| Wednesday, March 25, 2015 |
| MSU Autism Clinic Wins Grand Prize of Starkville Restaurant Week | |
 | Thirty-one restaurants participated, more than 12,000 ballots were cast, but only one charity took home the $5,000 grand prize. The Greater Starkville Development Partnership announced Tuesday afternoon that the MSU Autism Clinic was voted as the charity of choice in this year's Starkville Restaurant Week. Cadence Bank representatives presented the check to director Daniel Gadke, who says the money will help them keep the clinic open during the summer months. |
| Traveling veterans memorial on display at Mississippi State | |
 | In the Colvard Student Union at Mississippi State University, passers-by can see a series of nine paintings set up showing the portraits of 26 men. They stand in groups of two or three against desert backdrops filled with tanks and palm trees. Their faces show them to be young -- they range from ages 18 to 33. The portraits are part of The Eyes of Freedom, a veteran memorial honoring the Lima Company, a reserve infantry unit and one of the hardest hit units during Operation Iraqi Freedom. It will be on display at MSU this week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday. Ronnie White, who works at the Center for America's Veterans at MSU, arranged for the memorial to visit MSU after he saw it on display at the University of South Florida. |
| Researchers convert sewer sludge to diesel alternative | |
 | Human waste can create much more than a foul odor. Researchers at Mississippi State University have created a patented process which turns our byproducts into an alternative diesel energy source. A typical family of four generates up to 400 gallons of wastewater per day and pays $435 per year, according to the National Association of Clean Water Agencies. Chemical Engineering Professor Todd French told FoxNews.com that the technology he is working on has the potential to decrease what we pay for sewer and trash because cities would be making money off the waste products. |
| PHOTO: MSU-Meridian, MCC Planning College Connect | |
 | Meridian Community College Director of Financial Aid Nedra Bradley, left, and Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus Recruiting Coordinator Candy Adams review plans for the Tuesday, March 31, College Connect event. This dual-institution hosted event will be held from 3-6 pm. in the MCC Tommy E. Dulaney Multi-Purpose Center. At College Connect, participants can learn about the admission process at both institutions, complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) with a financial aid specialist, discuss financial aid options, complete an MCC Tuition Guarantee contract, apply for scholarships at MCC, apply for the Transfer Admissions Guarantee program at MSU-Meridian and learn about transfer scholarships at MSU-Meridian. |
| 4-H agent Reed will always remember the people | |
 | The longstanding face of 4-H will retire this summer after nearly 28 years of personal dedication to the youth of Neshoba County. Mike Reed will retire from the Mississippi State Extension Service in Neshoba County on June 30. He has worked for the state for 34 years, 31 of those as 4-H Extension agent. He does not plan to retire in general and just quit working but is looking forward to finding a schedule with some free time to spend time with his family and more closely follow Mississippi State athletics. |
| LINK abandons proposed area for Innovation District in Starkville | |
| The Golden Triangle Development LINK is no longer considering a 326-acre Starkville site for a $10 million industrial park after studies indicated an additional $2 million and 18 months of work would be needed to make the area shovel-ready for investments. Although the LINK-contracted environmental consulting firm Headwaters Inc. has yet to find physical artifacts, LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said evidence suggests the site, located near the Highway 182 and Highway 25 bypass, might have been home to Native Americans more than 500 years ago. The $10 million project, which was to be funded by $5 million bond contributions from the city and county, initially called for $70,000 in due diligence work, including a $10,000 cultural study. |
| UAW to Ramp Up Efforts to Unionize Mississippi Nissan Plant | |
 | The United Auto Workers union is preparing to take another shot at making inroads at a Nissan Motor Co. plant in the southern U.S., the latest in a long history of trying to organize Japanese auto makers. UAW Vice President Gary Casteel, the union's head of organizing at non-domestic auto factories, said the Nissan initiative under discussion follows progress at a Volkswagen AG plant in Chattanooga, Tenn. Mr. Casteel also said the UAW continues to attempt to unionize workers at a Daimler AG plant in Tuscaloosa, Ala. He said the union will now turn its attention to Nissan in Canton, Miss. The UAW has been unsuccessful in its attempts to unionize factories owned by Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan. |
| Gov. Bryant says he will sign inspection sticker bill | |
 | Beginning July 1 Mississippi registered vehicles will no longer be required to have an inspection sticker. Gov. Phil Bryant said the $5 sticker in the state will soon be eliminated. He said the bill is making its way to his desk, but once it gets there he will sign it into law. "It's not something that I champion, I understand the will of the Legislature to do away with it," said Bryant. "I am concerned that there are some other automobiles, older ones in particular, and I hope we find a way in the future to be able to determine what automobiles are safe and which ones are not to be on the road again, but a $5 sticker is probably not the best way to do it." |
| Legislators' education alternative challenged | |
 | The language slated to appear on the November general election ballot as an alternative to the citizen-sponsored education funding initiative is being challenged in Hinds County Circuit Court. Adrian Shipman of Oxford, a mother of two in the Oxford School District, filed the challenge Tuesday, claiming the language recently approved by the Attorney General's office is not a true reflection of legislative intent. Shipman claims the legislative alternative "creates significant risks of confusing the electorate." |
| Senator: No plans to sell Women's Clubs Building | |
 | State Sen. David Blount says there are no plans for the state to try to sell Mississippi Federation of Women's Clubs headquarters in Jackson, but he believes the organization shouldn't get the property free of charge. A Senate amendment added to House Bill 828 says the state should renew a 15 year lease for the valuable piece of property at the intersection of North State Street and Woodrow Wilson Avenue, across the street from University of Mississippi Medical Center. The Mississippi Federation of Women's Clubs built the headquarters building in 1935. The property is state-owned. In lieu of paying rent on the property, the organization gets a free lease for the volunteer work it does in the community. I don't think the state should provide a building free to a private organization," Blount said. "It's not fair to other organizations." |
| Crowded field for open Mississippi House seat | |
 | In the special election contest to replace the late Rep. Alan Nunnelee, Mississippi Republicans are hoping to avoid the nasty, divisive GOP primary that roiled the 2014 Senate race. But with such a large and diverse field that's still growing, even plugged-in operatives have no clue how the race might play out in the Tupelo-based 1st District. "For a congressional race, I've never seen anything like this," said Mississippi Republican strategist Austin Barbour, nephew of former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour. "Maybe it's happened before at some local race or mayoral race, but for a House seat, this is just a crazy number of people." op candidates include Mike Tagert, the transportation commissioner for all of the 1st District counties. |
| 1st District election voter deadlines set | |
| As qualifying deadline for candidates nears in the special election to fill the vacancy in Mississippi's 1st Congressional District, deadlines for voters are also nearing. The election was called following the death of Congressman Alan Nunnelee, who died Feb. 6 following a battle with cancer. Candidates will run together in a nonpartisan election, and the top two vote-getters will advance to a runoff if no one obtains a majority vote. The runoff is slated for June 2. The deadline to register to vote in the May 12 special election is April 11. Voter registration applications must be postmarked by April 11 for the voter to cast a ballot in the special election. |
| 'You can't govern the country based on being angry' | |
 | As he prepares his own likely 2016 bid, Lindsey Graham is positioning himself as the realist in the GOP field, a battle-tested pol who knows what it takes to cut a deal and isn't afraid to pour cold water on the lofty promises of his would-be rivals. In an interview with POLITICO, the South Carolina senator made clear that he plans to talk in sober detail about the need to overhaul the social safety net and reform the immigration system to allow foreign workers into the United States. He's intending to look Republican primary voters in the eye and tell them the GOP needs to -- yes -- cut deals with Democrats if it wants to survive as a party. |
| U.S. missile system could be 'over-matched,' Admiral Syring tells Rep. Mike Rogers | |
 | The U.S. military has been struggling with across-the-board cuts from sequestration for the last two years. The result is an erosion of military resources that could have long-lasting consequences, Rep. Mike Rogers said. The House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee, chaired by Rep. Mike Rogers, held a hearing recently on the 2016 missile defense budget. Overall, the House GOP budget plan keeps spending levels below the 2011 Budget Control Act level but beefs up -- by $94 billion -- the Pentagon's overseas account which is not subject to the limitations. That end-around move has upset some Republicans and raised concerns among military leaders about the ramifications of the ongoing cuts. |
| Bracing for a big power grid attack: 'One is too many' | |
 | About once every four days, part of the nation's power grid -- a system whose failure could leave millions in the dark -- is struck by a cyber or physical attack, a USA TODAY analysis of federal energy records finds. Some experts and officials fear the rash of smaller-scale incidents may point to broader security problems, raising questions about what can be done to safeguard the electrical grid from an attack that could leave millions without power for days or weeks, with potentially devastating consequences. "It's one of those things: One is too many, so that's why we have to pay attention," said Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Cheryl LaFleur. "The threats continue to evolve, and we have to continue to evolve as well." |
| Tollison proposes IHL overhaul, separate boards for universities | |
| State Sen. Gray Tollison conceded it would be a long shot to pass in the final days of the current legislative session his proposal to create separate boards to oversee personnel matters at each of the eight public universities. It would take a two-thirds majority in each chamber to suspend the rules this late in the session to take up such a proposal. And then, since the current Board of Trustees of state Institutions of Higher Learning is constitutionally created, it would take a two-thirds majority of the House and Senate to place on the ballot for voters to approve any change. Still, on Tuesday, Tollison, R-Oxford, introduced a resolution to suspend the rules so that the Legislature could consider a proposal to usurp some of the authority of the College Board in the wake of the panel's decision not to renew the contract of University of Mississippi Chancellor Dan Jones. |
| Legislature mulls dissolution of College Board | |
| A legislative proposal to break up the state College Board amid anger over the group's ousting of Ole Miss Chancellor Dan Jones hit the Senate and House on Tuesday but needs two-thirds vote to pass. State Sen. Gray Tollison, R-Oxford, introduced the Senate version of the measure in a pair of resolutions modeled after previous legislation that had died in 2009. State Rep. Brad Mayo, R-Oxford, is leading similar efforts in the House, where his resolution also was announced Tuesday. Both proposals would require each university to have its own board of trustees and turn the current state College Board into a "board of governors" still responsible for statewide oversight but no longer in control of individual university decisions. |
| UMMC officials push back against College Board | |
| University of Mississippi Medical Center officials on Tuesday defended it from criticism by state College Board officials, who cited problems with UMMC in their decision not to renew the contract of Ole Miss Chancellor Dan Jones. "I'm proud of the medical center," said Dr. James Keeton, vice chancellor emeritus. "We're very transparent about what we do." UMMC informs the board as well as the legislative and executive branches, he said. Over the past five years, UMMC has handled $7 billion, Keeton said. "There has never been any malfeasance or fraud. There has been no loss of money." In defending the board's decision for ousting Jones, Alan Perry, vice president of the board, accused UMMC of not being "very efficient." |
| Iftikhar speaks on 'Islamic Pacifism' Thursday at MUW | |
| Human Rights attorney and senior editor of "The Islamic Monthly" Arsalan Iftikhar will be the featured speaker for the Nell Peel Wolfe Lecture Series presented by the Ina E. Gordy Honors College Thursday, March 26 at 6 p.m. in Poindexter Hall, Connie Sills Kossen Auditorium. The free presentation is open to the public. The author of "Islamic Pacifism," Iftikhar also was a contributing author to "Taking Back Islam," winner of the 2003 Wilbur Communications Award for Religion Book of the Year. |
| Delta State student rehabs fraternity's image | |
| He is an incumbent and running unopposed for Student Government Association president of Delta State University in Cleveland. One vote Wednesday or Thursday puts Mikel Sykes back in office for his senior year. Perhaps, his vote? "I think I'll probably wait it out a little while to see if someone else votes for me," he laughs. It is not common for a junior to be elected, even more rare to serve two terms. But that, in a nutshell, is Mikel Sykes, who grew up in Winona. He routinely shreds previous boundaries. Sykes is the second African American SGA president at DSU. He also is the second African-American president of DSU's chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, which has 42 members, including five African Americans. Yes, SAE, which has received national publicity for all the wrong reasons recently. |
| East Central Community College's Academic, Workforce Ed Instructors of the Year announced | |
| Pam Fowler and Luke Howell, both of Union, have each received East Central Community College's highest recognition for instructors. Fowler was selected Academic Instructor of the Year, and Howell Workforce Education Instructor of the Year. She holds an associate of arts degree from Meridian Community College, a bachelor of arts degree from Millsaps College, and a master of science degree from Mississippi State University. A graduate of Newton County High School, Howell holds two degrees from ECCC: an associate in arts in music received in 2005 and an associate in applied science in collision repair in 2007. |
| LSU's Acacia fraternity indefinitely suspended, under investigation for alleged 'behavioral misconduct' | |
 | An LSU fraternity is on indefinite suspension amid allegations of "behavioral misconduct." LSU confirmed Tuesday that it is investigating claims involving the Acacia fraternity but declined to elaborate on the specific nature of those claims. "LSU is in contact and working with the Acacia national office, the alumni and chapter leadership," LSU spokesman Ernie Ballard said. Despite the interim suspension pending the investigation, Ballard said members are still in the Acacia fraternity house on West Lakeshore Drive. LSU's Acacia chapter was founded in 1956. The national Acacia website lists Louisiana U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, among its notable alumni. |
| UGA professor latest victim in Athens armed robberies | |
 | A University of Georgia professor was robbed at gunpoint Monday near downtown Athens. The holdup occurred soon after the robbery suspects approached a UGA student, who screamed, causing the suspects to flee, according to Athens-Clarke County police reports. In addition to these incidents, police continue to investigate three possibly related hold-ups reported last week. A woman at Hotel Indigo reported the most recent robbery at about 8 p.m., after witnessing three black males rob the professor in a parking lot in the 500 block of North Jackson Street. She told police she saw the professor waving her hands and then watched three black males run toward Bethel Midtown Village. |
| U. of South Carolina-area neighborhoods speak out against student 'party houses' | |
 | The homes in the Old Shandon, Lower Waverly-MLK and University Hill neighborhoods -- each a few blocks or less from the University of South Carolina -- once were populated with a wide variety of families and homeowners in clean houses with groomed lawns. Now, many of those families have moved away, and the neat lawns are often filled with empty and crushed beer cans, flattened party cups, fragmented beer bottles and empty kegs -- all of it left over from loud, late-night parties thrown by the students who primarily reside in the blocks around Five Points. It was in one of these homes, at 2319 Lee St., after another late-night party, that USC freshman 18-year-old Charlie Terreni Jr. was found dead last week. St. Patrick's Day decorations were still hanging from the weekend and a keg sat on the front porch of the home. |
| U. of Missouri police chief announces retirement | |
 | After 44 years with the University of Missouri Police Department, Chief Jack Watring is retiring. Watring, who is just shy of 70, said his retirement is coming at the right time for him personally and for the department. "We became a department in 1954, and I hate to say this, but we were the stepchildren of police work at the time," Watring said. "I think we have brought the department around to where it's very professional and recognized for that." Watring came to MU after two years with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, and he never left. He spent decades with the department before he was promoted to chief in 2003. He announced his retirement internally about a month ago, but kept the announcement low key. |
| International Students Stream Into U.S. Colleges | |
| American universities are enrolling unprecedented numbers of foreign students, prompted by the rise of an affluent class in China and generous scholarships offered by oil-rich Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia. Cash-strapped public universities also are driving the trend, aggressively recruiting students from abroad, especially undergraduates who pay a premium compared with in-state students. There are 1.13 million foreign students in the U.S., the vast majority in college-degree programs, according to a report to be released Wednesday by the Department of Homeland Security. That represents a 14% increase over last year, nearly 50% more than in 2010 and 85% more than in 2005. Amid rising costs, shrinking state support and student resistance to tuition increases, foreign students have become crucial to many public universities. |
| Federal privacy bill a 'missed opportunity' for Obama admin, legal scholars say | |
 | The Obama administration briefly considered but ultimately decided against expanding a new student privacy bill beyond K-12 education, according to sources with knowledge of the drafting process. The resulting draft is a "missed opportunity" for the White House to address privacy in higher education, legal scholars say. The Student Digital Privacy and Parental Rights Act of 2015, which will be introduced later this week by U.S. House Representatives Luke Messer and Jared S. Polis, seeks to limit how educational technology companies can use data they collect from students using their products. It builds on a proposal released by the White House in January, which in turn resembles a student privacy law passed in California last year. |
| Sex assault, drinking push colleges to moment of reckoning | |
 | On college campuses nationwide, the intertwined problems of sexual assault and alcohol are under intense scrutiny as students increasingly speak up and the federal government cracks down. Pushed to a collective moment of reckoning, colleges and universities are trying a slew of solutions focused on education, environment and enforcement. But even as administrators implement changes, new incidents have cropped up. |
| After racist video, U. of Oklahoma to hire chief diversity officer | |
| The speed and forcefulness with which David Boren, president of the University of Oklahoma, moved to punish members of Sigma Alpha Epsilon after they were caught singing a racist song this month earned the praise of many on campus and across the country, including President Obama. The following week, Boren drew similar praise for announcing that he would soon hire a vice president to oversee diversity and inclusion efforts on campus. But the announcement also left some students with a lingering question: Why did it take Boren, who has been president of Oklahoma for two decades, so long to create a position that already exists in some form at hundreds of other colleges? Oklahoma is one of only four institutions in the Big 12 Conference that does not have a chief diversity officer. |
| CHARLIE MITCHELL (OPINION): 'Record high underfunding' for state's schools | |
| Longtime Mississippi journalist Charlie Mitchell writes: "Last week, the state Senate by a 49-2 vote gave final approval and sent to the governor a bill appropriating nearly $100 million more in real dollars for public schools. The total will be $2.2 billion to be added to local taxes, federal dollars and assorted other money to pay for the education of about 490,000 students during the next school year. ...Unspoken was the fact that the Legislature again disregarded the legal obligation it gave itself to 'fully fund' public elementary and secondary schools. Lawmakers haven't changed the statute that directs the Department of Education to plug enrollment and other figures into formulas to determine the total amount of cash needed to provide 'adequate' schools. They just ignored it." |
SPORTS
| Right time, right place: Howland, Stricklin both feel this is the perfect fit | |
| Ben Howland had been waiting on the right time and place to make his return to coaching. Two years removed from leading UCLA to a Pac-12 Conference title and his 10th trip to the NCAA Tournament, Howland decided that opportunity was at Mississippi State. Howland was introduced as the Bulldogs' 20th head coach during a press conference Tuesday afternoon after signing a four-year contract worth $2.05 million annually. "I like the tradition of this program," Howland said. "I remember Richard Williams' team being in the Final Four and the consistent success that Rick Stansbury had here for a number of years including six (NCAA) Tournament bids. I know it can be done again. Once it's been done somewhere, it can be done again." |
| Ben Howland plans to bring big-name talent to Mississippi State | |
| Ben Howland, who grew up a Los Angeles Laker fan, smiled at Bailey Howell, a former Boston Celtic. The two were inside Humphrey Coliseum Tuesday afternoon as Mississippi State introduced Howland as the 20th head coach in program history. "Bailey Howell and the Boston Celtics ruined my childhood year after year," Howland said. Howell smiled back as a the hundreds fans in attendance applauded MSU's first 2,000 point scorer. It's been more than 50 years since Howell played for Mississippi State. Howland's prerogative is to bring more Bailey Howell's to Starkville. "It's going to take a lot of hard work. It's going to take the players to sell the program, a great staff that sells it to recruits," Howland said. "You're selling an unbelievably special league. Kids want to play here." |
| Ringing in the new coach: Howland introduced as Mississippi State's next head man | |
| Ben Howland's coaching career has made the unlikely trek from Westwood to Starkville, with a TV timeout in between. The 57-year-old was introduced as Mississippi State's new men's basketball coach Tuesday afternoon on the floor at Humphrey Coliseum. The former UCLA coach -- who led the Bruins to three straight Final Fours from 2006 to 2008 -- takes over a program with only a fraction of the national prestige, though the Bulldogs did make their one and only Final Four appearance in 1996. "That is our goal," Howland said. "To get back there again." |
| Fan base welcomes new Mississippi State basketball coach Howland | |
| he most electric atmosphere in Mississippi State's Humphrey Coliseum in months had nothing to do with a basketball game. Instead, it was a welcoming party. With MSU's pep band playing at full throat and program dignitaries like Bailey Howell and former coach Richard Williams in attendance, a crowd of nearly 500 gathered on Tuesday afternoon. And as soon as the door on the north end of the coliseum's playing surface opened, the man of the hour arrived as new MSU coach Ben Howland, the 20th coach in program history, was officially introduced. "I am very excited to be here," said Howland. |
| How Mississippi State, Howland agreed to a four-year, $8.2 million deal | |
| The details behind how Scott Stricklin courted Ben Howland became were revealed as Mississippi State introduced its 20th head basketball coach in program history Tuesday. MSU transitioned from its 19th, Rick Ray, to Howland in less than three days. The end result was a four-year deal worth $8.2 million that was finalized Monday in Atlanta. "I think this is a special place," Howland said. "I know that (my wife) Kim and I will be very happy here because of the community and the type of people in this community. That's really important to me. To play and compete against the very best in the country in the SEC excites me." After the deal was agreed upon, the families of Stricklin and Howland met at Mark Keenum's house for dinner. MSU's president told Howland all he needed to know to succeed in Starkville. |
| LOGAN LOWERY (OPINION): Stricklin appears to have made right move with Howland hire | |
| The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal's Logan Lowery writes: "Every hire an athletic director in the Southeastern Conference makes is scrutinized, especially when it's one of the three major sports programs. But Mississippi State's Scott Stricklin appears to have hit a home run bringing in a proven winner like Ben Howland to be the head coach of the men's basketball team. Stricklin made the decision to cut ties with first-time head coach Rick Ray, who he'd hired three years ago, to bring in a proven commodity and a national name like Howland." |
| HUGH KELLENBERGER (OPINION): This could be a wow hire for Mississippi State | |
| The Clarion-Ledger's Hugh Kellenberger writes: "Ben Howland did everything he was supposed to during day 1 as Mississippi State's new basketball coach. He honored the program's legends. He spoke of family and the football team winning and Dak Prescott. He rang a cowbell, and he even answered a question about a Twitter hashtag (which probably had to be the most unusual for him, since this is a man who until Tuesday had Tweeted three times in 2.5 years, the last two in August 2014)." |
| Dan Mullen, Hugh Freeze to play in pro-am Thursday | |
 | Dan Mullen, head football coach at Mississippi State University, and Ole Miss head football coach Hugh Freeze will headline a group of 212 community leaders, business executives and elected officials playing in the C Spire Pro-Am golf event on Thursday at Fallen Oak in Biloxi. Freeze, Mullen and other amateur golfers will play alongside 53 professional golfers from the PGA Champions Tour participating in the 2015 Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic. "I'm looking forward to visiting the Mississippi Gulf Coast and playing in this tournament with some of the world's best golfers," Mullen said. "The Coast is such an important part of our state and to be able to assist with an event that has such a significant economic impact is important to all of us at Mississippi State University." |
| Freeze, Mullen highlight MGRC Pro-Am Field for Thursday | |
 | The Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic Pro-Am at Fallen Oak on Thursday is sure to draw cheers of "Hotty Toddy" and "Hail State" from the crowd. Mississippi State football coach Dan Mullen will tee off at 7:30 a.m. in Billy Andrade's group and Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze will follow at 8:50 a.m. as part of the group featuring Fred Couples. "We didn't put them on the same team so it's going to be fun," MGRC tournament director Steve Nieman said. "They're staying at the same hotel, but I asked them to put them on opposite ends." Nieman hinted that there may be something in store for fans that show up to watch the two in-state rivals play Fallen Oak. |
| Haslam: 'I won't get involved' in controversy over UT 'Lady Vols' name | |
| Gov. Bill Haslam says he won't be getting involved in the controversy over removing the "Lady" from the name of the University of Tennessee's women's sports teams, the Lady Vols. During the question-and-answer part of Haslam's speech Tuesday to the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, a man asked whether the governor could act on the name controversy and larger "management" issues that the questioner didn't detail. UT is moving toward a common name -- Vols, or Volunteers, for all its intercollegiate athletic teams, male and female. Only the highly successful women's basketball program will retain the Lady Vols name and its distinctive logo. Opponents of the re-branding worry that the women's basketball team won't be allowed to retain the name much longer, and have taken their battle to reverse the athletic department's decision to the State Capitol. |
| NCAA releases documents in USC-McNair case, many with negative tone | |
 | Members of the NCAA infractions committee that handed USC some of the most severe penalties in college sports history compared the evidence in the scandal to the Oklahoma City bombing, mocked the university's response to the matter and derided the hiring of Lane Kiffin. The responses are among almost 500 pages of previously sealed emails, interview transcripts and other documents the NCAA filed in court Tuesday in former USC running backs coach Todd McNair's long-standing defamation lawsuit against the organization. For years, the NCAA fought to seal the documents, claiming that doing so would hinder future investigations by the organization. But California's 2nd District Court of Appeal rejected the attempt in a sharply worded opinion in February by a three-justice panel. |
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