Mississippi

‘I was amazed by it.’ Rattlesnakes fighting captured on video in Mississippi

Published

1 year ago

August 8, 2024

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‘I was amazed by it.’ Rattlesnakes fighting captured on video in Mississippi

‘I’ve never seen it before. It was definitely unique to watch. It’s probably at the top of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.’

A man from Mississippi said he sees hundreds of timber rattlesnakes each year, but what he came across on Tuesday afternoon while working at his home was nothing short of amazing.

“I was cutting my grass,” said Paul Rhodes of Como, a small town about 45 minutes South of Memphis. “We have a trail that goes back to a deer stand and I keep it cut.

“They were out there in the middle of the lane out in the wide open. There were two of them when I first saw them.”

What he saw was two timber rattlesnakes fighting and it was something he’d never seen before. He didn’t have his phone with him, so he just watched. After a few minutes, he decided to go get his phone to shoot video and when he returned, the event became even more unusual.

“When I came back and started recording, a third one came into the frame,” Rhodes said. “From what it sounds like, seeing three of them together is pretty rare.

“I was amazed by it. I’ve never seen it before. It was definitely unique to watch. It’s probably at the top of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.”

From beautiful to freakish: Here are 4 of the most bizarre snakes found in Mississippi

Letting rattlesnakes do what rattlesnakes do

After shooting video, Rhodes went back to work and that’s when he noticed something else unusual.

“I drove the mower right by them and they never checked up,” Rhodes said. “They paid me no attention.”

Rhodes said he finished mowing and came back. The snakes were still fighting. At some point, he said the largest snake crawled away, but two continued to fight. Rhodes said he decided to leave and let them fight it out without him.

“I had a lot of people say, ‘Why didn’t you kill them,’” Rhodes said. “They were just doing their thing in their environment.”

And that environment seems to be full of them. Rhodes said where he lives, timber rattlesnakes are basically a part of daily life.

“We see hundreds and hundreds a year,” Rhodes said. “They’re just everywhere.”

What kind of snake is that? Ten of the more common you’ll likely see in Mississippi

Why do rattlesnakes fight?

Rhodes said when he first saw the snakes, he thought they were mating, but as he watched he determined the behavior was too aggressive. Colt Mooney, a Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks biologist with extensive knowledge of reptiles, confirmed Rhodes’ thinking.

“People often confuse it for mating, but it’s not,” Mooney said.

What Rhodes captured on video was male snakes establishing dominance for breeding rights. Mooney said timber rattlesnakes and other Mississippi pit vipers primarily breed during August through fall, so this is when most of fighting takes place. He said the snakes don’t hurt each other, they’re just trying to prove who’s the boss.

“I call it full-body thumb wrestling since they don’t have arms,” Mooney said. “The first one to tire loses.”

The snakes ignoring Rhodes isn’t uncommon. Mooney said when they’re fighting, snakes are totally focused on the battle and basically oblivious to what’s going on around them. He said what is uncommon is witnessing three of them in combat. For Rhodes, it was unusual enough that he isn’t likely to forget it.

“It will stay with me a long time,” Rhodes said. “It was definitely unique and cool to watch.”

Mississippi venomous snakes: How to identify them and what to do, and not do, if bitten

Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.

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Mississippi

Mississippi lawmakers aim to raise funding cap for hospitals

Published

4 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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Mississippi lawmakers aim to raise funding cap for hospitals

JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – Removing the red tape and raising the funding cap for hospitals is a priority for some Mississippi lawmakers. They’re trying to make it easier to access more funding for facility improvements or equipment upgrades without needing approval from the State Board of Health.

A bill to lift spending restrictions for hospitals passed in the House and Senate during the 2025 Legislative Session, but Gov. Tate Reeves (R-Miss.) vetoed it. Lawmakers said the part Reeves didn’t like was removed.

“The whole intent is to be able to make healthcare more widely available, more cost effective and more efficient for providers and for our citizens in Mississippi,” said State Rep. Sam Creekmore IV (R-District 14).

According to Creekmore, the new bill doubles the capital investments that hospitals can make without applying for a certificate of need. Currently, hospitals and medical facilities can only spend so much money on facility or equipment investments.

If they want to spend more than the cap allows, they could apply for new equipment. It would require approval from the State Board of Health.

Creekmore said applying for a certificate of need to spend money can be timely, but there’s a chance the request could be denied. He said Reeves vetoed the initial bill because lawmakers approved a certificate of need for St. Dominic to allow psychiatric care after St. Dominic closed the unit in the past.

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Miami edges Mississippi, ‘Canes await Oregon-Indiana winner in CFP championship game

Published

16 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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Miami edges Mississippi, ‘Canes await Oregon-Indiana winner in CFP championship game

GLENDALE, Ariz.— Carson Beck scrambled for a 3-yard touchdown with 18 seconds left, and Miami will head back home for a shot at its first national championship since 2001 after beating Mississippi 31-27 in an exhilarating College Football Playoff semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday night.

The 10th-ranked Hurricanes (13-2) had their vaunted defense picked apart by the sixth-ranked Rebels (13-2) in a wild fourth quarter, falling into a 27-24 hole after Trinidad Chambliss threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Dae’Quan Wright with 3:13 left.

Beck, who won a national title as a backup at Georgia, kept the Hurricanes calm amid the storm, leading them down the field for the winning score — and a shot at a national title on their home field at Hard Rock Stadium on Jan. 19. Beck is 37-5 as a starter, including two seasons at Georgia.

The sixth-seeded Rebels lost their coach before the playoff, but not their cool.

If anything, Lane Kiffin’s decision to bolt for LSU seemed to harden Ole Miss’ resolve, pushing the Rebels to the best season in school history — and within a game of their first national championship game.

Ole Miss kept Miami within reach when its offense labored and took a 19-17 lead on Lucas Carneiro’s fourth field goal, from 21 yards.

Malachi Toney, the hero of Miami’s opening CFP win over Texas A&M, turned a screen pass into a 36-yard touchdown that put Miami up 24-19.

Chambliss’ TD pass to Wright put the Rebels back on top, but improbable run came to an end when the defense couldn’t hold the Hurricanes.

But what a run it was.

With Pete Golding calling the shots after being promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach, and most of the assistants sticking around, the Rebels blew out Tulane to open the playoff and took down mighty Georgia in the CFP quarterfinals.

They faced a different kind of storm in the Hurricanes.

Miami has rekindled memories of its 2001 national championship team behind a defense that went from porous to nearly impenetrable in its first season under coordinator Corey Hetherman.

The Hurricanes walled up early in the Fiesta Bowl, holding Ole Miss to minus-1 yard.

One play revved up the Rebels and their rowdy fans.

Kewan Lacy, the nation’s third-leading rusher, burst through a hole up the middle for a 73-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter — the longest run allowed by Miami’s defense since 2018.

The Hurricanes seemed content to grind away at the Rebels in small chunks offensively, setting up CharMar Brown’s 4-yard touchdown run and a field goal.

Miami unlocked the deep game just before halftime, taking advantage of a busted coverage for a 52-yard touchdown pass from Beck to Keelan Marion.

No. 1 Indiana (14-0) vs. No. 5 Oregon (13-1)

When: Friday, January 9
Time: 4:30 p.m. PT
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
TV: ESPN and ABC
Stream: You can watch this game on DIRECTV (free trial) or with Sling (a Sling day pass to watch this game and more is just $4.99). Streaming broadcasts for this game will be available on these streaming services locally in Oregon and Washington, but may not be available outside of the Pacific Northwest, depending on your location.

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Lady Vols basketball vs Mississippi State live updates, score, start time, TV channel

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

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Lady Vols basketball vs Mississippi State live updates, score, start time, TV channel

Lady Vols basketball will play a second straight road game with a matchup against Mississippi State.

No. 22 Tennessee (10-3, 2-0 SEC) faces the Bulldogs (14-2, 1-1) at Humphrey Coliseum on Jan. 8 (7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+) in Starkville, Mississippi.

The Lady Vols started SEC play with wins over Florida and Auburn, and Mississippi State opened conference play with a win over Auburn before falling to Oklahoma on the road.

The matchup is the first of two with the Bulldogs this season with MSU being Tennessee’s lone home and home opponent in SEC play this season.

Both Mississippi State’s losses were on the road, the first at Texas Tech in November before it fell 95-47 to the Sooners on Jan. 4. Lady Vols coach Kim Caldwell called the Bulldogs an athletic team and pointed out they ranked in the top 10 nationally in rebounding. MSU averages 45.6 rebounds, which ranks No. 9 in the country.

“We have to go and play in a tough environment with a team that is undefeated at home, plays very well at home,” Caldwell said Jan. 7. “I think that they are a different team at home than they are on the road. So it’s tough to have to go to their place, but it’s tough to go anywhere. And so just got to make sure that we play our game and we box them out and we do what we need to do.”

Lady Vols basketball vs. Mississippi State: Live score updates

When does Lady Vols basketball vs. Mississippi State start?

Date: Thursday, Jan. 8
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi

What TV channel is Lady Vols vs. Mississippi State on today?

Lady Vols basketball 2025-26 schedule, TV times

Nov. 4: NC State 80, Tennessee 77
Nov. 7: Tennessee 97, ETSU 47
Nov. 9: Tennessee 72, UT Martin 61
Nov. 13: Tennessee 68, Belmont 58
Nov. 20: Tennessee 85, MTSU 41
Nov. 23: Tennessee 88, Coppin State 35
Nov. 30: UCLA 99, Tennessee 77
Dec. 3: Tennessee 65, Stanford 62
Dec. 14: Tennessee 112, Winthrop 40
Dec. 20: Louisville 89, Tennessee 65
Dec. 22: Tennessee 89, Southern Indiana 44
Jan. 1: Tennessee 76, Florida 65
Jan. 4: Tennessee 73, Auburn 56
Jan. 8: at Mississippi State (7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
Jan. 11: vs. Arkansas (2 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
Jan. 18: at Alabama (2 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Jan. 22: vs. Kentucky (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Jan. 26: at Ole Miss (7 p.m. ET, ESPNU)
Jan. 29: vs. Mississippi State (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
Feb. 1: at UConn (noon ET, FOX)
Feb. 5: at Georgia (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
Feb. 8: at South Carolina (3 p.m. ET, ABC)
Feb. 12: vs. Missouri (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
Feb. 15: vs. Texas (3 p.m. ET, ABC)
Feb. 19: vs. Texas A&M (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
Feb. 22: at Oklahoma (2 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN2)
Feb. 26: at LSU (6 p.m. ET, ESPN)
March 1: vs. Vanderbilt (2 p.m. ET, ESPN)

Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social. Support strong local journalism and unlock premium perks: subscribe.knoxnews.com/offers

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