Jackson Free Press

As College Gameday prepares for their second visit in Mississippi for the second week in a row, and the first time at Mississippi State, the stakes keep getting higher for the Rebels and Bulldogs. Both teams are tied for third in the AP Top 25 football poll, and the eyes of the football world are once again on the Magnolia State.

Neither the Rebels nor Bulldogs are out of the playoffs with a loss this weekend. That is, unless the voters decide both we're frauds and dump our teams down the polls.

Texas A&M has more at stake this weekend than Ole Miss. The Aggies are coming off a lose to Mississippi State, and a Rebels victory would put an end to Texas A&M's playoff hopes.

Ole Miss must get past the Aggies to get a break in their schedule. Well, at least as much of a break you can get in the SEC.

The Rebels get Tennessee next Saturday at home before traveling to LSU. The Volunteers are an improved football team, and LSU is young but playing in Tiger Stadium is never an easy win.

A win this weekend means the Rebels could climb all the way to up to No. 2 or take sole possession of third place. It would be a step closer to the playoffs and a SEC West title.

Beating the Aggies would leave just Auburn and Mississippi State as the major tests left on the schedule. Sure, Arkansas is in the mix but, even as improved as the Razorbacks are this season, the Rebels should get a win like against LSU and Tennessee.

After this weekend, the road is wide open for the Rebels. Just about all the major stumbling blocks will be out of the way.

Mississippi State has a chance to move up to No. 2 in the nation with a win over Auburn. Much like Ole Miss, the road for the Bulldogs gets a lot lighter for a while after this weekend.

MSU gets Kentucky and Arkansas in SEC action. The Wildcats are improved like the Razorbacks, but that shouldn't trouble the Bulldogs much.

The road gets harder after that with road trips to Alabama and Ole Miss to finish out the season with a home date against Vanderbilt sandwiched between those two games.

This weekend sets up a nice stretch for both the Rebels and Bulldogs. After this weekend, much of the heavy lifting is over.

Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott has the most at stake this weekend. He can become the Heisman front runner with a solid-to-great game and a win. His counterpart Nick Marshall of Auburn could also take the lead.

Prescott can put a lock on the award with his normal play against Auburn. He can lock up the award with big games against Kentucky, Arkansas, and UT-Martin.

Keys to Rebels and Bulldogs wins

Things are easy for the Rebels. Just use the same …

The sports world suffered two losses early on June 28 with the passing of legendary basketball coach Pat Summitt and defensive mastermind Buddy Ryan. Summitt was the major factor in the growth of women’s basketball and Ryan built, arguably, the greatest defense in NFL history.

After suddenly being thrust into the head coaching position at the University of Tennessee in 1974, Summitt built one of the greatest basketball programs in American men's or women's basketball history. Her starting salary at UT was just $8,900, but that changed before her time with the Volunteers was finished.

Before becoming the winningest coach between both men and women at the Division I level, Summitt starred on the court at the University of Tennessee-Martin. By the time she left UT-Martin, she was the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,045 points and two appearances in the national championship tournament.

She played for her country in the Pan American Games and the Olympics. While doing that, Summitt had already begun her coaching career.

Summitt built Tennessee in to a national power in basketball by the early 1980s and guided the school to its first Final Four in the 1981-1982 season and finished as runner up during the 1983-1984 season.

Finally, in the 1986-1987 season, Summitt broke through for her first national championship. She won seven more national championships, include three straight from 1996 to 1998.

Tennessee won 16 SEC Championships and 16 SEC Tournament Championships under her coaching. The Volunteers reached 31 NCAA Tournaments and 18 Final Fours with Summitt.

In 38 years with Tennessee, Summitt won 1,098 games, had a .841 winning percentage, coached 21 All-Americans and 12 Olympians, won two Olympic gold medals as a coach, got 112 NCAA Tournament wins, eight SEC Coach of the Year Awards and seven NCAA Coach of the Year awards.

Summitt broke the million-dollar salary ceiling for women’s coaches in 2006 when she signed a contract for $2.125 million a year. After winning her 1,000th game in 2009, Tennessee awarded her with a $200,000 bonus and a contract that ran until the 2014 season.

Before she could finish her final contract at Tennessee, Summitt revealed she was suffering from early onset dementia and stepped away from coaching after leading her team to the Elite Eight in the 2011-12 season.

She was named Sports Illustrated Sportswoman of the Year in 2011 and was honored with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award in 2012, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 and was put in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.

Summitt never had a losing season at Tennessee, and every player who finished their eligibility under her when on to earn a degree. She only lost 208 games during her time as a college basketball coach.

At the age of 64, Summitt passed away due to early onset dementia.

While she was breaking glass ceilings and busting down barriers, Buddy Ryan was perfecting defensive …

Breaking: Simone Biles wins the gold medal in the women’s all-around final and teammate Aly Raisman wins the silver medal. The event was held today and will be seen in primetime on NBC as coverage starts at 7 p.m.

The members of the U.S. women’s gymnastics team call themselves “The Final Five,” and now, they can call themselves “The Golden Girls” after their gold medal in the team final. They crushed their opponents in a sport where the winners are normally separated by 10ths of points.

Instead, the U.S. women had a score of 184.897 points, winning by 8.209 points over second-place Russia, which had a score of 176.688. China took the bronze with 176.003 points, Japan finished fourth with 174.371, and Great Britain finished fifth with 174.362.

The scores above show just how dominant the U.S. women’s gymnastics team has been in Rio. Just .685 points separated second place and third places, and fourth and fifth place were separated by .009 points.

This is the largest margin of victory in the gymnastics team final since the current points system was put in place in 2006 and replaced the “Perfect 10” scoring system. The U.S. women also broke their own record when the “Fierce Five” won by 5.066 points in the London games four years ago.

By winning in Rio, this is the first time the U.S. women have won back-to-back gold medals in the team finals and the third Olympic gold medal in the event overall. The U.S. has medaled in this event from every Olympics since the 1992 games. Over that period of time, the U.S. has three gold medals (1996, 2012, 2016), two silver medals (2004, 2008) and two bronze medals (1992, 2000).

U.S. women’s gymnastics is working on taking over the sport with back-to-back Olympic gold medals and world championships in 2011, 2014 and 2015. This current team might be the best the U.S. has ever sent to the Olympics.

London holdovers Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman and perhaps the best gymnast in the world, Simone Biles, lead the team. First-time Olympians Laurie Hernandez and Madison Kocian might not get the headlines of the top-three U.S. gymnasts but are great in their events.

In Rio, the Americans had the highest team score in each event.

On the uneven bars, the U.S. women only held a .333 advantage over the second-best team, but Kocian has the best score of her career, and Douglas matched her best score of the year. Biles finished with the highest score on the balance beam, Hernandez finished third, and the U.S. finished .935 points over the second-place team.

Biles and Raisman both executed an Amanar, which is one of the most difficult vaults, as Biles finished with the top score. The U.S. women were able to start with a lead of 1.133 over the second-best team. The vault was the first event for the U.S. women in the team …

Doom and gloom surrounded the SEC in week one of the college football season. With high-profile losses and losses to lesser conferences, it wasn’t its normal self

But is the SEC really in danger of becoming the weakest of the new Power Five conferences? Now that two weeks have been played, there is a larger sample size to judge the SEC to the other four.

The SEC has five wins over other Power Five conferences: the University of Southern California, University of California, Los Angeles, Texas Christian University, Virginia Tech University and the University of North Carolina. But the SEC suffered four losses to Power Five conferences: Auburn University, Louisiana State University, University of Mississippi and University of Missouri.

Mississippi State University and the University of Kentucky both lost to non-Power Five conference schools. The SEC is the only Power Five conference not to have lost, yet, to a FCS school.

Here is how the other Power Five conferences have fared two weeks into the season.

The ACC has four wins over other Power Five conferences, with wins over Auburn, Mississippi, Pennsylvania State University and the University of Illinois. It also has three losses to Power Five schools: Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia and North Carolina.

North Carolina State lost to non-Power Five school East Carolina University, which was a bad loss for the ACC. Virginia also lost to a FCS school: the University of Richmond.

So the ACC has a 4-3 record against other Power Five conferences and two losses to either a non-Power Five or FCS team. Not bad, and the conference has several high-profile wins over the SEC, although Virginia did suffer a 17-point loss to a FCS school.

The Big 12 has just two wins over Power Five schools, with victories over Missouri and the University of Notre Dame. Of all the Power Five conferences, the Big 12 is the only one with a losing record, with four losses to other Power Five schools: TCU, Kansas State University, Iowa State University and Texas Tech University.

No Power Five conference has more losses to non-Power Five and FCS schools. Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma and the University of Kansas all lost to non-Power Five schools, and Iowa State lost to an FCS school.

Two weeks into the season, it is reasonable to believe that the weakest Power Five conference is the Big 12. Iowa State and Kansas might be the weakest Power Five schools after two weeks.

The Big Ten has the fewest wins over other Power Five schools, with just three over Oregon State University, LSU and Iowa State. The conference just has three losses to Power Five schools: Rutgers University, Penn State and Illinois.

In keeping with its theme, the Big Ten has three losses to non-Power Five or FCS schools. Northwestern University has lost to a non-Power Five school and a FCS school, and Purdue University has a loss to …

Things can change quickly in the NFL. One year a team may be raising the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season and the next, the team may be sitting at home waiting for another one to raise the trophy.

The Denver Broncos, who were last year’s Super Bowl champions, are sitting at home, and another team will win a title this year. Runner-up the Carolina Panthers missed the playoffs, too.

Denver finished last season 12-4, and Carolina went 15-1. Both teams won the AFC and NFC titles. This year the Broncos went 9-7, and the Panthers went 6-10 in disappointing seasons.

A multitude of reasons for teams falling off after making the playoffs, including free agents leaving, player retirements, coaching changes and, of course, injuries, exist.

The exact opposite can happen for teams that make the playoffs after missing out the year before, with reasons such as key free-agent signings, injury-free seasons, smart draft choices and a great coaching hire.

The Broncos struggled in the first season after Peyton Manning retired. While the defense was its dominant self, the offense struggled without a strong quarterback.

Injuries and free agent losses were big reasons for the Panthers’ slide, but so was quarterback Cam Newton’s play. He wasn’t nearly as good this season as last. Denver also struggled at quarterback due to the lack of a halfway decent running game.

Of the 12 teams that reached the playoffs last season, only six reached the postseason again this year. Four of those were in the AFC: the New England Patriots, Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Texans.

Things are drastically different in the NFC. Just the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers returned to the postseason.

In the AFC, the Cincinnati Bengals went 12-4 last season but went 6-9-1 this season. Nearly every team in the AFC playoff field bettered its record from 2015, except the Houston Texans, who finished 9-7 both years.

Top seeded New England went from 12-4 last year to 14-2 this year, and that was without quarterback Tom Brady for four games. Second seed Kansas City went 11-5 in 2015 and finished 12-4 this year.

Third-seeded Pittsburgh improved one game from 10-6 in 2015 to 11-5 this season. The Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders went from out of the playoffs to in the playoffs.

Miami was 6-10 last year but improved to 10-6 this year, and in 2015, Oakland was 7-9 but went 12-4 in another dramatic turnaround in 2016. These two teams give hope to every AFC team that finished with a losing record.

Things were vastly different in the NFC, where four teams from last season failed to make the playoffs. The two repeat teams, Green Bay and Seattle, basically held serve from 2015 to 2016. The Packers went 10-6 both seasons, and the Seahawks went from 10-6 to 10-5-1.

Besides the Panthers, last year’s second seed in the …

Former University of Mississippi Damore’ea Stringfellow is one of 95 underclassmen to declare for the 2017 NFL Draft. Monday, Jan. 16, was the deadline for players who are three years out of high school to announce their intentions.

Some players who decided to forgo their college eligibility received information from the NFL’s College Advisory Committee, which graded them as a first- or second-round pick. An interesting article on ESPN.com from Kevin Seifret took a closer look at the process.

Those who received a favorable free evaluation from the CAC are graded just on their football potential. The CAC doesn’t look at their off-the-field issues, or academic or medical problems.

A great example used in the story is University of Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon. There is no doubt that Mixon has first- or second-round talent on the field, but it will be interesting to see how teams view his year-long suspension for assault in 2014.

A video of Mixon punching a woman in the face and breaking her jaw, cheekbone and eye socket came out in December 2016. Recently the NFL has mishandled some very public cases of domestic assault .

Mixon entering the draft is another case where the league could be scrutinized depending on where he is drafted. If the talented running back is taken in the first round, it proves that winning in football matters more than off-the-field issues.

Just looking at football talent, it makes sense for players such as former Louisiana State University running back Leonard Fournette and Texas A&M University defensive end Myles Garrett to leave school early. That is not the case with every player who does, though.

Some get bad advice from friends and family or look to improve their life and their families’ lives by becoming a professional player. During the NFL Combine, it is good to hear NFL Network’s Mike Mayock’s evaluation of players.

Mayock is quick to point out that he doesn’t know a player’s personal situation, but he can tell if the player should have stayed in school and might be hurt by coming out early. That doesn’t mean Mayock is correct on every case.

In the 2015-2016 season, 322 players were evaluated, and 73 were told to return to school but declared for the draft anyway. Of those 73, 11 went in the first or second round, but 20 went undrafted.

That is the tricky part of the draft. It only takes one team to fall in love with a player and have need at that position.

Sometimes draft order hurts a player. One prime example is current Green Bay Packer quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The draft order of the 2005 NFL Draft meant that Rodgers could, and eventually did, slide after the San Francisco 49ers made their pick at No. 1.

That meant Rodgers fell all the way to the 24th pick, mainly because teams after the 49ers felt …

It is easy to say that Baylor University is a prime example of what is bad about college sports. The university is a textbook example of how the win-at-all-cost approach can lead an institution of higher learning into selling its morals for wins.

A major sexual-assault scandal broke out at Baylor with police arresting defensive end Tevin Elliott for rape charges in 2012 and his conviction in 2014. New information shows that then-head coach Art Briles helped Elliott stay on campus.

Elliott was accused of a second count of plagiarism that would have him suspended from the university and ineligible for the 2011 season. He missed an April 2011 deadline to appeal, but Briles personally got involved to help Elliott get an appeal.

Briles sent an email to then-university President Ken Starr about overturning the suspension, which Starr did, allowing Elliott to stay in school and on the team.

Briles, Starr and assistant coaches continued to hide or fix problems that Elliott had in missing classes, meaning those in charge at Baylor helped Elliott stay on campus, where he ended up raping a woman.

Elliott isn’t the only case at Baylor. Repeatedly, the coaches and even the Waco Police Department buried reports of players’ misbehavior. Recent reports show that the coaches tried to get people who Baylor football players had victimized not to press charges or report incidents.

A Title IX lawsuit from one woman alleges that from 2011 to 2014, at least 31 players committed 52 sexual assaults. Philadelphia law firm Pepper Hamilton revealed in a report that 17 women reported sexual assault or domestic violence from 19 players, including four gang rapes.

The scandal eventually took down Starr, Briles, assistant coaches and others in positions of leadership. Those in power did nearly everything possible to keep players from being arrested or charged with crimes, and tried to hinder the work of Title IX coordinator Patty Crawford.

Baylor isn’t a program that traditionally won a ton of games, and the last bowl game before the university hired Briles in 2008 was in 1994. The school’s last winning record before Briles was in 1995.

Under Briles, Baylor won 10 games in a season four times, and before him, it had won 10 games just once in program history. There is no question of whether Briles could recruit and coach, but when it came down to integrity and morality, he failed as a leader.

Winning mattered more at Baylor than players committing physical and sexual assault. Another recent lawsuit alleges that regents in a meeting with Baylor alumni and donors on why they couldn’t keep Briles and other involved in the scandals because they “didn’t uphold with the mission of the university.”

One donor is quoted as saying in the same meeting: “If you mention Baylor’s mission one more time, I’m (going to) throw up. … I was promised a national championship.”

The NCAA is …

Day three of the NFL Combine was all about big men running fast. It is the first day that the term “tweener” (a player who falls between two positions) was used a good bit.

The defensive linemen were split into two groups. Group one featured what could be the top pick in the draft in Myles Garrett out of Texas A&M University.

Garrett ran a great 4.64 second 40-yard dash, and the rest of his measurables were outstanding. He breezed through most of the on-the-field drills and took part in linebacker drills.

There is no way he wouldn’t last past the top five picks in the draft. A team at the top could overreach on a quarterback, but Garrett is going to be special.

Jonathan Allen out of the University of Alabama ran a 5.00-second 40-yard dash. Allen is going to go in the first round at some point, and he showed his skills in measurables and on-the-field drills.

Two former University of Mississippi players were in group one, Fadol Brown and D.J. Jones. Brown ended up with a solid day that wasn’t special, but he didn’t hurt himself with his 4.94-second 40-yard dash.

On the other hand, Jones was impressive for a 320-pound player who will play nose guard and defensive tackle. He ran a 5.04 second in the 40-yard dash. A team that needs some help stopping the run is going to have to go back and watch Jones’ tape. The former Rebel helped himself at the Combine.

Other players in group one who helped themselves were Daeshon Hall out of Texas A&M, Trey Hendrickson out of Florida Atlantic University, Taco Charlton out of the University of Michigan and Carl Lawson out of Auburn University.

Group two featured Haason Reddick out of Temple University. If you don’t know who Reddick is, get to know him because he is a first-round pick with his 4.52-second 40-yard dash.

He worked with the defensive linemen, but at 237 pounds, he will be a linebacker at the next level. He ran well all day, and his measurables were solid as made himself a top pick.

Tim Williams out of Alabama is another player who will be linebacker at the next level with a 4.68-second 40-yard dash. He will be in the mix for a first- or early-second-round pick.

Other players who helped themselves were Stevie Tu’ikolovatu out of the University of Southern California, Soloman Thomas out of Stanford University, Pita Taumoepenu out of the University of Utah, and Derek Rivers and Avery Moss out of Youngstown State University.

Defensive line is going to another position that is deep in this year’s draft.

During the last group of day three, linebackers worked out, but a notable name was missing. Reuben Foster out of Alabama was sent home after getting into an argument with medical staff at the Combine.

That is going to raise questions about the young man, as …

No one can say the New Orleans Saints are standing pat after three straight 7-9 seasons. This offseason, the Saints have been busy exploring options, making deals and bringing in players for meetings.

New Orleans will be hosting another high-profile player on Monday, April 10, when former Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson comes for a visit. Peterson hit the free-agent market when the Vikings decided not to pick up his $18-million option in February.

The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks have already met with the running back. At this late stage of free agency, it doesn’t hurt to kick the tires on the 32-year-old future Hall of Famer.

Peterson missed most of last season with injuries and most of the 2014 season suspended due to legal issues. Sandwiched in between those years, the 2015 season saw him rush for 1,485 yards, leading the league in rushing.

Peterson has rushed for more than 1,000 yards in seven of his 10 seasons in the NFL and rushed for double-digit touchdowns in eight of those. He failed to reach the end zone in 2014 and 2016, however, and rushed for a grand total of 149 yards those two seasons. New Orleans will have to decide if they would be getting the 2015 version of Peterson or the injury-prone 2016 version.

It is no secret that running backs begin to decline after reaching age 30 in the NFL. Peterson is known to keep himself in great shape and once recovered from an ACL tear during the 2011 season to rush for 2,097 yards in 2012, winning league MVP honors. It isn’t out of the question for the running back to produce another bounce-back year for whichever team he signs with in 2017.

New Orleans currently features Mark Ingram as its No. 1 running back. The 27 year old rushed for more than 1,000 yards for the first time in his career last season. It was just the second time in his career that he played in all 16 games, and he is still under contract for two more years.

If the Saints are going to sign Peterson, the team might have to change its offense. Both running backs are better when they get 20 or more carries in a game. That means that New Orleans must not rely on quarterback Drew Brees to carry the whole offense.

New Orleans will have to become a “run first” team if it signs the former Viking. Otherwise, the team is just wasting money on a big-name player when it still has a slight opening for a deep playoff run.

Ingram and Peterson would be a great one-two punch at the running-back position, but neither has been a major part of the passing game. New Orleans would have to make sure that it has a third-down-pass catching back. Peterson has also never been good at pass blocking during his career.

There are plenty …

The day after the regular season ended, Monday, May 22, turned out to be a great day for Mississippi State University first baseman Brent Rooker. He is in the midst of one of the greatest offensive seasons in the history of college baseball in our state.

Rooker became the first MSU player to be named SEC Player of the Year. He is leading the conference in batting average at .415, total bases with 179, hits with 85, RBI with 73, doubles with 28 and home runs with 20.

The Germantown, Tenn., native is second in the conference in stolen bases with 18 steals out of 23 attempts.

But it isn’t just the SEC that Rooker is leading or near the top with his statistics.

He is first in the nation in slugging percentage at .873, total bases and doubles, second in batting average, third in RBI, fourth in home runs and on-base percentage, and seventh in the nation in hits.

Rooker was named First Team All-SEC and is the second MSU first baseman to be named All-SEC in the last two seasons. Last season, Nathaniel Lowe earned First Team All-SEC at first base.

Short stop Ryan Gridley joins Rooker on the First Team All-SEC, and outfielder Jake Mangum landed on the Second Team All-SEC. Mangum landed on the All-Defensive team as well.

Rooker beat out a trio of players from the University of Southern Mississippi and one from Delta State University for the 2017 C Spire Ferriss Trophy. He is the sixth MSU player to win the award in the 14 years it has been handed out.

Every winner for the Bulldogs has come in back-to-back years. Thomas Berkery was the first MSU player to win the award in 2006, and Ed Easley won in 2007. Chris Stratton took home the trophy in 2012, and Hunter Renfroe won in 2013.

Rooker’s current teammate, Mangum, took home the award last season. The University of Mississippi has produced five winners, Southern Miss has two past winners, and Belhaven University has one winner.

Taylor Braley, Matt Wallner and Dylan Burdeaux of USM, and Zack Shannon of DSU of were the other 2017 Ferriss Trophy finalists. Rooker led the fan-voting with 1,728 votes, Burdeaux ended up second with 987 votes, Braley ended up third with 548, Shannon landed in fourth with 197 votes, and Wallner came in fifth with 57 votes.

Video emerged this weekend from New York Giants punter Steve Weatherford (warning there is some bad language in the video) showing defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul throwing cornerback Prince Amukamara into an ice bath.

Hazing has long been a part of life of sports. The problem of hazing is not confided to just the NFL. From Greek life in college to high school and college sports, and even college bands have run into legal trouble from hazing.

Recently more coaches in the NFL have taken stand against hazing that included harmless pranks such as making rookies standup during meals and sing their alma mater fight song to taping rookies to the goal posts after practice.

The harmless pranks lead to over the line pranks like what Pierre-Paul did to Amukamara. Florida A&M is in broiled in a hazing scandal that left a student dead and has led to the band being barred from school activities.

New Your Giants head coach Tom Coughlin and the club needs to come down hard on Pierre-Paul and anyone else who took part in this prank. Weatherford should be punished as well for filming the incident (posting it on twitter, thinking it was funny) and not stopping it.

The NFL has already stated this is a club issue. No word from the NFL Players Association on the hazing incident is just sad.

Every chance the NFLPA gets, they want to fight with the NFL but the group will not take a stance when one member dumps another member into an ice bath.

That is just plain sad and makes the NFLPA even more of a joke.

The reason the Giants need to come down hard on the participants is because this video went viral. Colleges and universities about to begin classes and high schools already in session, there is a chance someone thinks pranks like this one is a good idea and copies it.

Even scarier is the idea that someone would take a prank/hazing further and someone gets seriously hurt or ends up dead. Kids watch pro athletes and think if they do something it is ok for them to copy their actions.

That is why the New York Giants need to come down hard on all the players involved in this incident. There is a saying “it is all fun and games until someone gets hurt”.

Why don’t we put our foot down so things don’t get to the point someone gets hurts?

Every NFL team wants to have stability at a few important spots in the franchise, from ownership to general manager to head coach to quarterback.

This morning, the New Orleans Saints made sure one of the major pieces of their stability was staying in town a little longer. Head coach Sean Payton announced during the NFC’s coaching breakfast that he and the Saints had reached a deal for a five-year extension.

ESPN’s Ed Werder said in a news article that the new deal will keep Payton in New Orleans until 2020 and pay him more than $45 million over the length of the deal. Payton was already one of the highest-paid coaches in the NFL and made $8.5 million a year on his last contract with the club.

In the 10 years he has been with the Saints, he has put together an 87-57 record and led the franchise to its only Super Bowl title. Payton has been with the Saints since 2006, which ties him with Mike McCarthy of the Green Bay Packers for third-longest tenured head coach in the NFL.

Payton slides to fourth place if you discount the 2012 season in which he was suspended for the whole year as part of the Bountygate. New England’s Bill Belichick has been with the Patriots since 2000, and Cincinnati’s Marvin Lewis has been with the Bengals since 2003.

While in New Orleans, Payton has guided the Saints to the playoffs five times, and he had a 6-4 playoff record. He will forever be linked with the Saints' quick turnaround after Hurricane Katrina devastated the gulf coast.

After last season, in which the Saints finished 7-9, people speculated that New Orleans might try to trade Payton. That notion was quickly dispelled when Payton himself said he wanted to finish his career as New Orleans head coach.

New Orleans has missed the playoffs for the last two years, but with this contract, Payton can keep working on his vision to keep the Saints' championship window open. Part of that vision is sure to include quarterback Drew Brees.

Reports are that the Saints and Brees are working on a four-year extension to keep him in New Orleans until 2020 as well. A new extension for Brees also might help ease some of his cap burden for the next season, which is currently $30 million.

Payton’s extension also helps the club entering the NFL Draft next month. New Orleans can focus on both short and long-term plays knowing that their head coach will be in-house for the next five years.

The New Orleans Saints have the 12th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. Overall, the Saints have seven draft picks to use in this year’s draft.

Mississippi College set a school record for softball wins today in what might be the coolest way. The Choctaws won their 39th game as they took down Belhaven University 3-0, winning the 2016 National Christian College Athletic Association Softball National Championship.

MC was the top seed in the NCCAA Softball World Series, and the Blazers were the No. 2 seed in the eight-team tournament. For the most part, both schools dominated.

The Choctaws rolled by teams with scores of 14-4, 11-0, 13-5 and 5-1 to get to the championship game. Belhaven battled its way through the tournament, winning 5-1, 6-1, and 6-5 in an extra innings game, and 9-1 to make the title match.

MC struck quickly with a run in the first inning and, in reality, it was the only run the team needed that day. The Choctaws got two more insurance runs in the fifth inning to seal the win over the Blazers.

Mississippi College pitcher Carlie Sargent earned Most Outstanding Player of the tournament, as she tossed seven shutout innings for the complete game. Sargent (21-11) threw her ninth career shutout as she struck out seven, walked two and scattered four hits.

Belhaven pitcher Julienne Broussard (16-4) pitched seven complete innings, giving up eight hits, three earned runs, five strikeouts and one walk in a losing effort. Katherine Lee, leadoff hitter for MC, went 2-for-4 at the plate, and outfielder Megan Everett went 1-for-3 with two RBIs.

Tylan Buckley, outfielder for the Choctaws, went 1-for-4 but drove in the first run for MC. No player for Belhaven could muster more than one hit.

The Blazers finish the season with a 37-9 record, and Mississippi College ends the season with 39-19 record and a national title. This is the first women’s national championship title in school history.

Belhaven and MC dominated the All-Tournament selections as they dominated the tournament itself. The schools combined to place five of the 11 players selected for the post-tournament honors.

Sargent was not only the MOP but was also named to the All-Tournament Team. Joining her for MC were Lauren Mulligan and Everett. Belhaven placed Dani Craft and Crystal Kehtel on the All-Tournament Team.

While college football is just around the corner, let’s not forget that women’s soccer will begin this fall. The SWAC head coaches and sports information directors made their preseason predictions for the upcoming soccer season.

The team to beat and big winner of the awards is affiliate member Howard University, which was picked to win the conference with 170 points. Howard also swept all three preseason awards for Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year. The Bison also had eight players placed on either the first-team or second-team All-SWAC.

Mississippi Valley State University was picked to finish second in the conference with 146 points, closely followed by third-place pick Alabama State University with 145 points.

Jackson State University was picked to finish fourth with 126 points, with Prairie View A&M University in fifth place at 112 points. Arkansas-Pine Bluff University was picked to end up sixth with 102 points, and another close vote had Texas Southern University in seventh with 101 points.

Alabama A&M University ended up in eighth place with 74 points, and Southern University was picked to finish ninth with 58 points. Rounding out the bottom of the conference is Grambling State University, picked to finish 10th with 46 points and Alcorn State University picked to finish last with 42 points.

Jackson State placed three players on first-team All-SWAC in midfielder Jalana Ellis, defender Kyleigh Lo and goalie Faith Toennies. The Tigers placed two players on the second-team All-SWAC in midfielders Kalen Roberts and Sie’Yara Wells. The five players JSU placed on the preseason teams were second in the conference.

Mississippi Valley State finished 2015 as regular season champions and placed one player on the first-team All-SWAC in midfielder Laadi Issaka. The Delta Devils placed two players on the second-team: All-SWAC forward Heather Craddock and midfielder Marina Balboa.

Alcorn State didn’t place any players on either first or second teams. Alabama State was third in players selected to the preseason teams, with four players. Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern each placed one player on the preseason teams.

Last season, MVSU finished 8-1-1 in SWAC play and 13-7-2 overall. JSU finished with the same 8-1-1 record as the Delta Devils in conference play and the Tigers finished 11-7-2 overall. Alcorn State finished 0-10 in SWAC play and 0-13 overall.

Charles Barkley once made headlines for declaring in a Nike ad in 1993 that he wasn’t a role model. Good thing for Sir Charles that he didn’t have to play for the Dutch gymnastics association and the Dutch Olympic Committee.

The Netherlands tossed Dutch gymnast Yuri van Gelder out from Rio after he spent a night out drinking. Van Gelder left the athletes’ village on Saturday, Aug. 6, after reaching the finals of the men’s rings. He didn’t return to the village until Sunday morning.

When he did return, the gymnast admitted to drinking, which goes against the Netherlands’ team rules, and his Olympic dream was over. In a joint statement, KNGU, the Dutch gymnast association, and Dutch Olympic Committee pointed out that Van Gelder violated team rules, and they had no choice but to put him on the first plane home.

“It's terrible for Yuri, but this behavior is unacceptable,” chef de mission Maurits Hendriks said in the statement.

This isn’t the first brush with trouble for Van Gelder, known as the bad boy of gymnastics. He failed a drug test in 2009 when he tested positive for cocaine.

That failed drug test cost the gymnast a spot on the Netherlands team for the 2012 London Olympics, ended his career in the Dutch army and led to a one-year suspension. Van Gelder spent 11 weeks in a rehab clinic in Edinburgh, Scotland, but relapsed just four days before the 2010 world championships.

Van Gelder is extremely talented on the rings and has won multiple European championships and one world championship in the event. His skill at the rings earned him the nickname “Lord of the Rings.”

The 33-year-old gymnast was named Dutch Sportsman of the Year in 2005 after winning his world championship in the rings. He qualified for the final in the rings in eighth place.

Dutch media outlets are reporting that Van Gelder went out to meet his Brazilian girlfriend on his final night in Rio. Now, the gymnast won’t be able to get a chance at a medal in what was his first, and at his age, likely last, Olympic competition.

There was a good deal of support for the gymnast on social media and a belief that the Dutch Olympic Committee was being too harsh on him. Van Gelder’s wild night out earned him a new nickname as “Lord of the Drinks.”

Van Gelder isn’t the only athlete to be replaced in the event, either. France’s Samir Ait Said had to be replaced after a gruesome leg injury forced him to withdraw from the games. No Americans qualified for the finals in the rings.

A couple of events are coming up that might be of interest to those with kids or who follow sports. The first event is next week, and the second will take place later this summer.

Next week, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum (1152 Lakeland Drive) is hosting Women in Sports Day on Feb. 24. This event, which starts at 10 a.m., has free admission and is a good educational field trip for middle school and high-school girls but is open to men and women of all ages.

Mississippi native and first female NFL official Sarah Thomas will be the special guest and speaker at the event. It will have interactive discussions on topics such as nutrition, health, hard work and more.

It has limited space, and reservations are required to attend the event. Students should dress for activity, including wear tennis shoes.

BlueCross BlueShield of Mississippi is the title sponsor of this event. To make reservations, call 601-982-8264.

This summer, reigning NFL Rookie of the Year Dak Prescott is returning to Mississippi State University to host a one-day camp at the university.

The Dak Prescott Football ProCamp will be on June 20 at Mississippi State University (100 Championship Way, Starkville). The camp begins at 9 a.m. and lasts until 12:30 p.m.

Prescott and volunteer coaches from the high school and college-coaching ranks will give tips, lectures and hands-on coaching. Participants will take part in fundamental-football-skills stations, contests and noncontact games in a high energy and positive environment.

The camp is open to boys and girls from first through eighth grades. Campers will be placed in small groups by age so each participant gets the most out of instructions from the coaches. This camp for all skill levels, from players who are new to the game to those have been playing for years.

Each camper will get a souvenir autograph from Prescott. The item will be provided, and no outside items are allowed. Campers get a team photo with Prescott and a limited edition Dak Prescott Football ProCamp T-shirt.

Individual and team groups at each age group will receive awards. Sponsors of the event include Adidas, Wilson, Citi, Welch’s Fruit Snacks and Pronto Print.

The time and date of the camp is subject to change, and the cost is $149.

Prescott will also host a one-day camp in Shreveport, La. on June 22 and a two-day camp in Dallas, Texas on June 24 and 25.

Scandals are nothing new in college sports, especially in football. It wouldn’t be shocking if every school in the country engaged in some sort of rule violation.

Schools in the Power Five conferences—ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac 12 and SEC—are going to garner most of the spotlight for those violations. But in reality, not every scandal is equal.

Sure, it is a scandal if a kid asks for money to pay his mom’s rent and utility bills. That story will have legs and be discussed at length by the media, but besides the NCAA, do we really care that much that a kid got money while in college?

To the rival school, it means something, but in the grand scheme of things, it really isn’t that major.

The major story in college athletics is the way coaches, administrators and even school presidents turn a blind eye to sexual assaults.

The recent scandal at Baylor isn’t anything new. It just highlights, again, how schools try to sweep sexual assaults under the rug.

Right now the U.S. Department of Education is investigating 161 institutions for their handling of sexual-assault investigations. Baylor currently isn’t on that list, but you should expect that to change at some point.

It also makes one question if winning on the field is more important than the safety of women on campus.

ESPN has investigated and documented the Baylor scandal in great detail. Baylor looked the other way over sexual assaults from at least 2009 to 2015.

At the same time, the Bears were starting to turn things around on the field. In late 2007 Baylor hired Art Briles away from the University of Houston.

Baylor went 8-16 from 2008 to 2009 on the field but finished with a winning record of 7-6 in 2010. It was the first winning season for the Bears since 1995, and the team went to its first bowl game since 1994.

The Bears were the "feel good" story of college football during the 2011 season, as the team tied a then-school record for wins with 10, won a bowl game for the first time since 1992 and finished the season ranked for the first time since 1986.

Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III became the first player from the university to win the Heisman Trophy.

To the outside world, this was one of the great turnaround stories in college football history.

Off the field was another story for Baylor.

The university failed to investigate sexual assault cases for two years from 2013 to 2015, a violation of Title IX federal law. Baylor didn’t even hire a full-time Title IX coordinator to comply with a federal directive until late 2014.

One glaring case involved two players, Tre’von Armstead and Myke Chatman, who were named in a Waco police department report involving sexual assault in April 2013. The university knew of the report, but …

Before the NFL shifted teams around in the 2002 realignment, the New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers were in the same division. Many Saints fans remember the old NFC West that featured the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams with Saints and 49ers.

It was a bloodbath for my picks in week one. I scratched and clawed my way to ten correct picks. TEN! That is good enough to get in the playoffs most seasons but instead I felt like the 2013 Arizona Cardinals after the week was over.

I was just one game above .500 to start the season. That puts me in a hole early.

Here is what I missed:

I picked the Saints over the Falcons but how was I supposed to know that the New Orleans 2012 defense would show up against Matt Ryan and the Falcons. Either Atlanta is really going to bounce back this season or the Saints are really going to struggle. Saints fans hope last Sunday was an aberration.

It was a toss up between the Rams and Vikings. Matt Cassel versus Shun Hill quarterback battle didn't inspire confidence in either choice. Cassel and the Vikings pounded the Rams as Hill went out with an injury and former Southern Miss quarterback Austin Davis didn't have any better luck.

So the Bills outlasted the Bears and I took Chicago. Buffalo is forced three turnovers making me wonder if the Bears are going to be a contender with Jay Cutler at quarterback. Chicago should be a better team than Buffalo. Maybe the Bills will be the surprise team of 2014.

I thought Washington would be a better team this season than Houston. Sure, there is a quarterback controversy building in Washington but Robert Griffin III should be a much better choice than Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Texans defense dominated the game and Fitzpatrick managed the game and made plays when he had to make them. If RG3 play doesn't improve quickly it, he could be on the bench in favor of Kirk Cousins.

Jake Locker out-dueled Alex Smith making my pick of the Chiefs over the Titans. Smith was Kansas City's leading rusher against Tennessee which is a bad sign. The Chiefs looked like they were ready to turn the corner and be a contender but maybe they were just a product of a weak schedule last season. If Locker can stay healthy it looks like the Titans might have some hope in the AFC South.

I totally blew the Patriots over the Dolphins. New England's offensive line was dreadful against the Miami. Brady had little to no time each time he dropped back to pass and there was zero running game. I don't think I have ever seen an offensive line play that badly after the team traded away a guard. Is the Patriots run finally coming to end? Is Miami, New York or Buffalo ready to take over the AFC East?

The first week is always tough to make picks. Week two isn't a cakewalk as teams that lost in week one know they need to bounce back quickly. Teams know going 0-2 means they need to throw the kitchen sink at their opponents the next two weeks. …

Just days after the draft ended, the talk about picks has turned to their potential and their development as players. The New Orleans Saints are rewarding one of their recent draft picks, who has exceeded his early potential and development.

In the 2013 NFL Draft, the Saints took offensive tackle Terron Armstead out of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in the third round with the 75th overall pick.

As it turns out, he was a steal.

Many scouts believed it would take a couple of seasons for him to turn into a NFL tackle.

In his rookie season of 2013, Armstead saw action in six games and made two starts. He was ahead of schedule developmentally when he made 14 starts the next season.

Last season, he started 13 games despite being limited by injuries that forced him to miss games. He was considered a snub for the Pro Bowl when he wasn’t named to the roster.

While the Saints try to workout a new extension with quarterback Drew Brees, the club can show its single caller that it is committed to protecting him. Armstead is the man who protects Brees' blindside.

ESPN reported that New Orleans locked up its left tackle with a five-year extension that runs until 2021. The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that the deal is potentially worth $64.5 million with $25 million fully guaranteed and an $11-million signing bonus.

Armstead was on his rookie contract but could have become an unrestricted free agent in 2017 without a new deal. The Saints' other choice would have been to use the franchise tag on him, which would have been around $14 million.

If 2015 first-round draft pick Andrus Peat can develop the same way as Armstead did, the Saints could potentially have the best tackle combination in the league. Peat must come into camp this summer in shape and ready to compete if he is going to live up to his high draft choice. He could also get kicked inside to guard.

Instead, the Saints have locked up a franchise left-tackle at a solid price for both club and player. New Orleans already exercised its 2017 option on safety and fellow member of the Saints 2013 draft class in Kenny Vaccaro.

While the salary cap hasn’t been kind to New Orleans over the past few seasons, the club is locking up its young talent. Pro Bowl defensive end Cam Jordan signed an extension that keeps him with the Saints until 2020.

New Orleans has two big moves left on its off-season to-do list: reworking a deal with Brees and locking up center Max Unger past the 2017 season.

Armstead, Peat (if he pans out) and Unger could give the Saints one of the best young offensive lines in the league.