| Wednesday, June 3, 2026 |
| MSU Extension warns residents after invasive hammerhead worm found in Warren County | |
 | The Mississippi State University Extension Service is warning producers to be on the lookout for hammerhead worms after one of the invasive pests was recently spotted in Warren County. According to MSU's Warren County Extension office, hammerhead worms -- which can grow up to a foot long and are known for their distinctive shovel- or hammer-shaped heads -- pose concerns because they prey on earthworms, which are critical for healthy soils and productive gardens and farms. Dr. Jermaine Perier, an MSU Extension entomologist specializing in vegetables, fruits, and nuts, warned residents not to handle hammerhead worms with bare hands. "Their mucus can be an irritant, and some species produce neurotoxins," Perier said. Perier recommends using gloves or another barrier when disposing of hammerhead worms and cautioned that trying to kill them with a shovel or other garden tool will not work because the worms can regenerate from body fragments. Instead, residents should place hammerhead worms in an airtight container to prevent escape before attempting disposal. Several methods can then be used to kill the worms, including adding salt or soapy water to the container, leaving the container in direct sunlight, or soaking the worms in ethanol, alcohol, or hand sanitizer. |
| Supes approve $12M bond for road, capital projects | |
 | Oktibbeha supervisors should have about $12 million available by July for a slate of capital improvement projects after voting Monday to authorize a general obligation bond issuance. The board of supervisors unanimously approved the bond issuance during its regular meeting at the circuit court building, capping about four months of discussion. The bond is expected to be repaid over 15 years without increasing taxes, according to Board President Marvell Howard. Howard called the bond issuance a "smart move" by the board. "We do have some projects that we're desperately needing to try and get done," he told The Dispatch on Tuesday. "It's definitely going to be a good thing for the county ... and not just roads and bridges, but we've got facilities that need some attention, so we're going to try to address as many of the projects and needs that we have in Oktibbeha County with this bond money. "... Not one extra tax dollar will come from taxpayers, and ... that's why we worked hard looking at all the numbers," he added. "There will absolutely not be any tax burden on the taxpayers." |
| Williams promoted to city engineer | |
| Starkville aldermen didn't have to look far to fill the city engineer position following Cody Burnett's planned departure at the end of the month. Chris Williams, who has served as associate city engineer for nearly four years, was appointed to the role through a 6-1 vote during the board of aldermen's regular meeting Tuesday at City Hall. Mayor Lynn Spruill said promoting Williams, who was considered alongside Burnett for the city engineer position in 2022, was an easy decision -- noting his work managing the city's ongoing revitalization projects on Main Street and Highway 182. "We knew who we wanted," Spruill told The Dispatch following the meeting. "... He has proven himself over the last number of years, and ... he has saved us millions as he's worked these projects. There was never, in my mind, anyone else who would be able to top his ability." Williams said it is an "exciting time" to lead the engineering department, citing the city's ongoing revitalization efforts and the planned roundabout project near the Highway 12 bypass and Garrard Road. Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins cast the lone dissenting vote and did not provide a public explanation during the meeting. Afterward, however, he told The Dispatch his objection was to the salary, which he said was simply "too high." |
| Murrell named communications director for Delta Wildlife, Delta Council | |
| Delta Wildlife and Delta Council have appointed Jamie Murrell as director of communications, officials announced. Murrell brings more than two decades of experience in marketing and community engagement. She has served as first vice president of marketing at Planters Bank since 2006 and previously worked as national showroom coordinator for Country Originals in Jackson. A graduate of Mississippi State University, Murrell also completed the American Bankers Association's School of Bank Marketing and Management in 2009. Murrell has been active in community and civic organizations across the Delta. "We are pleased to welcome Jamie Murrell to our team and excited about the strengths she brings to our organizations," said Austin Jones, chairman of Delta Wildlife. |
| USDA addresses efforts to fight spread of New World Screwworm following new detections | |
 | New reports from U.S. Department of Agriculture show that screwworm infestations are closer to the southern U.S. border than they have been in many years. While there are no current detections in the U.S., the New World Screwworm has made its way through South and Central America in recent years, with the latest detected infection just south of the U.S.-Mexico border. "Mexico reported eight new detections of New World Screwworm (NWS) late last week," said USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins during a Tuesday press conference. "One of those that was detected was a five-year-old goat in Coahuila, approximately 25 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border." In Mississippi, suspected screwworm cases can be reported to the state Board of Animal Health by calling (601) 359-1170 or emailing msstatevet@mdac.ms.gov. Rollins said that the USDA, over the last several months, has expanded its efforts to fight the spread. According the Mississippi State University Extension, state livestock production was worth roughly $744 million last year -- making it the fourth most-valuable agricultural commodity. |
| Mississippi alcohol delivery backlog improves, but legal fight continues | |
| Mississippi package stores are seeing improvements in alcohol deliveries months after a warehouse crisis left shelves empty. Still, the backlog remains, and legal action against the state's contractor is expanding. Nathan McHardy, owner of Briarwood Wine and Spirits, said conditions have improved since earlier this year when empty shelves made it look like his store was closing. "Is it better than it was? Absolutely. Is it perfect? No," McHardy said. The Department of Revenue now tracks pending cases in real time. At the peak of delivery problems, the backlog exceeded 220,000 cases. Numbers from May 24 show the backlog dropped to just under 106,000 cases. McHardy said current numbers are lower. "The reserve case amount, I think, is somewhere on the order of about 85,000 now," McHardy said. The daily case limit increased from 100 to 200 cases starting Memorial Day. McHardy is not among them, but some Mississippi stores are pursuing legal action. The latest filing seeks class action status. Tim Porter, one of the attorneys representing the stores, said that one pending issue would consolidate separate cases from the Coast and Jackson. |
| First rural health grants in state include building, technology upgrades | |
 | Mississippi unveiled the first three initiatives funded by the Rural Health Transformation Program in the wake of lawmakers and experts pointing to the state as the least transparent administrator in the country. More information is publicly available now, but some providers have said that the state isn't giving them enough time. The Rural Health Transformation Program is a nationwide initiative set to send more than $50 billion across the country for rural health revitalization. Mississippi, one of the most rural states, will receive more than $1 billion over the next five years. The federal funding has not come without challenges and controversy. State legislators, led by the chairs of the public health committees in both chambers, proposed during the legislative session a bill that would have subjected all contracts to a competitive bidding process. |
| Midwest farmers' struggles test GOP loyalty ahead of midterms | |
 | Farmers in the Midwest are struggling under President Trump's tariffs and rising costs worsened by the Iran war, testing a key GOP voting bloc as the party seeks to hold on to its control of Congress this November. Trump was overwhelmingly backed by farmers in 2024 -- winning all but 11 of 444 farming-dependent counties, as defined by the Department of Agriculture. But the president has seen a drop in support from farmers since taking office, with the latest Farm Futures Q1 survey showing confidence in the president down 10 points from the previous survey. Marc Short, a longtime aide to former Vice President Mike Pence and chair of Advancing American Freedom, highlighted this falling support among farmers, noting "Make Our Farmers Great Again" hats were once commonplace at Trump campaign rallies. "But things are different now," he wrote in a Washington Post op-ed Monday. "President Trump's trade policies have punched farmers in the mouth, and this time there's no global pandemic to blame." "Republicans who continue to ignore this reality do so at their peril," Short warned. |
| These Farmers Were Considered 'Fringe.' Now They're Advising Trump's Team. | |
 | When top Trump administration officials last month decried the market power of America's top meatpacking companies, they were joined by Shad Sullivan, a Colorado rancher and host of a niche podcast for cattlemen. "Where there is beef, there is freedom," said Sullivan, flanked by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who were giving an update on the Justice Department's antitrust probe into the top meatpackers. For Sullivan, a fifth-generation rancher who has called for a "beef regime change," it was the culmination of efforts by ranchers like him to get a seat at the table in Washington, where previous administrations haven't shown the same embrace. Sullivan has found a friendly ear in cabinet members including Rollins, who have at times shown a willingness to buck the powerful agriculture lobby that has helped sway public policy for decades. Sullivan is part of the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of America. "They've got an administration that's receptive to this populist culture," said Derrell Peel, a professor of agricultural economics at Oklahoma State University who has analyzed the beef industry for almost four decades. He said the ideas advocated by R-Calf ranchers have been around for decades, including blaming meatpackers for their financial woes. |
| Thune 'hopeful' Senate can start voting on reconciliation bill Wednesday | |
 | Senate Majority Leader John Thune said most Republican senators "feel pretty satisfied" with acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's comments renouncing the Justice Department's planned "Anti-Weaponization Fund" and that he's "hopeful" that will allow the Senate to start voting on the GOP's stalled immigration enforcement bill Wednesday. Thune, however, did not explicitly say that he has secured the votes to defeat amendments related to the fund, which critics fear could be used to reward political allies of President Donald Trump. Two GOP aides, granted anonymity to discuss private conversations about the bill, cautioned that multiple Republican senators are still likely to support proposals to curtail or eliminate the fund. "The goal is to get the base bill across the finish line, and so hopefully all of our members who have amendment ideas will ... keep in mind the need that we've got to keep the bill together and make sure we've got 50 votes for it at the end," Thune said. |
| The White House as a stage: Trump's hosting streak meets America's 250th birthday and the World Cup | |
 | When nearly all the scheduled musical performers pulled out of a concert series marking America's 250th anniversary -- fearing the event had become too closely tied to President Donald Trump -- he responded by making it official. Trump announced he'd now be the headlining act of the Great American State Fair. That put to rest any possible scenario where a president who has built his personal and political persona on seizing the spotlight might cede the stage to avoid overshadowing a national celebration bigger than himself. It also offered a peek into how the president is likely to approach hosting the upcoming World Cup. From his reality shows before becoming a politician, to hours spent entertaining at events in ways planned and impromptu, to proudly showing off his various properties and efforts to overhaul the White House, the president relishes hosting. Last year he even jokingly mused about leaving the presidency to do it again full time on TV. Andrew Jackson threw open the White House for an 1829 Inauguration Day bash so unruly that staff eventually dispersed the crowd by moving tubs of whiskey and ice cream to the lawn. Franklin D. Roosevelt mixed pre-dinner cocktails for friends and aides at White House gatherings he playfully dubbed "The Children's Hour." Audrey Hepburn was among the luminaries Ronald Reagan hosted at the White House. Trump frequently had first-term dinners with business leaders but has more fully embraced the role since returning to the White House. |
| Trump Floats a Vance-Rubio Ticket for 2028 | |
 | President Trump suggested on a podcast released Wednesday that Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio should run on the same ticket in the 2028 presidential election, though he didn't say whom he preferred at the top. In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Post's "Pod Force One," Mr. Trump said, "I like them both," responding to a question about who should run. "And I like them together," he added. As the vice president, Mr. Vance is the presumptive favorite for the Republican nomination and inheritor of Mr. Trump's political movement. But the president has not thrown his full support behind him for the nomination, instead appearing to treat his endorsement as an open question, adding a layer of tension to their relationship. Mr. Trump regularly solicits the opinions of people in his orbit about which man they would prefer at the top of the Republican ticket. His conversations on the subject have become a closely watched indicator of who might succeed him. Often during such conversations, he muses that the two men should share the ticket. |
| Data Center Operators Are Trying to Fix Their Water Use Problems | |
 | On Monday, SpaceX amended its initial public offering to state that water conditions -- including water scarcity, regulations around water, and drought -- could constrain data center development. t isn't the only tech company trying to assess how water scarcity might impact its business. Water use is emerging as one of the most contentious data center issues. A recent Gallup poll found that seven out of 10 Americans are opposed to data center development, with water scarcity ranking as the top resource concern. Facing increasingly fierce resistance, some tech companies are scrambling to assure the public that they're facing the issue head-on. "Water is a highly local, highly regional issue," says Shaolei Ren, a professor of engineering at UC Riverside. "It's a limited resource, and we have to manage it very carefully." Some tech giants, including Microsoft, OpenAI, and Oracle, have made statements in recent months indicating that they are moving away from evaporative cooling entirely in order to save water. Google is taking a different approach. On Wednesday, the company rolled out a series of water-related commitments to communities where it has data centers, along with funding announcements for water-related projects in the US. |
| Oxford Pitch Competition to award $25,000 to entrepreneurs, startups | |
| Entrepreneurs from across Mississippi and the Mid-South will compete for $25,000 in prize funding during the fifth annual Oxford Pitch Competition on June 11 at the Oxford Conference Center. The event, hosted by Oxford Lafayette Incorporated in partnership with Innovate Mississippi, the University of Mississippi and the Mississippi Small Business Development Center Network, is free and open to the public. The competition will run from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Oxford Conference Center, 102 Ed Perry Blvd. The Oxford Pitch Competition serves as one of seven regional qualifying events for Innovate Mississippi's CoBuilders Accelerator, a statewide program designed to help startup and small business founders grow their companies through mentorship, coaching and access to capital and business resources. This year's competition will feature two tracks: an SBDC Track for traditional and growth-oriented small businesses and an Innovate Track for high-growth and innovation-focused ventures. |
| Auburn University student missing in Japan | |
| An Auburn University student is missing in Japan. Authorities and family members are searching after he disappeared during a family trip. James "Weston" Higginbotham, 20, was last confirmed in the Kyoto area on May 29 while traveling with his family, according to information released on social media by his mother, Nancy Higginbotham. Because of his hiking experience, family members believe he may have traveled into wooded or trail areas near Yamashina. Police are using surveillance video to follow his last-known movements. His mother, Nancy Higginbotham, said she is concerned he may be in emotional distress. A Spain Park High School graduate and Auburn student studying environmental engineering, Higginbotham is described by his mother as an excellent student, experienced traveler and skilled navigator. He is also an avid hiker. |
| Inside the U. of Texas' plan for an AI-native hospital in Austin | |
| Hongfang Liu has been in Austin for two weeks and has a massive task ahead of her. As chair of the department of quantitative and systems health sciences and the Carolyn and Kenneth Shine Endowed Chair of Artificial Intelligence, Liu is tasked with not only teaching and doing research on AI, but also figuring out how the new University of Texas Dell Medical Center will incorporate AI into the new hospital. The medical school is calling it the country's first AI-native hospital. Most existing and even new hospitals are retrofitting AI innovations into existing systems. "It's about being a model for health and health care redesign for Austin, Texas and the country," said Dell Medical School Dean Dr. Claudia Lucchinetti in an exclusive interview with the American-Statesman in April. Adding new AI technology is "very challenging to do in a very mature medical center," Liu said. The Michael and Susan Dell Foundation gave more than $750 million to Dell Medical School to build the new hospital with the promise of an AI-native medical center. |
| Texas A&M System Taps Samuel Kim to Lead Innovation, Commercialization Strategy | |
| The Texas A&M University System announced today that Dr. Samuel Kim has been named Chief Innovation Officer and Associate Vice Chancellor, removing the interim title he has held since October 2025. Kim will continue leading Texas A&M Innovation, the System-level office charged with supporting inventors, commercializing discoveries, building industry partnerships and strengthening the path from research to real-world impact. Since being named interim chief innovation officer, Kim has led the development of a long-range strategic plan for research commercialization and impact. The plan positions the A&M System to become a national leader in translating discoveries into products, services, ventures and partnerships that drive economic growth and improve lives. Regent John Bellinger, chairman of the Board's Research Committee, said Kim's leadership comes at an important moment for the System's research enterprise. "The A&M System conducts research at a scale few institutions can match," Bellinger said. "The opportunity now is to organize that strength into a more coordinated, more visible and more effective innovation enterprise. Sam's strategic plan gives us a clear framework, measurable goals and an accountability structure for moving discoveries into use -- through startups, licensing, industry partnerships and other pathways to impact." |
| Pope: Catholic universities must lead students to Christ | |
| Unless Catholic education instills in students a true passion for the truth -- and not only intellectual truth, but the Truth that is Christ Himself (cf. Jn 14:6) -- we can hardly expect people to be willing to put forth the effort required to recognize truth and adapt one's life accordingly." Pope Leo XIV made this point on Wednesday morning in the Vatican when addressing a delegation of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities from the United States, in Rome for their 2026 Rome seminar. The Holy Father underscored that "Catholic institutions are called to be a living environment in which the Christian vision permeates every discipline and every interaction." The Pope offered the educators words concerning the decisive importance of Catholic education in today's world in light of the Encyclical Letter 'Magnifica humanitas on safeguarding the human person in the age of artificial intelligence' published on May 25. The Holy Father recognized that young men and women study at colleges and universities to earn a specific degree, oftentimes motivated by future job perspectives, and therefore encouraged educators to embrace their "noble task of guiding that desire for knowledge so that they may also learn to seek and love the truth, to reflect on the meaning of life and to recognize the dignity of every person." |
| A University System Went All In on A.I. Now It's Tearing Itself Apart. | |
| Last spring, newly admitted students to San Jose State University received an unusual video message from the institution's president, Cynthia Teniente-Matson. Her caramel curls were tucked behind her shoulders, her hands clasped neatly at her torso. Dressed down in a royal blue hoodie, she appeared composed and approachable. "Congratulations on your admission," she said. "At S.J.S.U., you'll have opportunities to dive into the technologies shaping the world today, and redefine what's possible for tomorrow." This was not, in fact, Teniente-Matson addressing the new class, but her brand-new custom A.I. avatar. The avatar is one feature of S.J.S.U.'s A.I. Everywhere strategy, which was formally announced in the fall of 2025 and aims to integrate the technology across campus life. Teniente-Matson devised A.I. Everywhere as part of the California State University system's broader A.I. Initiative, introduced in February 2025. Anchored by a $16.9 million deal with OpenAI, the initiative provides a total of 500,000 licenses of ChatGPT.edu to be issued to all students, faculty and administrators. On campuses across the university system, the initiative has stoked backlash. Students, meanwhile, are caught in the middle as everyone around them struggles to figure out what becoming "the first A.I.-powered university" actually means. |
| Colleges Feared Stackable Credits. Now They're Betting on Them. | |
 | Nolan Cottingham always knew he'd find a better-paying job and more fulfilling career after In-N-Out Burger. Still, his reluctance to take on tens of thousands of dollars in college-loan debt kept him donning his apron and clocking in year after year. He was saving up for flight school but said, "they wanted $80,000 out of pocket up front" before he even took a class. He'd taken a couple of semesters of coursework for an emergency-medical-technician license at a local community college but the job prospects seemed dim and he wasn't convinced he was cut out for the work. Last spring he got the break that offered a fast track toward both a decent-paying job and a college degree: He enrolled in a credential program between Maricopa Community Colleges, in Tempe, Ariz., and the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), a massive complex now sprawled across 1,100 acres of Sonoran Desert scrubland. When he finishes the program next May, he'll have 19 Maricopa credits, a certificate of completion from his apprenticeship as a process technician, and a journeyman's license. One more year of classes, and he could come out with an associate degree in semiconductor manufacturing debt-free and on a career path that satisfies his interest in cutting-edge technology. Maricopa is at the forefront of one of the fastest-growing trends in higher education: the fast-track, stackable credential or, in some cases, microcredential. |
| Trump's Education Department is backing away from addressing civil rights for Black students | |
| For generations, the federal government enforced civil rights laws with an eye toward remedying historic, systemic discrimination against Black people and other people of color. The Justice Department pressed schools to desegregate. The Education Department worked to promote equal opportunity and held schools accountable for racial bias. But under the Trump administration, efforts to address deep-rooted inequities for students of color are being cast as discriminatory against white students. Programs that have long withstood legal scrutiny are now quick to be deemed " illegal DEI " -- diversity, equity and inclusion -- by the White House. Schools that do not comply have faced threats to their funding, and in some cases, lost federal grants. Civil rights attorneys describe the administration's actions as a complete inversion of legal history. "It's literally flipping the purpose of civil rights law on its head, not just harming Black students and students of color, but entire school communities," said Michael Pillera, director of educational equity issues at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. "It's unmoored from the actual history of our country and untethered to the reality of life in this country." |
| President Trump seeks control of science funding | |
 | The Trump administration is pursuing a bureaucratic rule change that could allow for greater political influence over billions of dollars in federal research grants. The new rule would have a broad impact on research fields, including housing and transportation. Health and science funding would be most significantly affected. "Although research has bipartisan support in the US Congress, and trust in science is above 75% across the country, the Trump administration seems as determined as ever to mortally wound the nation's scientific enterprise," Holden Thorp, editor of Science magazine, wrote in an editorial about the proposal. Published in the Federal Register on May 29, experts say the proposed changes would both codify the administration's strategies to dismantle certain fields of study in the U.S. and lend it new authority to "advance the President's policy priorities." Under the new rule, peer review would not be eliminated, but political appointees -- not necessarily scientists -- would be required to review grants before awards are made. Critics say that effectively gives political officials veto power over projects, even when they have passed scientific peer review. The reaction from scientists and advocates has been swift and vehement. |
| Exclusive: HHS is now weighing in on science in NIH grants | |
| Not long after President Donald Trump started his second term, many scientists funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) began to be asked by the agency to strip certain words from their grants, sparking cries of research censorship and politicization. Now, their projects are facing an even higher level of scrutiny from the Trump administration. According to documents viewed by Science, all grants approved by NIH for funding are now going through an extra screening at its parent body, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Staffers there who may be political appointees and not necessarily subject matter experts sometimes ask for substantive changes in the research. Some NIH career employees involved in the grant-review process say the HHS requests are unprecedented and alarming. "The U.S. scientific community and the broader American public should be deeply concerned by the fact that HHS is overriding peer review to require changes to research scope, design, and language," says Jenna Norton, an NIH program officer who stresses she is speaking in her personal capacity, not on behalf of NIH. (Norton was put on leave last fall after leading protests against Trump administration actions, but has since been reinstated.) |
| New Federal Guidelines Threaten Almost Half of Graduate Arts Programs | |
| The Education Department is finalizing guidelines for an earnings test that would punish nearly half of all graduate programs in visual arts, music and performance based on the low income of recent alumni, according to the government's calculations. The proposed guidelines apply to all university programs, and institutions whose alumni fail to meet them twice in three years could lose their ability to enroll students using federal loans. Those students would most likely need to transfer to other programs or quit their education. According to experts, that would lead to a sharp decrease in enrollment and the likelihood of school closures. For master's degree programs, the agency would calculate the earnings of alumni four years after graduation to see whether they earn more than the median salary for working adults aged 25 to 34 who have a bachelor's degree. Previous tests measured all programs against the salary of working adults with high school diplomas -- a lower threshold for universities to pass. "They are taking a DOGE approach to education," said Tom Eccles, who runs the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College, adding that most universities were just learning about the guidelines. "They are deciding what the metric is, as though there were an objective way to measure the value of an arts education." |
| It's the third of June and the haunting mystery of Gentry's 'Ode to Billy Joe' remains | |
| Columnist Sid Salter writes: The lyric is clean and iconic, especially in the Deep South and, most of all, in Mississippi. For those of a certain generation, it instantly evokes a time, a place and a way of life: "It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day, I was out choppin' cotton and my brother was bailin' hay." The woman's voice delivering the lyrics was smoky and raspy, yet compelling, as the bewitching story she was telling spilled out during a family dinner table conversation. There was a suicide. A young man had taken his own life by leaping from a rural bridge in the Mississippi Delta. Still, there was mystery about why, and a deeper mystery regarding reports that, before the suicide, the young man and a young woman who strongly resembled the narrator were seen throwing something off the bridge. What was thrown from the bridge? Why did the young man take his own life? And why was the young woman's family so callously indifferent to a tragedy that may well have stemmed directly from their daughter and sister? |
SPORTS
| How Brian O'Connor already has Mississippi State 2 wins from CWS in first season | |
| Before Mississippi State baseball dominated the Starkville Regional, Brian O'Connor said his wife recalled something that happened 22 years ago. O'Connor was hired as the Virginia coach before the 2004 season at just 32 years old. He got the Cavaliers to the NCAA Tournament in his first season, and they hosted a regional for the first time in program history. But as O'Connor's wife, Cindy, reminded him, Virginia was eliminated from that regional. It was a great season for Virginia, but one that ended in disappointment. O'Connor couldn't let that happen again this season, his first at Mississippi State after 22 seasons coaching Virginia into a consistent NCAA Tournament team. The Bulldogs, as the No. 14 national seed, stormed through the Starkville Regional at Dudy Noble Field, winning all three games by a combined score of 39-11. O'Connor already has the Bulldogs (43-17) two wins away from their first College World Series since the 2021 national championship. They are playing some of their best baseball of the season entering a heavyweight Athens Super Regional at No. 3 Georgia (49-12) starting June 6 (10 a.m. CT, ESPN). |
| 'The expectations here are high': Inside MSU's domination of the Starkville Regional | |
| After a weekend in which several college baseball teams struggled to win home regionals and several more -- including the Nos. 1 and 2 national seeds -- were sent packing, Mississippi State had no such trouble with its opponents in the Starkville Regional. MSU outscored its foes 39-11 across the three games and never trailed at any point. The Bulldogs pounded opponents' pitching for 33 hits across three games, posting a collective .383 batting average during the regional. State fans did their part, too, as the regional drew 57,794 fans across the weekend, including 9,901 for Sunday night's championship game. |
| UGA athletic director voices opinion on Georgia baseball's 11 a.m. start | |
 | University of Georgia Athletic Director Josh Brooks is questioning why one of the highest-seeded teams left in the NCAA Baseball Tournament will open Super Regional play in one of the weekend's earliest windows. Brooks shared his frustration on social media after game times were announced Tuesday for the Super Regional round. "Nothing says 'top remaining seed' like an 11am Saturday start for Game 1," Brooks posted on X. The Bulldogs, the No. 3 national seed, are scheduled to host No. 14 Mississippi State in Athens. Game 1 is set for 11 a.m. ET Saturday on ESPN, followed by Game 2 at noon ET Sunday. A third game, if necessary, would be played Monday at a time to be determined. Georgia enters the Super Regional round as the highest remaining national seed in the tournament field following regional losses by No. 1 UCLA and No. 2 Georgia Tech. Yet several lower-seeded teams received later start times, including prime-time television slots. |
| Four teams will make their first appearance in NCAA super regionals | |
| A topsy-turvy regional round in the NCAA baseball tournament has set up an intriguing set of eight super regionals featuring seven teams from the Southeastern Conference, just one from the Atlantic Coast Conference and four mid-major programs. Nine of the 16 national seeds advanced to super regionals but conspicuously absent are the top two, UCLA and Georgia Tech. Two No. 4 regional seeds, Little Rock and St. John's, reached the tournament's second weekend for the first time. Four of the best-of-three supers are Friday through Sunday: Cal Poly (39-22) at No. 16 national seed West Virginia (43-15); Little Rock (39-26) at Troy (36-30); Southern California (47-16) at No. 5 North Carolina (48-11-1); and Mississippi (39-21) at No. 4 Auburn (42-20). The four series Saturday through Monday: Oklahoma (36-22) at No. 15 Kansas (45-16); St. John's (36-24) at No. 7 Alabama (40-19); No. 11 Oregon (43-16) at No. 6 Texas (43-13); and No. 14 Mississippi State (43-17) at No. 3 Georgia (49-12). The SEC had seven of its 12 tournament teams get through regionals after having only four of 13 do so last year. College baseball’s most powerful conference has produced the last six national champions, 11 of the last 16 and have had a team in 15 of the last 16 CWS finals. |
| Men's Golf: Bulldogs Complete Historic Season At NCAA Championship | |
| Mississippi State men's golf ends its historic 2025-26 campaign at the NCAA Championship. The Bulldogs saved their best golf in Carlsbad for last, firing a final round of 9-under 279 -- the lowest NCAA Championship round in program history -- to give MSU its best-ever NCAA Championship finish at 17th overall. Senior Ugo Malcor wrapped up his collegiate career in style, carding a final round of 3-under 69 to tie the program's lowest NCAA Championship round by an individual. Malcor put together five birdies on the Omni La Costa North Course, including four in a stretch of 10 holes, to finish in a tie for 32nd overall. True freshman Jackson Skinner joined Malcor with a 3-under 69 in round three, catching fire on the back nine with three birdies in his last six holes. State concludes the season having compiled two tournament victories, six top-five finishes, an appearance in SEC Match Play, and the program's best NCAA Championship finish. |
| Women's Golf: Avery Weed Earns First Team WGCA All-American Selection | |
| Junior standout Avery Weed was named a PING First Team All-American by the Women's Golf Coaches Association on Tuesday. Weed, an Ocean Springs, Mississippi native, left her name in the Mississippi State record books after a stellar third year in the Maroon and White. Weed shot for a 70.13 scoring average, a mark that stands as the second-best single season scoring average in program history. Weed earned her third collegiate individual title this season at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational. She finished the event at 14-under par, making her one of two golfers in the field to finish below par. She was also one of four to finish even par or better and was the only golfer that was not apart of the host team Arkansas to do so. This season, Weed also earned First Team All-SEC honors, as well as selections to the Augusta National Women's Amateur, the Curtis Cup and the Arnold Palmer Cup, which will see action begin on Friday, July 5. |
| MHSAA private schools will have enrollment multiplier starting in 2027-28 season | |
| Private high schools in Mississippi are receiving an enrollment multiplier for their respective sports teams. The MHSAA announced on June 2 that it will apply a 1.5 multiplier to private schools enrollment for grades 9-11. The multiplier will go into effect during the 2027-28 sports season, when the MHSAA implements its new reclassification. The MHSAA board voted on the motion, which passed. "There's always been a question of why our state does not have a multiplier from private schools that are in our association," MHSAA Executive Director Rickey Neaves said in a statement. "So beginning with the next reclassification year, there will be a 1.5 multiplier added to all private schools that are currently in our organization. And to any of those that may be wanting to join our association." Presbyterian Christian is the most recent private school to switch from MAIS to MHSAA, after making its MHSAA debut in 2025. The Bobcats recently won the MHSAA Class 3A baseball title. There are currently 10 private schools in the association. |
| White House 'reviewing' college sports bill ahead of Senate hearing | |
 | The House and Senate could be headed toward a showdown over competing bills that would usher in major changes to college sports, but President Donald Trump has yet to make clear just what he would sign. The Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday morning is slated to hear from expert witnesses as both chambers push differing versions of legislation to shake up college athletics' "name, image and likeness" policies, as well as its controversial transfer portal. As Congress worked on the bills in recent months, Trump has largely limited his public comments to criticism of court decisions that paved the way for the NIL era and references to New York Yankees President Randy Levine, who is on Trump's hand-picked college sports commission, as "working to straighten out college sports now." One lobbyist who represents several collegiate conferences, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said stakeholders have been monitoring that commission, as it has successfully been "drumming up interest" and "having meetings on and off the Hill." "I think the White House knows it's going to take legislation at this point. An executive order wouldn't have as much impact," the lobbyist said. |
| Citing 'critical issues,' SEC, Big Ten withhold support for bipartisan college sports bill | |
| The two biggest conferences in college sports released a statement Tuesday saying they do not support the current version of a bipartisan bill designed to regulate an industry struggling for answers in a quickly changing era in which some players make millions. The Southeastern and Big Ten conferences said the "bill leaves critical issues unresolved," including not "meaningfully" preempting state laws with a federal one, which has long been considered a key element for a measure to get support from the NCAA and the conferences. In an interview last week, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who drafted the bill with Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told The Associated Press "the bill is drafted to preempt state laws that conflict with the provisions in this bill." The SEC-Big Ten statement came out less than 24 hours before a scheduled hearing about the bill in front of the Senate Commerce Committee. Cruz chairs the panel and Cantwell is the ranking Democrat. |
| US Senate committee reacts to SEC-Big Ten statement, cites court-induced chaos, Power 2 consolidation | |
 | U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation reacted to a joint statement from the SEC and Big Ten on Tuesday in which it stated it was vital that Congress "fixes the court-induced chaos" and prevent "Power 2 consolidation." The statement, sent to AL.com by the committee communications director, Blair Taylor, was in response to the athletic conference statement which cited "critical issues" ahead of Wednesday's hearing on the Protect College Sports Act. "The SEC and Big Ten agree the current system is broken and that college sports needs a national framework," the statement read. "That's significant. "We look forward to receiving constructive feedback from both conferences, but it's vital that Congress fixes the court-induced chaos now rather than allow litigation, NIL bidding wars, and Power 2 consolidation to further destabilize college sports. "Inaction will mean the shuttering of storied football and basketball programs across the country and the cancellation of many more Olympic sports, which will rob opportunity from thousands of student athletes." Nick Saban will be among those in attendance when US Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) will convene a committee hearing titled, "Protecting College Sports: Supporting Student Athletes, Restoring Fair Competition, and Saving the Games Fans Love," on Wednesday at 8 a.m. (9 a.m. ET). |
| A Play-by-Play on Congress's Efforts to Regulate College Sports | |
 | For nearly a year, House lawmakers in Washington have been trying to tame the unwieldy landscape of revenue-sharing between colleges and student athletes. Now the Senate is taking a crack at it: Late last week members introduced a bipartisan bill to address the matter. But many experts remain highly skeptical that any legislation designed to overhaul America's college athletics system will pass before the end of the year. Trying to establish a uniform national framework for the college athletics market is a complex challenge that has bred contention not only between political parties, but also among various college conferences and athletes. Since a pivotal Supreme Court ruling was handed down in 2021, student athletes have been able to profit off their name, image and likeness through contracts with third-party groups. Then, in June 2025, a federal court ruled that colleges could pay student athletes directly. Combined, the two developments created a new, unregulated frontier, sparking both opportunities and concerns. |
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