STONEVILLE, Miss. -- Will Eubank’s new role as an assistant professor and Extension rice specialist at Mississippi State University’s Delta Research and Extension Center, or DREC, is a full-circle moment.

Eubank remembers visiting Stoneville as a young child, peering at glass vials of different types of weed seeds that his father, Tom Eubank, was studying.

“If I remembered half of the names of those seeds, I’d be an excellent weed scientist,” he said. “That’s something I look back on fondly -- just spending time here.”

Eubank joined the weed science team at DREC himself when he was a senior in high school and kept his position through his studies at MSU. He received his bachelor’s degree in agronomy with an emphasis in integrated crop management in 2019 and finished his master’s degree in agronomy in 2021.

“I loved it out here,” he said. “The people, I love working for them. I loved the science. I loved knowing everything behind the science, and I just wanted to continue doing that.”

Jason Bond, MSU Extension weed scientist and Eubank’s major advisor, said Eubank is a tenacious problem-solver who will be an asset to Delta growers.

“He will not quit until he solves the problem if it can be solved,” Bond said. “When you talk to Will or even answer a question he asks, he might not always respond, but I have learned over the years that he heard exactly what you said and logged it in his mind. He will then take the information and use it to its maximum potential.”

Eubank’s doctorate studies in furrow-irrigated rice already inform his approach to the specialist position. His research focused on nutrient management, new varieties of herbicide-resistant rice and sheath blight management.

Even before he accepted the position, he was fielding questions from growers about nitrogen management and seed shortages in row rice.

“That’s the thing that’s on everyone’s mind. Last year, 30% of our rice acreage was row rice,” Eubank said. “This is the system non-traditional rice growers are moving toward, and I have a lot of experience with that. We can answer their questions, and that has been a blessing.”

He said Mississippi Delta growers are trying furrow-irrigated rice systems because the crop can easily be rotated with soybeans from year to year, and the result is an increase in the region’s rice acreage.

Jeff Gore, center head for DREC, agreed that rice is an important commodity for growers in the Delta.

“As new technologies and production practices are developed, it is important to have a highly qualified rice specialist to evaluate those practices in a non-biased way,” Gore said. “Will is from the Delta and his background is perfect for filling that role for our growers. We are extremely lucky to have Will at the Delta Research and Extension Center and look forward to working with him to help serve the needs of our producers and the rice industry.”