SB Nation - Mike Wallace

The Ten from the last Ten - Honorable Mentions, 10, and 9

The Ghost of Jay Cutler — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:53:26 -0000

In a few weeks, 2009 will give way to 2010 and, with that, awesomely tacky New Years Eve glasses and a relatively successful decade of Rebel football will become things of the past. With this, we at the Cup feel it appropriate to recap these last ten years with who we feel are the ten greatest football Rebels of this time span.

After a hearty round of email debate, the top four were more or less decided upon unanimously. But there was significant contention amongst the remaining selections. You're welcome, if not encouraged, to contend with our selections as well.

Today we'll have the honorable mentions along with numbers 10 and 9. We'll have 8-5 tomorrow and 4-1 either Friday evening or Saturday morning, we hope.

HONORABLE MENTIONS (no particular order)

Terrence Metcalf - OT - Left in 2002 - Metcalf was, along with Romaro Miller, part of one of the best Ole Miss signing classes ever. Coming off of probation, Ole Miss was able to ink both Metcalf and Miller--a par of Mississippians on the Parade All-American list--stealing them away from an aggressively recruiting Alabama Crimson Tide program. Metcalf anchored the Rebel line for many years, earning a reputation as an aggressive, strong blocker. He protected Eli's blind side during his record-setting sophomore year before going on to a good career with the Chicago Bears.

Romaro Miller - QB - 2000 - Romaro Miller is, statistically speaking, the best Rebel quarterback not named Manning. Sure, Kent Austin, John Darnell, Stewart Patridge, and even Jevan Snead have done great things in a Rebel uniform, but none were as exciting to watch as Miller.

Johnathan Nichols - K - 2003 - I know you won the Lou Groza award, but we still can't forgive you.

Derrick Burgess - DE - 2001 - A former first team All-SEC defensive end, Derrick Burgess is now in the throes of a successful NFL career which has seen him make two trips to the Pro Bowl.

Greg Hardy - DE - Still on roster - If it weren't for injuries, gr3gxxz could easily be in this list's top five. He will undoubtedly go down as one of the most entertaining Ole Miss Rebels ever, both on and off the field.

Chris Spencer - C - 2005 - An all-around good guy and a solid blocker, Spencer was picked up in the first round by the Seattle Seahawks where he is still starting at the offensive center position.

Chris Collins - WR - 2003 - Eli Manning's go-to guy, Collins was the record holder for receiving yards in a season up until just a few weeks ago when Shay Hodge overtook him.

Now, onto the real deal.

NUMBER TEN

BenJarvus Green-Ellis - RB - 2008
While he will be a relatively unsung hero in the lore of Ole Miss Rebel football, his place as one of our programs greatest runners will not be overlooked by the Cup. Green-Ellis is only the second Rebel to ever post back-to-back 1,000 yard rushing seasons. He was a workhorse back who favored lowering his shoulder and driving forward to juking or spinning in order to get an extra few yards. BJGE was named to the All-SEC first team by the Associated Press after his successful senior season. As it stands today, he is an oft-used reserve for the New England Patriots.

NUMBER NINE

Mike Wallace - WR - 2009 - As one of the fastest Ole Miss players ever, Mike Wallace was Jevan Snead's deep target during the last half of the 2008-9 season. Perhaps no Rebel has ever been able to stretch the field quite like Wallace, who is now arguably the best rookie wide receiver in the NFL as the third wideout for the Pittsburgh Steelers. During his final two years in Oxford, he was able to make the secondaries of Florida, LSU, Mississippi State, and Texas Tech look downright slow. He also performed well in kick return duties.

That's all for now.

A tip of the hat goes to Dr. Saturday for the inspiration and Thile via Twitter for the nudge.

Q&A With Red Cup Rebellion

kleph — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:01:02 -0000

More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

Positively Farveian. Not shown, greying three-day growth of stubble.

Browse more photos »

Late yesterday we were able to capture Juco All-American from fellow SB Nation blog covering all things Ole Miss, Red Cup Rebellion, and subject him to interrogation to learn what Houston Nutt has been doing in all those closed practices this week. Turns out these were predominated by debate on what to wear to the square after the game. Still, we withheld grain alcohol from him long enough to get a few answers about the game itself which we now present for your edification.

Roll 'Bama Roll: For whatever reason, Jevan Snead has not performed up to expectations this season. Can you find a legitimate reason for that, i.e. something which could be corrected moving forward, or is this simply a case where Snead just isn't as good of a player as he was hyped to be in the preseason?

Juco All American: Well, first of all, our pass protection has struggled. But even when it’s not bad and Jevan isn’t pressured, he plays like he is. Due to early season struggles on the offensive line, he just assumes there’s heavy pressure on every play. This has led to throws across his body, coming off of his back foot, even while there’s good protection.

But an even larger problem appears to be that Jevan stares down his receivers. We haven’t seen a quarterback who is capable of checking down effectively or picking up blitzes. He plays like he’s a first year starter.

Lastly, there’s Jevan’s "gunslinger" attitude. He models himself after Bretty Favre, and that’s probably a reason for the interceptions. Why we didn’t see as many interceptions last year with the same mentality is anyone’s guess. My guess is that Mike Wallace’s speed made up for a lot of Jevan’s miscues. You can force the ball when it’s a fade route to Wallace.

RBR: The Ole Miss offensive line looked fat, slow, and out of shape against South Carolina, turning in a pretty abysmal effort. Nine days later, however, they did a great job of shutting down a fairly potent Vanderbilt pass rush. Exactly what gives here? Which performance is really more indicative of the true quality of the offensive line?

JAA: Wow. Fat, slow and out of shape. You’re absolutely right. Our offensive line was huffing and puffing on the sidelines even though they were never playing in the game.

I think that the two new starters on the offensive line grew up a good bit in the week between South Carolina and Vanderbilt. I think they realized that it wasn’t going to be a cake walk, and their teammates probably helped them realize that.

Also, we gameplanned around our inefficiencies on the left side of the line by rolling Jevan right or giving LT Bradley Sowell some extra blocking help with a tight end, fullback or halfback. I’m not sure how effective a blocking halfback will be against your blitzing linebackers and defensive ends, but it worked against Vandy, and you have to get one win at a time.

RBR: Coming into the year, Ole Miss was generally thought to have one of the worst defensive backfields in the SEC. Despite this, the Ole Miss secondary has looked very good early. So, is the Ole Miss secondary truly a good unit, or have they just created a mirage by stopping a few largely ineffective passing attacks?

JAA: The secondary is easily the most improved unit on the team. Last season, Kodi Burns and Chris Smelley (who you might now know as a catcher for your baseball team) each threw for over 300 yards against us. Yeah. It was that bad.

This year, we have seen our secondary that appeared somewhat raw last season transform into a group with good technique and discipline. I really think most of this falls on the coaching staff. They worked with our worst unit and made it good. It’s certainly not great, but with our pass rush, it may not need to be.

I think the biggest shocker to me has been the out-of-the-blue emergence of senior CB Cassius Vaughn. Vaughn started for us last year, but there was a noticeable talent gap between he and Marshay Green (our other starter). This season, I would venture to say that Vaughn has passed Green in performance, at least when the ball is in the air. Several times this season, Rebel fans have seen Vaughn break up a huge pass that looked to be caught. We’re all excited to see if we have any answer for Julio Jones. I know he hasn’t produced this season, but I also know what he’s capable of doing. It’s scary.

RBR: Until he leaves for the NFL, I imagine every 'Bama fan will have nightmares about Greg Hardy. We all know that he's a terror off the edge, but he really hasn't been able to stay healthy the past couple of years, and it still doesn't seem like he is 100% right now. Exactly how healthy is Hardy now, and how have the injuries limited his effectiveness?

JAA: Hardy may not be 100%, but he looks close. Against Vanderbilt, he made the opposing right tackle look stupid play after play. Hardy only came away with one sack, but there were several times that Greg dictated what was going to happen on the play.

He’s a physical freak whose nickname is "The Beast." Hardy also appears to have an axe to grind with everyone who called his work ethic into question. This season, he writes the words "Doubt Me" in his eye black. Yeah. Even as fans on our own team, we’re terrified.

He’s probably the best defensive end to ever play at Ole Miss. Sure, I’m sure that 150 pound Whitey Mc1940 was good, but Hardy is just unreasonable. He’s built like a run stuffer, but he has the skills of a pass rusher. Look out.

RBR: We talked about on the RBR Radio Hour last night how this could be the biggest win at home for Ole Miss in ages, so I'll ask directly here: With Alabama, undefeated and #3 in the country, coming into Oxford, in a historical sense, exactly how big of a win would this be for Ole Miss? And, if this does come to pass, give us an idea of the type of hangover you will have afterward.

JAA: If we win this game, we’re honestly in the driver’s seat for the SEC West for the first time in ages. At this point, I feel like we’ll lose more than 2 games, but if we could beat Alabama, I think it’s because our offense will have emerged to what we hoped it would be before the season.

If that’s the case, we could seriously end the regular season at 11-1. While Auburn and LSU look slightly scarier than they did before the season, both pale in comparison to Alabama. While this is faulty logic, I just feel like if we beat Alabama, we would certainly beat Auburn and LSU. The other teams don’t scare me at all.

11-1 would likely put us somewhere in the top 7. An SEC Championship game versus Florida, who we somehow managed to beat last year, would be on the horizon. Remember, Ole Miss has never even been to Atlanta.

Anyway, the root of the question was the hangover part.

I’m going to be drinking a large amount of Maker’s whether we win or lose. If we lose, it’s to drown my sorrows. If we win, it’s in celebration that the countless hours I spend blogging about the Rebels aren’t for naught. Either way, the hangover’s a bitch.

Week Six Preview: #3 Alabama at #16 Ole Miss

outsidethesidelines — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:00:20 -0000

More photos » by Bill Haber - AP

"Quit throwing so many picks!"

Browse more photos »

The Alabama v. Ole Miss series isn't one filled with hatred quite like the Auburn or Tennessee series, nor is it generally a series that has a high degree of relevance on the national level. Nevertheless, over the course of the past four years, no series anywhere in the country has produced as many gut-wrenching, nail-biting contests as what we've seen when the Tide took on Johnny Reb.

The past four games in this series have been decided by a grand total of thirteen points, and that statistic alone does not even begin to adequately describe how close things have been. The 2005 game ended on a time-expiring kick, while the 2006 game ended in overtime. The 2007 game was decided on a controversial penalty with seven seconds remaining, and last year's game also went into the final minute. And most shockingly of all, somehow, someway, all of those contests have fallen in our favor. How we've had the good fortune from the Football Gods to pull all of those games out, I'll never know.

After Ole Miss rallied late last year, this game has been marked for months as one of the games of the year. Of course, though, Johnny Reb effectively wet the bed in its only real test thus far in the 2009 season, and that has knocked a lot of the luster off this game. Ole Miss was clearly overrated as a top five team, and had no real business being ranked that high. That said, however, the Rebels are still a quality team and a very dangerous opponent. This game is likely to be yet another close one that goes down to the wire, so let's take a closer look at the match-ups:

Alabama Offense v. Ole Miss Defense

Even with a slow start in the passing game and some questionable early play-calling against a good Kentucky defense, Alabama nevertheless managed to rack up 38 points and 352 total yards in Lexington. The Alabama offensive juggernaut has seemed to slow with each and every game the past three weekends -- largely because the quality of the defense faced has increased each week -- and things won't get any easier this week when we go to Oxford.

The strength of the Ole Miss defense is clearly at the point of attack. The defensive end rotation of Greg Hardy, Kentrell Lockett, and Marcus Tillman is easily the best we'll see all year long, and while Hardy has not been able to get completely healthy -- and thus he's really no longer an every down player -- he's still a dangerous weapon when he is in the game. The ends are also solid on running downs, and mixed with the size of the interior players, it forms a very difficult run defense up front when these guys show up to play. Interior tackles Ted Laurent and Lawson Scott are both over 300 pounds, and the monster 340 pound Jerrell Powe is quickly starting to show why he was a five-star prospect coming out of high school. You can make all the reading jokes you want, but literacy isn't really a core competency for playing nose tackle, and Powe can at times dominate interior offensive linemen like he's a man among boys.

At linebacker Ole Miss has had more than their fair share of struggles since Patrick Willis went to the NFL, but they've got a solid group there now. The unit is led by Patrick Trahan, the senior linebacker that Houston Nutt signed out of the JUCO ranks in his first class in Oxford. Trahan started his collegiate career as a safety -- he was a former track athlete in high school -- but he kept getting bigger and bigger so he was moved to linebacker. The end result now is a 6'3, 225+ pound 'backer with great athleticism, and he's tough on opposing offenses. He's big enough to play the run, but also versatile enough to play the pass and rush the passer. He's a legitimate three-phase linebacker. Jonathon Cornell and Allen Walker start alongside Trahan, and while they aren't quite the caliber of Trahan, both are upperclassmen who are more than adequate.

The real surprise of the Ole Miss defense to date, however, has been the defensive backfield. Ole Miss was almost universally expected to struggle in the secondary this year, but surprisingly enough they have allowed very little success through the air. That said, however, we really don't know anything about this group because they have yet to face a decent passing attack, so it could be all a paper tiger for all we know, and if nothing else the Alabama passing game will be easily the best this unit has faced all year. What we can safely say is that so far this year Cassius Vaughn and Marshay Green have been solid at cornerback, Johnny Brown and Kendrick Lewis have been more active than usual at safety, and the back-ups have generally been pretty adequate. But, again, we really have no clue as to whether or not this Ole Miss defensive backfield is a contender or a pretender.

Looking at how we match up against Ole Miss, you really have to worry about our running game. We ran the ball well against Kentucky on the meaningful attempts -- i.e. factoring out the garbage time, clock-killing carries late -- but Arkansas still shut us down, and frankly this is easily the best defensive line we've seen all year. Ole Miss shut down our running game last year better than any other team on the schedule -- we had 31 carries for only 107 yards, averaging a meager 3.1 yards per carry -- and it's going to be very difficult to run on these guys again this year. These guys can flat out whip you in the trenches, and we're going to have to show up ready to play at a very high level if we look to move the football on the ground in Oxford.

Hopefully we will be able to take advantage of Ole Miss in a couple of areas. Their defensive line features a solid, deep rotation, but the linebacker corps is very thin. The starting three are good players, and back-up Lamar Brumfield is a solid, versatile player who can play all three positions. After that, though, all you really have is true freshman D.T. Shackelford -- an Alabama native who the Tide passed over last, so extra motivation there -- and while he has been a bit of a freshman sensation, he is also slowed by a high ankle sprain, and he likely won't play a lot against the Tide. So, it's a thin unit already, and both Trahan and Walker also play extensively on special teams, so hopefully we can wear them down and take advantage of their lack of depth. Likewise, the Ole Miss secondary is also a very small unit -- all starters are 5'11 and under, and three starters are 190 and under -- so hopefully we can really take advantage of the size match-ups with the likes of Julio Jones, Mike McCoy, Earl Alexander, and Michael Bowman.

Now, along those lines, I do like how our passing attack matches up against the Ole Miss secondary, but of course success there is predicated upon us being able to protect Greg McElroy against a very good pass rush. If we can give McElroy time, we should be able to move the football through the air. On the other hand, though, if Ole Miss can legitimately rush the passer, this is not going to be pretty. Either way, this isn't going to be an easy assignment for the Tide's offensive line. Ole Miss is tough off the edge, and Nutt will likely be aggressive in blitz packages, so the offensive line has its work cut out for them.

All in all, this one is a tough match-up for the Tide. Hopefully we can have some success running the football and block Ole Miss off the edge, but that's a lot easier said than done. Ole Miss will be tough to run on, and if they can get to McElroy, we're likely to find ourselves in Oxford with an offense that cannot run or throw effectively. It's going to be one heck of a fight, and we're going to have to play very well to move the football against this defense.

Alabama Defense v. Ole Miss Offense

The good news for Alabama is that this match-up favors the Tide a bit more. The Ole Miss offense is no slouch, to be sure, but it is a unit that has struggled early. Jevan Snead hasn't played anywhere near well enough to justify the preseason hype, the loss of Mike Wallace has hurt more than its gotten credit for, and there has been nothing close to a comparable replacement for Michael Oher.

Really, the struggles of this offense have started up front with the offensive line. The run blocking has been good at times, but has also been terrible at times, too. Smashes at the point of attack that spring good gains have been mixed with whiffs that result in tackles for loss. Pass protection, though, has really been the Achilles Heel of this group. Left tackle Bradley Sowell was beaten to a pulp against South Carolina, and right tackle John Jerry hasn't looked very good either. The interior linemen haven't played much better, either. Houston Nutt and company have rotated in a lot of linemen looking for the right mix, but they haven't found anything yet, and making matters worse this bunch simply looks out of shape. When John Jerry was literally begging to come out of the South Carolina game, all that came to mind for me was Mike Dubose, 2000, and the infamous "Pankcake Posse."

With the struggles up front, the rest of the offense just hasn't been able to compensate. Jevan Snead has been decent at times, but he has generally struggled to complete a high percentage of his passes and he has turned the football over a lot -- only a completion percentage of 51% and five interceptions. With Mike Wallace gone, the Rebels really do not have the big vertical threat in the passing game, and while the likes of Shay Hodge, Markeith Summers, Lionel Breaux, and Patrick Patterson form a solid wide receiver corps, they haven't been able to make up for the loss of Wallace. Likewise, Dexter McCluster is a threat, but he has really been more of a cog than a game-changer thus far in conference play.

The true strength of the Ole Miss offense to date has really been in the backfield with the tailbacks. Brandon Bolden has played as well as any back in the SEC to date, and at 5'11 and 220 pounds he is an absolute load. Back-ups Cordera Eason and Enrique Davis were both highly-touted recruits coming out of high school, and with their raw talent they form one of the most potent backfields in the country. Combined with Dexter McCluster's ability out of the Wildcat, this is a very dangerous group if their offensive line can give them any help up front.

Defensively for the Tide, I'll be brief on the overview because most RBR readers are more than well aware of who we are as a defensive unit, but I will address that the biggest issue we face here is exactly what we will do to replace Dont'a Hightower. Based on the practice reports, it's clear that Cory Reamer will be back at strongside linebacker this week, and we're going to have to be bigger inside to take on an Ole Miss team that will clearly look to be physical at the point of attack and establish the run. Chris Jordan is going to get a lot of playing time this week, and look for both Nico Johnson and Tana Patrick on the field -- even though playing will cost Patrick him a redshirt year.

As a whole, we are going to have a good bit different look defensively this week. Again, Ole Miss is the physical, run-based attack that we've come to expect out of Houston Nutt, and we are simply going to have to play smashmouth football against these guys. Simply put, if our defensive line doesn't show up with more energy and intensity than they did last week in Lexington, it's going to be a long afternoon. This isn't a spread passing attack where we'll constantly be in the nickel; you're going to see a lot of base 3-4 this week with safeties coming into the box to stop the run. The Rebs are far from pass happy.

And with that in mind, Injuries may make an impact on Ole Miss' power running attack. Fullback Andy Hartmann, a senior, is one hell of a lead-blocking load at 5'11 and almost 250 pounds, and he may be the best lead blocker in the conference. However, Hartmann sprained a knee a couple of weeks ago and has missed time. He missed practice on Tuesday, and while he is going to play on Saturday, we don't know how effective he can be and we do not know how much he will be able to play. Likewise, tight end Gerald Harris missed the South Carolina game with a hamstring injury, and while he did return against Vanderbilt, he's probably not 100%. Their back-ups, Dan Hoffman and Ferbia Allen, are a good 20-30 pounds lighter than the first-teamers, so if Hartmann and Harris are at less than 100%, that is going to make it more difficult for Ole Miss to run the football.

Furthermore, we need to use our depth in the defensive front seven to our advantage. Even with injuries to Hightower and Damien Square, plus the suspension of Jerrell Harris, we are still very deep in the front seven, and if the South Carolina game is any accurate indicator, the Ole Miss offensive line isn't in very good physical shape. We need to rotate players all afternoon and wear these guys down. Few things can better insure a 'Bama victory than to have John Jerry once again begging to come out of the game in the second half.

All in all, we're just going to have to line up against Ole Miss and be able to stop the run. That has to be priority #1 going into this game, period. Jevan Snead is overrated, but he can still be a threat, and with Nutt at the helm you have to be adequately prepared for every trick in the book. Nevertheless, those concerns are secondary to stopping the run. Given Snead's turnover issues to date -- which is to say nothing of Ole Miss' struggles in pass protection and the struggles of the receiving corps -- Nutt and company will likely play a bit conservatively here and try to establish the running game. If Ole Miss does that, they can move the football effectively and that will allow them to selectively use Snead and the trickeration to their advantage. On the other hand, though, if we can stop the run, particularly on early downs, we get Ole Miss in a lot of obvious passing situations, which limits the use of the Wildcat and other trick formations, and which also gives our defensive line numerous opportunities to take advantage of their struggles in pass protection and tee off on a quarterback who will be forced to take a lot of seven-step drops while waiting for routes to develop downfield.

Putting It All Together

On the whole, this one looks to be much like the last four contests in this series... a very hard, physical game that goes right down to the wire. Yes Alabama has looked very good to date, and yes Ole Miss wet the bed in their only true test to date. And, yes, Ole Miss was overrated coming into the year, no arguments here. Nevertheless, this is still a pretty good Ole Miss team, and they are a dangerous opponent that is more than capable of pulling off the upset.

Furthermore, the West is still absolutely wide open right now -- three teams are still undefeated, and Ole Miss still controls their own destiny -- and that fact mixed with Nutt's love of playing the underdog role, not to mention the recent acrimony that is surely present in the Ole Miss roster thanks to how this game has turned out the past four years, you can bet your life that Ole Miss will show up to play football on Saturday like men possessed. For all of the talk of Ole Miss wetting the bed, if Johnny Reb can pull off the upset on Saturday, they will quickly vault back into the top 10 and they will once again establish themselves as the front-runners in the SEC West if Florida can beat LSU, as expected. And, of course, rest assured they are well aware of those facts. Make no mistake about it, there is a lot on the line here for Ole Miss, and they will play accordingly. Do not expect Colonel Reb to lay an egg Saturday afternoon.

I do think we are the better team here. We have a tad more top-end talent, and a good bit better quality depth throughout the roster. Nevertheless, again, this is a dangerous Ole Miss team that actually matches up with us pretty well thanks to the strength of their defensive front seven and their ability to rush the passer with a base four-man rush. If you think victory is a near certainty in this game, you really need to drink something other than the crimson Kool-Aid. This should be a close game, and if we play like we did last week in Lexington, we're probably in a lot of trouble. We are a better team here who is justifiably a slight favorite, but nevertheless we are going to have to play really well to go into Oxford and get this victory, and at the very least victory is unlikely to come without one hell of a fight.

Hope for the best.

Rebel Roundup - 9/11/09

The Ghost of Jay Cutler — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:00:29 -0000

More photos » by Don Wright - AP

Get it, Mike. Former Rebel Wideout and Pittsburgh Steeler Rookie Mike Wallace, seen here celebrating with Santonio Holmes, had a pretty good game in his professional debut last night. He even caught a crucial 3rd down converting pass in overtime.

Browse more photos »

Last night's Titans vs. Steelers highlights | NFL.com Videos
The NFL started last night. Did you see it? "No lmao I liek collage hey wtf this is an Ole Miss blawg?!" Yeah, I know that, but any Ole Miss Rebel fan should appreciate the fact that Mike Wallace has already proven himself to be an important element of the Pittsburgh Steeler offense. Click the linkage for the video. I really worry that we're going to miss that guy a ton this season by having real trouble establishing the deep ball.

Hot seat: Ole Miss LT Sowell survives 1st start | AP
"Survival" isn't exactly the goal I think any football player, let alone an offensive tackle, should strive for, but it was the young man's first outing at one of the sport's most demanding positions. Let's cut him some slack. Hopefully, Sowell will only improve from here on out. We really don't have an option otherwise.

Practice Highlights 9/9/09 | Inside the Grove
Ty does it again. Watch. Now.

Ole Miss offense putting up eye-catching numbers | Brandt
If you don't Tweet then you're a) automatically way cooler than most sports bloggers, but you knew that, and b) likely unaware of this fact: Ole Miss has never scored 45 points in three consecutive games, until now. The Egg Bowl, Cotton Bowl, and First 48 Bowl all saw the Rebs make their way into the endzone on plenty of occasions.

Comparison: Ole Miss versus Memphis in 2008-09 | Team Speed Kills
Speaking of our now-and-hopefully-forever defunct annual Memphis throwdown, Year 2, the "numbers guy" at TeamSpeedKills, has been comparing SEC season openers from 2008 with SEC season openers of 2009. While some comparisons demonstrate very little (Alabama/Clemson is nowhere comparable to Alabama/Virginia Tech in terms of talent, coaching, etc.), others demonstrate a lot. Our Memphis game is part of the latter because, get this, they're the same exact teams! Neat, huh? The comparison yields exactly what we could have gleaned from watching the game, but backs it all up with some solid numbers. Our offense underperformed in all areas of the game until very late, and we shackled ourselves with turnovers (3 in 2009, 0 in 2008). Our defense, on the other hand, was dramatically better this go-around, save for rushing D. Memphis' rushing numbers were nearly identical to their rushing numbers from the 2008 game, but their passing game was nearly one half as productive this season. We also earned one more turnover and three more sacks this year than we did last.

Other TSK comparisons of note: South Carolina's openers against NC State (once again, same exact team) and Mississippi State's home openers (both games against a Division 1-AA school). South Carolina regressed on offense significantly form a yardage standpoint but actually improved in ball protection, while regressing in every defensive area outside of sacks. Mississippi State, interestingly enough, saw very little change in their offensive output against Jackson State than what they had last season against SELA. Dan Mullen's "Spread the SOCIALISM" (/rivalsposter'd) offense was statistically damn near identical to the Walrus' Gulf Coast offense. Furthermore, aside from forcing a whopping five turnovers, their defense wasn't nearly as effective this go around. Linkage to those stories are riiiiiiiiiiiight here:

Comparison: Mississippi State versus SELA and Jackson State - Team Speed Kills
Comparison: South Carolina versus NC State in 2008-09 - Team Speed Kills

TLV #86 - Greg Hardy Edition

The Ghost of Jay Cutler — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 19:04:43 -0000

You know, like his jersey number? Fine, whatever, just click the jump.

You've been soaking it all in for the last few months now. Whether propagated by ESPN, your drinking buddies, or every body's favorite Ole Miss Rebel sports blog, you've become inundated with the idea that this upcoming Rebel football season could be one of the greatest ever. There's talk of finally making the trip to Atlanta for the SEC championship game, an SEC Title (ok maybe not so much), and a Heisman Trophy for Jevan Snead (slow down, dreamer).

And why not? These Rebels have talent all across the board, a coaching staff as competent as any we have had in Oxford in decades, and a very favorable schedule. Despite the best efforts of our Rebels' detractors, this is a damn good football team.

But, how good?

When people think of the greatest Rebel teams of recent memory, two should readily come to mind: this one, and the 2003 version of our Rebels. As most of you should recall--we understand if you don't--2003 saw a Rebel team led by Eli Manning fall a lousy three points short of a berth to a very winnable SEC Championship game. A few miscues throughout the season kept the 2003 Rebels from legitimately running the table. That was a good Rebel squad; there is no doubt about it. However, despite the high level of success achieved by Eli and company, they were not nearly as complete a squad as we will see on Saturdays this fall.

Yes, we are suggesting that the 2009 Rebels are better than the 2003 Rebels.

While difficult, if not impossible to prove before the season starts, let's do our best to objectively look the upstart 2003 Rebels and the talented 2009 Rebels position-by-position. Go:

Defensive Line: Strong Advantage 2009

By far the easiest assessment to make, the 2009 Rebel defensive line will go down as one of the most effective unit of angry-ass skull smashers to ever play ball in Oxford. The 2003 unit wasn't too bad, but they certainly weren't a strength of the team.

Linebackers: Slight Advantage 2009
The linebackers in 2003 left a lot to be desired in terms of speed. While Patrick Willis was technically on the team, he was having a year of eligibility thrown away on special teams in David Cutcliffe's seniority-based depth chart. Patrick Trahan, Allen Walker, and Jonathan Cornell form a solid unit, and there's a little more depth here than people think.

Secondary: Slight Advantage 2009

Texas Tech's BJ Symons passed for 661 yards against the 2003 Rebel secondary. That is the third highest passing total of any quarterback in any college football game EVER. While the 2009 secondary may be better--because it couldn't be worse--it's certainly not by much. It's funny to say this, considering how much Ole Miss fans despised him, but Von Hutchins was a good corner. He was just undercoached in a terrible, terrible defensive system.

Special Teams: Push
Johnathan Nichols, when not playing LSU, was perfect. Joshua Shene is the conference's best placekicker, but he still hasn't shown that he can be what Nichols was. What 2009's special teams may "lack" in kicking, it more than makes up for in athleticism and innovation. Remember, Special Teams Coordinator, James Shibest, won National ST Coordinator of the Year in 2008. He can scheme with the best of them.

Offensive Line: Strong Advantage 2003

Three of Eli Manning's five blockers are still playing ball in the NFL. Enough said. If the 2009 unit still somehow had Michael Oher, this would be a push.

Running Backs: Strong Advantage 2009

In 2008, the combination of Brandon Bolden, Cordera Eason, Dexter McCluster, and Enrique Davis was the 2nd most effective rushing attack in the SEC. The 2009 Rebels return every single one of them. In 2003, the Rebels struggled to find an identity when running the football, causing many once reasonable fans to urge Cutcliffe and Company to let Eli throw on every single down.

Wide receivers: Slight Advantage 2009

Yes, we know that we're all supposed to be good Rebels and fawn over Chris Collins, Mike Espy, and Bill Flowers. They were all good receivers, but imagine replacing two of those three with Shay Hodge and Dexter McCluster. Yeah, thought so.

Quarterbacks: Slight-to-Strong Advantage 2003

Well that was an easy choice. Jevan Snead is good; there is no doubt about that. He is big, strong-armed, and became a very good decision maker towards the end of last season. He has also shown great leadership abilities and proven to be fearless, even when facing superior competition. However, he's not a Manning. Eli Manning was the 2003 Rebels. Quick, without looking, how many other skill players from the 2003 Rebel squad were drafted into the NFL. If you answered zero, you're correct. Jevan Snead has already lost one of his offensive companions, speedy wide-receiver and overall badass Mike Wallace, to the 3rd round of last year's NFL draft, and will likely join a few others when he eventually makes that jump. Eli Manning was truly a once-in-a-generation type of player surrounded by an experienced roster of "pretty" goods and "alrights." Jevan Snead is a once-in-a-decade type player surrounded by several "goods" and a few "very goods." If these quarterbacks were to switch places, the 2003 Rebs would have ended up with an 8-5 record whereas the 2009 Rebs would be the preseason pick to win the SEC. I know it's a wild and crazy hypothetical, but what in the hell else are we supposed to be doing with nearly a month left in the offseason?

Wow. In looking back up at that, I never realized how truly woolly we Cuppers had become. Yeah, we're calling it: the 2009 Rebs are, when all positions are considered, better than the 7-1, Cotton Bowl Champion 2003 Rebs. Enjoy the rest of your summers while you can because, come September 6th, we will all be waist-deep in the throes of insane fandom. This season is sure to be one of the most interesting Oxford has ever seen and we are more than happy to share it with you.

Big Games On the Schedule, Part 4, 11/21 @Ole Miss

Richard Pittman — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 09:30:09 -0000

If you ask people who LSU's biggest rival, your answer will largely depend on the generation of the person you're asking. If you're asking someone, oh, 25 years old and younger, you may get "Florida" or "Bama" as an answer. If you're asking someone who is over 50 years of age, your answer may well be "Ole Miss" or even "Tulane". In between, the answer may be "Auburn".

It goes back to a problem LSU has had for a while. We have no real natural rivals. I think many LSU fans would rate Bama as the biggest rival, but almost no Bama fan would rank LSU any higher than 3rd on their hate list, behind Tennessee and Auburn. Many LSU fans would say Auburn is our biggest rival, but Auburn would probably also rate us 3rd, behind Georgia and Bama. Florida would probably rate us 3rd as well, behind Tennessee and Georgia. Arkansas would probably rate us, at best, second, behind Texas.

Ole Miss? Ole Miss is a different story. Ole Miss is the closest thing we have to a natural rival. The rivalry has cooled among younger generations in recent years because, frankly, Ole Miss had not kept up with us this decade, and many would say that the 1990s hardly count when it comes to LSU football. That changed last year.

In the midst of a very tough year for LSU, when two systemic problems caught up to us. First, our inability to recruit a quarterback either the year before or the year after signing Ryan Perrilloux meant that when Perrilloux was finally jettisoned, we had no experienced QB to turn to, even as a stopgap measure. Second, the personnel decisions we made on the coaching staff backfired immediately and spectacularly.

This had a number of bad results, among the most notable was an embarrassing 31-13 loss to an Ole Miss team we had beaten every year seemingly from time immemorial.

To be fair, Ole Miss really put it together last year. Several consecutive years of solid recruiting and the ultimate insertion of a genuinely competent quarterback allowed the Rebels to turn the corner and become dangerous again. A lot of people will attribute this to the influence of new head coach Houston Nutt, but I really think the credit goes to Ed Orgeron for bringing in Jevan Snead and a host of solid veterans like Peria Jerry, Greg Hardy, Mike Wallace, and Michael Oher.

Snead and Hardy are back for another season, though Hardy recently reinjured his chronically gimpy foot in a pretty scary-sounding car accident in which he was fortunate not to be more seriously injured. If Hardy is healthy, they will provide the nucleus of what should be a pretty good team, though I am skeptical of all this talk of Ole Miss being a top 5 team. It's great to have the QB play, but Ole Miss isn't sneaking up on anyone this year like they did last year, and they will miss Oher and Jerry immensely.

The good news for Ole Miss is that they probably have the easiest schedule in all the SEC. Their nonconference schedule consists of Memphis, SLU, UAB, and Northern Arizona. Northern Arizona lost to Weber State and Montana last year by a combined 87-24 score. I don't really fault a team for playing patsies outside the conference. Actually, I kind of do, but I can't complain too much because we're guilty of it too. The other aspect of Ole Miss's schedule that makes it easy is that they don't play either of the two best teams in the Eastern Division, Florida and Georgia. Instead, they get South Carolina, Vandy, and Tennessee. They also get LSU, Arkansas, and Bama at home. They have, therefore, among the easiest nonconference schedule, the easiest cross-division schedule, and the easiest intradivision schedule in the SEC West.

Which is of course to say nothing of what they will do against us. I think the key matchup here will be how the revamped LSU secondary handles the passing attack Jevan Snead will throw at us. Yes, I know the "Wild Rebel" with Dexter McCluster will get a lot of press, but in watching it last year I never really saw where it was all that effective. McCluster got some yards, but he was no Darren McFadden, and he was no threat to throw the ball. Plus, he fumbled a good bit. Overall, I'm not really sure the Wild Rebel really helped them last year, and I'm not sure it will help them this year.

Another key will be how the Ole Miss secondary, a bit of a problem for them last year, improves in the 2009 season. No conference team gave up more yards passing per game (and cumulatively) than did Ole Miss. They were the only pass defense in the conference that gave up more than LSU's did. Ole Miss was 10th in pass efficiency defense, mainly because they actually got a good number of interceptions, but they gave up the highest completion percentage in the league. With Jarrett Lee getting hurt last year and being replaced by Jordan Jefferson, we were never really able to take advantage of that against them, but they sure shredded our pass defense with an 11.0 yard per attempt average with two touchdowns.

This is a different year for both teams, and while I'm not "scared" of Ole Miss, they certainly present a very credible threat. They will have legitimately one of the best QBs in the league, and they will have a very solid defensive line, especially if Greg Hardy can return to health. This will be an important late-season battle for the Tigers.

Post-Spring Previews: Ole Miss

Gamecock Man — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 03:52:43 -0000

The fourth week of the season brings the heavily hyped Ole Miss Rebels to Columbia for a Thursday night game. The Rebels open the season against Memphis and Southeast Louisiana, so they should be undefeated and ranked fairly highly for this game. If we beat NC State and UGA (keep your fingers crossed), we will likely also come in as a top 15 team, setting up an early season matchup of ranked SEC squads. In any event , this will be a huge game for both teams; for Ole Miss, it's a necessary hurdle to prove they're ready to meet expectations, and for South Carolina, it's an opportunity to establish ourselves as a surprise team.

Let's see how we stack up against Ole Miss.

Offense

Quarterback

The Rebels return junior quarterback Jevan Snead. Snead is widely regarded as having one of the best arms in college football and could very well be the top overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft if he has a good year. While I have high hopes for Stephen Garcia this year, it would be hard to say that any signal caller not from Gainesville, Austin, or Norman doesn't have a strong disadvantage against Snead, who comes into this season as a dark horse Heisman contender.

Verdict: Strong advantage Ole Miss

Running Backs

Ole Miss returns a plethora of talent for what should be a tailback by committee approach. Cordera Eason, Brandon Bolden, and Enrique Davis are all backs that can run for both speed and power, and all will see time on the field. And none is was the Rebels leading rusher last year. That honor would go to Dexter McCluster, who is a receiver but lines up under center in the "Wild Rebel" formation, from which he often runs the ball. McCluster is the fastest of this group. All of these options are good news for Houston Nutt, a master at coordinating effective running attacks. I expect a much improved running game for the Gamecocks this year, but it won't be as good as what Ole Miss brings.

Verdict: Slight advantage Ole Miss

Wide Receivers and Tights Ends

Although they lose Mike Wallace, the Rebels return a set of big play receivers in McCluster, Shay Hodge, and Markeith Summers. This group has tons of speed and Ole Miss as a team averaged over 15 yards per completion last year. That's scary against our young secondary. I like the Rebels here.

Verdict: Slight advantage Ole Miss

Offensive Line

This is the big question mark for what is an otherwise star-studded Ole Miss offense. Star left tackle Michael Oher and both guards are gone, leaving big shoes for the new crop of players to fill. The Rebels have talent coming to play, including tackle Bradley Sowell, who will take over for Oher. However, they won't have much time to gel before playing us (again, we're their first big-time opponent), and an injury to Sowell or right tackle John Jerry could spell disaster. I would say we have a slight advantage here if our guys continue to improve.

Verdict: Slight advantage South Carolina

Defense

Defensive Line

Although they lost Peria Jerry to the NFL from a unit that led the SEC in tackles for a loss, Ole Miss has what is probably the league's best defensive line. Greg Hardy and Jerrell Powe are the two everyone is talking about, but Marcus Tillman and Kendrell Lockett are also pretty good. I like our defensive line a lot this year (although I worry about depth), but I think Ole Miss has a slight advantage here.

Verdict: Slight advantage Ole Miss

Linebacker

Ole Miss graduates its best players at the linebacker positions, Tony Fein and Ashlee Palmer. The Rebels do return some solid players with significant experience, such as Patrick Trahan. However, this is a question mark area for them; they certainly don't have anyone like Eric Norwood. If we can hold their linemen at bay, I like our chances to run the ball against these guys as well as to set up mismatches in the short to mid-range passing game.

Verdict: Strong advantage South Carolina

Secondary

Although they return some experience at these positions, there are concerns here for the Rebels, as Ole Miss's secondary was the weak link in an otherwise stout Ole Miss defense last year. This isn't to say they're a horrible unit. They played well at times, such as in the Cotton Bowl against a high-flying Texas Tech offense. However, Ole Miss was usually a team you could pass against if you could protect your QB long enough; don't forget, this is a team that Chris Smelley more or less torched. While we have some questions here due to departures, we have some talented players returning and some good incoming talent that should give us a slight advantage here.

Verdict: Slight advantage South Carolina

Special Teams

The Rebels return one of the conference's better placekickers in Joshua Shene. Their main return guys last year were Marshey Green and the departed Mike Wallace; both of the punt and kickoff return units were better than average last year, but losing the speedy Wallace leaves a hole to fill. Their coverage units were also pretty good. With a lot of question marks to answer after losing Ryan Succop, Captain Munnerlyn, and coach Ray Rychleski, I'd say we're at a disadvantage here until we prove otherwise, although I do like our return units when Chris Culliver has the ball.

Verdict: Slight advantage Ole Miss

Head Coach

In the wake of Ole Miss's surprising 2008, pundits everywhere have proclaimed the greatness of Houston Nutt and have derided Arkansas for ever letting him get away. I can't say I agree with this sentiment. Nutt is certainly a good coach and has no peer in terms of motivating his teams to win big games. However, he has some shortcomings that have kept him from the top despite the fact that he had the talent in place with his last two Arkansas teams to win the SEC. First of all, the guy seemed afriad of the forward pass at Arkansas, even when he had Mitch Mustain under center. To his credit, he seems to be embracing post-1960s football these days at Ole Miss. Second of all, his bickering with coaches and off-field shenanigans cost him Mustain, a few other players, and talent offensive coordinator Guz Malzahn for the 2007 season, which could have been a big one for Arkansas. Finally, although he brought some good players to Arkansas, for the most part he's been a very average recruiter, unless you call signing 35+ players this past year at Ole Miss the sign of recruiting prowess. Lest we forget, Nutt's success in Oxford has come courtesy of Ed Orgeron's recruiting talents. This isn't to say that Nutt isn't a better coach than Orgeron; he is. I just don't think he's the genius everyone is saying he is right now. A couple of years ago, before he upset number one LSU in Baton Rouge, nobody was saying this stuff. I'd call comparing him to Spurrier, who has a great legacy but hasn't produced as of late, a push.

Verdict: Push

Overall

My general impression when comparing these teams is that we should have a slightly better defense than Ole Miss, while they should have a much better offense than us. This isn't necessarily to say that we won't have a good offense this year; the fact is, Ole Miss projects to have a truly great one if they live up to expectations. The thing I like about how we match up against them, though, is the Ole Miss offensive line / USC defensive line matchup. We should be able to get some pressure on these guys, which could be key to keeping them from scoring 30+ against us. Of coure, the battle between our o line against their d line will be important, as well; if we can't contain Hardy and Powe, we could be looking at one of those five sacks, four turnovers games we've grown accustomed to. The other thing I like about this game is that it's in Columbia on a Thursday night. All in all, I think the Rebels are probably a slightly better team than us, but I think we'll manage to pull out an upset here.

Prediction: Gamecocks by a field goal

P. S. This prediction has homer written all over it; expect this game to be brutally tough to win.

Chicago Bears Draft Update

Adam T — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:00:45 -0000

With the Cutler deal over most it is a bit harder to project what and where the Bears will go with their 2nd round pick (#49 overall). Most think that wide reciever is a must, but what if all the guys worth this pick are off the board? Do they go safety, defensive line?

Here is a look at known or expected visits and workouts .

Friday - Juaquin Iglesias, WR, Oklahoma

Pre-draft visits

Al Afalava, Safety, Oregon State
ADDED APRIL 4 Aaron Brown, Running back, TCU
Jason Chery, Wide receiver, Louisiana-Lafayette
Maurice Crum Jr., Linebacker, Notre Dame
Derek Kinder, Wide receiver, Pitt
T.J. Lang, Offensive lineman, Eastern Michigan
ADDED APRIL 4 Ellis Lankster, Cornerback, West Virginia
Henry Melton, Defensive end, Texas
Brandon Myers, Tight end, Iowa
Rich Ohrnberger, Guard, Penn State
Anthony Scirrotto, Safety, Penn State
Jamaal Westerman, Defensive end, Rutgers
Nathan Williams, Linebacker, Murray State

Private workouts

Russell Allen, Linebacker, San Diego State
Eben Britton, Offensive tackle, Arizona
Kenny Britt, Wide receiver, Rutgers
John Gill, Defensive tackle, Northwestern
~~Darrius Heyward-Bey, Wide receiver, Maryland~~ canceled
ADDED APRIL 4 Juaquin Iglesias, Wide receiver, Oklahoma
Phil Loadholt, Offensive tackle, Oklahoma
Lance Louis, Guard, San Diego State
Sherrod Martin, Safety, Troy
Mohamed Massaquoi, Wide receiver, Georgia
Michael Mitchell, Safety, Ohio
Hakeem Nicks, Wide receiver, North Carolina
Richard Quinn, Tight end, North Carolina
Mike Wallace, Wide receiver, Ole Miss*

Get together (we're not sure if these will be visits or private workouts)

Todd Boeckman, Quarterback, Ohio State*
Brian Robiskie, Wide receiver, Ohio State

WR, Mike Wallace, Mississippi

Jeremy Bolander — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 02:17:50 -0000

WR, Mike Wallace, Mississippi

At A Glance
Position 1: Wide Receiver	Height: 6-1
Position 2:	Weight: 199
Class: Senior	Age:
Projected Round: 5th	40time: 4.28

Combine/Proday Results
Bench Reps: 14	Vertical: 40
20yd Split: 2.45	Broad Jump: 10'9"
10yd Split: 1.43	20yd Shuttle: 4.27
3 Cone Drill: 6.90

Pros: Looks the part. Athletic build with room for additional mass. Rare straight-line speed. Eats up the cushion quickly and can blow by the defender. Smooth acceleration and has a late burst to pull away if being challenged. Can track the ball over his shoulder. Developing into a more reliable route-runner and pass-catcher. Has the foot quickness and balance to be a good route-runner and can sink his hips. Generally uses his hands to make the reception, though he still allows too many into his pads. Has some lateral agility to make defenders miss. Helped himself with a solid week of practice at the Senior Bowl.

Cons: Still a work in progress as a route-runner. Learning to sink his hips and explode out of his cuts, as he has to gather himself too much. Struggles a bit against press coverage. Has to use his hands better to gain a quick release. Lets too many passes into his pads, resulting in some ugly drops. Doesn't consistently show the vision and elusiveness in the open field to truly capitalize on his pure speed. Needs an open lane as a returner to break off a big gain.

Around MHR:

Around SBNation:

From "NFL Scouting Combine Ramblings" at Blogging the Boys:

This guy flat out impressed me. Now I never saw him play in college (it's Mississippi, for cryin out loud!), but after flashing a 40 in the low 4.3's, going 40" plus in the vertical and watching him outrun every ball thrown his way and explode out of his cuts, you can bet I am youtubing (is that a word?) him to death now. This guy is a late 2nd or early 3rd rounder and all I can say is WOW. Reminds me of Eddie Royal..

Highlights:

Scouting Reports and Offsite Links:

Outstanding speed...Excellent athlete...Dangerous vertical threat...Is quick and agile in space...Solid ball skills...Adequate height and bulk...Is tougher than he's given credit for...Also a terrific return man. [see more...]
Burst onto the scene as a potential NFL draft pick with a huge second half last season. Is an explosive deep-play threat with the speed to consistently make plays vertically. Possesses adequate size for the position and displays good short-area quickness and wiggle after the catch. Has a lot of upside and has only begun to scratch the surface of his potential. [see more...]

Tracking the Kansas City Chiefs' Draft Interests

Chris Thorman — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 17:04:48 -0000

*Updated April 22, 2009

Private Workout/Visit	Spoke with at Senior Bowl/Combine	Attended Pro Day	Rumored interest	Scouted in person during 2008 season	Local Pro Day Attendees
G Roger Allen (Mo. Western, Rd. 7)	QB Nathan Brown (Central Arkansas, Rd. 6)	OLB Jason Williams (Western Illinois, Rd. 3-4)	OG Marlon Davis (Alabama, Rd. 7)	T Michael Oher (Ole Miss, Rd. 1)	QB Josh Freeman (K-State, Rd. 1-2)
DE Connor Barwin (Cinncinati, Rd. 1-2)	LB Rey Maualuga (USC, Rd. 1)	University of Georgia	LB Jasper Brinkely (S. Carolina, Rd. 4-5)	CB Malcolm Jenkins (Ohio St. Rd. 1)	LB Mike Rivera (KU, Rd. 7)
WR Taurus Johnson (S. Florida, Rd. 7)	WR Mike Wallace (Ole Miss, Rd. 5)	Georgia Tech University (Likely)	FB Jerome Johnson (Nevada-Reno, Rd. 7)	LB Rey Maualuga (USC, Rd. 1)	WR Tommy Saunders (MU, Rd. 7)
DE Everette Brown (FSU, Rd. 1)	QB Pat White (WVU, Rd. 2-3)	LSU (Likely)	OG/C Lawrence Lovell (Stony Brook)	LB Brian Cushing (USC, Rd. 1)	LB Brock Christopher (MU, Rd. 7)
DT Ricky Jean-Francois (LSU, Rd. 4)	OLB Brian Cushing (USC, Rd. 1)	University of Tennessee	LB Derek Nicholson (FSU)	CB Mike Mickens (Cincinnati, Rd. 2-3)	K Jeff Wolfert (MU, Rd. 7)
OT Jason Smith (Baylor, Rd. 1)	CB Keenan Lewis (Oregon St.), Rd. 3	PK Ryan Succop (Univ. South Carolina, Rd. 7)	SS Bret Lockett (UCLA, Rd. 7)	LB Aaron Curry (Wake Forest, Top 5)	G Roger Allen (Missouri Western, Rd. 7)
LB Mike Rivera (KU, Rd. 7)	DT Fili Moala (USC, Rd. 2-3)	TE Rob Myers (Utah State, Rd. 7)	CB Vince Anderson (Webber International University)	T Eugene Monroe (Virginia, Rd. 1)	TE Darius Hill (Ball St. Rd. 7)
TE Anthony Hill (NC State, Rd. 5-6)	OT Alex Boone (Ohio State Rd. 5-6)	Ole Miss (Ole Miss) Rd. 1	DE Tyson Jackson (LSU, Rd. 1)	DT B.J. Raji (Boston College, Rd. 1)	TE Chase Coffman (MU, Rd. 2-3)
LB Aaron Curry (Wake Forest, Top 5)	OT Andrew Gardner (Georgia Tech, Rd. 5-6)	University of Iowa (Likely)	WR Quinten Lawrence (McNeese St., Rd. 7)	TE Brandon Pettigrew (Oklahoma St., Rd. 1)
DL Sammie Lee Hill (Stillman College, Rd. 5-6)	OT/G Cornelius Lewis (Tennessee State, Rd. 6)	USC	Chase Patton (MU, Rd.7)
OT Eben Britton (Arizona, Rd. 1-2)	OT Michael Oher (Ole Miss, Rd. 1)	Stephen F. Austin	WR Austin Collie (BYU, Rd. 4)
DE Jarron Gilbert (San Jose St., Rd. 2-3)	OLB DeAndre Levy (Wisconsin, Rd. 6-7)	University of Alabama	LB Mike Maresh (NDSU)
NT Sen'Derrick Marks (Auburn, Rd. 2-3)
OT Gerald Cadorgon (Penn. State, Rd. 3)
OT Cornelius Lewis (Tenn. St., Rd. 6)
OT Lawrence Lovell (Stony Brook U., Rd. ???)
LB Clint Sintim (Virginia, Rd. 2)
DE Paul Kruger (Utah, Rd. 3)
WR Mike Thomas (Arizona, Rd. 2-3)
TE Richard Quinn (North Carolina, Rd. 5)
DE Brian Orakpo (Texas, Rd. 1)
LB James Laurinaitis (Ohio St., Rd. 1-2)
K Robbie Dehaze (NAU, Rd. 7)
RB Javarris Williams (Tenn. St., Rd. 5-6)
LB Rey Maualuga (USC, Rd. 1)
LB Larry English (Northern Illinois, Rd. 1-2)
DB Vince Anderson (Webber International University, Rd. 7)
RB Andre Brown (NC State, Rd. 2-3)
CB Darius Butler (UConn, Rd. 1-2)

Good afternoon to you all on a beautiful (at least where I am) Saturday (It's Saturday, right?) afternoon. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping and the NFL draft is approaching.

The table above lists all of the Kansas City Chiefs' draft interests we've been able to dig up (This is not intended to be a comprehensive list), arranged by four different categories. I've linked back to the stories on AP citing those sources for legitimacy. Take the categories as seriously as you want. Obviously, the private workouts are probably the most legitimate, although you have guys like Mike Rivera from KU who are only going to the Chiefs little local Pro Day in mid-April that is for KC-area prospects.

After today, I'm going to feature this story and there will be a permanent link in the left sidebar to this so we can access it at anytime. We'll also be updating this list as new prospects connected to the Chiefs come up.

And one more thing, please let us know in the comment section if we missed anyone. Thanks!