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Mississippi Scoreboard, 116 Cypress Cove, Flowood, MS (2026)

06/17/2026

TWO OF MISSISSIPPI’S BEST TWO GUARDS IN THE CLASS OF 2027 CHANGE SCHOOLS, BRAXTON WARD FROM CALLAWAY TO RAYMOND, CRAY LUCKETT FROM JACKSON PREP TO OXFORD

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Story by Robert Wilson
Two of the best guards in Mississippi in the Class of 2027 will be playing for new boys basketball teams this season.
Braxton Ward - who averaged 23.9 points per game for MHSAA Class 6A Callaway, fifth in Mississippi and third in the MHSAA - will be playing for MHSAA Class 4A Raymond and Cray Luckett - who made a school-record 101 3-pointers, second most in Mississippi, for MAIS Class 4A Jackson Prep - will be playing for MHSAA Class 7A Oxford.
Both Ward and Luckett made the Tatum and Wade/Mississippi Scoreboard All Metro Jackson team last season. Ward was a member of the first team and Luckett the third team.
The 6-foot-2 Ward not only averaged 23.9 points, he also averaged 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.9 assists last season for 17-17 Callaway, which lost to eventual champion Pascagoula 53-51 in the MHSAA Class 6A semifinals. He had 25 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals to lead Callaway to a 60-54 victory over defending 6A state champion Ridgeland in the quarterfinals. Ward scored a career-high 33 points against Brandon last season. He averaged 19.7 points as a sophomore for Callaway and made third team All Metro Jackson.
Ward has college offers from Alcorn State, Jackson State and New Mexico State.
Ward is now on one of the most successful boys basketball programs in Mississippi. Raymond had made the state championship game for nine consecutive seasons (winning five state titles during the streak) before losing to Leake Central 58-56 in the MHSAA Class 4A quarterfinals last season.
Raymond coach Tony Tadlock has a 243-57 record, an 81.0 winning percentage, with three state runner-up finishes to go along with his five state titles as he enters his 10th season at Raymond.
“Braxton has been a leader since Day One,” Tadlock said. “He’s a hard worker and wants to get better daily. Braxton is a gym rat. His best basketball is in front of him. The thing that has impressed me the most is how coachable he is. The second is how great of a teammate he is. I look forward to Braxton having a huge senior year.”
In addition to setting the Prep school record with 101 3-pointers, the 6-3 Luckett averaged 16.2 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.5 steals and shot 35 percent from 3-point range for Prep, which finished 21-15, was the MAIS Class 4A state runner-up and reached the Overall Tournament quarterfinals last season. He scored a career-high 28 points against Oxford this past season. Luckett made a career-high seven 3-pointers, all in the first half, against Simpson Academy this past season. He averaged 8 points as a sophomore and helped Prep to the Overall championship.
“Cray has brought instant senior leadership to our team along with his ‘anywhere on the court’ sharp shooting talents,” said Oxford coach Drew Tyler, who has won 650 games and one state championship in 2001 and one state runner-up finish in 1999 going into this 30th season at Oxford. “He will definitely be one of our scoring threats this year. Cray has already shown his skill set this summer with us. He knows that he will be playing in the toughest region and in the toughest classification in the state of Mississippi. Cray loves challenges, loves competition and loves basketball. More than that, he loves being a good teammate. Cray has a trait that is becoming extinct in today’s world. He checks on his teammates and he elevates their confidence and their play. Cray loves a positive wake behind him. It is easy to cheer for a student-athlete like Cray.”
Both Ward and Luckett’s fathers played basketball in high school and college.
Ward’s father, Reginald, played at Bay Springs High and played at Alcorn State and is a member of the Alcorn State Basketball Hall of Fame.
Luckett’s father, Cratin, played at Prep and won two Overall Tournament championships and played at Millsaps College.

06/16/2026

MRA’S EJ DAMPIER IS ONE OF 18 FINALISTS FOR 2026 USA BASKETBALL MEN’S U17 NATIONAL TEAM

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Madison-Ridgeland Academy’s EJ Dampier has been selected as one of 18 finalists for the 2026 USA Basketball Men’s U17 National Team.
Finalists were were selected from among 36 athletes following three days of training camp at the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. Training camp will continue for the next several days and the 12-member team will be announced before the team leaves for the 2026 FIBA U17 Men’s World Cup, scheduled for June 27-July 5 in Istanbul, Turkey.
Finalists were selected by the USA Basketball Men’s Developmental National Team Committee.
The USA team have won the gold medal at each iteration of the FIBA U17 Men’s World Cup, dating back to 2010. In addition to seven consecutive gold medals, the U.S. have not dropped a game in tournament history (a 51-0 all-time record).
The 6-foot-10 Dampier – the son of former Mississippi State and NBA star Erick Dampier, now an MRA assistant coach – averaged 15.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.4 blocked shots and 1.2 steals and led MRA to a 37-2 record and won the Overall title last season as a junior. MRA was ranked No. 2 in Mississippi and No. 85 in the country by MaxPreps. Dampier helped MRA coach Richard Duease - the winningest basketball coach in Mississippi history- retire on a winning note after 51 seasons.
Dampier - ranked the No. 3 player in the country in the Class of 2028 by ESPN and the 2026 Tatum and Wade/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Player of the Year - had 27 double doubles and ranked fourth in Mississippi in rebounds per game and eighth in Mississippi in blocked shots per game by MaxPreps this past season. He had career highs of 34 points against Hartfield Academy, 22 rebounds against Choctaw Central and Simpson Academy and eight blocked shots against JA in the Overall championship game. Dampier shot 69.6 percent from the field, second in the country among the top 200 players in field goals made, according to MaxPreps.
Dampier made the 12-member Team USA U16 basketball team last summer.
He has offers from Mississippi State, Southern Miss, Jackson State, Alabama, Kentucky, Florida State, Purdue, Southern Cal and San Diego State as of Monday. The Alabama, Kentucky, Southern Cal and Florida State offers came in the last week and more are expected soon.
Dampier averaged 13.5 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2 blocked shots per game last season as a freshman, the only freshman to make the 20-player Tatum and Wade/MSB Metro Jackson Team two years ago.
Dampier is the son of Erick and Yolanda Dampier. Erick played basketball at Lawrence County and Mississippi State, was on the 1996 Final Four team, and played in the NBA for 16 seasons and is now an assistant boys basketball coach at MRA. Yolanda played basketball and ran track and field and cross country at Callaway and received a scholarship for basketball to Jackson State. Dampier has two sisters and one brother. Sister Alyssa played volleyball and basketball at MRA and signed with Southern Miss to play volleyball this fall. She helped MRA win the state volleyball state championship and state and Overall basketball titles this season. Sister Ayanna basketball and volleyball and will be in eighth grade at MRA. Brother Derick plays basketball and will be in fifth grade at MRA. Yolanda’s father, Marvin Brown, is in the Jackson State Hall of Fame for basketball. Dampier’s first cousin is Sam Funches, who played basketball at Germantown and signed with Gonzaga and was a member of the first team on All Metro Jackson team.

06/15/2026

TROY ENDS OLE MISS’ BASEBALL SEASON, THE REBELS’ THIRD TRIP TO THE COLLEGE WORLD SERIES IN 12 SEASONS

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The magical run to Omaha for Ole Miss, it turns out, was just a magical run to Omaha.
Once there, the bullpen had little left in the tank, and the Rebels exited the College World Series Sunday losing their second-straight game, this time to Troy, 12-8.
It was Ole Miss’ third time to be in the CWS in the past 12 seasons, the last one since winning the 2022 national championship.
The Rebels appeared to be on cruise control Sunday afternoon with a 6-2 lead in the middle innings.
But the game changed in the fifth inning on a bases-loaded balk by Ole Miss junior left-hander Hunter Elliott (photo below).
The Ole Miss bullpen gave up the lead in the seventh, and the Rebels mounted no meaningful threat in the eighth or ninth innings.
The Rebels, who finished 42-23, had 12 hits, three of them by centerfielder Hayden Federico. Will Furniss, Brayden Randle and Colin Reuter hit home runs.
Whether the correct call or not, it’s easy to see the balk as the turning point of the game.
“It always hurts to finish the season because everyone loses their last game except for the team that wins the national championship,” Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said. “When you lose, it stings and right now, it really stings. Very disappointed at the ending, but super proud of this team and what it’s accomplished. If you’re going to lose, this is the best place to lose at.”
Elliott was effective through almost five complete, settling into form after allowing a two-run home run in the second.
Television commentary questioned the officiating repeatedly saying the balk was a “50-50 call” that the home plate umpire chose to make.
But the balk was called, and a run scored.
Then two more scored, when a ground ball on the left side found just the right spot. Shortstop Owen Paino couldn’t make a diving stop. Suddenly, a game that Ole Miss controlled minutes earlier at 6-2 was a one-run game at 6-5.
It was the first balk in the career of Elliott, a Tupelo native, who’s been successful while working through a difficult comeback from Tommy John surgery during his sophomore season.
This season, his earned run average started to climb in May. He arrived in Omaha with a 5.15 ERA, 102 strikeouts and 42 walks in 80 1/3 innings.
Taking the mound again in Omaha he felt “a lot of gratitude. I was grateful to have another opportunity to step on that mound on this stage of college baseball and just kind of showcase myself again. I’m grateful that we righted the ship (from) those couple of years, got back on track and ended our season here.”
It was the first time in Elliott’s career, Ole Miss has lost a postseason game that he started.
The sixth inning didn’t give Troy the lead, but it gave a good offense momentum.
The poor finish led Elliott to end what is expected to be his final Ole Miss appearance allowing seven hits and five earned runs over 4 2/3 innings.
Elliott said he received no explanation on the balk call.
“I was surprised, maybe a little, but it is what it is,” Elliott said. “I needed to make the next pitch. I didn’t get off the field there. The balk doesn’t kill you if you don’t give up the base hit right after.”
Bianco said the box score doesn’t reflect how well Elliott pitched “and pitched out of some jams.”
But Elliott had left the scene when Troy scored seven runs over the seventh and eighth innings.
Troy’s momentum was not a passing thing, and an Ole Miss bullpen that faltered in its Omaha opener on Friday faltered again.
Troy hit mistake pitches; Troy hit good pitches.
The Trojans finished with seven runs, five earned, against Ole Miss relievers J.P. Robertson, Walker Hooks and Will Libbert.
Two runs charged to Libbert came when Paino dropped a high pop-up on the edge of the infield.
Landon Waters gave up a hit and a walk but threw a scoreless ninth.
It was the second Omaha appearance for Hooks, the Rebels’ reliable closer most of the year and a Perfect Game All-American, after allowing three earned runs on three hits in two innings against North Carolina. Against Troy, who finished in a third-place tie in the Sun Belt Conference regular season, Hooks allowed three hits – including a double and a home run – in 21 pitches to six batters across two-thirds of an inning.
Bianco said the Troy hitters made key adjustments.
“Credit them,” Bianco said. “They got all the big hits, and that happened in our two games. When you get to this point, and everybody’s so good, it’s about the at-bats and making pitches and getting off the field. It’s about having the big hit. The back half of the game, we scored runs. We just couldn’t stop them.”
In postseason play, the Trojans won the Gainesville Regional then defeated Little Rock, the Hattiesburg Regional winner, in the Super Regional at Troy.
In eight games against SEC competition before Omaha, Troy had beaten Alabama, Georgia and Florida (twice).
Ole Miss relievers couldn’t hold the Trojans.
“In postseason play it’s been a good bullpen, over the regular season as well, but not here in Omaha,” said ESPN analyst Ben McDonald, Mike Bianco’s LSU teammate in the 1980s.
The Ole Miss bullpen gave up just four earned runs in 17 innings through the Rebels’ Lincoln Regional run.
They gave up three earned runs in 6 2/3 innings in the Auburn Super Regional.
While Ole Miss relievers struggled, Troy’s Noah Thigpen did not.
The Trojan’s third pitcher, a sophomore right-hander, allowed two runs on six hits in five innings.
“This season was special, some because of how hard it was,” Elliott said. “We had tons of tough games. I think that’s why this team was so special and why were so good late in the year. This team means so much to me, those teammates on that bus right now, they’re brothers for life.”
Furniss agreed.
“It means the world to not only me, but the rest of the guys,” said Furniss, whose father, Eddy, was the 1998 National Player of the Year for LSU and led the Tigers to two CWS championships. “We worked so hard for it. It just sucks that it ends the way it did.”

*********

Parrish Alford, a two-time Mississippi sports writer of the year, was raised in Denham Springs, Louisiana and graduated from Northeast Louisiana University before the school changed its name to Louisiana-Monroe.
He’s covered college sports in Mississippi since 1989, spending time as a beat writer for multiple seasons at each of the state’s Division I schools.
He’s most known for his work as a beat writer and columnist for the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in Tupelo, where he spent 30 years.
He is the author of “Habitual Deadline – sports stories of three-plus decades from the guy who came and stayed.”
A Christian, husband, father and grandfather, he is currently the editor of American Family News (AFN.net), a division of American Family Association.

06/15/2026

Troy rallies with 10 runs in the last five innings to come from behind and eliminate Ole Miss 12-8 in the College World Series

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06/13/2026

North Carolina gets timely hits, shuts down Ole Miss’ offense in 6-2 CWS victory.

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Ole Miss’ unbeaten run in the postseason was snapped Friday night in Omaha.

North Carolina, limited to just five hits, defeated the Rebels 6-2 in the opening-round of the College World Series.

Now the road gets much tougher for Mike Bianco’s team. which will play an elimination game Sunday at 1 p.m. against Troy University.

If there is a silver lining for the Rebels to grab on to, it is this: Starting pitchers Hunter Elliott and Cade Townsend should be rested and ready to try and plow through the loser’s bracket. But it will require more offense than Ole Miss displayed against the Tar Heels — eight hits, three walks, 11 strikeouts. Four players fanned multiple times.

Ole Miss led 1-0 entering the bottom of the sixth, thanks to a third-inning double by Dom Decker to score Brayden Randle, who also doubled.

North Carolina managed to tie it in the sixth. The Rebels took a 2-1 lead in the seventh on a double by Decker and an RBI single by Judd Utermark.

North Carolina answered with two in the bottom of the seventh, then three more in the eighth on a home run by star catcher Colin Hynek off All-American reliever Walker Hooks.

Starting pitcher Taylor Rabe did his part, tossing 5.2 innings and allowing just one run and two hits while striking out seven.

Hooks and Hudson Calhoun surrendered a combined five runs in 2.1 innings pitched. Calhoun was tagged with the loss.

North Carolina starter Jason DeCaro, 12-2, scattered five hits over 6.2 innings Reliever Caden Glauber closed it out with 2.1 scoreless innings.

DeCaro threw a two-hit shutout in last weekend’s Super Regional to beat Southern Cal.

“Obviously, it was disappointing for us not to finish,” Bianco said postgame. “That doesn’t happen to us much. But credit a really good North Carolina team.

“I thought DeCaro was tremendous tonight. Glauber, the reliever, was just as good. And we knew that going in.

“I thought Taylor pitched his guts (out) and Judd had a big hit. We just came up a little short. It happens. Disappointing, frustrating for us, but North Carolina did more to win it than we did.”

Rabe, who threw 108 pitches, called his outing “all right” and was frustrated with the four walks he allowed.

“They did a good job of getting me deep into counts and fouling off two-strike pitches,” Rabe said. “That’s kind of what they do.”

“We have to get more hits,” Utermark said. He later added: “Our journey isn’t over.”

When asked how his team can manage a trip through the loser’s bracket, Bianco said: “We put ourselves in a difficult situation. When you lose in the College World Series, it’s hard, it’s emotional. But as Judd and Taylor said, we’re still in it. You’ve got 24 hours to sort of reset, get a good practice in tomorrow and then another 24 hours to come out and play better baseball.That’s what the plan is. That’s how you flip the script.”

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06/11/2026

Quirks and all, pitcher Walker Hooks has played a huge role in Ole Miss’ journey to Omaha

By Billy Watkins, Photo courtesy of the Hooks family
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Walker Hooks is a natural-born left-hander.

“Does everything left-handed,” says his dad, Brian. “He even thinks left-handed. Turns the air down in the house to 65 degrees. Doesn’t lock the door when he leaves. You know. Quirky. Their brains work a little different.”

In some cases, so does a left arm. Hand an athletic southpaw a baseball and it’s often difficult for him to throw it hard without the ball moving this way and that.

That’s certainly the case with sophomore Walker Hooks, who earned two saves for Ole Miss (41-21) in a sweep at Auburn in the Super Regional last weekend to send the Rebels to the College World Series for the second time in five years. Last time, in 2022, they won it all.

The title quest begins again Friday at 6 p.m. against North Carolina in Omaha. Four other SEC teams earned their way to the eight-team championship: Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma and Texas.

Hooks, 3-1, has been a major part of the Rebels’ turnaround that began the first weekend in April. He is tied for second in the SEC with nine saves. In 55.2 innings, Hooks has allowed 36 hits and 11 walks while striking out 61. He has converted eight of his last nine save chances. Opponents are batting .188 against him.

On Wednesday, the 20-year-old Hooks was named second-team All-America by Perfect Score.

And in the final game of the Super Regional, Hooks did something that all great pitchers learn to do: Get outs when you don’t have your best stuff.

“I could tell he wasn’t extremely sharp,” Brian says. “I think that’s one reason he was more emotional than usual that game. Of course, realizing you’re going to Omaha probably had a lot to do with it, too.”

“Walker has always been a guy to not show a lot of emotion,” says Todd McInnis, his pitching coach at Brandon High School. “But don’t underestimate him. He’s the ultimate competitor. He showed that when he led us to the 2024 Class 7A state championship. He can handle the big moments.”

Adds Brandon head coach Daniel Best: “As a staff, we always knew we had a chance to beat anyone with Walker on the mound. He has always had elite pitch ability. He’s one of the best I’ve had the privilege of coaching. Even as a ninth grader, you knew the potential and ability were there for him to play at the collegiate level out of high school. It’s pretty awesome now to see him pitch on the biggest stage in college baseball.”

*************

Hooks, who is 6-foot-4, 265, never had a huge growth spurt.

“He was just always big,” Brian says. “He started pitching when he was eight, and he could throw it really hard but didn’t always know where it was going.”

Hooks was 16 when his age was finally higher than his shoe size.

He was a two-sport star at Brandon through his sophomore year. He played tight end on the football team, but that ended when he caught a pass one night and suffered a torn ACL and meniscus while being tackled.

“I really believe Walker could’ve played college football if he had stayed healthy and chosen that route,” McInnis says. “He could’ve gotten faster and he had really good hands.”

But he was a natural in baseball, physically and mentally.

“Teachability is one of the things that really set Walker apart,” says McInnis, who was a standout pitcher on the 2009 Southern Miss team that went to the College World Series. “Even in high school, if you throw 91 or 92 (miles per hour) and that’s all you’ve got, they’re gonna hit it. Walker understood that. He developed four pitches (fastball, curve, slider, changeup) that he could throw at anytime for a strike. He kept hitters off balance. That’s when you start missing barrels and getting weak contact.”

Hooks’ recruiting story is short: He wanted to go to Ole Miss. “That was his dream school,” Brian says. “Funny story, though. He mostly talked with (assistant coach) Carl Lafferty, and Walker was not a hard sell. I was listening and thinking ‘Son, maybe at least play a little hard to get.’ ”

It helped that Brian and his wife Bethany were longtime Ole Miss fans. Walker grew up attending football and baseball games in Oxford. He even got a foul ball when he was four.

Brian says their son couldn’t have found a better fit.

“I like the program and the culture that Coach (Mike) Bianco has built,” Brian says. “You don’t see them doing all the extra celebrations like a lot of teams do now. I don’t think Coach Bianco would put up with that. He’s teaching them the right things. He ’s helped raise a lot of kids during his time there.”

*************

One of the things Hooks likes to talk about makes some people uncomfortable: His faith.

He’s been seen wearing a powder blue “Jesus Won” t-shirt in interviews. His walkout song is “Awesome God” by R-Swift. And he’s not shy about giving his testimony.

His maternal grandfather, the late Ray Bridges, was a Baptist preacher who also coached several sports at numerous schools, including Delta State, Holmes Community College and Indianola Academy.

“Walker was raised in the church,” Brian says.

“We are proud of him for wanting to share his faith and can’t wait to hear that walkout song in Omaha,” his mom says.

Brian adds: “He’s naturally a quiet kid, so it takes a lot for him to stand up and speak the way he does.”

“As a coach, it’s hard not to get emotional about a kid like Walker,” says McInnis, his voice cracking. “He’s such a great kid. His family raised him and (younger brother) Cooper (who has signed to pitch at Pearl River CC) to be good in their faith.

“Walker has always had his priorities in line. Baseball is something he enjoys doing. But at the end of the day, God and faith are what he cares about most. His roots are firmly planted in Jesus Christ.

“All these young kids around Brandon love baseball. And the guy they’re looking up to now is Walker Hooks. They all want to be like him. That’s a great thing.”

The respect is mutual between player-coach. Bianco asks his players each season to write a letter of gratitude to someone other than their parents who has been instrumental in their lives. Hooks wrote McInnis his freshman year. This season, he wrote to his maternal grandmother, Dell “MeMe” Bridges, who will be in Omaha to watch her grandson.

The family’s faith helps them get through pressure situations when Walker is on the mound.

“It can be nerve-racking. I just keep praying over him,” Bethany says. “Whatever comes, we will praise Him.”

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06/11/2026

State, with foundation in place, sets sights on being an Omaha team in O’Connor’s second season

By Parrish Alford, Photo by Mississippi State Athletics
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Mississippi State coach Brian O’Connor believes the Bulldogs lost to a team that can win it all.

It’s true, no doubt.

But it’s also the time-honored consoling self-assessment of a coach who believed his team could do the same thing.

Yet State’s season ended Sunday as SEC regular season and tournament champion Georgia powered through MSU pitching, both starters and relievers, with 13-12 and 11-9 victories by the eastern Bulldogs to win the Athens Super Regional and advance to the College World Series.

Georgia will face Texas Saturday night at 7 in a first round game in Omaha.

“We all know how hard it is to get to Omaha,” O’Connor said. "The reason you go to Omaha is not to get there, it’s to win the national championship. That team in the other dugout is absolutely capable of winning the national championship.”

He’s certainly not wrong.

Georgia ended the regular season with a 23-7 SEC mark and a 3 1/2 game lead on the team it will face in its Omaha opener in the all-SEC half of the bracket that also includes Alabama and Oklahoma.

Georgia began the series leading the SEC in average at .326, hits with 706 and – in its hitter-friendly park – 174 home runs.

In two games, Mississippi State starters pitched a combined 5 2/3 innings, while its relievers gave up 16 hits, 12 earned runs and five home runs in a combined 12 1/3 innings.

The performance on the mound drew criticism of pitching coach Justin Parker, who was hailed by many MSU fans last year for holding the team together over the last six weeks as interim coach. The 2025 Bulldogs went 2-2 in the Tallahassee Regional, finishing 36-23 overall, 15-15 in the SEC regular season.

It is indeed hard to get to Omaha, but that was no doubt the expectation when O’Connor, the former Virginia coach, was introduced to MSU fans amid fireworks at a Dudy Noble Field nighttime celebration last summer.

Not long before the paperwork was done on a $2.9 million deal to lure him away from Charlottesville, where he won the national championship in 2015. He led the Cavaliers to Omaha seven times in 22 years – 2009, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2023 and 2024.

He knows what Omaha means to the Mississippi State program.

“That’s what this is about. I knew when I accepted the job here the expectation of this program,” said O’Connor, pointing to the Mississippi State logo on his jersey.

His first season in Starkville was Omaha-empty but was not without meaning.

The Bulldogs won 43 games, seven more than last season, and earned a home regional with a 16-14 SEC mark.

Junior third baseman Ace Reese showed veteran consistency. His .336 and led the team in home runs with 24 and in RBIs with 74.

Freshman outfielder Jacob Parker showed the potential to become the program’s next great star. Parker, a year out of Purvis High School, hit .339 with 18 home runs and 62 RBI’s.

State hit a collective .317, second to Georgia in the SEC, led by center fielder and Madison-Ridgeland Academy alumnus Bryce Chance, a graduate student, at .349.

Parker’s two-run home run in the eighth on Sunday gave State a 9-8 lead and put the Bulldogs three outs from forcing a Game 3.

It was one of many big moments this season for the freshman.

“I’ve already won in my life,” Parker said. “I have Jesus Christ in my life. I really didn’t care what happened. Obviously I wanted to win, but I walked up to the plate knowing win or lose, I’ve won in life, and that’s what’s special, and I think that’s what this program’s about. It’s not about wins and losses. It’s about how can these guys (nodding to O’Connor) turn us into better men.”

O’Connor’s first Mississippi State team fell show of its Omaha goal but did important work, he said.

“I believe the foundation is set for how we’re going to go about our business,” O’Connor said. “That’s important. It lasts over time and continues on when you’ve got a guy like this (motioning to Jacob Parker) who will be returning next year and understands what it takes and the lessons that he learned and can pass it onto other guys.”

That’s what he’ll remember about the 2026 team.

“Their grit, their competitive spirit, the fire they played with,” O’Connor said. "Did we have bad games, sure, but they came ready to work. They’re a bunch of tough young men that love to line up and compete. We just fell a little bit short.”

He’s unbothered by losing key stars like Reese and the general task of rebuilding. He put together a strong roster last summer during a transition year, he said.

“I believe the foundation is set for how we’re going to go about our business,” O’Connor said. “That’s important. It lasts over time and continues on when you’ve got a guy like this (motioning to Parker) who will be returning next year and understands what it takes and the lessons that he learned and can pass it onto other guys.”

Parrish Alford, a two-time Mississippi sports writer of the year, was raised in Denham Springs, Louisiana and graduated from Northeast Louisiana University before the school changed its name to Louisiana-Monroe.

He’s covered college sports in Mississippi since 1989, spending time as a beat writer for multiple seasons at each of the state’s Division I schools.

He’s most known for his work as a beat writer and columnist for the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in Tupelo, where he spent 30 years.

He is the author of “Habitual Deadline – sports stories of three-plus decades from the guy who came and stayed.”

A Christian, husband, father and grandfather, he is currently the editor of American Family News (AFN.net), a division of American Family Association.

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