JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – After a weekend of violence at Mississippi high school football games, Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) Executive Director Rickey Neaves recommended that schools end campus tailgating events.

In a recent podcast, Neaves provided insight into safety concerns with high school athletic events in Mississippi, especially those that have alcohol and other related substances at tailgates.

“Let me say this; highly recommend at this time that there be no tailgates on school properties,” Neaves said. “All these events seem to stem from tailgates, so we recommend from advice from our attorney that we stop the having tailgates on campus.”

While he doesn’t order schools to stop tailgates outright, Neaves recommended schools to increase security around these events to ensure the safety and wellbeing of attendees.

“Beef up security at your events, especially when you have big nights such as homecomings and rivalry games, and lets just be as safe and as careful our there as we can be,” he stated.

“If we want to continue to have our events on our campuses on Friday nights, I think it is imperative that we make these events be a safe haven for people who want to come and watch our young people play,” Neaves continued.