The Daily Mississippian January 23, 2023

MISSISSIPPIAN

Video of arrest sparks controversy

MARY BOYTE

thedmnews@gmail.com

A video depicting the arrest of a local man by two law enforcement agents sparked controversy on social media, with many viewers finding the video disturbing.

On Wednesday, Jan. 18, according to a Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department press release, an LCSD “plain clothes” deputy and an Oxford Police Department officer arrested Jerami Tubbs, 42, of Lafayette County after a physical struggle. The video, which shows only part of the arrest, quickly found its way to social media in the following days.

In the video, Tubbs can be seen lying on the ground outside the Marathon gas station on South Lamar Street while the two officers hold him down. The sheriff’s deputy appears to lean on Tubbs’ neck with his knee while punching him multiple times.

On Jan. 20, the LCSD released a statement on

The reality of NIL

ELLE MUIRHEAD thedmnews@gmail.com

Lauren Hoselton was a walk-on, non-scholarship athlete soon to begin her fifth-year season on the Ole Miss women’s track and field team when the student-athletes were called into a meeting. Sitting in a room alongside her fellow teammates and all of the other 20-something-year-old athletes at the university, administration explained that the collegiate athlete experience as they knew it would

be changing. A new interim policy would now allow them to monetize their name, image and likeness.

On July 1, the NCAA’s monumental “NIL” policy went into effect. As soon as it became official, the face of college athletics began to change. And that policy not only transformed the world of college sports, it also dramatically changed the lives of the athletes who play them. In the 16 months following the announcement,

Facebook stating, “We are thankful the officers nor Tubbs were injured during the arrest.”

Tubbs was initially stopped by the sheriff’s deputy for a traffic violation committed on a Gold Wing motorcycle. They were then joined by the OPD officer for backup. The deputy, according to the release, knew Tubbs as a convicted felon from previous interactions in which he was in possession of weapons. The release further states that the officers informed Tubbs that he would be patted down, resulting in the suspect “becoming argumentative and acting very out of character from past experiences.”

Tubbs then pushed the deputy and attempted to run away, before the deputy grabbed him and the pair “fell to the ground,” the release states. Tubbs was still wearing his protective helmet

Lady Rebels’ successful season so far

CALEB HARRIS thedmsports@gmail.com

Despite a rare loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide during last week’s contest, the Ole Miss women’s basketball team continues to make history.

Hitting a program-high in attendance (8,958 fans) on Dec. 14 is a testament to the new life that head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin has breathed into this program.

The Lady Rebels find themselves sitting fourth in the SEC

at 16-4 and 5-2 in the SEC.

Their 16-3 record ranks fourth all time for the best start of a season through the first 19 games and puts them behind the 2006-2007 team. That team would eventually make the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament.

Ole Miss has the dynamic duo in junior forward Madison Scott and the reigning sixth woman of the year, senior guard Angel Baker. The duo both rank in the top

M’Leah Lambdin competes for Ole Miss Rifle against Akron at the Patricia C. Lamar National Guard Readiness Center in Oxford on Saturday, Oct. 16, 2021.

PHOTO COURTESY: PETRE THOMAS / OLE MISS ATHLETICS

Ole Miss women’s basketball head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin cheers during a game against Georgia on Jan. 12.

PHOTO COURTESY: KIANA DALE / OLE MISS ATHLETICS

A Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department deputy and an Oxford Police Department officer arrest Jerami Tubbs outside the Marathon gas station on South Lamar Boulevard on Jan. 18.

IMAGE FROM VIDEO COURTESY: MAKAYLA NALLS

ASB passes preferred pronoun policy

MARY BOYTE thedmnews@gmail.com

The Associated Student Body requests UM professors use students’ preferred pronouns such as he/him, she/her and they/them. In a formal meeting Dec. 13 over Zoom, Senate Resolution passed 22-9 with two “no” votes, effectively putting into place a preferred pronoun policy for students.

Senator Caleb Ball, one of the authors of the resolution, suggested that moving forward, to assist professors in using a student’s preferred pronouns, a section may be added to MyOleMiss for users to add their pronouns so they show up next to their names on the roster. Pronouns may also be added to student ID’s.

Since this is a resolution, professors are highly encouraged to use preferred pronouns but will not face punishment for failing to do so.

The resolution resulted from an incident during the fall semester. According to Ball, a student emailed him in the beginning of the school year

stating that a professor had emailed everyone in the class informing them he would not be using any pronouns that did not match the student’s assigned sex.

The professor referred to preferred pronouns as “meaningless.” According to Ball, the email read, “I will refer to females as she/her and males as he/him. I’m also often not politically correct. I say it as I see it. The rest is just a waste of my time and yours.”

The identities of the professor and the student who sent the email will remain anonymous, according to bill co-author Hayden Pierce.

“After talking to many of my trans and non-binary friends in the UM Pride Network, I realized that we must take a step to ensure that the trans community on campus can worry about school in the classroom setting and not whether a professor will respect their pronouns,” Ball said.

Ball said that he and coauthors Pierce and Sara Cantú found in their research that 10 other universities in the SEC already have pronoun policies in place. The University

the suspect, they searched his motorcycle and discovered what the department believes to be a large quantity of methamphetamine.

of Mississippi Medical Center also has one in place.

As the ASB representative for the UM Pride Network, Ball said this resolution

is extremely important. “We must ensure that every student on this campus has a safe environment to learn,” Ball said. “Passing this resolution

from the motorcycle. According to the release, a gun fell from his waistband during the struggle.

The video, filmed and posted initially on Snapchat, rapidly made its way to other social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter. It begins with Tubbs and the deputy on the ground, the deputy kneeling with his weight on the suspect as the backup officer pushes a gun away from Tubbs. The video is more than 20 seconds long, and depicts the deputy with his knee on Tubbs’ neck and striking him.

“The brief struggle, between the deputy and Tubbs, continued until the officers were able to gain control and place him in handcuffs,” the press release said.

After the officers handcuffed

Tubbs has been charged with speeding, not using a turn signal, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and possession of a schedule II substance with intent to distribute while in possession of a firearm.

Because he was out on bond for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a controlled substance, Tubbs’ bond was revoked. He is currently awaiting further court proceedings in the Lafayette County Jail.

The Daily Mississippian reached out to the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department with questions about accreditation and internal standards regarding use of force, but were unable to receive a response prior to publication.

shows the queer community on this campus that ASB sees them and has their back.”

Hayden Pierce speaks during an ASB senate meeting on Nov. 8, 2022.

HG BIGGS / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN

GRAPHIC: SAVANNAH SHOOK / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN

Hoselton became one of the university’s most prominent NIL athletes — but solely as a result of her own hustle.

“I was in a room of, you know, ‘Matt Corrals,’ and they told us what (NIL) was and what you can and can’t do, but they never really told us how to do it,” Hoselton said. “In a room full of very Instagram-famous people, I was like, ‘That’s not me, so I have to figure out how I’m going to do this.’”

She immediately began devoting most of her limited free time to researching the ins-and-outs of the policy and how she could start using it to her advantage. Like the majority of the collegiate student-athlete population outside of the top 5% of performers, and playing a non-revenue sport, Hoselton realized profiting off of her NIL was not going to come without her own hard work.

“When I say I spent hours, I mean hours reaching out to brands, figuring out templates that worked, what they liked to hear. I knew I had 5,000 (social media) followers, and there were athletes that had 25,000 followers, and I knew I needed to make myself stand out to some of these brands,” Hoselton said. “I was like, ‘I’m going to use everything I can, I’m gonna have a clean Instagram, I’m gonna have really good content, I’m going to use my social media analytics, I’m going to show them how many people I’m reaching,’ so I was just kind of doing trial and error and figuring out what brands wanted to hear. I just took it in my own hands to really try and figure it out.”

The purpose of implementing NIL was to allow student-athletes to finally reap rewards for how much their performance

financially supported their respective schools, something unprecedented in college athletics. Since implementation, studentathletes now live in an entirely different environment. While schools cannot pay players directly, they can now be compensated through other avenues.

Performance has always been important, but now there is an added level — how well

start making money like this, even your sport could start to be a little less appealing.”

Though much of the public interpreted the introduction of NIL to mean “easy-money” for student-athletes, that wasn’t the case for most. In the months following the policy’s release, those that wanted to truly profit off of NIL had to hustle to create an individual brand for themselves on top of practices, competitions,

has had major success on an individual competition level. But despite the monumental achievement and recognition the program has brought to the university, NIL has not been the lucrative addition to the lives of the rifle athletes that it has been for participants in other sports.

Lambdin and her two roommates are three of the four athletes on the women’s rifle team with a NIL deal: Their apartment complex lowered the monthly price of their rent in exchange for their appearance in a few of the complex’s Instagram posts per year. While the deal has been a relatively positive addition because rent is expensive and student athletes aren’t allowed to work, she says it hasn’t been life-changing.

“Our apartment (deal) is pretty open,” Lambdin said. “It’s not super lucrative — it’s not having a Beats deal or anything.”

Lambdin says one of the best parts of their NIL deal with the Quarters at Oxford is how easy it is on the studentathlete end. According to her, the time commitment for some athletes is one of the biggest reasons many haven’t capitalized on their NIL — well, that and fear of rejection.

nature of what it is, we just don’t have (NIL deals.) It’s not very often that we have people reaching out to us to do them, so then it’s really hard for us to feel valid in reaching out to someone to do one.”

So Lambdin and her teammates are left in limbo, living out the part of NIL that few seem to talk about: the disparity.

“I feel like it’s just more frustrating that we constantly hear about NIL, and everyone says, like, ‘Oh, it’s so easy — just ask for a deal.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, but then you have to write up a contract, if you can get it approved by compliance. And if compliance doesn’t approve it, you have to rewrite a contract.’ There’s just so much extra work if you’re not actively being sought out for a NIL deal,” she said.

To help athletes navigate the constantly changing landscape of NIL legislation and provide a way for universities to still profit, collectives were born.

your school, but also how much money you can make individually, and how much money you make can also have an impact on how well you play.

“All of their actions and everything means more than before — of course, you’re always representing your university and school, but now, there’s just a lot more to it. You’re making money off of your name now,”

Hoselton said. “And I mean, we’ve seen it with athletes at other schools, when you

Athletes that didn’t make that commitment have not seen the benefits NIL promised, some even feeling further isolated in the policy’s wake.

M’Leah Lambdin is sophomore student-athlete on the Ole Miss women’s rifle team – a team that returned to Oxford after a fourthplace finish at the NCAA Championships last year – consistently competes for best in the nation and has earned countless awards and accolades. Lambdin herself

“One of (my teammates) just said that she really just doesn’t want to deal with how much time it takes,” Lambdin said. “Especially because she was like, ‘Well, if I reached out, you know, what if they say no? I never want to deal with that.’”

But these fears only come when there are realistic expectations for potential deals, and that isn’t the case for the rest of the rifle team, and many other teams on campus.

“I know the whole team really feels like it’s pretty hard for us to get (NIL deals) because we’re not a televised sport, and, of course, we’re a women’s sport,” Lambdin said. “We don’t have the same amount of backing as football in the South. Just by the

A collective, according to an article by Burr & Foreman LLP published on JD Supra, is a business entity that “supporters of a school’s athletic teams (not the schools themselves) form under state laws to generate and pool revenue, which the collectives use to fund NIL opportunities for college athletes at particular schools who opt-in and avail themselves of the collective’s help and efforts to monetize their NIL.”

A few months ago, NIL guidelines were released that prevented athletic boosters from directly paying studentathletes in an attempt to block unfair funding, confirming that the birth of NIL did not mean the death of rules against “pay-for-play.” As a potential solution, or loophole, the published guidelines allowed for universities to communicate and coordinate with “third party entities” (collectives), intensifying the controlling role of collectives.

THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN EDITORIAL staff

RABRIA MOORE

editor-in-chief dmeditor@gmail.com

VIOLET JIRA managing editor dmmanaging@gmail.com ZACH SPOONER copy chief thedmcopy@gmail.com

HAL FOX MARY BOYTE news editors thedmnews@gmail.com

AIDAN GALLARDO sports editor thedmsports@gmail.com

JANE ROB PANNELL assistant sports editor thedmsports@gmail.com HG BIGGS

photo editor

thedmphotos@gmail.com

ASHTON SUMMERS assistant photo editor thedmphotos@gmail.com

JUSTICE ROSE opinion editor thedmopinion@gmail.com

KHARLEY REDMON arts and culture editor thedmfeatures@gmail.com

WILL JONES assistant arts and culture editor thedmfeatures@gmail.com

ERIN FOLEY LIBBY FLANAGAN design editors thedmdesign@gmail.com

SAVANNAH SHOOK

SEDLEY NORMAND visuals editors thedmvisuals@gmail.com

CAROLINE BEACH social media editor thedmsocialmedia@gmail.com

BRITTANY KOHNE multimedia editor dailymissmedia@gmail.com

S. Gale denley student media center

LARZ ROBERTS

Director of Student Media

DENNIS MOORE Editorial Director

ROY FROSTENSON

Assistant Director/Advertising

JAYLIN JONES Advertising Sales Manager dmads@olemiss.edu

SALES ACCOUNT

EXECUTIVES

Owen Pustell

When it is decided that The Daily Mississippian will take an editorial stance on an issue, the following positions will make decisions as the Editorial Board: editor-inchief, managing editor, copy chief, sports editor and opinion editor.

@thedailymississippian THE

@thedailymississippian

GRAPHIC: SEDLEY NORMAND / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN

Artificial intelligence presents new challenge to the university

ELYSE LITTLETON HAL FOX thedmnews@gmail.com

The artificial intelligence research company OpenAI released an in-development project called ChatGPT on Nov. 30, 2022, a few short weeks before many colleges across the country began final exams season.

Using ChatGPT, anyone can enter a prompt and create a well-formulated academic paper instantaneously. Websites will grant users a free trial or only charge money once a certain word count is exceeded. ChatGPT learns and improves itself every time someone uses it, so while some papers created by the AI in the early days after its release were flagged by plagiarism checkers, ChatGPT has improved with time, and now text it creates passes through conventional plagiarism checkers without raising alarm bells.

“I think both faculty and students can learn to use the large language model ethically. However, this will require educating ourselves about the limitations of this technology and respecting boundaries,” Marc Watkins, a lecturer in composition and rhetoric at UM, said.

College students across the nation are using ChatGPT to enhance the quality of their essays and homework.

One anonymous Ole Miss student who spoke with The Daily Mississippian considered using ChatGPT to write their final exams after a recommendation from a friend studying computer science, but eventually decided against it.

“I fell into a little depressive episode towards the end of last semester and it made it really dif-

ficult for me to get my schoolwork done. She told me that she had seen a TikTok of a student using ChatGPT to write all of their papers for school, so she suggested that I try it too,” the student said.

“I thought ChatGPT sounded too good to be true, so as soon as I was done reading over the essay, I entered it into three different sites that check for plagiarism. It turns out I was right, because all three said that around 60-70% plagiarism was detected in my paper, so I ended up not submitting that one and just wrote the essay myself.”

Another anonymous student at Louisiana State University who spoke with The Daily Mississippian used ChatGPT to broaden an argument for a final exam essay. The student directly copied and pasted two paragraphs from ChatGPT and reframed the remainder of the essay around the arguments ChatGPT produced. The essay was awarded an A.

“In my eyes this could potentially be negative for students actually learning and retaining information, because everything can be done for them at the click of a button. On the other hand, though, it may just be the natural next step for things. It can also function as a streamlined version of Google and is fantastic for research. So it could be the catalyst for massive progress in the near future. It all depends on how people decide to use it,” the LSU student said.

ChatGPT’s uses are not limited to academic papers either: People have prompted the program to create original jokes, code computer programs and have conversations with historical figures like Jesus and Adolf Hitler.

Conversations are taking place at UM about how the

use of AI will impact the university’s academic sphere.

“Educators across the country are currently exploring how AI writing tools might be useful for students, but large language models like ChatGPT are being deployed so rapidly that faculty have had little time to consider the impact of these tools on student learning,” Watkins said.

New York City schools have banned ChatGPT from school-issued technology. Universities in Australia have returned to pen-and-paper examinations in response. Many people believe the use of AI is academic dishonesty and will hinder the learning experience of students.

“Technology has opened all kinds of doors to us all, and with this development new ways to cheat on papers, commit plagiarism and essentially lie to one’s teachers and peers about one’s work and accomplishments,” Joseph Atkins, professor in UM’s School of

Journalism and New Media said.

Atkins is concerned about the emergence of this technology and its growing popularity. In response to the effect of AI on an individual’s education, he questioned, “Who could take any pride in taking advantage of this to further one’s college career? How could you then look at your degree and consider it something you yourself achieved?”

There are some possible solutions for educators looking to curb the usage of ChatGPT in their classroom, however. Edward Tian, a Princeton University student, recently developed an app called GPTZero to detect whether text was written by an AI. While Tian admits that GPTZero is not yet 100% accurate at determining the originality of a given set of text, thousands of educators across the country have already begun using the app since its Jan. 2 release date.

ChatGPT is still being developed and is releasing in different iterations, and the current itera-

tion ChatGPT-3 was trained on 175 billion different parameters.

Alberto Romero, an AI analyst, speculates that ChatGPT-4 will be released soon and could be trained on as many as 100 trillion different parameters, which would make the language model far superior to the previous iteration and possibly much harder to distinguish from a human writer.

Due to the AI’s unique response features, text created by ChatGPT is often hard to detect as unoriginal. Despite this, Watkins urged students to exercise caution before using the model to do their homework.

“If I were a student, I’d be very cautious about using one at this time. Using AI to generate all of an essay is academically dishonest. At minimum, I’d speak to my professor to see if they will allow me to use the tool and under what conditions,” Watkins said.

First-generation students share experiences, struggles and misconceptions

ELIZA PETERS thedmnews@gmail.com

Coming to college can be daunting for many reasons. It could be daunting because you are 10 hours from home for the first time. Maybe you haven’t met a soul at the university you’ll be attending. But for a select population of students, going to college is daunting because they are the first in their family to do it.

First-generation students, commonly known as “first-gen,” are committed to telling their stories and sharing the experiences they’ve had at the university, and recently they had that opportunity through the First-Gen Student Network, a group that was established in 2021. The First-Gen Student Network hosts events and shares resources catered to students who are interested in plugging into a community that can relate to their experiences as “the first.” Unknown and unexpected challenges can ex-

ist for first-gen students as they navigate their time in college at a big school, all while multi-gen students do not know the true definition of first-gen students.

“Last year, we worked to form a definitive definition of what a first-generation student is and added a question about being a first-generation student to Ole Miss applications,” Racheal Embry, a psychology student from Olive Branch, said. “The First-Gen Student Network is working across campus and through partnerships with other organizations to create a welcoming atmosphere for first-generation students to give them the information, resources and support we need to succeed.”

Alexis Wager, a first-gen graduate student, says that the FirstGen Student Network is part of the university focusing more resources on first-gen students.

“First-gen life is growing. There is both a first-gen undergraduate group and graduate group,” Wagner said. “These groups work to

THE FUTURE HAS ITS HAND RAISED

University of Mississippi cultivates some of the brightest minds that aspire to affect change

Start your journey Check your eligibility to join the corps!

support first-gen students with some of the unique challenges that come along with being the first, as well as providing a safe and supportive space for friendships and connections to be made.”

According to the Center for First-Generation Student Success, one-third of college students are first-gen. At Ole Miss, it is estimated less than 25% of students are first-generation. More than 130 participate in the First-Generation Student Network at the University of Mississippi.

With the resources in place to assist, misconceptions and lack of awareness still exist.

“A big misconception is that first-gens experience the same scenarios in the same way as multi-gen students,” Dr. Melissa Jones, the assistant director at the Lott Leadership Institute, said. Jones is a first-gen grad herself.

“If a first-gen looks good academically on paper — good test scores and grades — then people think, “Oh they’re smart,” said Jones. “Where in actuality, the support needed for connections, etc. is greater and shouldn’t be overlooked just because they seem strong academically.”

First-gen student success does not solely rely on academic performance, either.

“A common misconception about first- gen students or student life is the fact that ‘“we all have the same experience’ when we truly do not,” Wagner said. “As a first-generation student you don’t have any idea what to expect or how to do certain things that may seem like ‘basic college things” such as ordering books, scheduling classes, financial aid or even how meal plans work and what resources the campus has.”

In an article from Ole Miss News, Clara Turnage shared 10 things that Ashleen Williams, faculty advisor for the First-Generation Student Network, and Annette Kluck, dean of the Graduate School, believe first-gen students should know.

Some of the items on that list include familiarizing themselves with the office of financial aid, finding a meaningful mentor and joining, but not over-join. These are things that first-gen students might not think to do throughout their college career, but Williams and Kluck aimed to provide advice, combined with

resources that are accessible.

Even with those challenges, many of the first-gen students have found their niche through campus involvement and the first-gen network.

“I am very involved on campus and most of this involvement is a consequence of conversations with friends or mentors who helped me find ways to become involved,” Embry said. “I serve as the vice president of the First-Gen Student Network, a liberal arts ambassador and an honors college ambassador.”

Embry is also a member of multiple honor societies, volunteers at a local church and manages a psychology lab on campus.

For Wagner, involvement has been essential to her success here as a graduate student.

“I am a member of Women in Leadership, the Association for Graduate Women in STEM and the skills workshop chair for the BioMolecular Sciences Student Advocate, BSA,” she added. “I am also involved with my cohort in networking and department events on campus.”

Sophomore Adam Soltani came to Oxford as a first-gen student because of an academic program.

“I was drawn to the Arabic Flagship Program at Ole Miss, its financial affordability, and vast opportunities for upward social mobility made me want to stay,” Soltani said. “On campus, I am the vice-president of the Muslim Student Association, a Research Assistant in the National Center for Natural Products Research and a General Chemistry SI Leader.”

The 2021 Mr. Ole Miss, Ian Pigg, was a first-gen student. After winning his title, Pigg and Miss Ole Miss, Madison Gordon, established the First-Generation Scholarship. This scholarship would be awarded to a deserving first-gen student to help fund educational opportunities. The fund raised more than $6,000, and aimed to increase over time.

Pigg was a member of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, Student Activities Association, The Columns Society and held leadership positions across campus. Using his opportunity to campaign for Mr. Ole Miss allowed a spotlight to be put on the first-gen student population.

“The university is working to help support our first-gen groups

both physically and financially,” Wagner said. “We have had the pleasure of having immense support from Chancellor Boyce, Dr. Kluck, Dr. Godfrey, Dr. Edney and numerous others. Having such prominent support on campus allows us to feel welcome and safe in a very anxious environment.”

The university has made strides recently in supporting this community, most notably through financial support and the establishment of the First-Gen Student Network.

“It has been great to see the attention the university has given to first-generation students these past few years,” first-gen undergrad student Edrei Pena said. “I believe the First-Generation Network has been able to be successful with their help and support of us.”

With heightened support comes unique opportunities, such as celebrating first-gen week.

Andy Flores, the current president of the First-Generation Network, recently took part in a video released by the university, where he and another first-generation student had a conversation about aspects of student life, support that is in place and their personal experiences as first-gen student week kicked off.

Along with the video conversation, other students weighed in on the events and the importance of the celebrations.

“Almost every individual shared the feeling of being out of place or feeling in the dark about information everyone else seemed to know,” Embry said.

“The panelists discussed their struggles as a result of a lack of knowledge and how they overcame these struggles with the help of resources and mentors.”

The challenges and opportunities of being a first-gen student results in a multitude of life lessons for these outstanding students.

“My freshman year, I was worried about what people would say or think if I asked ‘dumb’ questions about college or if I didn’t know something about being a college student,” said Embry.

“Now, I have resources and individuals who I feel comfortable asking those questions. Through the First-Gen Student Network, I have been able to advocate for myself and for students like me to see change on campus.”

Members of the First-Generation Student Network pose for a photo.

PHOTO COURTESY: BILL DABNEY

Culture

The only sober ones in the room: Oxford bartenders serve as a safety net

MEGAN FAYARD thedmfeatures@gmail.com

Bartenders on the Oxford Square not only serve drinks, they also serve as a safety net. With over 15 bars on the Square, bartenders are expected to make important judgment calls to ensure a safe and welcoming environment.

Popular bars such as the Library Sports Bar, Rafters and Funky’s see crowds ranging from 200 to over 1,000 people on a typical Saturday night. Large crowds call for a hefty amount of security, bartenders and police to ensure a smooth weekend.

Training for bartenders reaches far beyond learning how to mix drinks and focuses mainly on judgment skills that are needed for the job. This includes knowing when to cut someone off from ordering more drinks, when someone at the bar may be causing problems for another customer and what to do when this happens.

A more important skill that bartenders must apply is the ability to read body language. This skill alone could help determine if an individual is at risk of a dangerous situation, including a date-rape drugging or sexual assault.

Josh Christian, long-time bartender and manager at the Library Sports Bar, said that he makes it known that if anything feels off to let someone know while training bartenders.

“We will see if he’s making advancements, and she’s blowing him off, or we watch his hand movements. We see if he’s moving his hands anywhere around her drink trying to distract her,” Christian said. “It’s just little things like that you look for because you can tell in a situation when a girl is uncomfortable.”

Christian also said that there are ways to get women out of situations where they may feel vulnerable, such as simply kicking the harasser out of the bar, or pulling him to another area of the bar because “his card declined.”

Although he helps to train his employees to handle such situations, top priority is to regulate overconsumption of alcohol to avoid these situations before they happen. With bartending to large crowds comes a feeling of responsibility for anything that happens to an individual while in the bar.

“You’re responsible, especially if someone has had too much to drink, or they get themselves into a sticky situation. That’s one big thing we preach on, do not over serve anybody because that just leads to a bad situation,” Christian said. “When you do, that’s when guys take advantage of girls because they know that (the girl) is not in the right state of mind and they can get

away with stuff a lot easier.”

Christian said that, oftentimes, when a woman is concerned about another individual in the bar who may be harassing her, she will give her bartender a code word or discrete hand signal to warn them that she is in need of help. This also includes ordering a “secret shot” at the bar, allowing her to get the help she needs without making a scene in front of her harasser. Though situations of this magnitude are not often, Christian says that over his 16 years of bartending at the Library, he has experienced this multiple times.

Joey Little, a previous bartender at multiple bars on the Square and current bartender at Rafter’s, said that kicking people out of the bars for disorderly conduct is a frequent occurrence. Though the main reasons for asking patrons to leave are for stealing, fighting or over consumption, bartenders also find themselves escorting individuals out due to harassment.

“(Kicking people out) is a situational thing. There are times when you can tell a guy is trying to be weird and creepy towards someone, and there are times when you can see a guy is just really drunk and happy. He’s not trying to be weird and creepy, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t kick him out,” Little said.

Little said that, for the most part, women who are harassed at the bar seek the assistance of a bouncer but every now and then will inform a bartender of their concerns. After the harasser has been taken out of the bar, the situation ceases and either the individual goes home, or the police get involved. Police involvement in these situations is often not needed.

“It’s mainly when the bars get packed. When you pack 500 people in the bar, something bad is going to happen,” Little said. “I think that’s just a judgment call on everybody. You’re just trying to look out for everybody.”

Though it seems that male bartenders run the Square, female bartenders play a large role in helping women find comfort while out. A bartender at Rafter’s bar finds that being a female bartender puts women’s safety at a higher priority because girls usually tend to trust other girls first.

“I have a lot of girls come up to me. At the end of the day, (the bartenders) are really the only sober people in the room, so we notice things a lot more than the average patron who is usually drunk,” the Rafter’s bartender said.

“Being a girl makes you think of it in a way like, what if that was me or one of my friends?”

The best way to monitor patrons when the bar is overwhelmed is by watching

the drinks as they are leaving the bar. One of Rafter’s bartenders said that she watches every person take their drink off the bar to make sure nothing happens to the drink beforehand. Due to the high capacity of patrons at the bar at a single time, it is difficult to keep an eye on drinks after they have left the bar, but bartenders try their best to stop dangerous situations before they happen.

Although bars are equipped with what seems to be an overwhelming amount of security on weekends, this Rafter’s bartender does not feel as though there is enough. She said that because they can not watch everyone at the same time, bartenders are well aware of their surroundings and know when a situation may become negative.

“I think all bartenders feel some sense of responsibility, especially knowing when to stop serving people, because that decision solely falls on the bartender. And they have to be able to recognize those signs and recognize when somebody isn’t able to make good judgment calls anymore, because they’ve had too much to drink,” a Rafter’s bartender said.

Though there are options and precautions such as Oxford Police Department’s drug detecting coasters, the Safe Site and bag searches when entering certain establishments, Christian says that there is always room for more advancements in the fight to keep people safe while out.

He suggested classes for bartenders which could include training on how to recognize potentially negative situations so they can learn the best ways to detect if someone may have been drugged, or how to handle situations where they have been.

Christian says that

having someone come talk to bartenders once a year or providing a free class either taught by OPD or Alcohol and Beverage Control state officers could benefit bartenders and ultimately make the bar a safer environment for everyone.

“We would rather be on the side of caution any day of the week. As for classes, that should be one of the top priorities, teaching people that are getting into the business how to distinguish different situations. There is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to do that. There are no negatives in teaching something like that,” Christian said.

Although dangerous situations like drink dropping and sexual assault in the bar scene may be infrequent, it does still occur. Between Aug. 2020 and Nov. 2022 OPD has made 11 arrests regarding sexual assault and has compiled 58 reports of sexual assault. There are no current stats on drinkdrugging over this time frame.

Reid Bankston, Library Sports Bar bartender says that not only is bartender training important, but safety education for women may be more crucial. He says that it is important for women to also know the signs of when a dangerous situation may be presenting itself and subsequently, how to evade the situation. Bankston says that giving classes through OPD or the university would help women better read these situations and possibly create a safer environment where women can feel more comfortable.

“I’m not quite sure what the university does in terms of letting you know, specifically girls, what to do if they think they are in danger of being (a victim of) date rape, or drugged,” Bankston said.

“(Classes) would be something that I think would probably be good for especially incoming freshmen, whether that be going to each sorority house or going to each dorm. That education can be important.”

A bartender at The Blind Pig mixes a drink behind the bar.

MEGAN FAYARD / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN

Who’s coming to Oxford this spring

J.R. MULLIGAN thedmfeatures@gmail.com

Oxford has long held a reputation for attracting entertaining acts that can draw a crowd, with last semester bringing in acts such as The Band CAMINO, Muscadine Bloodline and others with strong cult followings.

The Oxford-Lafayette community can expect this semester to be no different. As we eagerly await the lineup announcement for the 2023 Double Decker Festival, let’s take a look at what artists have set their sights on Oxford for 2023.

For those excited to get right back into the Oxford spirit, a couple acts will be performing in January, a few days after classes begin.

On Jan. 26, music lovers can choose between beloved rising country star 49 Winchester at Proud Larry’s or opt for something else entire-

ly and head over to The Lyric, where they can see rapper and 2024 presidential candidate (yes, you read that correctly) Afroman put on what should be a wildly entertaining show.

In February, look forward to a heavy dose of critically acclaimed indie artists. On Feb. 9, indie rock band Big Thief, currently nominated for the Best Alternative Album award at the 2023 Grammy Awards for their 2022 album “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You,” will perform at The Lyric.

On Feb. 28, The Lyric will host Franklin, Tenn.-based indie rock band Colony House, who is releasing their fourth studio album, “The Cannonballers,” on Feb. 3, so expect a great show and some new music to accompany it.

This spring, expect no shortage of great artists coming to town. Aside from the Double Decker Festival, currently slated for April 28 and 29, Oxford will

be welcoming acclaimed indie rock band The Mountain Goats to The Lyric on April 7. A band that never broke into mainstream, The Mountain Goats have enjoyed a sizable and devoted following, particularly due to founding member John Darnielle’s creative songwriting and symbolism-imbued lyricism.

Of course, the event that has dominated conversation at Ole Miss since its announcement is country superstar Morgan Wallen’s two night concert April 22-23 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Tickets sold quickly following the initial sale last semester, so if you’re looking to go, be prepared to pay no less than $200 for nosebleed seating alone and over $500 for pit tickets (both of which are before fees and taxes). Wallen will be joined by fellow country stars Hardy, Bailey Zimmmerman and Ernest, making the considerably high ticket price a bit easier to swallow.

CAROLINE MCCUTCHEN thedmfeatures@gmail.com

On Tuesday evening at Square Books, Charles Reagan Wilson, professor emeritus and former director of the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi, met with the current director of Southern Studies, Kathryn McKee, to discuss Wilson’s newly published book,

“The Southern Way of Life: Meanings of Culture and Civilization in the American South.” Wilson described his book as a genealogy of the term “Southern way of life,” a phrase that has been redefined and disputed for generations. Diving deep into regional consciousness and the contingency of Southern identity, the book takes the reader on a journey through three centuries of Southern culture from the

colonial era to the modern day.

“The Southern Way of Life” began in 1989 while Wilson was teaching at the University of Mississippi and writing the “Encyclopedia of Southern Culture.” After beginning the project, the historian quickly discovered that “The Southern Way of Life” would prove to be the project of a lifetime.

“I realized I wasn’t ready to write a book called ‘The Southern Way of Life,’ Wilson said. “It’s like the old bluegrass song says, ‘Sometimes you gotta dig a little deeper into the well, boys, to get a cold drink of water.’ So, I had to go dig a little deeper in research and deeper into thinking, and it was on my mind for years.”

Wilson’s initial research was influenced by the eras of the South in which he grew up but quickly expanded to focus on much more.

“Growing up in the ’50s and ’60s, the Southern way of life was segregation,” Wilson said. “It became a rallying cry for the White Citizens Council in Mississippi and all across the South of defending segregation when the civil rights movement started, and that’s what I thought I was going to be saying.”

In revising his work, the author shared that he sought to infuse his voice into his book by drawing from writers, colleagues and his experiences in Oxford.

Wilson emphasized that “The Southern Way of Life” strives to encapsulate diverse perspectives into its pages, including not only political figures and historians but also writers and musicians that bring vitality to the region.

During the conversation, Wilson shared his collection of antique church fans, ranging from illustrations of Martin Lu-

ther King Jr. to Elvis Presley, that he has cultivated throughout his exploration of Southern culture. Many of the fans are illustrated in “The Southern Way of Life” as part of 39 illustrations featured in the 600-page work.

“It’s a big book, but I don’t want you to leave with the impression that it’s an intimidating book or that it’s a book that you would have to sit down and try to tackle in one sitting because it’s really not like that at all,” McKee said.

The pair ended by discussing with the audience about how perceptions of the Southern way of life are evolving and how they will continue to change in the future.

“As you were writing this book and finishing this book, I

you’ve always wanted to see live. Regardless of your tastes,thing for you this semester.

wonder about a sort of resurgence of a kind of negative association with Southerness,” McKee said. “I’m thinking in particular of the sort of resurgence of white supremacy that we have seen in our country.”

Wilson shared his optimistic viewpoint concerning the spread of positive change and Southern influence within the United States.

“I believe in Dr. King’s trajectory of history, which is the arc moves toward justice,” Wilson said. “To me, it’s the end of something, and the future is much brighter.”

“The Southern Way of Life: Meanings of Culture and Civilization in the American South” is available at Square Books.

Mississippi Press Association Education Foundation

this June 29, 2017 photo, Charles Reagan Wilson, left, and Ted Ownby, senior editors for “The Mississippi Encyclopedia,” pose in Tupelo, Miss. The project includes work from more than 700 scholars.

PHOTO COURTESY: ADAM ROBISON / THE NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI DAILY JOURNAL VIA AP PHOTO

GRAPHIC: SEDLEY NORMAND / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN

New movies light up the box office

AARON BARROW thedmfeatures@gmail.com

This winter break brought plenty of critically and financially successful films.

James Cameron’s long awaited sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” made a splash at the box office, earning more than $1.7 billion globally in its first four weeks. This secured its spot within the top 10 highest grossing films of all time.

Dreamworks Animation also came out with a sequel to its 2011 film “Puss in Boots.”

The sequel, “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish,” has not only been highly successful financially with an exponentially growing global haul of more than $200 million, but it also has been hailed by critics as one of the best films of 2022.

While this success caught many by surprise, 2023 seems to have a few surprises on its slate as well.

Universal Pictures’s “M3GAN” has garnered great appreciation from both audiences and critics alike following its release in early January.

The horror film also has done marvelously at the domestic box office despite the negative reactions to its vi -

ral marketing in the months leading up to its release. Many viewers found the trailers to be not only derivative of thrillers released before it but also lack ing any sense of seriousness.

Clearly this wasn’t a problem for most moviego ers, which begs the ques tion, what other upcom ing films have a chance of taking the world by storm?

On Jan. 13, Gerard But ler’s latest action film “Plane” flew into theaters. Much like “M3GAN,” the film has gained an unconventional following due to its hilariously sim plistic title. In a clever mar keting strategy, the film’s distributor has fully leaned into the ridiculousness and continues to banter with its potential audience on various social media platforms.

If films like “M3GAN” and last summer’s “Minions: The Rise of Gru” are any indication, self-awareness can and will sell tickets.

Younger moviegoers tend to appreciate corporations and studios poking fun at themselves, and the studios typically are rewarded as a result. This is not always the case, as last year’s “Morbius” re-release can attest to, but hopefully things can

work out in “Plane’s” favor.

Tom Hanks’s latest feature film, “A Man Called Otto,” based on the Swedish novel “A Man Called Ove,” released alongside “Plane” and seems to be aimed at older audiences, a demographic largely underrepresented in the current theater land -

scape. The film’s impressive box office numbers hopefully point toward more mid-budget, adult-oriented fare.

Universal’s stream of unpredictable features extends into February with M. Night Shyamalan’s latest thriller, “Knock at The Cabin,” and yet another highly self-aware

comedy, “Cocaine Bear.” Disney is set to release Marvel Studios’s “Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania” on Feb. 17, which will likely rule the box office for the following weeks. Overall, the first quarter of 2023 is looking to be, if nothing else, a unique and diverse time at the movies.

Long awaited ‘The Last of US’ makes HBO debut

PALEIF RASPBERRY thedmfeatures@gmail.com

The first episode of HBO’s show “The Last of Us” finally premiered Jan. 15. “The Last of Us” is an adaptation of the 2013 post-apocalyptic survival game of the same name developed by the video game company Naughty Dog, which also is responsible for the wellknown “Uncharted” series.

The plot involves Joel Miller, a hardened survivor, in a post-pandemic world where fungi-infected zombies run rampant. His path crosses with a 14-year-old girl named Ellie Williams, who might be the key to saving the world.

Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey star as the leading characters Joel Miller and Ellie Williams, with Gabriel Luna as Tommy Miller, Merle Dandridge as Marlene and Anna Torv as Tess Servopolous.

Before the story was picked up by HBO to become a series, an adaptation of “The Last of Us” spent a long time in what the TV and film industry calls “development hell” going through multiple reincarnations as both a feature film and short film.

With the video game franchise having a massive

cult following, fans have shown excitement and support for the adaptation since its announcement in 2020 and followed its development every step of the way.

Upon its release, “The Last of Us” received an overwhelming amount of positive reactions.

“The Last of Us” was created and co-written by Craig Mazin, creator of HBO’s Emmy-winning Chernobyl, and Neil Druckmann, the creator of the video game. Critics have praised this duo and the show for staying true to the essence of the game’s storyline and characters.

Fans also haven’t let the effort and care that was put into the series go unnoticed. Several have taken to social media platforms such as TikTok and Twitter to express how much they appreciate everything that went into making the show and all of its creative decisions.

Many have pointed out the similarities of the cinematography and dialogue between the game and the show. Some say certain scenes were “shot-for-shot” or “line-forline,” such as, for example, the scene of the Miller family driving away from their neighborhood to safety.

But the admiration didn’t come without some negative

criticism. When the casting of the show was first announced, fans weren’t happy that the actors didn’t look like their video game counterparts.

Bella Ramsey (Ellie) experienced this backlash the most. In a recent New York Times article, Ramsey talked about the backlash she received when she was cast and how it negatively affected her mindset when it came to portraying the character.

Ashley Johnson, the actress that portrayed Ellie in the video game, says that when she first saw Ramsey she thought, “She’s Ellie,” and “She’s so perfect for this role.”

The same can be said for Pascal who was offered the role of Joel by the creators. Druckmann says in an interview with The Wrap that the actor for Joel needed to be tough but also “someone that is tortured and is vulnerable.”

He believed that Pascal was able to do that and bring Joel to life.

Despite everything that the show did “right,” fans are still nitpicking at certain details like eye color, facial hair and ethnicity changes of some characters.

As the series progresses we will see whether these criticisms both positive and negative change.

At the moment, I person -

ally don’t mind or care about subtle character and plot changes. An adaptation, to a certain extent, requires some changes to fit into its new format. But I still believe that the overall spirit of the source material should be present.

“The Last of Us” does just that. It is refreshing to see a piece of media that I love so deeply get adapted into something that does it justice.

The Last of Us was a

comfort for me during the COVID-19 pandemic, surprisingly. It immersed me in a world where I was reminded that the state of things could be a lot worse. It also introduced me to characters and unique family constellations that I’ve grown to cherish. New episodes of “The Last of Us” premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. EST on HBO and HBO Max.

The above image released by 20th Century Studios shows Trinity Bliss, as Tuk, in a scene from “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

PHOTO COURTESY: 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS VIA AP PHOTO

Is it time to part ways with Kermit Davis?

CAMERON LARKIN thedmsports@gmail.com

The college basketball season is well underway. Some teams have surpassed expectations, others have met them, but there is a select group of teams that have fallen short of their preseason projections.

As it stands now, Ole Miss belongs to the latter. With Rebel fans growing tired of bottom-feeding, some feel as though it is time to make some changes in leadership.

Head coach Kermit Davis arrived in Oxford before the 2018-2019 season. In his five seasons with the Rebels, he has garnered a 73-71 record, which is carried primarily by his first season, when his team won 20 games. This season, The Rebels’ record stands at 9-10. The Rebels lost again on Saturday 57-69 at Arkansas.

Davis has hit the double-digit SEC win mark just twice, in his first and third seasons, when he won 10 SEC games. Ole Miss has been ranked nationally in only

one season under Davis, which also occurred in his first season.

Additionally, the offensive numbers have dropped steadily over the past five years. Ole Miss currently averages 67.6 points per game, which would go on record as the lowest-scoring offense in the Davis era. However, Ole Miss did not bring in Davis for his offensive mind.

Davis is inherently a defensive coach. An old-school mindset like this has allowed Ole Miss to be a top defense in the SEC under his tenure.

Another redeeming quality for Davis is his recruiting. He has managed to bring in multiple four-star athletes, namely Daeshun Ruffin, Matthew Murrell and Amaree Abram. Davis has also stuck his hand in the transfer portal to grab impact players such as Myles Burns, Jayveous McKinnis, Jaemyn Brakefield, Josh Mballa and Theo Akwuba.

His off-court recruiting has never been questioned, as he has done the most with limited resources, but it is the on-court aspect that has fans up in arms.

His teams have a tendency to

underperform in big games, especially this year. Ole Miss has managed to let nearly every big game slip through its fingers.

They had Tennessee on the ropes in Oxford and handed them the game late. They led Auburn at halftime and ended up losing. They played Georgia and Mississippi State close all game and fell apart as crunch time began.

It is not good to be known as the team that has all the pieces but cannot figure out how to make them fit, and that is exactly what Ole Miss is now and what they have been in previous years.

Ole Miss put on one of its best performances of the season against South Carolina, winning 70-58 on Jan. 17, so there is a slight hope that the Rebels can turn things around in time to meet the middleof-the-pack SEC team predictions from the preseason — and maybe, just maybe, that would earn Davis another year.

However, if history repeats itself, another losing season for Ole Miss could lead to changes in the coaching staff.

25 of scoring in the SEC.

Baker averages 14.7 points per game, and Scott averages 11.8 points per game. Scott also ranks ninth in rebounds in the SEC with 9.2 boards per game.

Scott’s offensive emergence over the last 10 games has helped push the Rebels over the mark and has made them a team that has to be beaten on every phase of the court.

McPhee-McCuin has said that she doesn’t want to talk to Scott too much because she has been playing so well.

The most impressive feat for the women’s squad is their suffocating defense.

The Rebels rank eighth in the country in scoring defense, allowing just 52.4 points per game and third in the SEC behind South Carolina and LSU.

Ole Miss is 16-0 when holding opponents under 60 points.

What McPhee-McCuin has been able to accomplish and the turnaround throughout her first five seasons in Oxford has been nothing short of a miracle. She holds two women’s basketball program records for best starts in the past 30 seasons in the first 19 games.

When McPhee-McCuin took over, she made it clear that she had leftovers.

She took over a program that had only one conference win prior to her arrival and went through a winless conference season before she could recruit better players and establish a winning culture.

Now the standard is to make the NCAA Tournament, which this team did last season, and win.

Although the meat of conference play has just started and there’s a long way to go, fans can expect the Lady Rebels to continue to make history and continue to climb to the top of the SEC.

Ole Miss Women’s Basketball head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin instructs the Ole Miss women’s basketball team from the side of the court during a game against Auburn on Dec. 29, 2022.

PHOTO COURTESY: KIANA DALE / OLE MISS ATHLETICS

Ole Miss Men’s Basketball head coach Kermit Davis stands on the side of the court during a game against Auburn on Jan. 10.

PHOTO COURTESY: KIANA DALE / OLE MISS ATHLETICS

Portal produces new potential for Ole Miss football

OWEN PUSTELL thedmsports@gmail.com

Last year, Lane Kiffin gave himself the nickname “Portal King” to commemorate his historic recruiting class, and he is looking to reclaim his title this offseason. Kiffin and the staff have been busy in the early window, signing a number of instant-impact players in high-value positions.

Walker Howard, QB (via LSU)

Howard transfers to Ole Miss after spending his redshirt freshman year in the Bayou, and Rebel fans should be excited. Howard was a top-40 prospect in the 2022 class and was rated the No. 5 quarterback nationally. He should provide competition for returning quarterback Jaxson Dart, giving the Rebels a pair of young elite recruits at the most important position on the field.

Spencer Sanders, QB (via Oklahoma State)

This is a questionable take, in my opinion. Sanders is an average quarterback, and while he is experienced, he does not provide an immediate upgrade over Dart. Sanders (going into his fifth year) is likely a single season rental, and if he pushes either of the younger players to the portal, it would be a serious loss.

Tre Harris, WR (via Louisiana Tech)

Harris likely will shoot to the top of the depth chart next season. He has a great frame, runs strong routes and presents a legitimate red-zone threat. Harris

caught 65 passes for 935 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. Look for him to replace Jonathan Mingo as Dart’s primary target.

Chris Marshall, WR (via Texas A&M)

Like Howard, Marshall was an elite recruit in the 2022 class (25th-ranked player nationally). Though he had a quiet year for the Aggies, I expect him to contribute for Ole Miss as a sophomore and give the Rebels a pair of big-body threats at receiver.

Caden Prieskorn, TE (via Memphis)

Prieskorn will be an immediate starter for the Rebels, giving them security at one of the worst positions on the roster. The 6 ‘6, 255 pound behemoth is a legitimate receiving threat as he hauled in 48 catches for more than 600 yards in 2022. He should pair nicely with Michael Trigg to form a strong duo.

Victor Curne, OL (via Washington)

Curne is an interesting addition. The 6 ‘4, 320 pound lineman played in just three games last season, but was a starter in both 2020 and 2021 at right tackle. With Micah Pettus and Jayden Williams both returning, it is unclear where he will play, but at the very least he provides depth for a unit that suffered attrition in the offseason.

Quincy McGee, OL (via UAB)

McGee is a Mississippi native and, like Curne, has a chance to play immediately

at guard. McGee has starting experience for UAB and is a much needed boost for a room that needs all the depth it can get. Though the offensive line may not be a group of flashy recruits, it is made up of veterans who have plenty of experience.

Joshua Harris, IDL (via NC State)

The signing of Harris is great news for Ole Miss fans for more than one reason. Harris was a rotational player for the Wolfpack and will likely be the same at Ole Miss. Pursuing 300+ pound defensive tackles means the staff likely plans to switch to a fourman front as opposed to the ineffective 3-2-6 of last season..

Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste, LB (via UCF)

Jean-Baptiste recorded 52 tackles last season for the Knights, but the real draw is his versatility. Jean-Baptiste played mostly as an off-ball linebacker, but was occasionally used as a stand up edge defender in 3-4 packages. There is no clarification if he will remain as a JACK backer or move to a true MIKE spot, but it will be interesting nonetheless.

Monty Montgomery, LB (via Louisville)

In 2022, Monty Montgomery recorded 70 tackles, six sacks and two interceptions and was the star of Louisville’s defense. In 2023, he could be the playmaker the Rebels need at linebacker. Look for Montgomery to start next season at middle linebacker and expect to see him blitz often.

John Saunders, CB (via Miami of Ohio)

Despite being listed on 247Sports as a wide receiver, Saunders played exclusively cornerback for the Redhawks last season. He is a longer prospect (listed at 6 ‘2) which lines up with the traits that Ole Miss usually looks for in cornerbacks. Unless Davison Igbinosun withdraws from the portal, Saunders could be a Week 1 starter.

DeShawn Gaddie, CB (via North Texas)

Standing at 6’1, Gaddie is yet another lengthy cornerback addition for the Rebels. Gaddie, a 13-game starter in

2022, recorded 61 tackles and 12 pass break-ups last season for the Mean Green. The Rebels now have three cornerbacks with D1 starting experience (Deantre Prince, Saunders and Gaddie) as they look to add depth to the room. Expect it to be a three-way competition for two starting spots, with true freshman Braxton Myers looking to break onto the scene.

Caden Davis, K (via Texas A&M)

This is an interesting take for sure. Davis has attempted only four field goals in his career and made just one. The Rebels do not have a strong starter at the positions, so Davis may be the Week 1 option.

Ole Miss’ top prospects declare for the 2023 NFL Draft

ANNA GRACE BOWLING

A number of Rebel football players have either de -

cided to forego their last season in Oxford and declare for the 2023 NFL draft or are no longer eligible to play college ball and plan to move on to the professional phase of their

careers and play in the NFL.

Running back Zach Evans posted on Instagram Dec. 30, “After much prayer, I have decided to forego my remaining year of eligibility and declare for the 2023 NFL Draft.”

After transferring from TCU, Evans became a key offensive player for the Rebels in 2022 and went hand-in-hand with Quinshon Judkins in the backfield. There is no doubt that Evans, and the recognizable talent that he brought to the Ole Miss football program, will be greatly missed.

Wide receiver Jonathan Mingo also decided to forego his remaining year of eligibility and declared for the draft.

Mingo concluded the 2022 season with a total of 861 yards receiving, his season high being 247 reception yards against Vanderbilt.

Linebacker Khari Coleman is another TCU transfer turned Ole Miss Rebel that declared for the 2023 NFL Draft.

At Ole Miss, Coleman showed impressive speed and athleticism. As a pass rusher, he produced 20 total pressures, including 12 quarterback hurries, three quarterback hits and five sacks.

Nick Broeker played left tackle for Ole Miss for three seasons, but moved inside as a guard during his senior season. Broeker has proved to be one of the best offensive lineman in the SEC throughout his career based on his quickness and technique and will likely find success in the NFL.

Fifth-year senior and safety Otis Reese transferred from the University of Georgia but came to Ole Miss his junior year and played three seasons with the Rebels.

Reese was smooth with his hands and can get in contact with the ball without drawing flags. For the Rebels, he showed natural balance, quick feet, excellent awareness and was skilled at reading routes

and quarterbacks. Reese showed great talent during his final year as an Ole Miss Rebel and is a promising prospect for the 2023 NFL Draft.

Mason Brooks, offensive guard for the Rebels, was only a two-star prospect coming out of high school and started his career at Western Kentucky. For his final season of collegiate eligibility, Brooks transferred to Mississippi to join the Rebels.

Standing 6-foot-6 and weighing 315 pounds, Brooks has the size and strength to hold against the bull rush and showed excellent awareness when presented with tricky plays.

The transfer portal produced some of the Rebels’ key players during the 2022 season. Now, after leaving an outstanding legacy on the Ole Miss football program, these Rebels are on to bigger things.

Ole Miss head football coach Lane Kiffin runs onto the field at NRG Stadium before kickoff at the TaxAct Texas Bowl on Dec. 28, 2022.

HG BIGGS / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN

2022: a season no one saw coming

LARS ANDERSEN thedmsports@gmail.com

Football is unpredictable.

One can try to throw statistics at it to make it make sense, but ultimately, it’s just a guessing game. The over/under is as difficult to predict as a prospect’s success at the next level, be that at an SEC program or in the NFL, but that doesn’t mean that sportswriters and pundits won’t try their best to throw a saddle on the beast and give it a shot.

Thepreseasonpollshadtheusual suspects ranked as contenders.

Alabama atop the coaches poll, followed by Ohio State, Georgia and then Clemson.

The same four that have held on as the teams to beat in the sport for the last half decade, and the same four everyone assumed would end up in the playoffs, with Clemson as the most unpopular pick of those four.

Fast forward to Jan. 9, and Georgia was crowned as the first team in the CFP era to win consecutive national titles, earning the record for the largest blowout in the history of bowl games (the Bulldogs beat TCU 65-7).

How did this happen? How was Alabama, which boasted two players that may well be drafted first overall in quarterback Bryce Young and edge rusher Will Anderson, knocked out of the playoff for the first time since 2019?

The answer, in a word, is upsets. Upsets happened this season at

a rate that seemed disproportionate to years past, with memorable losses, including Appalachian State’s memorable early season victory over Texas A&M, No.6 Tennessee’s victory at Neyland vs. No.5 Alabama and Mizzou’s near victory over the No.1 Georgia Bulldogs (a final score of 22-26).

As the season played out, the midseason favorites began to fall behind. Tennessee’s star quarterback Hendon Hooker tore his ACL in Week 11 during a massacre to South Carolina, and Alabama dropped two games in three weeks to Tennessee and LSU.

Things changed, teams lost, and all of a sudden, Nick Saban seemed mortal. Georgia showed clear signs of weakness in the Mizzou game, and the SEC looked vulnerable (for a moment).

Other teams began to fall by the wayside too.

No.18 Notre Dame handed No.13 Clemson its first loss of the season, dropping them to 8-1 and effectively killing their hopes of playoff success. Michigan began to climb, solidifying its playoff chances by beating Ohio State for the second season in a row.

Michigan suffered in the playoff, losing to TCU in an upset no one believed until they saw it happen, due in some part to the Wolverines’ loss of star running back Blake Corum. After both of the Big Ten’s best fell to Georgia and TCU, respectively, the national title game was set to kickoff between the historic underdog Horned Frogs and the

dynasty-in-the-making Bulldogs.

Although the season as a whole was plenty unpredictable, the championship game seemed to end in a way everyone saw coming.

The College Football Playoff committee voted to expand the playoffs earlier this year, beginning a 12-team playoff in 2024.

It’s been argued that expansion before an increased parity in the college ranks only helps the rich get richer, allowing teams like Ohio State and Alabama to drop multiple losses while still being allowed to compete for the title, being asked to beat teams like

Tulane and Utah (both of which finished the season ranked within the top 10 by the AP), which is hardly a tall order for teams made up of surefire NFL prospects.

There’s an argument to be had that Alabama or Tennessee may have been more competitive in the championship game than TCU was, but no matter the merit of that idea, it can’t be argued that TCU didn’t deserve a chance to be there.

That being said, TCU versus Georgia is absolutely a harbinger of games to come in an expanded playoff system. The 65-7 scoreline is likely more dramatic than most

games we’ll see in the coming years, but make no mistake, upsets can indeed happen in college football, but the reality is that teams like TCU don’t play in the same league as a team like Georgia.

The Bulldogs set the record for players drafted in the first round last season with 15, and still came back for a generally dominant championship year, proving the age old saying about the most dominant conference of the 21st century: A team of SEC backups will beat a team of starters from any other conference, more often than not.

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart kisses the championship trophy after the national championship NCAA College Football Playoff game against TCU, Monday, Jan. 9 in Inglewood, Calif. Georgia won 65-7.

PHOTO COURTESY: ASHLEY LANDIS / AP PHOTO

Staff Editorial: Too much

Like so many other recordings of police interactions that surface on the internet what feels like every day, the video of the arrest of Jerami Tubbs is difficult to watch.

The video that has circulated for the past several days depicts two officers of local law enforcement agencies, one Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department deputy and one Oxford Police Department officer, struggling with an individual in the parking lot of the Marathon gas station on South Lamar Street.

As the officers wrestle with Tubbs on the ground in an attempt to restrain him, a gun falls from Tubbs’ person, which the officers quickly remove from his reach. The deputy continues to repeatedly press his knee between the individual’s head and shoulders and punch him forcefully. Throughout the entire recording of what the LCSD is calling a “brief struggle,” Tubbs is screaming in what it is difficult to assume is anything other than pain.

Tubbs was stopped initially for a traffic violation inside the city limits of Oxford by a plain clothes LCSD deputy.

“The suspect was identified as Jerami Tubbs, who was known from previous interactions with the deputy to be a convicted felon and carry weapons. Based on that in-

formation and for everyone’s safety, Tubbs was told that he would be patted down before continuing. The suspect refused, becoming argumentative and acting very out of character from past experiences. He then pushed the deputy and attempted to run. The deputy grabbed the suspect, who was still wearing his protective helmet, and they both fell to the ground,” the LCSD press release states.

In the end, Tubbs was charged with speeding, not using a turn signal, disorderly conduct, resisting ar-

rest and possession of a schedule II substance with intent to distribute while in possession of a firearm.

The incident, which took place on Wednesday, Jan. 18, was recorded by a bystander and quickly found its way to social media, where it spread rapidly. The incident was disturbing, and people took notice.

The video of the altercation and the press release from the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department, unfortunately, raise more questions than they answer. The amount of force depicted in the video

is a cause for concern — yet, the press release fails to address the deputy’s actions.

The deputy in the video made the traffic stop in plain clothes. If the LCSD does not already utilize body cameras for all deputies working in the field, it is our position that they are an overdue and necessary addition. With respect to this specific situation, we think it is prudent that the OPD officer’s body camera footage of the altercation be released to the public, to offer clarification on the incident.

Videos recorded by by-

standers, like the one in question, should make us think about what function police and other law enforcement officials serve in our lives. Seeing a man scream under the weight of an officer’s knee and watching that officer repeatedly punch the subject after the immediate threat of the gun had been neutralized stand at odds with both the duty officers are supposed to serve and the professionalism with which they are expected to carry themselves.

After the immediate threat to the officer is neutralized and the individual is subdued, it is expected that officers decrease their levels of force to that which is appropriate. We acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers, but what we do know is that a knee between someone’s head and shoulders and the multiple punches rendered by the officer as depicted in the video is too much.

The Daily Mississippian’s Editorial Board would be more than willing to reevaluate our position on this issue if more information is presented.

When it is decided that The Daily Mississippian will take an editorial stance on an issue, the following positions will make decisions as the Editorial Board: editor-in-chief, managing editor, copy chief, sports editor and opinion editor.

“ We grant officers of the law a lot of power in our communities: Are we really okay with them using it like this? ”

OPINION

Cameras in the classroom and useless image politics

JUSTICE ROSE thedmopinion@gmail.com

As you may know, the Mississippi legislature has been in session since early this month. With the state in optimal financial position relative to past years, you’d think the senators and congressmen alike would have their hands’ full divvying up the $3.9 billion surplus.

In true politician fashion, valuable time has been wasted with the introduction of vanity bills. Bills that serve little to no practical purpose. Bills that would do much more harm than good. The one that really caught my attention was house bill 278. HB-278 proposes installing cameras and surveillance equipment in Mississippi classrooms. Perhaps, the law could be justified for safety purposes. For various reasons (guns), classrooms have become increasingly dangerous. Instead, the listed reasoning for the bill is for districts “to monitor classroom instruction, to monitor classroom in-

teractions, and teacher observation.” A red flag shoots up.

My question is why. Why do classroom lectures need to be recorded and potentially reviewed? Why do classrooms need twenty-four-hour real-time observation? That sounds like a nightmare for teachers, students, and districts. Surveillance would make students hyper-aware of what they’re saying, which isn’t exactly ideal for a learning environment. Not because high school students are spewing dangerous rhetoric, but because they are self-conscious kids who don’t want to be embarrassed. If anything at all, this would silence what should be an empowering setting. It’s important to mention that the verbiage in the bill makes it difficult to access the footage. With that being said, the physical presence of a surveillance camera will undoubtedly alter classroom behavior.

For teachers, I’d be concerned about saying the wrong thing and potentially facing punishment. Even though the

bill does not list repercussions, it does suggest that in appropriate contexts insubordination will be viewed and dealt with on a district level. Then, each district will have to define insubordination because the bill does not. This differing and vague definition could suppress teachers’ personalities, and makes classrooms less like a think-tank and more like a prison cell.

For districts, I’d be stressed. The bill states that districts are tasked with contracting companies to install and maintain the surveillance system, and district staff will be responsible for reviewing the footage.

For taxpayers, I’d be confused. There are a million things that have precedence over this pseudo-issue: the water crisis, the lack of hospitals, the struggling healthcare system and the education overhaul, to name a few.

Monitored education is something we usually liken to Russia, China or North Korea. It’s a totalitarian policy that seems foreign through

our red, white, and blue tinted glasses. Evidently, it’s much closer to home than we think.

The thing is, HB-278 has gained little to no traction and wasn’t a pressing topic to begin with. Undeniably, it would increase safety and deter bad behavior. It’s expensive, impractical, and unnecessary, though. Honestly, I believe it was introduced primarily for the image.

Image politics is probably the defining issue in American policy-making. How much is being done to address legitimate problems versus how much is being done to secure re-election and win twitter points?

Justice Rose is the opinion editor. He is a sophomore journalism major from Madison, Miss.

CLASSIFIEDS

SUDOKU© Puzzles by KrazyDad HOW TO PLAY Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains the numbers 1 through 9 with no repeats. DIFFICULTY LEVEL

ACROSS

1- Related by blood; 5- Boxer Max; 9- “You’ve got mail” co.; 12- Yearn deeply; 13- Unit of volume; 15- Bandleader Puente; 16- Lab fluids; 17- Host; 18- Coloured part of the eye; 19- Intimidate; 21- Cut in pieces; 23- Writer Wiesel; 24- Some docs; 25- Counterbalance; 28- Confounded; 33- Roofing stone; 34- Actress Skye; 35- Paris pronoun; 36- Fall from grace; 37- Adored; 38- Computer key; 39- South American Indian; 41- Farm females; 42- Refrain in a children’s song; 44- Inhabitant of Cairo; 46- Primate; 47- Small batteries; 48- Female lobsters; 49- Firearm; 53- States;

57- Succulent; 58- Brings up; 60- Karate blow; 61- Air France destination; 62- Conger catcher; 63- Actress Hatcher; 64- DDE’s command; 65- Beaver creations; 66- Spahn teammate;

DOWN 1- Lhasa ___; 2- Capital of the Ukraine; 3- As to; 4- Most proximate; 5- Edible pale-bluish mushroom; 6- Actress Anouk; 7- And so on; 8- Oboe, e.g.; 9- Yorkshire river; 10- Auricular; 11- Missing; 14- Ruled; 15- Fine cloth; 20- “Hard ___!” (sailor’s yell); 22- Sunblock letters; 25- Actor Davis; 26- Throw with force; 27- Imagination; 28- Assembly of witches; 29- Singles;

52- Call for; 54- Ostrichlike bird; 55Actress Spelling; 56- Whirl; 59- According to; EASY

The black experience: something greater than just me

BRE’ANNA COLEMAN thedmopinion@gmail.com

One of the most beautiful things about life is the differences that can be found in us all.

Everyone has their own “spice.” This can be culture, race or background. Spice is your story that’s waiting to be told and uncovered. Even if you think it isn’t interesting to someone else, it can be inspirational.

Maybe your story could motivate, cultivate and inspire. Everyone has their own traits that makes them unique and sets them apart from the rest.

On the Ole Miss campus, you can find a young man by the name Ismael Seydi.

Ismael Seydi is a sophomore at the university. He is Senegalese and Muslim. He was raised in New Jersey in a strict African home with his parents and younger brother.

“I guess you can say I see the world through the eyes of my parents,” Seydi said.

Choosing Ole Miss for the accounting program and the desire for a new space, Ismael uses the campus as a place to grow and learn about different cultures. Being a Black man in Mississippi has its ups and downs, but Ismael sees his African background as a place of empowerment.

“(When I was younger), people in school would make fun of me for being African. Now I have confidence in my identity,” he said.

Being Muslim and African connects and affects Seydi’s perspective, relationships and decisions. Many people don’t realize the ties that come with their identity and how it affects the spaces you fulfill.

The strictness of the household sculpted Seydi to be grateful for any opportunity and eager to learn about life. The beauty of African culture

can’t be summed into a few words or even one or two people but the uniqueness of each individual is truly amazing.

Ismael juggles the typical college student’s load: school, family and maintaining a social life. His inspiration and motivation are found in finding his purpose and providing for his family. He also uses his decisions and choices as a platform to influence his younger brother.

“He has his own flow. He doesn’t have to see how the water is before he jumps in.

He jumps in and tells others to jump in too,” Seydi said.

When discussing his family and experiences, it all seemed to tie into this idea and belief that everything Ismael does is for a purpose greater than himself. In life, we can all find ourselves searching for purpose and waiting for our talents and perspective to “make sense” in how we can give back to others or find our footing in the world.

Ismael described his story as “the traditional African child’s story” and while some

of us view our stories as typical or normal, there is power in each of our experiences.

While he may view himself as typical, his story shows discipline, trust and motivation. There’s discipline in how he manages school and a completely different environment while still managing his connection to his religion and cultural background. There’s trust in believing that his story has a purpose and that he is a part of a bigger picture even if it doesn’t all tie together and make sense to even himself yet. There’s motivation to keep going despite the different obstacles, such as the way people view him because of his race or even religion.

When discussing his experiences and how they tie him together as a person, Seydi dwelled on being differentiated from the stereotypes and assumptions.

“It’s like I have to go above and beyond. Be really outside the box so people will know to treat me differently,” Seydi said.

And whether he realizes it or not, he has already done just that.

Bre’Anna Coleman is a sophomore political science major from Drew, Miss.

GRAPHIC: SEDLEY NORMAND / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN