they're special with their charm or they're special with their ability to human skills, that they'll imply that he's not physically what you want," Jones said Sunday after the Cowboys' intrasquad scrimmage. "Michael Irvin's one that you always hear: We couldn't have done it without his heart and soul and leadership. And it implied a little bit that he was an overachiever, which means a little less talent. And that was not the case. Michael was one of the most talented guys you could ever be around." Irvin understands Jones' argument. "(People) don't appreciate the charisma as a talent and gift," Irvin told USA TODAY Sports on Tuesday. "Dak Prescott has that in him. I tell people: Stop it. Stop being a dummy here. It's the ultimate gift a quarterback could have, especially in a world where the quarterback is so isolated and put on a pedestal." |
| What Tennessee football fans should know about Neyland Stadium security | |
 | Back-to-back mass shootings this weekend in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, have many Americans jumpy, but people attending large events are much more likely to encounter an evacuation because of inclement weather. University of Tennessee police have plans in place for emergencies ranging from thunderstorms to active shooters. Officers are trained on evacuation procedures and there are things fans can do to make sure they are safe as well. "We want people to go home at the end of the game or the end of the event and be happy," UTPD Chief Troy Lane said. "They don't have to necessarily be happy about the score, but as long as they get home safely, that's my goal." UTPD started using the LiveSafe app last year, but Lane said it is not just for students. Campus visitors, faculty and staff can use the app to help contact the police or get updates during large events. Through the use of geofencing, which sends messages only to phones within certain boundaries, it can provide evacuation plans and "gives you an informed decision" in case of emergency, he said. |
| Gay rights activists ask NCAA to intervene on Baylor's LGBTQ policies | |
 | Students and recent graduates of Baylor University, one of the country's most prominent Baptist colleges, want the National Collegiate Athletic Association to examine the institution's treatment of gay, transgender and queer students who say they have long faced discrimination on campus and in university policies. These advocates wrote last month to Mark Emmert, the NCAA president, imploring the NCAA to investigate the university's policies on LGBTQ issues. Most of those who signed the letter are officers of Gamma Alpha Upsilon (which spells out "GAY" in Greek letters), an LGBTQ student group that has sought official recognition from the university for eight years. Formally known as the Sexuality Identity Forum, the organization has been continually denied formal recognition, though the university has never publicly explained why. The students assert in their letter that Baylor is the only member institution of the Big 12 Conference, one of the NCAA's "Power 5" conferences, the most affluent and prestigious of the association's leagues, that "prohibits LGBTQ+ students from being officially recognized as part of the campus community." |
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