By the numbers
40,846
This fall’s enrollment numbers are in, and the University of Alabama has passed a new milestone, reports AL.com’s Leada Gore.
The school now has 40,846 students enrolled. That’s the first time that number’s exceeded 40,000. Pushing it over the top was a record 3,434 freshmen from within the state of Alabama. Minority enrollment was another record at 10,111. And second-year retention was nearly 90 percent.
The enrollment total reflects 4.7-percent growth from a year ago.
High water
The remnants of Hurricane Francine did drop a lot of rain quickly in parts of Alabama.
It meant flooding in some places, and that resulted in at least a couple of rescues in Lawrence County in North Alabama. On Saturday, the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office’s Swift Water Rescue Team helped a woman walk through floodwaters along a rope line to safety, and then overnight the team’s rescue divers fetched a man off the roof of his pickup and into a boat.
RIP Melissa Riopka, journalist
Former Huntsville news anchor Melissa Riopka passed away on Saturday, according to WHNT 19.
Riopka was from Cullman, went to school at the University of Alabama, and worked at stations in Chattanooga and Birmingham before taking a job at WHNT in 2013. She was promoted to a weekday co-anchor spot and later worked the morning newscast.
The station said she left to work for the city two years ago and was later diagnosed with leukemia.
Melissa Riopka was 48 years old.
RIP Nall Hollis, artist
Another Alabama grad who passed over the weekend was Nall Hollis, reports AL.com’s Cody D. Short.
Nall — he was known by his middle name — was an artist from Troy who was known around the world. His works were seen in France, Italy, New York and Lower Alabama, where he spent a stint as Troy’s artist in residence.
He studied in Paris, was good friends with Ringo Starr, and has been working out of his studio in Fairhope.
Troy Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr. called Hollis a treasure “not only for Alabama, but for the world around us.”
Nall Hollis was 76 years old.
Tua’s status
Former Alabama and current Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has no plans to retire after Thursday’s concussion and that “his eyes are already on returning to the football field,” according to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport.
The report also said that he’s in the process of being evaluated by concussion specialists, so we’re still left to wonder whether “no plans to retire” means he’s not retiring or hasn’t fully considered it yet.
And that may be where the story sits until the medical evals come through.
Entering the weekend, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel did not want to even discuss a return or a retirement, saying he doesn’t want to make any statements that might add pressure or stress either way to his quarterback.
Media reports have covered four Tagovailoa concussions — one while he was at Alabama, two during the 2022 NFL season, and Thursday night’s.
More Alabama news
Born on this date
In 1944 Singer Betty Kelly of Attalla. She was a member of the Motown group Martha Reeves & Vandellas.
Quiz answers
Here are the answers and results of last week’s Alabama news quiz:
Nick Saban made another trip to Washington D.C. to appear before members of Congress. This time he was there to discuss:
- Name, Image and Likeness rules in college football. (CORRECT) 85.0%
- College football’s transfer portal. 9.9%
- Online betting laws. 4.7%
- His use of on-air profanity during last week’s GameDay broadcast. 0.5%
U.S Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who sits on the Armed Services Committee, has said he’s blocking the promotion of Army Lt. Gen. Ronald P. Clark to general. What is Tuberville’s chief concern regarding Clark?
- He failed to communicate Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s whereabouts during a medical situation. (CORRECT) 80.8%
- He drafted a Defense Department abortion policy. 14.6%
- He once signed a petition calling for an assault-weapons ban. 3.8%
- He has stated a desire to ban cursing by boot camp drill instructors. 0.9%
Birmingham-Southern College closed its doors this year amid financial ruin. What other private college recently announced its own financial struggles?
- Talladega College (CORRECT) 83.6%
- Faulkner University 7.0%
- Spring Hill College 5.6%
- Oakwood University 3.8%
A man from Mobile recently won a trip to Hawaii for patronizing this establishment 1,000 consecutive days.
- Chipotle (CORRECT) 79.3%
- Chick-fil-A 13.6%
- Wesley’s Booby Trap 5.2%
- Dreamland Barbecue 1.9%
Probably the most directly Alabama-related topic that came up during Tuesday’s presidential debate was in vitro fertilization. Democrat Kamala Harris said couples were being denied IVF in Alabama. Republican Donald Trump pointed out that the state government had acted to keep the treatment available, but he exaggerated the timeline a little. How long did it actually take for Alabama to act?
- 18 days (CORRECT) 54.9%
- 36 days 16.4%
- 2 days 16.0%
- 6 months 12.7%
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