| Monday, July 21, 2025 |
| Working smarter not harder, DARPA's Albatross program takes off at MSU | |
 | An albatross is a bird known for flying in wind currents and other weather conditions for thousands of miles without having to flap its wings. Could that same method of flight also be used to reduce the energy needed for planes? The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Albatross program, which is being led by faculty of different research areas from Mississippi State University, is working to answer that question. The multi-university program also includes faculty from the University of Texas at El Paso and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. "Every time you design an airplane or a system, you're trying to optimize," said Raspet's Principle Investigator Matthew Berk. "And essentially this project is, what if we can use these natural sources of energy in the atmosphere to extend this range and endurance, and rather than getting a few percent of improvement from a slightly better engine ... you can get 50 or 75% reduction in energy usage for doing the same mission just by intelligently planning the flight." Jamie Dyer, a professor of meteorology and climatology, has been working with Earthcast Technologies to develop the weather modeling system which helps identify flight paths with turbulence. Christopher Goodin, an associate research professor with MSU's Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems, has been leading a group of six other researchers developing cameras, radar and LiDAR sensors, which emit rotating laser beams to determine the range between objects, for the project. |
| Mississippi State Forensic Unit aids in La'Datra Williams case | |
 | Officials said Mississippi State University's (MSU) Forensic Recovery Unit worked on the case of a missing Kansas woman whose body was recovered on July 14 from a shallow grave in Lawrence County. "Cases like this are always very difficult, but this is what we do -- use our archaeological expertise in crime scene investigation to serve families who need closure, assist law enforcement with recovery and identification of human remains, and give back to our communities and state through our service and specialization," said Jimmy Hardin, director of MSU's Cobb Institute of Archaeology. Hardin said the university's Forensic Recovery Unit is a collaborative entity involving the MSU Police Department and faculty researchers affiliated with both the Cobb Institute and Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures. MSU also assists with geophysical technics to investigate ground disturbances, including ground-penetrating radar and magnetic gradiometers. The Mississippi Chemical Laboratory and several units have the capabilities to process and analyze materials for Mississippi law enforcement. |
| Miss. State to offer first-of-its-kind construction management graduate degree | |
 | Next month, Mississippi State University will begin offering an advanced degree in the field of construction. The Master of Science in Construction was recently approved by the Board of Trustees for the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning. The school said it will give graduates the skills they need to take on leadership roles in the field. "Drawing on the strengths of the existing undergraduate program, the new Master of Science in Construction Management creates exciting new opportunities for students interested in this booming sector of the economy," said Dean of the College of Architecture, Art and Design Angi Elsea Bourgeois. Two tracks will be offered under the program, one focused on research and another more diverse professional track. The professional track will suit professionals in the sectors of architecture, construction and engineering. The degree path will be housed under the Department of Building Construction Science and will be the state's first and only graduate-level construction management program. |
| State's only graduate construction degree program to launch at MSU | |
| Mississippi State University is launching a new degree program next month. The new Master of Science in Construction Management degree program will prepare students for leadership roles in the construction industry. The new program was recently approved by the Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning and is the state's only graduate degree in construction management. Students can take one of two tracks in the program: a research or professional track. The program is now accepting students for fall semester. The deadline to apply is August 1. These courses can be completed online or in Starkville. |
| Second Possumtown Book Fest welcomes 19 authors to Columbus | |
| Book lovers in Northeast Mississippi will have the opportunity to meet authors representing genres spanning nonfiction, poetry, romance and more on Aug. 16 at the second Possumtown Book Fest. The festival will feature eight literary panels throughout the day, starting at 9:15 a.m., as well as a children's program and local author showcase running concurrently during the morning. Marshall Ramsey will be the featured children's book author. In all, more than 50 authors are expected to participate at the Possumtown Book Fest, with more to be announced in the coming weeks. All panels and activities are free and open to the public. Last year, nearly 1,000 people attended the inaugural festival. Becky Hagenston is the director of the Creative Writing program at Mississippi State University. An award-winning author of four short story collections, her most recent book "The Age of Discovery" was published by Mad Creek Books in 2021. |
| The U.S. Economy Is Regaining Its Swagger | |
 | When President Trump slapped tariffs on nations across the globe this spring, many economists feared higher prices and spending cuts would flatten the economy. Consumer sentiment collapsed. The S&P 500 stock index fell by 19% between February and April. The world held its breath and waited for the bottom to drop out. But that didn't happen. Now businesses and consumers are regaining their swagger, and evidence is mounting that those who held back are starting to splurge again. The stock market is reaching record highs. The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index, which tumbled in April to its lowest reading in almost three years, has begun climbing again. Retail sales are up more than economists had forecast, and sky-high inflation hasn't materialized -- at least not yet. "We've been surprised again and again by consumers," said Jonathan Millar, senior U.S. economist at Barclays. In April, Millar predicted that the U.S. economy would likely go into recession this year. He now expects it to keep growing, albeit at a slow pace. There are still signs of turbulence in the U.S. economy. Growth has been subdued. Inflation, while down from pandemic peaks, is still higher than the Federal Reserve would like. Manufacturing activity shrank for the fourth straight month in June, and immigration raids are damping spending among Hispanic consumers. Still, companies and consumers have brightened their outlook from earlier this year. |
| Less selection, higher prices: How tariffs are shaping the holiday shopping season | |
 | With summer in full swing in the United States, retail executives are sweating a different season. It's less than 22 weeks before Christmas, a time when businesses that make and sell consumer goods usually nail down their holiday orders and prices. But President Donald Trump's vacillating trade policies, part of his effort to revive the nation's diminished manufacturing base and to reduce the U.S. deficit in exported goods, have complicated those end-of-year plans. Balsam Hill, which sells artificial trees and other decorations online, expects to publish fewer and thinner holiday catalogs because the featured products keep changing with the tariff -- import tax -- rates the president sets, postpones and revises. "The uncertainty has led us to spend all our time trying to rejigger what we're ordering, where we're bringing it in, when it's going to get here," Mac Harman, CEO of Balsam Hill parent company Balsam Brands, said. "We don't know which items we're going to have to put in the catalog or not." Months of confusion over which foreign countries' products may become more expensive to import has left a question mark over the holiday shopping season. U.S. retailers often begin planning for the winter holidays in January and typically finalize the bulk of their orders by the end of June. The seesawing tariffs already have factored into their calculations. |
| Only 78 absentee ballots requested so far for Dist 41 House race | |
| There's just two weeks left to vote absentee in the special election for the District 41 state representative seat. Incumbent Rep. Kabir Karriem faces Pierre Beard, former Ward 4 Columbus Councilman, in the Democratic primary election. No Republican is running, so the primary winner will take the seat. The deadline to submit an absentee ballot in person for the primary race is noon Aug. 2. Mail-in absentee ballots must be post marked by or before Aug. 5 and must be received by the county no later than Aug. 12. Lowndes County Deputy Circuit Clerk Ann Marie Higgins said 53 absentee ballots have been returned so far, out of a total 78 absentee ballots requested. Higgins said the number of absentee ballots requested for the election is on par with the county's expectations. "For normal elections, that would be really low, but considering it's a special race, this is about what we expected," Higgins said. |
| USDA Removes Socially Disadvantaged Label from Federal Aid Programs | |
| The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced it will no longer consider race or gender when deciding who receives certain benefits under its programs. This means the "socially disadvantaged" designation -- used to support minority farmers and women -- will be removed from several federal agriculture programs. This change affects agencies like the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Farm Service Agency (FSA), and the Rural Business-Cooperative Service. These agencies have used the designation to provide better access to credit, land, and support programs for minority and women farmers. USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins stated that moving forward, the department will act impartially, ensuring race or gender does not influence decisions in aid distribution. However, this decision has raised concerns among some leaders. Rep. Shontel Brown of Ohio, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, pointed out that the socially disadvantaged category has historically helped minority farmers gain access to vital resources and land ownership. She believes removing it may create new challenges for these farmers. |
| US farm agency fires 70 foreign researchers following national security review | |
| The U.S. Department of Agriculture said it has fired 70 foreign contract researchers after a national security review intended to secure the U.S. food supply from adversaries including China, Russia, North Korea and Iran. "USDA has completed a thorough review of individuals authorized to work on contracts with the department and identified approximately 70 individuals from countries of concern," a spokesperson said. "The individuals working on these contracts from countries of concern will no longer be able to work on USDA projects." U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on July 8 had announced a farm security plan that included efforts to bar purchases of U.S. farmland by nationals of the four countries, and to terminate any existing research agreements with them. Rollins said the moves were necessary to secure the U.S. food supply. The contractors had worked at the Agricultural Research Service, the in-house research arm of the USDA, said Thomas Henderson, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 1657, which represents ARS workers in Albany, California. Most of those dismissed were Chinese post-doctoral researchers on two-year contracts with the agency, and who were already subject to vetting before being hired, Henderson said. |
| Thune seeks to kick off appropriations on Senate floor | |
 | The big question on Capitol Hill this week is whether Senate Democrats agree to help kick off the appropriations process. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has set up a Tuesday test vote on taking up the first fiscal 2026 spending bill, the generally popular measure funding military construction projects and the Department of Veterans Affairs. But this is no normal time and it was not immediately clear if Thune would get the needed Democratic caucus votes to clear the 60-vote threshold needed to break a filibuster on the motion to proceed. "We are going to need to get appropriations done. That will require some cooperation from Democrats, and hopefully they will be willing to make sure that the government is funded." Thune said on Fox News Channel's "Sunday Morning Futures." Thune rattled off his upcoming legislative to-do list, including appropriations, the annual National Defense Authorization Act and a new Russia sanctions package. "Russia sanctions is something that is on our agenda, and we're kind of waiting, working with the White House and coordinating schedules to make sure that we do that at the right time in terms of their negotiations between Russia and Ukraine," Thune said. "And so there's a whole series of things, including the appropriation bills that we want to get done, but funding the government has to be done before the end of the fiscal year, which is October the 1st, and so we've got to figure out a way to start trying to move appropriation bills." |
| 2026 Senate map is tough for Democrats, but Republicans have their own headaches | |
| Republicans are encountering early headaches in Senate races viewed as pivotal to maintaining the party's majority in next year's midterm elections, with recruitment failures, open primaries, infighting and a president who has been sitting on the sidelines. Democrats still face an uphill battle. They need to net four seats to retake the majority, and most of the 2026 contests are in states that Republican President Donald Trump easily won last November. But Democrats see reasons for hope in Republicans' challenges. They include a nasty primary in Texas that could jeopardize a seat Republicans have held for decades. In North Carolina and Georgia, the GOP still lacks a clear field of candidates. Trump's influence dials up the uncertainty as he decides whether to flex his influential endorsement to stave off intraparty fights. Republicans stress that it remains early in the election cycle and say there is still plenty of time for candidates to establish themselves and Trump to wade in. The president, said White House political director James Blair, has been working closely with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. "I won't get ahead of the president but look, him and leader Thune have been very aligned. I expect them to be aligned and work closely," he said. Trump's timing, allies say, also reflects the far more disciplined approach by him and his political operation, which are determined for Republicans to gain seats in both the Senate and the House. |
| Republicans' food aid cuts will hit grocers in many towns that backed Trump | |
 | The deep cuts Republicans made to federal nutrition programs this summer are poised to devastate independent grocery stores that are central to many low-income communities, including those that voted for President Donald Trump. Food aid recipients often make up the majority of small grocers' customer base in remote areas and food deserts -- places that have limited options for fresh, healthy food. But a central part of paying for the GOP policy megabill Trump signed on July 4 relied on slashing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the nation's largest anti-hunger initiative. Even though some provisions in the new law won't go into effect for another three years, others, like expanded work requirements for SNAP participants, could kick some families out of the program and hit the bottom lines of small grocery stores within months. It's a chain reaction set off in Washington that's likely to reshape how people access food in more isolated communities even if they don't use federal assistance. "I lean pretty heavily right most of the time, but one of the things that I do lean to the left on is we're a pretty wealthy country, we can help people out," said St. Johns, Arizona, Mayor Spence Udall, whose town overwhelmingly supported Trump in 2024. "The businesses that will be affected most by this are the businesses that are most disadvantaged, that are struggling, and you're going to find that in the rural markets," he added. |
| Under Trump, a New Focus for a Birth Control Program: Helping Women Get Pregnant | |
 | The Trump administration intends to use funds from a decades-old federal program that provides birth control to low-income women to ramp up efforts to help aspiring mothers get pregnant, signaling a shift in policy that will appease both religious conservatives and adherents of its Make America Healthy Again agenda. The first sign of the change appeared on a little-noticed government website last week, in a post offering a $1.5 million grant to start an "infertility training center." The center would promote "holistic" approaches to combating infertility, such as menstrual cycle education classes that women also take to try to prevent pregnancy without using birth control. The announcement of the training center is the clearest sign yet that the administration plans to take a new approach with the federal family planning program known as Title X, and point it more toward combating infertility, a goal that President Trump has made part of his agenda. Jamie H. Bardwell, a co-founder of Converge, an organization that administers Title X grants in Mississippi and Tennessee, said her group already focuses on infertility. "We have emphasized to everyone who will listen to us, including our members of Congress, that basic infertility counseling is one of our core Title X services that we offer through telehealth, including shipments of free ovulation test kits, and infertility testing and counseling," she said. "We should be helping women get pregnant, if that's what they want." |
| Trump administration shuts down EPA's scientific research arm | |
 | The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to shutter the agency's scientific research arm that provides expertise for environmental policies and regulations, as part of the Trump administration's continuing downsizing of the federal government. The agency is closing the Office of Research and Development, which analyzes dangers posed by a variety of hazards, including toxic chemicals, climate change, smog, wildfires, indoor air contaminants, water pollution, watershed destruction and drinking water pollutants. The office also manages grant programs that fund universities and private companies. "Under President Trump's leadership, EPA has taken a close look at our operations to ensure the agency is better equipped than ever to deliver on our core mission of protecting human health and the environment while powering the great American comeback," said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin in a statement announcing the plan Friday. "This reduction in force will ensure we can better fulfill that mission while being responsible stewards of your hard-earned tax dollars." In addition, the agency is moving ahead with a plan to create a new "Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions," the EPA says. |
| Federal judge temporarily blocks Mississippi's new DEI ban | |
| A federal judge has temporarily paused enforcement of the state law that prohibits diversity, equity and inclusion programs from Mississippi public schools and universities. U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate on Sunday approved the request for a temporary restraining order sought by a coalition of civil rights and legal organizations on behalf of students, parents and educators. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Mississippi Center for Justice are representing the plaintiffs, who filed the lawsuit alongside other groups on June 9 against the state's education boards. Wingate heard arguments on June 24 from top lawyers from both organizations, as well as Special Assistant Attorney General Rex Shannon, who represented the state-agency defendants. The order is in effect for 14 days, and allows Wingate to extend it for an additional 14 days. Next, the plaintiffs plan to seek a preliminary injunction -- a longer-lasting court order that would continue to freeze the state law. The state could appeal Wingate's decision to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, though it's unclear if they will do so. Both parties will be back in federal court on Wednesday to make their cases about a preliminary injunction. |
| Some Alcorn students at Lorman to be housed in hotel while dorm repairs conclude | |
| Due to necessary repairs, some students attending the Lorman Campus of Alcorn State University will be housed in hotel rooms for about 123 days. The matter was approved during a special called meeting of the Board of Trustees for the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning on Friday afternoon. From August 12 until December 14, about 100 students will be housed in 50 rooms at the Magnolia Bluffs Hotel in Natchez, which is owned by Magnolia Bluffs Casino. Two additional rooms are also being set aside for university staff who will provide oversight at the hotel, the Board stated. Since the hotel is located about 40 miles from the campus, transportation will be provided, Senior Associate Commissioner for Finance John Pearce noted. He also provided the Board with assurance about the potential for gambling by the students. "Although the Magnolia Bluffs Hotel is owned by the Magnolia Bluffs Casino, it's located on the separate property approximately one mile from the Magnolia Bluffs Casino and no gaming activities are conducted on hotel premises." Pearce explained. The total cost of the contract is anticipated to be $528,900, or $86 per room per night, but it can be canceled with 10-days notice. The contract also includes an extension option with 30-days notice. |
| Peter J. Mohler begins work as U. of Alabama president | |
 | A new era has begun at the University of Alabama. On July 21, Peter J. Mohler officially takes the helm as president of the Tuscaloosa campus. Mohler is the 30th president in UA's 194-year history. He succeeds Stuart R. Bell, who retired after 10 years as UA's top leader. The University of Alabama System board of trustees approved Mohler's hiring on June 16. Before coming to UA, Mohler served as executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge at Ohio State University and chief scientific officer of OSU's Wexner Medical Center. Mohler grew up in a tight-knit family in Grand Junction, Colorado, but the UA presidency won't be his first time in the South, where he's spent much of his academic career. He earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Wake Forest University, where he and his wife Nancy met. They have three children, Eleanor, Caroline and John. He then earned a doctorate in cell and molecular physiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, performed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Duke University, and was later appointed to faculties at Vanderbilt University, and the University of Iowa. |
| U. of Oklahoma to issue virtual student parking passes, license plate recognition system | |
| Starting in the fall semester, the University of Oklahoma Parking and Transportation Services will issue virtual student parking passes, digitally linked to students' license plates. Parking services will use a new license plate recognition system to enforce parking regulations. The system uses software linked to cameras placed on parking service vehicles, making the parking enforcement process more efficient. When the system detects a plate that is not linked to a virtual parking pass, it alerts the parking enforcement officer to issue the proper citation. According to the parking services website, the new virtual permits will allow for a more streamlined permit renewal process and eliminate the $15 replacement fee if the permit is lost. The website also states that at least one license plate should face the outside of the parking spot at all times, so parking service vehicles can view the license plate as they drive through parking lots. Virtual parking passes will only be assigned to student passes. Faculty and staff permits will remain physical to help ensure that students do not park in designated faculty lots. |
| Staffing Shortages at Education Department Hurt College Operations | |
 | Before the Department of Education laid off half its staff in March, college financial aid officers on the west coast could typically help a student track down their missing login information for the federal aid application in a matter of minutes. But now, due to limited hours of agency operation, tracking down a student's Federal Student Aid ID can take days or even weeks; an east coast-based help line, which used to be open until 8 p.m. now closes at 3 p.m. -- or noon Pacific time, according to Diane Cooper, the senior financial aid officer at Northwest Career College in Las Vegas. For Cooper, the reduction in force has upended countless advising sessions and made it difficult to enroll working adult learners with tight schedules. "When I have a student who's driven 30 minutes to get here and then we have this issue, I can't do anything," Cooper said. "When they did this reduction, I don't think they thought about colleges on the west coast." Over the past three months, the financial aid office at Northwest has tried to be proactive and warn students about retrieving their username and password in advance, but not everyone gets the message in time. Difficulties applying for financial aid are just one of the many road bumps students and university staff across the country have faced since Education Secretary Linda McMahon and the Department of Government Efficiency cut the department down to just over 2,000 employees -- about half of what it was during the Biden administration. |
| 460K student loan borrowers to be denied repayment plan | |
| The Education Department will reject nearly a half-million applications from people seeking to make lower payments on their student loans, according to internal documents obtained by POLITICO. The agency will deny 460,000 federal student loan borrowers who selected the lowest monthly option for a payment plan based on their income. They make up about 31 percent of a 1.5 million application backlog for borrowers who are seeking Income-Driven Repayment, one of many options typically available for borrowers having difficulty paying back their loans. An Education Department spokesperson said the lowest monthly payment option was the SAVE Plan, a Biden-era plan that would cap payments at 5 percent of the borrower's discretionary income for undergraduate loans and 10 percent for graduate loans. It has been blocked by the courts since June 2024. "Loan servicers cannot process these applications as SAVE is no longer an option, as it is illegal," a department spokesperson wrote in a statement to POLITICO. The agency is introducing two new payment plans and phasing out the matrix of current options as part of President Donald Trump's sweeping reconciliation legislation. |
| Inside the powerful task force spearheading Trump's assault on colleges, DEI | |
 | In 2021, future vice president JD Vance delivered a speech titled "The Universities Are the Enemy." A few years later, during his campaign, Donald Trump called college leaders "Marxist maniacs." Now their administration is using the full force of the federal government to investigate long-standing conservative complaints about universities, making sweeping demands and cutting billions of dollars in federal funding as it works to bring campuses to heel. The most powerful vehicle for the onslaught has been the Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism. The administration established the task force in February to counter what it describes as widespread failure by universities to protect Jewish students since the start of campus protests against the Israel-Gaza war. In reality, many of the task force's unprecedented demands and punishments have nothing to do with antisemitism. Instead, they seek hiring and programming changes to strip long-standing conservative targets including DEI and a liberal worldview from higher education. |
| Congress Shows Resistance to Trump's Plan to Slash Science Budgets | |
| Researchers and the academic community may have reason to be hopeful about the future of federal funding. Early indications from the appropriations process suggest that both the House and Senate will diverge significantly from the president's federal budget proposal for science and technology for the next fiscal year. In May, the White House released its budget proposal that aims to reduce federal research and development funding by nearly a quarter, according to an analysis from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. It also proposed eliminating funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Congress still has months of negotiations before the start of the next fiscal year on Oct. 1 but, so far, funding for science has received bipartisan support in appropriations meetings -- though the House appears more willing to make significant cuts than the Senate. "Neither bill goes to the extreme of the president's budget," said Debbie Altenburg, vice president of research policy and advocacy at the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. "We are pleased that both the House and the Senate have marked up bills that are above what the president called for." |
| Does Jason White deserve to be cursed or praised? Depends on the issue. | |
| Mississippi Today's Bobby Harrison writes: The dichotomy that is Jason White was on full display during a speech he delivered during a recent lunch meeting of the Mississippi State University Stennis Institute of Government. Some at the meeting most likely cursed House Speaker Jason White because of his work to eliminate the Mississippi income tax and because of his unapologetic support of sending public funds to private schools. Darn that Jason White. But many of the same people would praise the first-term Republican speaker for his past support of expanding Medicaid to provide health insurance for primarily the working poor and for his support of restoring voting rights for people convicted of felonies. Thanks, Jason White, some might say, perhaps begrudgingly. But those people should give White some credit. It was no small feat for White to publicly voice support for Medicaid expansion as he campaigned in 2023 to gather the votes to win the speakership. Before then it was rare for a Republican politician in Mississippi to even utter the words "Medicaid expansion." Theoretically, White could have been putting his political future on the line. |
| Is Trump's will the will of the people? | |
 | Columnist Bill Crawford writes: The U.S. Constitution was our founding fathers' best effort to create a system where the "will of the people" could prevail. They established a congress of representatives of the people to provide that will. Of course, that only yielded the will of the congressional majority not of all people. Still, that was greatly preferred over the will of a monarch or ambitious president. How ironic, then today, when "all the president's men" and women quickly accuse federal judges of thwarting "the will of the people" when they rule against orders by our would-be autocrat President Donald Trump. "Each injunction is an abuse of the rule of law and an attempt to thwart the will of the people," proclaimed Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt recently. It's time to call BS on that. Without a supporting act of Congress, Trump's orders simply represent his will and that of his minions. Indeed, his orders are no more the will of the people than were Joe Biden's orders. Perhaps less. Trump won the 2024 presidential election with 49.8% of the total vote, a plurality. Biden won the 2020 election with 51.3%, a majority. |
SPORTS
| Football: Isaac Smith Earns Media Preseason All-SEC Honors | |
| Mississippi State football's Isaac Smith was named to the 2025 Media Preseason All-SEC Third Team as a defensive back, the League office announced Friday. Smith, who earned Second Team All-SEC honors from the League's coaches last Fall, played in 11 games last season, registering 127 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, three pass break-ups and one fumble recovery. He led the SEC tackles and finished seventh nationally, becoming the third consecutive Mississippi State player to lead the SEC in tackles. He had a career game at No. 7 Tennessee last Fall, earning his first-career 20-tackle game, highlighted by 10 stops in the first quarter. Smith was one of four FBS players in 2024 to have a 20+ tackle game, while being the only Power-4 player to do so. Since 1994, there have only been six 20+ tackle performances for the Bulldogs, three of which have come in the last two seasons. Smith and the Bulldogs will kickoff the 2025 season on Aug. 30 at 11 a.m. (CT) when they travel to Southern Miss. State's first home contest will be on Sept. 6 at 6:30 p.m. (CT) when they welcome Arizona State to Davis Wade Stadium. |
| Isaac Smith feeling more confident in self, Bulldog defense heading into 2025 | |
| While Isaac Smith was busy breaking out last year as a sophomore safety, Mississippi State was struggling to follow as a team. Smith helped carry the weight of a defense that was historically bad for the Bulldogs and the overall record of 2-10 would reflect. In this era of college sports, fans can expect players like that to be on the move, but Smith has stood by the Bulldogs through thick and thin. "I've stuck at Mississippi State through everything because the one thing that I love is loyalty," Smith said. "The fans in Starkville are awesome and feeling that feeling from the coaches made me want to stay and be that face that wanted me to be." Make no mistake that Smith is indeed the face of the defensive unit. As the crown jewel of the Bulldogs' signing class in 2023, Smith was a player that the former State staff could hang their hat on as they beat out LSU, Ole Miss and others for the four-star's services. After missing the spring of his freshman year rehabbing from shoulder surgery, Smith took his lumps as a freshman. "I've really grown a lot more mentally than I have physically. Mentally, overcoming a bunch of obstacles that I dealt with my freshman year, coming into my sophomore year was a lot different," Smith said. |
| Men's Golf: Endicott Finishes Southern Amateur Runner-Up | |
| Bulldog golfer Garrett Endicott finished runner-up at the prestigious Southern Amateur. This year's edition was held at the Blessings Golf Club in Johnson, Arkansas. Endicott got off to a hot start with rounds of 4-under 68 and 5-under 67 to place himself atop the leaderboard. He held the lead after a gritty third round of 1-over and ultimately finished in solo second. This is his second top 10 of the summer, having finished seventh at the Sunnehanna Amateur, and his third top-20 showing in as many starts. Prior to the Southern Amateur, Endicott was ranked 79th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, the highest standing of his career. His top-100 ranking earned him an automatic exemption into the U.S. Amateur in August. The Southern Amateur was first held in 1902 and is considered one of the most prestigious events in amateur golf. Past winners include eventual major champions Bobby Jones, Lanny Wadkins, Ben Crenshaw, Justin Leonard and Webb Simpson. |
| Ole Miss football player Corey Adams is killed in Tennessee shooting | |
| Ole Miss freshman football player Corey Adams was killed in a shooting in Tennessee, the Shelby County Sheriff's Office announced Sunday. Law enforcement officials found Adams with a gunshot wound inside a vehicle at an intersection in Cordova on the outskirts of Memphis late Saturday, the sheriff's office said in a statement. "They provided life-saving measures until Shelby County Fire arrived," the sheriff's office said. "Shelby County Fire personnel later pronounced the victim deceased on the scene." Four other men who suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds in the incident arrived at nearby hospitals in personal vehicles, authorities said. Law enforcement officials have not named any suspects but said they are investigating the shooting as a homicide. Adams, an 18-year-old New Orleans native, had been one of the top defensive linemen recruits in the country. The football program at the University of Mississippi said in a social media post it was "devastated" to learn of Adams' death. |
| Terrelle Pryor-led lawsuit vs. NCAA dismissed over timeliness | |
| A federal judge in Ohio has dismissed a lawsuit seeking compensation for thousands of former Ohio State athletes from the NCAA. In her ruling, Chief U.S. District Judge Sarah Morrison said former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor filed his proposed class action against the NCAA, Ohio State, the Big Ten and others too late. Pryor, who played for Ohio State from 2008 to '10, sued the NCAA and other defendants in October, accusing them of violating antitrust law by barring members of the school's sports teams from seeking to profit from the commercial use of their names, images and likenesses. Plaintiffs generally face a four-year window to bring claims under U.S. antitrust law. "Mr. Pryor knew the material facts underlying his antitrust claims long before the four-year limitations period had run," Morrison said. The NCAA in a statement welcomed the judge's ruling and said "we are hopeful that additional copycat cases will see the same outcome." |
| Offsides: The Two House Dems Who Make GOP's SCORE Act 'Bipartisan' | |
| At last week's House Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade Subcommittee markup hearing, Chairman Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) touted his Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act as a product of "bipartisan legislation," reflecting what he called the committee's "rich history of thoughtful and bipartisan engagement" on college athlete compensation. Then the proceedings got underway, quickly revealing a familiar partisan divide on the two pivotal questions on shaping the future of college sports: whether Congress should shield the NCAA from further antitrust lawsuits, and whether it should prevent college athletes from being classified as employees. Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) criticized the SCORE Act as "The NCAA Wishlist Act," while Rep. Lori Trahan (D-Mass.) -- a former college athlete and vocal critic of NCAA policies -- argued that the bill prioritizes institutional power over athletes' rights. "Once we give that shield to an organization like the NCAA, we won't get that power back," she said. By the end of the session, the SCORE Act advanced on a straight, party-line vote, undermining Bilirakis' framing of the legislation's support. The bill now heads to a House Education subcommittee for another markup, where Democrats aim to highlight it as a Republican-driven effort. However, that narrative has been complicated by two freshman Democrats, Reps. Janelle Bynum (Ore.) and Shomari Figures (Ala.), who have joined with Bilirakis and six other Republicans to give the SCORE Act at least the technical distinction of being bipartisan. |
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