Mississippi
Pearl River Bridge Closed on U.S. 98 After ‘Void’ Discovered
COLUMBIA, Miss.—Semi-trucks were among the vehicles that clogged historic downtown Columbia, Mississippi, on Monday morning after the Mississippi Department of Transportation suddenly closed a bridge that crosses the Pearl River on U.S. Highway 98.
“A void was discovered near the approach to the U.S. 98 westbound bridge over the Pearl River, prompting MDOT officials to close the bridge to traffic due to safety concerns,” MDOT said in a statement this morning.
MDOT closed the bridge, located between Columbia and Foxworth, Mississippi, around 11:30 a.m.
Highway 98 is a two-lane highway, but the eastbound bridge over the Pearl River in Marion County has been closed for several months while crews work to replace the aging infrastructure. Since then, the westbound bridge has served both eastbound and westbound traffic.
Now, MDOT is telling drivers to use State Route 35, State Route 13 and State Route 198 as detours—forcing hundreds of drivers to take alternate routes on far less-traveled roads, including through the heart of the small town.
MDOT has long planned to replace both the eastbound and westbound bridges as part of a $60-million project, but officials don’t expect that work to be complete until 2027. Officials have said that the age of the bridges, along with seasonal flooding, has made the replacement project necessary.
The old westbound span should soon be back up to serve eastbound and westbound traffic again for now, though, Mississippi Department of Transportation Public Information Officer Anna Ehrgott told the Mississippi Free Press on Monday morning.
“We are thinking more in terms of days than weeks currently,” she said when asked how long the repairs could take. “As soon as we have more information, we’ll share it with the public.”
As of 2024, Mississippi had 7,385 bridges that needed repair and 1,009 bridges designated as structurally deficient, an American Road and Transportation Builders report said. The State has taken steps to address its infrastructure issues in recent years, thanks to an influx of both federal and state dollars.
Under former President Joe Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Mississippi received $225 million for bridge repairs and replacement. In 2018, the Mississippi Legislature approved the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund, which has provided around $600 million for infrastructure repairs since its passage.
On July 1, 2025, a new law took effect that will increase Mississippi’s gas tax by three cents per gallon over a period of three years. Lawmakers say they expect the new tax to generate about $200 million annually for MDOT to improve Mississippi’s roads and bridges.
Related
No. 15 Tennessee (3-1, 0-1 SEC) will play for its first Southeastern Conference win in 2025 during Week 5. Mississippi State (4-0) will host the Vols on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi.
Kickoff is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. EDT and SEC Network will televise the contest.
Saturday will mark the 38th game between the Vols and Bulldogs all time, dating to 1907.
Tennessee leads the football series versus Mississippi State, 30-16-1. The Vols have won the last two meetings, including a, 33-14, victory last season at Neyland Stadium.
Below are all-time football results between the Vols and Bulldogs.
Tennessee’s all-time football results versus Mississippi State
1907: Tennessee 11, Mississippi State 4
1910: Mississippi State 48, Tennessee 0
1915: Mississippi State 10, Tennessee 0
1919: Mississippi State 6, Tennessee 0
1920: Mississippi State 13 Tennessee 7
1921: Tennessee 14, Mississippi State 7
1922: Tennessee 31, Mississippi State 3
1923: Tennessee 7, Mississippi State 3
1924: Mississippi State 7, Tennessee 2
1925: Tennessee 14, Mississippi State 9
1926: Tennessee 33, Mississippi State 0
1932: Tennessee 31, Mississippi State 0
1933: Tennessee 20, Mississippi State 0
1934: Tennessee 14, Mississippi State 0
1948: Mississippi State 21, Tennessee 6
1949: Tennessee 10, Mississippi State 0
1950: Mississippi State 7, Tennessee 0
1951: Tennessee 14, Mississippi State 0
1952: Tennessee 14, Tennessee 7
1953: Mississippi State 26, Tennessee 0
1954: Tennessee 19, Mississippi State 7
1955: Mississippi State 13, Tennessee 7
1957: Tennessee 14, Mississippi State 9
1958: Tennessee 13, Mississippi State 8
1959: Tennessee 22, Mississippi State 6
1960: Tennessee 0, Mississippi State 0
1961: Tennessee 17, Mississippi State 3
1962: Mississippi State 7, Tennessee 6
1963: Mississippi State 7, Tennessee 0
1964: Tennessee 14, Mississippi 13
1971: Tennessee 10, Mississippi State 7
1978: Mississippi State 34, Tennessee 21
1979: Mississippi State 28, Tennessee 9
1986: Mississippi State 27, Tennessee 23
1987: Tennessee 38, Mississippi State 10
1990: Tennessee 40, Mississippi State 7
1991: Tennessee 26, Mississippi State 24
1994: Mississippi State 24, Tennessee 21
1995: Tennessee 52, Mississippi State 14
1998: Tennessee 24, Mississippi State 14 — SEC championship game
2002: Tennessee 35, Mississippi State 17
2003: Tennessee 59, Mississippi State 21
2007: Tennessee 33, Mississippi State 21
2008: Tennessee 34, Mississippi State 3
2012: Mississippi State 41, Tennessee 31
2019: Tennessee 20, Mississippi State 10
2024: Tennessee 33, Tennessee 14
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Mississippi
Mississippi State football doesn’t miss Mario Craver, other overreactions to Alcorn State win
STARKVILLE — It’s difficult to determine what Mississippi State football’s lopsided 63-0 win against Alcorn State in Week 3 means for the outlook of the season, but there was certainly no indication of a potential upset.
The Bulldogs (3-0) scored touchdowns on four straight drives to begin the game and led by 42 points before halftime. The third and fourth quarters at Davis Wade Stadium were reduced from 15 to 10 minutes because of the score. MSU and second-year coach Jeff Lebby are 3-0 for the first time since 2018.
Here are four overreactions to MSU’s win before it hosts Northern Illinois (1-1) on Sept. 20 (3:15 p.m., SEC Network).
Mississippi State fans will storm the field after another upset win
Mississippi State has qualities of a team than can pull off another upset like it did to then-No. 10 Arizona State in Week 2. When the offense, defense and special teams are playing soundly, MSU is miles better than last season.
The offense, led by quarterback Blake Shapen, can score in bunches and do so quickly. The defense can string together multiple stops in a row and is forcing two turnovers per game. Kyle Ferrie has yet to miss a field goal, while Anthony Evans III is second in the SEC with 128 punt return yards.
Mississippi State’s four SEC home games are all against ranked opponents — Tennessee, Texas, Georgia and Ole Miss — so don’t be surprised if fans storm the field again in one of those games.
Kamario Taylor is a future Heisman Trophy contender
There have been glimpses of freshman quarterback Kamario Taylor and you can already tell why everyone is so excited about the four-star signee from Noxubee County.
He scored his first career touchdown in the second quarter against Alcorn State, a 42-yard on-the-money throw to Brenen Thompson. Taylor also had a great rush when he read the edge defender, tucked the ball and ran for 19 yards.
Taylor will have to wait for next season to compete for the starting job, but he has the makings to be a special player.
Mississippi State is fine without Mario Craver, Kevin Coleman Jr.
Mario Craver leads college football with 443 receiving yards for Texas A&M. Kevin Coleman Jr. of Missouri is tied for fifth nationally with 24 receptions. Both transferred after last season ended, but Mississippi State is doing just fine without them.
Evans and Thompson have been a terrific duo at wide receiver. Evans, a Georgia transfer, has filled Coleman’s role at MSU as a shorter-yard target with 17 receptions for 210 yards and two touchdowns. Thompson, an Oklahoma transfer, has played Craver’s role as a downfield burner with 15 catches for 278 yards and three touchdowns.
It’s unlikely that Mississippi State could’ve had all four of them on the same team, but losing two great wide receivers hasn’t hurt this season.
Mississippi State’s pass rush will be a weakness in SEC play
Will Whitson was playing like a premier pass rusher before his season-ending injury in Week 2. The Bulldogs haven’t been great at generating pressure though outside of him.
Whitson has two of MSU’s four sacks. He’s also still the only player for MSU with more than one tackle for loss.
The defensive front looks improved from last season, but will still need to be better for SEC standards.
Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
Friday was a special day for Mississippi State sports and it was the cross country team that got things started for the university.
The Bulldogs put in a record-breaking performance to finish in second place at the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Ala.
“We’re really pleased with how the team raced today,” said assistant coach Erinn Stemnan-Fahey. “Today, they showed the strides the program has made towards improvement. We’re really excited to keep building on the momentum for the rest of the season.”
The team improved its finish from last year by 6 places, with three athletes finishing in the top 20 overall. Nelly Jemeli led the Bulldogs, literally. Jemeli finished fourth overall in 16-minutes, 36.1 seconds.
Louise Stonham finished 17th in her first cross country race in the maroon and white with a massive personal best of 17:10.0. Gabrielle Boulay and Hunter Anderson rounded out the scorers for state, with the latter running a personal best of 17:31.0.
Women’s Tennis: Mississippi State at Blue Gray Classic
Women’s Tennis: Mississippi State at Debbie Southern Classic
Men’s Tennis: ITF Fayetteville M15 Futures
Cross Country: Southern Showcase, Huntsville, Ala., 2nd Place
Soccer: Mississippi State 3, No. 1 Tennessee 2
Football: Alcorn State at Mississippi State
Women’s Tennis: Mississippi State at Blue Gray Classic
Women’s Tennis: Mississippi State at Debbie Southern Classic
Men’s Tennis: ITF Fayetteville M15 Futures
Volleyball: Mississippi State at Mercer, Noon
“One night, Bilbo got particularly feisty, so my dad and I drove him out to woods. Once we found a good spot, we stopped and I put him on the ground and took his collar off. He kind of ambled about, taking in the new surroundings. I preface this next part by saying I do think humans and animals share an unspoken understanding, to some extent. That’s why it’s so easy to bond with pets. So this is how I remember saying goodbye to Bilbo: He wandered 10 yards away or so from the truck, and then he turned and looked at us and kind of had this expression like, ‘It was nice knowing ya.’ It was this moment where like, both I knew and he knew that we’d had some good times, but this was it.”
– Mike Leach
POV you just beat the #1 team in the country 😤#HailState | @HailStateSOC pic.twitter.com/0aaI6iacbz
— Mississippi State Athletics (@HailState) September 13, 2025
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