It was an all-Mississippi recruiting race for four-star safety Cortez Thomas. 

It made sense, too. Thomas, who goes to Holmes County High School, hails from Lexington, Mississippi, and he clearly wanted to stay in-state to play college ball.

Despite 13 other offers, Ole Miss and Mississippi State were his top two schools.

The Bulldogs had an early edge for Thomas, admittedly, but there was a shakeup in Starkville that saw head coach Zach Arnett fired just 10 games into his first season. Jeff Lebby, former Oklahoma offensive coordinator, took over as new head coach, but that shakeup ultimately gave an edge to Lane Kiffin and the Rebels.

“At first, I was leaning more towards Mississippi State until the coaching staff changed,” Thomas told On3’s Chad Simmons. “Mississippi State is always a great school to go to, but Ole Miss is more about business and I feel like that’s where I need to go.”

If the “business” of college football is winning, which it ultimately is, Kiffin has had Ole Miss on track. Entering his fifth season with the Rebels, he has a 34-15 overall record and is coming off an 11-2 season with a win in the Peach Bowl over Penn State.

“Lane Kiffin is all about winning. I’m pretty sure every athlete wants to play for a winning team,” Cortez said. “From what I’ve heard and seen so far, he’s a great person.”

According to the 247Sports composite, Thomas is the No. 18 safety in the 2025 class. He’s Kiffin’s 10th commitment for the cycle. 

SOUTHPORT, NC (WWAY) — Thousands of people came out Thursday morning to enjoy Southport’s annual Independence Day parade, which is all part of the North Carolina 4th of July festival.

This is the 52nd year that Southport has held the official North Carolina 4th of July Festival, though celebrations in the city date back as far as 1795.

Thousands lined Moore and Howe Streets to see the parade, with Harper Vick being just one of the attendees.

“I feel like a lot of people are usually down here for it, so it makes it more special cause like, there’s like a lot more stuff going around,” Vick said.

Lots of people took part, including the South Brunswick High School Marching Band, newly-crowned Miss North Carolina Carrie Everett, and North Carolina Secretay of State Elaine Marshall.

Southport resident Chris Propst has been coming to the parade for years with his parents.

He said it’s quite the place to celebrate our nation’s birthday.

“Ah man, everybody here is just so nice and welcoming,” Propst said. “It’s so many vendors here, lots to do, lots of stuff for the kids. They do the downtown stuff, I mean it’s just nice.”

“We’ve been visiting down here, we’ve been coming to the parade since he was young, we always been here, vacationed here every year,” Chris’s mother Shari said. “So vacation, they go fishing and its just a nice community to be a part of.”

Mike Dolan is a Vietnam veteran. He’s been coming to the parade for years as well and said he always looking forward to one thing.

“I always love the high school bands because the enthusiasm of the young kids, you can’t top that,” Dolan said.

Along with the parade, the North Carolina 4th of July festival attracts thousands to the area, providing an economic boost for local business owners.

Cooler temps arrive Friday! Some storms are possible in southwestern Oklahoma Friday afternoon.

What is the weather like on Friday, July 5 in Oklahoma?

Much cooler temperatures arrive Friday and into the weekend. By Friday afternoon storm chances will be mainly across SW OK with temperatures in the upper 80’s for most with much lower humidity!

What does the weather look like for the rest of the week?

A great weather pattern for next week as the heat dome is out west leaving us in a cooler spot!

Saturday looks to be a lower humidity day as well and should be fantastic for any of your outdoor plans.

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Meteorologist David Payne

Meteorologist Lacey Swope

Meteorologist Jed Castles

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Meteorologist Justin Rudicel

Meteorologist Andrew Adams