February_19_2009

OPINIONS

SPORTS

STUDENT PRINTZ ONLINE

See page 4 for our editorial regarding the bomb threat.

Keep an eye out for SGA Election results this evening at studentprintz.com.

The men’s basketball team broke their losing streak. See page 8 for details.

S P The

Serving Southern Miss since 1927

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Volume 93, Issue 41

SGA Elections 2009

And then there were six Vice President

Attorney General

Election Commissioner

David N. Jackson/Printz

Students vote during Tuesday’s Student Government Association election primaries. Voting continues today with runoffs.

Electronic voting cuts lines, hassle in SGA elctions Lesley Walters News Editor

For the past week or so, Southern Miss students have been getting accustomed to the Student Government Association’s new electronic voting system.

The system was a major initiative in J.R. Robinson’s campaign platform when he ran for elections commissioner last spring. The junior from Brandon said he brought the idea of electronic voting to iTech and “just kind of went with it.”

“It was a fairly easy process,” Robinson said. The administration of justice and pre-law major said he started the project in midSeptember and it was complete by the end of December.

“We thought we were going to have it ready for Homecoming,” he said, “but I’d rather have a system that’s fool-proof and efficient than one that’s halfway done.”

Several students agree that the new system is significantly more efficient than the paper ballots of the past.

Omari Pittman, a sports medicine and exercise science major, was involved in a particular SGA election last semester that became a prime example of the fault of paper ballots – human error.

Pittman ran for the title of Mr. Southern Miss during the Homecoming elections in October and lost by 11 votes. Then, as was within his rights, he contested the results and asked for a recount.

Pittman now proudly holds the title after winning the recount by five votes.

The senior from Jackson said he likes the new system because it is much faster and is a sign that SGA takes seriously the problems that arise during elections. He said it is easier to distinguish

‘‘

’’

Stacy Ahua

Zoe Beckham

Chris Arguedas

Jayson Newell

Jimmy Thomas

Blake Watkins

I’ve got full faith in the system now that it will turn out good

-Omari Pittman

candidates from each other on the electronic ballot, and since students are familiar with SOAR, the new system is easy to use.

“I’ve got full faith in the system now that it will turn out good,” he said.

Rebecca Wilks, a junior marketing major from Byram, served as SGA treasurer this year.

Since Robinson had to retire as elections commissioner to run for – and win – the office of SGA president, “some people have had to fill in,” so Wilks has been helping.

She helped man a polling place for the executive officer elections this week, but also helped count the ballots during the Homecoming primary and runoff elections. Counting the ballots took several hours when all the candidates ran for Homecoming court, she said, but even the runoff ballots took about four hours to count.

This time, the computer program used for electronic voting is keeping track of votes as they take place, she said, taking human error out of the equation.

Robinson said “it’s not as if there’s never a computer error,” but in such a case, SGA election officials can review the system, locate the error and fix it quickly.

“I think we’re going to get a stronger voter turnout in this election as compared to Homecoming,” Wilks said. “And I think it’s also just going to grow and grow with each election because the time to wait in line … and actually register your vote is significantly shorter.”

SGA Run-offs Polls open from 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.

• Vote in the Thad Cochran Center, Cook Library,

Liberal Arts Building and the FYE Classroom

• Results will be announced today after polls close.

Robinson elected student body president Lesley Walters News Editor

The Southern Miss student body elected its 2009-2010 president, J.R. Robinson, Tuesday night.

The junior from Brandon won with 58.93 percent of the vote, and was present at the SGA Senate meeting Tuesday night when his win was announced.

“When I heard the numbers, I thought it was going to be a closer race than it was,” Robinson said. “But it was very overwhelming and very humbling at the same time to know that that many people chose me to represent them.”

Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Joe Paul said he has known Robinson “since we recruited him out of Clinton High School four years ago,” and is confident that the administration of justice and

pre-law major will serve the student body well.

“From the view of the administraRobinson tion of the u n i v e r s i t y, the SGA president plays a critical role because they are the spokesperson for the entire student body,” Paul said.

“And when we need to know what students are thinking, that’s not the only place we turn to, but it’s the first place we turn.”

Robinson’s platform includes: implement an academic improvement program for “at-risk” students to improve student retention; advocate for security cameras outside of residence halls, a “Safe and Sober Riders” program, and more efficient campus escort service; establish printing sta-

tions in residence halls; and create an interactive SGA Web site to better communicate Glorioso with the student body.

Robinson added that he thinks many of his opponent’s ideas are good and, “in the grand scheme of things,” are not so different from his own.

Robinson received 307 more votes than his opponent, John Gernon Glorioso, junior public relations major from Mandeville, La. “J.R. worked just as hard as I did and I hope to see him do a great job and time will tell if that’s the case,” Glorioso said.

“I have faith in him, I know he can be a great leader and he is a great leader on our campus … He knows I’m always here and we’re good friends, and if

Administrators assess Eagle Alert after bomb threat Meryl Dakin Printz Writer

Jesse Bass/Printz

A member of the Hattiesburg Fire Department walks toward the Liberal Arts Building during the bomb threat evacuation.

INDEX

CALENDAR............................2 OPINIONS...............................4 CONTACT INFO.....................5 ENTERTAINMENT.................6

ENT. CALENDAR...................7 SPORTS....................................8 SPORTS CALENDAR.............8

After police received the call from an emergency phone outside Oseola McCarty Hall Tuesday informing them of the possibility of explosives being in the Liberal Arts Building, hundreds of students were evacuated from the LAB accordingly.

Several minutes after 11 a.m., students enrolled in the Eagle Alert program started receiving text messages warning them to avoid the LAB and informing

them that 11 o’clock classes would be cancelled. While police and firemen searched the building, some of the students wondered about the effectiveness of the emergency alert system.

Jasmine Payne, a sophomore nursing major from Aberdine, said the situation outside was disorganized.

“We waited across the street, but they didn’t tell us anything about it or tell us what to do,” she said. “Then we received the Eagle Alert about 20 minutes after we’d been standing

there. It didn’t come immediately, so I guess it wasn’t that effective.”

The process for sending an Eagle Alert begins with the University Police. UPD Chief Bob Hopkins said after an initial assessment of an emergency situation, they follow protocol to determine whether an incident threatens the entire campus. Then they must obtain permission from President Saunders or her designee to send out the alert, he said.

See BOMB page 2

POLICY

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he ever needs anything he can call me.”

Glorioso said he will have to think about where to focus his involvement on the Southern Miss campus now, and while he is not ruling out SGA, he “may be called to something else.”

“I really do think some of his things are good ideas and hopefully, if he would like to come into Cabinet, we’ll be able to accomplish some of those goals as well as some of mine, and make it a very successful year,” Robinson said.

Robinson will not officially take office as SGA president until Founder’s Day, March 30. Until then, he said he is not sure the “overwhelming” news has quite set in yet.

“I’m still in the office doing stuff and trying to help out with the election stuff as See ROBINSON page 3

Timeline

•An anonymous caller reported the bomb threat to university police at approximately 10:26 a.m. Tuesday •Students and faculty were allowed to re-enter the LAB at approximately 11:45 a.m.

•Nothing suscpicous was found inside the building.

•The call was made from a blue emergency phone outside Oseola McCarty Hall •The UPD lifted fingerprints from the phone for analysis

TODAY

60/29

TOMORROW

61/35

Page 2|News

www.studentprintz.com |Thursday, February 19, 2009

EC

TODAY All Day – Sports Trivia – Payne Center – Registration Monday, Feb. 9 – Thursday, Feb. 19. Register online.

All Day – Learn to Swim Registration – Session III – M.C. Johnson Natatorium at the Payne Center All Day – Assistant and Aspiring Principals Leadership Conference 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. – SGA Executive Run-off elections – TCC Atrium 8 a.m. – Men of Excellence Book for Kids drive – Bond Hall, Cook Library, TCC and Union Lobby 10 a.m. – Museum of Art presents “Cross Connections” Exhibition – Museum of Art 11 a.m. – SGA Run-off luncheon for executive elections – R.C.’s Lounge 11:45 a.m. – Wesley Foundation Thursday Lunch – Wesley Foundation Noon – African American History Month Committee – Faculty Brown Bag Lunch Series presents Dr. Jennifer Sequeira: “The Role of Entrepreneurship in Economic Development” – Cook Library Room 123 6 p.m. – Dr. Bruce Tychinski Faculty

Trombone Recital – Marsh Auditorium 7 p.m. – The Space Program: Past Experience and Future Perspective – Advanced Education Center Auditorium, Gulf Park campus, Long Beach 7 p.m. -- Sierra Coalition – Film: A Crude Awakening – TCC 216 7:30 p.m. – Theatre presents The Shakespeare Project – Gilbert F. Hartwig Theatre TOMORROW All Day – Learn to Swim Registration – Session III – M.C. Johnson Natatorium at the Payne Center All Day – Assistant and Aspiring Principals Leadership Conference 10 a.m. – Museum of Art presents “Cross Connections” Exhibition – Museum of Art 11 a.m. – Biological Sciences Seminar – Polymer Science Auditorium 7:30 p.m. – John Hunt Guest Artist Bassoon Recital – Marsh Auditorium

– Session III – M.C. Johnson Natatorium at the Payne Center All Day – 2009 Mississippi Flute Day – Marsh Auditorium 10 a.m. – Museum of Art presents “Cross Connections” Exhibition – Museum of Art 6 p.m. – Richard Sherman and Elizabeth Moak Guest Artist/Faculty Recital – Marsh Auditorium SUNDAY All Day – Learn to Swim Registration – Session III – M.C. Johnson Natatorium at the Payne Center MONDAY All Day – Online Sport Security Management Certificate All Day – Learn to Swim Registration – Session III – M.C. Johnson Natatorium at the Payne Center

SATURDAY All Day – Learn to Swim Registration

BOMB continued from page one After this, Hopkins said, they call on either the Department of Marketing and Public Relations or iTech to compose and circulate the Eagle Alert to either or both the Hattiesburg and Gulfport campuses.

Associate Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Jana Bryant, said USM is partnered with High Ground Solutions in Birmingham, Ala., which provides the service for sending out text messages, email, and voice messages for Eagle Alert.

She said an Eagle Alert was sent via text messages at 10:55 a.m. Tuesday to more than 5,000 people signed up to receive text alerts on the Hattiesburg campus. “Text messages should go relatively quickly,” she said.

Like many students, Zulma Fernandez, a political science and German major from Lima, Peru, said she didn’t get her text alert for almost a half hour after being evacuated.

“We saw a fire truck, so everyone thought there was a fire, but then people started saying it was a bomb threat,” she said.

“I think a couple of people must have gotten the Eagle Alert

before me.”

Bryant attributes this discrepancy to individual cellular carriers.

“When we hit the send button, they all go out,” she said. “If one particular carrier is having an issue, that might impede it.”

Both Bryant and Hopkins noted that they would assess the situation to make sure everything worked properly.

“I think the system worked well this time,” Hopkins said.

“We have to learn every time its used, and we get better the more we use it.” He added that while the system is by no means perfect, it is the best mass alert system available.

“We’re counting on the people who receive messages first reflecting the information to those who may not have received it yet,” he said.

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Thursday, February 19, 2009 | Page 3

ROBINSON continued from page one as elections commissioner when he began campaigning to be president. He will begin to transition the new elections commissioner after the student body elects one this evening.

Current SGA President Melissa Cirino, a senior from Hattiesburg, will transition

Robinson into his new job as well.

Cirino said Robinson should approach the office of president with humility, ask for help from others, and “remember every day that it’s not about you.”

“I know it’s not going to be

an easy job and it’s going to be a long, long road,” Robinson said. “But the one thing I do see is that Melissa really had fun and enjoyed her work thoroughly, which is what kept her motivated to work. I think if I can bring that same push to the table, I’ll do fine.”

New housing construction begins Special to the Printz The construction fence for Century Park, the university’s new 864-bed, living-learning residential community, is projected to go up on Friday. The site for Century Park is at the construction site on West Fourth Street adjacent to the Longleaf Trace Gateway at Southern Miss, also known as Rails to Trails.

The $37.7 million development, the largest in the history of the university, will consist of four, four-story buildings in a gated community. The rooms will be double occupancy with a private bath. In addition, each resident in the facility will be able to connect to the Internet at speeds of up to one GB. University parking in this area

will be moved to the gravel lot next to the Hillcrest housing facility. The Department of Residence Life will provide shuttle service from Hillcrest to the Thad Cochran Center five-days-a-week, beginning Wednesday. The shuttle will run from approximately 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Thursday and 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Fridays. In addition, the University Police Department and Office of Parking Management will be available for assistance, and welcome suggestions during this change.

Parking for the Longleaf Trace will be moved slightly east.

Signage will be available to direct patrons.

Plans are underway for a groundbreaking ceremony that will take place Friday, March 27 at 2 p.m.

“We are looking forward to the groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the progress of the vision of the staff and students that helped bring it to fruition,” said Dr. Chris Crenshaw, director of the Department of Residence Life.

The project is a continuation of the university’s housing master plan, with the goal of being a Silver LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certified residential complex, believed to be the first in the state.

Century Park, named in celebration of the university’s 100year anniversary, will be ready for occupancy in the fall of 2010.

For more information about Century Park, contact the Department of Residence Life at 601.266.4783 or reslife@usm. edu.

News Briefs The Office for Disability Accommodations is hosting a meeting on Friday at 2 p.m. in Owings McQuagge Hall, Room 125, to address concerns about physical access on campus. If you plan to attend, please call ODA at 601.266-5024 or 228.214-3232. If you cannot be there but want to share concerns or provide feedback, please contact ODA to relay your ideas.

Take the “Transportation” survey for a chance to win an XBox entertainment system or $300 in Eagle Dining Dollars (winner’s choice), as part of our compliance with the American College and University President’s Commitment, the College of Science and Technology and the Office of Sustainability.

Please complete the survey before Saturday, Feb. 28.

Faculty, staff and students are invited to participate.

Go to usm.edu/green for more information.

The residence halls will close at 5 p.m. Friday, March 13 for spring break, and will re-open at 8 a.m.

Sunday, March 22. It is the student’s responsibility to make reservations for housing and to find a roommate to share expenses during the breaks. If you are interested in break housing, or for more information, please contact the Residence Life office at 601.266.4783 or reslife@usm.edu.

The Fashion Merchandising Organization will be hosting the Women in Red Fashion Show on Friday from 7 to 10 p.m. in the R. C. Cook Union lobby and Union Rooms A and B. Proceeds from the show will go to benefit the My Mother’s Heart Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps raise awareness about heart disease and preventative health. Student pre-sale tickets are $5 with ID or $10 at the door.

General Admission presale tickets are $10 or $15 at the door.

The 2009 Mississippi Flute Day will be hosted by USM Feb. 21 and will feature Richard Sherman, a renowned flute soloist, orchestral musician and recitalist. Other artists will present master classes, lectures and coachings at the Fine Arts Building on the Hattiesburg campus. A free public recital will be presented at 6 p.m. in Marsh Auditorium. For more information and schedule of events for Mississippi Flute day, visit online at www.mississippifluteday.org.

The Hattiesburg Community Arts Café will meet at 6 p.m. Feb. 19 at Café Boheme, 1605 Hardy St., to discuss art-related topics in an informal environment. Other meetings are: 6 p.m. March 26 and April 16 at Cafe Boheme. For information, call (601) 544-2999.

The Graduate Student Forum (GSF) of The Biological Sciences Department will host its 25th annual GSF Symposium on Saturday, March 7th on the Hattiesburg campus. The symposium provides graduate and undergraduate students from The College of Science & Technology the opportunity to present their research in a relaxed and supportive environment. Students are encouraged to present their results – even preliminary ones – from their current or past research and poster presentations are also encouraged.

Remember to recycle this issue when you’re done!

Opinions

Page 4 opinions@studentprintz.com

A sense of community thrives in Hattiesburg T ypically, the birth of a college town occurs one of two ways: the college is built and the town follows, or a college is built in an already-thriving town.

When the former occurs, the college is at the heart of the town. Its campus and the surrounding areas have a “downtown” atmosphere; locally owned stores, coffee shops, and restaurants strung together with streetlights and sidewalks give students a plethora of entertainment options all within walking distance.

When a city is established before the college, the town expands outward, leaving the college somewhat stranded, and the metropolitan growth moves farther and farther away. It’s

easy to see which category we fall into here in Hattiesburg.

I spent a week in Gainesville, Florida visiting Madeline family who are all Livingston about their University of Florida Printz Writer Gators. So naturally, they hauled me around the UF campus. The campus is typical—dormitories, libraries and whatnot—but what stood out to me was the miniature town right behind campus.

A series of quaint shops, like those you would find in a small town, lined

the streets. Sidewalks bustling with students shopping, having lunch with friends or just hanging out were also a common sight. I found myself wrapped up in the atmosphere of it all, and then wishing I could bottle and bring a little of that same atmosphere back to Hattiesburg with me.

Since our campus is so far away from downtown Hattiesburg as well as the thriving commercial section of Hardy Street, we really miss out on the experience of things like this. Nearest our campus we have what? Tattoo parlors, empty buildings, a psychic shop, a bar, and apartment complexes.

Although it wouldn’t be an easy transition to make, bringing some downtown charm and convenience

to the area right around the campus would benefit students who live both on- and off-campus. Students who live on campus wouldn’t have to deal with the hassle of moving their cars (or the task of finding a parking place once they get back!), and students who live off-campus would have a place to meet and socialize with other students.

Aside from bringing students together, building a downtown community around the edges of campus would give local entrepreneurs a new venue and easy access to the college student demographic. Business owners who are former students, such as the owners of Side Street Bar and Caliente, who wish to open locations

convenient to the college students they once were would have a place to do so.

The property across Hardy Street opposite the front of campus would be a great location for such a community-replacing the current run-down buildings with a new curb-appealing plaza of buildings ready for new businesses, adding to the Java Werks community.

The proximity to campus as well as the need for a makeover makes this a perfect place for this opportunity.

Seeing students together even when they aren’t on campus creates an almost palpable sense of the college life that draws outsiders in and reminds insiders why we choose to be here. Providing students with en-

tertainment right in their own concrete backyard, where they will be sure to be seen drinking coffee or buying sweatshirts, allows people who simply drive through a glimpse into life on our campus.

It truly makes a difference. You can feel it in the air. You can’t help but think, “I want to be a part of this.”

That’s how it should feel. Although right now times are tough, maybe one day the City of Hattiesburg, Southern Miss, and the efforts from graduates who want to give back to this community will come together to create such a place for us all to enjoy.

brakes.

BAM!!!

You run into the back of a Camry.

Now you’ve caused an acciSamantha dent, and it was all due to your Newman precious text Printz Writer message. Was it really worth it?

We think that we are invincible behind the wheel. “I’m only sending a text message, nothing

will happen in that short amount of time,” we think to ourselves when the cell phone beeps.

But did you know that at 70 miles per hour, taking your eyes off the road for only three seconds, you have covered the length of a football field? That’s pretty far. Anything can happen at that speed in that distance.

While Mississippi doesn’t have a law preventing the use of cell phones while driving, it doesn’t mean the state agrees with or promotes it, either.

It is estimated that cell-phonedistracted drivers are four times more likely to be in a car accident than those paying full attention to the road.

A Harvard University study found that over 200 deaths and half a million injuries a year are caused by people using their cell phones while driving.

How many times has someone pulled out in front of you, swerved over into your lane, or cut you off, only for you to later notice the offending driver had a

cell phone glued to the side of his or her head? Frustrating, isn’t it?

But how many times have you been the phone-distracted driver?

TWD for all drivers has been prohibited in Louisiana. The state even went as far to altogether prohibit the use of cell phones by teens while driving. According to a study by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, people operating hand-held cell phones fill 1 million cars in America.

The study concluded that fe-

male drivers are more likely to operate cell phones while driving more than men are, and the general age bracket is 16-24 years old.

If you have to read or send a text message while you’re behind the wheel, the best advice is to pull over. If you’re not concerned with what could happen to you, at least take into consideration the lives of others on the road.

Madeline Livingston is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

Texting while driving not only dangerous, illegal as well

I

s anyone else as addicted to texting as I am? I think so.

But many of us text-addicts are guilty of texting while driving (TWD).

You’re sitting in traffic and you hear the beep -- it’s a text message. It will only take a minute to read and respond. You know your eyes won’t be on the road, but you check it anyway.

Traffic starts to move and so do you, except with your eyes still stuck on the screen. Suddenly, the car in front of you slams the

Samantha Newman is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

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All applicants must attend

Slaving for the oil

O

ur hands are tainted.

They have taken the color black, covered in what some call “the Devil’s excrement.”

I am talking about that which has made us into slaves, addicted us to its use and power. It is what makes money and what makes the world go round.

I am talking about oil. The black liquid has put towns and cities on the map and made the economy soar, but at the same time has scoured and turned parts of the earth into a literal hell.

Places like Maracaibo, Venezuela and Baku, Azerbaijan are practically uninhabitable. The land is without trees and grass, and the water is a graveyard of dead organisms.

Up until the 1950s, the United States was the largest exporter of oil. Towns like McCamey, Texas boomed in the 1930s and were known nationwide. People thought the oil would never run out, but oil inevitably does.

And the source of the oil is not replenished as often as the wind blows or the sun rises. Presently, the town of McCamey is practically dead in terms of business and number of people.

The oil fields still sit there, but thankfully, the land has not succumbed to the same fate of other regions of the world. Grasslands have taken back the McCamey, but the pumps are still a reminder of the ignorance we had in the past and what some people are just now learning.

About 98 percent of everything made and owned has been affected by oil in some way. I cannot deny that without oil, our technology and livelihood would not be near what it is today, but it is past the time to get away from oil and use renew-

able resources.

We have had the technology for decades. For example, the electric car is beginning to make a comeback, acBrandon cording to GenDrescher eral Motors.

Printz Writer For some reason, people are still desperate to spend enormous amounts of time, money, and management power to search for oil.

Parts of Alberta, Canada have been decimated due to mining the tar sands and squeezing drops of oil from the grains.

Beautiful, lush forests, holding more productivity and aesthetic value than we will ever see from oil, have been completely wiped out. The oil has brought thousands of people to these areas and it begins to look like McCamey, Texas – déjà vu all over again.

The oil will run out and the towns associated with it will die while the original land is lost forever. Not only does oil bring business for a temporary time, but also it is the reason for so many deaths in wars.

We are not in the Middle East looking for weapons of mass destruction; we never were. We were coming to make sure the oil was there for ourselves.

Other than bringing us into the modern age of technology and somewhat improving our lives, I do not see anything else good about oil. It is time to put the use of oil in the history books and try to move on from the damage we have caused to our planet.

Brandon Drescher is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

Thursday, 19,2009 2009|| Page Page 7 5 Tuesday, February January 13,

www.studentprintz.com |Opinions Entertainment

Comprehensive sex education is crucial

 A The

S Serving Southern Miss since 1927 Andy Hess Executive editor Lesley Walters News Editor

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How to reach us Newsroom: 601-266-4266 Executive Editor: 601-266-6431 Publications Manager: 601-266-6746 Newsroom Email: printz@usm.edu Advertising Manager: 601-266-5188 Advertising E-mail: printzad@usm.edu Corrections/Clarifications The Student Printz values accuracy and works diligently to check facts before publication. However, if inaccuracies occur, we want to know. Please report errors to the editor at printz@usm.edu or by calling 601-266-6431 or 601-2664266

llow me for a moment to plunge into your childhood.

To the first time you uncovered the lie of the stork, specifically. Were you one of the lucky whose class split down the gender middle to watch where-did-I-come-from films?

Or perhaps your parents gave you their own, very special version of “the talk.”

As a child whose parents referred her to Merriam-Webster to learn the truth, let me say now that I do not sympathize with you. Clinical definitions of sex are certainly the most scarring.

I apologize for dredging up those better-forgotten memories. Fast-forward: 2009.

By college, I trust you’ve gotten hang of the whole sex thing. At least, you’re fairly

Meryl Dakin

Printz Writer

aware of how to prevent your own bundles of joy.

Then again, do I assume too much? Statistics tell me yes.

Mississippi has the illustrious honor of highest teen birth rate in the nation. That’s birth rate.

Not pregnancy. I’m not sure I want to imagine the numbers on that one.

So where is the disconnect?

At what point between “Ew, sex!” and “OH! Sex!” did we miss the bit about consequences?

That question has recently come up in Mississippi Con-

gress. House Bill 234 proposes introducing comprehensive sex ed to public schools, as opposed to the current abstinence-only programs. The bill passed in the House, and now moves to the Senate for consideration.

The meat of the bill is this: if passed, it allows the Department of Education and Health to try out the program in districts with high pregnancy rates. Especially courageous parents who want the sex talk on their own terms can opt their children out of the program.

Now, this seems like a pretty sweet deal to me. Clearly, we haven’t had too much success with the God-smites-fornicators lesson.

But maybe Uncle Sam should just keep his dirty hands off our angelic youth. Giving them safer ways to have sex just en-

courages them to start., obviously. They’d never have figured it out otherwise, right?

Au contraire, as the beautiful magnolia state has so kindly clarified.

Withholding sexual health information from people doesn’t strike me as prudent or moral.

Years of Bible-Belt education has only resulted in 68 of every 1000 teens becoming ill-prepared parents and having under-privileged children. Worse are the thousands of abortions that arise from “but it was only once, I’m really a good girl” situations.

Don’t get me wrong; in no way am I mocking or discrediting abstinence teaching. Abstinence still boasts 100 percent effectiveness. No contraceptive gives that kind of guarantee. I applaud those who decide

Because we live in the Bible Belt, many kids in Mississippi know that sex outside of marriage is a sin, but the majority is never taught how to abstain from it.

I was one of those kids. I was led through the abstinence program.

And living my life under these fear tactics has led me to see the holes in our abstinence policy.

No matter how great the church’s video games and pizza nights, no matter how alluring the school’s suggestions for alternate activities, sex will always be perceived as more entertaining.

Children all have to face reality one day. Sex is real, the desires are real, and the only way to abstain is to want purity more than a brief moment of fleshy pleasure.

Screaming “hell” over and over again won’t change children’s desires. If we want the next generation to be less pregnant than us in high school, we need something more.

We need to show kids the real God. Not the one who is sitting in heaven with a lightning bolt waiting to smite those who don’t follow all the guidelines, but the one standing there with arms wide open, longing for us to want him more than anything else.

People have to see the appeal of abstaining from sex, not live with the fear of indulging. There is a feeling of joy and peace that comes from pure living that can’t be attained any other way.

Understand though, it’s not

to “save themselves” for their soul-mate.

On the other hand, I’m not naive enough to think that with a little Sunday School injected into the curriculum, everyone will make this choice.

As long as young adults practice personal responsibility, they have my respect as well. However, if people aren’t informed of their options, how can we expect them to make healthy decisions?

Consider calling up your congressman and supporting House Bill 234. Delay the safe sex talk and an entire generation will have to deliver before they’re ready. Our kids will thank us.

This is a column of opinion written

by Printz Opinions Staff Writer Meryl Dakin. Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

Abstinence should be retained, but revised

I

n light of our state’s leading teen pregnancy rates, Mississippi senator David Jordan proposed Senate Bill 2291 at the first of the year.

The bill, which aimed to mandate safe sex discussions in public schools, fortunately died in committee on the third of this month.

Under current requirements left intact after the bill‘s death, most public schools opt to teach abstinence-only curriculums, arguing that students will only use knowledge of safe sex to become promiscuous.

But abstinence education is usually based on fear tactics. In high schools, slideshows showing brutal symptoms of sexually-

Brittney Cooley

Printz Writer

transmitted diseases and stories about teenagers who died while losing their virginity are used to discourage sexual activity.

In many churches, another home of abstinence education, youth are shown skits about people having sex out of wedlock who are now burning in hell.

Isn’t it common sense that repeatedly telling teenagers not to do something only provokes them?

No matter how intimidating the fear factor, it’s not good enough.

game over if you failed to resist temptations in the past. Tomorrow is a new day, and so is every day after that.

We can teach teens all day about abstinence, but the only way for it to truly take effect is to take fear out of it and show them a God who rejoices when we value sex as a sacred act between husband and wife. It’s an addictive feeling to know that the life you live is pleasing to God. If a generation can get hooked on that, teen pregnancy and bills on sex education wouldn’t be an issue.

This is a column of opinion written by Printz Opinions Staff Writer Brittney Cooley. Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

Letter to the Editor: Jayson Newell for Student Government VP The student body at the University of Southern Mississippi has a vital election on Thursday, February 19, 2009. We will be voting in the runoff election for Student Government Association Executive Committee.

I have served the student

body from the Luckyday Scholar program, the Residence Hall Association, and most importantly as a Senior Senator and Senate Pro Temp.

As a Senior Senator and Senate Pro Tempore, I understand the importance of electing qualified and hard

working candidates. In today’s election we will choose the person who will lead the Senate in the future. We must elect the best person for the job, and that person is Jayson Newell.

Jayson will help steer the SGA budget through these difficult times, he will get a

Senate website created that will make the university proud, he will work with the Student Printz to keep you informed, work to reform our outdated SGA Constitution, and make sure you, the students, are heard.

I encourage each of you to go

to the polls today and vote to “renew” your trust in the Student Government Association by voting Jayson Newell for SGA Vice President.

Stephen McCay Senior Senator & Senate Pro Tempore

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Entertainment

Page 6 entertainment@studentprintz.com

Laissez les bons temps roulez: Mardi Gras 2009 NOLA parties up Patrick Laughlin Printz Writer

I’m not particularly prone to homesickness while at school, but when the good times start rolling in New Orleans during the first few weeks of February, I can’t help feeling a little antsy to be in the Crescent City.

True, it’s mainly the homey, small-scale parades that I miss in the weeks leading up to Mardi Gras weekend. For my tastes, it’s hard to beat the family crawfish boils and those raucous little parades where you brush shoulders with friends from your high school days. Though, since college life began, I’ve grown to appreciate packing my Fat Tuesday festivities into one hectic weekend. This year, it’s led me to devise a very ambitious agenda, a Mardi Gras hit list, if you will.

First on my itinerary every year is to assemble my ensemble. This is not as complicated as it might sound, but it does prove crucial to a fun Mardi Gras experience, where, for instance, it might rain something other than beads at a moment’s notice (i.e. beer).

Added to this is the fact that New Orleans weather tends to be just as unpredictable as Mardi Gras, so in either case I always find it helpful to bring a change of clothes. Finally, I always don those trophy beads which I save every year, since I’m old-fashioned and don’t see the merit in buying expensive versions of trinkets that are scooped off the streets on Ash Wednesday with snow shovels.

I’m now ready to hit the streets. The first parade on my schedule is Friday’s Krewe d’Etat, which starts at 6 p.m. in Uptown New Orleans.

D’Etat is famous for its highly satirical floats and its mystery theme, which is kept secret until it rolls.

This Saturday brings the Krewe of Endymion, my yearly go-to parade. Endymion, which is noted for its celebrity guests and exquisite floats, can be best viewed on Canal Street around 5 p.m. This year’s theme is entitled “Tales of Sleep and Dreams.”

The Krewes of Thoth and Bacchus highlight Sunday afternoon, the former rolling at noon and the latter at 5:15 p.m. (A helpful non sequitur for parade-goers: Thoth is not pronounced like it sounds, but rather like “toath,” which is knowledge that could have saved me some embarrassMCT Campus ment my first time seeing the krewe.) Bacchus, which Vincent Carter, Wild Man of the Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians, startles a woman during the Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans on April 28, is renowned for its choice in 2006. celebrity guests, is rumored to for catching the best throws Gretna’s Krewe of Grela on have crowned actor Val Kilm- from Proteus (the second-old- Huey P. Long Avenue around er as this year’s King of Bac- est running parade in New Or- midday. chus. Both are most exciting leans) and Orpheus (Proteus’ I’d love to say that I cap off to see on St. Charles Avenue, floral-themed follow-up). a weekend of revelry devouralthough the crowds that usuMardi Gras day presents a ing a king cake or saunterally gather near the Superior fork in the road for me each ing down Bourbon Street or Grill can be a rowdy bunch. year. The Krewe of Zulu is fulfilling some similar Mardi If crowds are your cup of tea, usually my family’s Fat Tues- Gras custom. But, if last Marthe Avenue is the place to be day haunt. The krewe’s paint- di Gras offers any prediction on Sunday evening. For tired ed coconuts are easily Mardi for this year’s, I’ll most likely parade-goers who want noth- Gras’ most coveted catch, but end up worn out and nodding ing more than to pitch a lawn it is important to remember, off to sleep on the ride back chair and take in Bacchus at however, that this also makes to school next Tuesday night. dusk, the end of the parade the parade the domain of I think it’s the beginning of a route is the place to be. thousands of coconut-crazed new Mardi Gras ritual for me MCT Campus Monday, Lundi Gras, is also drunks and quite a few coco- while I’m in college.

Lana Self of Vancleave, right, and Belida Fisher of Mobile catch throws Tuesday, all about the night parades for nut-related injuries. For a fun TRIM:7.71” Patrick Laughlin is a staff writer for me. Lee’s Circle, at the end of yet more relaxed environment, The Student Printz. Comments can be February 5, 2008, during the Gulf Coast Carnival Association/Neptune Mardi Gras parade in Biloxi, Mississippi. The parade was one of three held in South MissisSt. Charles Avenue, is ideal I have begun to prefer catching sent to printz@usm.edu sippi on the last day of the Carnival season.

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Many people think, because it is home to most things sinful in the South, that New Orleans is the origin and the seat of Mardi Gras. It is, in fact, more appropriate to say that New Orleans has centered itself around Mardi Gras and largely for commercial reasons. The common attitude is also that New Orleans is the best or even the only place to truly experience Mardi Gras, but I’m here to tell you the truth: the Mardi Gras-ians of the Mississippi Gulf Coast and the Mobile Bay area are master revelers and throw fabulous parties and parades. This overview is for all of you who have never heard of Mardi Gras outside of Louisiana, for those who think it must be about as wild as a prayer meeting, and even for those who think you’re intimate with the Coast’s and Bay’s variety of festivals.

First, a bit of history: Mardi Gras in the United States actually began in 1703 in Mobile, Ala., not in New Orleans. From there, it leaked over into the port areas of Louisiana and Mississippi. The Mobile Bay area and the coastal Mississippi cities from Ocean Springs to Waveland are your gotos for parades and parties in this guide.

If you want to experience the finest of Mardi Gras parades, floats, costumes, food, atmosphere, and music, you want to go to Mobile Bay. These folks waste no effort on the visual and audible splendor of their contributions and while they are well aware that over-indulgence in all its forms is vital to Mardi Gras, they put much more emphasis on making the experience safe and entertaining. Read: “safe” does not mean “void of grown-up fun.”

It just means that this is a place where you can enjoy yourself free from the fear that someone is going to threaten your life over a string of plastic beads. Mardi

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Gras in the Mobile Bay area began this year on Feb. 6 and will go until Fat Tuesday, Feb. 24. The best parades, including the Order of Athena and the Kings Parade, run the weekend before and the two weekdays of Mardi Gras in the downtown Mobile area. Mobilebay.org is a great source for parade routes and schedules.

Mardi Gras in Mississippi is more about the opportunity to socialize than the appreciation of quality floats and costumes.

Typically, at Gulf Coast parades, groups of people set up early along the parade routes with flatbeds, pickup trucks, or plastic tables loaded with food and drink. If you don’t go with a group, you can walk the route before the parade until you find a group of people you know. You stand a chance of being absorbed into this group, as long as you arrive bearing some form of edible or potable offering. This year’s festivities have been going on since the end of January, but the best parades are always towards the end of the season. As a Gulf Coast native, I recommend the Pass Parade, the Biloxi parades, and the Gulfport Day and Night parades. The “Pass Parade” is actually the St. Paul’s Carnival Association parade that begins at 1 p.m. this Sunday. The Pass Parade is where you go to relax, eat too much, get a suntan, and be with friends and family. People arrive and begin this process long before the parade actually starts.

The two Biloxi parades begin with the Gulf Coast Carnival Association parade at 1 p.m.

The second Biloxi parade, the Krewe of Neptune, begins right after the first one ends. This experience is marginally more about the parade, but there are definitely stationary route-side parties, too. Individual drifters, though, are more common. Finally, there are the Krewe of Gemini (Gulfport Day and Night) parades that

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www.studentprintz.com www.studentprintz.com | |Entertainment Entertainment

Thursday, 19,2009 2009|| Page Page 7 Tuesday, February January 13,

Scuba Steve plans to make a splash with fashion Samantha Schott Printz Writer

His friends nicknamed him Scuba Steve, in reference to the film “Big Daddy,” because he used to wear goggles in the shower. Now, “Scuba Steve” refers to USM alum Steve Johnson and his clothing line, not just an Adam Sandler reference.

Class of 2008 graduate Steve Johnson had an obsession with Nike basketball shoes when he was younger. This later evolved into a fascination with Ralph Lauren and Gayfers’ clothes, and Johnson remembers the excitement in the air every time he checked out their new products. It was then that he decided he wanted to be a part of it all.

“Practically my whole life I was dreaming about having my own brand,” he said.

Soon after receiving a busi-

ness degree from USM in human resource management and marketing, Johnson developed the idea for his clothing line when his friend visited him at work, bearing a gift: a scuba-diving figurine. “I looked at it from the side and was like, ‘There’s my logo. This would be perfect!’

So I started sketching it out,” he said. Goggle-wearing Johnson decided he would take advantage of his namesake. So when he was fired from his job for refusing to work on the night of Larry Fedora’s first game, it was time to pursue Scuba Steve.

“It’s a really original idea. I thought it was really cool because not only did he get to name it after himself, he got to name it after Big Daddy,” said Johnson’s Hattiesburg representative, Eddie Alexander.

In the movie, Sandler, who plays the role of “Sonny,” uses

Scuba Steve to encourage his son to take a bath. He tells his son, “Julian,” that Scuba Steve is also afraid to take a bath. So Sonny asks Julian to keep him company. Then Sonny creates

the Scuba Squad when he says, “And after your bath, you need to try and study hard because if you want to be in the Scuba Squad, you have to be smart. “ But whether you’re familiar with the movie isn’t crucial to

appreciating Johnson’s line.

“It’s a brand for everybody, and it’s one of those feel good brands, you know?,” Johnson said. “Scuba Steve to me is not a name of a brand you will forget.

Most people either laugh or say, ‘That’s awesome!’ ” J o h n s o n ’s sketch turned into a scuba diver icon now featured on polos, T-shirts, and visors, which can be found at ShopScubaSteve.com. His polos are available in yellow, pink, and green, the visors in blue, khaki, and red, and the T-shirts in gray.

Johnson likely won’t be repeating these colors. “[Johnson]

told me he’s going to make it more like collective items,” Alexander said.” I think that’s pretty cool. It sets it apart from others.”

Through Alexander, Johnson has gotten his brand going at USM. He hired Alexander to promote sales in the area, as a “Scuba Steve College Ambassador,” as Johnson called it. One way the two have spread the word around campus is through Facebook. The group, called Scuba Steve LLC, is up to 460 members. Johnson hopes his line becomes popular with the fraternities and extends from there.

Johnson also has his sights set way higher than just Hattiesburg. “I hope to see my line getting in to specialty stores in the near future,” he said. “I hope to see it catch on not just domestically but internationally.”

So far, so good. An up-andcoming fashion reporter in New York sported a Scuba Steve Tshirt at an artist-signing a week ago. Musician Michael Warren gave Johnson an inspirational piece of advice when Johnson gave him some T-shirts: “He was the first person to tell me, ‘You have something hot right here. Keep it up and never give up,’ ” Johnson recalled. Teyanna Taylor, of MTV “Sweet Sixteen” fame, has been spotted wearing Scuba Steve. “So I have made a few key relationships that has gotten me some buzz out in N.Y.C.,” Johnson said.

With his brand already afloat in New York, it shouldn’t take long for it to take over USM. So tell your friends about Steve Johnson’s “Scuba Squad,” because, like Sandler’s “Big Daddy” chracter said, then “everybody’s gonna wanna to join!”

COASTcontinued from page 6 go through downtown Gulfport. The Gulfport Day parade is Feb. 21 at 2 p.m., and the Night parade is at 6 p.m. on February 24. These two parades have the least group partying, but most people go with family or friends. The focus is more on the floats and throws, and revelers stand or sit along the routes. Getting to the Gulfport parades early is mostly about finding good parking. Go to gulf-coast.com

for scheduling and routes.

This Mardi Gras, save that ten dollars you would have used to park in New Orleans, put away the taser and call off the bodyguards you were going to take to protect yourself, swap some flip flops for the rubber boots you would have needed to walk on Bourbon Street, and come have yourself a fabulous Fat Tuesday in the Bay or on the Coast.

MCT Campus

Mardi Gras Revelers are showered by streamers shot from City Hall on Tuesday, February 5, 2008, during the Gulf Coast Carnival Association/Neptune Mardi Gras parade in Biloxi, Mississippi. The parade was one of three held in South Mississippi on the last day of the Carnival season.

A model sports a polo style shirt with the Scuba Steve symbol.

SGA Executive Of�icer Elections for SGA Vice President, SGA Attorney General, and SGA Elections Commissioner

SGA Executive Officer Elections Elections: Feb. 19

Vote in the Thad Cochran Center, Cook Library, Liberal Arts Building (LAB), FYE Classroom from 8:30am-4:00pm

Courtesy of Martin Cohen

Sports

Page 8 sports@studentprintz.com

Play ball!

Tyler Cleveland Sports Editor

Beat the drum and hold the phone – baseball season is here again.

The 2009 Golden Eagles will begin their baseball campaign Friday, when they host the Lehigh Mountain Hawks at 4 p.m. at Pete Taylor Park.

Eagle coach Corky Palmer isn’t beating around the bush, giving junior pitching ace Todd McInnis, a right-hander, the start on opening day.

Palmer said that he will likely use junior college transfers to round out the weekend rotation, using lefty Cody Schlagel on Saturday and Scott Copeland on Sunday.

Moses Munoz, another junior college pitcher from San Antonio, Texas, is probably going to factor into the rotation at some point, but is expected to miss at least the first five games with a sports hernia.

“It was still up in the air as to what our rotation would be this weekend,” Palmer said. “But when we got into team workouts and Moses couldn’t go, that pretty much settled it.”

With the Bisons likely to start hard-throwing left-hander Gregory Angelo, the Eagles are going right-handed bat-heavy.

Palmer talked about his starting lineup for the weekend, and again mentioned how much flexibility he has with his new players.

Palmer said that junior college transfers would play a big role in the infield, with Travis Graves starting at catcher, and Jeremy Archer likely getting the nod at first base.

The middle infield will be manned by all-everything candidates Brian Dozier and James Ewing, while juco transfer Taylor Walker will likely start at third base.

Palmer said that junior Kyle Maxie and senior Corey Stevens would likely share the designated

hitter’s role, depending on the matchup.

The outfield picture is a little clearer, with Bo Davis starting in centerfield, Michael Ewing starting in left, and Tyler Koelling and Kameron Brunty sharing the load in right field.

One thing the Eagles have this year that they didn’t have last season is depth in the pitching rotation. Palmer said he liked what he saw out of J.R. Ballinger, a junior who could work his way into the starting lineup out of the bullpen. Kyle Lindsey, Seth Hester and Munoz (when healthy) should round out the rotation.

“I’m cautiously optimistic,” Palmer said. “We have a couple guys coming back that have been with us a long time, and they’ve had good spring practices.

“On paper, talent looks good, but we still have a lot of inexperience. We may not know exactly what we have until 10 to 15 games in.”

Christopher Bostick/Printz

Golden Eagles relieve pitcher Wade Weathers, a senior from Quitman, Miss works on his pitching during practice.

Eagles snap losing streak 69-59 Tyler Cleveland Sports Editor

After falling in their past three games by a total of 58 points, the Southern Miss Golden Eagles took out some frustration in a 6959 win over East Carolina Tuesday at Reed Green Coliseum to snap a five game losing streak.

Jeremy Wise recorded his first double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and senior Craig Craft added 11 points and 12 rebounds. Sophomore R.L. Horton led all scorers with 20.

“I know it seemed like we played harder tonight, but I think we played at or near this level all the time,” Southern Miss coach Larry Eustachy said. “This team just lacks confidence, and we weren’t going to be very confident after losing five games in a row.”

The Golden Eagles jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the opening minutes and were not slowing up a bit when East Carolina finally took a timeout with 11:27 to go and the Eagles up 18-6.

The Eagles eventually stretched their lead to 40-25, and a missed 3-pointer from Horton sent the Eagles into the half with the com-

David N. Jackson/Printz

Jeremy Wise, a junior guard from Jackson, squeezes a layup by East Carolina guard Jontae Sherrod. The Golden Eagles won 69-59.

Softball vs. Nichols State, 4:30 p.m., USM Softball Complex Softball vs. South Alabama, 7 p.m., USM Softball Complex

Today

Women’s basketball vs. Tulane, 7 p.m., New Orleans, La.

Friday

Women’s basketball vs. UTEP, 8:05 p.m., El Paso, Texas

Sunday

Baseball vs. Lehigh, 11 a.m., Pete Taylor Park

Men’s Tennis vs. Troy, 3 p.m., Hattiesburg Country Club

Women’s tennis vs. Alabama, 2 p.m., Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Baseball vs. Lehigh, 4 p.m., Pete Taylor Park

Softball vs. Alabama State, 4:30 p.m., USM Softball Complex

Track in LSU Purple Tiger Invitational, All day, Baton Rouge, La.

Softball vs. La. Tech, 7 p.m., USM Softball Complex

Saturday

Monday

Men’s basketball at UAB, 1 p.m., Birmingham, Ala.

Men’s golf in Rio Pinar Intercollegiate, All day, Orlando, Fla.

Baseball vs. Lehigh, 3 p.m., Pete Taylor Park

Women’s golf in Baja Invitational, All day, Baja, Mexico

fy 15-point lead.

“We were definitely taking out some frustration in that first half,” Horton said. “You could tell that we were all ready to get out there and put on a show like that because of the past few games.”

As good as the first half was for the Eagles, it looked for a while in the second half that it would end with a familiar story - with the Eagles fading down the stretch.

East Carolina’s Chad Hinnant hit a pair of wide-open 3-point shots and suddenly the Eagle lead was down to four.

That’s when Eustachy called a full timeout.

“It was like here-we-go-again,” Horton said. “Coach (Eustachy) called timeout, and reminded us that this is what we’ve been doing game after game and let us know we couldn’t do that again tonight, and we finally responded.”

Courtney Beasley came out of the timeout and made two quick jumpers, and Horton followed suit with two more to put the Eagles up 67-53. Craft’s 19-foot jumper from the baseline with 1:17 to go sealed the game, giving the Eagles their final total of 69. “(At the timeout) I told the guys ‘Hey, this is where we usually hang our heads and lose the ballgame,’” Eustachy said. “We

David N. Jackson/Printz

R.L Horton, a sophomore guard from Jackson, jumps back and sinks one over several ECU players. Horton scored 15 points in the first half and led the team with 20 points total.

knew we had to get it going and play like the team that we are and they did.”

The Eagles advanced to 14-11 overall and 4-7 in Conference USA play with the win. East Car-

olina fell to 13-12 and 5-7.

Southern Miss will try to build on the win when they travel to Birmingham, Ala., to take on UAB on Saturday. Tip off is set for 1 p.m.

Students react to arrests Tyler Cleveland Sports Editor

Three days after the news broke that Southern Miss football players Damion Fletcher and Brennan Houston had been arrested, USM students were still confused and angry about the whole situation.

Some want Fletcher to issue an apology, others want him reprimanded by the Golden Eagle coaching staff, but almost everyone contacted wants an answer to the question “why?”

Chris Walker, a senior business major from Crystal Springs said he was shocked at the news when he woke up Monday morning.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t expect that from Damion Fletcher, he seemed like the most composed player on the team to me,” Walker said. “It didn’t seem like he would do that kind of thing.

“I wouldn’t be mad if they didn’t suspend him, but I expect coach Fedora to do something to make a statement that he doesn’t want that to keep

Damion Fletcher

Brennan Houston

happening.”

Johnathan Lazzarino, a senior history major from Columbia, has a plan to try to get Fletcher back into good graces with the coaches and fans.

“If I were the coach, I would have him do some kind of community service to promote gun safety,” Lazzarino said. “I would also have him go around to the people around the complex who he might have frightened and apologize. He shouldn’t own a

gun after this.”

Nobody contacted said they thought Fletcher should be

running back

offensive linemen

booted from the team, but some fans seemed quick to come down on the coaching staff if nothing is done.

“He’s really good, so I don’t think they will kick him off the team,” USM alum Lindsey Kirk said. “It’s just crazy, I feel like Jeff Bower would have put his foot down on this already.”

“My gut feeling is that they have to suspend him for at least one game -- at least,” senior business major Garrett Pace of Pascagoula said. “I was doing some research yesterday and he’s like the No. 8 running back in the draft, and now he goes and does something as stupid as this? It just doesn’t make any sense to me.”

For a student reaction video, check out studentprintz.com