Are you ready for some football, Memphis? It’s Thursday, April 25, and the NFL Draft starts today. Former Memphis Tigers running back Blake Watson stands a chance at being selected. Last season, he became the first Tiger since 2019 to rush for at least 1,000 yards in a season. You can tune into the draft on ESPN or ABC.

If you’re not ready for football just yet, you can catch some baseball at AutoZone Park tonight when the Memphis Redbirds continue a six-game home series against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. As a bonus, you might get to see St. Louis Cardinals’ first-round draft choice Jordan Walker, who was just optioned to the Redbirds.

THE NEED TO KNOW

The sun rises beyond the 120 gasoline pumps outside a Buc-ee’s store in Johnstown, Colorado. (David Zalubowski/AP)

Knuck if you Buc: Local Buc-ee’s fans can finally get their Beaver Nuggets, BaconUp grease and all manner of rodent-covered merch because the iconic travel center/outdoor outfitter/home decor shop/jerky purveyor is coming to West Tennessee. Or, well, it’s very likely coming. Fayette County Mayor Rhea “Skip” Taylor said negotiations are still underway for a Buc-ee’s in Galloway, but it “looks promising.” The Daily Memphian’s Tim Buckley, a massive Buc-ee’s fan, offers some insider tips on which sandwiches to order at what he calls “the happiest place on Earth.” 

It’s been a busy week at the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville as the General Assembly wraps up for the session. (Mark Humphrey/AP file)

Judges, schools and abortions: Legislation that removes two Shelby County judgeships — the Criminal Court position previously held by Melissa Boyd and the Circuit Court position previously held by Mary Wagner — is headed to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk for a signature. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Frank Niceley, claimed Shelby County is “overjudged,” but the move has plenty of local opposition. In other state bill news, lawmakers approved a bill that authorizes the University of Memphis to operate its own school district. The university’s campus schools, which cover grades K-12, are currently operated by Memphis-Shelby County Schools, but by fall 2024, the school district will be managed by its own board of education. And in other news, Tennessee will likely become the second state to make it illegal for adults to help minors get an abortion without parental consent. But if Lee signs the bill into law, it’s likely to face immediate legal challenges.

The Lake District developer Yehuda Netanel has until Friday, April 26, to arrange financing and settle the case after a bankruptcy judge gave him a last-second lifeline. (Brad Vest/The Daily Memphian file)

Last chance for The Lake? The Lake District developer Yehuda Netanel got tossed a last-second lifeline by the judge in his Chapter 11 bankruptcy case this week. Judge Jennie D. Latta approved Netanel’s emergency motion to acquire nearly $63 million in funding to help settle the case with lender TIG Romspen. That’s after she set a foreclosure sale date for the property earlier this month. If Netanel arranges financing and settles the case by Friday, the foreclosure sale will be off, but he’ll still have another hurdle to clear with the City of Lakeland. Netanel’s 160-acre mixed-use project has faced financial challenges, unpaid contractors and other issues since it was unveiled in 2016.

MEET MEMPHIS

Baptist Health Sciences University’s new president, Hampton Hopkins, stepped into the role on Friday, March 22, with an inauguration ceremony on campus in the Memphis Medical District. (Courtesy Baptist Health Sciences University)

Baptist Health Sciences University’s new president, Hampton Hopkins, took the helm in March, just as the college was preparing to open its new, first-in-West-Tennessee College of Osteopathic Medicine. He’s the school’s third president since it began offering a four-year baccalaureate program in 1994. Hopkins comes to BHSU after serving as the president of Carolinas College of Health Sciences in Charlotte, where he planned a relocation for the college and a $4.5 million renovation. 

THE NICE TO KNOW

Dierks Bentley will open the Live at the Garden series with a show on June 6. (Amy Harris/Invision/AP file)

Garden tunes: Dig those picnic baskets out of the closet because it’s almost time for “Live at the Garden.” The Memphis Botanic Garden’s annual concert series line-up just dropped, and this season kicks off on June 6 with country star Dierks Bentley, the man who gave us the drinking-on-a-plane anthem we never knew we needed. Other highlights include 1990s alt-rockers Goo Goo Dolls and classic rock legend John Fogerty. See the full lineup here.

FTC bans noncompete clauses: The Federal Trade Commission issued a rule this week that eliminates noncompete clauses for workers, and that means many employees will now have the freedom to more easily change jobs. The clauses are used in all kinds of industries from nail shops, where an employee who leaves may take clients with them, to white-collar jobs, where employees may know trade secrets. They’re also common in broadcasting, and some experts in the industry believe the FTC change could mean higher salaries for broadcast journalists. But a consortium of groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has filed a lawsuit to block the ban.

Memphis Tigers running back Mario Anderson ran for 707 yards for South Carolina in 2023. (Wes Hale/Special to The Daily Memphian)

Who run it: Now that former Memphis Tigers running back Blake Watson is out of the picture, Tigers football Coach Ryan Silverfield has found a possible replacement in Mario Anderson. The former South Carolina running back made his presence known in Saturday’s spring scrimmage at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. The Daily Memphian’s Frank Bonner II takes a look at Anderson and the other backs Silverfield will be counting on in the upcoming football season. 

Mandy Young resigned from the Bartlett Planning Commission after serving on the board for the past eight years. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian file)

Musical chairs: It’s only April, but the Bartlett Planning Commission has its third new face this year. The suburb’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen appointed Josh McNeil to the commmission after longtime member Mandy Young resigned. She’s taken a new position on the Shelby County Beer Board, and she’s hoping for more opportunities with other boards or commissions. “Ultimately, I’d love to be able to assist in seeing what I can do about some of the crime around Shelby County,” Young said.

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Cue NSYNC’s “It’s Gonna be (May),” because, in a few days, well, it’s gonna be May. And May in Memphis means barbecue — especially since we have two competing barbecue contests happening in the same mid-May weekend. Next week, we’re launching a new Battle of the Barbecue newsletter with insider festival tips, recipes, restaurant suggestions and more. Sign up here.

And while we’re talking ’cue, check out the music line-up that just dropped for the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. 

Have a great day, and we’ll do it again tomorrow.

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