Mississippi

Hosting NCAA Tournament unlikely for Ole Miss baseball, other takeaways from MSU series

Published

11 months ago

May 11, 2025

Hosting NCAA Tournament unlikely for Ole Miss baseball, other takeaways from MSU series

STARKVILLE — Despite a late-inning rally, Ole Miss baseball lost at Mississippi State in the series finale on May 10.

The No. 22 Rebels scored two runs in the seventh inning and two runs in the eighth, but stranded the tying runner at first in the ninth inning in their 6-5 loss. The teams had split a doubleheader on May 9, with the Rebels winning the first game 10-4 and losing the second 4-1.

Because Ole Miss won 8-7 in the Governor’s Cup in Pearl on April 22, the overall season series is tied 2-2.

“Just disappointing,” Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said. “We didn’t play well enough. They outplayed us again. Disappointing way to end the weekend.”

Here are three takeaways:

Where Ole Miss baseball stands in regional host outlook

Four regular-season games are left on Ole Miss’ schedule. Three of them provide a chance to impress.

The Rebels (34-17, 14-13 SEC) will host UT Martin on May 13, then close the regular season with a three-game home series against No. 8 Auburn. The Tigers (36-15, 16-11) are No. 3 in the RPI.

As it stands heading into that stretch, Ole Miss hasn’t done enough to earn a host bid. It entered the Mississippi State series projected as a No. 2 seed in a regional. Winning one of three games against the unranked Bulldogs isn’t going to help the forecast.

Sweeping Auburn and going on a run in the SEC Tournament, however, could be enough to put Ole Miss into the conversation for a top-16 seed.

“We’ll get over it,” Bianco said. “Obviously a disappointing night. This will sting for a few days but we’ll be ready to go.”

Strikeouts are hurting Rebels’ offense

The second game of the series on May 9 illuminated Ole Miss’ struggle. Mississippi State recorded 16 strikeouts, 15 of them by Evan Siary in eight innings.

The Rebels have struck out at least 10 times in their past six games, and it’s adding up. They have struck out 476 times this season, the most in the SEC.

Oftentimes, strikeouts and home runs go hand-in-hand. That is true in Ole Miss’ case, with 93 homers, fourth-most in the SEC.

The strikeouts aren’t totally stunting the offense, however. The Rebels have scored 388 runs, No. 6 in the SEC. But on days when the home runs aren’t coming in droves — such as May 10 against Mississippi State, in a rainy, five-error game, with the wind blowing in — Ole Miss could have scratched more runs across by putting balls in play.

“We didn’t have a ton of base runners,” Bianco said. “Credit their pitching staff. Disappointing offensively for us.”

Ole Miss baseball starter Riley Maddox is back on track

It’s easy to overlook Ole Miss pitcher Riley Maddox’s strong start. The Rebels lost the game 4-1, but most of the action came after he left the game. Maddox pitched 6⅓ innings and allowed two earned runs on four hits. He struck out a season-high eight and walked just two.

Maddox was coming off a rough outing on May 3, when he allowed five runs on eight hits against Oklahoma in 4⅓ innings.

When he has his best stuff, as evidenced against Mississippi and in a seven-inning, one-run performance against Vanderbilt on April 26, he is a major asset. Consistency has been his problem.

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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Mississippi

Dr. Clyde Muse remembered as ‘godfather’ of Mississippi community colleges

Published

7 hours ago

April 17, 2026

Press Room

Dr. Clyde Muse remembered as ‘godfather’ of Mississippi community colleges

RAYMOND, Miss. — Dr. Clyde Muse, known as “the godfather” of community colleges in Mississippi, left a legacy that reached students and staff across Hinds Community College’s campuses.

Dr. Clyde Muse is the longest serving community college president in Mississippi history.(Hinds Community College)

Six years ago, Dr. Muse walked out the door for the last time as president of Hinds Community College. Hinds Community College President Dr. Stephen Vacik said he benefited from Dr. Muse’s guidance.

“Essentially what he said to me was, ‘Call me if you need something, call me, but otherwise I’m not going to bother you,’” Dr. Vacik said. “He was always very good about giving space to be me. I really appreciate that, and I hope that I’ve done the same for the people who work with me.”

Dr. Muse’s retirement was known as “Celebrating the Muse Legacy,” something that stretches back generations for alumni like Myra Beard, class of 1984.

“I’m number six of seven kids that went through Hinds with Dr. Muse,” Beard said. “He was so caring about his students.”

“He wanted us to come and trick or treat at his house and we said you’ve got to be kidding, and he said no,” Beard said. “He invited us in to come to a big Halloween Party. He did the same thing at Christmas.”

Dr. Muse’s impact can also be felt in the local workforce. Paige Hataway, a native of Raymond, stayed because Dr. Muse grew Hinds Community College’s nursing program.

“We had a lot of remodeling on the building. It is an older building, but he made sure everything was being worked on,” Hataway said. “And we also had funds and stuff for books. So, he definitely made a difference.”

Dr. Muse’s service will be held at Hinds Community College on Monday at Cain-Cochran Hall on the Raymond Campus. Visitation will be from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.; the service begins at 3 p.m.

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Mississippi

4-star RB Christian Alexander commits to Mississippi State to top 2027 class

Published

19 hours ago

April 16, 2026

Press Room

4-star RB Christian Alexander commits to Mississippi State to top 2027 class

This story has been updated with new information

Mississippi State football has added its highest-ranked player in its 2027 recruiting class

Class of 2027 running back Christian Alexander committed to coach Jeff Lebby and the Bulldogs on April 16. He announced the news on social media.

Alexander is a four-star recruit in the 2027 recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite. His commitment is an in-state recruiting win for the Bulldogs. Alexander is from Rosa Fort High School in Tunica County.

He showed his versatility as a junior last season. Alexander used for more than 1,300 yards and 21 touchdowns, while also throwing 40 passes for 297 yards and three touchdowns according to Max Preps.

Alexander is 5-foot-8, 195-pounds, ranked as the No. 20 running back in the 2027 class, and the No. 10 player in Mississippi. He chose MSU over offers from Colorado, UCF, Cincinnati and Minnesota.

The Bulldogs are up to six commitments in their 2027 class. Alexander is the first four-star player, and the others five players are three-star prospects.

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

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Mississippi

Mississippi lawmakers fail to override governor’s vetoes

Published

1 day ago

April 16, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi lawmakers fail to override governor’s vetoes

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Mississippi lawmakers returned to the State Capitol expecting to override one or more of the governor’s vetoes, but after hours of discussions, many behind closed doors, all vetoes remained in place.

The House voted to override two of Gov. Tate Reeves’ vetoes: one involving opioid settlement money and another for the Gulf Coast Restoration Revolving Loan Program. The Senate was not successful in any of their votes.

“At the end of the day, when you look at the votes – which is what’s the record – then it was Democrats who sustained his vetoes,” said Sen. Brice Wiggins, R-Jackson County.

Senate brings one bill to vote

The Senate brought up only one bill for a vote: the attempt to override the partial veto on the opioid settlement money. The House had already voted to override but needed at least a two-thirds vote in the Senate to make it official. The vote failed.

Senate Minority Leader Derrick Simmons said Democrats did not side with the governor when they cast their nay votes.

“We wanted to take up Senate Bill 2477, the rule of health transformation bill, first…because we did not take that bill up, unfortunately, Democrats were not interested in anything else,” Simmons said.

Governor urged lawmakers not to override rural healthcare veto

Leading up to the session, Reeves urged members not to override the veto on the Rural Healthcare Transformation Program. He said it would jeopardize federal funds.

“I certainly think it made a difference. And look, you know, if you’re a governor, you’re gonna do that. It’s your veto. You don’t want it to be overridden,” Wiggins said.

Rep. Sam Creekmore, R-House Public Health Chairman, said the House was prepared to vote to override. The language in the Senate bill was theirs, and they believed it was an oversight to ensure funds ended up in the most impactful locations.

“I truly believe they had the votes. For whatever reason, politically or whatever, it did not come up,” Creekmore said.

The lack of action from the legislature will not prevent funds from coming into the state.

The Senate also brought forward one resolution the House had already passed earlier in the afternoon. It would have helped in getting a repealer placed on a youth court bill. That vote failed in the Senate.

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