| Friday, October 17, 2014 |
| Metro Jackson businesses see boom as state's college football teams dominate | |
 | Businesses across the area are cashing in as Ole Miss and Mississippi State University dominate the football field. "It's night-and-day difference as far as customer traffic, as far as from where those two teams were last year compared to where they are this year," said Ben Boyd of Hibbett Sports in Flowood. Stores are using the schools' top rankings to bring in new customers. The Rogue in Jackson is known for suits and sportcoats, but they said they're also profiting from a football boon. "It's a great opportunity for us to showcase our store, and the things we do and the products we have for somebody who wants a knit shirt for a game," said Luke Abney of The Rogue. "And they come in and hopefully we can turn that into a new customer." |
| Mississippi State plans Preparathon for Saturday | |
 | Mississippi State University's Community Emergency Response Team will have its Preparathon on Saturday near the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on the MSU campus. The event will include a free emergency preparedness fair as well as a half marathon, a 5K and a family fun run. The fair runs from 8 a.m. to noon, while the races begin at 7 a.m MSU CERT works proactively and reactively on campus to prepare for and respond to emergencies. (Subscriber-only content.) |
| MSU Extension named Intelligent Community Institute | |
 | A New York-based think tank has designated the Mississippi State University Extension Service an Intelligent Community Institute, the second of its kind in the country. Roberto Gallardo, an associate Extension professor at MSU and the MSU institute's director, said Mississippi will become a focal point for a worldwide effort designed to capitalize on the many opportunities and challenges rural communities face when transitioning to and planning for the digital economy. Joy Foy, director of the Mississippi Development Authority's Asset Development Division, said this new collaboration will benefit Mississippi communities. |
| MSU Extension Forestry Wins National Honor | |
 | Longtime outreach efforts by the Mississippi State University Extension Service's forestry department received significant attention when it won a national award. MSU Extension Forestry won the 2014 Family Forests Education Award presented by the National Woodland Owners Association and the National Association of University Forest Resources Programs. "Our Mississippi State faculty were recognized for the work they do to support forest landowners within the state with dedicated leadership," said George Hopper, dean of the MSU College of Forest Resources. "We have a truly outstanding faculty and staff in our forestry Extension group, and it is gratifying to see them receive the recognition they so richly deserve." |
| The best outdoor classroom ever | |
 | Sara Martin loves science and especially teaching it to younger children. "The kids get so excited over these little experiments, and we still get excited because you make stuff explode. Things turn different colors. It's so much fun," said Martin. She is one of several 4-H students on hand for the Toyota 4-H Science, Engineering, and Technology Education Day. "We want to inspire children to love science and to see how it really impacts their life. So, today they will get to do all these things and they will be taught by older 4-H," said MSU Extension Service spokesperson Linda Mitchell. |
| Red Cross launches fire safety campaign in Starkville | |
| The American Red Cross is taking a home fire preparedness campaign door-to-door in Starkville this weekend. Volunteers and staff will go through Starkville neighborhoods Saturday to talk with residents about fire prevention and safety. They will also install smoke detectors for residents who need one. The event kicks off at 7 a.m. Saturday as those helping meet for a breakfast briefing and installation training at the police substation at 151 Alfred Perkins Street. |
| Three suspects sought in Starkville Dollar General burglary | |
| Starkville police are searching for the suspects responsible for a break-in at the Dollar General on Monday. Police say the suspects got into the business during the early morning hours by breaking the glass out of the front door. After police investigated, they said all that appeared to be stolen were cigarettes. The suspects are described as two black males and one black female. |
| None of state's school districts get an 'F', but officials expect a fall | |
 | Many of Mississippi's public schools will be able to boast of high marks for one more year under Mississippi's A-to-F school rating system, but state officials continue to warn that grades could fall sharply next year. Under grades announced today by the Mississippi Department of Education, no district currently operating received an F. Fourteen with an F in 2013 raised their grades. At the other end of the scale, 19 districts retained A ratings -- but 16 would have lost them without a waiver allowing districts to keep last year's grade if this year's results would have knocked it down. State and federal authorities granted the waiver to encourage districts to change their curriculum to line up with the Common Core State Standards. |
| Scores show most Mississippi kindergarten students lag | |
| A first-ever look at whether Mississippi's kindergarten students are ready to learn to read shows that two-thirds are not. Those results, released Friday by the Mississippi Department of Education, will be used by proponents to call for more state spending on prekindergarten classes, and to tailor efforts to help students improve before third grade. By then, educators are required by state law to flunk students who don't read at least at a basic level. "To be honest, I think it validated what I was expecting," state Superintendent Carey Wright said. "It did not surprise me that the data were as poor as they were, but it also convinced me we were headed in the right direction as far as early childhood." |
| Mississippi leads in children's vaccinations | |
 | When it comes to vaccinating children against diseases such as measles, diphtheria and whooping cough, Mississippi is the model for the nation, new federal data show. More than 99.7 percent of Mississippi children enrolled in kindergarten last year received all recommended doses of the MMR vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella; the DTaP vaccine that prevents diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (also known as whooping cough); and the varicella vaccine that protects against chickenpox. That was the best showing among the 49 states that reported vaccination data to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. |
| Global unions support Nissan Canton vote, but tough fight remains | |
 | The United Auto Workers' continuing push for a union vote at Nissan Canton has long been viewed as perhaps organized labor's last true stand in the U.S., especially in the South, but the effort is increasingly attracting global attention. Last week, the IndustriALL global union brought delegates of organized-labor groups from the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Spain, Brazil and South Africa to Canton to meet with and show support for pro-union plant workers who want to make the Nissan plant the first organized automotive manufacturing facility in the historically anti-union South. |
| Democrats hold rally for supporters | |
 | Deep South Democrats channeled their inner fire and brimstone revival speeches Thursday, asking longtime supporters to believe in miracles. An all-star cast of Northeast Mississippi Democrats asked the crowd to believe a former U.S. Congressman and chancery clerk from Prentiss County could defeat a six-term incumbent Thad Cochran. Attendees had hopes for more Democrat officeholders in a place where Republicans hold all every statewide elected office except the office of attorney general, where Houston native and Democrat Jim Hood has won re-election multiple times. Hood told the audience to ask more than Democratic faithful to support Travis Childers on Nov. 4, to reach out to disenchanted McDaniel supporters. |
| Chris McDaniel endorses Tea Party-backed candidate in Louisiana Senate race | |
 | Former Mississippi Senate challenger Chris McDaniel (R) threw his support behind fellow underdog Rob Maness (R-La.) in his outside bid to upset Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu in November. McDaniel lost the Mississippi Republican runoff election by less than 8,000 votes, but still hasn't conceded as he fights an uphill challenge in the courts. The Maness campaign also said that McDaniel plans to join the Tea Party-backed candidate at a fundraising tailgate before the Louisiana State University/Ole Miss football game on Oct. 26. |
| Obama to Name Ron Klain as Ebola Czar | |
 | President Barack Obama plans to name Ron Klain, a longtime Democratic aide, as the administration's "Ebola czar," an official said Friday. Mr. Klain will be charged with coordinating the administration's response to the disease, including its efforts to detect, isolate and treat Ebola patients in the U.S. The administration also is taking steps, including a military deployment, to stop Ebola at its source in West Africa. An attorney, Mr. Klain is a former senior White House aide and former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden. Earlier, he served as chief of staff to Vice President Al Gore, and before that, as chief of staff for then-Attorney General Janet Reno. |
| Ebola, Wall Street stock slide deepen mid-term gloom for Dems | |
| The Democrats' midterm prospects took a beating this week as concerns over the Ebola virus and a jittery economy churned up countless grim headlines and darkened an already-dissatisfied national mood. Republicans on Capitol Hill, who have long-charged the administration with mismanaging crises, have been quick to pounce on the Ebola issue, saying President Obama's team has not been aggressive enough in the face of the threat. Meanwhile, a plummeting stock market has hit the half of the adult population that owns shares directly, or through retirement accounts and other investment vehicles. The stock slide also undercuts the White House's preferred narrative of an economy that is slowly but surely becoming stronger. |
| Democrats hold slight edge in ad wars as election nears, report says | |
 | As the midterm election nears, Democrats are hanging on to a slim edge in the expensive television ad war for control of the U.S. Senate, according to a new study that says overall ad spending in the races is approaching the $1-billion mark. Driven by a flood of spending by outside groups, more than 728,000 ads have been shown in Senate races, and an additional 700,000 have aired on behalf of candidates running for governor, the analysis released Tuesday by the Wesleyan Media Project says. The study confirms the increasing dominance of "super PACs" and other outside groups that accept unlimited contributions. |
| Ole Miss students express concern about living conditions | |
 | Freshmen every year struggle with the conditions of the residence halls at Ole Miss. Many consider the dorms out-of-date and in need of renovation. According to Stockard resident Trey Oates, some of these incidents even have him concerned about his health. "Living in the dorm is not ideal for my health because I tend to get sick all of the time," Oates said. "The air vents aren't clean. They are blowing out dust. One out of three elevators work a week, and we do not have trashcans on our floors, which causes bugs and smells all throughout the building." In three of the main freshman dorms, Martin, Crosby and Stockard, students complain about washers and dryers being broken. Students complain about the conditions of Crosby, Kincannon and Stewart the most -- overflowing trashcans, ants and a lack of hot water, to name just a few problems. |
| Former Libertarian Party presidential candidate to speak at USM | |
 | Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party's 2012 nominee for president, will be the featured speaker at the University of Southern Mississippi's Oct. 21 University Forum, set for 6:30 p.m. in Bennett Auditorium on the Hattiesburg campus. This event is free and open to the public. Johnson was also the Republican governor of New Mexico from 1995-2003. Marija Bekafigo, assistant professor of political science at Southern Miss, said she's looking forward to hearing Johnson discuss why he became a Libertarian and his thoughts on the fate of the Republican Party and the difference between the two parties. |
| Meridian Community College hosts appreciation luncheon for area leaders | |
 | The Meridian Community College Foundation on Thursday hosted its 18th annual President's Roundtable Luncheon to thank area business and community leaders for their support of the school's tuition guarantee program. "It is entirely funded through private resources," Meridian Community College President Dr. Scott Elliott said. "In other words, there are no tax or public money involved in it. It is not an endowment, either. It is a fund that must be raised year after year after year after year. And the people here today are some of the ones that do that." |
| Nanotechnology summit at U. of Alabama to draw hundreds of researchers | |
 | The University of Alabama on Oct. 23-24 will host a nanotechnology summit meant to foster collaboration and showcase the latest research and innovations. The second NanoBio Summit will be at the Bryant Conference Center on the UA campus. Approximately 200 researchers from across the state are expected to attend. Roughly a dozen speakers from regional universities, state and federal agencies and the private sector are scheduled make 25-minute presentations on Oct. 23. The next day, speakers include UA officials and representatives from the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama and the Alabama Department of Commerce. |
| U. of Alabama PR students' campaigns for Alabama Power to debut Saturday | |
| Some University of Alabama students are getting hands-on experience in their major fields by creating a pubic relations campaign showing how Alabama Power Co. and its employees interact with the university and the Tuscaloosa community. The campaign called "Power of the People" will debut two videos exclusively on WVUA-TV on Saturday. The videos are the start of a five-year partnership involving Alabama Power and UA students and organizations --- Capstone Agency, a student-run public relations firm; the Digital Media Center; and WVUA-TV. |
| U. of South Carolina staffer briefly detained in Russia | |
 | Two journalists -- including one who works for the University of South Carolina -- briefly were detained in Russia on suspected visa violations. Randy Covington, director of USC's Newsplex and a former news director of WIS, was arrested Thursday at a workshop in St. Petersburg, said Beth Daley, a reporter at the New England Center for Investigative Reporting. The pair has not been arrested or expelled from Russia, said Charles Bierbauer, dean of USC's College of Mass Communications and Information Studies. Covington is scheduled to fly home Friday. Covington, whose USC program offers consulting services and training programs, has traveled previously to Russia for journalism workshops without incident. He conducted a pair of two-day training sessions on social media in July and led a small team that taught a new media workshop with journalism professors in 2012. Those workshops came from a grant from the International Research & Exchanges Board, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit. |
| With tattoos' popularity rising, shop hopes to open near U. of South Carolina campus | |
| One Columbia tattoo parlor hopes to open a second location downtown near the University of South Carolina campus -- and 30,000 free-spirited, potentially ink-seeking college students. Willis Thompson would like to add Magnetizm Tattoo 2 to Columbia's three existing downtown tattoo parlors, having been granted a special exception this week by the city Board of Zoning Appeals to open the shop at 1128 Devine St., across the street from the current USC law school, near Carolina Coliseum and the new Darla Moore School of Business. South Carolina began allowing tattooists to legally operate in 2004. |
| LSU employee staying away from Baton Rouge campus following recent trip to Liberia | |
 | When an LSU employee returned to Baton Rouge on Tuesday after training Liberian police officers on Ebola safety procedures, he was asked by the university to stay home for at least the recommended three weeks. "We're very confident our team was not exposed," said Jason Krause, associate director of operations and plans with the National Center for Biomedical Research and Training at LSU. Krause said he is not under an official quarantine but will limit his travel to help minimize any public concern. Krause was part of a five-member team who trained 1,275 Liberian police on Ebola basics and on safety equipment they may be called on to use. "The main message to stress for everyone is that it's vitally important to solve this issue at the source," Krause said. |
| Woman reports she was raped by man as group watched at LSU lakes | |
| A woman told LSU police she was at the LSU lakes Oct. 7 when a group of men approached her and one of the men attacked and raped her while the others stood by and watched. The woman said that when the group walked up to her on West Lakeshore Drive at about 7 p.m., one of the men grabbed her and raped her while the others stood around, LSU police spokesman Capt. Cory Lalonde said. No other details on the incident were available, and police are declining to say whether the woman was an LSU student to protect her identity. |
| UGA student clad only in jockstrap treated for injuries suffered at west Athens apartment complex | |
 | A University of Georgia student was hospitalized Wednesday after he was found bleeding outside an apartment while wearing only a jockstrap, Athens-Clarke County police said. A man who lived at the apartment on Athens' west side said that the student had come to his home for a sexual encounter with him and his male roommate, police said. The man said that arrangements for the encounter were made through a smartphone app. The student arrived at the apartment at about 11 p.m. Tuesday, but was kicked out after he began acting "odd," according to police. |
| Former HUD Secretary to Promote American Dream Initiative at U. of Arkansas | |
| Former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry Cisneros is expected at the University of Arkansas to promote an initiative that promotes opportunities for immigrant families. Cisneros, who served four years as the HUD secretary before starting the Cisneros Center, is to speak Oct. 23 in the Arkansas Union Theater. The event is free and open to the public. |
| Texas A&M looking at host of partners for Cain Hall redevelopment project | |
 | Texas A&M University moved one step closer to making the vision of an on-campus hotel and conference center a reality at a pre-proposal meeting with potential developers Thursday. Phillip Ray, chief business development officer for the Texas A&M System, provided an outline for the redevelopment project that would demolish Cain Hall and redevelop the 11-acre plot across from Kyle Field. The partner, who will be selected some time after proposals are taken Nov. 13, will be responsible for renovating the entire tract of land and must push themselves creatively in order to meet the standards of Chancellor John Sharp, who has had the project on his radar for about two years, according to Ray. The need to remedy the financial burden Cain Hall had become to the university is what spawned the idea to build an on-campus hotel. |
| Official: First responders reacted cautiously to sodium cyanide incident at Texas A&M | |
| Rudder Plaza returned to normal Thursday, a day after hazardous materials crews roped off the area while treating a Texas A&M student who had reportedly ingested sodium cyanide. The 20-year-old man remained in critical condition at St. Joseph hospital Thursday evening after going through a decontamination process in the hospital parking lot the night before and receiving an antidote to inactivate the poison. Addressing the attention the case garnered after the public saw responders in hazardous materials suits, Dr. Brandon Lewis, medical director of emergency services at St. Joseph hospital, said emergency personnel responded with an abundance of caution, choosing to "overreact rather than underreact." Kim Dunbar, distinguished professor at Texas A&M's Department of Chemistry, said forms of cyanide are common. She said cyanide in her lab is locked up, and only those who are trained know its whereabouts or have access to the key. She also keeps an antidote kit nearby in case of an emergency. |
| U. of Missouri receives $2.3 million grant to study math education in elementary schools | |
 | A $2.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation will allow education researchers at the University of Missouri to determine whether an elementary teacher's math expertise makes a difference in student learning. The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education in 2012 approved the elementary mathematics specialist certification for teachers. The first group of teachers is just receiving the certification from the two-year program. "We're looking at does it make a difference in their teaching strategies and student learning" to have the specialization, said research team leader Barbara Reys, curators' professor and Lois Knowles Faculty Fellow in the MU College of Education. |
| Board of Public Buildings approves U. of Missouri's Lafferre Hall renovation bond | |
 | The state Board of Public Buildings approved $38.5 million in bonding to renovate and repair the University of Missouri College of Engineering's Lafferre Hall following Gov. Jay Nixon's tour of the complex Thursday. Lafferre Hall, on the southwest side of Francis Quadrangle, has long been high on the list of MU campus facilities in need of care. Before the meeting, building coordinator Marty Walker guided Nixon through narrow hallways -- complete with scattered trashcans and containers under leaking pipes -- and into classrooms and labs. MU Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin said at the board meeting that about 3,600 students are in Lafferre every day and called the section to be renovated the "heart of the Lafferre Hall complex." |
| As Ebola Fears Touch Campuses, Officials Respond With an 'Excess of Caution' | |
 | Colleges across the country faced Ebola scares this week that sent at least one graduate student to the hospital, several employees into quarantine, and untold numbers of students into an unnecessary panic. The widespread fear that has gripped the nation since two health-care workers in Dallas contracted the Ebola virus from a Liberian man who died there on October 8 has campus officials performing a delicate dance. On the one hand, they want to take extra precautions when there is even a remote chance Ebola might find its way onto their campuses. On the other hand, they're trying to avoid what a University of Wisconsin epidemiologist called "hysterical reactions that are not based on science." |
| The 'Yes Means Yes' World | |
 | When the sexual assault prevention group Culture of Respect attended the Dartmouth Summit on Sexual Assault in July to promote its forthcoming website, the group went by a different name. The nonprofit passed out business cards and marketing all emblazoned with the phrase "No Means No." For the last two decades, that's been the slogan of choice for sexual assault prevention efforts, and just a few months ago it seemed like a perfect fit for the new organization. But in the weeks leading up to No Means No's official launch, the organization began having second thoughts. That's because at a growing number of colleges, "No means no" is out, and "Yes means yes" is in. And it's more than just revising an old slogan -- from coast to coast, colleges are rethinking how they define consent on their campuses. |
| Why Colleges Don't Want to Be Judged by Their Graduation Rates | |
| This fall, President Barack Obama will release a college-rating system that is likely to include graduation rates as a key measure of institutional success. That worries colleges, which have long complained that the official government figures leave out many successful graduates. The federal rate counts only first-time, full-time students who graduate within a certain time frame. Look at the Education Department's first Beginning Postsecondary Students longitudinal study, begun in 2003, and you'll see several categories of students that the federal rate overlooks. Taken together, those limitations mean that millions of potential graduates are left out of the federal government's official rate. |
| Jobs for Humanities, Arts Grads | |
| Two reports on outcomes for humanities majors could serve to reinforce two disparate beliefs about the field: one where they are seen as a viable path to a successful career, and another where they are seen as a track to a low income and few job prospects. On average, humanities majors do earn less than graduates in many other disciplines, according to the report from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. But that doesn't mean they are starving artists or underemployed baristas. Another report released this week from the Strategic National Arts Alumni Project out of Indiana University also showed generally positive signs for recent graduates of arts departments, who largely reported feeling prepared to continue in advanced degree programs, able to find work related to their field of study, and satisfied with their jobs. |
| Skills Gaps for Online Reading Linked to Family Income | |
 | Long a cause for alarm, the gap in reading skills between poor students and their more affluent peers is well-established and worsening, researchers say. Now, there is more bad news: The real magnitude of that reading achievement gap may be greater than previously believed, because educators and researchers have not adequately accounted for the different skills that are required to successfully read online, as opposed to in print. That is the gist of a new study, conducted by Donald J. Leu of the University of Connecticut, which found "a large and significant achievement gap, based on income inequality, in an important new area for learning -- the ability to read on the Internet to learn information," according to a news release from the university. |
| Want to Ace That Test? Get the Right Kind of Sleep | |
| Sleep. Parents crave it, but children and especially teenagers, need it. When educators and policymakers debate the relationship between sleep schedules and school performance and -- given the constraints of buses, sports and everything else that seem so much more important -- what they should do about it, they miss an intimate biological fact: Sleep is learning, of a very specific kind. Scientists now argue that a primary purpose of sleep is learning consolidation, separating the signal from the noise and flagging what is most valuable. School schedules change slowly, if at all, and the burden of helping teenagers get the sleep they need is squarely on parents. Can we help our children learn to exploit sleep as a learning tool (while getting enough of it)? |
| JACK WEATHERLY (OPINION): Mississippi rising: Time to sell the image | |
| Longtime journalist Jack Weatherly writes for the Mississippi Business Journal: "A Harvard professor said long ago: 'Nothing happens until somebody sells something.' That was pretty profound, still is. Here's something else pretty profound. Mississippi State is No. 1 and Ole Miss is No. 3 in college football. State has never been in that position. Ole Miss has been at the top of the heap a few times, but that was more than a half-century ago. Has there been such good and unifying news for Mississippi since the Civil War? Maybe, but nothing quickly comes to mind. Maybe it's because I caught the fever rampaging across the state. Talk to any marketing expert worth his salt. He'll tell you that the best publicity is free. You can't buy this kind of PR." |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State will have plenty to do Saturday without game | |
 | In college football, there's no rest for the weary. But this week, there is rest for the No. 1 team in the country. One week after defeating No. 2 Auburn to complete the fastest rise from unranked to No. 1 in the history of The Associated Press poll, Mississippi State's football team will enjoy its second and final open date of the season Saturday in advance of six-straight games to close the year. "It's good to be able to get back to our fundamentals," said MSU coach Dan Mullen, who has his team at 6-0 and 3-0 in Southeastern Conference play. "We will use this week to get reps for a lot of guys, a chance to maybe see some things we don't always see during game weeks because of preparation and scheming." |
| Dak Prescott's autograph fetches a pretty penny | |
| Mississippi State star Dak Prescott says he is taking steps to avoid being the next college football star to be accused of exchanging autographs for cash. "I've started just personalizing things -- making sure I write to the person that they're asking for. And I don't sign things in bundles -- just being a lot more aware of what I'm signing," the Heisman Trophy contender said. Personalizing an autographed item lowers its value. |
| Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen's new contract has strong academic provision | |
 | Well before the Mississippi State football team embarked on what has become a benchmark season, head coach Dan Mullen hit a benchmark of his own under a contract that now makes him, like all of the university's head coaches, subject to dismissal based on the team's academic performance. Mullen's total compensation for the 2014 season rose to $3 million under terms with the university and its private, non-profit athletics foundation that have been in effect since March 1, according to athletics director Scott Stricklin and information USA TODAY Sports obtained this week in response to an open-records request. Mullen's university contract also for the first time includes a provision that is now standard at Mississippi State but very rare nationally: He faces action, including possible termination, if the football team's NCAA Academic Performance Rate figure -- which measures classroom success and player retention -- subjects the team to a postseason ban. |
| Mississippi State's Dan Mullen wants fans to respect the coaches they have, including Will Muschamp | |
| Dan Mullen knows you're out there, Gator fans. He knows some of you are jumping on the "Hire Dan Mullen" bandwagon. He also remembers many of you wanted him fired during his tenure as Florida's offensive coordinator from 2005-2008. Mullen, now the head coach at No. 1 ranked Mississippi State, spoke on a Mississippi radio show Head to Head and was asked about Florida fans wanting him to return to Gainesville as the head coach. "I coached at Florida, and I remember they wanted to fire Dan Mullen" he said. "I know there was a website here at Mississippi State to fire Dan Mullen last year. Now, there's probably one to keep me here. Here's my take on it: One, both my kids are born here. I love Mississippi State. I've loved being here. I love the community. I love the state. I have a great administration. They've given us what we need to build a successful program. I think we've built that program. We love being here. That's No. 1." |
| Dan Mullen's rise at Mississippi State has Philly fingerprints | |
| The first time his father made the trip for a spring football game, Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen warned him about the drive, that it would be a rural one from the airport in Jackson up to Starkville. Mullen told him it would be like traveling in the hills of Pennsylvania "past the Main Line." The 42-year-old coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs, the improbable top-ranked college football team in the nation -- after the fastest rise to the top in the history of the sport, from unranked to No. 1 in six games -- is a Drexel Hill native and Ursinus College graduate. Offering his local credentials, Mullen immediately touts personal cheesesteak-grilling expertise (except he can't get the right bread in Mississippi) and summers in Sea Isle and Avalon, including a teenage summer working on the Sea Isle City beach patrol. |
| College football mid-season awards: Dak Prescott out-running Marcus Mariota in Heisman race | |
 | It seems like just yesterday we were watching the Texas A&M-South Carolina Thursday night season-opener thinking it would have SEC championship implications. Turned out, it didn't. Both teams have faded out of their respective divisional races. Here we are, halfway through the season and so much has changed. Let's look back at the best of the first half and what we have to look forward to, including Heisman Trophy/Offensive player: Dak Prescott of Mississippi State. This is a tight race between Prescott and Oregon's Marcus Mariota. But what puts Prescott over the top to me is he's been the better dual threat. He's also been a more effective passer. Add that to the Bulldogs' 6-0 start and he gets the slight edge. |
| Mississippi State's Thompson to be inducted into ICC athletic hall of fame | |
| Mississippi State baseball associate head coach Butch Thompson will be inducted into the Itawamba Community College Athletic Hall of Fame, the college announced this past Wednesday. The induction ceremony will take place at 1 p.m. on Oct. 25 inside the David C. Cole Student Service Building on the ICC Fulton campus. Currently in his seventh season with MSU, Thompson began his collegiate playing career as ICC's closer from 1989-90 under head coach Roy Cresap. The Amory, Miss., native appeared in a total of 70 games, before moving on to Birmingham-Southern College and leading the Panthers to back-to-back Southern States Conference Championships. |
| LOGAN LOWERY (OPINION): Cowbells part of playing in Starkville | |
| The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal's Logan Lowery writes: "The cowbell has been a hot topic throughout the SEC over the past few weeks and a touchy one here in Starkville. Why? Because Mississippi State is winning. The Bulldogs' favorite artificial noisemaker only seems to become a nuisance to opposing teams and fans when MSU fields a successful team. I have covered this team for the past decade through good times and bad. The only time cowbells are usually deemed an issue is when the Bulldogs start to win." |
| U. of Mississippi on the lookout for counterfeit tickets | |
| Ole Miss football fans have waited more than 50 years for a season like this one. Now that it's here, they're coming out in full force to cheer on their Rebels, that is, if they can find a ticket. "We, number one, do not guarantee a sale from anyone but ourselves," Ole Miss Assistant Athletics Director for Ticket Operations Wesley Owen said. Owen says the high demand has the university on the lookout for counterfeit tickets. He says the university has not had a problem with counterfeit ticket sales yet. But, he said since so many of the games are sold out now, there may be a problem when it comes to secondary ticket sales. Ole Miss and the Oxford Police Department urge fans to use trusted secondary sources when buying tickets. |
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