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As an Ole Miss Rebel, he was the MVP of both the Gator and Sugar Bowls. As an NFL rookie, he intercepted eight passes and returned two for touchdowns. As a coach, he won two national championships and two Super Bowl rings. He played for coaching legends John Vaught and Paul Brown, coached with the legendary Tom Landry. He is a member of seven different halls of fame.

And all that doesn’t even begin to tell the story of Clarksdale native and Ole Miss great Bobby Ray Franklin, a gentleman and a winner, who died Wednesday in his adopted hometown of Senatobia. He was 88.

When writing the life story of Franklin, there’s just so much to cover. Where to begin? Let’s start with this: He was the son of a barber and was given the nickname “Waxie” because of all the butch wax he wore in his crew cut hair as a young man.

Says former Ole Miss Chancellor Robert Khayat, an Ole Miss teammate of Franklin’s and a friend for more than six decades, “From the time we stepped onto the campus in August of 1956, Waxie was the best athlete on our football team. He was a terrific quarterback and defensive back, but he was so much more than that. He was fast, he was smart, he was funny. He could run it, pass it, kick it, punt it, catch it and tackle whoever had the ball. He was a leader. There was nothing Bobby Ray Franklin couldn’t do. And everything he did, he did first class.”

Franklin was funny, indeed. One example: The 1959 Ole Miss team was one of the greatest in college football history, out-scoring opponents 349-21 in 11 games. In a September game at Kentucky, Franklin, the Rebels quarterback, was running with the football toward the Rebels’ bench, when three Kentucky players slammed him at the sideline, across the bench and into a brick wall. Franklin went down hard and stayed down. “Frightening,” Khayat called it. Doc Knight, the Ole Miss trainer, raced toward Franklin, yelling “Waxie! Waxie! Are you OK, Waxie?” Finally, Franklin looked up, grinned and said, ”I’m fine, Doc, but how are my fans taking it?”

Knight doubled as the Ole Miss track and field coach, and Franklin was one of his sprinters. Once , at practice, Knight was at the finish line timing Franklin in the 100-yard dash. Franklin finished and Knight started yelling. “He just ran a 9.6 100-yard dash!” There was plenty reason for his excitement, because the world record at the time, held by a German, was 9.76 seconds. Turns out, unbeknownst to Knight, Waxie had moved up five yards from the starting line. He may still hold the world record in the 95-yard dash.

Back to that Kentucky game in 1959 and the injury: Franklin’s head was OK, but his left leg was not. He was stepped on with cleat marks on his left calf, resulting in a blood clot. Hospitalized for three weeks, he lost his starting quarterback job to the great Jake Gibbs, who was backed by Doug Elmore. Franklin played only sparingly for the remainder of the regular season, including the 7-3 defeat to LSU that ruined an otherwise perfect season. Healthy for the first time since September, Franklin came back for the Sugar Bowl rematch with LSU to complete 10 of 15 passes, two for touchdowns, in the 21-0 Ole Miss victory. Franklin was voted the game’s MVP, just as he had been in the 1958 Gator Bowl victory over Florida.

At 5 feet, 11 inches, Franklin was not a prime NFL prospect. The Cleveland Browns got him in the 11th round, and, boy, did they get a bargain. Franklin became an instant starter as a ball-hawking safety and kick returner. He also was the team’s backup punter and placekicker and held for the extra points and field goals of Browns kicking star Lou “The Toe” Groza, a Pro Football Hall of Famer. Franklin once told this sports writer, laughing: “I always told Lou he wouldn’t have been worth a damn without me as his holder.”

Franklin also had been the holder for Khayat’s kicks at Ole Miss. Said Khayat, “The thing was, Waxie was as good a kicker as I was. Great punter, too.”

Franklin retired as a player after seven seasons with the Browns and immediately joined Bud Carson’s coaching staff at Georgia Tech. Among his first recruits to Tech was Meridian’s Smylie Gebhart, who became an All American. Landry, the Hall of Fame coach of the Dallas Cowboys, hired Franklin away from Tech for a five-year run that included two Super Bowl victories. Franklin left Dallas to join Howard Schnellenberger’s staff in Baltimore, but that staff was fired after one season.

His career at a crossroads, Franklin joined his older brother in a private business in Mississippi. That lasted five years before Franklin went back to coaching. Ray Poole, a long-time friend and former Ole Miss coach, had taken the job as head coach at Northwest Community College in Senatobia and offered Franklin a job as offensive coordinator. This was 1979. A guy who had won an NFL championship as a player and two Super Bowl rings as a coach, was asked to be a junior college assistant coach. Franklin once told a sports writer, “I knew what people were thinking. What a comedown: from Super Bowls to junior college. Why would he do that? I didn’t care what people thought. I loved football. I wanted back.”

Two years later, he became the Northwest head coach. Two years after that, Franklin’s Northwest Rangers won the national junior college championship. Ten years after that, they would duplicate the feat. In 2004, Franklin retired having won 201 games, while losing only 57. Thirty-five of his players went on to play professionally.

Speaking by phone Thursday morning of his nearly life-long friend, Khayat said, “One of the most endearing things about Waxie is how emotional, how quick to cry, he was. He would even cry about happy things. When he went into the Coaches Hall of Fame, he started talking about his former players and coaches and he started crying, I mean, really sobbing. I didn’t know if he would even finish, and then he slapped himself in the face. I mean, slapped himself hard, and he said, ‘Come on, Franklin, stop being a crying fool.’ And then he was fine after that. Gave a great speech.”

When you know that about Franklin, it makes what follows all the more impressive. This was Aug. 7, 2007, in Canton, Ohio. Gene Hickerson, the great Ole Miss and Cleveland Browns lineman, was being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Hickerson, stricken with Alzheimer’s, was in a wheelchair and seemingly oblivious to what was going on around him. Hickerson’s family had asked Franklin to be his presenter that night.

It remains one of the most poignant moments experienced in my nearly six decades of sports writing. Jim Brown, Leroy Kelly and Bobby Mitchell, the three Browns running backs Hickerson helped block into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, pushed Hickerson’s wheelchair onto the stage and Bobby Ray Franklin, at the podium, took a moment to gather himself. Then, he congratulated the other honorees, said what an honor it was to present his friend of 52 years, and continued: “Gene’s son, Bob Hickerson, called me and asked me if I would present Gene. The fact that Gene has been ill for the last several years, I was a little hesitant because being as close as we  were, it’s a tough thing for me to do, as you can see right here, today. I’ve got to make myself tough when I start talking about Gene…”

Franklin paused again, gathered himself again, and spoke thoughtfully and eloquently, saying what he imagined Hickerson would have said if he were capable of saying anything at all. And then he said this: “Gene finished his entire career as a member of the Cleveland Browns, a fact he was extremely proud of. He quietly did his job as well as anyone ever in NFL history. If not for the circumstances, I would be almost to the point of introducing my good friend to you. Gene would then step to the podium, tell you how thrilled he is to receive this honor today, and crack a joke or two.

“Unfortunately he won’t be doing that, as my friend will not be able to speak to you even though he is here, I love Gene Hickerson as if he were my brother. … Borrowing these words from another Hall of Famer, Gale Sayers, I would like to ask you all to love Gene Hickerson, too.”

Bobby Ray Franklin might have been the only person among thousands there that evening who did not cry. His speech was on-point, splendid even – as was his life.

Gov. Tate Reeves last week attended and spoke at a fundraiser for State Auditor Shad White, whose 2027 gubernatorial aspirations at this point are well known.

Reeves’ office in a statement said he’s not endorsing anyone yet to replace him after his final term in office, but his appearance at the White fundraiser at a wealthy patron’s home in Northeast Jackson spurred speculation among politicos that Reeves is aligning early with White.

Over his many years in statewide office, including two terms as lieutenant governor, Reeves has most often kept his powder dry on endorsing or openly helping other statewide candidates in Republican primaries. But his criticism of another fellow Republican who has made his 2027 gubernatorial aspirations known, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, has some folks suspecting Reeves is getting out front early supporting White to thwart Hosemann’s aspirations.

“The governor often supports — financially and otherwise — elected officials throughout the state with whom he regularly works with to improve the state he loves,” Reeves’ Deputy Chief of Staff Cory Custer said in a statement. “Auditor White certainly meets that criteria.

“But, no, the governor has not made any endorsements for any office in the 2027 Mississippi elections,” Custer said.

White was ebullient over the governor’s assist at the fundraiser.

“I was honored to have Gov. Reeves attend the fundraiser,” White said in a statement. “We have tons of momentum as a state but big new challenges on the horizon that will require energy and grit from our next crop of elected officials, something he and I have discussed at length, so I was proud he chose to come to the event. It was the most successful fundraiser I’ve had in my time as state auditor.”

Jockeying and fundraising for Mississippi’s 2027 statewide elections is entering full swing, with politicians eyeing open seats for governor, lieutenant governor and potentially others through a domino effect.

Besides White and Hosemann, other Republicans considering a run for governor in bright-red Mississippi include Attorney General Lynn Fitch, Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson, former U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper, former House Speaker Philip Gunn and billionaire businessman Tommy Duff.

The potential entre into the race of Duff, the state’s co-wealthiest person along with his brother, will be a linchpin for the 2027 governor’s race. The prospect of running against someone who could easily write his own campaign an eight-figure check would likely cause all but the most confident, foolhardy or well-funded candidates to waive off a run and pick another office.

The political chatter of late has been that Duff, who has toyed with a gubernatorial run in past cycles, will not run in 2027. But Duff’s recent actions would appear to belie this. He has been traveling across the state and attending events in a very campaign-like manner for months. Duff also formed a PAC late last year that is already helping GOP candidates in local elections across the state in 2025, including running an ad in the heated Gulfport mayoral race between Republican Hugh Keating and Democrat Sonya Williams Barnes and donating $25,000 to the House Leadership Fund.

With some gubernatorial hopefuls considering a plan B, and an also open lieutenant governor seat, the field for the No. 2 spot in state government could become very crowded. Besides aforementioned potential gubernatorial candidates, numerous others, including Secretary of State Michael Watson, Treasurer David McRae, state Sen. Briggs Hopson III and others are considered potential lieutenant governor candidates.

One name often mentioned lately for a potential run for lieutenant governor, attorney general — you name it — is Deputy Attorney General Whitney Lipscomb. Lipscomb, who was previously deputy chief of staff and legal counsel for former Gov. Phil Bryant, has also been widely rumored as a likely pick by President Donald Trump for one of Mississippi’s two U.S. Attorney spots.

Democrats, who do not currently hold a statewide elected office in Mississippi, have at times struggled to field competitive candidates. But many suspect former Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley, who ran against Reeves in the last gubernatorial race, might try again. State House Minority Leader Robert Johnson is often mentioned as a potential lieutenant governor candidate.

At Thursday’s standing-room-only Board of Supervisors’ meeting, several Rankin County citizens called for Supervisor Steve Gaines to resign because of remarks that some have called racist.

The Rev. Ava Harvey, pastor for the Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church in Brandon, called for “an honest apology and an honorable resignation” by Gaines, saying, “It is time for our county to heal.” 

In 2023, five of Sheriff Bryan Bailey’s deputies, some of whom called themselves the “Goon Squad,” beat, tased and sexually assaulted Eddie Parker and his friend, Michael Jenkins, before shooting Jenkins in the mouth during a mock execution. The deputies tried to plant a BB gun and drugs on the men to cover up their crimes, but they were ultimately convicted and sent to federal prison for decades.

On May 1, the sheriff’s department’s lawyer, Jason Dare, announced that Rankin County had negotiated a $2.5 million settlement with Parker and Jenkins. Two days later, Gaines praised the settlement and Dare.

“He beat the pants off of those guys—the dopers, the people that raped and doped your daughters,” Gaines told the nearly all-white crowd of 100 gathered at the sheriff’s breakfast. “He beat their pants off.”

Malik Shabazz, a lawyer for Parker and Jenkins, called Gaines’ remarks racist and said his clients are considering a defamation lawsuit.

On May 13, Gaines released a statement saying that his comments were “not aimed at anyone personally.”

At the Thursday meeting, Harvey said it’s obvious that Gaines was speaking of the two men. “If you were not referring to Mr. Eddie Parker and Michael Jenkins, who were you referring to?” he asked Gaines. “If you’re not speaking specifically to the case that the lawyer was involved in, then exactly who is it? Is there another case out here that no one knows about?”

After Rankin County residents experienced the initial shock of what happened to Jenkins and Parker, there was “utter disgust, complete dismay” and “frayed trust” between the community and the sheriff, he said. “Goon Squad is now a household name.”

Some power brokers in Rankin County have urged Gaines to resign, but he gave no indication Thursday he would do so.

An investigation by Mississippi Today and The New York Times exposed a decades-long reign of terror that involved at least 20 Rankin County deputies, several of whom routinely tortured suspected drug users to elicit information and confessions.

Many people have filed lawsuits alleging abuses by deputies, or say they filed complaints with the department or reported these incidents directly to Bailey, but the sheriff has denied any knowledge of these alleged abuses.

Last September, the Justice Department opened an investigation into the sheriff’s department’s practices, but in January, the current administration’s department ordered the Civil Rights Division to halt any litigation or new cases. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Jackson did not respond to requests for comment on whether the probe would continue.

The state auditor’s office launched an investigation after Mississippi Today reported on Bailey’s alleged misuse of taxpayer money equipment and supplies used at his mother’s commercial chicken farm.

Outside the meeting, one protester, John Osborne of Jackson, whose son frequents Rankin County, held a sign criticizing Gaines. “Steve Gaines claimed that Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker raped and doped your daughters,” the sign read. “Steve Gaines lied.”

“It isn’t just about the racist trope,” Osborne said. “Gaines’ comments were a celebration of what happened to those two men.”

He said when Gaines made those comments at the May 3 breakfast meeting, “Bryan Bailey did not stand up and say those comments were wrong.”

Addressing the supervisors, Fred Chambliss, a federal correctional officer who became a whistleblower, questioned why Gaines had bragged about a $2.5 million settlement of a case in which “somebody got shot in the mouth, sexually assaulted, basically raped, waterboarded.”

“If you are bold enough to say that in a meeting, what else are y’all talking about behind closed doors?” he asked. 

Leon Seals, who has complained about being tased by Pearl police and is now running for alderman, said if citizens are held accountable, “police officers should be held accountable, or the supervisor members should be held accountable.”

In 2023, Harvey ran against Gaines for supervisor for District Four, the largest district in the county, stretching from east of Brandon to the northeast corner. Gaines, a Republican, won three-fourths of the vote over Harvey, who ran as an independent.

Harvey called the supervisor’s remarks disheartening. “I just do not believe the majority of people in District Four agree with his statement,” he said. “Mr. Gaines has now again brought national attention to our county unnecessarily.”

In an interview with Mississippi Today, Harvey said Gaines’ remarks still make it more difficult for Black Mississippians to navigate life in Rankin County. 

“How am I being viewed by my neighbors?” he asked. “Am I being viewed as a rapist? Am I being viewed as a doper? Is this the type of behavior that my neighbor now endorses, and people that I go to church with?”

Over the past several years, Rankin County has been “trying to go through this healing process” after all of the abuses by the Goon Squad, only for Gaines to “pull the scab right back off,” he said. “We just can’t seem to get past this dark cloud that’s just hanging over our county.”

He said both Gaines and Bailey should step down. Harvey said he may run against Gaines in 2027, saying the county needs better representation and new leadership to restore trust and improve the county’s reputation. 

“This is beyond bad judgment. This is beyond incompetence,” he said. “This is just reprehensible.”

A new pharmacy in Jackson will distribute medication to patients free of charge.

The St. Vincent de Paul Community Pharmacy – a “pharmacy of last resort” – provides free prescription services and wellness education to Mississippians who can not afford their medications.

“We are here for individuals that have exhausted all available means to get their prescription medicine on their own,” said executive director Samuel Burke at the pharmacy’s dedication Wednesday. 

The pharmacy will operate as a partnership between St. Vincent de Paul Community Pharmacy, St. Dominic Health and Stewpot Community Services, a homeless shelter and social service organization in downtown Jackson. 

It is the pharmacy’s third site in the state, joining locations in Hattiesburg and Biloxi. The organization chose to open the Jackson location due to the capital city’s high poverty rates, Burke said. 

The pharmacy, which is licensed by the Mississippi Board of Pharmacy and operates like any other retail pharmacy, distributes generic medications included on its formulary free of charge to patients. All staff members, including the pharmacist, are volunteers. 

Most medications are purchased wholesale with the support of donations.

“I tell folks all the time I have a terrible business model,” said Burke. “I raise money, I buy medicines, I give it away and then I do it all over again. But that’s what we’re here (for) and we’re called to do.”

The pharmacy also distributes unused prescriptions from nursing homes that would otherwise be destroyed, which is allowed by state law. The pharmacy currently has partnerships with four nursing facilities and expects this number to grow.

Individuals can be referred by clinics, the emergency room or their doctor or can ask for their prescription to be sent directly to the pharmacy without a referral. To receive continued assistance, clients must undergo an eligibility screening process. 

A free shuttle runs to the pharmacy Thursdays from Sister Trinita Community Clinic in downtown Jackson, which provides primary care health services to low-income families and homeless individuals. 

Burke said St. Vincent de Paul Community Pharmacy is the only multi-facility storefront charity pharmacy that allows patients to receive recurring services in the state. 

The need for such services is great, he said, because many Mississippians struggle to afford their prescriptions or choose between paying for their prescriptions and other important expenses. 

“We all know that we could open five, 10, 16, however many more, and there would still be a need,” Burke said. 

A state organization tasked with advocating for and providing legal services to Mississippians with disabilities received its delayed federal funding Wednesday – two weeks after it was forced to stop taking new cases for the first time in its history. 

The federally mandated nonprofit, known as a protection and advocacy organization, was awaiting $700,000 of its federal funding for the current fiscal year. On May 1, it announced it would stop taking new cases as a result of the delay. 

The organization’s leaders said they can see the available funds in the online portal and are resuming all the services that were placed on pause. 

“I was very much elated to see the money had come in this morning,” said Polly Tribble, executive director at Disability Rights Mississippi. “It has allowed us to take a breather, so we aren’t looking at immediate layoffs.”

The organization received no explanation for the delay, DRMS Communications Director Jane Carroll told Mississippi Today. 

The delays affected five of the organization’s larger programs, funded through the Department of Health and Human Services. The programs allowed DRMS to investigate reports of neglect and abuse and to advocate for voter accessibility for those with disabilities – among other services.

However, there are a couple of other top-down changes already implemented or on the horizon, Tribble said.

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) launched a “defend the spend” initiative which mandates organizations like DRMS provide line-by-line justification of spending. So far, Tribble says her organization hasn’t received any pushback about its expenditures. 

Tribble and similar organizations in other states still have concerns about future funding, however.  A draft of President Donald Trump’s proposed 2026 budget shows eliminations or significant funding reductions of many of DRMS’ programs. 

“Our concern for FY ‘26 still remains … But for now, we’re celebrating this, and we will keep fighting for our clients this month ahead as they firm up a budget.”

Griffin talks about his Blazers team, which enters the NCAA softball championship tournament this week, and about his famous son who is killing it in his first season of professional baseball in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ organization. The Clevelands also size up Mississippi teams entering the final week of college baseball season and also discuss next Monday’s Ferriss Trophy presentation.

Stream all episodes here.

Mississippi’s kindergarten vaccination rates, once the highest in the nation, dipped last year as the number of approved religious vaccine exemptions rose. 

The state’s childhood vaccination rates remain high, but public health officials are bracing themselves for possible outbreaks of measles and pertussis among young children as cases of vaccine-preventable diseases have risen across the nation. 

There have been over 1,000 measles cases reported in the U.S. this year alone, compared to 285 cases last year. Three people have died from the virus, once deemed eradicated in the country, including two unvaccinated children in Texas. 

“Our first line of defense is our immunization rates,” said State Health Officer Dr. Dan Edney at the State Board of Health Meeting April 10.

Kindergarten vaccination rates have fallen to fourth in the nation. Last school year, the state had 97.5% coverage for the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, compared to 99.1% for the 2019-2020 school year, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. A vaccine coverage rate of 95% or higher is needed to prevent measles outbreaks.

There have not yet been any reported measles cases in Mississippi, though cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, have accelerated this year. State public health officials say the risk of widespread outbreaks among young children, who are most susceptible to both diseases and severe complications that can lead to death, is low due to high vaccination rates. 

But relying solely on statewide vaccination rates can be deceiving, because it can camouflage clusters of unvaccinated people, said Jana Shaw, a professor of pediatrics at SUNY Upstate Medical University who studies childhood vaccinations and vaccine hesitancy. 

“Transmission of (measles) happens at the community level,” she said. “So if you’re looking at a state level, you may be falsely reassured that the situation is better than what you expect.” 

And vaccine exemptions are the single most important driver of disease outbreaks, said Shaw. 

Parents have requested 5,845 religious vaccine exemptions since they became available in Mississippi two years ago. Over 800 were requested this year. 

Mississippi long permitted only medical vaccine exemptions authorized by a doctor for school entry. That changed in 2023 when a federal judge ruled that parents can opt out of vaccinating their children due to religious beliefs.

The number of exemptions ranges by county, with the highest rates of vaccine exemptions among children in Lincoln, George and Stone counties, using 2023 Census data to calculate child population. 

The lowest rates of religious vaccine exemptions are in Scott, Washington and Leflore counties. 

A fourth of religious vaccine exemptions approved by the state did not list a county. This is because parents are sometimes unsure in which county a child will attend school or day care when they complete the form, said a spokesperson for the Mississippi State Department of Health. 

Only 30% of the state’s approved religious exemptions are for children enrolled in a kindergarten through 12th grade public, private or church school when the exemption was approved. The remaining 70% are for children who were homeschooled, enrolled in day care or not yet enrolled in school.

To request a religious vaccine exemption in Mississippi, a parent or guardian must submit a form and make an appointment at their local county health department to watch a vaccine education video and discuss the benefits and risks of immunization with a nurse. Parents are also informed that if any vaccine-preventable disease occurs or threatens to occur in the community, the child will not be allowed to attend school or day care. 

Religious vaccine exemptions are important because they protect parental autonomy, said Shaw. But they can become a problem when the laws are misused – for convenience or due to misinformation or disinformation. 

Mississippi’s law, which requires parents to go to the county health department and talk to a nurse, helps create safeguards against this, said Shaw, whose research has shown that the easier it is for parents to get a child exempted for non-medical reasons, the higher a state’s exemption rate. 

The health department has made changes to the process, including informing parents with approved religious exemptions that they can choose to vaccinate their children at any time. The agency has also advised providers to continue having conversations about vaccinations with parents who have religious exemptions on file.

Magnolia State baseball fans know well the traditional hardball success of the three largest universities, a tradition that continues in the spring of 2025. Three hundred teams play NCAA Division I baseball. Ole Miss, Southern Miss and Mississippi State all seem likely to make the elite 64-team NCAA Championship Tournament field.

But Mississippi’s college baseball prowess does not end there. Delta State and Mississippi College have both made the NCAA Division II Tournament and will compete in regionals in Florida later this week. Millsaps College, under the leadership of Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame coach Jim Page, has made the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time since 2015. Belhaven University lost in the finals of its conference tournament but takes a 31-13 record into its first-ever NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. William Carey University finished its season ranked No. 10 in all of NAIA baseball with a 38-14 record. The Crusaders hosted an NAIA Regional but lost their first two games Monday and Tuesday.

What follows is a breakdown of what each of those Mississippi teams faces in postseason play:

Southern Miss produced two of the five finalists for the Boo Ferriss Trophy, which will be awarded Monday at a luncheon Monday at Pearl River Resort. The five finalists in alphabetical order:

• Drake Fontenot (Delta State pitcher): A senior right-hander from Bossier City, La., Fontenot was the Gulf South Conference Pitcher of the Year, sporting a 9-2 record, a 2.23 earned run average, 84 strikeouts and 23 walks.
• Luke Hill (Ole Miss third baseman): The Arizona State transfer from Baton Rouge hit .342 with eight home runs and 32 runs batted in.
• JB Middleton (Southern Miss pitcher): A former Benton Academy standout from Yahoo City, Middleton likely will be the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year after producing a 9-1 record, with a 2.0 ERA and 98 strikeouts compared to 22 walks. Middleton is the highest rated MLB prospect among Mississippi college players.
• Nick Monstere (Southern Miss second baseman): The former Northwest Rankin standout and Mississippi High School Player of the Year hit .330 with 17 home runs and 61 RBI.
• Ace Reese (Mississippi State third baseman): A sophomore transfer from Houston, Reese hit .351 with 17 home runs and 60 RBI.

After Marcus Thompson’s announced resignation last week, Mississippi lawmakers and Jackson State University alumni are calling for more transparency and accountability from the state’s governing board that oversees and selects its college presidents. 

The Institutions of Higher Learning Board met in a closed door executive meeting for two hours May 7 to discuss a personnel matter regarding the job performance of an employee at the state’s largest historically Black university – the second time in three weeks the board did so. After the meeting, board officials told media there was nothing to report. 

IHL later released a statement saying Thompson resigned, but provided no information about what happened or why. Mississippi Today asked for a resignation letter but due to state public record laws it cannot be shared publicly. A spokesperson for the board said in an email statement they requested permission from Thompson to release his letter but the request was denied. 

Thompson’s departure marks the university’s third leadership turnover in ten years. It was deja vu for many who had watched the board let Thompson’s predecessor, Thomas Hudson, resign two years ago with no public explanation. 

The news came as a disappointment to JSU alumni, including Rep. Chris Bell, D-Jackson. Speaking about the repeated resignations creates a double-bind for JSU alums: It can bring unwanted, negative attention to the university, but staying silent could lead to IHL repeating the same mistakes.

“We got a lot of great things going on at Jackson State University,” Bell told Mississippi Today in a phone call this week. “It just speaks again to the need for transparency and accountability through the presidential selection process and IHL.” 

In 2020, Bell was one of 10 Democrats who introduced a bill to abolish the IHL board. The bill would have allowed the state’s eight public universities to appoint their own board of trustees to oversee the universities finances and executive leadership. The board is currently appointed by the governor with the advice-and-consent of the Senate.

If established, each 12-member board would include three representatives from the following groups associated with the respective university: members of college alumni association, student government and university faculty senate and state residents to serve a five-year term. It would have also established those boards to keep a detailed history of meeting minutes and vote history of potential candidates. 

The bill was tripled-referred, a rare legislative tactic used by House Speaker Philip Gunn at the time, to ensure the bill’s death. 

A dog and pony show

Mississippi Today reached out to Jackson State University National Alumni Association President Patrease Edwards for a comment. 

Leaders of the group did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication but shared a statement with other publications that in part asked alumni to only speak positively about the university. 

Mark Dawson, a lifetime member of JSU National Alumni Association, was one of many who sat on an open panel for the university’s presidential candidate process in spring 2023, which ultimately resulted in Thompson. 

Dawson said it did not seem like IHL took the panel’s feedback into account. Rather than using alumni on these panels as a “dog and pony show,” Dawson said, there’s a need for a “unified approach” for stakeholders and supporters of the university to be more involved in the search — so they can help IHL select a president who will last more than a couple years. 

“It’s about the opportunity to come together and get some things right,” Dawson said. “How can you have a vision for long-term stability for student housing, fundraising, academic programs and a new stadium when you have a new administration every few years. It needs to be corrected.” 

State Senate Minority Leader, Derrick T. Simmons said the board’s lack of diversity hurts JSU. The state’s 12-member board currently only includes one alumnus from a Mississippi HBCU. The state has a 38% Black population. JSU and other universities play a pivotal role in educating Black professionals, many of whom are Mississippi natives, Simmons added. 

“This underrepresentation raises concerns about equitable decision-making and inclusivity,” Simmons said. “By embracing these principles, the IHL can better serve all Mississippians, uphold the legacy of its educational institutions, and ensure a more equitable future for higher education in the state.” 

Sen. Hillman Frazier, D-Jackson, said he doesn’t have confidence with IHL when it comes to selecting the university’s presidents. In the last three presidential processes, the board has continued to overlook recommended resumes, stakeholders and supporters choices for president. 

Hudson’s predecessor, William Bynum, was gone after three years following his arrest in a prostitution sting at a Clinton hotel. Bynum was appointed Jackson State’s president in 2017 after serving as president of Mississippi Valley State University president for about four years. He was not a popular pick. The board’s announcement of his selection inspired several Black lawmakers to file a lawsuit to prevent his appointment. 

“They’ve wasted taxpayers and the JSU family’s time, energy and resources,” Frazier said. “Three strikes and you’re out. I have no confidence in this board and its commissioner.” 

A spokesperson for the board said the trustees have not held any formal discussions regarding a presidential search for Jackson State University.  

“The Board of Trustees is committed to a clear and transparent process,” a spokesperson for the board said in an email to Mississippi Today. 

IHL hired Thompson in November 2023 after Thomas Hudson. The board had placed Hudson on administrative leave, but did not share with the public the reason for the personnel issue that motivated its decision. 

When the board began its search a few months later, members of the JSU community asked the board to “stop hiring your friends.” The board conducted a national search, interviewing 79 applicants, but Thompson was the epitome of an internal hire having worked at IHL since 2009. 

Moving forward 

Denise Jones Gregory, former provost of vice president of academic affairs at JSU, shared a personal statement  on the university’s social media this weekend. 

“I ask for your patience, your partnership and most of all, your prayers as we move Jackson State University forward together,” Jones-Gregory said. 

Lisa Ross, a Jackson-area employment attorney and JSU alumnus, said IHL needs to better prepare the presidents to lead a complex organization like a university. She would know: Ross has repeatedly sued IHL and JSU on behalf of female administrators and faculty who have alleged gender discrimination in the workplace from male superiors.

Ross, who has sued over Thompson and Hudson’s appointments, noted neither man had led a university before IHL selected them. 

“It seems like they’re sending these people over there and they’re just letting these people go,” she said. “I don’t know if they gave Marcus the support that he needed.”

Ross cited something Thompson told her soon after he became president, that he had never read “To Survive and Thrive: The Quest for a True University.”

The memoir recounts John Peoples’ time leading Jackson State amid civil rights demonstrations and the 1970 shooting, as well as his relationships with the IHL board. Peoples is widely regarded as the university’s most renowned president.

“He did tell me ‘oh, I went out and bought the book,’ but you don’t even know the history of the university?” she said.

Going forward, the repeated resignations could make it hard for the state Legislature to invest in the university. It could also lead to a less qualified candidate pool, Frazier added. 

“This turnover is going to have a chilling effect on someone who wants to apply for the job,” he said. “It’s sabotaging the growth and reputation of my alma mater.”

Molly Minta contributed to this report.

Rural hospitals across the country are shuttering their labor and delivery doors, leaving millions of women – including Mississippians – without maternity care. 

The growing epidemic of closures hasn’t affected Mississippi as much as other states in recent years – but most of Mississippi’s rural hospitals already don’t deliver babies, according to a report from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform, an organization that focuses on solving health care problems by reforming insurance payments. 

Only one rural hospital in Mississippi closed its labor and delivery unit between 2021 and 2025, the report found. However, the vast majority – 68% – of rural hospitals in the state do not have a labor and delivery unit. Most of the 50 rural Mississippi hospitals not delivering babies never did, or stopped long ago, while four have closed their delivery services within the last 15 years. 

Now, the problem that has plagued Mississippi is spreading across the U.S., where nearly two rural hospitals each month have stopped delivering babies since the end of 2020, and more are announcing closures for 2025. That’s more than 100 rural hospitals in just under five years.

Addressing rural maternity care is key to mitigating maternal mortality in America – which continues to have the highest rate among high-income nations, the report’s authors argued. 

“Over 80% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable with appropriate prenatal, labor & delivery, and post-partum care,” the report read. “Although improvements in maternity care are needed in all parts of the country to reduce mortality rates, one of the greatest challenges is in rural areas, because most rural hospitals are no longer providing maternity care at all.”

Across the country, less than half – 42% – of rural hospitals currently offer labor and delivery services. 

The study also looked at travel times to labor and delivery units for women using the distance from hospitals without labor and delivery services to hospitals with those services. It found that in most urban areas, the travel time to a hospital with labor and delivery services is under 20 minutes. In rural areas, women face travel times of at least 30 minutes, but often 50 minutes or more. 

At 35 minutes, Mississippi’s median travel time is similar to the country as a whole. 

The rural hospitals that have stopped delivering babies in Mississippi since 2010, according to data from the Mississippi State Department of Health, are: the south campus of Anderson Regional Medical Center in Meridian; the community campus of Merit Health Natchez; Magee General; and Greenwood Leflore.

Despite Meridian being one of Mississippi’s larger cities, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) defines it as rural. 

Authors of the study offered several recommendations to stakeholders, most of which centered around reforming payments to hospitals. 

One of the biggest challenges for small hospitals providing maternity care is that physicians and staff must be standing by 24 hours a day, but are only paid when they deliver a baby – even though rural hospitals may experience many days when there are no deliveries.

Another problem with payment methods, according to the report, is that insurance companies often pay more for C-sections, meaning hospitals and clinicians that support natural childbirth may lose money – even though there have been national efforts to reduce C-section rates, which are highest in Mississippi. 

The report stressed that the biggest problem is not with Medicaid or uninsured patients. The primary cause of overall losses on patient services at rural maternity care hospitals is private insurance companies paying rural hospitals less than what it costs to deliver services to patients. 

“Rural maternity care is in a state of crisis, and more women and babies in rural communities will die unnecessarily until the crisis is resolved,” the report stated. “Federal and state government officials and private employers must take immediate action to ensure that all health insurance plans are paying adequately to support high-quality maternity care in every community.”