Jackson Free Press

Defending women’s long jump gold medalist Brittney Reese looks ready for Rio. The Gulfport High School star broke records as she made the U.S. track and field team.

Reese jumped 7.31 meters, or 23 feet, and 11 3/4 inches, which is just nine inches short of breaking the world record. She did tie the longest jump at Hayward Field, where the track trials are being held.

The former University of Mississippi standout also broke the Olympic trials record of 23 feet and 8 1/4 inches. She made the longest jump in the world since 2004 and the longest jump for an American since 1998.

Reese was still short of the world record of 24 feet and 8 1/4 inches and the American record of 24 feet and 6 3/4 inches , which the great Jackie Joyner-Kersee holds. Tianna Bartoletta, 2015 world champion, finished second in the event, and Shakeela Saunders finished in third. Those three should be a strong group for the American team in Rio.

So far, Reese isn’t the only Mississippian to make the Olympic team in track and field. Tori Bowie, former Pisgah High School star and Sandhill, Miss., native, punched her ticket to Rio in the 100 meters.

English Gardner won the women’s 100 meters with a time of 10.74 seconds. Bartoletta was second in the event.

With a time of 10.78, Bowie finished third, as she lost her first race in the 100 meters all year. A long jumper until 2014, the former University of Southern Mississippi star is one of the favorites to win gold in Rio in the 100 meters.

Next up for Bowie is to try and make the U.S. team in the 200 meters. She has run the fastest time in the 200 meters for an American this year with a time of 21.99 seconds.

While Reese and Bowie are heading to Rio, two other athletes with ties to Mississippi just missed out on making the team.

NCAA champion in the javelin Curtis Thompson set a new personal best of 271 feet and 11 inches. That left him five inches short of a qualifying mark for Rio of 272 feet and four inches. Thompson finished second in the event.

Cyrus Hostetler won the men’s javelin with a throw of 273 feet and one inch. The other two members joining Hostetler are Sam Crouser, who finished fourth with a throw of 256 feet and one inch, and Sean Furey, who finished 11th with a throw of 227 feet and 10 inches. Only Hostetler, Crouser and Furey had the qualifying mark to reach Rio heading into the event.

University of Mississippi star Craig Engels finished fourth in the men’s 800 meters, just missing third place and a spot on the Olympic team. Engles posted a time of 1:46.03, completing an impressive showing at the trials.

Clayton Murphy finished first with a time of 1:44.76, with Boris Berian in second with a time …

The need for a new defensive coordinator is becoming an offseason tradition at Mississippi State University. MSU recently tapped Todd Graham as its fourth defensive coordinator in as many years.

Since Dan Mullen has been the Bulldogs head coach, defensive coordinator is one coaching position that has become a revolving door. This is his seventh defensive coordinator as he enters his ninth year with the school.

In his first season, Mullen hired Carl Torbush as the defensive coordinator. Torbush left after one season to become defensive coordinator at the University of Kansas.

Manny Diaz began his first stop in Starkville in 2010, replacing Torbush. Diaz left after the season to become defensive coordinator at the University of Texas in Austin.

Diaz’s departure brought Geoff Collins to the defensive coordinator position. Collins ended up being the longest-tenured defensive coordinator under Mullen, as he stayed for four seasons.

Collins left Starkville after the 2014 season to become defensive coordinator at the University of Florida. He was recently named head coach at the University of Temple after spending the 2015 and 2016 seasons with the Gators.

Chris Wilson was co-defensive coordinator under both Diaz and Collins and left after the 2013 season. He is currently the defensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Diaz returned to the Bulldogs after Collins departed to begin his second tenure as defensive coordinator. Once again, Diaz left the job after just one season to become defensive coordinator at the University of Miami in Florida.

Mullen brought in Peter Sirmon for the 2016 season as the third defensive coordinator in the last three years. Sirmon is now on the move to the University of Louisville and will replace new MSU defensive coordinator Graham at that position.

MSU and Louisville are essentially trading defensive coordinators from the 2016 season. Graham spent the last three seasons with the Cardinals, and his defenses each season ranked in the top 20 nationally. His 2014 defense led the nation with 26 interceptions. He spent 2010 to 2013 as the defensive coordinator at the University of Georgia.

Last season under Sirmon, the MSU defense ended up 110th nationally in total defense and 93rd in scoring defense. The 2016 Bulldogs defense gave up 31.8 points per game, and the Cardinals only gave up 23.3 points per game and finished ninth in the nation in total defense.

Several of Mullen’s defensive coordinators have left for what they considered better jobs. Mullen would do well to try to keep Graham in Starkville for a few seasons. It would help the Bulldogs to have some consistency at the defensive coordinator position and would help the players to not have to learn a whole new defensive scheme each season they are at MSU.

In any professional political campaign, ones that raise money, hire campaign staff and build a grass roots operation, there is a meeting that usually happens at the beginning of the campaign, before the candidate has even announced his or her candidacy, which is critical to the success of the campaign. The candidate, the campaign manager and sometimes one or two advisers will sit down in a room, close the door, and then someone in the room, usually the campaign manager, will ask the candidate a difficult but necessary question. “Is there anything we don’t know about you that could have an impact on the campaign?” Or if they are really direct they might just say “tell me about every skeleton you have in your closet. And don’t leave anything out. I want to know if you cheated on your second grade penmanship exam!”

Hello readers. You might remember me from my time at the JFP as the writer of the bi-monthly column “The Key of G,” where I covered local and national music, as well as just musing about different topics related to music in general.

One of the things I liked to do was to make top 10 release lists at the end of the given year. While I did enjoy that, I always felt a little disingenuous, because I don’t listen to that much new music; I spend most of my time digging for and listening to old records. Hence, my top 10 lists would barely be made, as I squeezed in a few listens right at the end of the year to go with the few albums from artists that I always check for. Further, I never kept a running list, so my top 10 would have omissions, on top of my already poor sample size. (For instance, I somehow left Robert Glasper’s “Black Radio” off of last year’s list).

But this year has been different. I made it my mission to listen to as many new releases as possible, and to document them. What I have now is a list of 60 new albums that I have listened to and ranked in order. Mind you, this list is not meant to be definitive; there is a lot that I didn’t listen to for several reasons, mainly just because there isn’t enough time in the day to hear everything. I did listen to almost everything from artists that I am a fan of, which is something I have done a poor job of over the years. I also branched out to some artists I never was a fan of before, even though I knew who they were and ignored them on purpose. The results are fairly predictable. I also discovered some new artists I had never heard of at all, which was quite nice in most instances.

So, over the next several weeks, I am going to present you all with a ranked list of the 60 albums I listened to this year. Again, this list is not intended to be definitive at all; it is just a list of what I listened to, ranked solely by my opinions. I am sure there will be some disagreement and head scratching, but some of you might also see some new things that interest you that you go check out. And that’s what it’s all about anyway. Thanks for reading and indulging my opinions.

Click HERE for 60-51 Click HERE for 50-41 Click HERE for 40-31 Click HERE for 30-21 Click HERE for 20-11

10) Dosh “Milk Money” Dosh, who is from Minneapolis, is a multi-instrumentalist who makes experimental beat driven electronic music, with an organic flair, mostly from the marimba and Rhodes piano he normally plays as part of his live set up. He creates lush songs with the help of an array of samplers and …

If you haven’t kept up with college basketball, you are excused.

College-football regular season and bowl games, the end of the NFL regular season and the holidays might have kept you from keeping up with teams around the state. Heck, even the NBA and NHL might have caught your attention a few times.

In case you are behind, here is breakdown of how each men’s college-basketball team is doing since we have hit the New Year. We will begin with Division I teams.

The University of Mississippi has one of the best records of any Division I team in our state. The Rebels are currently 9-5 overall and 0-2 in the SEC.

UM dropped its first game of the season to one-loss Creighton University. That is not a bad loss by any measure.

The Rebels have also lost games to 10-3 Middle Tennessee State and 10-1 Virginia Tech. The team hasn’t had any bad losses, but it also hasn’t had any standout wins just yet. However, the Rebels still have plenty of time to build a NCAA Tournament resume.

In the SEC opener, Kentucky beat UM 99-76. The Rebels dropped another SEC on Jan. 3 70-63 against the University of Florida. The team has just one more out-of-conference game left on Jan. 28 against Baylor University.

Mississippi State University currently sits at 9-4 and 0-1 in the SEC after finishing a nonconference game on Dec. 29 against the University of Missouri-Kansas City with a 77-54 win.

MSU’s first loss of the season came against a 9-3 University of Central Florida team. The other two losses came at the hands of 6-5 Lehigh University and East Tennessee State University.

This is a young team, and it still has time to improve for a shot at a NCAA bid. It is in shape for the NIT, however. Just making the postseason should be the main goal for the Bulldogs.

MSU is done with out-of-conference games. The Bulldogs start in SEC play on Jan. 3 against began with a 68-58 loss to the University of Alabama.

The University of Southern Mississippi is still rebuilding after a NCAA investigation and player departures and transfers. USM currently has a 3-10 record over all and 0-1 in C-USA and is on a nine-game losing streak.

It is going to be a long year for Golden Eagle fans as the program continues working back toward respectability.

Southern Miss began Conference USA play on Jan. 1 against Louisiana Tech University in a 79-55 loss.

USM hits the court again on Jan. 5 against the University of Texas-San Antonio. The Golden Eagles have finished their nonconference schedule.

Jackson State University currently has a 5-9 overall record and 1-0 SWAC record. The Tigers went through a six-game losing streak after starting the season with a win. The Tigers broke that losing streak when they went on a two-game winning streak that included …

There's usually plenty to do on Fridays in Jackson, and if you are like me, you're going to have a tough time deciding exactly which of these awesome events to attend:

• The city of Jackson is celebrating National Night Out on Friday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. at City Hall to increase crime prevention awareness. Here's the kicker: Jackson State University's Sonic Boom of the South will lead the "Confidence March Against Crime" from Smith Park to City Hall, beginning at 11 a.m.

• The Jackson premiere of the documentary film "SubSIPPI" from the creative minds of Greg Gandy, Vincent Chaney, & Lauren Cioffi is set for 7:30 p.m. at the Mississippi Museum of Art. Make sure to check out the trailer here. It's free to attend and it's on the lawn outside, so make sure to bring a blanket on which to sit.

• Jackson Prep (4-1) is riding high coming off last week's 19-13 win over Madison-Ridgeland Academy, but they are in for a real test when the country boys from Bassfield, Mississippi's 2-A reigning champs, roll into town for a public-versus-private-school matchup. Prep is a much bigger school with more players on its football team, but they'll hardly be able to keep step with the speed of one of Mississippi's best prep teams. Should be one for the ages.

In case anyone is worried that Mississippi's U.S. Senate election madness is winding down, Sen. Chris McDaniel announced today he will be holding a press conference Monday.

Mississippi is one of three states selected to receive the Toyota USA Foundation Grant for career education. The $1.5 million grant will be shared amongst students in Mississippi, New York and Kentucky. The grant will span over a three-year project that focuses on increasing student interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and manufacturing careers. Four Mississippi high schools will receive the grant funding.

The grant focuses on preparing high school students for careers and improving graduation rates simultaneously. The project uses an online, Web-based program to train freshman and sophomore high school students in STEM and manufacturing skills that can help students obtain certificates at the end of the program.

In a press release from the Mississippi Department of Education, state superintendent Dr. Carey Wright said, "One of the Mississippi Board of Education’s goals is ensuring every student graduates high school and is ready for college and a career, and this program fits perfectly into that goal. We greatly appreciate Toyota USA Foundation’s commitment to providing career and educational opportunities to our students."

The following Mississippi schools have been selected for the Toyota grant project:

• Saltillio High School in the Lee County School District
• New Albany High School in the New Albany School District
• Pontotoc High School in the Pontotoc City School District
• North Pontotoc High School in the Pontotoc County School District

So, do you want winners? Do you want to know who is going to win? Do you just want reasons to tweet me or comment on this post about how wrong I am?

The following is a verbatim statement from former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour:

Advocates of the proposed constitutional amendment known as Initiative 42 have twisted a passage in my 2007 State of the State address to mislead voters into believing I support their very harmful ballot measure. Not only am I against Initiative 42, I strongly urge all Mississippians to vote “against both” measures on the November ballot.

When I spoke to the Legislature in January 2007, our state had turned the corner in the Katrina recovery: The federal government had been extremely generous with disaster assistance legislation; state tax revenue had exploded as tens of thousands of homes had been rebuilt or repaired; casinos that year would have an all-time record gaming haul; all of which produced the highest state tax revenue in our 188-year history. Further, our country was in the sixth year of consistent economic growth and low unemployment.

Based on those facts I proposed record funding for our K-12 schools, a funding level that met the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP), as well as increased state funding for higher education. The money was there to spend at those levels, and everyone expected state revenue to increase in the coming years.

Yet the country began a deep recession in late 2007, which lasted nationally until mid-2009.
During the Great Recession, Mississippi’s general fund revenue came in $197.1 million or 1.67% below estimates in FY 2009 and a whopping $452 million or nearly 9.5% below estimates in FY 2010.

As Governor I had to reduce spending across the board in FY 2010 by 9.4% in order to meet our requirement of having a balanced budget. Consider the consequences if Initiative 42 had been the law at that time: Instead of all departments and agencies sharing in the 9.4% cut, K-12 (which absorbs about 40% of our state’s general fund budget) would have been exempt from cuts, and every other function of government – universities and community colleges, mental health facilities, and public safety – would have had to be cut nearly double, or approximately 18%.

As this recent history shows, Initiative 42 is terrible as a practical matter because it ties the Legislature’s hands and jeopardizes funding for other critical areas of state government.

It is also awful public policy because it totally eviscerates the constitutional system of separation of powers that has been fundamental to American government since 1789.

Initiative 42 would usurp the setting of K-12 education policy and budget, taking it away from the Legislature and Governor – elected by all Mississippi voters – and give it to the judicial branch; indeed, to one chancery judge, elected by one-fourth of the voters in Hinds County.

While advocates of judicial policymaking and budget setting say that one judge’s decisions would be appealable to the State Supreme Court, how is it a good idea to allow judges – elected for their judicial temperament, legal knowledge and ability to apply law to facts – …

Shopping in the bargain bin isn’t something some people like to talk about, but most of us love to get a good deal when possible. At this point in the NFL offseason, teams are now looking for bargains on veteran players.

There are still some good players left on the market looking for jobs. Some of these athletes could even help a team such as the New Orleans Saints. They might have to do some magic to work some cap space but could look for a free agent to step in as a pass rusher.

One of the better names on the market is Dwight Freeney, who played for the Atlanta Falcons last season. He only posted three sacks last year but still can create pressure on a quarterback. At age 37, he will likely only sign with a team that he believes is a contender for the Super Bowl.

The Saints could go with 32-year-old veteran Mario Williams, who spent last season with the Miami Dolphins. He only recorded 1.5 sacks then, but if healthy and motivated, he could raise that total.

A couple of other names on the market are Jared Odrick and Devin Taylor. Odrick spent last season with the Jacksonville Jaguars and played only six games with one sack. The 29-year-old defensive end might sign cheap on a one-year “prove it” deal. Taylor played with the Detroit Lions last season but recorded just 4.5 sacks in 16 games played.

There are some pass-rushing linebackers still on the market, as well. The Saints are loaded at linebacker right now but need a pass rusher. If any of these players fit the scheme and price, he could be a good fit.

Two names that stand out at linebacker are Elvis Dumervil and Erik Walden. Dumervil has spent his entire career with the Baltimore Ravens, and Walden played for the Lions last season.

Dumervil only played in eight games last season with three sacks. Walden recorded 11 sacks in 16 games but never had more than six sacks before last year. The question is whether last year was a sign of things to come for a few seasons or just a fluke.

Looking at a different position, if the Saints want to add help at wide receiver, there are still a few names out there. Getting most of these players is all about signing at the right price.

Anquan Boldin is about to be 37 years old, but last season, he caught 67 passes for 584 yards and eight touchdowns. He is a proven leader and could help mentor the young receivers in New Orleans.

Injuries robbed former New York Giants receiver Victor Cruz of what he might have been otherwise. In a limited role last season, he caught 39 passes for 586 yards and one touchdown. His celebratory salsa dancing would also seem like a …

Three University of Southern Mississippi players, one Mississippi State University player and one Delta State University player are the five finalists for the 2017 C Spire Ferriss Trophy. This is the 14th year that the award will go to the best college-baseball player at a four-year college or university in Mississippi.

Southern Miss is enjoying an outstanding season on the diamond, as the team has already wrapped up the regular-season title in Conference USA. At the beginning of the final weekend of the regular season, USM is 41-12 overall and 22-5 in conference play.

Taylor Braley, Matt Wallner and Dylan Burdeaux are the impressive trio of finalists from USM. All three have performed well in the batter’s box, but Braley and Wallner have shined on the pitcher’s mound as well.

Burdeaux leads the team in hitting with a .355 batting average with 88 hits, 61 RBI, 55 runs, 21 doubles and nine home runs. He has started 53 games for the Golden Eagles, which shows his toughness during the long season.

Braley is hitting .337 with 61 hits, 50 RBI, 46 runs, 12 home runs and 10 doubles while making 52 starts. He is 2-0 as a pitcher in eight appearances with a 1.84 ERA and 15 strikeouts.

Wallner has appeared in 53 games and made 52 starts this season and is hitting .335 with 63 hits, 50 RBI, 43 runs, 15 home runs, 12 doubles and two triples. On the mound, he owns a 5-2 record with 11 starts and a 3.48 ERA while piling up 64 strikeouts.

Mississippi State faces LSU with the SEC West division on the line this weekend. The Bulldogs are 34-19 overall and 17-10 in SEC play.

If MSU is going to win the West, the team will need superstar Brent Rooker to have one of his best series of the season. Rooker has led the nation at various points in multiple statistical categories.

He is hitting an outstanding .406 with 78 hits, 71 RBI, 49 runs, 26 doubles, 20 home runs and three triples. He has started 53 games this season and leads the team in nearly every major offensive stat.

Delta State is set to host an eight-team regional in the 2017 NCAA Division II Baseball Tournament beginning on Thursday, May 18, and the team is top-ranked in the South Region. DSU is Gulf South Conference regular season and tournament champion, as the team is 41-11 overall and 25-8 in conference play.

The Statesmen feature Zack Shannon, who is terrorizing opposing pitching this season. He is hitting .451 with 88 hits, 84 RBI, 60 runs, 18 home runs, 11 doubles and one triple. Shannon has dabbled on the mound this season with a 0-1 record and five appearances with a 1.50 ERA and seven strikeouts.

College coaches in the state and professional scouts chose these five …

Hello readers. You might remember me from my time at the JFP as the writer of the bi-monthly column “The Key of G,” where I covered local and national music, as well as just musing about different topics related to music in general.

One of the things I liked to do was to make top 10 release lists at the end of the given year. While I did enjoy that, I always felt a little disingenuous, because I don’t listen to that much new music; I spend most of my time digging for and listening to old records. Hence, my top 10 lists would barely be made, as I squeezed in a few listens right at the end of the year to go with the few albums from artists that I always check for. Further, I never kept a running list, so my top 10 would have omissions, on top of my already poor sample size. (For instance, I somehow left Robert Glasper’s “Black Radio” off of last year’s list).

But this year has been different. I made it my mission to listen to as many new releases as possible, and to document them. What I have now is a list of 60 new albums that I have listened to and ranked in order. Mind you, this list is not meant to be definitive; there is a lot that I didn’t listen to for several reasons, mainly just because there isn’t enough time in the day to hear everything. I did listen to almost everything from artists that I am a fan of, which is something I have done a poor job of over the years. I also branched out to some artists I never was a fan of before, even though I knew who they were and ignored them on purpose. The results are fairly predictable. I also discovered some new artists I had never heard of at all, which was quite nice in most instances.

So, over the next several weeks, I am going to present you all with a ranked list of the 60 albums I listened to this year. Again, this list is not intended to be definitive at all; it is just a list of what I listened to, ranked solely by my opinions. I am sure there will be some disagreement and head scratching, but some of you might also see some new things that interest you that you go check out. And that’s what it’s all about anyway. Thanks for reading and indulging my opinions.

Click HERE for 60-51 Click HERE for 50-41 Click HERE for 40-31 Click HERE for 30-21

20) Chance the Rapper “Acid Rap” You want to know something that makes me feel old? Having a rapper in the top 20 who was born during the golden age of hip hop. I mean, I already had my favorite artists established by ’93. It is so weird. And we are going to remember these days. …

Football returns on Sunday with the Hall of Fame game between the Arizona Cardinals and New Orleans Saints. The Saints finally get to play football after a tremulous offseason that included a prolonged contract dispute with quarterback Drew Brees and the bounty gate scandal.

This game will be the first game of head coach Sean Payton’s yearlong suspension due to bounty gate. The Hall of Fame game also marks the debut of Steve Spagnuolo's defense.

Before the game, here is a look at five things to watch during the game:

Saints offense on third down and goal line

This will be something to watch all preseason long. When the Saints offense reaches third down and/or the goal line, the effects of Payton’s suspension might hit New Orleans the hardest.

Payton’s play calling helped the Saint offense stay at its high-powered best -- but his best play calls came when the Saints reached third down or the goal line. Brees will be able to carry Payton’s thought process onto the field, but it will not be the same as having Payton on the sideline looking at the play sheet and having his unique feel for calling games.

Offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. will take over the play calling duties, as he did when Payton broke his leg last season. The Saints offense struggled at times in Payton’s absence, suffering two of their three losses last season after the injury.

How the Saints offense converts third downs and goal line situations in the preseason could be a key indicator to how the New Orleans offense will operate during the regular season. While Brees is directing the first team offense, play-calling in key situations is must watch.

Another effect of Payton’s suspension will be gamble plays -- like going for it on fourth down either for a score or a first down -- and gutsy calls like the on-side kick from the Super Bowl. It will not be until the regular season that New Orleans would feel the pain of not having their riverboat gambler head coach making big calls.

Saints’ defense

As discussed above, Steve Spagnuolo takes over the defensive coordinator job after Greg Williams moved on to St. Louis Rams for the same position (Williams was later suspended for the year for bounty gate). Spagnuolo is taking over the New Orleans defensive unit after he was fired as head coach of the Rams.

As defensive coordinator for the New York Giants, Spagnuolo became a head coaching candidate after his defense held the record-setting New England Patriots offense to just 14 points in Super Bowl XLII.

Much like former defensive coordinator Greg Williams, Spagnuolo uses a base 4-3 defense. Spagnuolo will blitz, but not as much as Williams did. He will also try to disguise his blitzes more than Williams did.

In the NFL, it can take a year to two years before a defense learns the ins and outs of a defensive scheme. Learning assignments and executing those …

In the NFL if a team does something bad once it is an aberration, twice it is a trend and three times its a problem. Right now, New Orleans has a trend going on their offensive and defensive lines.

It wasn’t pretty at times, and it seemed insanely long, but the University of Southern Mississippi has back-to-back winning football seasons. The Golden Eagles went winless in 2012, hitting rock bottom after winning 12 games the year before.

USM lost 23 consecutive games before finally getting a 62-27 win over the University of Alabama at Birmingham to end the 2013 season. There was more progress in the 2014 season with three wins.

Finally, a breakthrough happened for USM in the 2015 season. The Golden Eagles had nine wins and went to a bowl game, but lost the final two games of the season.

In the offseason, Southern Miss lost head coach Todd Monken to the NFL. Monken left Hattiesburg to become the offensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. USM hired former assistant coach and then-head coach of Alcorn State University Jay Hopson.

There were high hopes entering this season, even with a new head coach, because of all the talent returning from the previous season.

Early on, it looked like USM would live up to those expectations with a 4-1 start to the season, including a win over the University of Kentucky out of the SEC. The University of Troy was the lone loss for the Golden Eagles in the first five games.

Southern Miss lost five of the next six games, suffering shocking defeats to the University of Texas at San Antonio, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and the University of North Texas. All three of those teams finished with losing records after UTSA lost the New Mexico Bowl to the University of New Mexico.

The Golden Eagles needed to defeat Louisiana Tech University just to reach a bowl game, scoring a 39-24 win over the Bulldogs to play in the New Orleans Bowl.

In the bowl game, Southern Miss wide receiver Allenzae Staggers put on a show, making 11 catches for 230 yards and a touchdown to set a New Mexico Bowl record and school record for most receiving yards in a bowl game. USM quarterback Nick Mullens went 25 for 40 in passing, with 346 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and one lost fumble. Running back Ito Smith rushed for 138 yards on 26 carries with two touchdowns and one catch for six yards and a touchdown.

The trio of stars helped the Golden Eagles to a 28-21 win over the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, but USM’s defense did its part with six sacks, three quarterback hurries, nine tackles for a loss and one interception. However, ULL scored two touchdowns off of Mullens’ turnovers as a result of short fields.

Most of the night, Ragin’ Cajuns quarterback Anthony Jennings was under siege from the Golden Eagle defense. USM found ways to bottle up ULL’s star running back, Elijah McGuire, for parts of the game, even as he rushed for 99 yards on just 17 carries.

The New …

This is one of my favorite weeks in sports with the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Final Four and WrestleMania held on the same weekend. Looking at the card for WrestleMania 33, it could be a dud, but the in-ring action may surpass expectations, depending on the angles that the company wants to go with post-show.

If you checked out The Slate in the Jackson Free Press this week, there is a tease about a future president taking part in a past WrestleMania. No, not The Rock, although he might one day run for the office, and he has the charisma and charm to win.

WrestleMania 23 took place at Ford Field in Detroit on April 1, 2007, and while it wasn’t the greatest “showcase of the immortals,” it wasn’t horrible and does have an interesting place the event’s history.

In the run-up to the event, WWE owner Vince McMahon entered into a feud with longtime friend Donald Trump. This feud started when Trump interrupted McMahon on “Monday Night Raw,” stealing the WWE chairman’s spotlight and laying the groundwork for their future match.

This wasn’t the first time Trump ended up as part of McMahon’s traveling show. Trump signed a deal to have Trump Plaza sponsor WrestleMania IV and WrestleMania V, even though the events took place at Atlantic City Convention Hall, now known as Boardwalk Hall.

In WrestleMania history, this is still the only time that the event took place in the same location in back-to-back years. Trump was in the crowd as a fan at WrestleMania VII and WrestleMania XX, making him a fixture at the event four times before the 23rd “show of shows.”

At WrestleMania 23, the Trump-McMahon match was billed as the “Battle of the Billionaires.” So what would these so-called billionaires battle over but hair-vs.-hair, with the loser having his head shaved? What else would the two battle over if not their locks?

Instead of fighting each other, the two men chose proxies to fight in their place, with Trump picking ECW champion Bobby Lashley and McMahon going with Intercontinental champion Umaga. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin came in as a special guest referee for the match to add more sizzle.

Interesting fact: McMahon wanted Hulk Hogan to be Trump’s pick for the match as a callback to WrestleMania III, but money issues between the two kept the Hulkster from taking part in the event.

As for the match, it isn’t a classic for its in-ring work, but Stone Cold handed out his signature move, the “stunner,” to McMahon’s son, Shane, after he entered the match when Umaga had “knocked out” Austin. That set the IC champ up for the finish with a stunner from Austin and a pin by Lashley.

After the match, Trump, Lashley and Austin helped shaved McMahon, and as it turned out, Vince, with no hair, has the tiniest head in the history of wrestling. Stone Cold did his normal post-match …

Hello readers. You might remember me from my time at the JFP as the writer of the bi-monthly column “The Key of G,” where I covered local and national music, as well as just musing about different topics related to music in general.

One of the things I liked to do was to make top 10 release lists at the end of the given year. While I did enjoy that, I always felt a little disingenuous, because I don’t listen to that much new music; I spend most of my time digging for and listening to old records. Hence, my top 10 lists would barely be made, as I squeezed in a few listens right at the end of the year to go with the few albums from artists that I always check for. Further, I never kept a running list, so my top 10 would have omissions, on top of my already poor sample size. (For instance, I somehow left Robert Glasper’s “Black Radio” off of last year’s list).

But this year has been different. I made it my mission to listen to as many new releases as possible, and to document them. What I have now is a list of 60 new albums that I have listened to and ranked in order. Mind you, this list is not meant to be definitive; there is a lot that I didn’t listen to for several reasons, mainly just because there isn’t enough time in the day to hear everything. I did listen to almost everything from artists that I am a fan of, which is something I have done a poor job of over the years. I also branched out to some artists I never was a fan of before, even though I knew who they were and ignored them on purpose. The results are fairly predictable. I also discovered some new artists I had never heard of at all, which was quite nice in most instances.

So, over the next several weeks, I am going to present you all with a ranked list of the 60 albums I listened to this year. Again, this list is not intended to be definitive at all; it is just a list of what I listened to, ranked solely by my opinions. I am sure there will be some disagreement and head scratching, but some of you might also see some new things that interest you that you go check out. And that’s what it’s all about anyway. Thanks for reading and indulging my opinions.

Click Here for 60-51

50) Arcade Fire “Reflektor” OK, I know I have this album placed way too low. I know that it is probably the greatest album of the year. I get that. While nowhere near as groundbreaking as the fanboys would like us to believe, it is sonically adventurous, taking the listener through many places and genres sometimes within a couple of jarring seconds. As corny as it sounds, they do a …

Willie Jerome Manning, convicted of the 1992 murders of two Mississippi State students, is scheduled to be executed on Tuesday May 7.

Manning has always said he did not commit the crime; in fact, he says he was at a club on the night of the murders. For years, he's been trying to convince the state to test DNA from the crime scene. As gruesome as the murders were, there should be lots of biological material to test. One of the victims, Tiffany Miller, was shot twice in the face at close range. One leg was out of her pants and underwear, and her shirt was pulled up. Her boyfriend John Steckler's body had abrasions that occurred before he died, and he was shot once in the back of the head. A set of car tracks had gone through the puddles of blood and over Steckler's body.

Already the Mississippi State Supreme Court has denied Manning's request to have DNA tests done that were unavailable in the early 90s. Now, Manning's attorneys have produced information that shows the Federal Bureau of Investigation erred in its testimony in Manning's case. In a letter to Oktibbeha County District Attorney Forrest Allgood, who prosecuted the case, U.S. Justice Department officials state "that testimony containing erroneous statements regarding microscopic hair comparison analysis was used" in Manning's case.

The letter goes on to say that information the FBI presented in its testimony "exceeded the limits of science, and was, therefore, invalid." The FBI offered to perform the mitochondrial DNA testing, and requested Allgood's office respond by May 6 -- the day before Manning is to be put to death.

It's unclear whether Allgood will be receptive. One of the issues Manning raised in his appeal is that Allgood illegally kept African Americans off Manning's jury by dismissing potential jurors who said they read African American magazines for reading liberal publications. David Voisin, Manning's attorney, said if approved the testing could take several weeks depending on which lab is used.

This afternoon at the Capitol, death-penalty opponents and Manning supporters called on Gov. Phil Bryant to stop the execution. The Mississippi Innocence Project field a brief in support of Manning this week. Kennedy Brewer, who was freed in 2008 with DNA tests after being convicted and sentenced to death for killing his girlfriend's young daughter, also wrote Bryant asking to give Manning the same opportunity to clear his name that Kennedy received.

Sister Maati, of Our Community Against Racism, invoked this year's 50th anniversary of Medgar Evers' assassination and said allowing Manning's execution take place, considering the discriminatory fashion in which his lawyers say the DA picked his jurors, would demonstrate that Mississippi has not moved beyond its legacy of injustice.

"Mississippi, prove that institutional racism is no longer a part of your southern heritage, or admit that the execution of Willie Manning is yet another Mississippi lynching," Sister Maati said this afternoon.

Here's a list of Chokwe Lumumba's top campaign donors* this year, over the past two reporting cycles:

Barry W. Howard ($10,000) - Madison, Miss. Howard has given to at least one Democratic candidate for Mississippi statewide office, Gary Anderson, who ran for insurance commissioner in 2007.

Chokwe Lumumba ($6,000) - Jackson, Miss. Lumumba, the sitting Democratic Ward 2 councilman, gave himself money on two separate occasions. One sum totaled $3,000; the other $1,500. Lumumba is an attorney who has represented a number of high-profile clients and has a long and sometimes controversial history in civil rights and law.

Adekuule Adekuubi ($5,000) -- Mississippi The name that shows up on the most recent campaign finance report appears to be a misspelling of Adekunle Adekunbi, vice president of business development for Garrett Enterprises Consolidated, the company owned by Jackson developer Socrates Garrett.

John Burge ($3,000) - N/A

Burk-Kleinpeter Inc. ($2,000) -- Baton Rouge, La. Its website states: "Burk-Kleinpeter, Inc. opened its Jackson office in 2012 to serve the expanding Jackson area market as well as to provide services to the Mississippi Dept. of Transportation and other state agencies." With Mississippi offices Ocean Springs and Jackson eight total branches in Louisiana and Alabama Baton Rouge-based engineering consulting firm, Burk-Kleinpeter is an equal-opportunity political donor. On the federal level, the firm has given to the election campaigns of Sen. David Vitter and former Rep. William Jefferson, convicted on federal bribery charges in 2009. The firm, has also been in state races where the company operates, giving $29,700 total since 1998. In Mississippi, Burk-Kleinpeter or its principals, William Burk and George Kleinpeter, has in recent years contributed to Gov. Phil Bryant, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves

Dr. Demitri Marshall ($2,000) - Port Gibson, Miss. In 2011, a Houston grand jury indicted Marshall for nonpayment of child support and related medical expenses a child who resides in Texas. The one-count indictment charged Marshall with failing to pay more than $10,000 in child support and medical expenses ordered by a Harris County family district court dating back to 1997.

Moore's Auto Sales ($1,300) - Jackson, Miss. Moore's bills itself as "the finest luxury vehicles in metro Jackson." A search of the Mississippi secretary of state's website yielded no results for the business.

New England Contractors LLC ($1,300) - Jackson, Miss. Formerly known as East Parke Properties is listed as a general contractor based in Jackson. Abby G. Robinson, the registered agent for the company, secretary of state records show.

*Note: Lumumba also collected $300 on May 7, 2013 from a person listed only as "Anonymous Donor." Gerald McWorter and Judith Green whose addresses are listed as "PayPal" gave $1,000 and $500, respectively.

Read more about Councilman Lumumba: jfp.ms/chokwelumumba.