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All these decades later, little ‘JT’ Bell gets his day at Miss. State

Posted on: May 14,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland. In a more fair and just Mississippi, James Thomas Bell — JT to his family and friends around Starkville — probably would have attended his hometown college, then Mississippi A&M, where he surely would have become a baseball star. Of course, in a […]

Delta State retires Kinnison’s jersey; they’ll never retire his remarkable story

Posted on: April 26,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland. Author’s note:  Delta State University will retire former head baseball coach Mike Kinnison No. 15 jersey in a ceremony Saturday at Harvey Stadium-Ferriss Field prior to the 2 p.m. doubleheader against the University of Alabama-Huntsville.   Kinnison guided the Statesmen to the 2004 NCAA Division II national […]

Was Don Kessinger the best Ole Miss athlete ever? So glad you asked.

Posted on: April 22,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland. Greatest athlete in Ole Miss history? My guess in 99% of Rebels would blurt “Archie Manning” before the question is completed. Hard to argue: Manning was an All American quarterback and also an outstanding shortstop in baseball. And then there’s Jake Gibbs, also […]

Biggest Ole Miss-State series in history? There’s a lot of history.

Posted on: April 19,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland.  Ole Miss and Mississippi State have played baseball for 128 years. That’s a lot of history. And yet, there probably has never been a more anticipated Rebel-Bulldog baseball series than the one scheduled for this weekend in Starkville. That’s why seats are selling […]

In a season of baseball excellence, we should recall the ‘Willie Ball’

Posted on: April 19,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland. Ole Miss and Mississippi State baseball teams will enter the weekend ranked in the top five in the nation in various polls. Southern Miss is in the top 25 of RPI ratings. Jackson State is undefeated in the SWAC. Delta State remains a […]

As we move to the Final Four, let’s look at obvious NCAA selection bias

Posted on: April 08,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland. Men’s college basketball moves to the Final Four this weekend. As has been the case all but one time in NCAA history, no Mississippi team is involved. No surprise there, our teams just weren’t nearly good enough to get that far. In fact, none […]

Mississippi college baseball continues to flourish this spring

Posted on: March 24,2021

This article first appeared on mississippitoday.org and was written by Rick Cleveland. Here’s the latest round of positive proof that Mississippi is, above all else, a baseball state: • Mississippi State is ranked No. 2 in the nation in the latest Baseball America poll. The Bulldogs, 16-4 and 2-1, are fresh from taking two of […]