Dehydrated governor, football ‘drama’: Down in Alabama

The election is tomorrow. No matter which side wins, just remember, not only will the sun come up Wednesday morning, but it’ll come up an hour earlier than it did a week ago.

Quiz answers are below.

Thanks for reading,

Ike

Gov. Ivey’s medical treatment

Gov. Kay Ivey was treated by paramedics Sunday night for what her staff said was a case of dehydration, reports AL.com’s Mike Cason.

The governor was attending a campaign event for Congressional District 2 candidate Caroleene Dobson. Communications Director Gina Maiola said Ivey felt better after receiving fluids and being evaluated as a precaution.

Ivey is an 80-year-old lung-cancer survivor whose doctor has said was cured of her cancer.

A rare and valuable mussel

Recent south Alabama roadwork was aimed at protecting a rare mollusk in small creeks and streams, reports AL.com’s Margaret Kates for the Mobile Press-Register digital edition.

The Alabama pearlshell mussel is endangered, is one of only five pearlshell mussels in the U.S., and is native only to certain drainages in Monroe, Conecuh and Escambia counties. It does valuable work, however, filtering bacteria and cleaning the water at a high rate.

A problem is that the little bivalve needs creek beds of coarse sand that allows water to flow through it, but runoff from unpaved roads bring in finer sediment. So the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and affected county governments improved some roads to nip that issue.

University of South Alabama biologist Matt Hodges said it’s a good return on investment. The work helps protect an endangered species, of course. In return, Hodges said, the Alabama pearlshell mussel cleans the water, it serves as a “canary in the coalmine” because of its job as a filter, and the work also benefits motorists.

The Alabama pearlshell lives for 60-80 years.

Fake injuries

Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey wants to put a stop to football players pretending to be hurt in order to get an injury timeout, reports AL.com’s Creg Stephenson.

You may have seen this happen before.

Allegedly … it’s been suggested that it might’ve taken place during the Alabama-Tennessee game. Crimson Tide defensive back King Mack ran off the field, then turned and ran back onto the field a few steps, then went down like he’d run right into George Foreman’s roundhouse.

And the Golden Globe allegedly goes to …

The rise in accusations of phantom injuries probably traces back to the rise in hurry-up offenses and the desire for defenses to get time any way they can.

If you think it’s a bad look, then the SEC commissioner seems to agree.

Yahoo Sports obtained a memo sent from Sankey to member programs’ football coaches and athletics directors: “As plainly as it can be stated: Stop any and all activity related to faking injuries to create timeouts,” Sankey wrote. “… When a game stoppage is needed, use a time-out in accordance with NCAA Football Rule 3-3-4. This is not a complicated or confusing principle.”

The warning has teeth: In cases where the national coordinator for football officiating determines that it is “more likely than not” a player is channeling Brando, a first offense will bring the program a $50,000 fine, a second offense will bring a $100,000 fine, and a third offense will fetch a public reprimand and a one-game suspension for the head coach and any other involved coach.

Quiz answers

Here’s how the Friday’s weekly Alabama News quiz went over the weekend:

National political figures, including a former U.S. Attorney General and the U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader, have been campaigning in Alabama over the race for this position:

  • Alabama’s Congressional District 2 representative (CORRECT) 83.8%
  • Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court 9.3%
  • Public Service Commission president 5.7%
  • Alexander Shunnarah’s stylist 1.1%

This election, there’s only one statewide amendment on the ballot. It’s on this topic:

  • A Franklin County Schools land sale. (CORRECT) 59.7%
  • Increased protections of Mobile County oyster habitat. 20.3%
  • Changes to the organization of the Houston County Commission. 16.2%
  • A Jefferson County measure requiring students to take a course on navigating a flashing yellow traffic light. 3.8%

This popular musical instrument recently returned to The Alabama Theatre after spending a few months in Georgia being repaired.

  • Pipe organ (CORRECT) 85.9%
  • Harp 5.5%
  • Steel guitar 5.3%
  • Didgeridoo 3.2%

A South Alabama couple has applied for a Guinness World Record for the height of this kind of plant growing in their garden.

  • Okra (CORRECT) 71.9%
  • Corn 17.3%
  • Mustard greens 6.1%
  • Asparagus 4.8%

A man who once attended the Alabama School of Math and Science in Mobile recently received attention for his discovery of this.

  • The largest known prime number. (CORRECT) 62.5%
  • The molecular abnormality that causes lupus. 18.4%
  • A yet-unnamed comet. 18.1%
  • Big Bob Gibson’s recipe for Alabama white sauce. 1.0%

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