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After months of national coverage about how former NFL quarterback Brett Favre solicited welfare money to build a volleyball stadium at his alma mater, the state of Mississippi has filed civil charges attempting to recoup the money.

The lawsuit alleges that Favre “understood that grant funds provided by MDHS could not be used for brick-and-mortar construction” — the first time Favre has officially faced this charge.

The new allegation comes just one week after Favre filed a punchy motion to dismiss the welfare department’s civil charges against him.

Mississippi Department of Human Services filed its initial civil suit, the agency’s response to a multi-million dollar fraud and embezzlement scandal, in May. The initial complaint targeted Favre for $1.1 million he received under a “vague, illusory promise that Favre make appearances or record PSAs” and $2.1 million the athlete helped secure for a pharmaceutical venture.

But the complaint did not initially include the University of Southern Mississippi Athletic Foundation, which took $5 million in welfare money to build a volleyball stadium — billed as a “wellness center” — on its campus.

The amended complaint, filed Monday, adds the athletic foundation and sheds more light on the roles of Favre and other state officials in the scheme, including university officials who are not included as defendants. Former welfare director John Davis and nonprofit founder Nancy New have both pleaded guilty to several fraud and bribery charges in connection with the welfare scandal.

“Despite the Foundation’s expressing worries about ‘rais[ing] negative concerns’ and being ‘scared to death,’ Brett Favre urged Nancy New that it was necessary for the Foundation to ‘utilize you guys [John Davis and Nancy New] in every way,’” the filing reads.

While the new complaint increases Favre’s potential liability by $5 million, it removed the $1.1 million claim against Favre in the initial complaint because he repaid that amount to the state in 2020 and 2021.

The new filing also adds a lobbyist, two former MDHS attorneys and a virtual reality company as defendants in the lawsuit.

It does not mention former Gov. Phil Bryant or the discussions the governor had with Favre about finding funding for the volleyball stadium or Prevacus, the company purportedly developing a drug to treat concussions.

“Governor Bryant was both aware of and supported MCEC’s payments to Prevacus at issue in this lawsuit, as well as its $5 million payment to Southern Miss in connection with the construction of a wellness center,” Favre alleged in his most recent motion.

The lawsuit still names fitness trainer Paul Lacoste and his organization Victory Sports Foundation, which received $1.3 million under what former MDHS leader Davis described as “the Lt. Gov’s fitness issue,” referring to then-Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves. Now governor and in control of the suit, Reeves is also not mentioned in the amended complaint.

In the new complaint, MDHS added the following new defendants:

• USM Athletic Foundation.
• N3 Holdings, the company that Nancy New and her sons Zach and Jess New owned and allegedly used to personally invest in Favre’s pharmaceutical start-up companies called Prevacus and PreSolMD.
• Lobaki, Inc. and Lobaki Foundation, a virtual reality company that received welfare funding to prop up a VR training academy.
• JTS Enterprises, the company formed by Brian Jeff Smith, John Davis’ brother-in-law, through which he received welfare funds.
• William Longwitz, former lawmaker and lobbyist who received nearly $320,000 in welfare funds to lobby on behalf of New’s organization.
• Inside Capitol, LLC, Will Longwitz’s lobbying firm.
• Jacob Black, former MDHS attorney.
• Garrig Shields, former MDHS attorney who left the agency to work for New’s nonprofit.
• William, Weiss, Hester and Co., PLLC, the accounting firm that conducted regular audits of the New nonprofit.

The initial complaint sought to claw back a total of about $24 million. The new complaint asserts that the two nonprofits through which most of the money was misspent — Mississippi Community Education Center and Family Resource of North Mississippi — breached their agreements with MDHS and should have to return their entire awarded amounts, $39.3 million for MCEC and $38 million for FRC. Neither nonprofit has assets totaling anywhere near those amounts.

Former U.S. Attorney Brad Pigott, the private attorney MDHS first hired to bring the suit, planned to include the volleyball project in the complaint, but Reeves’ office instructed him to remove it before filing. In July, after Pigott subpoenaed the athletic foundation for its communication with former Gov. Bryant, among other individuals, Reeves’ appointed welfare director Bob Anderson fired the attorney. At that time, Reeves said the agency was still considering more potential defendants to add to the suit, including the athletic foundation.

“Governor Tate Reeves tasked me with correcting the path of MDHS,” Anderson said in a statement Monday. “As part of that process, MDHS has been working hard to restore trust and put in place numerous internal controls to ensure that misspending is not repeated in the future. The rest of the task involves recovering and returning to the taxpayers the millions of dollars in misspent funds which were intended to benefit Mississippi’s needy families. We continue that task with this motion to file an amended civil complaint.”

The amended complaint alleges that in April of 2017, Favre made a “handshake agreement” with USM, where his daughter played volleyball, to personally guarantee the funds to construct a new facility for the team. He then contributed $150,000 worth of autographed merchandise and began soliciting donations from various people and companies, including the Kohler family.

“Favre, however, was unable to convince his friends and connections to donate enough money to meet his obligation to fund the construction of the volleyball facility, and he did not want to pay the costs out of his own pocket,” the complaint reads.

Favre’s attorney Eric Herschmann rejected the assertion that the athlete personally committed funds to the project, pointing to emails from USM’s athletic director at the time, Jon Gilbert, that say Favre agreed to fundraise for the project.

In July of 2017, Gilbert introduced Favre to nonprofit founder Nancy New, Favre said in his recent filing.

New, who sat on the athletic foundation board alongside Favre, and another nonprofit operator Christi Webb had just become the recipients of a massive cash flow from the welfare department. At the time, New’s nonprofit Mississippi Community Education Center already had existing leases with USM, including for a large suite at the football stadium, where the nonprofit could invite guests to watch the games.

Shortly after connecting with New, Favre met at USM with her, Gilbert, Davis, MDHS attorney Garrig Shields and former WWE wrestler Teddy DiBiase to discuss using MDHS funds on the volleyball construction.

“John Davis discussed his plan to ‘do good things for USM’ and ‘give them 4 mil’ with Christi Webb and Nancy New, both of whom enthusiastically agreed. John Davis suggested that Nancy New tell Jon Gilbert that the facility should be named after Favre,” the complaint reads. “The Foundation told Brett Favre that they were ‘very leary [sic] of accepting such a large grant,’ and suggested ‘trying to find a way for John [Davis] to allocate money to an entity that could then give to us that would pay for brick and mortar.’ Brett Favre also told Nancy New he ‘passed [this] same info[rmation] to John [Davis] and of course he [John Davis] sent back we will find a way to make it work.’”

The lawsuit alleges attorneys Shields and Black were instrumental in crafting the sham lease agreement, as well as facilitating several other allegedly fraudulent purchases.

Black was one of the employees who gathered and brought information about Davis’ alleged fraud to Gov. Bryant in June of 2019.

Favre denies any wrongdoing in the volleyball project. Longwitz, Black, Shields and a spokesperson for USM did not return calls to Mississippi Today on Monday.

“While he had helped raise funds for the facility and thereby met Davis and New, Favre, as with the transfers complained of in the Complaint, did absolutely nothing wrong in connection with the Wellness Center,” Favre’s Nov. 28 motion reads. “During Favre’s fundraising efforts, in July 2017, the Southern Miss athletic director introduced Favre to New, a Southern Miss Athletic Foundation board member, as someone who could assist Favre with the fundraising. New was well connected with numerous Mississippi officials, including Davis and then-Governor Bryant, and close friends with Governor Bryant’s wife Deborah Bryant.”

Tom Duff, current president of the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees and one of the board members who signed off on the $5 million MDHS grant to build the volleyball stadium in 2017, told Mississippi Today last month that he believed USM should return the funds.

“MDHS’s proposed amended complaint, in which MDHS has dropped its original $1.1 million claim against Brett Favre, while adding new groundless allegations about him, is as frivolous as its original complaint,” Herschmann said in a statement Monday after the state’s latest filing. “Again, MDHS omits facts key to these new allegations—including that the Mississippi Attorney General signed off on the transfers of funds from MDHS to another state entity, the University of Southern Mississippi, all with the full knowledge and consent of the Governor and other State officials.  That a private citizen, like non-lawyer Brett Favre, could have any liability under these circumstances is baseless.  Accordingly, we will oppose, on Brett’s behalf, MDHS’s motion to amend the complaint to the extent it adds these new groundless allegations. “

Editor’s note: Mississippi Today Editor-in-Chief Adam Ganucheau’s mother signed off on the language of a lease agreement to construct a University of Southern Mississippi volleyball stadium. Read more about that here.

The post State adds USM volleyball project to effort to recoup misspent welfare funds appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Low-income women in Mississippi have less access to health care in the months after giving birth than their counterparts in every state except Wyoming.

Mississippi and Wyoming are now the only two states in the country that have neither expanded Medicaid eligibility to low-income working adults, nor extended postpartum Medicaid coverage for new mothers beyond 60 days after birth, according to data compiled by the health nonprofit KFF. 

The other nine states that have not expanded Medicaid eligibility have all sought to extend postpartum coverage in recent years. Seven of them, including Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and South Carolina, have extended coverage to a year after birth. Texas and Wisconsin have sought federal approval to implement shorter extensions of six months and 90 days, respectively. 

“We know infant mortality and maternal health are challenges for our state,” said Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican who opposes Medicaid expansion, when he introduced his proposal to extend postpartum coverage in 2020. “One in two Tennessee births are covered through our Medicaid program.”

In Mississippi, that number is higher: about six in 10 births are covered by Medicaid.

During the ongoing COVID-19 federal public health emergency, states are not allowed to kick anyone off Medicaid. As a result, women who have given birth since March 2020 will have coverage until the emergency is lifted, potentially as soon as early 2023. 

But ordinarily, a Mississippi woman with two kids and a partner together earning $3,000 a month, for example, would lose her Medicaid coverage two months after her baby is born. 

The same woman living in Alabama, which has not expanded Medicaid eligibility but approved a 12-month postpartum coverage extension earlier this year, would have health insurance until her baby is a year old. And the same woman living in Arkansas, which has expanded Medicaid but not extended postpartum coverage, would have health insurance before and after her pregnancy, because she would be eligible based solely on her income. 

In Mississippi, women whose pregnancies are covered by Medicaid lose the ability to go to check-ups, get treatment for postpartum depression, and receive care for chronic conditions when their babies are just two months old.

House Speaker Philip Gunn, R-Clinton, has repeatedly rejected postpartum Medicaid extension, which easily passed the Senate last session. He has described the proposal as Medicaid expansion, though it would not make more people eligible for Medicaid. Almost every other state that has refused to expand Medicaid has nevertheless extended postpartum coverage. 

Last week, some of the state’s leading doctors told the Senate Medicaid Committee that extending postpartum Medicaid would not only improve abysmal maternal and infant health outcomes but also save money.

Mississippi has the country’s highest infant mortality rate and highest rate of premature births. Dr. Anita Henderson, a pediatrician and president of the Mississippi Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said the hospital cost of delivering a healthy baby at full term is typically around $5,000 to $6,000. But an extremely preterm baby requires a long stay in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), at an average cost of $600,000.

State Health Officer Dr. Daniel P. Edney mentioned that Mississippi is one of just two states that has neither extended postpartum coverage nor expanded Medicaid eligibility. 

“What I would beg us to consider is the fact it makes much more economic sense to let Medicaid pay for this rather than the state having to pay for it – either state agencies such as the health department paying, or hospitals paying for it with uncompensated care,” he said. 

Pregnant women in Mississippi qualify for Medicaid as long as their family income is below 194% of the federal poverty level– about $4,600 per month for a family of four. 

But after giving birth, a Mississippian with kids qualifies for Medicaid only if she has a very low income, earning $578 or less monthly for a family of four. 

With such a strict income eligibility requirement, it’s all but impossible for anyone with a full-time job to qualify for Medicaid coverage. (And healthy adults without kids never qualify for Medicaid in Mississippi.)

In states that have expanded Medicaid, including Louisiana and Arkansas, adults with incomes below 138% of the federal poverty level, or about $3,200 for a family of four, qualify for health insurance.

An analysis by the consulting firm Manatt found that expanding eligibility for Medicaid would cut enrollment in pregnancy Medicaid by about half, because many women would qualify based on income alone. 

Wil Ervin, deputy administrator for health policy for Mississippi Medicaid, told the Senate Medicaid Committee last week that extending postpartum coverage to a year would cost the state about $7 million. 

The post MAP: Mississippi makes it uniquely hard for low-income new moms to get health care appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Note: This article is part of Mississippi Today’s ongoing Mississippi Health Care Crisis project. Read more about the project by clicking here.

Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney recently told members of the media he supports the expansion of Medicaid, but that the program most likely will end in 2025.

That statement is inaccurate. Robin Rudowitz, vice president and head of the Medicaid team for the Kaiser Family Foundation, said the program is not slated to end and there is nothing pending federally that would result in the demise of Medicaid expansion in 2025.

The Medicaid expansion program will continue “unless Congress changes the law,” said Rudowitz. Kaiser is a health care advocacy nonprofit and keeps close tabs on federal legislation.

Medicaid expansion is part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare, which was passed in 2010. Under the expansion program, states can provide health care coverage through Medicaid for people — primarily the working poor — earning up the 138% of the federal poverty level, or about $18,500 annually for an individual.

Q&A: What is Medicaid expansion, really?

Mississippi is one of 11 states that has opted not to expand Medicaid to ensure health care coverage for the working poor. Many in the Republican leadership in Mississippi, specifically Gov. Tate Reeves and House Speaker Philip Gunn, have maintained the state cannot afford to expand Medicaid and that they do not want to add to the welfare rolls by providing health insurance for the working poor.

Chaney is the only Mississippi statewide official to take a firm position in favor of expansion, though in doing so he has echoed another talking point of those who oppose expansion — that it will not last.

During the annual Hobnob in October, where the state’s political leaders speak to members of the Mississippi Economic Council, Chaney said of Medicaid expansion: “I’m not sure it would work today because it’s only got a three-year life left on the expansion part. In 2025, all the people that have been put on under expansion will be taken off and you’ve got to find a new (health care coverage) home for them unless the feds change the program. It depends on who controls the election, who controls the administration. I don’t know.”

During additional conversations in recent days, Chaney referenced programs other than the Medicaid expansion program that will end. It is true that the state’s “traditional” Medicaid rolls could be shrinking in the coming months.

READ MORE: Mississippi leaving more than $1 billion per year on table by rejecting Medicaid expansion

As part of federal COVID-19 relief legislation, the federal contribution to each state’s Medicaid program was increased by 6.2% during the pandemic public health emergency. The increase means that this fiscal year the federal government would pay 84.06% of the cost of providing health care services for Mississippi Medicaid recipients with the state paying the rest.

As part of receiving the additional federal funds through the higher matching rate, the state has had to agree not to remove anyone from the Medicaid rolls. In Mississippi, Medicaid provides coverage for poor pregnant women, poor children, the disabled, some categories of the elderly and some caretakers of Medicaid recipients living in extreme poverty.

Medicaid expansion would provide coverage for healthy people who otherwise would not be eligible for Medicaid.

The increased matching rate has resulted in a boon in revenue for the state. According to a Kaiser study, between 2020-2022, the enhanced matching rate for the state’s current program and increased Medicaid enrollment have resulted in additional costs of $173 million in state funds. But during the same time period, the federal government has provided an additional $1.1 billion in federal funds for Mississippi Medicaid recipients.

Mississippi, as the poorest state in the nation, receives the largest matching rate from the federal government for its existing Medicaid program.

Chaney is correct that the enhanced matching rate will end and people most likely will be removed from the rolls, most likely long before 2025. But Rudowitz said the administration of President Joe Biden has said it will provide states a 60-day notice before ending the state of emergency.

At that time, as Chaney said, Mississippi and other states will have to determine if there are ways to provide health care coverage for those who are removed from Medicaid. In Mississippi, many of those who might be removed could obtain coverage by expanding Medicaid or by providing one year of Medicaid coverage for mothers of newborns.

READ MORE: Extending postpartum coverage to Mississippi mothers ‘a no brainer,’ key lawmaker says

Many of the people in Mississippi who have remained on the rolls during the public health emergency are mothers of newborns. Under Mississippi law, outside of the federal public health emergency, postpartum coverage lasts for only 60 days.

Under Medicaid expansion, the federal government pays 90% of the costs.

Rudowitz said the 90% rate “remains in perpetuity unless Congress changes the law.”

She also said there has been no talk in recent years of Republicans in Congress trying to repeal Obamacare or more specifically the Medicaid expansion program.

In fact, as part of COVID-19 relief legislation, the states that have not expanded Medicaid have been offered a financial incentive to do so. In Mississippi, it is estimated that the financial incentive would provide more than $600 million in federal funds over two years.

Rudowitz said the federal legislation does not put a time limit on how long the states have to expand Medicaid and claim the financial incentive. But the financial incentive only lasts for two years once it begins.

South Dakota citizens voted in early November to adopt Medicaid expansion. Mississippi and 10 other states, most in the Southeast, have not adopted Medicaid expansion.

READ MORE: Here’s what experts say about expanding Medicaid in Mississippi

The post Fact check: Feds not slated to end Medicaid expansion funding appeared first on Mississippi Today.

El superintendente de educación estatal recién nombrado, Robert Taylor, hizo sus primeros comentarios públicos el lunes desde que fue nombrado para el cargo.

Taylor, nativo de Laurel que ha trabajado en la educación pública de Carolina del Norte durante los últimos 30 años, dijo que ser superintendente estatal de Mississippi ha sido el sueño de su vida.

 “Espero trabajar con (líderes educativos y funcionarios electos) porque este es nuestro estado, este es nuestro hogar y queremos verlo mejorar continuamente”, dijo. “¿Qué podría ser un regalo más grande para un hijo nativo?”

Hablando con los periodistas a través de Zoom, Taylor habló sobre una variedad de temas:

• Prioridades iniciales: quiere conocer al personal del Departamento de Educación de Mississippi y reunirse con los superintendentes locales de todo el estado para comprender las fortalezas y debilidades de sus distritos.
• Teoría crítica de la raza: Taylor dijo que la teoría crítica de la raza no se enseña en las escuelas públicas. Él entiende que es una teoría jurídica y que sería inexacto decir que la apoya. “Tuve que decirme a mí mismo: ‘Soy un hombre educado, pero me temo que no puedo hablar inteligentemente sobre lo que es la teoría crítica de la raza’”, ya que no se relaciona con su trabajo. Es responsabilidad de las escuelas ayudar a los estudiantes a convertirse en pensadores críticos, pero no empujarlos en ninguna dirección en particular, dijo.
• La escasez de maestros: La escasez de maestros y la inversión en maestros de calidad son algunos de los principales desafíos que enfrenta el estado, dijo. Mencionó soluciones, incluida la creación de relaciones con los programas de formación docente en las universidades, programas alternativos de licencias y más trabajo con las administraciones locales con respecto a cómo supervisan a los docentes. También habló sobre la creación de apoyos para ayudar a los maestros a permanecer en el salón de clases.
• Continuar y expandir el progreso de Mississippi en el trabajo de alfabetización.
• Trabajar con la cámara estatal: Quiere que el MDE se asocie con la Legislatura para ayudar a informar los proyectos de ley que crean los legisladores en función de lo que muestran los datos y la investigación como exitosos.
• Un año escolar continuo: cuando se le preguntó específicamente acerca de pasar a un horario escolar de todo el año, algo por lo que el vicegobernador Delbert Hoseman expresó su apoyo, Taylor dijo que la investigación muestra que la educación de todo el año es beneficiosa y apoyaría una propuesta de este tipo.
• Participación de los padres: Taylor cree que los padres deben tener una voz fuerte en la educación pública. Dijo que sabe que quieren lo mejor para sus hijos y quiere que se sientan escuchados y que puedan confiar en sus escuelas. Considera que es su deber hacer que la experiencia de la educación sea lo mejor posible para los estudiantes y maestros de todo el estado.
• Regreso a casa: Planea vivir en el área metropolitana de Jackson, pero espera conseguir un terreno donde pueda cavar en la tierra y disfrutar del aire libre. También posee tierras en el condado de Greene con sus hermanos donde cazan.
• Representación: “Espero que los estudiantes de color vean que tienen la oportunidad de ascender a una posición como esta. Ciertamente me gustaría pensar que no fui seleccionado por mi color sino por mi cuerpo de trabajo. Reconozco que hay muchos niños y niñas negros jóvenes que se ven a sí mismos en mí, pero les pediría que no solo se vean en mí sino en todos los que se encuentren porque eso es ciertamente lo que me pasó a mí”.

Taylor comenzará en su nuevo cargo en enero de 2023, pendiente de confirmación por parte del senado estatal.

Andrés Fuentes

Andrés Fuentes es periodista de FOX8-TV en Nueva Orleans y traductor de Mississippi Today. Antes de que el nativo de Nueva Orleans regresara, era periodista para WLOX-TV en Biloxi, Mississippi.

The post El superintendente estatal entrante, Robert Taylor, comparte prioridades como nuevo líder de las escuelas públicas appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Mississippi Today’s Bobby Harrison reminisces with former Mississippi political reporter Mac Gordon about covering outspoken former Gov. Kirk Fordice and other political figures from state’s past. Gordon, who now lives in Georgia, also talks about the current Senate race in the Peach State involving former football great Herschel Walker.

The post Podcast: Former political reporter Mac Gordon talks Herschel Walker, battles covering Kirk Fordice appeared first on Mississippi Today.

HATTIESBURG — The Mississippi High School Activities Association State Football Championships rarely disappoint when it comes to drama – the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, as “Wide World of Sports” Hall of Fame broadcaster Jim McKay famously put it.

The 2022 championship games, played Friday and Saturday at The Rock at Southern Miss, were no exception. The weekend produced shootouts – such as Raleigh’s 55-52 triumph over Noxubee County in the Class 3A game – and defensive struggles, such as Lousville’s 17-14 conquest of Mendenhall in the Class 4 A championship.

We saw some of the state’s most highly recruited college prospects, streamlined physical athletes such as Raleigh’s Suntarine Perkins and Picayune’s Dante Dowdell. We saw magnificent high school players such as Scott Central’s bowling ball of a quarterback, Quez Goss (5-feet, 9 inches, maybe, and 220 pounds). Get this: In back to back state championships, Goss has produced a total of 14 touchdowns, while his Scott Central team has scored 112 points.

Picayune, winning its second straight 5A championship, emerged as the state’s only undefeated team. With seemingly the entire citizenry of Picayune filling the lower deck on the east side at The Rock, the Maroon Tide finished a perfect 15-0 with only one victory coming by fewer than 10 points.

Louisville won its 11th state championship, tying it with West Point for most football state championships among Mississippi public schools.

Starkville’s championship season deserves special recognition. The Yellowjackets, beset by a brutal schedule and key injuries, lost three straight games in September and October before regrouping to win its last eight, including four straight in the playoffs. Asked who made up that brutal schedule, Jones responded, “I did. You don’t get any better playing cupcakes.”

So, let’s recap the games in the order they were played.

Class 3A: Raleigh 55, Noxubee County 52

What a way to start the weekend: In Raleigh’s 55-52 Class 3A championship victory over Noxubee County, the two teams combined for a MHSAA playoffs record 107 points – not to mention 14 touchdowns, 45 first downs and nearly 1,000 yards of offense. There were only two punts, both by Noxubee.

Rarely, if ever, has an MVP trophy belonged to a more obvious winner. Suntarine Perkins, Raleigh’s do-it-all superstar, provided 331 yards and four touchdowns rushing. He caught three passes for 56 yards. He kicked off. He led his team in tackles and he made a crucial fourth quarter interception to preserve the victory.

Perkins, a heavily muscled, 6-foot-3, 205-pound player, showed why virtually every college coach in the country would love to have him and why Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin and Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding watched the game from field level, just behind the north end zone. Afterward, Perkins confirmed that Ole Miss, to whom he has verbally committed, and Alabama, are the last two suitors he is considering. One or the other is going to get a remarkable athlete – and take a huge NIL hit – when Perkins signs on the dotted line. He said that will happen “sometime in December.”

It took all of Perkins’ heroics to get the victory. Noxubee County, a perennial Mississippi high school powerhouse, fought all the way to the final gun. Keep this name in mind for future reference: Kamario Taylor. Just a 10th grader, the long-limbed, 6-4, 180-pounder kept Noxubee in it, throwing for five touchdowns. 

Taylor was marvelous, but Perkins was even better. He sprinted 74 yards for a touchdown, out-running much smaller people, the first time he touched it. He was just getting started.

Asked how he felt afterward, Perkins smiled. “Real good,” he said, “but my legs I gotta admit are a little tired.”

Class 1A: Bay Springs 22, McEvans 0

Mississippi State commit Tyrick Jones rambled for 136 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries but it was the Bay Springs defense, which much included Jones, that sparked the Bulldogs to the school’s second straight state championship. After Friday’s first game produced 107 points, Bay Springs allowed none, serving to reinforce the age-old adage: Defense wins championships.

Bay Springs did not complete a single pass, but ran for 270 yards and allowed McEvans only 149 yards of total offense. Why throw it if you don’t need to?

It was Bay Springs’ sixth shutout of the season and the 11th time the Bulldogs have held an opponent to one score or fewer scores. McEvans had averaged 42 points per game in three previous playoffs victory but couldn’t crack the Bay Springs defense, which did not give up a score in four playoffs games.

Said Jones, a 225-pounder who likely will play on the defensive side of the ball at State, “Our plan was to run the ball down their throat, and that’s what we did. We were going to pound and pound it until they quit.”

Class 5A: Picayune 31, West Point 21

Defending State 5A Champ Picayune fell behind perennial powerhouse West Point 14-3 Friday night but there was no panic along the Maroon Tide sidelines. When you have a stable of running backs, led by four star recruit Dante Dowdell, why panic?

After running for 190 yards and three touchdowns, Dowdell, the MVP, explained, “We’ve got a lot of guys that have heart. When we get a head of steam and start going downhill, we’re hard to stop.”

Chris Smith also ran for 104 yards for the Maroon Tide, which was playing West Point in the state championship game for the second consecutive year. Dowdell, who stands 6 feet, 1 inch and weighs 215 pounds, displayed a remarkable blend of speed and power against a normally salty West Point defense.

“He’s a great player,” Picayune coach Cody Stogner said of Dowdell. “Sometimes you just gotta let a great player play. We’ve had him for four years, and he’s just gotten better and better every year. We lean on him heavily, and we did again tonight. Like always, he delivered.”

Class 4A: Louisville 17, Mendenhall 14

Make that 11 for 11 for the Lousville Wildcats. After defeating Mendenhall 17-14 for the 4A State Championship Saturday, the Wildcats have advanced to a state championship game 11 times. They have won all 11. None could have been any more difficult than the three-point victory over the Mendenhall Tigers.

Junior Ceidrick Hunt booted a 27-yard field goal as time expired to give Louisville the winning margin in a game mostly dominated by the two defenses.

You think there isn’t pressure to win in a tradition-rich program such as Louisville? “I didn’t want to be the first coach (at Louisville) to come down here and lose in the finals,” said Louisville head coach Tyrone Shorter.

It looked like that might happen. Mendenhall was driving late in the fourth quarter when the Wildcats forced the game’s only turnover. Senior Gabe Moore forced a fumble, which was recovered by sophomore Ja’cari Owens at the Mendenhall 43-yard-line with 32 seconds remaining in regulation. Senior quarterback Keyarrion Jackson led a short drive to produce the game-winning field goal.

Louisville is now tied with West Point for most state championships among Mississippi public schools teams. Both have won 11. Said Jackson, “Now we’re part of the legacy.”

Class 2A: Scott Central 42, Charleston 12

Next season, the Class 2A State Championship can be someone else’s playground. Scott Central quarterback Quez Goss won’t be around to show off again. Goss, who accounted for eight touchdowns in Scott Central’s 70-26 romp over Leflore County last December, was responsible for six more in the Rebels’ 42-12 pasting of Charleston Saturday.

Goss plays a lot taller than his 5 feet, 9 inches. He throws the deep ball with uncanny accuracy. And he throws primarily to two senior wide receivers who can go up and get it. Southern Miss commit Javieon Butler hauled in five catches for 131 yards and two touchdowns, while Antreyvious Edwards had three catches for 133 yards and three touchdowns.

“When you’ve got guys like those, it makes my job so much easier,” Goss said. “I just launch it downfield and let them go get it.”

Goss was being overly modest. He finished 9-of-14 passing for 281 yards with five touchdowns and also added a rushing touchdown. He was a clear cut for choice for MVP for a second consecutive season.

Since 1999, Scott Central has won four state championships and been the runner-up twice.

Class 6A: Starkville 48, Brandon 32

Oddsmakers don’t make point spreads for high school football games, but powerhouse Brandon, which entered at 12-1, would have been favored over a Starkville team that started 0-3 in its own region this season. But Starkville took control at the beginning and coasted to the championship victory.

Junior quarterback Trey Petty led the way, throwing for two touchdown and running for three more. He was named the MVP but Starkville coach Chris Jones had another name for him. “He’s a dog,” Jones said. “I’m happy he’s on my team. He does a good job, and has been doing a good job all year. He had a rough patch early in the year when he was struggling and playing through injuries, but he bounced back. That’s what champions do.”

Starkville scored on seven of its 10 possessions and four of its first six. The Yellowjackets led 21-3 at halftime and then 28-3 early in the third quarter. Brandon finally got its offense in gear in the second half, but by then it was too late. Quarterback Landon Varnes passed for 297 yards and halfback Nate Blount powered for 184 yards on 24 carries, but it was not nearly enough.

The championship was the seventh in Starkville history but the first since 2015. Chris Jones has now won state championships at both Kemper County and Starkville.

The post Six state championships display thrill of victory, agony of defeat appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Tate Reeves, during his nearly 19 years in elective office, has subscribed to the theory that a good defense is best achieved through a bold offense.

His default setting is offense.

On the day last week that an order was made public detailing the takeover by the U.S. Department of Justice of the Jackson Water System, the governor went to social media to proclaim victory. But it was not clear who was keeping score other than Reeves.

“It is excellent news for anyone who cares about the people of Jackson that the mayor (Chokwe Antar Lumumba) will no longer be overseeing the city’s water system,” the governor said on social media. “It is out of the city’s control and will now be overseen by a federal court.”

The beleaguered water system, which has been beset for years with boil water notices and the loss of water pressure, also is out of the control of the state of Mississippi. And, of course, the state of Mississippi is ultimately the responsibility of Gov. Jonathan Tate Reeves.

Make no mistake about it – President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice is taking over the Jackson water system because both the city of Jackson and the state of Mississippi have been unable or unwilling to fix it.

Perhaps the governor should send Biden, whom he often goes on offense against, a thank you note for taking over the problem. After all, the governor made it clear he did not want to deal with the problem.

“It is a great day to be in Hattiesburg. It’s also, as always, a great day to not be in Jackson,” Reeves joked during the height of the most recent shutdown when many city residents had no running water. “I feel like I should take off my emergency manager director hat and leave it in the car and take off my public works director hat and leave it in the car.”

Granted, as the governor and other state officials have often said, it is primarily the responsibility of the city to provide adequate water to the citizens of Jackson.

But ultimately, Jackson, like any municipality in Mississippi, is a creature of the state. All municipalities in the state, from Satartia in Yazoo County with less than 50 residents to Jackson, the capital city, with about 150,000 residents, were created by acts of the Mississippi Legislature.

The Mississippi Constitution reads, “The Legislature shall pass general laws … under which cities and towns may be chartered and their charters amended.”

Reeves, during his eight years as lieutenant governor presiding over the Senate, or during his three years as governor, could have advocated for legislation to deal with the Jackson water crisis that has been ongoing for years. The water crisis should not be a surprise to anyone in state government. More than once Jackson water woes resulted in portable bathrooms being parked on the grounds of the ornate Mississippi Capitol during sessions of the Legislature.

The governor and Legislature could have acted to deal with the water woes with or without the consent of officials with the city of Jackson. After all, the city, as established by the Mississippi Constitution, is a creature of the state.

And it is not as if state officials have an aversion to getting involved in the business other than water of the city of Jackson.

It was not that long ago – 2016 – that legislation originating in the Senate where Reeves presided at the time as lieutenant governor was passed and signed into law by then-Gov. Phil Bryant stripping from city officials some of the authority over the Jackson Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport. Granted, a federal lawsuit has been filed that is pending trying to block the legislation from being enacted.

But that does not diminish the fact that there were steps the state could have taken earlier to deal with the issues facing the Jackson Water System.

There are multiple other examples of the governor and the Legislature meddling in the business of Jackson and of other cities across the state. Almost on a yearly basis, legislation is considered and sometimes passed to limit the cities’ authority to enact gun safety laws or to limit the cities’ authority to deal with undocumented immigrants as the locally elected leaders see fit.

Does saying all of this mean that there is not blame going way back among Jackson officials for the condition of the city water system?

The answer to that question most likely is no, but with the caveat that people in the highest echelons of state government who live in glass houses perhaps should not throw stones.

The post Feds take over Jackson water after failures at the local and state level appeared first on Mississippi Today.

The official news came late Saturday night: Colorado has named Deion Sanders as its next football coach.

“Not only will Coach Prime energize our fanbase, I’m confident that he will lead our program back to national prominence while leading a team of high quality and high character,” Colorado athletic director Rick George was quoted in a press release.

In Jackson, we had a strong hint a couple hours earlier. After Jackson State polished off Southern University 43-24 in the SWAC Championship Game Saturday evening, Sanders wasn’t around to answer the questions everyone wanted to ask.

Reporters and photographers jammed into a small media room at the south end of Veterans Memorial Stadium and waited for more than an hour after the game ended. Finally, a SWAC spokesman, seated beside where Sanders was supposed to sit, told reporters that Sanders and his team had left for the JSU campus where there was a team meeting. There would be no press conference.

At the risk of understating matters, that is not usual protocol after a football team completes a perfect season and wins the conference championship. (Much later Saturday night, JSU issued a two-sentence press release: “Coach Prime attempted to enter the interview room.  Southern’s press conference was still in progress. Coach Prime then left the stadium to attend official business with the athletic director and the team.”

Whatever, clearly Deion Sanders’ mercurial 26-month run as JSU head football coach was at end. Including an abbreviated 2020 spring season, his JSU teams won 27 games, lost five. Over the past two fall seasons, the Tigers are 23-2 overall and 16-0 in the SWAC. As an athlete, Sanders could do just about anything. Turns out, he can coach, too.

Asked about Sanders’ impact on the SWAC, Southern U. Coach Eric Dooley, who did show up for his turn at the microphone, answered, “He has obviously had a huge impact on Jackson State. Back to back SWAC championships – it’s been a long time since that has happened. He has put Jackson State football back to where it used to be.”

Dooley would not comment on Sanders’ impending departure other than to say, “I love competition. I hope he stays.”

Sanders has achieved so much in 26 months. He has brought JSU fans back by the tens of thousands. That success has translated into millions of desperately needed dollars pumped into the Jackson economy. He not only recruited the No. 1 high school prospect in all of America to Jackson State, he has restocked the Tigers roster with talent that is vastly superior to that of JSU’s conference brethren. He has surrounded himself with outstanding assistant coaches and he lets them do their jobs. He holds his players accountable and they bust their rear ends for him.

He has earned his keep – and then some – at Jackson State, where he was reportedly paid about $500,000 a year. Colorado will likely pay him more than 10 times that much, plus his assistant coaches will at least triple their salaries. They will have to earn it. Colorado was 1-11 this year, 5-19 over the last two. Colorado has had one winning season out of the last 15 and has not enjoyed sustained success since the Bill McCartney era (1982-94).

Keep in mind, JSU was 12-22 in the three seasons before Sanders’ arrival. That’s why, despite various published reports of Sanders’ imminent departure, many of the announced crowd of 53,754 Saturday hoped he would have a change of heart. 

They cheered wildly and waved their blue and white pompoms as the Tigers zoomed to a 26-0 first quarter lead over a team they had vanquished 35-0 just five weeks ago. Shedeur Sanders, the coach’s quarterbacking son, was his usual brilliant self, completing 31 of 44 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns. Shedeur Sanders often zipped his passes even before his receivers made their cuts. Just as often, Southern defenders appeared helpless to stop it.

As Jackson State players stood at attention at game’s end, coach and quarterback, father and son, stood side by side, the coach’s arm draped around his son’s shoulders. It was a poignant scene.

Still, we are left with so many questions:

• Will Deion Sanders coach the Celebration Bowl on Dec. 17 when Jackson State will play North Carolina Central in Atlanta?
• How many of his Jackson State players will join him at Colorado? After all, players can transfer at will these days.
• How many of his coaches will join him?
• Who is next up at JSU? Deion Sanders was the most important hire JSU athletic director Ashley Robinson ever made, that is, until he makes the next one.

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The eight-member Mississippi Ethics Commission voted 5-3 Friday that the state Legislature is not bound by the state’s open meetings law.

The Mississippi Constitution states that “the doors of each house, when in session, or in the committee of the whole, shall be kept open, except in cases which may require secrecy.” The Constitution also says a majority of the House or Senate is a quorum.

The ruling came in a complaint filed by the Mississippi Free Press saying that the House Republican caucus members, which currently consist of 75 of the 122 members, are violating the open meetings law when they meet behind closed doors to discuss policy.

Mississippi Today detailed the activities of the closed door meetings in a story earlier this year during the 2022 session. The story cited reports of various House members and detailed how the caucus meetings were usually the first place rank-and-file House Republicans were informed of details of major policies developed by Speaker Philip Gunn and a handful of other House leaders. And in those meetings, discussions often were held on whether members supported those proposals of the leadership. Caucus members who had questions were urged to speak privately with the relevant committee chairmen — Gunn appointees who are the speaker’s closest allies.

The Senate opted not to have a similar caucus because members expressed concern that it would violate the open meetings law.

Tom Hood, executive director of the Ethics Commission, recommended to the panel that the Legislature did fall under the open meetings law. The commission rejected the findings of its executive director and is scheduled to meet in the coming weeks to finalize its opinion on the issue.

The Hood opinion in part read, “It is essential to the fundamental philosophy of the American constitutional form of representative government and to the maintenance of a democratic society that public business undertaken by a quorum of the House of Representatives be performed in an open and public manner. The formation and determination of public policy by a quorum of the House is public business and must be conducted at open meetings.”

Hood had recommended that the commission schedule a hearing to determine whether the House Republican Caucus did in fact meet in private with more than a majority of the House in present to discuss legislative issues. If so, he argued that would be in violation of the opening meetings law. The commission rejected his reasoning.

Gunn and members of the House leadership argued that a party caucus was not a governmental body that would be covered by the open meetings law.

The Hood opinion did not broach the issue of the constitutional provision that seems to mandate the Legislature meet in public. The Ethics Commission is charged in state law with ruling on issues regarding the state’s public records and public meetings laws, but not constitutional matters.

The Ethics Commission is comprised of appointees of the governor, Supreme Court chief justice, speaker and lieutenant governor.

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