November_13_2008

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Serving Southern Miss since 1927

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Volume 93, Issue 25

International week highlights foreign culture Sophie McNeil Printz Writer

To help students learn more about all of the study abroad opportunities, International Programs is holding International Education Week on the University of Southern Mississippi’s campus through Nov. 20.

Cosponsored by the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of State, dates

for the week are set each year by the U.S. Department of Education.

“We use that as an opportunity to celebrate our culture and international education programs here (at USM),” said director of International Programs, Susan Steen.

International Education Week will show different facets of study abroad programs from international cuisine, music, and even presentations from the USM faculty members that

teach different programs.

This year, International Programs is highlighting their shorter two-week to six-week programs that are generally held during the winter intersession or summer session. Most of the summer programs are led by solely by faculty members at USM and cover almost all majors.

Events for the week began Wednesday with “An Evening of Irish Songs and Stories” with Brendan Nolan in the Peck

House Annex on Pearl St. from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. The event is $10 dollars and $8 for students.

An International Food Fair today at the Baptist Student Center will provide a taste of foreign cuisine with food created

by USM’s own international students. The English Language Institute is also helping to sponsor this event, which is open to everyone. A $2 donation is suggested at the door, said Holly Buckner, coordinator for International Programs.

“If you haven’t been there, the food is phenomenal,” said graduate student Megan Watts.

Wednedsay, a study abroad fair will highlight the different study abroad programs with former students and teachers telling about their experiences.

Professors such as Dan Capper, Ed Hafer, Elixenia Biron and Tim Rehner will all be speaking throughout the day about their various programs around the world.

Students will also be able

to submit votes for their favorite photo submitted by USM students in the Cultural Perspectives Photo Contest.

A panel of judges will review the submitted photos for prizes as well as a Students’ Choice winner.

To end the week, the department of foreign languages and literatures will host an event to celebrate foreign culture and languages with karaoke, food and a Latin American dance workshop.

DOWN TO THE WIRE Sebe Dale IV/Printz

Londonʼs Big Ben and the House of Parliament overlook the River Thames in London, England. USMʼs International Education Program kicks off their spring recruitment for their abroad programs.

Week kicks off abroad recruitment Sophie McNeil Printz Writer

Photo courtesy of Media Relations

Junior runningback Damion Fletcher runs through a pack of East Carolina defenders during last yearʼs game where the Golden Eagles won 28-21 in a late win. The Golden Eagles have to win the rest of their games to keep their streak of 14 straight winning seasons alive. For a preview of the game check out page 8.

Professor examines exit poll results Meryl Dakin Printz Writer

With the ballots cast and the votes tallied, who still cares about the detailed election results? Professor Allen McBride, professor and chair of the political science department, posed a deeper question to his research method students: what can we learn from the details?

The class conducted a survey of 100 and 200 level political science classes just before Election Day.

McBride says the poll was part of a project for the students to practice “thinking about a research question, creating a research protocol, and administering the protocol to respondents.”

McBride said the questions were selected based on how political communication affected a voter’s decision process. The questions on the survey ranged from the standard to the unusual. For instance, students were asked, “Which T.V. news programs do you watch regularly,” and selections included talk show hosts Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Sean

Hannity.

While some answers were expected, others surprised and even confused the research students, McBride said. The results did provide some perspective, however, in the way some voters think and how their decisions are influenced.

Using the talk show example, results showed that while only 23 percent of Stewart fans voted for Mc-

See RESULTS page 3

Struggling economy hurts, helps students Students seek relief in struggling economy

Visits home, trips eased with pump prices

John Adam Hackney

Craig McNeese

Printz Writer

Printz Writer

How’s a poor college student supposed to have any fun with an empty pocketbook and the economy in a downward spiral?

“Even though the economy is in a rollercoaster state, people are going to go out and spend money to have fun,” said Richard Franks, a USM senior coaching administration major. “I mean what is college

without having fun and making memories?”

Samson Whitfield, a junior coaching administration major said he has found golf to be “one of the cheapest, fun things you can get outdoors and do with your friends.”

See RELIEF page 3

With gas prices at a three-year low, some students are breathing a sigh of relief while keeping a wary eye on pump prices in the Hattiesburg area.

“I worry about gas prices because when gas goes up, everything around me seems to get more expensive,” said Jimmy Driskell, a senior geology major from Alabama.

The American Auto Association’s

daily fuel gauge list Monday put the average price of a gallon of unleaded gas in Mississippi at $2.076 a gallon.

When school started at USM this fall, gas prices were on the rise. As the price per gallon approached $4, many students adjusted their driving habits to avoid pumping $40 or $50 a week

See PUMP page 3

India, Austrailia, Jamaica, Vietnam, even the Galapagos Islands -- the University of Southern Mississippi’s International Program offers opportunities for students to visit several exotic locations.

“We set up international education opportunities throughout all majors for two weeks, six weeks, semester, year. We try to offer a nice variety,” said Holly Buckner, International Programs Coordinator.

From Calcutta to New Delhi, the study abroad course in India will cover many different types of religion with Dan Capper, one of USM’s religion professors, in May. The program first began with a summer in Tibet, but had to be moved to a different country because China has closed Tibet to foreigners during a time of political unrest.

“We will be visiting holy sites for Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, and Christians, sometimes all in a single day,” Capper said. “In this way, students will get a chance to experience the interactions between religions in a close and personal way.”

Capper believes this is a rare opportunity that not many students get to experience, since there are not many other study abroad programs available in India.

“Some students rightly seem to be captivated by the multifaceted and exotic culture of India,” Capper said. “Other students who previously went to Tibet are happy to have a new place in Asia which they can visit.”

British Studies will offer a wide variety of courses from physics to the music industry. Now in its 33rd year, the British Studies program is one of the largest of its kind in the nation. “[British Studies] was probably my most valuable academic experience at Southern Miss. I can’t speak more highly of it,” said Megan Watts, public relations graduate student and student worker for International Programs.

She attended the British journalism program in 2005.

But International Studies does not end with

See ABROAD page 2

Page 2|News

www.studentprintz.com | Thursday, November 13, 2008

ABROAD continued from page one summer programs. Other programs include a fall semester in Granada, Spain and a spring semester at USM’s own Abbey program in Pontlevoy, France.

Kaycie Hall, a junior English and French double major from Flowood, attended the Abbey program in spring. She said the program offered more than a perspective of foreign culture by being academically beneficial as well.

“It was the only program that offered core classes and upper level classes for both of my

majors,” said Hall.

The USM student said she also enjoyed the convenience of having classrooms literally down the stairs from her housing.

Another thing Hall loved about her experience: Paris week.

“All of our professors went to Paris with us for one week, and we had interactive classes according to the subject,” She said. “I went to Versailles, the Louvre and French plays with my professors, and it was a great learning experience.”

CampusEvents

Sebe Dale IV/Printz

TODAY All Day -- “Breaking the Veils: Women Artists from the Islamic World” -- Hattiesburg Train Depot 10 a.m. -- Free November Festival, exhibition -- Museum of Art 11:45 a.m. -- Wesley Foundation Thursday Lunch -- Wesley Foundation 4 p.m. -- Fourth Annual Nau Memorial Lecture -- LAB, Room 101 7:30 p.m. -- Theatre presents “The Cherry Orchard” by Anton Chekhov -- Martha R. Tatum Theatre 7:30 p.m. -- Southern Opera and Musical Theatre Company presents “Company” -- Mannoni Performing Arts Center TOMORROW All Day -- “Breaking the Veils: Women Artists from the Islamic World” -- Hattiesburg Train Depot 9 a.m. -- Southern Miss School of Mass Communication and Journalism Symposium/Hall of Fame Induction -- TCC Room 216 10 a.m. -- Free November Festival, exhibition -- Museum of Art 12 p.m. -- Women’s Basketball @ Sam Houston State -Huntsville, Texas 6 p.m. -- Patrick Darby Trumpet Recital -- Marsh Auditorium 7:30 p.m. -- Theatre presents “The Cherry Orchard” by Anton Chekhov -- Martha R. Tatum Theatre 7:30 p.m. -- Southern Opera and Musical Theatre Company presents “Company” -- Mannoni Performing Arts Center

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SATURDAY All Day -- “Breaking the Veils: Women Artists from the Islamic World” -- Hattiesburg Train Depot 10 a.m. -- Free November Festival, exhibition -- Museum of Art 2 p.m. -- Football v. East Carolina -- M.M. Roberts Stadium 7 p.m. -- Men’s Basketball v. Loyola (New Orleans) -- Reed Green Coliseum 7 p.m. -- Volleyball @ UCF -- Orlando, Fla. SUNDAY All Day -- “Breaking the Veils: Women Artists from the Islamic World” -- Hattiesburg Train Depot 2 p.m. -- Theatre presents “The Cherry Orchard” by Anton Chekhov -- Martha R. Tatum Theatre 2 p.m. -- Southern Opera and Musical Theatre Company presents “Company” -- Mannoni Performing Arts Center 6 p.m. -- Tuba/Euphonium Chamber Recital -- Marsh Auditorium MONDAY All Day -- “Breaking the Veils: Women Artists from the Islamic World” -- Hattiesburg Train Depot 4 p.m. -- Bill Rose DMA Trumpet Chamber Recital -- Marsh Auditorium 7 p.m. -- Women’s Basketball v. Tennessee State -- Reed Green Coliseum 8:30 p.m. -- Hsiaopel Lee Viola Faculty Recital -- Marsh Auditorium

www.studentprintz.com|News

Thursday, November 13, 2008 | Page 3

RESULTS continued from page one

PUMP continued from page one

Cain, 41 percent of Colbert fans voted on the Republican ticket.

“We haven’t done a full analysis yet, but the Colbert finding is a bit of surprise,” McBride said.

“It seems plausible that some people who watch him may not have figured out that he is a lefty passing as a righty.”

Another interesting find was the discrepancy between those who classified themselves as “independent” and those who considered themselves a “moderate.” Results showed that more independents voted McCain, but more moderates voted Obama.

These correlated with the CNN. com exit polls in Mississippi, which showed that 55 percent of moderates voted for Obama and 63 percent of independents voted for McCain.

McBride explained the perceived difference between the two, saying that independents are people who tend to be relatively uninvolved in politics, while moderates may just be torn between political value systems.

“It may sound a bit glib but the

into their gas tank.

Ryan Mottley, a sophomore computer science major from Hawaii, said he has taken extra precautions when buying gas.

“I tried not to drive as much when the prices were around $4 a gallon,” he said. “But when I had to fill up, I’d buy a full tank.”

Since Mottley’s home is in Hawaii, he is not one of those students who heads home every weekend. But instead of going home to Alabama to see friends and family every weekend, Driskell said he has limited his visits to “two or three times a semester.”

Earl LaGraizer III, a senior hospitality management from Mandeville, La., said receding gas prices allow him to visit family every two weeks, which is more often than when pump prices approached $4 a gallon.

Lacey Blankenship, a sophomore biology major from Leroy, Ala., likes to travel the two hours home on weekends when she can. But a busy schedule coupled with higher gas prices has kept her on campus more this fall.

“I’m usually pretty busy, so going home was rare for me,” she said. “But my parents would help to send me gas money because they wanted to see me even when gas prices were pretty high.”

message of McCain that Obama was untrustworthy, a potential terrorist, a Muslim, etc.” McBride added, “may have resonated more with independents who not only pay only little attention but may be less well-educated and not sophisticated enough to sort out truth from fiction.”

The class’ survey also explored race in voting demographics. According to the survey, 24 percent of whites voted for Obama, while 93 percent of blacks voted for Obama. The gap is magnified further in CNN.com’s Mississippi results, which say that only 11 percent of whites voted for Obama while 98 percent of blacks voted for him. Nationally, polls still read that 95 percent of blacks voted for Obama, along with 43 percent of whites.

McBride’s conclusion is simple: in the south, even on USM’s campus, racism is still prevalent.

“It also goes without saying that Mississippi is equally divided along race and party lines,” McBride added. “Whites tend to be Republican and blacks are

overwhelmingly Democratic.”

The USM survey broke from CNN.com’s Mississippi results on the subject of gender. In the tested classes, males were evenly divided over the candidates, while Obama took a slight lead among women. Statewide, McCain won men over by a landslide, while Obama trailed by 6 percent among women, the CNN. com poll read.

“A pattern has developed over the past several decades with women -- especially black women -- finding the message of the Democratic Party the most attractive,” McBride added.

According to national polls, Obama clearly gained the majority of both men and women.

But, supporting McBride’s observation, women tended to favor Obama more than their male counterparts did.

McBride said that his students will be able to use the data set from the survey next semester in their data analysis course to help them begin to develop data analysis skills.

RELIEF continued from page one “It is the best way to spend three to four hours one afternoon goofing off and drinking with your buddies while being competitive and showing off your golf skills,” Whitfield said.

“The economy hasn’t hindered my buddies and I from going out to the course,” said Chad Matthews, a junior construction engineering major from Jackson.

“Weather permitting, we get a foursome out to the links to play 18 holes at least once a week.”

Timberton Golf Club’s daily guest rate for golfers is $59.

Golfers who play with a member of the club get a 40 percent discount on that fee.

At Shadow Ridge Golf Course, student discounts are available with ID Monday through Friday.

The cost to play 18 holes during the week is $12 dollars, or $25 to include a golf cart. On Saturday or Sunday, students can golf at Shadow Ridge for $17, or $30 with a cart.

Other sports enthusiasts, like Derek Adams, a sophomore administration of justice major, can find free and friendly competition on campus.

“I find that participating in the intramural sports on campus is fun, competitive and -- most important -- it’s free, so I don’t spend a penny to be involved,” Adams said.

Many bars around town now cater to the college student’s thinning wallet by offering discount deals on drinks. The Hunt Club hosts $15 all-you-candrink nights and Mugshots offers 25-cent liquor or 10-cent draft beer specials.

“We (Mugshots) began the 25and 10-cent drink specials over the summer to try to bring in more people while everyone was out of town during the break,” says Phill Ducomb, Mugshots security guard. “And management decided to keep it around due to the good turnout every week, and also

to take some stress off students checkbooks as well.”

Other students alleviate tightening pocketbooks by spending time at home instead of money out on the town.

Anna Bankston, a junior elementary education major, said her late nights are dictated more by homework than a declining bank account. Even when the homework is done, Bankston said there is plenty of fun to be had at home.

“If people want to go out, then they will find a way to scrape together what they have and make it out to hang with friends at a bar,” adds Bankston. “At the same time, girls can go get a cheap box of wine and sit around and watch girly movies, and guys can get a couple cases of beer and watch football on television as well. It’s all about what your preferred scene is really.”

NAACP enraged by negative Obama grafitti, seeks expulsion Jay Price McClatchy Newspapers

RALEIGH, N.C. _ State leaders of the NAACP presented North Carolina State University Chancellor James L. Oblinger with a list of demands during a closed-door meeting Wednesday about racist and threatening slogans painted in the campus free expression tunnel after the presidential election last week.

They want the entire university system to establish clear policies against such acts, and for NCSU in particular to start mandatory diversity training for freshmen and to expel the four students who confessed in the incident.

In a news conference after the 90-minute meeting, NAACP officials called the slogans terrorism and racebased threats rather than graffiti. They compared the situation with Virginia Tech before the shootings there in April 2007 that left 32 dead, when faculty missed warning signs that a student was dangerous.

The NCSU student body doesn’t know who the students responsible for the graffiti are or if they are still on campus because the university is withholding their names. The Rev. William J. Barber II, the state’s NAACP president, said his group had met with hundreds of students the night before who feared for their

safety. Some were even afraid to wear an “Obama” button, said Chapel Hill civil rights attorney Al McSurely, who accompanied the NAACP leaders.

Barber said the slogans weren’t legal.

“It’s wrong, it’s ugly, it’s vile, and it’s not protected by freedom of speech,” he said.

University police had to call in the U.S. Secret Service to investigate the incident because it included a threat to Presidentelect Barack Obama.

Within hours, four students were identified with the help of video surveillance images and confessed. University police and secret service agents questioned them, and federal agents searched their homes and computers.

University police said last week that federal agents decided there was no serious threat to Obama, and that the Wake County district attorney’s office had said there didn’t appear to be any state crime, in part because the words had been painted in a tunnel where graffiti is encouraged.

Barber said NAACP leaders planned to seek a meeting with UNC system president Erskine Bowles next week. As for their demands of NCSU, they gave Oblinger 48 hours to respond.

After the meeting, Oblinger gave only a brief statement and took no questions.

“I believe we had a positive meeting,” he said. “I believe

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both sides understand the situation from each other’s perspective and we’re moving forward.”

Keith Nichols, a university spokesman, said NCSU leaders were pulling together a task force to examine diversity issues. Oblinger hadn’t given it marching orders yet, he said, but it would likely perform a broad review.

Maritza Adonis, an NCSU student senate member who attended the meeting with Oblinger, said she planned to introduce a bill Wednesday night to establish policy defining hate crimes and making them punishable by expulsion. The bill would also urge the university to expel the four students involved in last week’s incident.

NAACP officials revealed that the words painted on the tunnel were more explicit than a university police spokesman indicated last week. They showed a photo of one part of the graffiti that read “Let’s shoot that n----- in the head,” and said there also was the slogan “Hang Obama by a Noose” and references to the Ku Klux Klan.

In an interview Tuesday, Oblinger said the university wouldn’t release the video used to identify the students who painted the graffiti because it was part of an investigation into whether the students broke university policies.

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Opinions

Page 4 opinion@studentprintz.com www.studentprintz.com

Long road lies ahead

H

istory was made last week when Americans all over the country elected Sen. Barack Obama to the presidency. Any presidential election will go down in history books, but this one is especially important, because it is the first time a man who is not white will serve as president. As Americans, we should all be proud that our country is able to see past color lines and democratically elect the best candidate for the job—right?

Wrong.

Over the past 9 days, I have been utterly shocked by the racism I have witnessed Olivia from my so-called friends and family members. Our president-elect is not a white Lightsey man, therefore people are absolutely freaking out, and for no good reason.

Printz Writer If you don’t like Sen. Obama because of his platforms, or his policies, or because he’s a Democrat, then so be it. That’s your prerogative, and I totally respect that. However, if you are one of those people who refused to vote for Obama simply because his skin is not white, then I have no respect for you.

When Obama was proclaimed the winner last Tuesday night, I checked Facebook to see what my friends were saying about the election results. Bad idea. People that I considered my “true friends” deeply disturbed me with their racist statuses and comments. One friend didn’t “understand how this could happen,” then credited it to “the people’s ignorance.” Another friend “can’t stand all the people who voted for Obama just because he’s BLACK.” What about the people who voted for McCain just because he’s white? Aren’t they equally racist?

Barack Obama represents the melting pot of America. He has a mixed heritage, like the vast majority of us. We all say something like, “I’m German, French, and Scottish” instead of, “I’m American,” even if we are American citizens whose family has been in this country for generations. Barack Obama is an American. He is not Arabic, and he will not discriminate against white people just because we’re white.

Many people are discovering things about themselves that they did not know. They are finding that they are scared of living in a country led by a black man, regardless of his qualifications. They are discovering their inner hate and racism. But the White House is not about to get “painted black,” no one is planting a “watermelon patch” in place of the rose garden, and Barack Obama is not going to neglect the white constituency.

Too many concerns for the coming years are based on Obama’s skin color instead of his policies, and it is utterly ridiculous. Racism has no place in American democracy. If you have a legitimate reason to dislike an entire group of people based solely on the color of their skin, I want you to email me at o.lightsey@yahoo.com. I need you to explain this phenomenon to me, because I simply cannot understand it. Otherwise, get over your racist ignorance and start supporting our new president, because like it or not, he’ll be serving us for the next four years.

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

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Room 013, Southern Hall

Outsourcing not the way to go Michael Thornton

one can acquire on $3 per day.

This is strictly economic. So, the other 8 Printz Writer employees-honest, hard working Americans-try to find employment and find themselves deeper ’ve decided to take this economic crisis and and deeper in debt until they can no longer afford turn it into a bittersweet comedy. Really, how ThisPlant, Inc.’s products. And you can forget the else can we get through the days ahead? foreign workers putting their money back into the It’s just awesome to me that a huge reason we’re plant. ThisPlant, Inc. announces having to close in this mess to begin with is the lack of income and 600 stores nationwide. The punchline? We’re employment for our (huge) population, and no one surprised. has suggested that the corporate giants bring our jobs At least Wal-Mart’s doing well. Right? back from China In case it’s and India. Not to still unclear, I’ve mention from the composed a letter computers.

I’ve decided to take this economic crisis that I think sums up I’m not and turn it into a bittersweet comedy. my point: racist or antiReally, how else can we get through the Dear Corporate modernization, days ahead?

Retailers: Surprise!

I’m just trying Sending jobs to be logical. To overseas means bring it down to scale: 10 Americans rely on the that: a) you save some money (when you weren’t American corporation ThisPlant, Inc. for their daily hurting for it in the first place) in the short run, bread. ThisPlant, Inc. discovers that it only has to b) Americans lose jobs, and eventually get to the pay workers in third world countries $3 per day, point where we can no longer afford to shop in where the American workforce demands minimum your stores, and c) your decision to outsource jobs wage. reveals itself to have been you shooting yourself in With the exception of two workers, ThisPlant, the foot! You might as well have hung a sign that Inc. fires all of its American employees and said, “Just go to Wal-Mart; soon it’ll be the only replaces them with foreign outsourcing. This is not place you can afford anyway!” Happy Holidays, a humanitarian argument. I’m not even going to go The Labor Force. into the working conditions and child labor in third- Michael Thornton is a staff writer for The Student Printz. world countries plus the pathetic living conditions Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

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www.studentprintz.com|Opinion

Thursday, November 13, 2008| Page 5

Balance needed between military and diplomacy Sarah F. Coleman Printz Writer

I

n a recent New York Times article the paper reported that the United States military has been secretly authorized to attack wherever we think Al Qaeda exists. This can be anywhere in the world, including countries not at war with the United States.

Nearly a dozen of these previously disclosed attacks have been carried out since former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld authorized them.

At first this seemed—for lack of a better word—shady. When you give the military the authorization to attack countries not at war with us with a limited amount of intelligence on whether or not Al Qaeda is there, you begin to

embark on a slippery slope. Upon first glance, I wondered: does this mean the United States could potentially justify attacking anyone, anywhere, just by saying we “think” there could be a few members of Al Qaeda there?

There are a lot of questions that need to be asked about this procedure that has been going on for a majority of President Bush’s second term. Perhaps that’s why this news is only being released now. However, I’m not going to say that Rumsfeld’s authorization of these secret attacks was completely unjustified.

We as a nation, as well as a military power, surely need covert intelligence capability to some degree.

In fact, we probably could have used better intelligence in some cases, such as immediately before Septem-

ber 11th, and when the United States thought Saddam Hussein definitely had weapons of mass destruction.

In addition, sometimes the old method of one-country-against-another just won’t cut it. The “war on terror” isn’t against any particular nation. Terrorists hang out in nations all over the world. It has been, and it will continue to be, necessary to sometimes covertly wipe out a “nest” of Al Qaeda terrorists in a country with which the United States isn’t at war.

However, that being said, it is imperative that the United States act very carefully when carrying out these secret attacks in places where Al Qaeda “might be.” If the United States decides it’s okay to spy and perform other secret operations in all these other countries, then these same coun-

tries will likely decide that they are justified in doing the same thing to us.

And how are they not justified?

When this begins to happen, what will become of the levels of trust between the United States and, for example, Pakistan, Israel, or Turkey? At this stage in the war on terror, the last thing we need is for these countries to feel cheated by us and our activities.

I feel like I’ve been going back and forth on the issue. That’s because there really is no black or white answer to whether or not the U.S. should continue to secretly invade other nations where we believe Al Qaeda could be. Operations like this carry huge risks, both strategically and diplomatically, so we must use extreme caution. However, since this is the “war on terror,” we can’t be naïve

Letters to the Editor

Little research went into editorial

I

am one of the directors of Eaglepalooza writing in response to the article in last Thursday’s paper.

I am curious as to how much research, if any, went into the writing of this article or if The Student Printz will ever be pleased with anything the University does.

First let me begin with the purpose of Eaglepalooza. It started six years ago as a way to unite students with downtown Hattiesburg. It is also the same weekend as the Black and Gold football game, giving prospective students something to do the whole weekend.

By bringing this Friday Night at the Fountain off campus, prospective students who attend the game would get a chance to experience not only the campus, but downtown Hattiesburg as well.

We do advertise the event in local high schools and have worked with admissions in the past in order to make it a successful recruitment tool.

The Student Government Association also realizes that this event does cater to current students as well as prospective.

Any student is allowed to help with the event or even hold the director position. It is part of the SGA president’s cabinet and the position is fair game to anyone who applies.

We do want this event to please the majority of the campus but doing that does not come easily. The idea of polling the student body has come up when planning; however, it has not been executed for several reasons.

The main reason being, the process of booking a band is very tedious and requires much more understanding of the process then people think. I understand $50,000 sounds like a ton of money, but only half of that is spent on talent. That $50,000 must provide sound, lighting, promotions, transportation, rooms for the artists, tshirt, and so much more.

When we subtract our expenses we are left with about $25,000 (plus the sponsorship money we are blessed with) to spend on the actual artist.

This may come as a shock to many people but finding a big named band for less than $50,000 is almost unheard of.

If we were to poll the student body, which we have tried on a small scale through “Talk to me Tuesdays” (the meet and greets put on by SGA), the responses we get are Chris Brown, Justin Timberlake, Lil’ Wayne and others of that status which get paid around $100,000 +.

As much as I would LOVE for Chris Brown to headline Eaglepalooza, the bottom line

is we just do not have the funds. This is Eaglepalooza’s sixth year; it is still a fairly new event. As the years go on, maybe we will raise more money in order to make this possible but as of right now we do what we can with what we have.

I do agree with the comment “one’s trash may be another’s treasure”. The end of my freshmen year, I sat in the SGA President’s debate and listened as one of the hot topics was Eaglepalooza. One of the biggest concerns was the fact that it has not been diverse and students wanted to see hip-hop acts.

I worked on the Eaglepalooza committee under Ethan Bratton (Director 2006) and watched him get the students what they asked for.

That was the year Mya preformed. Once I was appointed co-director with Anne’ Stackel, we booked Eve and Robert Randolph and the Family Band based on requests of the students.

This year, we have had requests for different genres and have tried to go in a new direction. Either way it goes, someone is not going to be thrilled with the lineup and someone will thank us for bringing in their favorite band.

All I can say is if you are

Campus dining not that bad

A

fter reading the article about the FFC not being so “fresh”, I felt that it was my duty to respond to said article.

While the chicken breast incident is slightly worrisome, chances are the area on the counter it toppled onto probably wasn’t as “corrupted” as Mr. Nunnery probably thinks.

Those surfaces are sanitized with a solution that kills everything from e-coli to salmonella.

I am a licensed food safety manager through the Jefferson County Alabama Health Department. . . just in case you are unaware of Jefferson County, it is where Birmingham is located.

As someone who attended culinary school before coming to Southern Miss, I can tell you that the food, on average in the FFC, is of a reasonably high quality, much higher than some of the food a lot of people tend to get from area fast food establishments.

Furthermore, Aramark, the company that pretty

much runs campus dining is a very well known and well established food/restaurant service company, and I am sure that they are well aware of any problems in the FFC and other campus dining locations.

And, just a side note, it is my understanding that the cooks in the FFC are supervised by classically trained chefs (yes, I said chefs, meaning plural!).

So, before you start to criticize the hard work those men and women in campus dining go through just to feed the student populous, and put together such a wide, and expensive array of food, I seriously suggest you do your research and look into just how hard it is to work in an establishment that serves so many people each day and put out, in this chef’s opinion, delicious and sometimes nutritious meals.

Chase Callahan

interested in getting involved with this event apply for the committee when the new SGA President is selected. Eaglepalooza is an event with an enormous amount of potential and I would love to see more students get involved with it.

Even if you cannot commit time to planning the event, students can come out to the Battle of the Bands put on by SMAC. The winner of this event gets to open for Eaglepalooza.

Also, The Burger’s website polled students on who they would like to see play. These are all ways for students to get some of their favorite bands on the stage! There will always be room for improvement and we are constantly trying to think of more ways to get student’s input. This is an event that will be around for a while so feel free to jump in and let us know what more we can do to better it for you. I hope to see everyone in Historic Downtown Hattiesburg Friday night. It is going to be a great show!!

Danielle Couturie

Y

enough to think that covert operations aren’t necessary to gather intelligence in order to defend ourselves.

The one thing we need to focus on, especially in this transitional phase between President Bush and Presidentelect Obama, is the best way to strike a balance between protecting ourselves, and protecting our diplomatic relations with the rest of the world. This has always been one of the most difficult problems to figure out with respect to foreign policy, and I personally don’t see any clear solution any time soon.

I think our only option is to continue fighting on both fronts: the war on terror, and the fight to maintain a fairly stable relationship with the rest of plane

Sarah F. Coleman is a staff writer for The Student Printz. Comments can be sent to printz@usm.edu

Change the prescription

ou’re violently ill, so your doctor gives you an antibiotic. But you don’t get better, so a team of doctors changes the drug and recommends a different treatment.

This is what governments across the globe are doing, betting on an unprecedented, coordinated mega-dose of financial chemotherapy.

European governments have committed trillions of dollars to the sickest patients, while the U.S. Treasury has promised to use all options, including the federal government buying shares in troubled companies.

These weren’t initially the preferred choices, but they are the best ones to try next to unclog credit markets. What could be more reassuring to wary bankers than virtually every industrialized nation promising banks access to unlimited cash from public funds?

The goal is to prevent another failure the size of Lehman, whose collapse made banks terrified to do business with one another and dried up credit from Wall Street to Main Street. The irony is that easy money created this mess, and easy money might be the way out of it.

While necessary, these moves aren’t a panacea. The overall U.S. economy will remain fragile because of poor corporate earnings, diminished consumer spending and increased job losses. Longer term, inflation will become an issue. And while Wall Street rebounded yesterday from last week’s devastating losses, the real test will be whether banks resume lending.

Washington’s financial rescue plan must continue to stoke this glimmer of optimism. The Treasury’s decision to consider buying more direct stakes in banks than envisioned in the original rescue package adds flexibility to its rescue efforts. So far, Great Britain’s use of this strategy has been warmly received in Europe.

Central banks have made emergency interest-rate cuts and dumped cash into their banking systems. The Federal Reserve has promised to buy commercial paper. European governments have rescued banks.

Christine Lagarde, France’s finance minister, summed things up well this weekend as she compared the financial crisis to her time as a synchronized swimmer. With both, she said, “you have to hold your breath and for long periods of time.”

Entertainment

Page 6

entertainment@studentprintz.com www.studentprintz.com

Art films and blockbusters fill the holidays Cory Taylor Printz Writer

An interesting contrast is emerging in Hollywood this holiday season. Generally, the biggest contenders for awards season are dramatic art-house pictures that seek to do more than merely entertain. This year, however, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences may have quite an eclectic array of nominations, including the second-highest grossing movie of all time (“The Dark Knight”) and an animated film about a lonely robot (“Wall-E”). While this may seem to be a challenge to cinematic integrity in a bout to increase awards’ show ratings, there are still many “normal” dramatic films being released that will, most likely, level the playing field.

Australia The first big blockbuster of the holiday

season is “Quantum of Solace,” which is to be released this Friday, November 14. Daniel Craig is reprising his role as agent-007, hoping to surpass the $594 million 2006’s “Casino Royale” brought in worldwide. The next big film to be released is the adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s teen-vampire novel, “Twilight,” out November 21. Comparisons are being drawn between the enormous success of the “Harry Potter” films, but only time will tell if “Twilight” can create as much of a stir.

Closing November are two films that may have a more limited fan base, but Quantum of Solace are still potential Oscar material.

Sharing the release date of November 26, “Milk” and “Australia” could not be more separate in story or form.

“Milk” tells the story of Harvey Milk (played by Sean Penn), who became the first gay man ever elected to a government position.

The Academy has never had an issue with films that address homosexuality, but it will be interesting to see how Americans approach the film. It is set in San Francisco in 1977, and just last week, the citizens of California voted for a bill that banned gay marriage.

The second film, “Australia,” is a sweeping romance set against the backdrop of World War II. It stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman as an uptight aristocrat and forlorn cattle herder respectively. “Australia” cost $130 million dollars to produce, so director Baz Luhrmann is hopeful the film will be warmly received.

December begins with Ron Howard’s biopic, “Frost/Nixon,” which examines talk-show host David Frost’s exposé of Richard Nixon during a TV interview in 1977. It is adapted by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Peter Morgan (“The Queen”) and will be released December 5. On December 10, Stephen Daldry’s post-World War II drama, “The Reader” is to be released. It stars Kate Winslet as a woman on war-crime trial, and Ralph Fiennes, who hopes to clear

her of her charges.

Then F r i d a y, December 12, three more films are added to the race for potenTwilight tial Oscar gold. A remake of the 1951 film “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” starring Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly, will be wide released. It will be interesting to see how a film metaphorically concerning weapons of mass destruction will be received 57 years after the original. Second is Steven Soderbergh’s four-hour epic “Che,” about the Argentine revolutionary in the 1960s. Benicio Del Toro is a strong bet for a leading Oscar nomination. Then, the awardwinning play “Doubt” will come to the big screen, bringing with it star power and almost guaranteed Oscar nominations. Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams headline the drama about a priest in the 1960s accused

of molesting a black student.

On December 17, Darren Aronofsky’s film “The Wrestler” will be released. Ever since the film debuted at the Cannes film festival this year, it has been shrouded in critical praise for Mickey Rourke’s lead performance as a washed-up and aging professional wrestler.

Christmas day will see the release of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” the love story about a man who ages backwards.

It is directed by David Fincher, the mastermind behind “Se7en” and “Zodiac,” so it will be interesting to see Fincher’s interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story. The movie stars Brad Pitt as the title character and Cate Blanchett as his lover.

December 26 will bring two period pieces to the big screen. First is “Revolutionary Road,” directed

by Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes (“American Beauty”) and stars his wife, Kate Winslet and her Titanic costar, Leonardo DiCaprio, as a young, married couple who feel trapped in suburbia in 1950s Connecticut. This film is considered a strong contender in

the Academy race in a wide range of categories. Second is “Valkryrie,” starring Tom Cruise as a reallife German officer in WWII who attempted to assassinate Hitler in 1944.

On New Year’s Eve, a final WWII drama will be released.

The film is “Defiance,” and stars Daniel Craig as a JewMilk ish man who, with the help of his two brothers, helps protect fellow Jews during the Holocaust.

Though it may be true that some of the films that will be nominated for Academy Awards this year were summer blockbusters, there is an impressive lineup of possibilities this holiday season that could completely defy critical expectations. During the remainder of 2008, it will be seen whether blockbusters have charmed Oscar or if the gold statues still belong to the art-house variety.

Symposium honors film and TV ‘Co.’ opens today Eric Nagurney Printz Writer

Film and television are the focuses of “Hooray for Hattiesburg: Film, Television, and Mississippi’s Story,” the MCJ Sypmosium being held this Friday.

The symposium will kick off at 9:00 a.m. in Thad Cochran Center room 216 with “Telling Stories For The Screen,” a film panel featuring USM alumni John Duffy and David Sheffield. John Duffy is a film and television editor who has received two Emmy’s, four ACE Awards, one Cable ACE Award, and four MPSE Golden Reel awards, along with

over 85 screen credits. Screenwriter David Sheffield was a writer for Saturday Night Live in the early 1980s, writing mainly for cast members Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo.

After leaving Saturday Night Live, Sheffield wrote movies like “Boomerang,” “Coming To America,” and “The Nutty Professor” films.

“Stories, Careers, and Mississippi,” a panel featuring Margaret Loesch, Jennifer Ogden, and Patrik Ian-Polk , will begin at 10:15 a.m in the same room as the previous panel.

Alumni Margaret Loesch is the children’s film and television executive behind the founding of the Fox Children’s Net-

work. Film producer Jennifer Ogden has worked on films ranging from 1970s classics “Annie Hall” and “Hair” to more recent works like “How Stella Got Her Groove Back” and “Tuesdays With Morrie.”

In addition to her production work, Ogden served as vice president of Twentieth Century Fox’s film division. Class of 1994 graduate Patrik-Ian Polk worked as a development executive at MTV Films before making his directorial debut with “Punks.” The director’s next film, “Blackbird,” will be filmed in Hattiesburg, his hometown.

A Hall of Fame luncheon and induction ceremony will

be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m in the Thad Cochran Center’s Ballroom I. Tickets will be required for student entry.

Students can request tickets in Southern Hall room 216 or by e-mailing Mandy Nace at amanda.tilley@usm.edu.

The final event of the symposium will be a 1:30 p.m. showing at the International Center Auditorium of PatrikIan Polk’s “Noah’s Arc: Jumping the Broom.” The movie is a continuation of Polk’s popular “Noah’s Arc” television series for the Logo cable network.

After the film’s screening, a discussion of the film with the director will be held.

Special to the Printz The University of Southern Mississippi School of Music will present Stephen Sondheim’s Tony Award-winning musical “Company” at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13-14 and at 2 p.m.

Nov. 16 in the Mannoni Performing Arts Center auditorium on the Hattiesburg campus.

Rob Mulholland will direct the Southern Opera and Musical Theatre Company production, with musical direction

by Tammy Mansfield and produced by Dr. Jay Dean, musical director of the university’s symphony orchestra.

Paige Perkins-Cullinan, Southern Miss dance graduate and teacher at the Nora Davis Magnet School in Laurel, will choreograph.

“Company” was among the first musicals to deal with adult problems through its music.

As Sondheim put it, “they are middle-class people with middle class-problems.” The story centers on Bobby, a single man unable to commit fully to a steady relationship and played

by Bret Benedict Lunsford, a native Texan and senior music major/theater minor at Southern Miss.

Five married couples, the main character’s best friends, and three girlfriends gather for his 35th birthday and reflect on love, on marriage, on commitment. Through the use of short vignettes, the rousing score features an energetic score containing many of Sondheim’s best-known songs, including “Another Hundred People,”

“The Ladies Who Lunch” and “Being Alive”.

Other Southern Miss cast members include: Paul Williams of Mobile, Ala.; Bethany Ammon of Jackson; Cody Jarrell of Picayune; Megan Simmons of Long Beach; Joshua Thomas of Hattiesburg; Sarah Childers of Fulton; Chris Jennings of Limestone, Tenn. and Izzy Goff of Moss Point.

Also in the cast are Jonathan Brannan of Petal; Kayla Boyte of Sumrall; Blair Norman of Clinton; Carley Ann Wascom of Franklinton, La.; Dakoda Dauner of Pass Christian; and Lori Birrer of Indianapolis, Ind. Sondheim, an American composer and lyricist, is mainly known for his stage works, which include “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” (1962); “Anyone Can Whistle” (1964); “Company” (1970); “Follies” (1971); and “A Little Night Music” (1973).

He also is known for his collaborations with Leonard Bernstein as lyricist for “West Side Story” (1957) and “Candide” (1974), and with Richard Rogers on “Do I Hear a Waltz” (1965).

Performances Nov. 13 and 14 begin at 7:30 p.m. each evening and the Nov. 16 matinee begins at 2 p.m. Tickets are $20/$18/$16, depending on seating, and $6 for students.

Call the Southern Miss Ticket Office at 601.266.5418 or 800.844.8425. Order tickets online at www.southernmisstickets.com.

Cool Weather Jams 1. Nick Drake - Fly (Bryter Layter) 2. Bon Iver - Skinny Love (For Emma, Forever Ago) 3. The White Stripes - Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground (White Blood Cells) 4. Yo La Tengo - Autumn Sweater (I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One) 5. Animal Collective - Leaf House (Sung Tongs) 6. The Microphones - I Want Wind to Blow (The Glow Pt.2) 7. Devendra Banhart - The Body Breaks (Rejoicing in the Hands) 8. The Good Life - October Leaves (Album of the Year) 9. Sufjan Stevens - Holland (Greetings from Michigan) 10. Robyn Hitchcock - I Often Dream of Trains (I Often Dream of Trains)

www.studentprintz.com | Thursday, November 13, 2008

Page 7|Sports

Lady Eagles sign three during early signing period Special to the Printz Southern Miss Head Women’s Basketball Coach Joye Lee-McNelis has announced the signing of Kassietta Brown of West Monroe, La., Geneshia Dunbar of Dallas, Texas, and Danielle Johnson of Tuscaloosa, Ala., to national letters of intent and grant-in-aids for the 2009-10 academic year.

“As a staff, we are excited about the future of Lady Eagle basketball,” McNelis said. “We believe this recruiting class has the ability to make a major mark on this program during their careers.

Each possesses a love for the game and is willing to do what it takes to be successful on the court and in the classroom. Each young lady does not simply want to earn a degree from Southern Miss, but wants to be one of the top studentathletes to wear a Lady Eagle uniform.”

Brown, a 5-9 guard, averaged 17 points, 10 rebounds and four assists per game as a junior at West Monroe High School. She earned all-district honors twice and was named the district MVP. An all-state selection in 2008 also garnered all-Northeast Louisiana accolades.

“Kassietta provides great ver-

satility in this class,” McNelis said. “She will fill a gap being left by Amber Eugene with Joyce Lee-McNelis her ability to play multiple positions. We expect Kassietta to come in and play all three perimeter positions. She plays with a high level of intensity which will be a great fit for the pressing, uptempo style we like to play.”

Brown was a three-year letterwinner for Coach John Green.

She is the daughter of Anthony and Tammy Smith. She played AAU for the Arkansas Mavericks and Coach Ronald Rogers.

“Kassietta is a very skilled offensive player who brings a great work ethic to practice daily,” Green said.

While playing for the Arkansas Mavericks 16U team, she helped the team capture the Arkansas State championship in 2008. That team also finished fifth in the nation in 2007 at the 15U AAU National Championships.

“I chose Southern Miss because I felt comfortable around the coaching staff,” Brown said.

“It felt like a second home.”

Dunbar, a 6-3 center, averaged

12 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks for Coach Chanda Rigby at Pensacola Junior College. She earned Panhandle All-conference honors as a freshman.

“We are thrilled about Geneshia joining our program,” McNelis said. “She has overcome many obstacles to become a tremendous young lady, student and basketball player. She plays with heart and passion. As a 6-3 post, she has the ability to score in a variety of ways. Her toughness and versatility has the staff excited

‘‘

a very talent post player who had many scholarship offers to many Division I programs,” Rigby said.

“There is no one I would rather have her play for than Joye LeeMcNelis at Southern Miss.”

Johnson, a 6-0 guard, played at Hillcrest High School in Tuscaloosa, where she was a five-year letterwinner for Coach Jerome Elliott. She scored 19 points and had seven rebounds and four assists in her first game this season. As a junior, she averaged 18 points, 6.0 rebounds, five assists

Johnson was selected to the North-South All-Star Team in 2008. She was voted MVP in four tournaments over the last two years and received all-regional honors twice.

“Danielle is the best shooter/ scorer I have ever coached,” Elliott said. “She has the unbelievable shooting range and is a hard worker who is an outstanding student and person.”

Johnson played for the AAU team, Alabama Road Runners, and Coach Reggie Ware.

According to Ware, “Danielle is

a hardworking player who loves to compete on the floor. She is one of the best shooters that I’ve ever seen.”

Johnson was named co-captain of her team for two straight seasons and also named her team’s MVP. “I chose Southern Miss because they have an excellent coaching staff and an awesome academic program,” said Johnson. “I believe this is where God wants me to be.”

I chose Southern Miss because they have an excellent coaching staff and an awesome academic program

about the future.”

Dunbar played at Hillcrest High School in Dallas, Texas, where she averaged 16.2 points and 11.5 rebounds as a senior for Coach Deidra Rucker. As a junior she averaged 14 points, 12 rebounds and 3.3 blocks. She was named first team all-district and district defensive MVP in 2006, after garnering newcomer of the year honors as a sophomore, when she chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds an outing. “Geneshia is

’’

-Danielle Johnson

and three steals per game, while shooting 86 percent from the free throw line.

“Danielle is definitely a big piece to the puzzle,” McNelis said.

“Losing Kendra Reed, arguably one of the best perimeter shooters to wear a Lady Eagle uniform, we needed to sign a player who could shoot the basketball with great consistency and range. As a staff, we feel Danielle’s ability to extend the defense will make our team more difficult to defend.”

The 1958 UPI National Champions and John Cox will sign A Season to Remember and the 1958 Season DVD. When: Nov. 15th, 2008 9.a.m. – 12 p.m.

Where: Inside Barnes & Noble at Southern Miss

your school. your bookstore.

Sports

Page 8 sports@studentprintz.com www.studentprintz.com/sports

Critical game Saturday for Eagles With a loss, Southern Miss will break their streak of 14 straight winning seasons Tyler Cleveland Sports Editor

With their season down to a two game playoff, the Southern Miss Golden Eagles’ mission is clear - win out and get to a bowl game, lose, and the streak of six straight bowl games and 14 consecutive winning seasons ends.

The first part of the two-game playoff brings East Carolina to Hattiesburg this Saturday at 2 p.m. in what is clearly of the biggest game of the season for the Eagles.

“This is easily the biggest game of the year,” Southern Miss linebacker Gerald McRath said.

“We’re still fighting for that winning record, fighting for a bowl game.”

The Pirates (6-3, 4-1) will come into The Rock riding a three game win streak and boasting the top-ranked defense in Conference USA. Aside from their lone loss to Houston in week five, East Carolina has allowed 20 or more points just one time to a conference opponent.

After jumping out to a 3-0 start with wins over two ranked opponents in No. 17 Virginia Tech and No. 8 West Virginia, the Pirates dropped three straight games to NC State, Houston and Virginia.

Overall, the Pirates have won eight of their last 11 games, 10 o the last 14, and 13 out of 18 games, and five of their last six road games against conference opponents.

Southern Miss has won six of the last seven meetings, with East Carolina’s lone win coming by way of a 20-17 overtime win in their last trip to Hattiesburg. USM leads the alltime series 258.

The Eagles come into Saturday with C-USA’s fourth ranked offense, averaging 447.3 yards of total offense a contest, and are one of five teams in the country that average 200 yards passing and 200 yards rushing a game.

Last week, the Eagles downed Central Florida in a physical game that could serve as a preview for what the Eagles will face Saturday.

The Eagles will be at an obvious disadvantage in the trenches, where they are at a significant disadvantage when it comes to size.

The Pirate offensive line, which is anchored by junior left tackle Terence Campbell (6-foot5-inches, 320 pounds), doesn’t start a player under 6-3, and has done a great job of protecting quarterbacks Patrick Pinkney and Rob Kass, who have split playing time.

“ECU is very physical from what I’ve seen on film,” Southern Miss defensive tackle Anthony Grey said. “They are a lot like Central Florida, they’ll hit you in the mouth.”

Southern Miss head coach Larry Fedora echoed his lineman’s thoughts.

“They are a big physical team,” Southern Miss head coach Larry Fedora said Wednesday. “Defensively, they are leading the league and shutting people down. Offensively, they listen to coach Holtz and they take care of the football and let special teams and defense win the games, and

Courtesy USM Media Relations

USM punter Brit Barefoot punts the ball in last year’s game against East Carolina. The GOlden Eagles need to win Saturday’s game to keep their fourteen straight winning season streak alive.

Courtesy USM Media Relations

BY THE NUMBERS

Shawn Nelson catches the ball during last year’s game against East Carolina at the Rock, where the Golden Eagles won 28-21.

they’ve been very successful with that game plan.”

The Eagles will likely have the extra challenge of winning a second straight game without the services of Tory Harrison or Damion Fletcher, who are both listed as questionable for Saturday’s game.

Fletcher practiced with the second string Wednesday in practice, while Harrison sat out for the fourth day in a row. Both plays suffer from hamstring injuries. Linebacker Kory Williams, who suffered a broken jaw, had his jaw unwired Tuesday, but is not expected to play this weekend.

The good news for the banged up Eagles is that the Pirate injury list is almost

as long. The Pirates lost senior wide receiver and special teams ace T.J. Lee, who was the premier kick and punt returner in the league and had blocked one punt.

The Pirates will also likely be without the services of starting defensive end Zach Slate (concussion), senior defensive linemen Marcus Hands (sore back) and Khalif Mitchell (broken toe), and sophomore linebacker Melvin Patterson (strained leg).

The game, which is Southern Miss’ senior day, is also the annual Black Out Game. It will be broadcast on Rock 104.5 FM.

USM has won 6 of last 7 Last years game score: 28-21 Southern Miss has overall 28-5 The Golden Eagles have not beat the Pirates at The Rock since 2004.

Men’s b-ball looking to make noise in C-USA Jermaine Powell Printz Writer

With the top 8 scorers returning from last season, experience is the name of the game for the 2008-2009 Southern Miss men’s basketball team in head coach Larry Eustachy’s fifth year at the helm.

Led by Junior guard Jeremy Wise, the Eagles have their sights set on a run at a conference title as well as an NCAA berth.

Wise averaged 18.7 points a game to go along with 4.2 assists

last season. The standout guard from Jackson, MS, seriously considered turning pro at the end of last season but had a change of heart.

“My teamates and Coach Eustachy were the deciding factors for me to come back,” Wise said.

With Wise and fellow guard R.L. Horton anchoring the scoring, the key to this team may very well lie within the front court. Returning starter Andre Stephens and newcomers Gustavo Lino and Corey Smith will

be counted on to solidify the interior.

A significant balance of offense and defense from the post positions will be key if the Eagles are to achieve their goals this season. Stephens, who averaged 6.8 points a game and 4.3 rebounds last season, will look to increase those averages to help provide that offensive and defensive balance.

Both home and visiting players will be treated to many upgrades throughout Reed Green Coliseum this season. The new player

suite and locker room, as well as the new training room and workout facility should serve as a major recruiting tool.

“This is my favorite gym that I ever coached in”, Eustachy said.

Also, fans shouldn’t expect to see 2007-2008 opponents Blue Mountain or Belhaven on this season’s schedule.

After taking some heat for scheduling some saw as weak, the Southern Miss coaching staff has put together a much tougher schedule with tilts against the likes of New Mexico, UConn,

and the Miami.

The road through Conference USA will also be tougher as several teams are beginning to catch up to the reigning champion and national title runner-up Memphis Tigers. Tulsa, UTEP, and UAB all figure to be roadblocks in the Eagles’ path.

Their improvement has not gone unnoticed by coach Eustachy.

“Whoever goes 9-7 in this conference, will play in the playoffs,” Eustachy said. “Conference USA is slowly creating a

name for itself in the basketball world.”

Anylysts like to say that Memphis is in a league of their own within the conference. Eagle senior forward Courtney Beasley doesn’t feel the same way.

“It’s disrespectful to hear media say that C-USA is Memphis and everyone else,” Beasley said.

This season may very well disprove the critics and show that the rest of C-USA has indeed caught up.

Saturday’s game biggest of the season There’s no way to understate the size of S a t u r d a y ’s game against East Carolina.

Tyler After startCleveland ing 2-6 and Sports Editor falling to rival Memphis, the Eagles have won their last two games, and are threatening to do something that most thought impossible – run the table and crash their way into a bowl game.

The team is shooting to extend their record of six straight

bowl games to seven, and its streak of consecutive winning seasons to 15.

Win, and the Fedora Era is off to a great start by holding serve against conference teams while implementing a new system with extremely young players. Lose, and the season goes down as a rebuilding year that gets written off because USM had a new coach.

But the reasons that Saturday’s game is huge does not end with bowl scenarios.

BLACK IT OUT It’s the annual Black Out Game, where students and fans are asked to wear all

black, creating a special atmosphere at M.M. Roberts stadium for the last home game of the year.

The Eagles lost to Memphis in last year’s Black Out Game, but are looking to restore the intimidation factor.

“It’s going to be a special atmosphere Saturday,” Eagle linebacker Gerald McRath said. “There’s going to be a lot of emotion being shown on the field and I hope in the stands.

“A lot of people have doubted us, but we’ve bounced back from everything that has been thrown at us this season, and I’m proud of this team.”

Defensive end Anthony Grey explained that it has become more about pride than anything else.

“It’s real big,” Grey explained. “It’s the blackout game, and it’s our last home game. We can’t go out on a loss at the Rock... We can’t go out like that.”

SENIOR DAY It’s senior day, a day where players that have worn the black and gold for the past four years can receive some much deserved appreciation, whether the player be all conference like Shawn Nelson or a role player like Chris Rhoden.

The team is fired up.

At Wednesday’s practice, the players closed out practice in The Rock with a touchdown and a huge dog-pile that ensued.

Gerald McRath, who is technically a junior but was recruited with the outgoing class, said that it probably won’t hit the seniors until halfway through the game on Saturday.

“We have done some preparation (for senior day), but I think overall it hasn’t hit the guys yet,” McRath said. “It may not hit them until we take that final Eagle Walk, or when we come out after halftime.”

McRath, who never seems at a loss for words, expressed his feelings on what could have easily been his senior day if not for a medical red shirt year.

“I’m in practice today, lined up across from guys that I’ve lined up across from for four years, guys that have basically grown up before my eyes,” McRath said. “It’s a great group of guys, a great team, and I beg the fans to come out and give these guys the send off they deserve.”

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