A few years ago, I found myself in northeast Mississippi, in Hill Country, where tiny towns and communities share rich basketball histories. I had some time to kill and saw a sign pointing in the direction of Baldwyn, home of the late, great Babe McCarthy. I took the turn and 10 minutes later was there. […]
This entry comes with a caveat: Billy Watkins is a close friend, a writer I greatly admire. We worked together for decades. I believe he is one of Mississippi’s greatest-ever journalists, sports and otherwise. One reason Billy is such a fine writer is that he is the best interviewer I’ve ever witnessed. He has a […]
This was 53 years and several months ago at the old Mississippi Southern College baseball field just off Highway 49 in Hattiesburg. Delta State College was about to play MSC in baseball. I was 9. My dad was on the field talking to a tall, broad-shouldered man in a gray flannel uniform with a green […]
The Morning Blog (OK, a few hours late — or early — depending on how you look at it)… Many football fans here in Mississippi, divided in college loyalties, unite where the New Orleans Saints are concerned. They had been united in sorrow until late Sunday night. When Zach Hocker’s 30-yard field goal to win […]
The morning blog… Your Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum was like a family reunion Thursday evening during a reception to honor Margaret Ferriss White, who is retiring from full-time duties at the MHSoF. Folks drove in from all over the state to honor Margaret, who began work for the MSHoF before there was […]
Jackie Sherrill, who won monster victories at Texas A & M and Mississippi State and keeps close ties to both programs, stops short of predicting a victor for this Saturday’s game at College Station. And he won’t say which team, if any, he will pull for. “I’ll wear maroon and white, I’ll tell you that […]
Hall of Famer Bert Jenkins, perhaps the best coach I ever covered and certainly in the top two or three, was not a screamer. Hollering and yelling – and certainly cussing — weren’t necessary for this gentleman to make his points. Nevertheless, Jenkins, the legendary Gulfport basketball coach, enforced firm rules, all based on what […]
The morning blog: Ole Miss goes to undefeated Florida ranked No. 3 in the country and as a 6-point favorite. But the Rebels’ fourth consecutive victory — won over Vanderbilt last Saturday night — begs more questions than it answers. • Were the Rebels hung over from their huge victory over Alabama at Tuscaloosa? Yes. […]
