Mississippi Today

Like father, like son: The Carlyles of Yazoo City now own 13 state titles

Published

2 years ago

March 8, 2023

Staff Editor

Like father, like son: The Carlyles of Yazoo City now own 13 state titles

by Rick Cleveland, Mississippi Today
March 8, 2023

Anthony Carlyle, during post-game interview after last week’ state championship victory, his sixth. (Photo by Tyler Cleveland)

This past week, the Yazoo High basketball Indians painted Mississippi Coliseum bright red, knocking off defending state champion Raymond 53-43 for the State 4A Boys State championship. This week, Coach Anthony Carlyle’s team finished ranked No. 1 among all high school teams in the state.

Nevertheless, today’s story begins 34 years ago when Archie Carlyle, Anthony’s daddy, coached at Northwest Rankin. Archie’s team was playing for the district championship. I was reporting the game from a folding chair on the stage right behind the Northwest Rankin bench. Beside me was a little, bright-eyed four-year old who dribbled a basketball for nearly the entire game. The boy’s name was Anthony, Anthony Carlyle, Archie’s son.

PODCAST: Like father, like son: The basketball coaching legacy of the Carlyles

During the game, which Northwest Rankin won big, Anthony would catch his daddy’s glance and Anthony’s eyes would light up in pure joy as if he were riding a bicycle for the first time. Archie would smile back before getting back to coaching. And, boy, is there a story behind the story…

At the time, Archie Carlyle was coaching not only the Northwest Rankin varsity, but the seventh, eighth and ninth grade teams as well. He was commuting from his home in Yazoo City. He was also teaching classes. And he was raising Anthony while his wife, Amanda, was living, barely, at University of Mississippi Medical Center, where she would never recover from multiple sclerosis, an evil, crippling disease of the spinal cord and brain. She died two years later.

After the game, as I was interviewing Archie, little Anthony picked up his dad’s office phone, handed it to him. “Daddy, call Mama,” the little boy said.

By then, Amanda’s illness had advanced to the stage she couldn’t speak on the phone. More to the point, she couldn’t even recognize her husband or her son. But how was Archie going to tell his little boy that?

But Archie Carlyle kept on coaching and kept on raising Anthony. Archie won hundreds and hundreds of games and seven state championships in all. His teams played man-to-man defense as if their lives depended on the outcome. They played a patient, motion offense, but could run when the situation called for it. They just won and won and won. Archie Carlyle was one hell of a basketball coach.

Anthony Carlyle practically grew up in a gym. He watched his dad’s team practice and play for years and then played for his dad, too, by then at Yazoo. The day after Anthony graduated from college he began coaching as his daddy’s assistant at Yazoo City. After several years helping his dad, Anthony moved on to take his first head coaching job at Velma Jackson where he won four state championships, and then on to Columbus where he won another in his only year there.

Then, Yazoo City called and Anthony Carlyle wasn’t sure he wanted to go back home until his dad convinced him. “You can do it here,” his dad told him. “They need you here.”

Anthony Carlyle (left) and his dad, Archie Carlyle, after Anthony handed the state championship trophy to Archie in the assisted living facility where Archie Carlyle now lives. (Photo courtesy Carlisle family)

Yazoo had won eight games the year before Anthony took the job. They won nine his first year and have gotten better every season since. Now, in his fifth season back home, he won the big one. So make that six state championships for Anthony, just one short of the seven his dad won.

But then Anthony Carlyle is just 38. No telling how many he will win. He just wishes his daddy could have been there for this one. But Archie is in poor health, recovering from a stroke and some heart trouble. He couldn’t make it to the Big House last week, so Anthony took him the big gold ball trophy when he got back to Yazoo City.

“Oh man, he was happy,” Anthony said. “He had a big smile. He said, ‘Y’all did it, son. I knew you could.'”

What has the younger Carlyle, who is one hell of a basketball coach, taken from the older?

“A lot,” he answered. “Mostly his defensive principles and his game management.”

I asked Anthony if he and his dad are keeping the father-son score. I mean, his dad still has the lead in state championships seven to six.

Anthony smiled. “Nah, I told him I give him credit for all 13,” the son said. “He gave me the blueprint for how to be successful at this. He gets all 13.”

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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Mississippi Today

UMMC holds free cancer screenings

Published

21 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Staff Editor

mississippitoday.org – @EricJShelton – 2025-04-30 12:00:00

by Eric J. Shelton, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Resident physician Claire Babin, right, performs an oral cancer screening on Ella Holmes during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Physicians prepare for oral, head and neck cancer screenings during a free screening event at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Resident physician Brooks Lampkin, center, screens Diane Carter for oral cancer as medical students Mason Nodurft, left, and Eva Kiparizoska observe during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Educational giveaways advocating against smoking are available during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Sharon Terry, senior tobacco treatment specialist, waits for patients during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Skylar Robinson, medical office assistant, left, and Kiandria Bruce, registered nurse, review materials at the patient sign-in table during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Head and neck cancer literature is available during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Dr. Alex Brooks and registered nurse Angela Noble talk during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Nina Brown, clinical manager, helps Ned Bostic with paperwork during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Resident physician Brooks Lampkin performs an oral cancer screening on Ned Bostic at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Ned Bostic receives a neck cancer screening during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
Resident physician Brooks Lampkin, center, and medical student Hanna Watson examine Ned Bostic during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.

The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery hosted a free oral, head, and neck cancer screening Wednesday at the Jackson Medical Mall as part of Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week.

The event featured quick, noninvasive screenings aimed at catching cancer early — when treatment is most effective. Onyx Care provided free HPV vaccinations, while the ACT Center for Tobacco Treatment, Education, and Research offered resources on smoking cessation and free services.

“These screenings take about 10 minutes and can save lives,” said Dr. Gina Jefferson, head and neck surgical oncologist at UMMC. “The earlier a cancer is diagnosed, the better chance we have of curing it.”

Tobacco and alcohol use remain major risk factors for these cancers. However, physicians say an increasing number of cases are linked to HPV, especially among younger adults with no history of smoking or drinking. Dentists are often the first to spot early signs, which can include persistent sores, lumps in the neck, or difficulty swallowing.

Oral, head and neck cancers are among the most common globally. When found early, survival rates can exceed 80 percent.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post UMMC holds free cancer screenings appeared first on mississippitoday.org

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article presents factual information about a free cancer screening event without showing a clear ideological stance. It primarily focuses on the health benefits of early cancer detection and the availability of free resources, such as HPV vaccinations and smoking cessation support. The language used is neutral and the content is centered around public health education rather than promoting a political viewpoint. The inclusion of factual statistics, such as survival rates and risk factors, adds to its informative and objective tone. There are no signs of bias or advocacy for a particular political agenda, making this a centrist piece.

Crooked Letter Sports Podcast

Podcast: What next for Mississippi State baseball?

Published

22 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Staff Editor

mississippitoday.org – @rick_cleveland – 2025-04-30 10:46:00

by Rick Cleveland and Tyler Cleveland, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Mississippi State didn’t even wait until the end of the season to fire Chris Lemonis, who brought the national championship to Starkville not quite four years ago. Where do the Bulldogs go from here. Robbie Faulk who covers the Bulldogs more closely than anyone else joins the podcast to discuss the situation.

Stream all episodes here.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Podcast: What next for Mississippi State baseball? appeared first on mississippitoday.org

Mississippi Today

Mobile sports betting users: We want to hear from you

Published

23 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Staff Editor

mississippitoday.org – @MSTODAYnews – 2025-04-30 10:21:00

by Mississippi Today, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Mississippi Today is looking to speak with current and former mobile sports betting users. We’d like to speak with people who spend considerable amounts of time and money betting on sports through online gambling sites.

We’re interested in hearing the experience of people who have suffered from gambling addiction or problems, or friends and family members of people who have. We also would like to talk with people who believe legalizing mobile sports betting would benefit Mississippi and its residents.

We want to hear from you. Please take the survey below or contact Political Reporter Michael Goldberg by email at mgoldberg@mississippitoday.org

TAKE THE SURVEY:

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This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Mobile sports betting users: We want to hear from you appeared first on mississippitoday.org

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article from Mississippi Today appears to present a neutral stance, focusing on gathering input from various groups of mobile sports betting users, including those who may have experienced addiction issues. The content does not advocate for or against the legalization of mobile sports betting but instead seeks to gather diverse perspectives, including those of individuals who may support or oppose it. The language used is objective and does not suggest a particular ideological perspective, allowing for a balanced exploration of the issue at hand.