Tuesday, February 16, 2021   
 
MSU cancels Tuesday classes
Classes have been cancelled for Tuesday at all Mississippi State University campuses. That applies to in-person classes and activities. Classes should be conducted remotely where possible. A determination about Wednesday will be made and shared Tuesday, as the university continues to monitor the weather. Faculty with in-person classes should notify students as to whether their class will be online. If power outages occur, MSU understands the need to accommodate faculty or students who encounter difficulties. University buildings remain closed, including the Mitchell Memorial Library and the Child Development Center. Food service will be available at the Marketplace at Perry beginning at 10 a.m. POD Markets will be open at 10 a.m. in Dogwood and Hathorn Halls. Residence halls remain accessible to residents. The COVID-19 Hotline will be staffed and can be reached at 662-325-2055. Any employee who needs to report to work, including essential employees, will be notified in advance by their supervisor. Some employees (including all faculty who can teach remotely) will be required by their supervisors to telework. Those employees who are not notified by their supervisor to work will be granted administrative leave.
 
One death reported in wreck; utility companies continue dealing with outages during freeze
One Starkville man has died as an apparent result of icy roads after the vehicle he was driving ran off the road and overturned in Oktibbeha County Monday evening. Coroner Michael Hunt identified the victim as Leander Outlaw, 58. Sheriff Steve Gladney said Outlaw was driving along Sixteenth Section Road east of Starkville at about 6 p.m. when he lost control of the vehicle. Outlaw is the only fatality reported so far as a result of a winter storm that has gripped the Golden Triangle since Monday morning, causing power outages and covering roads and bridges in ice. "The roads are worse today than they were yesterday," Gladney said Tuesday. "They're just solid ice now. ... Unless it's an emergency, do not get out." Officers with Mississippi Highway Patrol Troop G responded to three calls on highways Monday, but none overnight, said spokesperson Sgt. Derrick Beckom. Local law enforcement responded to dozens of calls about vehicles sliding off the roads or stranded motorists, though authorities also said they had not seen as many as they expected. "It's lower than what we anticipated," Starkville Police Chief Mark Ballard said. "... The city itself did a really good job for the most part staying off the road."
 
Ice reported on roads in 74 of 82 Mississippi counties as more winter weather approaches
Several major interstates and highways in Mississippi are backed up or iced over following this week's historic winter storm, and officials are warning Mississippians to stay off the roads as another round of weather approaches the state. "Please stay home. Please check on neighbors. Please pray for our first responders, utility and road crews out working to keep us safe. God bless, Mississippi," Gov. Tate Reeves tweeted on Tuesday morning. The Mississippi Department of Transportation on Tuesday morning reported extreme back-ups on Interstate 20, a major interstate running across the state. The Mississippi Highway Patrol reported Tuesday morning that they've responded to 695 weather-related service calls since the winter weather began on Feb. 14. Temperatures are not expected to reach above freezing for much of the state on Tuesday. Another round of winter weather accumulations are expected for many areas in the north half of the state on Wednesday through Thursday.
 
Hazardous travel conditions expected for days in Mississippi
Hazardous travel conditions have been an issue since the winter storm moved in on Sunday and according to the Mississippi Department of Transportation, conditions won't improve much for days to come. "We are treating right now, as much as we can, all of our interstates," Jas N. Smith, MDOT deputy director of Public Affairs. "We're using salt and snow plows to clear the roads." But even with salt, snow plows and crews working 12-hour shifts, the department can't get ahead of what it's being dealt. "Tomorrow night we're expecting another wave of winter weather with subfreezing temperatures and possibly frozen precipitation," Smith said. "We could see roads refreezing and possibly covered with ice again. "It's a pretty unprecedented event. We have Mother Nature working against us. We'll be starting all over again."
 
MSDH reports 734 new COVID-19 cases, 37 deaths
The Mississippi State Department of Health on Tuesday reported 734 additional cases of COVID-19 and 37 deaths. Alcorn and Monroe counties in Northeast Mississippi each reported an additional death. Clay, Lafayette, Marshall counties each reported two deaths. The statewide total number of cases since March 11, 2020 is now 288,714 with a death toll of 6,501. As of this week, around 264,456 people are presumed recovered from the virus. The seven-day moving average for new COVID-19 cases in Mississippi is 28 per 100,000 people, as of Feb. 14. In Mississippi's 1st Congressional District, the seven-day moving average is 25 per 100,000 people. MSDH also reported 112 ongoing outbreaks in long-term care facilities. Most counties in the Daily Journal's coverage area reported new cases: Alcorn (3), Benton (1), Calhoun (3), Chickasaw (2), Clay (1), Itawamba (2), Lafayette (5), Lee (17), Marshall (14), Monroe (4), Oktibbeha (8), Pontotoc (12), Tippah (18), Tishomingo (4) and Union (13).
 
Health department: Someone in Mississippi has tested positive for COVID-19 UK strain
A COVID-19 variant strain has been confirmed in the state, Mississippi State Department of Health officials said Monday. According to a news release, a person tested positive for the B.1.1.7 variant, originally discovered in the United Kingdom, during routine testing. Health department officials do not believe the variant has spread from the person who tested positive, but the investigation is ongoing. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said during an interview CBS's "Face the Nation" Sunday that the U.K. variant could be the dominant strain in the U.S. by March. While the variant is believed to be more infectious than the original strain, there has been no clear evidence that it is deadlier or has a higher chance of requiring hospitalization. Officials at the health department said the agency is still expanding its search for more variant cases and more could be reported in the future.
 
COVID-19 hospitalizations decline for 5th straight week
State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs reports more good news of the COVID-19 front, with five straight weeks of declining hospitalizations related to the virus. For the week ending Feb. 13, the state had 493 new hospital admissions, the fifth straight week that numbers have declined, according to Mississippi State Department of Health figures. Meanwhile, the number of clinic visits for COVID-like illnesses fell to the lowest number in seven weeks, with 1,284 reported. That number is down almost 2,300 visits from the state's peak in clinic visits the last week of 2020. "Please continue to wear masks in public and limit social gatherings," Dobbs wrote. "Plan to limit Spring Break travel and keep it nuclear (within the household)."
 
Dr. Thomas Dobbs: Mississippi is making progress against COVID-19
Mississippi is making "great progress" in the fight against COVID-19, the state health officer said in a tweet on Tuesday. The number of clinic and emergency department visits for COVID-19-like illness in Mississippi has decreased substantially since the start of the year, according to a graph that State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs shared on Twitter. The number of new patients admitted to hospitals for COVID-19 has also decreased in the state since the beginning of the year. Dobbs asked Mississippians to continue to wear masks in public and limit their social gatherings. Mississippi reported 734 new cases of the coronavirus and 37 new COVID-19 related deaths on Tuesday, bringing the state's totals to 288,714 cases and 6,501 deaths. MSDH presumed that 264,456 people in Mississippi had recovered from COVID-19 as of Feb. 15. The department also reported that there are 112 ongoing outbreaks of COVID-19 in long-term-care facilities.
 
Covid-19 Sends Mardi Gras Underground
It was an unusually quiet weekend in New Orleans leading up to Mardi Gras Day, or Fat Tuesday, which normally draws thousands to the bacchanalian port for the end of the Carnival season that starts in early January. Still, celebrants managed to look past the lack of tourists during the coronavirus pandemic to stage their own rogue events. In November, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrellput the kibosh on organized Mardi Gras krewe parades and their daily cavalcades of marching bands and rolling floats, which carry the costumed members of krewes, or social clubs. There would be no colorful beads or other items tossed to the curbside masses, some perched on stepladders. Last year, health officials determined that Mardi Gras became a superspreader event, with at least 50,000 Covid-19 cases originating from the festivities. On Sunday morning, crows cawing from power lines replaced the sound of tap-dancing buskers and rat-a-tatting snare drums. On Friday, all bars were ordered closed through Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17. Restaurants were forbidden to provide what are known as go-cups, alcoholic drinks carried out in plastic containers. The mayor also declared that Bourbon Street and other rowdy French Quarter strongholds would be largely closed, accessible only to residents, employees and those with hotel and restaurant reservations. This disaster-resilient city still managed to find a way to celebrate, though, by taking the party to private backyards and front porches.
 
Ash Wednesday rituals tweaked for coronavirus as Christians are reminded of death
Once hospitalized and fearing for his life, the Rev. Timothy Cole, who was the first known covid-19 patient in the District of Columbia last year, will soon remind the parishioners of Christ Church Georgetown of their own mortality. Cole, who received oxygen during an 18-day hospital stay in March, said his sense of taste seems slightly different now, but he is otherwise healthy. On Wednesday, he will sanitize his hands before swiping ashes on foreheads in the sign of the cross to mark the beginning of the season of Lent. "When you're immediately out of the hospital, you are so delighted by ordinary things. After a period, you go back and take it for granted," Cole said. "Ashes are a powerful reminder of the fragility of life." Typically, on Ash Wednesday, church leaders in liturgical traditions across the globe remind parishioners of their human mortality by saying something like "Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return." President Biden, a lifelong Catholic, annually receives ashes in the sign of a cross on his forehead. In 2020, the holiday fell on the day after federal officials said Americans should brace for the spread of the virus. Now, with nearly half a million Americans dead, many Catholic and Protestant leaders are adjusting this year to avoid the spread of the coronavirus.
 
The coronavirus is here to stay -- here's what that means
In January, Nature asked more than 100 immunologists, infectious-disease researchers and virologists working on the coronavirus whether it could be eradicated. Almost 90% of respondents think that the coronavirus will become endemic -- meaning that it will continue to circulate in pockets of the global population for years to come. "Eradicating this virus right now from the world is a lot like trying to plan the construction of a stepping-stone pathway to the Moon. It's unrealistic," says Michael Osterholm, an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. But failure to eradicate the virus does not mean that death, illness or social isolation will continue on the scales seen so far. The future will depend heavily on the type of immunity people acquire through infection or vaccination and how the virus evolves. Influenza and the four human coronaviruses that cause common colds are also endemic: but a combination of annual vaccines and acquired immunity means that societies tolerate the seasonal deaths and illnesses they bring without requiring lockdowns, masks and social distancing. The path that SARS-CoV-2 might take to become an endemic virus is challenging to predict, but society does have some control over it. In the next year or two, countries can reduce transmission with control measures until enough people have been vaccinated either to achieve herd immunity or to drastically reduce the severity of infections.
 
COVID variants could bring 'staggering' fourth wave of pandemic
COVID-19 infection and hospitalization rates are falling nationwide, but experts talk in dire terms about what will happen if variants of the virus are allowed to surge this spring. "I'm very worried we're letting our foot off the brakes," said Atul Gawande, a surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital and a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The U.S. saw a spike in cases last spring, mainly in the Northeast, last summer in the South, and November through January pretty much everywhere. As the nation's death toll from COVID-19 approaches half a million people, public health experts said they dread the possibility of a fourth wave. "We are done with it, but it is not done with us," added Dr. Luciana Borio, former acting chief scientist of the Food and Drug Administration. Three state legislatures lifted mask mandates in recent days, and New York and Massachusetts eased restrictions on restaurant seating in time for Valentine's Day. "It's like we're trying our best to help the virus rather than stopping it," said Theodora Hatziioannou, a virologist and research associate professor at the Rockefeller University in New York City.
 
N.A.A.C.P. Sues Trump and Giuliani Over Election Fight and Jan. 6 Riot
The N.A.A.C.P. on Tuesday morning filed a federal lawsuit against former President Donald J. Trump and his personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani, claiming that they violated a 19th century statute when they tried to prevent the certification of the election on Jan. 6. The civil rights organization brought the suit on behalf of Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi. Other Democrats in Congress -- including Representatives Hank Johnson of Georgia and Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey -- are expected to join as plaintiffs in the coming weeks, according to the N.A.A.C.P. The lawsuit contends that Mr. Trump and Mr. Giuliani violated the Ku Klux Klan Act, an 1871 statute that includes protections against violent conspiracies that interfered with Congress's constitutional duties; the suit also names the Proud Boys, the far-right nationalist group, and the Oath Keepers militia group. In an interview on Monday, Mr. Thompson said he would not have brought the suit against Mr. Trump if the Senate had voted to convict him in last week's impeachment trial. "I feared for my life," Mr. Thompson said. "Not a day passes that I don't think about this incident. I was committed to seeing justice brought to this situation."
 
GOP tries to weaponize pandemic-exhausted parents against President Biden
Distraught and exhausted parents are emerging as a new class of voters that could torment President Joe Biden -- and the White House is moving quickly to head off the pain. Nearing a year into the pandemic, Biden's advisers and allies recognize that they need to respond to the spiraling angst felt by families or risk driving them into the arms of waiting Republicans. It is a crucial test for Biden and Democrats as they try to consolidate their gains from the 2020 election. The pandemic has disrupted lives and exacerbated inequities and a raft of public and private surveys show clear political potholes and opportunities because of it. Within the GOP, there is a belief that the pandemic and resulting turmoil make Biden and Democratic incumbents especially vulnerable among those demographics. Republicans see room to capitalize on the grim public health and economic situation the White House inherited from Donald Trump by trying to put Democrats on the defensive for being too removed from the pain or too slow-moving to address it.
 
Sen. Ben Sasse: GOP Must Persuade Voters It Has '2030 Agenda, Not A 20-Minute Twitter Agenda'
Sen. Ben Sasse is one of seven Republicans who crossed party lines to vote to convict former President Donald Trump during his historic second impeachment trial. The effort fell 10 votes short of the 67 needed to convict but served to fortify the junior senator from Nebraska's bona fides as a conservative with an independent streak and put him further at odds with party leaders back home. In a wide-ranging interview with NPR's Morning Edition on Tuesday, Sasse said the Republican Party is in a battle between what he calls "conservatism and short-term-ism." He added that the GOP must plan for the future and how, in his view, impeachments are not about the individual office holder, but about the behavior the nation wants presidents to exhibit while occupying the White House. Sasse believes the party must take a broader view about where it ultimately wants to go. "I think it's important to give a frank assessment of where the party of Lincoln and Reagan is right now," he added. "I think there's a whole bunch of stuff the party of Lincoln and Reagan needs to do to persuade people we have a 2030 agenda, not a 20-minutue Twitter agenda."
 
UM campus closes for second day due to winter weather
The University of Mississippi announced on Monday, Feb. 15 that the Oxford campus will close for a second day in a row due to winter weather. Regional campuses will make separate announcements on the state of their campus and status of when class will resume. "Due to winter weather and travel conditions, the UM Oxford campus will be closed Tuesday," the emergency email read. The Oxford Police Department has continued to urge citizens to stay off of the roads unless absolutely necessary, and Mayor Robyn Tannehill issued a statement about the state of the roads as well. "We have gotten many questions on the road condition and what the City of Oxford is doing to treat the roads," the statement said. "Short answer: Everything we can." OPD also closed two roads off of Jefferson Avenue. Both Bramlett Boulevard and 9th Street are inaccessible due to the accumulation of snow. No roads have been closed on campus at this time.
 
Students storm Vaught-Hemingway for 'no real rhyme or reason'
Hundreds of students gathered in the Grove for a snowball fight on Monday afternoon that led to rushing Vaught-Hemingway Stadium and at least two charges of trespassing as winter weather shut down businesses, schools and roads. A group message organized on Sunday afternoon via GroupMe called for members to "add anyone and everyone" for a snowball fight in the Grove at 1 p.m. on Monday. The group message garnered over 3,500 members by Monday afternoon. "We're trying to make this snowball fight the biggest ever in Mississippi," read one message from the group owner, who declined to comment. Of the hundreds of students who attended the snowball fight, few were following city and university COVID guidelines. Despite the excitement around an organized snowball fight, many of the students present were not throwing snowballs. The atmosphere in the Grove felt similar to that of tailgating at a home football game. Around 1:45 p.m., after the crowd migrated to the Grove stage, students began chanting "Rush the Vaught!" and frantically dashed for Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Students were still inside the stadium when University Police Department arrived to break up the crowd around 1:55 p.m.
 
U. of Arkansas, Fayetteville's annual giving declines, survey says
Data collected as part of a national survey on giving to colleges and universities shows a decline in the dollar amount collected by the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in fiscal year 2020 while a few schools in the state boosted their fundraising totals. New gifts and endowments created by giving have become a vital revenue source for public colleges as well as private institutions. The nonprofit Council for Advancement and Support of Education's yearly report released last week outlines trends in philanthropy, estimating that fundraising totals for U.S. universities dipped to $49.5 billion in fiscal 2020 compared to $49.6 billion the previous year. Data reported in the survey reflects what's known as a "cash basis" method of counting, meaning that only the portion of multi-year gifts or grants collected within the year are included in the yearly total. Using that counting method, UA-Fayetteville gifts declined to $102.8 million from $136.6 million in fiscal year 2019, according to data provided to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette by the council.
 
U. of Missouri goes remote Tuesday
You should probably stay inside as much as possible this week. Columbia is expected to have another week of freezing temperatures and moderate snow. Columbia Public Schools announced it would not be in session Tuesday because of inclement weather. CPS was closed Monday for the President's Day holiday. The University of Missouri announced it would continue to operate remotely Tuesday, after holding classes completely online Monday. This is the first time MU has gone remote since announcing its new policy in December. The National Weather Service reported a temperature of minus-3 degrees Fahrenheit this morning with a high of 1 degree Fahrenheit. The Missouri State Senate and House also canceled their sessions for Monday and the Senate has canceled for the rest of the week, according to a tweet from Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden. The House canceled for Tuesday and has not made a decision for the rest of the week.
 
Governors propose cuts, increases and other changes for higher ed funding, depending on the state
Many states slashed higher education funding last year, fearing the pandemic would torpedo state revenues. The higher education sector, no stranger to steep cuts during economic recessions, braced for further budget reductions in the 2022 fiscal year. But many public higher education officials' worst fears have not been realized -- at least not yet, experts say. Governors' proposed state budgets are a mixed bag, with several states pushing to increase higher education funding or at least restore last year's cuts. "We're seeing almost as many budget proposals protecting or bolstering higher ed as we are cutting higher ed," said Sunny Deye, program director for postsecondary education at the National Conference of State Legislatures. Several governors acknowledged higher education is important to economic recovery, Deye said. Unlike in past recessions, many public institutions might not have untapped pricing flexibility, meaning that can't make up any cuts in the state funding by raising tuition.
 
For Town & Gown, a Pandemic Pressure Test
Confronting the pandemic requires a level of coordination between civic officials and college leaders on multiple fronts. Enforcement, public messaging, transportation, and Covid testing are joint challenges for municipal and campus leaders who must set aside their differences to navigate an enduring crisis unlike any they have encountered before. Nationally, the conversation around Covid is shifting from how colleges can make their campuses safe to how they can protect their surrounding communities, too. The University of California at Davis, for example, has taken a particularly expansive view, offering free coronavirus testing and other resources to tens of thousands of people who live in Davis or work in town, irrespective of whether they're affiliated with the university. Davis's approach has a hefty price tag, but other colleges are making less costly changes. The University of Colorado at Boulder, for example, has updated its student conduct code to include public-health orders, requiring students to follow them whether they are on or off campus. Last semester, the SUNY-Oswego campus helped its local mayor establish testing for the city's essential workers, including police officers and firefighters.
 
The Shrinking of the Scholarly Ranks
When a smattering of doctoral programs announced last spring that they wouldn't admit an incoming class in fall 2021, the idea felt drastic. To some, it felt desperate. But as the summer and fall wore on, more departments announced that they, too, would close their application portals. Nor were the pauses limited to small programs at less wealthy institutions; doctoral programs at seven of eight Ivy League schools and a coterie of other high-profile institutions decided to forgo new cohorts. A list of admissions suspensions maintained by The Chronicle since September now includes 131 programs. Still more programs admitted smaller cohorts than normal. These twin phenomena -- an admissions standstill and a shaken-up research enterprise -- might seem relatively minor when set against what else the pandemic has wrought. Budgetary carnage. Possible college closures. Downstream threats to college completion. But, surveying the years following the pandemic, observers of graduate education acknowledge an alarming possibility: that, in the United States, frozen admissions, curtailed graduate cohorts, and stalled-out research could severely squeeze the ranks of professional researchers for at least the short term, and maybe longer. In other words, the pandemic may have set about a shrinking of the scholar class.
 
Resident assistants, campus housing staffers push for access to coronavirus vaccines
As colleges allow more students to live on campuses again, staffers who keep dorms running say their jobs carry more responsibilities -- and new risks. In addition to hosting virtual floor events and mediating conflicts, resident assistants, community directors and other residential staff members say they're counseling students thinking about suicide or struggling with homesickness. In many cases, they're also enforcing mask-wearing and social distancing and escorting their sick peers to isolation housing. While schools have made some modifications -- assigning students to single bedrooms, requiring negative coronavirus tests before move-in and issuing masks and other protective gear to staff members -- some campus housing staff members are pushing to make sure they're vaccinated alongside other essential workers. "When we think of front-line workers, we think of housekeepers, maintenance workers, dining staff," said Valronica Scales, director of resident life at the University of Maryland at College Park. "Oftentimes, those that are forgotten are RAs. A lot of them have said, 'We're concerned about our own safety.' "
 
New report argues diversity and selectivity in teaching programs aren't mutually exclusive
Efforts to diversify the teacher workforce have long relied on the unfair and unproven belief that admissions standards for college teacher training programs had to be lowered in order to attract people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds, according to the National Council for Teacher Quality. Ten states have eliminated a basic skills test requirement for aspiring teachers to enter preparation programs just in the last five years in an effort to increase the number of Black and Hispanic candidates, a new report published today by the council said. Policy makers' decisions to drop the tests were due to a "problematic narrative" backed by federal regulations published by the U.S. Department of Education under President Obama in 2016, the report said. The regulations permitted states to lower the selection requirements "to allow programs to recruit a more diverse student body" as long as the programs "maintain a high bar to exit." Kate Walsh, president of NCTQ, said it's time to set aside such notions and practices. "There's a disturbing trend in the U.S. to drop any academic standards for getting into teaching," Walsh said. "We need to put to rest the idea that you need to achieve diversity by putting to rest standards for academic aptitude."
 
Privatizing jobs undermines PERS
Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford writes: Unintended consequences? Or a deep state conspiracy in Mississippi? That specter arose with bills introduced in the Mississippi Legislature to privatize Alcohol Beverage Control services and the operation of state parks. ... We know a lot about privatizing prisons, outsourcing prison services, and outsourcing child welfare services because of related scandals. News reports also show child support collection services seem to have been successfully privatized, school and colleges have privatized cafeteria services, and universities have privatized book stores. We also know this. Every school, college, and state job privatized or outsourced undermines the stability of the state retirement system -- PERS. You see, a foundational piece of PERS' financial model is for total employee wages to average a 3% increase compounded annually. That takes both employee and wage growth. But since 2010, the increase in total employee wages has averaged less than 1%. Why? The total number of employees covered by PERS has been falling, down 10% since 2010.


SPORTS
 
College athletes could be paid under new Mississippi legislation
Mississippi is the latest to join a movement of states across America to grant college athletes the right to be compensated from endorsements and commercial endeavors. A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers in both the Senate and House passed separate bills that would allow college athletes to contract with an agent for their names, images or likenesses to be used, for instance, to endorse a product and receive compensation for that endorsement. College athletes are currently strictly prohibited by the NCAA, college athletics' governing body, from receiving any compensation. Bills in differing versions have passed both chambers of the Mississippi Legislature this year. Proponents have warned the state's universities could suffer in recruiting -- both athletically and academically -- if lawmakers don't act this year. "As the old saying goes, we need to hold our nose and support it," said Rep. Scott Bounds, R-Philadelphia, who rang a Mississippi State University cowbell from the well before he presented the bill to the House. "Every day this is not addressed, we are losing ground to institutions around us. We do not need to get behind the eight ball further." The bill -- called the Mississippi Intercollegiate Athletic Compensation Act -- passed the House 93-19. A similar bill passed the Senate with no dissenting votes. At some point in the process, the bills must be reconciled for one to become law.
 
Reports: Mississippi State, Ole Miss baseball opening day pushed back
Fans of Mississippi State and Ole Miss baseball will have to wait an extra day to see the Bulldogs and Rebels play for the first time in nearly a full calendar year. The two team's 2021 season was supposed to start Friday at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, as part of the StateFarm College Baseball Showdown. The event has been pushed back a day because of inclement weather in Arlington and across the south, however. No. 7 Mississippi State is now scheduled to play No. 10 Texas at 11 a.m. Saturday. No. 5 Ole Miss will play No. 11 TCU at 3 p.m. Steve Robertson of 247Sports first reported the news. Kendall Rogers of D1 Baseball confirmed it. Mississippi State takes on TCU on Sunday at 11, and Ole Miss faces No. 4 Texas Tech at 3. The Bulldogs finish the three-game set Monday against Texas Tech at 11, while Ole Miss will go against Texas at 3.
 
Mississippi State men's, women's basketball games against Auburn, Tennessee called off due to weather
The wintry weather in Mississippi has taken its toll on the Mississippi State basketball programs. The men's team was scheduled to play Tuesday night at Auburn. The women's team was supposed to host Tennessee at 4 p.m. Neither game will be played as scheduled because of inclement weather in Starkville. Mississippi was rocked by a winter storm Monday that left icy, hazardous conditions on roadways across the state. The SEC released an official statement on the postponement of the women's game Monday evening. The league did the same for the men's game less than an hour later. Ben Howland's Bulldogs will now play at Auburn on Thursday at 4 p.m. Coach Nikki McCray-Penson's team has played once in February and twice since Jan. 18. Her Bulldogs (8-6, 3-5 SEC) are riding a four-game losing streak and are scheduled to play next at home against Auburn on Thursday.
 
Mississippi State men's basketball game with Auburn postponed to Thursday
Due to poor weather conditions, Mississippi State men's basketball's road contest with Auburn, originally scheduled for 8 p.m. Tuesday, has been postponed due to inclement weather. The new tipoff time will be 4 p.m. Thursday, the Southeastern Conference announced. MSU's scheduled contest against Ole Miss in Oxford Saturday will not be impacted. "It is going to be very difficult to get around here tomorrow," Mississippi State coach Ben Howland told reporters Monday. "The roads are slick and the airports are closed, both today and tomorrow. The airport runways are frozen." Howland added his team was unable to practice Monday because of the ice on the roads in Starkville, but was hopeful his team would return to the court for practice on Tuesday. Somewhat surprisingly, this is the first postponement for MSU this season despite partaking in rigorous COVID-19 testing protocols. Both Mississippi State and Auburn enter the contest with a 11-11 overall record and 5-8 mark in SEC play.
 
Mississippi State women's basketball game against No. 21 Tennessee postponed due to weather
Mississippi State has seen another game disappear from its ledger. The Southeastern Conference announced Monday afternoon that the Bulldogs' game against No. 21 Tennessee scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed due to inclement weather in the Starkville area. No make up date has been announced. MSU has now had eight games postponed or cancelled entirely this winter. Six of those games were postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19-related issues, while the most recent postponement is the second related to weather. Monday's announcement marks the second time MSU and Tennessee's game has been postponed after the Feb. 4 meeting was canceled due to COVID-19-related issues in the Volunteers' program. MSU was supposed to play in-state rival Ole Miss on Sunday, but the game was also postponed due to the current winter storm that is making its way across the Magnolia State.
 
Inclement weather postpones Lady Vols basketball at Mississippi State
Tennessee's women's basketball game at Mississippi State on Tuesday has been postponed because of inclement weather and travel issues, UT announced Monday. A makeup date has not been set. The No. 19 Lady Vols (12-3, 6-3 SEC) were still in Texas late Monday following Sunday's game at Texas A&M because of the winter storm that dumped snow across the south on Monday, according to UT. It's the second time the game against Mississippi State has been rescheduled. Originally scheduled for Feb. 4, it was moved to Tuesday because of COVID-19 issues. The Lady Vols are scheduled to play No. 3 South Carolina (17-2, 12-0) at Thompson-Boling Arena on Thursday (7 p.m., SEC Network).
 
Mississippi State softball's game against Southeastern Louisiana postponed
Thunder and Lightning have met their match: ice and snow. The star duo of Mia Davidson and Fa Leilua and the rest of the Mississippi State softball team won't be taking the field Wednesday against Southeastern Louisiana in a game scheduled for a 4 p.m. first pitch at Nusz Park. The Bulldogs announced Tuesday morning that the game was postponed due to inclement weather. Plans to make up the contest have yet to be announced. It's the second cancellation in a row for Mississippi State (2-0), which also had its Sunday series finale against Miami (Ohio) wiped off the schedule because of freezing temperatures. The Bulldogs beat the Redhawks 10-9 and 10-3 in a doubleheader Saturday. Mississippi State will host the Snowman (Alex Wilcox Memorial) tournament this weekend at Nusz Park against Missouri State, Southern Illinois and Stephen F. Austin. The Bulldogs open play against the Bears at 3 p.m. Friday and face the Salukis at 5:30 p.m.
 
Former Auburn football coach Gus Malzahn hired at UCF
It turns out former Auburn head football coach Gus Malzahn won't be out of the game for long. UCF officially hired Malzahn on Monday, a little over two months after he was relieved of his duties at Auburn. The news means the 55-year-old will take over a Knights football program that has won 88 games over the past nine seasons. Malzahn lands at UCF after posting a 68-35 record over eight seasons at Auburn. In that time, the Tigers never had a losing season, posted two double-digit win seasons, won the SEC West twice, captured the 2013 SEC championship and played in the national title game in that same season. Malzahn said Monday he plans on calling plays for the Knights, something he did at two different points in his tenure at Auburn. "I've been coaching 30 years, and I truly believe this is one of the most exciting moments I've had in my whole career. I'm honored to be the head football coach here at UCF and be part of the Knight Nation," Malzahn said at his introductory press conference. "When this job came open, I told my wife [Kristi] that this is one we're going to be very interested in. Then when Terry [Mohajir] got the athletic director [job], this is one I wanted to full-court press." Malzahn's hire reunites him with Mohajir, who was the athletic director at Arkansas State in Malzahn's lone season as Red Wolves head coach.
 
Gators begin practice Thursday, but no spring game this year
The Florida football team starts spring practice this week, but there will be no Orange & Blue Game for the second straight year. The Gators had their spring game canceled last April, along with every practice, due to COVID-19. The team will hold their first spring practice Thursday, but UF coach Dan Mullen revealed Monday that the final scrimmage won't take place in front of fans at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. "We start practice this Thursday. Our last practice will be March the 20th. We will not have a spring game this year. I think that's a lot of just the COVID restrictions and everything going on that way to not have another gathering with the spring game right now," Mullen said during the first virtual meeting of his spring speaking tour. UF athletics director Scott Stricklin later tweeted, "There will be Gator football on the SEC Network this spring in some form, and looking forward to hopefully having Gator Nation back together this fall in the Swamp." Fans will still have opportunities to watch the Gators during spring ball via live streaming.
 
Vanderbilt allowing limited number of students to attend Kentucky game Wednesday at Memorial Gym
When Vanderbilt basketball hosts Kentucky at Memorial Gym on Wednesday night, there will be spectators. A select number of senior undergraduate students will be allowed to attend the game (6 p.m., SEC Network) when Vanderbilt (6-10, 2-8 SEC) hosts the Wildcats (6-13, 5-7). The Commodores have played all of their home games without fans, except for family members of the basketball program. The specific total of students that will be admitted into Memorial Gym is unclear. But the limited contingent of students will be socially distanced throughout the seating and required to wear masks at all times. All Vanderbilt students are tested for COVID-19 twice each week. Following Wednesday's game, Vanderbilt has just one home contest remaining on its schedule, against Ole Miss on Feb. 27 (2:30 p.m., SEC Network). It is unclear if Vanderbilt's postponed games against Texas A&M and Tennessee from January will be rescheduled.



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