The Auburn Plainsman 02.11.16 Issue

Father and son stormtroopers page 7

The Auburn Plainsman A Spirit That Is Not Afraid

Thursday, February 11, 2016 Vol. 123, Issue 19, 12 Pages

First copy is free. Additional copies 50 cents per issue.

community

‘Devastating’ Community comes to student’s aid after she loses home, pets in fire

Maria McIlwain

Community editor

Darma, Katie Hogan’s 6-year-old hound mix, was unusually well-behaved on her 3/4mile walk around the trailer park they called home.

“I wish I would have let her sniff every piece of grass and pee on everything she wanted to and take our time,” Hogan said. “If only I would have known.”

Hogan, fourth-year veterinary student, scolded 4-year-old Rueben, a domestic shorthair, for eating out of Wednesday, her 5-month-old tortoise-shell kitten’s bowl.

“I remember scolding him like, ‘Stop, Rueben. You’re going to get fatter,’” Hogan said.

That was Darma’s last walk and the last time she would scold

Rueben.

Hogan’s pets died in a fire that destroyed her home on Monday, Feb. 1. She was at school, sitting in the critical care rounds room working on a computer when she heard the news of the “devastating” fire.

“Rachel, a girl who lives in the park and who’s also a fourth-year vet student, opens the door and says, ‘Katie, I’m really sorry to have to tell you this, but your house is on fire,’” Hogan said. “I just ran ... I remember just crying and saying, ‘Bring me my pets, bring me my pets.’ And so after they got the fire under control, I was able to go see them, and I just sat with them for a little while.”

The moment she arrived was “handsdown” the worst moment of her life.

“They were on a little tarp out there,” Hogan said. “I remember running up and crying and seeing them, and everybody that was already here was crying for me.”

If someone looks through the charred remains of the front room that used to be her bedroom, they can almost see down the length of the trailer. Inside, much of what used to be her belongings lie untouched. It would be a typical student’s living room, except for the wilted ceiling fan, melted glass windows, lingering smell of smoke and black soot.

The soot coats everything except for one patch in front of the refrigerator. She thinks that’s where the firefighters found Darma.

“They immediately busted down that door and grabbed Darma,” Hogan said.

“They put oxygen on her and everything. They tried their best.”

Hogan had Darma since her days at Murray State, where she earned her undergraduate degree. Darma was a Carmen dog, named for the Carmen Pavilion, where they keep seven or eight dogs so veterinary students at Murray State can learn how to perform medical treatments.

“I joked that she knew I was her mom way before I did,” Hogan said. “When I decided to take her, I still had a year left of

» See

fire,

2

dakota sumpter / photo editor

Elections

Westerhouse wins SGA president

Student Government

Corey Williams Campus Editor

The votes are in, and Jesse Westerhouse is Auburn’s next SGA president.

“I want to thank the Lord above all else,” Westerhouse said shortly after receiving the news.

SGA reported receiving 8,800 total votes, but only 7,646 votes were cast in the presidential election. Turnout for the election was approximately 34 percent, roughly the same as last year.

At Monday’s debate, Westerhouse said his qualifications for SGA president come down to two things: his experience and his passion.

“My passion is to serve each and every one of you,” Westerhouse said.

He faced a small amount of criticism from his opponents, especially Drake Pooley, during the debate.

“If you want a goofy and kindhearted man who’s in a fraternity, vote for Jesse Westerhouse tomorrow,” Pooley said.

He was also the only presidential candidate to receive violation reports, though he was found not guilty of all three.

One violation, reported by opponent Adam Brasher, alleged Westerhouse’s “W” logo violated section 709.1.7.1 of the Code of Laws, which states, “No candidate shall model a campaign design off of a trademarked or copyrighted design or logo held by a public or private company or organization regardless of the campaign receiving permission.”

Brasher claimed the design and copyright for the design is held by Spalding Group, a Republican design firm. The elections council ruled 5-1 that the design was “sufficiently original.”

Westerhouse said his team did

Dakota sumpter / photo editor

SGA President Walker Byrd hosts the SGA debate.

Dakota sumpter / photo editor

SGA President-elect Jesse Westerhouse hugs a supporter at SGA callouts on the steps of Cater Hall.

extensive research and did not find a copyright. He also changed the font to ensure it wasn’t an exact copy of George W. Bush’s famous logo.

“When it was approved by the elections twice, we figured we were good to go,” Westerhouse said. “Tons of credit to my campaign manager, Hunter Gibson, for all the research and preparation he did to ensure we ran a good, clean campaign.”

All other violations were unanimously dismissed.

Despite the accusations, SGA reported Westerhouse received 55 percent of the presidential vote.

Pooley came in second with 37 percent, and Brasher finished last with 8 percent.

Pooley said Westerhouse is “a great guy and a great friend,” and he was glad the students’ voices were heard.

Brasher was disappointed with his loss, but said students voted

» See westerhouse, 2

Byrd seeks to end late ‘high-stakes’ assignments Jim Little

editor-in-chief

The clock is running on Walker Byrd’s term as SGA president, but there is one initiative Byrd hopes to build student support on.

Over the course of the last year, Byrd’s administration has sought to work with the University to bring a halt to “high-stakes” assignments such as projects, test and quizzes from being due during the last week of regular classes.

Byrd said the proposal started with a resolution passed in the SGA senate in 2014 calling for dead days in the academic calendar.

“Dead days weren’t really a feasible option for the calendar,” Byrd said. “So we re-evaluated and looked at what’s best for students’ success. After looking at it, we thought some kind of terminology like this proposal would be the route to go.”

SGA President-elect Jesse Westerhouse, who serves as executive vice president of initiatives in Byrd’s administration, said he’s worked on the proposal over the last year.

Gurden Smith / Graphics editor

» See assignments, 2

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The Auburn Plainsman

Thursday, Febraury 11, 2016

Fire

DUI reports

» From 1

The following were arrested and charged with driving under the influence by the Auburn Police Division from Feb. 2-8: Feb. 3 - Daniel Wright Williams II, 19 North Gay Street and Shelton Mill Road at 11:17 p.m.

Feb. 4 - Elizabeth Shaw Hartfield, 45 North Gay Street at 4:46 p.m.

Feb. 7 - Patricia Brundage Jordan, 60 North Donahue Drive at 11:25 p.m.

A full crime report provided by the Auburn Department of Public Safety is available online at ThePlainsman.com.

–Reports provided by the Auburn Department of Public Safety

(334) 329-7777 2059 S College St, Auburn

Assignments » From 1

“The goal is to limit not only the stress and the anxiety that comes with finals, but it gives students more time to meet with their professors and get a feel of where they stand in that class before finals comes around,” Westerhouse said.

Byrd and Westerhouse brought the proposal to the University senate, which put together a committee to look at the issue.

The committee looked at 27 universities across the country and found 18 of the 27 had a similar policy. The University of Tennessee has an almost identical policy to the one Byrd and Westerhouse are proposing, which limits any assignment during the last five calendar days to no more than 10 percent of a final grade.

“That discussion came through [the committee], but there were some roadblocks with different ways to enforce this policy,” Westerhouse said.

Paul Patterson, associate dean of the College of Agri-

culture, chaired the committee and said the original proposal was too vague for the committee.

“I think it’s an issue that should be discussed further,” Patterson said. “So come back with language that’s a little more specific.”

Patterson said he personally supports the proposal, but understands that teachers may have a good reason for having assignments due during the last week.

“My opinion as a faculty member is you shouldn’t put a lot of weighted material during that last week of class, particularly if it’s going to be hard for you to get feedback,” Patterson said.

Byrd said he expects it to be some time before the University adopts the proposal, but hopes if students support the proposal, that they let the University administration know.

Westerhouse said he will take up the issue when he takes over the office of SGA president.

“I absolutely plan to continue that and plan to do everything I can to make it a reality,” Westerhouse said.

in focus

school, and so I would work on training her every day.”

Hogan’s mother and grandmother came from Kentucky to be with Hogan as she began to piece her life back together.

“My mom made it her personal mission to salvage my vet school white coat and some quilts and stuff like that,” Hogan said. “She washed them like six times. ... I was thankful we could get some mementos. I got my dog’s collar and my cat’s little blanky.”

Hogan is set up in a temporary trailer on the opposite side of the park.

She said separation from her old home is nice so she doesn’t have to see the wreckage and relive the memories daily.

“I turned the key to my trailer this morning and half-expected to see Darma there,” Hogan said. “I think kind of getting separated from it, by not being here, has been good for me. I really appreciate Avalon for setting me up in a trailer for basically $1. ...

It can be normal without being the same.”

Tommy Poole, fourth-year veterinary student and class of 2016 president, set up a GoFundMe when he heard about the fire.

He said everyone in the class wanted to help out.

“When things like this happen, we often want to help, but don’t know how,” Poole said.

The GoFundMe raised $21,210 in one week, more than $7,000 over the goal of $14,000.

Hogan wants to set up a fund to help out with adoption fees for other Carmen dogs like Darma.

“It’s been awesome to see the outpouring of love and support for Katie,” Poole said.

Poole said the response is “powerful” and reflects the Auburn Family.

“It’s really been refreshing to see people who truly care about each other and help each other in times of need,” Poole said.

Hogan said the GoFundMe has made the past week “bearable.”

“I never imagined that this would happen, but if I did, I don’t think I would have imagined that the response would be this amazing,” Hogan said.

Hogan said some of the donations were clothes and other supplies such as bath products.

“All my physical needs are taken care of,” Hogan said. “My nana joked that I’ll never have to buy shampoo again.”

She said the support she has received from her classmates and even strangers has touched her, and she never expected the level of support.

“Everybody’s been there for me, from the receptionist at the desk to the dean of the vet school,” Hogan said. “Every vet student, even first-years I’ve never met ... vet school is a very demanding four years, and during that, when I’d come home, my

Dakota Sumpter / Photo editor

TOP: Charred drywall crumbles from the bedroom structure where the fire started.

BOTTOM: Katie Hogan stands in front of her damaged home at Avalon Park.

pets were there for support, and so I think that everybody relates to that.”

Hogan took the week after the fire off from school, but plans to start a research rotation and ultimately return to the critical care rotation she was on.

She has been talking with a counselor with the University’s Student Counseling Services, and encourages that for anyone going through a tragedy.

“Just having someone to talk through things and having a professional telling you, ‘This is normal,’” Hogan said.

Hogan said people can continue to help her by donating to the Lee County Humane Society in her pets’ names.

The fire will not affect her future plans, except for where she will live during her preceptorship at the Animal Care Center in Mobile.

“I had planned on staying at a campsite with my pets,” Hogan said. “I’ve decided

not to live at the campsite. I think it will be too sad.”

Hogan will have a memorial for Darma, Rueben and Wednesday on Tuesday, Feb. 9, at the Omega Tau Sigma house.

“I guess once it’s physical, this is them, they’re in little boxes, that will be hard,” Hogan said.

Hogan tries to remember the happy memories with her pets instead of the fire.

She holds onto their personality quirks.

“Once we walked in and somebody said, ‘Oh no, that’s the dog that bulldozes,’” Hogan said. “She loved to run fast into other dogs. ...(Rueben) would sit on my desk and look out the blinds and spy on people, and so I’d think about that. I called him my furry little creep — he’s a little weirdo. And then my Wednesday cat was just always being silly, playing with toys or shoelaces or anything that moved. ... It’s been a good four years.”

Westerhouse » From 1

and “they put the person in that they wanted, so I’m not going to say anything against that.”

Westerhouse was nervous before the announcement, but he knew he and his team did the best they could during campaign week.

“My stomach dropped when she said ‘SGA president’ and it came back when she said my name,” Westerhouse said.

“I was feeling good going into it because everything was executed really well.”Westerhouse said he plans to meet with Brandon Honeywell and James Beauchaine, the newly announced vice president and treasurer, to discuss their goals for the coming year.

He hasn’t decided what he will try to accomplish first, but his his overall goal for the year is accessibility.

“I want to connect with the student body,” Westerhouse said. “I want to make sure SGA is available and accessible the entire year. I want them to know we’re fighting for students and working for students. That’s going to be something that’s ongoing throughout the year. That’s going to be an ongoing goal throughout the year.”

Dakota sumpter / photo editor

A reflection of the candidates is cast in a window at the 2016 Auburn University Student Government Association debate in the Student Center Ballroom on Monday, Feb. 8.

Check ThePlainsman.com for a special Plains in Focus blog post on using black and white photography.

Dakota sumpter / photo editor

TOP: Madison Rolling celebrates being elected Miss Auburn. BOTTOM: Students gather to hear SGA callouts on Tuesday, Feb. 9.

Campus

Thursday, February 11, 2016

3 ThePlainsman.com

technology

Campus

Administration

Woodard names new assistant VP of outreach C laire T ully Campus Writer

Jordan Hays / staff photographer

Auburn University President Jay Gogue and Provost Timothy Boosinger ceremoniously activate the new supercomputer located in the Information Technology Building on Thursday, Feb. 4.

AU introduces supercomputer Jim Little Editor-in-Chief

With the click of a button and the whirl of some fans, Auburn University’s new $1 million supercomputer was officially in operation.

President Jay Gogue and Provost Timothy Boosinger ceremoniously turned on the supercomputer in front of an audience of researchers and media at the Information Technology Building on Thursday, Feb. 4.

The new supercomputer, nicknamed “Hopper” after famed computer scientist Rear Adm. Grace Hopper, is a collection of 120 computers networked together to act as a single system. Its speeds to access data rank in the top 1 percent in the world, according to a University press release.

Nicholas Giordano, dean of the College of Sciences and Mathematics, said the supercomputer makes the University an attractive place for new faculty.

“Having direct access to this new supercomputer will have a tremendous impact on researchers at Auburn University,” Giordano said.

The supercomputer has more than 16 terabytes of memory and 1.4 petabytes of disk space, according to the press release.

The size of the disk space is equivalent to 87,500 iPhones with 16 gigabytes of memory.

“Hopper” runs a Linux-based operating system common in the research world and will be used for various research projects, including

process genetic data.

Rita Graze, professor in biological sciences, said the supercomputer was a necessity to genetic research.

“Our data sets are so large that if you tried to do that on your laptop or your desktop, there’s not enough power,” Graze said. “It would grind to a halt.”

Each networked computer has 20 cores that can process data. Tied together that’s 2,400 cores.

“You’re talking about going from not being able to do something at all to being able to do it in an hour, two hours, maybe a day,” Graze said.

Bliss Bailey, interim chief information officer, said the supercomputer runs on approximately 240 amps.

“That’s a lot of power,” Bailey said.

Several air conditioning systems work to handle the heat from the computer.

“We designed this building from the ground up to manage that heat very efficiently,” Bailey said.

“Hopper” is the second supercomputer on campus. Another supercomputer was installed three years ago in the Mike Hubbard Center for Advanced Science, Innovation and Commerce, but “Hopper” is four times faster, according to the University’s press release.

“We are now in the era of big data and big computing,” Giordano said.

Bobby Woodard, Auburn associate provost and vice president for the Division Student Affairs, named Johnny Green the new assistant vice president of outreach for Student Affairs.

Woodard said he believes Green will become a valuable asset to the Student Affairs staff.

“We are looking forward in having someone with Dr. Green’s experience, knowledge and background on our Student Affairs staff,” Woodard said. “Johnny will be a continued asset to Auburn University and to our students, faculty and staff.”

Green said his tasks deal heavily with building relationships with organizations outside of Auburn.

“Everything I am tasked with is intended to provide better communication and build stronger relationships with organizations that have interactions with Auburn students,” Green said.

According to Green, his work requires him to be a liaison with several different organizations.

“Some of the duties of the new position include continued oversight of the Veterans Resource Center, Off Campus Housing, mentoring programs and community relations,” Green said. “I am also to liaison with a number of off-campus groups, including county, city, state and civic organizations.”

Green said he will be working frequently with Woodard to meet students’ needs.

“I will also be responsible for assisting with, facilitating and leading contract negotiations regarding programming and services as the division’s representative, in addition to working closely with Dr. Woodard to provide the leadership, vision and develop new programs based on students’ needs,” Green said.

Green said being in a transitional phase gives him several responsibilities to deal

Auburn University

Bobby Woodard said Johnny Green will be a “continued asset.”

with for the time being.

“I am in the middle of the transition phase, and one of the biggest challenges is having to wear two hats or be responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Veterans Center while establishing another office on campus,” Green said.

Green said he is thrilled to have this new position and to be able to work with students as well.

“I am looking forward to engaging our students,” Green said. “I thoroughly enjoyed being available for Auburn men and women when I served as dean of students and to have that opportunity again cannot be expressed adequately in words. I am so happy.”

Campus 4

The Auburn Plainsman

elections

Thursday, February 11, 2016

organizations

SGA Election Results:

President: Jesse Westerhouse

Vice President: Brandon Honeywell

Treasurer: James Beauchaine

Claire Tully Campus writer

Miss Auburn: Madison Rolling For a full list of major and minor candidate results, visit ThePlainsman.com. column

SGA debate ignored women entirely Corey Williams Campus Editor

Candidates discussed a multitude of topics at last night’s SGA debate. The elephant in the room, however, was never addressed.

There are no women running for president, vice president or treasurer. In fact, a woman hasn’t run for a major position besides Miss Auburn since Harrison Mills defeated Chelsea Crooks in the 2013 presidential election.

SGA encouraged students to tweet their questions for candidates using #SGADebate throughout the day yesterday. Most — if not all — of those questions went unasked and unanswered at Monday night’s debate. Instead, a white man asked seven other white men vague questions about “diversity.”

The only women who spoke at the event were Miss Auburn candidates.

They walked on stage, one-by-one, and politely presented their platforms to the audience.

There was no debate. There were no questions for the women.

Several Twitter questions referenced

gender equality specifically.

“There are only men on the stage debating tonight,” one user wrote. “How do you plan to increase gender diversity in the future?”

“How do you intend to use your position to advocate for the advancement of women on campus?” another user asked.

I asked Caroline Holmes, director of elections, why specific questions weren’t asked.

“We incorporated most of the questions asked on Twitter into the debate, and combined similar questions to ensure that the debate covered a wide range of topics while remaining in the appropriate time frame,” Holmes said in an email. “We added questions into the debate and decreased the amount of time each candidate had to speak to incorporate the Twitter questions that were asked and ensure the candidates spoke on what students were asking.”

I then asked why gender-specific questions weren’t asked.

“Questions were determined to reference gender as well as all other types of diversity,” Holmes said in an email.

I’m sure the Elections Board and Council members did what they thought was best and most convenient. But it wasn’t right. Half of Auburn University was ignored last night. By ignoring the

SCS to host eating disorder screening

topic entirely, SGA told women they’re not important enough to mention.

When Miss Auburn candidates weren’t given a chance to participate in an actual debate, they were told their opinions don’t matter as much as men’s.

I urge future SGA members to change the debate format next year. Ask specific questions from real students. Don’t combine and rework them until they’re vague, easily digestible and unrecognizable.

Better yet, open the floor for questions. The candidates should be prepared for anything, after all.

Only two women in the 94-year history of Auburn’s SGA have held the title of president. Maybe next year, if this administration shows a greater respect for the other half of the population, a woman will be on stage debating real issues with the men. *Note: Many Twitter questions that mentioned other marginalized groups, such as “Do black lives matter?” were not asked at the debate. This column refers specifically to questions that reference women. To see all the questions students asked, search #SGADebate on Twitter.

Corey can be reached at campus@ ThePlainsman.com.

As part of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, Student Counseling Services will be hosting eating disorder screening days on Feb. 22 and 26.

Eric Bloch, Student Counseling Services outreach coordinator, said having two days for the screenings is a recent change to the event.

“It’s going to be coming up, and we’re actually changing it,” Bloch said. “We’re actually doing it two days this year on Feb. 22, which is Monday, in a couple of weeks. That will be held here at Student Counseling. And then we’re doing it that Friday as well at the Student Center in the health and wellness promotion office.”

The screening begins with a brief and completely confidential survey, according to Bloch.

“Basically, what students can do is either stop by here on Monday or in the Student Center on that Friday and fill out a little survey,” Bloch said. “It’s really, really brief.

It’s confidential, and they don’t have to give their names or anything like that.”

Psychologists then discuss the survey results with students and take any necessary steps toward receiving help if they need it, Bloch said.

“It asks about eating and different things that are related to that, and then basically they’ll have a chance to meet with one of our psychologists

organizations

dAKOTA SUMPTER / PHOTO EDITOR

Students embrace after the Auburn University Dance Marathon at the Student Center Ballroom on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016.

“

AUDM raises $1 million in five years Corey Williams Campus Editor

Auburn University Dance Marathon raised $424,617.01 — almost $200,000 more than last year — for Children’s Hospital at Midtown Medical Center of Columbus Regional Health in its fifth year.

AUDM has raised more than $1 million in five years, making it the youngest million dollar Dance Marathon program in the Southeast.

The organization posted a statement to its website after the total was announced.

“We can’t believe it,” the statement reads. “We raised almost $200,000 more than last year FTK [for the kids.]

You danced with us, laughed with us, cried with us and blew our goal out of the water. Today you fought with us and made our dreams a reality. You fought for the kids

Very early on, Martin decided he wasn’t going to let cancer beat him. He won by the way he lived.”

-John Mcniell

AUDM president

and it paid off. You saved lives.”

The yearlong fundraising culminated in a 14-hour dance marathon. Participants met children who are patients at the hospital and played games, watched live entertainment and danced.

John McNiell, AUDM president, said the only word he knows that can describe what he’s feeling is “overwhelmed.”

This year’s Dance Mara-

thon was dedicated to Martin Thiele, a Children’s Miracle Network Miracle Child who lost his battle with cancer in April.

This was McNiell’s first Dance Marathon without Thiele.

“Very early on, Martin decided he wasn’t going to let cancer beat him,” McNiell said. “He won by the way he lived.”

McNiell will graduate this semester, but he plans to return for next year’s event and he’s looking into starting an alumni board.

For now, though, he said he’s just appreciating what his organization, and its supporters, have accomplished in such a short time.

“This is really a testament to the Auburn Family,” McNiell said. “That’s the only explanation I can come up with.”

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to talk about the results and see if there’s any cause for concern,” Bloch said. “If so, we get them connected with people that would be helpful to them.”

The screening days are a good first step if students have any concerns regarding eating disorders, according to Bloch.

“If anyone did have a question or thought they had a problem or thought they may have some sort of concern, this is a good first step so that you could meet with someone before ever coming over to our office or setting up an appointment,” Bloch said.

Student Counseling Services has partnered with Auburn University Body Image Education & Eating Disorders Awareness in the past to help advertise wellness events such as the screening days, Bloch said.

“That’s a student-led organization that we have paired with for things like this in the past, but that’s completely on it’s own,” Bloch said. “When it comes to the actual screening day, it’s just our counselors and our psychologists.”

Bloch said the confidential screening is a good chance for anyone to ask questions.

“This is a good way to ask any questions, any concerns about eating or student counseling or anything like that — even mental health in general,” Bloch said. “This is a good place to come because it’s really confidential, and we’re here to answer any questions they have.”

Opinion

5

Thursday, February 11, 2016

ThePlainsman.com

Opinion

our view SOCIAL MEDIA ON THE PLAINS

Response to “Auburn’s lowest scoring output of season leads to blowout loss at Tennessee”

It is time to change the meal plan

Gurden Smith / Graphics Editor

Spring 2016 Editorial Board

Each semester, Auburn students who live on campus are forced to pay $995 for a meal plan and off-campus students pay $300 for theirs.

Students are being synthetically induced to increase demand for university-sanctioned fast food restaurants such as Chick-fil-A, Papa John’s and Panda Express.

This reduces competition, and therefore harms the people Auburn University ostensibly aims to protect: the students.

In a more competitive market, student demand could increase for a variety of reasons: changes in consumer income, changes in price or changes in consumer tastes.

These fluctuations occur naturally from market forces and push the market toward equilibrium, the point in a market in which demand is met with equal

supply, thus leaving producers and consumers generally happy.

This point occurs from voluntary exchanges, not mandated exchanges.

Forcing the students to purchase meal cards serves only to protect the success of Tiger Dining.

It doesn’t serve to provide students with easily accessible food options. We must not conflate the idea of having more monopolistic food options provide convenient food locations with the idea that only those entities are capable of providing such amenities.

In short, the mandatory meal plans create a more monopolistic, less competitive food market on campus, and that’s bad for consumers.

This less competitive market discourages variety in food options, lower food prices and decreases food and service quality.

All of these effects carry an ob-

vious detriment to students.

We believe that if we are forced to pay for a meal plan, we ought to have more options available for us.

Therefore, we believe the meal plan should be extended to local restaurants downtown.

Such a relationship between the University and local restaurants would provide more options when it comes to choosing meals and bring local businesses revenue that would have been lost to on-campus restaurants.

For instance, instead of only being able to buy an entire pizza at Papa John’s for approximately $6, students could go to Little Italy downtown and get a big slice of pizza for $2. Students could also save money by buying food from McDonald’s Dollar Menu instead of buying Chick-fil-A. While not a perfect system, this would lead to a more competitive market. Adding down-

town restaurants to the meal plan would also benefit those on health diets and those who can’t eat gluten.

If the meal plan extended to local restaurants, students would be able to eat at healthier venues such as Taziki’s, Newk’s or Pita Pit. In addition, students would be able to take advantage of the gluten-free options in downtown restaurants such as Mellow Mushroom.

Adam Smith wrote one of his most famous lines in his “The Wealth of Nations”: “People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.”

Auburn University and Tiger Dining have conspired against the students, and we believe measures to mitigate this issue should be considered.

her view

Good things come to those who wait maria

mcilwain community editor

Most people will tell you I’m not a patient person. I don’t like waiting in line, for people to answer texts, almost anything.

That’s right. Almost.

There’s one thing I’m waiting for, and it’s pretty important.

I’m waiting until marriage.

When I say that sentence to people, I receive a mix of responses, usually positive though.

“Wow, that’s pretty cool.

Good for you.”

“I wish I had done that.”

“Why?” I like it when people ask me why I’m waiting the most. I can explain that it’s more than a religious thing — though that’s definitely why I decided to wait in

the first place.

In the Catholic Church, we are taught to wait until marriage to have sex because sex was created by God to be a complete exchange of self between two people. We believe exchange should only happen with the person you are joined with forever — your spouse.

Waiting until marriage also falls in line with the Ninth Commandment — “You shall not covet your neighbor’s spouse.”

By having sex outside of marriage, you could be coveting, or possessing, someone else’s husband or wife.

However, waiting to have sex goes beyond my Catholicism and what I was told in Sunday school. I want to get to know a man on a level beyond physical attraction, and taking sex off the table helps with that.

Without sex in the picture, I can develop friendships based off shared interests and good

conversation instead of physical qualities.

Whether you’re religious or not, sex is an intimate act. It should be shared by people who care deeply about each other and trust each other. I think the best way to show that is by committing to them forever, and in college, almost nothing is permanent.

I’m not going to lie, it hasn’t always been easy.

Waiting until marriage has affected some relationships, hanging over them like an ominous cloud. Sometimes, when I say no to sex, guys just disappear.

I do not regret any of it though; if anything, it has helped give me a clearer sense of what I want in a future relationship and the type of man I want to marry.

Waiting for marriage might not be for everyone. But if you’re confused about the type of relationship you want or

you’re sick of the typical hookup culture, try abstaining from sex for a while.

It’s never too late to start waiting for your future spouse.

Focus on yourself and clear your mind, and the results might surprise you.

I’ve heard saving yourself from marriage is an outdated practice that hearkens from a time where people often got married in their teens so they weren’t waiting for a long time.

I’m here to say it can still be a modern practice.

I still engage in typical college-kid behaviors. I enjoy going out with my friends and meeting people, male and female.

At the end of the night, though, I only want to go home with the girlfriends I came with.

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Community

6

Thursday, February 11, 2016

ThePlainsman.com

Community

politics

Hubbard hopes to balance General Fund, create jobs

Chip Brownlee

community reporter

The 2016 regular legislative session for the Alabama Legislature began last week.

Balancing the state’s General Fund budget and encouraging job growth are at the top of this year’s agenda for Alabama Speaker Mike Hubbard, RAuburn.

This year, the budget deficit measures in at more than $40 million.

According to Hubbard, forcing state agencies to justify every dollar they spend will help close that gap.

Mending last year’s budget crisis required 10 months and two special legislative sessions.

Yet again, legislators are grappling with how to repair, or at least bandage, the state’s crippled budget.

State legislators have mostly refused to raise taxes, and have resorted to cutting funding for state agencies.

“I don’t think there is any appetite for raising any more revenue, which means we’re going to have to balance the General Fund with the money that we already have,” Hubbard said.

“That’s going to have to be a combination of efficiencies and cuts.”

Gov. Robert Bentley has proposed transferring $181 million in revenue from the state’s Education Trust Fund to both balance the General Fund and finance budget increases for struggling state agencies, including the state’s Medicaid and prison systems.

“It would [have an effect on higher education] if we took $180 million,” Hubbard said. “I’ve made it clear that I do not support taking money from education to balance the General Fund.”

Transferring such a large amount from the fund that supports Alabama’s public schools, community colleges and public universities is not an option for Hubbard this year.

“If you can sit here today and say we’re spending too much money on education in the state of Alabama, then

you might be able to look at (taking $180 million), but I don’t think we can say that.” Hubbard said.

Better funding for education could help the state solve issues in funding Medicaid and the prison system, according to Hubbard.

“Education is a huge part of solving the General Fund problem,” Hubbard said. “The more you educate your citizens, the less problem you’re going to have on that side.”

Bentley is proposing to increase the state Medicaid agency’s budget by more than $100 million and the state Corrections Department’s budget by $20 million, according to an article by AL.com.

“When I was sitting in the State of the State address and I heard the governor talk about all of these programs he was going to do, all I could think was, ‘My gosh. How are we going to pay for that?’” Hubbard said.

Creating jobs and revitalizing Alabama’s economy is also a major priority for House Republicans, according to Hubbard.

Hubbard is supporting a new tax credit proposed for this session by Rep. Kyle South, R-Fayette, which is intended to incentivize small- and medium-sized businesses into hiring more employees.

“We have lots of things we can do for big businesses that we are trying to attract to come into the state, but not so much for the guys that are already here — the small businesses that make up the majority of businesses and employers,” Hubbard said. “They’re paying taxes. They’re supporting the community they’re in. They’re the ones buying the ad in the school football program. We’re going to do the same thing for them [that we’ve done for big companies].”

Bentley introduced a plan to abandon Alabama’s existing penitentiaries after building three new men’s prisons and a new women’s prison.

dakota sumpter / photo editor

Balancing the General Fund is one of Hubbard’s priorities this year.

“I’ve met with the commissioner of corrections, and I think that he has come up with a really innovative and bold plan,” Hubbard said. “It’s past time for us to just deal with it.”

The state maintains numerous facilities that are nearly 100 years old.

According to Hubbard, the Department of Corrections could finance the bond issue that would finance the new prisons from the savings it would enjoy from building more efficient prisons.

Continuing to update sentencing laws and making smarter drug enforcement decisions could reduce the state’s inmate population, according to Hubbard.

“What you don’t want to do is take a drug offender, who basically is committing a crime on himself, and put them into the system,” Hubbard said.

“They become a felon. You teach them how to be a criminal in prison, and that’s all they can do.”

Birmingham became the first city

in Alabama to pass an ordinance requiring employers to remove sections on employment applications that ask if the applicant has a criminal record.

“Banning the box” is also an option, according to Hubbard.

“We passed an expungement bill last year,” Hubbard said. “We should look at expanding that. For someone who gets out, it’s a cloud hanging over them for the rest of their life. I think that (banning the box) is something we clearly need to look at as part of our reform package.”

Continued funding for the state’s community college systems is one of Hubbard’s education priorities.

According to Hubbard, community colleges and technical schools provide valuable training for careers as electricians, plumbers, diesel mechanics and welders.

“We’ve gotten into this mentality that if you don’t go to college, that you’re a failure,” Hubbard said.

“That clearly is not the case. Electri-

cians start out making about $80,000 per year, and they have a 100 percent chance of being employed.”

Hubbard is also preparing for his corruption trial, which is set to begin in March.

Hubbard, who became speaker in 2010, is facing 23 counts of felony corruption charges.

According to Hubbard and Hubbard’s defense team, the accusations against him are politically motivated.

“I used to think I wanted to run for governor,” Hubbard said. “I think a lot of the stuff that has been happening is other people trying to keep that from happening.”

The speaker said the trial will not affect his focus during the legislative session.

“I’m not going to allow anything to be a distraction to this session,” Hubbard said. “I’ve committed that to the members of the House and to my caucus. I’m looking forward to continuing to have the truth come out.”

state

outreach

BigHouse provides volunteer opportunities Liz Maddux

community writer

Blake and Micah Melnick saw the process of the foster system up close and personal when Micah’s parents decided to become foster parents.

This experience led the Melnicks to create the BigHouse Foundation.

BigHouse is a “foundation that connects the needs of families with the generosity of the community through the love of Jesus Christ,” according to the BigHouse website.

Over the past six years, BigHouse has grown and offers volunteer opportunities to students looking to make a difference.

BigHouse has a two-tier volunteer program that gives students two different volunteer options.

Students can volunteer with Clothes Closet and Kid’s Night Out. “We have great options for students who are looking to volunteer with BigHouse,” Micah said. “Whether students are helping sort clothes or teaching the foster children about Jesus, the fact that they are willing to help and volunteer is a wonderful thing.”

Clothes Closet helps alleviate the burden foster families might come across when their foster children do not have appropriate clothes.

Clothes Closet accepts donations throughout the year of clothes ranging from baby to teen sizes.

Volunteers are welcome to come during the day on their own time to help with a multitude of activities such as sorting clothes or assisting a foster child with finding the perfect outfit.

Kid’s Night Out is a program that provides monthly respite events for foster chil-

dakota sumpter / photo editor

Gov. Robert Bentley addressed poverty in his State of the State address.

Alabama unemployment increases in December

Chip Brownlee

“

community reporter

contributed by Micah melnick

Volunteers interact with children at BigHouse.

Whether students are helping sort clothes or teaching the foster children about Jesus, the fact that they are willing to help and volunteer is a wonderful thing.”

—Micah Melnick

creator of BigHouse foundation

dren so their foster parents can take a break to do things such as run errands or go on a date with their spouse.

BigHouse has a team of volunteers who commit to volunteering at each Kid’s Night Out event throughout the semester.

The program requires a slightly longer time commitment than Clothes Closet, but is a great way to get to know the foster children and their families.

“Volunteering at BigHouse’s Clothes Closet was a great experience with a friendly staff and a great mis-

sion of giving clothes to children in need,” said Holden Katechis, senior in building science. “What was really great about volunteering there was the flexibility.

As a college student, finding time to volunteer can be difficult to fit into your schedule. BigHouse made it easy to just call and see if they needed help that day. Overall, I had a great time volunteering at BigHouse and encourage others to go help out there as well.”

Micah said her favorite part about being involved with BigHouse is getting to

know the children and families within the foster care system.

“I think getting to sit in on adoption proceedings is probably one of the most wonderful experiences I have had with BigHouse,” Micah said. “Seeing a child get adopted into a loving family just really brings it all full circle.”

In March, BigHouse will launch its first BigHouse Bus. The bus will be traveling to various counties that do not have a BigHouse of their own, offering clothes to foster families in the surrounding areas.

“We are really excited about the BigHouse Bus,” Micah said. “The bus will basically be a moving clothes closet for foster families who do not live in Auburn. We haven’t had anything like this before and being able to reach foster families outside of Lee County is really amazing.”

Alabama saw its unemployment rate increase during the month of December.

According to new unemployment statistics released by the Alabama Department of Labor, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the state increased to 6.2 percent — up 0.2 percent from November’s rate of 6 percent.

The total number of unemployed workers actively looking for employment in the state increased from 128,019 to nearly 133,000. However, the total number of employed workers also increased to 2,021,864 from November’s report of 2,017,743.

The increase in the unemployment rate was because of an unexpectedly large increase in the civilian labor force during the holiday season, according to a state press release.

“Although a slight increase in the unemployment rate is never celebrated, this month’s increase is attributed to the fact that the labor force increased by nearly 10,000, while people were out looking for work, seasonal or oth-

erwise,” said Fitzgerald Washington, Alabama Labor Department commissioner. “December’s labor force count was on par with the summer months, which is traditionally when the most people are searching for work. Increases in the labor force represent increased confidence in the job market.”

The unemployment rate for the Auburn-Opelika metropolitan area increased 0.2 percent, as well, from 4.7-4.9 percent.

Most other cities also saw an increase in unemployment.

Auburn-Opelika still maintains the lowest unemployment rate for any metropolitan area in Alabama.

January unemployment statistics for the United States were released Feb. 5 at 8 a.m.

According to the report, the unemployment rate in the United States dropped again to 4.9 percent from 5 percent in November and December.

Average hourly earnings for private sector employees also rose slightly in January from $25.27-25.39. According to the report, hourly earnings have increased 2.5 percent over the last year.

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Community 7

The Auburn Plainsman

local spotlight

‘Stormtrooping’ a family affair for father-son duo Lily Jackson

community writer

In “Star Wars,” family lines are blurred and father-son relationships are severed, separating the light from dark.

But in this story, father and son are working together.

The Auburn-Opelika stormtroopers are commonly known as Ronnie Sparks, a substitute teacher, and his son Will Sparks, a ninth-grader at Auburn Junior High School.

The two have spent time and money into crafting the perfect act.

The stormtroopers attend events such as birthday parties, sporting events, church gettogethers and community events to share their love for “Star Wars.”

Ronnie said he first thought of the AuburnOpelika stormtroopers after hearing about the 501st Legion, a national “Star Wars” costuming group out of Birmingham. The love for the movie and culture spawned from his early years of fandom.

“I remember standing in line at a little bitty theater in Georgia,” Ronnie said. “I was almost 7 years old. The signs, the movie, the characters ... I remember thinking how great it all was.”

Being able to live the dream of being a stormtrooper is great, Ronnie said, but doing it with Will is what is the best.

Will shares this appreciation and has taken up the extensive hobby as well.

“I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a part of it at first,” Will said. “I changed my mind, and I’m glad I did. Now I can say, ‘Yes, I am a stormtrooper.’”

The pair have been patrolling the AuburnOpelika area since October.

According to Will, the costume constructing process is tedious, nitpicking and took close to three weeks to complete. Each stormtrooper suit costs about $1,000.

“The building process is ongoing,” Ronnie said. “Things bump, scratch and tear every time you wear the suit.”

According to Ronnie, events can last eight hours with little time for rest.

While entertaining guests for the release of the new “Star Wars” movie at Carmike Tiger 13, Ronnie and Will were busy taking photos with fans and were begged to come back on later occasions.

Chris Warren, Auburn Public Library director, was thrilled with their performance at the library’s “Star Wars”-themed gala on Feb. 4.

armand de laureal / photographer

Auburn’s stormtroopers work local events such as the Auburn Public Library’s Imperial Gala.

“The stormtroopers were a big hit that appealed to little kids as well as their parents,” Warren said.

Both Ronnie and Will said their favorite venue so far was the Auburn versus Mercer basketball game.

Shooting fake guns and messing around with Aubie was a highlight of the night, Ronnie said.

“Kids came up to me and asked me if I was a real person,” Will said. “That’s my favorite. You can tell they are amazed.”

Ronnie said the children are one of the main reasons he loves being a stormtrooper, but the best fans are the adults.

“People of all ages eat and breathe ‘Star Wars,’” Ronnie said. “These costumes are as

cool to the parents as they are to the kids sometimes.”

The Sparks hope to continue being the Auburn-Opelika stormtroopers for a while and look forward to many more pictures with fellow fans.

“I’d like to keep being a stormtrooper for as long as I can,” Will said.

6

Sports

8

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Men’s Basketball (9-13, 3-7)

ThePlainsman.com

Sports

SOFTBALL

Team USA a dream come true for Kasey Cooper Evan McCullers

Assistant Sports Editor

FILE PHOTO

Last Week vs. Oklahoma State (L, 74-63) vs. LSU (L, 80-68) at Georgia (L, 65-55) THIS WEEK Feb. 9 at Tennessee (6 p.m.)

UPCOMING Feb. 17 at Arkansas (6 p.m.)

Feb. 20 vs. Ole Miss (4 p.m.)

Women’s Basketball (16-8, 6-5)

file photo

LAST WEEK vs. Vanderbilt (W, 53-45) at Alabama (L, 59-55) THIS WEEK Feb. 11 at Ole Miss (6 p.m.)

Feb. 14 vs. Florida (6 p.m.)

GYMNASTICS

FILE PHOTO

LAST WEEK at TWU Quad Meet (2nd place, 196.775) THIS WEEK Feb. 12 vs. Alabama (7:30 p.m.)

UPCOMING Feb. 19 at LSU (7:30 p.m.)

During the players’ lunch break on day two of “Hell Week,” Auburn softball’s annual training camp in January, Kasey Cooper sat in the team room refreshing her phone continuously.

She was waiting on the email she knew was coming but seemed to never arrive.

Finally, at 12:08 p.m., the email arrived, and it made one of Cooper’s biggest dreams a reality.

The message was from Ken Eriksen, head coach of the USA Softball women’s national team, and it contained the roster for the 2016 national team, for which Cooper had attended tryouts in Irvine, California, days earlier.

When she scanned the list and spotted her name, Cooper struggled to contain her emotions.

“I was shocked, because I wasn’t expecting it,” Cooper said. “The coaches just told me to go out there and play my game, don’t try to compete against anyone. Just be yourself and play your game and play what we’ve taught you. That’s what I did. I went out there to have fun and went out there just to be me.”

While making the national team has been a dream of Cooper’s for as long as she can remember, it’s far from the first success the third baseman has experienced.

In high school, she led Dothan High School to the 6A state title in 2011 and was named the Alabama Gatorade Player of the Year in 2013.

She immediately became a team leader upon her arrival at Auburn in 2014, batting .418 with 18 home runs and 77 RBIs and earning freshman AllAmerican honors.

Cooper followed up her freshman campaign with another strong season, as she led Auburn to the Women’s College World Series for the first time in program history and was once again tabbed as an All-American.

Even considering all of her prior success, making the national team was a different kind of accomplishment for Cooper. She tried to play it down when telling her teammates the news, but they knew how much it truly meant to her.

“I tried casually to tell everybody in the team room, like, ‘Hey guys, I made the team,’” Cooper said. “They started freaking out. They were like, ‘Yeah, no big deal. You just made Team USA.’” As excited as Cooper and her teammates were, it may have been the man who watches all of Cooper’s at-bats from the third-base coaching box who was most overjoyed.

“It was an awesome feeling because of the fact that I was so proud of her,” said Auburn coach Clint Myers. “I’m extremely proud of what she represents, who she is. She has impeccable character and work ethic. She’s just a phenomenal lady.

She makes the world a better place just because she’s in it.”

Cooper is now a part of the team she has looked up to for the entirety of her childhood. To this day,

LAST WEEK W: Feb. 6 vs. Troy/UT-Martin (W, 4-0, 7-0) Feb. 7 vs. Texas State/Alabama A&M (W, 6-1, 7-0) M: Feb. 5 vs. Troy (W, 6-1) THIS WEEK M: Feb. 19 vs. Mercer (11 a.m., 5 p.m.)

W: Feb. 13 vs. Mercer (10 a.m., 2 p.m.)

she vividly recalls the day her parents drove her to Montgomery to see Team USA, which included legends such as Leah O’Brien-Amico, Jennie Finch and Cat Osterman.

In a meeting with Myers before the 2015 season, Cooper included making the national team, something no Auburn player had ever done, as one of her goals for the season. Nearly a year later, she has accomplished it, but she’s not stopping there.

“She’s never satisfied," Myers said. “She truly wants to be the leader of the U.S. team. She wants to be the standard in which other people are measured.”

Playing for Team USA will allow Cooper an opportunity to play against, and with, many of the world’s top players. She has been across the diamond from many of her teammates already, as 10 of the team’s 18 players compete in the SEC. Cooper especially looks forward to playing with Haylie McCleney, an All-American outfielder at Alabama, and working with Howard Dobson, assistant coach at LSU who is known as one of the country’s best hitting instructors.

While being named to the national team is an accomplishment in itself, the work for Team USA only begins with roster selection. No country has higher standards than the United States, which has won eight gold medals and two silvers in the

World Cup of Softball, the premier international competition since softball was removed as an Olympic sport in 2012 and 2016.

Cooper and Myers believe playing in the SEC has prepared the rising junior to compete on the international stage.

Team USA will hold its training camp in Oklahoma City, which is also where the World Cup will be played. The team will also travel to Canada and Japan, places Cooper has never had the opportunity to play.

“I like to learn, and every day’s a learning opportunity,” Cooper said. “Being able to learn about the game in a different perspective and also play with the best, it’s going to be awesome.”

By the time the national team wraps up its schedule on Sept. 5, Cooper will have played with the world’s best in places she never imagined possible, all for a team and country she’s always dreamed of representing.

“I want her to bring back great stories,” Myers said. “When she starts talking about it, I want to see a smile on her face because it was the most awesome experience of her life,” Myers said.

“She’s a young one, so she’s got many of these great experiences still yet to happen because of the player that she is. What the future holds for her is unlimited.”

OPINION

So, we’re mad at Cam Newton again, huh?

Sam Butler Sports Editor

MEN’S/WOMEN’S TENNIS

AUBURN ATHLETICS

FILE PHOTO

Kasey Cooper winds up to fire a throw across the diamond during an Auburn scrimmage.

Really?

We’re here again? Really?

Hold on, let me check something real quick.

Yep. It’s been about 20 minutes since the last fiery hot take on Cam Newton fizzled, so another one’s due.

This time, it’s that he’s a petulant, spoiled, pouting quitter based on a handful of plays in the Super Bowl and the three-minute press conference afterward.

Let me set the record straight before I get into this: I like Cam. I think he’s entertaining. He’s an honest breath of fresh air in a sports world suffocating in tried-and-true cliches, and I love how he doesn’t pretend to be anything he’s not.

However, I’m not defending everything he did on Sunday. Far from it.

But he doesn’t deserve the roaring tsunami of vitriol and demonizing he’s getting. Not even close.

Let’s take the current talking point for example. The outrage directed at

Cam for leaving a press conference is laughable at the least and astoundingly mind-boggling at most. This is a guy who, for 60 minutes, was pummelled, battered, crushed and any other verb meaning “destroyed” you can think of and was emphatically shut down.

And after the game, he was put on the stage almost immediately. No time to collect his thoughts and compose himself, no time to think about the canned answers he was supposed to give.

Nope. He walked into the locker room, took off his pads and jersey, put on a hoodie and plopped down in front of a herd of reporters.

There’s no way I’ll ever understand what Cam was thinking in that moment. I’ll never be in a Super Bowl, and the roller coaster of emotions he was feeling will forever be foreign to me.

So why, of all things to shake our fists at, are we mad that a 26-year-old was annoyed with having to answer questions about why he sucked so bad and decided to cut it short before he said something that would actually get him in trouble?

“We’ve got all these people who are condemning and saying, ‘Oh, he should have done this, that and the third,’ but what makes your way right?” Newton

said Tuesday at his locker in Bank of America Stadium, the Charlotte Observer reported.

He’s right.

What makes the way we think athletes should act the correct way?

As Brandon Marcello of AL.com said, what does Cam owe us?

Players are constantly dogged for speaking their minds, so much so to the point that they’re given extensive media training so as to not let that elusive nugget of personality slip through the iron curtains of “We’ve got to get better” and “I’m just taking it one game at a time.”

We gnash our teeth and beat our chests, screaming for players to act like themselves, but when they do, they’re berated for it and skewered by talking heads on ESPN. Cam’s the same guy he’s always been and always will be. He hates losing and makes no qualms about it. It may not be what we imagine a “gracious loser” to be, but why does it matter?

Our lives go on regardless. The only thing that changes is our opinion of a multimillionaire athlete who will never know who we are.

But here’s a novel thought.

If we really want to let that kettle of

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hate boil over, how about directing it at something more worthwhile?

What if we decried the dudes who beat their wives and girlfriends instead of getting mad because Cam didn’t want to answer some crappy questions about why he sucked so bad at a football game?

Can we call Greg Hardy “unprofessional?” Assaulting his girlfriend wasn’t very “classy.” Why not Johnny Manziel, if he’s proven to have done what’s alleged against him?

Hitting his girlfriend so hard her eardrum ruptured and telling her, “Shut up, or I’ll kill us both,” probably falls under the “unprofessional” label, I’d say.

There’s a long list of worthy targets for all this anger to be focused at, and Cam Newton, whose most egregious offense is that he might not’ve been the most chipper after losing the biggest game of his life, is mighty far down that list.

Sure, you can say he could’ve handled his emotions a little bit better.

But what you can’t do is villainize a guy for being who he is. Not when there are things — and people — that actually deserve it.

Sam can be reached at sports@ThePlainsman.com

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Thursday, February 11, 2016

Sports 9

The Auburn Plainsman

BASKETBALL

Around the SEC: LSU proving it belongs C.J. Holmes sports@ThePlainsman.com

Coming Together: Blakeney, LSU living up to expectations LSU 88, Mississippi State 77 LSU: Antonio Blakeney 31 pts, 7 reb, 2 ast Don't look now, but the Tigers are starting to figure it out.

Highly touted before the season began, LSU has had its fair share of issues, but even through the struggles, this unit has improved every week as freshmen Ben Simmons and Antonio Blakeney continue to mature in Johnny Jones’ system.

After nearly knocking off Oklahoma on Jan. 31, the Tigers' (15-8) roller coaster season has reached a new high with wins over Auburn and Mississippi State — catapulting them to the top of the SEC standings with an 8-2 record in conference play.

Against the struggling Bulldogs on Saturday, Blakeney — rated the 15th-best high school player in the class of 2015, according to ESPN — eclipsed his previous career-high of 22 points with 31 on 11 for 17 shooting.

Simmons added 16, and senior Keith Hornsby put up 25 in the win.

Right in time for Mardi Gras season, the Bayou Bengals are playing some of their best basketball and have the opportunity to separate themselves from the rest of the pack with matchups against South Carolina on Feb. 10 and Texas A&M on Feb. 13.

One win next week would place LSU firmly on the bubble, but two wins make the Tigers a NCAA tournament lock— right where everyone thought they’d be with that talented roster.

Back on Track: Murray makes history, Wildcats snap a two-game skid No. 20 Kentucky 80, Florida 61 UK: Jamal Murray 35 pts, 6 reb, 1 ast Kentucky ended a two-game losing streak by dominating a hot Florida Gators squad in Rupp Arena on Saturday, and no Wildcat shined brighter than freshman Jamal Murray, whose 35-point performance broke multiple school records, per 247 sports.

Dakota Sumpter / Photo Editor

Jamal Murray (23), guarding Cinmeon Bowers in Auubrn’s win over Kentucky, set numerous records in the Wildcats’ win over Florida.

-Murray’s career-high 35 points tied Terrence Jones for the most by a Kentucky freshman in a single game.

-Murray’s 20 first-half points were the most in the John Calipari era.

-Murray is the first freshman is school history to record two 30-point games.

-Murray’s eight 3-pointers tied Eric Bledsoe for the most ever by a freshman.

-Murray is the first Kentucky freshman ever to make a 3-pointer in each of his first 22 games.

Considering all the talented guards Kentucky has accumulated over the years, I think it’s fair to say the Canadian is in good company.

When Opportunity Knocks: Gamecocks get their first top-10 road win since 2006

No. 25 South Carolina 81, No. 8 Texas A&M 78 USC: Sindarius Thornwell 25 pts, 6 reb, 9 ast Despite a 20-3 record, South Carolina had been in desperate need of a signature win to add to its tournament resume.

The Gamecocks notched that signature win in College Station behind a huge performance from junior Sindarius Thornwell.

South Carolina shot 7 for 10 from 3-point range in the first half and 12-of-21 for the game.

Michael Carrera made all six of his shots to finish with 20 points, and Alex Caruso and Danuel House scored 16 points apiece for the Aggies.

Once considered the team to beat in the SEC, Texas A&M has now lost three of its last four.

C.J. can be reached at sports@ThePlainsman.com

FOOTBALL

Early enrollee, No. 9 WR Davis ‘hungry to learn’ Jonathan Hefner Sports Writer

247sports.com

Kyle Davis, who enrolled in January, is one of the crown jewels of the 2016 recruiting class.

On Jan. 2, in Orlando, Florida, Under Armour hosted its annual All-American game, which features the best high school football players in the nation.

Many individuals who have participated in this contest, such as A.J. Green and Julio Jones, have gone on to have successful college and professional careers.

Auburn has recruited 38 Under Armour All-Americans in the last eight years, and the team this past year featured several former Under Armour All-American standouts, including Carl Lawson, Montravius Adams and Ricardo Louis.

Add to the list Kyle Davis, the No. 9 wide receiver recruit in the 2016 class, according to 247sports.com, whose commitment vaulted Auburn's re-

cruiting class up to No. 10 in the nation at the time.

Davis chose Auburn on Dec. 5 after three visits each with the Georgia Bulldogs and the Tennessee Volunteers, following his unofficial visit to Auburn in November.

Davis was previously committed to South Carolina before deciding to re-open his recruitment in May. “Kyle was very comfortable the first time he visited Auburn his sophomore year as a defensive back,” said Bryan Matthews of Rivals.com. “He has a great relationship with Dameyune Craig, Auburn’s wide receivers coach.”

Davis hails from Lawrenceville, Georgia, where he played at Archer High School.

As a senior, Davis recorded 773 yards and six touchdowns on 47 receptions.

Davis has great hands, but

247sports.com

Davis participates in a recruiting combine. He was the No. 9 wide receiver in the country, and chose Auburn after decommitting from South Carolina.

his blocking ability is also phenomenal.

In Auburn coach Gus Malzahn’s fast-paced offense, Auburn often demonstrates tunnel screens and jet sweeps on the edge, making blocking a must for wide-outs.

“He’s 6-foot-2, 220," Matthews said. "His size, strength and determination are what will make him a good blocker, and it could help him play early.”

Davis not only has a plethora of talent, but also brings a tremendous amount of energy and is a true student of the game.

“He works hard at his trade," said his high school coach, Andy Dyer. “He is hungry to learn.”

However, it's unrealistic to expect Davis to be the answer to all questions on offense the Tigers might have raised in the 2015 campaign, as the

majority of Auburn’s aerial attack will be on the shoulders of Jeremy Johnson, Sean White or JUCO transfer John Franklin III. In a year where Auburn averaged 175 yards per game and scored only 10 touchdowns through the air, Davis will fill a much-needed void in the receiving corps.

“It’s possible he’ll start, but more likely that he will play pretty quickly,” Matthews said. “That being said, Auburn likes what it has in its returning receivers: Tony Stevens, Jason Smith and Marcus Davis.”

Davis recently enrolled in January after undergoing shoulder surgery and is currently taking classes and participating in light workouts.

He is expected to be close to 100 percent by the beginning of the summer to compete for the starting job.

Sports 10

The Auburn Plainsman

Thursday, February 11, 2016

matthew bishop / staff photographer

Cinmeon Bowers brings the ball up the court against LSU on Feb. 2.

adam sparks / staff photographer

Jazmine Jones gets ready to defend the Commodores during Auburn’s win over Vanderbilt on Feb. 4.

This Week in Auburn Sports Men’s Basketball

Gymnastics Feb. 5 at TWU Quad Meet 2nd Place

Ben Simmons poured in 21 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists to lead LSU to an 80-68 win over Auburn Tuesday night in Auburn Arena.

“I thought we did a great job coming in really focused, getting off to a great start, making plays and then finishing the game the way that we needed to against this Auburn basketball team,” said LSU head coach Johnny Jones.

The last time these two programs met, Auburn upset LSU 73-70 in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals after senior guard K.T. Harrell hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key to send the game to overtime in one of the best games of 2015.

Unfortunately for Auburn, there were no late-game heroics this time, primarily because of the play of Simmons, who’s projected to be the No. 1 pick in this June’s NBA Draft.

“Ben’s always aggressive, and he gets after it,” Jones said. “He’s done a great job of taking advantage of chance opportunities for us. When the defense gives him opportunities, especially in the open floor, he’s great at attacking, and tonight he saw those opportunities and I thought he was able to make those plays early.”

Simmons’ versatility was on full display against Auburn, finishing three assists shy of a triple-double. Craig Victor II was LSU’s second-leading scorer with 13 points on 6-of11 shooting.

“You can see why he’s so effective and such a valuable player,” said Auburn coach Bruch Pearl. “He can score, he can create, he can finish — he makes everyone else better around him. Our game plan was to try to wall him off and get him to take contested shots, but we never really did wall him off. He was able to go by and get to the rim and get too close.”

Bryce Brown paced Auburn in the game’s first 20 minutes, scoring 9 of his 18 points in the first half off of 3 for 5 shooting from deep.

Cinmeon Bowers added 15 points and seven rebounds returning from his one-game suspension. Kareem Canty chipped in 14 points and five assists.

The Auburn gymnastics team set a seasonhigh in the TWU quad meet on Friday, posting a 196.775, second to No. 2 Oklahoma’s 197.925. Illinois State finished third with a score of 191.975, and host TWU slotted fourth at 191.550.

“With all the change that we’ve had to endure this week, I thought the team did a fantastic job,” said coach Jeff Graba. “We’ll take a lot of confidence away from this meet. We are on a roll and hopefully we can build off this.”

Auburn opened on bars, where the Tigers (4-4) notched a 49.050.

They then moved to vault, where they pulled together a 49.325.

On the floor, Auburn scored a 48.975.

The Tigers will return to action Friday, Feb. 12, when No. 4 Alabama visits Auburn Arena.

Feb. 2 vs. LSU L, 80-68

Madison Ogletree / Photographer

Caitlin Atkinson looks on after peforming a routine in Auburn’s meet against Florida.

Auburn shot 36.5 percent from the floor to LSU’s 56.7 and only made 12 of its 22 free throws.

LSU had 46 points in the paint and scored 21 points off of 14 Auburn turnovers.

Pearl and the Tigers have now dropped four in a row.

“I think in the first half we probably missed six or seven shots two feet from the basket again, and we missed them with our bigs having switched down on their guards,” Pearl said. “We should have been able to score at a much higher rate than that. Those are some big factors as to why we weren't successful.”

Feb. 6 at Georgia L, 65-55 Despite Cinmeon Bowers’ ninth doubledouble of the season, Auburn couldn’t shake a cold shooting night as the Tigers were trounced at Georgia, 65-55, on Saturday.

With the news that starting point guard — and leading scorer — Kareem Canty would be suspended indefinitely coming less than half an hour before the tip, Auburn was forced to scramble to find offense.

As a result, Bowers was listed as the starting point guard against Georgia, and he poured in 12 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Tigers.

However, Auburn shot just 25.9 percent from the floor and trailed by as much as 25 points before ending the game on a 21-6 run.

Women’s Basketball Feb. 7 at Alabama W, 59-55 Junior Katie Frerking poured in 22 points as Auburn secured the season sweep against Alabama on Sunday with a 59-55 win in Tuscaloosa.

“It was a hard-fought one today,” said Auburn coach Terri Williams-Flournoy. “We really had to get out there and fight for that victory. I told them at the half that they were playing not to lose. They were not playing like they were supposed to win. We had to have the mindset that we were going to come out and attack them right away, and that’s what we did in the third quarter.”

The Tigers led by as much as 15 in the third quarter before the Crimson Tide began chipping away, cutting the lead down to 3 points late in the fourth quarter.

Auburn was able to clinch the win by hitting free throws down the stretch.

Frerking’s 22 points were a game-high. Brandy Montgomery added 11 points, and Tra’Cee Tanner scored 9.

Auburn returns to action Thursday at Ole Miss. Tip is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Women’s Tennis Feb. 7 vs. Alabama A&M W, 7-1 Following a 9 a.m. win over Texas State, the Auburn women’s tennis team swept Alabama A&M at the Yarbrough Tennis Center Sunday to advance to 7-1.

Andie Dikosavljevic and Alannah Griffin advanced their undefeated mark to 5-0 in doubles, defeating Katy Collins and Eva Dench of Texas State, 6-0.

Pleun Burgmans and Alizee Michaud also grabbed two wins for the Tigers in doubles.

“We had two hard-fought matches today,” said Auburn assistant coach Chris Hooshyar. “It was a great opportunity for us to see girls playing in different spots. This was also a great opportunity for us to work on our fitness as we try to become the most fit team in the SEC.” Caroline Turner emerged with dominance for Auburn in singles with two wins to improve to 4-0, defeating Ana Perez of Texas State 6-2, 6-3, and holding her own by holding down Alabama A&M in a 6-0, 6-0, victory.

The Tigers’ next event takes place Feb. 13 at the Yarbrough Tennis Center with a doubleheader against Mercer.

The first match is set to begin at 10 a.m.

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11

Thursday, February 11, 2016

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Intrigue

Research

Dinosaur discovered in Alabama named Amanda Myles Intrigue Writer

On Jan. 13, the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology named the remains of a new dinosaur, which were discovered in a creek bank in Montgomery County in 2007.

The remains are of a new species of duckbilled dinosaurs named Eotrochodon orientalis, according to Jun Ebersole, director of collections at McWane Science Center.

The remains were discovered by members of the Birmingham Paleontological Society, a group of locals who go on fossil digs, according to Ebersole.

“Once they found this thing they have never seen before and they started seeing little bones popping out, they had a good idea it was going to be something pretty significant,” Ebersole said.

Ebersole said McWane Science Center and West Alabama then took over the preparation of removing the bones from the rock and studying the remains.

The newly named dinosaur species was studied by Ebersole, Greg Erickson, professor of biological science at Florida State University, and Albert Prieto-Marquez, a research fellow in the School of Earth Sciences at the University of Bristol.

The remains are about 84 million years old, and less than half of the dinosaur was found, Ebersole said.

“We have roughly 40 percent of it, which

Contributed by Jun Ebersole

Jun Ebersole looking at the remains of the newly named dinosaur.

doesn’t seem like a lot, but that’s amazing for dinosaurs, especially on the eastern half of the country,” Ebersole said. “Generally, you get individual bones.”

The remains include nearly a complete skull, about 60 of the vertebrae and a couple fragments of the limb bones and part of the pelvis, according to Ebersole.

There are two major groups of duck-billed dinosaurs: There is a kind with crests and nostrils on top of their heads, and there is a kind that has no crests, but they do have nostrils in front of their heads, according to Ebersole.

The most recent discovery, however, does not fall within either major group.

“It turned out to be the common ancestor between those two with characteristics of both, and so naming it sure is cool,” Ebersole said. “But the importance of it is that this is where the duckbilled dinosaur came from — right here in Appalachia.”

Eotrochodon is the most complete, primitive duck-billed dinosaur to ever be discovered in the eastern United States, The discovery reveals that duck-billed dinosaurs were originated in the eastern United States

in a region known as Appalachia before scattering to other parts of the world, according to Erickson.

“This is a really important animal in telling us how they came to be and how they spread all over the world,” Erickson said.

The new species shows significant aspects about the early evolution of the snout and nasal passage, Prieto-Marquez said.

“Eotrochodon is one of the most primitive hadrosaurids known, and it shows an early stage in the evolution of unique features that would later become further developed in more derived hadrosaurids,” Prieto-Marquez said.

Eotrochodon is known for having expanded beaks and hundreds or thousands of teeth in their jaws, Prieto-Marques said.

Eotrochodon means “dawn rough tooth from the east” and was named after Trachodon — the first duck-billed dinosaur named in 1856 but no longer considered a valid genus — from its jagged looking teeth and origin in Appalachia, according to Erickson.

Few dinosaur species are known from the Southeast, Prieto-Marquez said.

“Yet the spare fossil record documents a diversity of dinosaurs, including meat-eating species, duck-bills like Eotrochodon and armored dinosaurs too,” Prieto-Marquez said.

The remains of Eotrochodon are located in McWane Science Center in Birmingham and are on display in Ebersole’s lab.

Technology

What’s the deal with all of these wearables?

Rachel Williams Intrigue writer

When wearables were introduced, I was impressed with their novel and futuristic concept. Wearable technology incorporates computers or electronics into an accessory or as an item of clothing.

Popular examples of wearables are the Apple Watch, Fitbit, Jawbone’s UP and — on Auburn’s campus — the Movband.

I did not think wearables would catch on. They struck me as extraneous, unattractive and expensive toys.

Fast-forward three years and the

number of people I see with the tech accessories is surprising. Wrist after wrist is wrapped in tech.

Jawbone’s UP and the various Fitbit models aim to improve health through data on calories burned, heart rate and sleep tracking. Costing between $100 and $200, these bands don’t seem worth what you could achieve through a pedometer or movement tracking on your smartphone and some health research.

This year, the popular Active Auburn physical education course adopted the Movband, a basic fitness wearable. The band tracks students’ movement through an accelerometer and syncs to an app.

One student said wearing her Movband for class encourages her to go to the Auburn Recreation and Well-

ness Center more.

She purchased a group fitness pass to reach her goals. Every three weeks, the course increases the amount of movement expected.

I’m in favor of motivation to increase health, but I know some students wear and don’t care. Creative students “beat” the trackers by shaking them while sitting in RBD. Wearables can improve our health, but for many people who weren’t selfmotivated before, a fitness wearable is a waste of money.

A different group of wearables are smartwatches from Apple, Samsung, LG and others.

These touchscreen watch faces bring smartphone functions to users’ wrists. You can see calls and notifications without disruptively taking out

your phone.

Convenient as they may be in some occupational settings, do we truly want to communicate from a tiny thing, with one hand, on our arm?

I see just about nothing I would rather do on my wrist than on my phone. Instagram pictures are already small — they needn’t be smaller.

If my phone could be replaced by the watch, that’d be fantastic, but that’s not how the Apple Watch works. The clunky mini-phone needs to tag along with its parent.

Samsung, Motorola and LG make watches that don’t need your phone to work, but most people haven’t dialed in to these.

Rachel can be reached at intrigue@ ThePlainsman.com.

Food

How to eat clean for cheap in college

Gurden Smith / Graphics editor

Wearables are popular accessories.

Instagram of the week

Emily Esleck Managing editor

Displayed in magazine racks in grocery stores, plastered on billboards down the highway and invading our Google searches on the Internet are tons of articles and propaganda reminding us to think about our body image. And closely linked to that — losing weight.

It’s hard to lose weight for most people, and when you’re in college, it can be harder. Especially after every time we try to buy healthier items, we cautiously look at our bank accounts hoping the damage isn’t bad, only to realize we have to go the next week on the onlybuy-survival-items budget.

Even if you don’t want to lose weight, adopting a healthier lifestyle can help your body maintain its strength. For example, according to everydayhealth.com, consuming calcium can prevent development of osteoporosis, a health condition characterized by weak or brittle bones.

Whatever your reason may be, next time you drive to the grocery store, keep these tips in mind to eat healthy on a budget.

1. Canned beans Probably the last thing any of us think about, but canned beans are super cheap and are high in protein. Four

Madison ogletree / photographer

Avocados are sold in the produce department at Publix supermarket on East University Drive.

15.5-ounce cans of Great Value pinto beans are $2.50 on Walmart’s website, probably even cheaper in store. My mom made my family pinto bean soup often since it was an inexpensive, healthy meal.

Add in ham seasoning and let them cook in a Crock-Pot all day. Quick and easy.

2. Lettuce wraps Instead of buying your usual choice of bread, grab a head of lettuce. Make the sandwich you would have made with bread, except use a piece of lettuce and wrap the meat and cheese inside. Two heads of lettuce would run you $1.88 at Sam’s Club.

3. Smoothies You might be groaning and saying, “But I don’t have time to blend all fresh fruit up, let alone buy all the expensive ingredients.” Don’t fear. I found

these incredible Dole Fruit Smoothie Shakers through a friend a few weeks ago. These to-go smoothies are already premixed and frozen. All you have to do is add orange juice or any juice of your choice to the fill line. The shakers are $1.78 at Walmart and Great Value brand orange juice is $1.77.

4. Vegetable steamers In the frozen section of the grocery store, you can find bags of frozen vegetables. The Green Giant mixed kind priced at $1.88 at Walmart is my personal favorite. You just pop the bag in the microwave and let it steam the veggies. This way you can eat the vegetables needed for a healthy diet without buying produce.

5. Peanut butter banana whole wheat wrap This is a great, low-cost

healthy meal I eat when I need energy fast. Take a whole wheat tortilla, spread peanut butter on it and cut up a banana to lay on top. Fold over and microwave for a few seconds and voila. Great Value peanut butter is approximately $3, and the whole wheat tortillas are $2.48.

6. Avocados Avocados are super yummy in my opinion, and they’re good for you too. I saw one of my roommates last year do this and tried it. It was actually good and filling. Just take an avocado and cut it in half, take the pit out, shell it out and pour some low-fat Italian salad dressing in the middle. Enjoy your avocado boat. Avocados are usually approximately $2 each.

Emily can be reached at intrigue@ThePlainsman.com.

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Intrigue 12

The Auburn Plainsman

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Entertainment

A short guide to music festivals in the Southeast Alex Wilkerson community writer

Hi, my name is Alex, and in the last two years I have been to three major music festivals: Hangout, Music Midtown and Bonnaroo.

Here I hope to deliver a semidecent rundown of some of the music festivals coming up this spring and summer in the Southeast and help you decide which one is best for you.

Hangout Music Fest Where: Gulf Shores When: May 20-22 General Admission: $269 The Hangout Music Fest is a good festival to begin with because it is an easily accessible festival for the novice. And in Alabama, it is an extremely popular event.

The two main stages for the Hangout Music Fest are the Hangout Stage and the Chevrolet Stage, which face each other on the Gulf Shores public beach. Several other stages are set up in close proximity to the Hangout restaurant.

This year the lineup looks fairly good, with headliners including The Weeknd, Florence + the Machine, Alabama Shakes, Lenny Kravitz, Cage the Elephant, Fetty Wap and more.

For many, Hangout’s greatest draw is its proximity to the beautiful Gulf of Mexico. Expect an atmosphere similar to a spring break trip to Panama City Beach. I’m being serious. The festival is like a frat party on the beach that just so happens to include some great music. Pass the Natty, bro.

Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival Where: Manchester, Tennessee When: June 9-12 General Admission: $350 + fees and camping Bonnaroo is a festival all on its own.

Held in Manchester, Tennessee, this festival is known for its hippie atmosphere and great lineups. For me, Bonnaroo 2015 was the best festival I’ve been to.

What makes it dramatically different from other festivals in the Southeast is the camping aspect. Festival goers camp in tents or RVs outside the center of the festival, appropriately called Centeroo.

Bonnaroo has many other attractions besides the music aspect, including a comedy tent, silent disco, movie tent and water slide, amongst oth-

er things.

This year celebrates Bonnaroo’s 15th anniversary, and performances include Pearl Jam, Dead & Company, LCD Soundsystem, J. Cole, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Death Cab for Cutie, Tyler the Creator, Father John Misty, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats and many more.

I have decided this year’s Bonnaroo is not an option for me because of the new fees. In years past, if you bought a ticket, the ticket included your camping, and if you drove there, you could park your car next to your campsite.

For 2016, Live Nation, which recently bought Bonnaroo, has tacked on a $60 camping pass, as well as a $40 parking pass for day parking without a campsite. With the price of the camping pass and fees listed on its site, you’re looking at spending about $450 to go to Bonnaroo this year, not to mention travel and food.

It still could be worth it if the lineup is right for you, but for me, I’ll wait for Bonnaroo 2017.

Okeechobee Music & Arts Festival Where: Okeechobee, Florida When: March 4-6 General Admission: $270 Okeechobee is the newest festival on the list and also the only one I can’t pronounce. The festival is to be held in the small town of Okeechobee, Florida, in March, and the lineup looks killer.

Mumford & Sons, Kendrick Lamar, Bassnectar, Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters, Hall and Oates, The Avett Brothers, Future, Fetty Wap and many more acts will attend the festival.

Supporting acts like Lil Dicky, Dr. Dog, Deer Tick, Portugal. The Man and Mac Miller make this festival a force to be reckoned with. Like Bonnaroo, this new festival will involve camping, which, unlike Bonnaroo, will be included in the ticket.

Though this festival may seem like Roo’s little brother, the tickets are cheaper and the lineup, in my opinion, is far superior.

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Where: New Orleans When: April 22-24, April 28-May 1 General Admission: $65/$75 per day The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is vastly different from the festivals I have already mentioned, but I thought it was worth mentioning for the lineup alone.

This festival is the perfect collection of concerts for the nostalgic. The lineup includes greats such as Stevie Wonder, Red Hot Chili Peppers,

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Neil Young, Beck, Van Morrison, Snoop Dogg, Mavis Staples, The Isley Brothers and Steely Dan. The festival also includes newer artists such as J. Cole, My Morning Jacket, Gary Clark Jr., Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats and more.

The festival is held for two weekends in the heart of New Orleans, and with daily tickets starting at a presale price of $65, it is a steal.

Sloss Music & Arts Festival Where: Birmingham When: July 16-17 General Admission: $115-$150 + fees Unfortunately, Sloss Fest has not yet announced its lineup. But considering last year’s

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These five music festivals are located in the Southeast.

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lineup, this new festival is something to watch for.

Last year’s lineup included Modest Mouse, The Avett Brothers, Band of Horses, Young the Giant, Cage the Elephant, St. Paul & the Broken Bones and Tyler the Creator.

For the inaugural year of a festival, that is one great lineup. Considering the price and what the lineup might be, this would probably be a good one to look into in 2016.

I hope this article is helpful, and you all have an opportunity to go to one of these festivals. I plan to attend at least two or three of these.

Alex can be reached at community@ThePlainsman.com.

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