When the Football Bowl Subdivision kicks off its season one week from now, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves plans to be in Hattiesburg, Miss. — watching Southern Miss face South Alabama from a seat in M.M. Roberts Stadium.
There is little doubt in Reeves' mind that it is safe to play college football amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and little question about the sport's value to broader society.
"It’s critically important to the mental health and the psyche of all Mississippians, that we have college football," Reeves told USA TODAY Sports on Tuesday.
Yet at Southern Miss, the return of college football is not happening in a vacuum.