Mississippi State's Kylin Hill reacts to progress in changing state flag

Tom Gatto

Mississippi State's Kylin Hill reacts to progress in changing state flag image

Kylin Hill didn't need to say much Saturday after the news that Mississippi's state flag might be in for a redesign.

The Mississippi State running back had his say about the issue earlier in the week.

Hill was reacting to the state legislature going forward with plans to remove an image of the Confederate battle flag from the state flag. Lawmakers will now take up a bill to change the flag after approving a resolution to suspend the deadline for proposing legislation in the current session.

MORE: Miss. State, Ole Miss support SEC's efforts on flag change

The House and Senate will debate the bill Sunday, the Clarion-Ledger reported, and it's expected to be approved. Gov. Tate Reeves said Saturday that he would sign a bill if it reaches his desk.

If the measure becomes law, then a commission would be formed to work on the redesign. The finished product would be submitted to voters for approval in November. The Clarion-Ledger noted that Mississippians voted in a 2001 referendum to keep the Confederate component, which has been a part of the state flag since 1894.

Hill said Monday that he would sit out the Bulldogs' 2020 season if the flag were not changed. He was responding to Reeves saying a proposed second state flag would be divisive.

The junior hasn't been alone in attempting to apply pressure. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is threatening to keep conference championships out of the state and add to an NCAA ban on championship events there. The Conference USA board of directors voted last week not to hold championship events in Mississippi until the stars and bars are removed (per ESPN.com). Southern Miss is a C-USA member.

 

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.