For those of you who are accustomed to seeing outdoors stories only on Sunday, I wanted to call your attention to a story that ran on A1 Saturday.

It was about the incredible number of hunting dogs that get abandoned this time of year when the seasons come to a close.

It was a really depressing story to write. It gave me a new respect for the folks who work at animal rescue facilities. I don’t see how they stand dealing with so many mistreated animals every day. I couldn’t do it. I’d be down all the time.

But hopefully, some of the abandoned dogs will get adopted because of the story. When people visit the facilities to see the dogs, maybe they’ll take home a couple of cats, too.

As I stated in the story, most of the hunting dog owners I know treat their dogs like part of the family.

My grandfather kept bluetick hounds for deer hunting when I was young, and they ate supper every night before he did. My dad and I kept squirrel dogs for years, and they were as much pets as hunting dogs.

But there are still a lot of people out there who do it the wrong way.

Believe it or not, when the story was published Saturday, I got an e-mail from a guy who says hunting dogs never get abandoned. That’s what he said, NEVER.

I wonder what dream world that dude is living in? I’d like to buy some property there.

For those of you looking for the usual Sunday outdoors content, I’ve got you covered.

I’ve got a column Sunday on a potential price increase for the Federal Duck Stamp and a centerpiece story on the new crappie fishing regulations in Mississippi. I’ve also got a new monthly feature for private pond owners, courtesy of Southeastern Pond Management in Jackson, Tenn.

Let me know what you think of it all.

Just as I finished my blog, I looked up and all the sudden tempers began flaring between Joey Dorsey and two Southern Miss players — Jeremy Wise and Sai’Quon Stone. Apparently, as the Tigers were leaving the court from warm-ups and Southern Miss was coming on the court, there was some shoulder bumping between the two teams. All the sudden, Dorsey and Wise/Stone were in each other’s faces.

Assistant coach Derrick Kellogg jumped in between and pulled Dorsey away and yelled at him to get into the locker room.

I don’t know what was said, and I don’t know who started it. But folks, this is just sad.

It’s looking fairly blue in Reed Green, though clearly once this place fills up it will be overwhelmingly a Southern Miss crowd. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are 1,500 Memphis fans in the building, however, once the game tips. They say it’s the first sellout here in years, so that will be interesting. The apathy for basketball around here is pretty astounding, given that there’s not much else to do in Hattiesburg between football and baseball seasons. Last year, when the Tigers came down here, the building was maybe half full.

Obviously, the spotlight today is on Joey Dorsey, which brings me to something I just don’t understand. Despite his problems, nobody on the roster gets more sympathy from fans than Joey Dorsey. When he struggles, a lot of Memphis fans will try to tell you that it’s the ref’s fault, it’s the media’s fault, it’s Cal’s fault, etc. You’ve got a bunch of guys on this team busting their humps to win a national championship, and you’ve had one guy sulk for the last four games and give half-efforts because he’s mad about something. Yet the guy who is sulking gets the sympathy?

While I’m at it, another beef I have with Memphis fans right now: A relatively small but vocal minority of you continue to write me, post on message boards and call talk radio shows complaining that Derrick Rose has a longer leash when he makes mistakes versus other point guards on the team. Well…duh. Of course he does. For Memphis to make the Final Four, Derrick Rose MUST be the primary point guard. As good as Willie Kemp and Andre Allen are, Derrick Rose is the difference-maker, the guy with the talent to elevate this program beyond where it has been the past two years. Though these fans would never acknowledge this, there have been numerous occasions this season when Rose got yanked from a game for mental errors. But he must get more rope than other players because he is the most talented basketball player on the floor and thus must be on the court more than anybody else.