Mississippi

Brett Favre attempts to add Mississippi Auditor’s book to defamation lawsuit

Published

2 years ago

October 1, 2024

Brett Favre attempts to add Mississippi Auditor’s book to defamation lawsuit

Former NFL player and Mississippi native Brett Favre has filed a motion to expand his defamation lawsuit against Mississippi State Auditor Shad White.

On Sept. 27, Favre’s legal team submitted a new complaint stating that White’s new book “Mississippi Swindle: Brett Favre and the Welfare Scandal that Shocked America,” through its title and within its pages, defamed Favre.

“The book itself falsely states, among other things, that Favre had been ‘taking money he knew should go to people in “shelters,”‘ and had been ‘trying to hide that fact from the media and the public,’ and also accuses Favre of committing the felony of money laundering,” Favre’s attorneys wrote in the Sept. 27 filing.

White’s book was published in early August, and Favre is now the third person featured within who has publicly called into question their portrayal by White. State Attorney General Lynn Fitch and Mississippi GOP Chairman Mike Hurst told reporters in August they considered the book to stretch truths or mischaracterize them entirely.

Favre initially filed the defamation suit against White in 2023 for social media posts calling his character into question and also about a civil case surrounding the Mississippi welfare scandal, in which individuals and companies collectively took millions of dollars from the state’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds through the Mississippi Department of Human Services.

Favre’s testimony in D.C. ‘I didn’t know what TANF was’: Brett Favre testifies before Congress about MS welfare scandal

More on related lawsuits with Favre What did Shannon Sharpe do? Brett Favre seeks to reinstate defamation lawsuit

Those TANF funds were supposed to be funneled to the state’s poorest and most needy residents, but they weren’t, and Favre has repaid more than $1 million in TANF dollars he received for speaking engagements. White is also suing Favre to pay back about $729,000 in interest he allegedly owes on those funds.

Fitch earlier this year dropped White as a client in the lawsuit with Favre, and White told reporters it was over her office’s portrayal in his book. She is also suing to block White from trying to reclaim the interest funds, saying White does not possess the authority to sue Favre.

Favre has not been criminally charged, but In 2023, the state also named Favre as one of 38 defendants in a civil case filed by the Mississippi Department of Human Service aiming to reclaim about $77 million in misspent TANF funds, $5 million of which paid for a new volleyball stadium at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Grant McLaughlin covers state government for the Clarion Ledger. He can be reached at gmclaughlin@gannett.com or 972-571-2335.

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Mississippi

Mississippi State’s Roster Rebuild Added Another In-State Piece

Published

18 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi State’s Roster Rebuild Added Another In-State Piece

We interrupt your downpour of college baseball news for a reminder that some basketball programs are still building out their roster for next season.

Mississippi State landed a commitment from Ashton Magee on Saturday.

Magee becomes the latest piece in what has turned into a near-total roster rebuild for Mississippi State, and his addition fits the broader theme of what the staff has been chasing this spring.

He’s a 6-7 forward coming off his freshman year at Southern University, where he played steady rotation minutes and showed enough long-term upside to draw interest once he hit the portal. He’ll arrive in Starkville with three seasons of eligibility and the option to redshirt if the staff wants to stretch his development.

The Laurel native and South Jones product didn’t put up big numbers in Baton Rouge, but he played in 31 games and logged 350 minutes as a true freshman.

Magee shot 44.4 percent from the field, averaged 3.0 points and 1.7 rebounds, and got a taste of what a full college season feels like. Southern finished 17-17 and 11-7 in SWAC play, and Magee’s role grew as the year went on.

His path to Mississippi State has already taken a few turns. Magee originally committed to Kansas State out of high school before reopening his recruitment and signing with Southern.

Now he’s back in his home state with a chance to carve out a role on a roster that has plenty of room for new contributors.

And that’s the real context here. Mississippi State returns only one full-time starter in rising senior Josh Hubbard, who will carry the scoring load again.

King Grace is back after playing meaningful minutes as a freshman, and redshirts Cameren Paul and Tee Bartlett will finally get their first real look after sitting last season. Everything else is open. Everything else is up for competition.

Mississippi State Basketball Transfer Portal Tracker

Women

Incoming

Reese Beaty, 5-8, G, Fr. (Iowa State)
Aryss Macktoon, G, 5-11, So. (La Salle)
Arianny Francisco De Oliviera, F, 6-4, So. (Gulf Coast State College)
Macie Phifer, 6-1, G, Fr. (Middle Tennessee)
Cali Smallwood, 5-9, G, Jr. (UAB)

Outgoing

Awa Fane, 5-8, G, Jr.
Nataliyah Gray, 6-3, F, Fr.
Rocío Jiménez, 6-7, C, R-So.
Saniyah King, 5-7, G, So.
Jaylah Lampley, 6-2, Fr.

Men

Incoming

Thomas Bassong, 6-8, F, Fr. (Florida State)
RJ Johnson, 6-4, G, Jr. (Kennesaw State)
Ashton Magee, 6-7, F, Fr. (Southern)
ND Okafor, 6-7, F, Sr. (Washington State)
Kendyl Sanders, 6-8, F, Fr. (Utah)
Tajuan Simpkins, 6-4, G, (Seton Hall)

Outgoing

Gai Chol, 7-0, C, Jr.
Jamarion Davis-Fleming, 6-10, F, Fr.
Dellquan Warren, 6-2, G, So.
Amier Ali, 6-8, G/F, So.
Sergej Macura, 6-9, F, So.
Brandon Walker, 6-8, F, Sr.

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Mississippi

Alyssa Faircloth’s no-hitter is Mississippi State’s first in NCAA softball tournament

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2026

Press Room

Softball

May 16, 2026

Alyssa Faircloth’s no-hitter is Mississippi State’s first in NCAA softball tournament

May 16, 2026

Alyssa Faircloth threw a no-hitter in Mississippi State’s regional win over Oregon, the Bulldogs’ first in an NCAA tournament game. Watch the extended highlights from the no-hitter here.

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Mississippi

Why Mississippi State baseball pitching is struggling heading into SEC Tournament

Published

2 days ago

May 16, 2026

Press Room

Why Mississippi State baseball pitching is struggling heading into SEC Tournament

Despite scoring 33 runs in its final three-game series, Mississippi State baseball didn’t leave College Station, Texas, with a series victory.

No. 10 Texas A&M beat the visiting No. 12 Bulldogs 7-6 on May 16. It was the rubber match of the three-game series. MSU (39-16, 16-14 SEC) won the first game 18-11 and Texas A&M (39-13, 18-11) took the second game 11-9.

The Bulldogs are still entering the postseason in good position. MSU will be anywhere between the No. 8 and No. 10 seed in the SEC Tournament and has a case to be awarded a top-16 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.

MSU can hit and does it well. The Bulldogs entered May 16 with the No. 2 batting average in the SEC (.314) and the third-most runs (471). Pitching was more hit-or-miss.

Here’s what stood out regarding MSU’s pitching in the regular season finale as the Bulldogs head into the postseason.

Ryan McPherson is back, but can he find peak form?

Getting star sophomore Ryan McPherson back in any capacity is big for MSU, but the Bulldogs need him to look like his old self to have their best chance at a deep postseason run.

McPherson started Game 3 against Alabama. He pitched 2⅓ innings, allowing one earned run on 44 pitches. He got into some trouble in the third inning and was pulled.

McPherson has only pitched one other time since March 20, when he suffered a forearm strain against Vanderbilt. That was on May 9 vs Auburn, but he only threw 1⅓ innings before he injured his ankle after tripping behind home plate while backing up a potential throw in the second inning.

At his best, McPherson has lights-out stuff that can win a postseason game. He was 5-1 with a 2.45 ERA before getting injured.

Ben Davis quietly shined in bullpen

The MSU bullpen got plenty of action against Texas A&M. Senior reliever Ben Davis pitched all three days.

Davis threw one inning in the first game, 2⅓ in the second game and 1⅓ in the finale. Across the 4⅔-inning span, Davis allowed four hits and no earned runs. He struck out three.

It’s the first time this season Davis pitched three consecutive days.

Walks, not hits, cost Mississippi State the series

The Bulldogs outhit the Aggies 11-7 in Game 3, but the discrepancy in walks was too much to overcome.

MSU walked 13 batters and drew just one.

Four of the walks went on McPherson’s ledger, but the bullpen struggled with control as well. Five of the six relievers who pitched after McPherson walked at least one batter. Only 96 of the 176 pitches MSU threw were in the strike zone.

Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_

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