SB Nation - Jevan Snead

We Apologize for Deceiving you, Sports Illustrated.

The Ghost of Jay Cutler — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 19:13:18 -0000

More photos » by Rogelio V. Solis - AP

Crooks, swindlers, brapscallions, hoodwinkers, bamboozlers.

Stewart Mandel, a mainstream media stalwart who I generally respect, recently released his annual rankings of this season's 34 bowl games(wow, 34?) in terms of intrigue and watchability. Actually, to cite Mandel verbatim, the rankings are based...

only marginally on the teams' actual merits. They also take into consideration star quality, fan appeal, evenness of matchup, aesthetic appeal of the two teams' colors and whether or not any NCIS reruns will be airing at the same time.

So those criteria, per Stewart Mandel's own observations and personal inclinations, leave the Cotton Bowl as the 14th most interesting bowl. Sayeth the Mandel,

14) Cotton (Jan. 1): Oklahoma State (9-3) vs. Ole Miss (8-4). Would it be too harsh to dub this the Preseason Fraud Bowl? Rebels quarterback Jevan Snead looks to recapture the magic of his breakout performance here a year ago.

Too harsh, you ask? Not at all. Rife with double standard and blame deflection, though? Yep.

A fraud, when speaking of a person, can either be "a person who is not what he or she pretends to be," "one that is not what it seems or is represented to be," or "one who defrauds," per Merriam-Webster. It can also be the "act of deceiving or misrepresenting."

So, Stewart, what exactly did you mean when you thought it clever to call the Oklahoma State versus Ole Miss matchup the "Preseason Fraud Bowl?" Were you suggesting that their Cowboys and our Rebels were not what we "pretend(ed) to be?" I suppose that's correct to an extent. Plenty of Rebel fans, and I'm assuming Cowboy fans as well, had ideas of conference championship game appearances and BCS bowl berths dancing about their heads during the preseason. Yeah, plenty of us thought of our teams as being something that we clearly weren't, so point taken.

Are we "ones that were not what we seemed or were represented to be?" Well, yes. We were represented to be top-10 teams, remember? Do you? Surely you must remember Ole Miss and Oklahoma State being represented as top-10 teams, Stewart Mandel of Sports fucking Illustrated? So yeah, we were frauds then, but not by any fault of our own.

And what about that final definition of a "fraud" that I listed? The one that says a "fraud" is "one who defrauds" and that their actions of "deceiving and misrepresenting" classify as the act of "fraud." Is that us? Well no, Stewart, that'd be the fucking magazine you write for, fraud.

For any member of the mainstream sports media to call Ole Miss and Oklahoma State "frauds" is one of the biggest piece of sports media hypocrisies I have observed in quite a while.

And it's not just Stewart Mandel. I know I'm way overreacting here and I know I'm singling him out (Both of which are unfair... Sorry, Stu.), but such talk has been a part of everything as widely circulated as SI and ESPN, down to local newspapers, and all of the way down to online forums and opposing blogs.

Really, ever since Ole Miss lost to South Carolina on that Thursday night in early October--a game which many of us weren't too confident about in the first place--the "Ole Miss is a fraud" bandwagon has been going strong. That I'm honestly okay with. I am not, however, okay with the fact that the very same people fueling and piloting the "Ole Miss is a fraud" bandwagon are the exact same people who did the same for the "Ole Miss is gonna crash the BCS" bandwagon.

So, the media hypes us to be something we're not. They convince most of us Rebel fans and nearly all casual observers of college ball that this year would be "it." Yet we're the frauds, as if Houston Nutt, Jevan Snead, and Red Cup Rebellion have votes in the preseason AP poll and loads of ESPN air time.

Why isn't a 7-5 Oklahoma team, one which was number three in Sports Illustrated's top-20, a fraud? Or an 8-4 USC team which, not only started out at number four in your polls, but also doesn't have the convenient "our starting quarterback's shoulder exploded" excuse to fall back on, a la Oklahoma? Or how about a 9-3 Virginia Tech team which started out at number five and finished as debatably the 3rd best team in their own conference? Ooh, and then there's North Carolina (9-3), Georgia (7-5), and Florida State (6-6) who all started in SI's top-20, only to fall out of everybody's stop-25 altogether; why aren't they getting the "zomg u were OvErRaTeD" treatment as well?

This kind of thing happens every single year in college football. Some teams surprise, others disappoint. It's nothing new. To single out this year's Cotton Bowl between once top-10 teams as some sort of "fraud" bowl is cheap and shortsighted. Yes, this bowl embodies the phenomenon of deflated preseason hopes perhaps better than any bowl in recent memory, but that sure as hell isn't our fault.

-With Apologies to Stewart Mandel... sorta.

Ranking The 2009-2010 Bowls: Part 2

Mark Kieffer — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:31:13 -0000

In Part 1 of the series, I listed the bowls that I would not be mad at missing. With this Part 2, I'm continuing the countdown. This set of games are those that I would like to see, but I'm not going to make any kind of sacrifices to watch these games.

During the holidays, especially when traveling to a bowl game myself, you're sometimes going to miss some. Click on the jump, to see the 12 bowls that I have in my middle tier of games!

#20: Outback Bowl (Northwestern vs. Auburn), 1/1/2010, 10am CST, ESPN

After a night of partying in Tempe on New Years, there's no way in hell I'm going to get myself up early to watch this. I'm not really one of those ISU fans obsessed with Chizik anyways. This game could have easily gone in my Part 1 post. Honestly, I think Auburn rolls in this one anyways, but you never know.

#19: Texas Bowl (Navy vs. Missouri), 12/31/2009, 2:30pm CST, ESPN

There's no way I'm seeing this game, (although I would've liked to) so it ranks this low. I'll be at Sundevil Stadium when this is getting underway, but I'll be scoreboard checking during the game. Not a bad matchup at all, and could be an entertaining game. Navy has that triple option, while Missouri has a good passing game behind Danario Alexander.

#18: Emerald Bowl (Boston College vs. USC), 12/26/2009, 7pm CST, ESPN

This should be an evenly matched game for the most part. USC has had a down year by their standards, but I think this year was pretty good for Boston College. I'm not really a fan of either team, which is why it ranks relatively low on my list.

#17: Liberty Bowl (Arkansas vs. East Carolina), 1/2/2010, 4:30pm CST, ESPN

You have a pretty good offense in Arkansas against an East Carolina team that won the CUSA, and has been on a roll down the stretch.

#16: Independence Bowl (Texas A&M vs. Georgia), 12/28/2009, 4pm CST, ESPN

Georgia has the better defense, and better overall team, while A&M has the better offense. You can't ignore Georgia's win over Georgia Tech; that was impressive. I think this has the makings of a good game, and it might suprise some people.

#15: Champs Sports Bowl (Miami vs. Wisconsin), 12/29/2009, 7pm CST, ESPN

I like watching Miami. Been a fan of them since I've been following College Football. Growing up in Minnesota, I've seen a lot of Wisconsin as well. A game between two programs I'm familiar with. Miami likes to pass it, and is a very athletic team. Wisconsin, plays your typical Big 10 style of game: running the ball and trying to play defense.

#14: Chick-Fil-A Bowl (VA Tech vs. Tennessee), 12/31/2009, 6:30pm CST, ESPN

Lane Kiffin is just a drama-machine. Seems like controversy follows him around, and that alone may be worth watching. It will also be interesting to see how VA Tech plays, when they've been eying a BCS Bowl game all year, and feel a little snubbed. Tennesee has played close to teams all year, with a pretty solid defense. This could end up being similar to the Nebraska vs. VA Tech game earlier in the year.

#13: Capital One Bowl (Penn State vs. LSU), 1/1/2010, Noon CST, ABC

If you like watching a good defensive game, this one is for you. Both teams have issues scoring at times, but have no issues stopping the opposing offense.

#12: Cotton Bowl (Oklahoma State vs. Ole Miss), 1/2/2010, 1pm CST, Fox

This is the battle between two disappointing teams. Both were ranked high at the beginning of the year, and neither really did much of anything notable on the national scale. I'm still confused as to how Oklahoma State just laid an egg against Oklahoma, along with how Ole Miss was supposed to have this Heisman contender in Snead. I don't really think either fanbase is that excited about the game either. With how inconsistent these teams have been all year, I don't think anyone knows what to expect in this one, and maybe for that, it's worth tuning into for a little bit.

#11: Holiday Bowl (Arizona vs. Nebraska), 12/30/2009, 7pm CST, ESPN

These teams are pretty even on paper. I can't see scores outside of the teens in this one. Heck, this game could be 10-9 or something like that. It's really too bad for Husker fans that their offense was so bad this year, as it's really brought this team down. I have also come around to being a big fan of Suh, and it's extremley fun to watch him dominate the line of scrimmage all game long. Even if he doesn't get the tackle or sack, Suh has an impact on the play.

#10: Poinsettia Bowl (Utah vs. Cal), 12/23/2009, 7pm CST, ESPN

Jahvid Best is back for the Golden Bears, and he's a lot of fun to watch. Really good to see that he's going to be able to continue playing, after that scary concussion he suffered not too long ago. Honestly, when I saw that play, I thought his playing days in the future could be in jeopardy. This game is likely going to come down to the wire, as they are dead even on paper.

In Part 3, I'm going to countdown the bowls that are must-see for me. By process of elimination, you can figure out which bowls they are, but you will have to see on Thursday as to what the order is.

----

Part 1

A Head-Scratching Snub.

Acid Reign — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 09:00:21 -0000

More photos » by Butch Dill - AP

Auburn wide receiver Darvin Adams (89) frequently abused defensive backs! (AP Photo/ Butch Dill)

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War Eagle, everybody. The post-season All-SEC teams are out now, and there aren't too many surprises. It looks like some reporters and sports information directors simply copied their preseason list over again. I guess they DID pay enough attention that Jevan Snead didn't get any votes.

I'd say the biggest surprise of the All-SEC voting was the complete absence of Auburn wide receiver Darvin Adams in the voting. The media voters select 5 wide receivers. Statistically, Darvin Adams was 5^th in receptions, 4^th in receiving yards per game, 3^rd in receiving yards, 2^nd in yards per catch, and tied for the lead in receiving touchdowns. In fact, there's not a single statistical category that Adams WASN'T in the top five. Somehow, Joe Adams of Arkansas made it in ahead of Adams, despite catching TWENTY fewer balls! Adams also finished behind Florida's Riley Cooper, despite having more catches, more yards per catch, and more touchdowns. A similar argument could be made against LSU's Brandon LaFell: fewer yards, and fewer yards per catch. Even compared to the starting All-SEC unit, Darvin Adams had a better yards per catch stat and more touchdowns than Shay Hodge of Ole Miss. When comparing Adams to Georgia's A. J. Green, Adams had more yards, more catches, a better yards per catch average, and more touchdowns. HOW does Adams not get AT LEAST honorable mention notice?

On the season, Darvin Adams finished with 48 catches for 855 yards and 10 touchdowns. War Eagle, Darvin Adams!

In another predictable but irritating snub, kicker Wes Byrum was left out of the all-star balloting. Byrum hit on 14 of 15 field goal attempts, and made all 49 of his extra point attempts. Byrum connected on 93.3 percent of his field goals. The selected All-SEC starter Leigh Tiffin was only good on 87.9 percent of his field goals, and missed THREE extra points. Second-team selection Blair Walsh only hit 90.5 percent of his field goals. What makes Byrum's snub easier to take is that he essentially lost because Auburn was scoring touchdowns in the red zone, rather than settling for 3. The Tigers converted 76% of their red-zone appearances into touchdowns, and got points 94% of the time overall.

There isn't an official offensive lineman stat page on the SEC website. But I'd take Auburn's Lee Ziemba over most of the 2^nd team offensive linemen, and a couple of the starters. Ziemba finished in the "honorable mention" category, surely a result of false starts. The sad fact is that Ziemba earned his reputation for jumping off in previous years. This year, he's actually been penalized less than you think! On false starts, Lee had 1 against La Tech, 1 against WVa, 1 against Furman, 1 against Georgia, and one against Alabama. That's a total of 5 false starts in a 12 game season, which is not many for a starting left tackle. Ziemba had no holding calls against him, all year. And the only other penalty was on his ineligible catch in the Georgia game. How many sacks did Ziemba give up? I don't remember but one, and it was when Ziemba was trying to get over on a corner blitz that was probably not even his responsibility. All in all, Lee Ziemba was the best lineman on a pretty tough Auburn unit.

Let's hear it for the left-out Tigers that led our team! War Eagle!

Other Musings from Championship Week, after the jump.

Once again, we see the need in the Football Bowl Subdivision for a post-season playoff. The argument against undefeated TCU and Boise State for playing in weak, non-BCS leagues is somewhat legit. Big East Champ Cincinnati plays in a BCS conference, went undefeated, and got left out. Rather than play for a national title, Cincy will be taking on a frustrated Gator group. Coach Brian Kelly appears to be headed for Notre Dame, and the Bearcats will be facing a fired up Gator group without their leader. It's a bitter end to a great Cincy season.

As to the Texas Longhorns, has there ever been a more disrespected number two team in the national title game? Oh, yes! I remember about 17 years ago the national press was moaning over a team that had a whole schedule full of single-digit wins, that would NEVER be able to challenge the top-ranked Hurricanes. I think we all remember how that 1993 Sugar Bowl turned out, with the Tide stomping Miami into goo. I'd suggest that the Tide not take Texas lightly. The book on the Longhorns is to contain McCoy and cover Shipley. However, the overlooked part of the 'horn team is their run defense. Alabama will have a tough time replicating their SEC Championship Game effort on offense, I think.

Fellow track'em writer War Eagle Atlanta posted an excellent question earlier this week: Will Auburn fans cheer for the Tide, or the Longhorns? If Alabama loses, I'll snicker and try to get glimpses of Nick Saban's face on the sideline. But there is no hairy way I really want the SEC to lose the BCS title game. We'll never hear the end of it, from the national media, if the SEC loses that game. Yes, I want Alabama to win. No, I absolutely will NOT be screaming "Roll Tide" at my TV that night. Hopefully, I'll be sitting quietly in my chair with a Klondike and a stinger, enjoying a good football game.

It's a difficult time to be a Florida Gator. One of the prices for success is that your assistant coaches become hot commodities. Florida's loss of Tim Tebow pales compared to the amount of talent and experience that has left the Florida coaching staff in the past two seasons. How Urban Meyer rebuilds his staff will be key. It could be a tough transition period ahead.

What a difference a year makes! This time last season, we were jeering the Auburn coaching search. This year, we're cheering a promising foundation, and lauding Jay Jacobs' pitch to the Outback Bowl. Well done, sir, well done!

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.

Postseason in the the SEC

Acid Reign — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 09:00:21 -0000

3rd team All-SEC?

War Eagle, everybody. The postseason of 2009 is on us, and the regular season is over. This time last season, I think most folks were glad it was over. Of course, December 2008 would turn out to be a terribly tumultuous month! We ran a head coach and staff off, at a cost of a cool $5 million. We hired a 5-19 replacement as the new head coach. The program was quite frankly in disarray! We were the laughing stock of the SEC, hands down.

A year later, how'd that work out for us? Against long odds, Auburn's football team won more than they lost, and they won the hearts of the fans. I don't think ANY of us are ready for the season to be over! In just one season, Auburn has vaulted to a New Year's Day bowl, and a winning record. A tremendous recruiting class seems to be in the making. There are 5 other 7-5 SEC teams, and I don't think they are laughing now!

This season, the SEC will send a record ten teams to bowl games. There are some tough challenges facing the SEC. I think most of the nation would love to see the SEC fall off its high-horse and lose big this bowl season. Texas will be a tough test for the SEC Champion, and the loser of the SEC title game will have to lick their wounds and get ready for another rough test. The Sugar Bowl is likely to match unbeaten Cincinnati against the SEC runner up, and if Cincy loses, then undefeated TCU. Penn State will be an extremely tough test for offensively-challenged LSU in the Capital One Bowl. Auburn's sometimes leaky defense will be tested by Northwestern in the Outback Bowl. Might be a record for points scored in that bowl! The Cotton will be a dangerous bowl, as both Ole Miss and Oklahoma State had hoped for much bigger things, this season. Likely bowl opponents in the second tier are Virginia Tech, North Carolina, U Conn, Texas A&M, and the Houston Cougars. SEC teams need to be on their games to match the success of the past three seasons. The SEC has won 19 of its last 26 bowl games.

The net yards per pass prizes, and ruminations on the SEC Championship Game, after the jump!

At the beginning of the season, I examined the net yards per pass of the projected starters in the SEC. Now that the regular season is over, let's see how they did:

SEC Eastern Division	Record	Record	Starting	Net Yards per pass	Net Yards per pass
Team	SEC	Overall	Quarterback	End of Season	Preseason
Florida	6-0	8-0	Tim Tebow	8.1	8.6
Tennessee	4-4	7-5	Jonathan Crompton	5.5	3.8
Georgia	4-4	7-5	Joe Cox	5.7	6.6
South Carolina	3-5	7-5	Stephen Garcia	5.8	3.5
Kentucky	3-5	7-5	Mike Hartline Morgan Newton Will Fiddler	3.4 4.1 3.3	3.9
Vanderbilt	0-8	2-10	Larry Smith Mackenzi Adams	3.4 3.8	3.4 3.8

SEC Western Division	Record	Record	Starting	Net Yards per pass	Net Yards per pass
Team	SEC	Overall	Quarterback	End of Season	Preseason
Alabama	8-0	12-0	Greg McElroy	6.8	8.1
LSU	5-3	9-3	Jordan Jefferson	6.1	5.1
Ole Miss	4-4	8-4	Jevan Snead	4.9	6.3
Arkansas	3-5	7-5	Ryan Mallett	8.4	4.6
Auburn	3-5	7-5	Chris Todd	7.0	4.4
Mississippi State	3-5	5-7	Tyson Lee Chris Relf	3.4 3.2	4.9 1.4

Only three quarterbacks managed to finish at 7.0 or above, but every bowl eligible SEC team finished with a quarterback over 4.0 yards per pass. Those that did not attain 4.0 are sitting home for the holidays. It's been an odd year, in that most of the very experienced returning quarterbacks actually had statistically worse years in 2009. Tim Tebow's numbers are still good enough for second place, but he's down a half yard. Mike Hartline and Tyson Lee declined, too. Jevan Snead plunged from pre-season All-SEC 2^nd team to 9^th place in the league. Snead paced the SEC with 17 interceptions. Long-time backups Joe Cox and Greg McElroy both saw their stats shrink, thrust into starting roles. The winners in the improvement department are Ryan Mallett, Chris Todd, Stephen Garcia, and Jonathan Crompton. Crompton survived a HORRID September, to finish with a respectable 5.5 net yard per pass.

Ryan Mallett performed well enough to cause All-SEC voters to do some head-scratching. Who IS the best SEC quarterback? If you were arguing on strictly an MVP-type basis, you'd have to give the award to Mallett. Without him, Arkansas easily finishes in the West cellar. Looking at what each quarterback brings to the field, Tim Tebow ALONE makes Florida two-dimensional. However, is Arkansas' one dimension better than Florida's two? Total yards tell the tale: Mallett has 3387, and Tebow has 2962. Comparing the teams, Florida put up 5416 yards, and Arkansas 5272. To me, it's a tough comparison. I think if Tebow has a good game in the SEC title match, he'll win the All-SEC quarterback sweepstakes. If Bama's defense makes Tebow look human, it's Mallett's prize. Number three in the league HAS to be a surprise to everyone: Chris Todd. In this context, he's had a pretty amazing season.

I don't have a strong opinion on who is going to win the SEC title game. Both teams sport awesome defenses and good depth. I think Florida is a little better on offense, and a little better on special teams. And, I think Florida has the best player in the league calling the signals. I see another close Florida win, but it's certainly not carved in stone. The DUI arrest of defensive end Carlos Dunlap could be a distraction factor for the Gators. Alabama received a serious wake-up call in the Iron Bowl against Auburn. It could play out differently on the field, than on paper. I can remember ten years ago, a heavily favored Florida team was dismantled by a more motivated Bama group, 34-7. There have been surprising SEC Title game results this decade, to be sure! There was LSU's stunning 31-20 win over UT in 2001, The 34-13 LSU blowout of UGA in 2003, and Georgia's blowout of LSU in 2005. I'll watch this one for fun, as just a fan of the game! And yes, I'd rather see the West win. But I can't bring myself to say the "RT" words...

What Should the Meme be?

The Ghost of Jay Cutler — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:10:37 -0000

More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

They hate you because it's convenient, coach.

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I'm pretty tired of all of this. I'm pretty tired of having to defend Houston Nutt and I'm pretty tired of having to defend my alma mater for hiring the guy. But, let me say this again: Houston Nutt does not fail under expectations. Or, at least this letdown of a season isn't so much his fault in particular.

"Now, Ghost, how can you say that, especially after having seen the season that just transpired? And look at what he did at Arkansas!"

Well, first of all, the notion of failed expectations at Arkansas was proven completely bunk by the gentle sirs at Team Speed Kills months ago. And secondly, as I have argued before, collapsing under pressure is hardly a Houston Nutt issue; it's an Ole Miss issue, and it has been such since before any one of we Cuppers were even born.

Yet, despite this, message board posters, mainstream media types, bloggers, and anyone with an outlet for their (misguided) opinions on college football continue to beat the "Houston Nutt doesn't win under pressure" drum. Here, once again, are some pieces which should really be required reading for anybody attempting to follow, cover, or even understand Ole Miss Rebel athletics:

Pay special attention to that last article. Did you notice how it read:

Judging from the Ole Miss schedule, nothing else much should bug Archie or his teammates this season...Moreover, seven of the 10 games will be played on one or the other of Ole Miss' three "home" fields—in Memphis, Jackson and Oxford. If the Rebs get past Alabama on Oct. 3 in Jackson, they should be unbeaten going into their final—and most challenging—game, against LSU on Dec. 5 in Baton Rouge's howling Tiger Stadium. Oh, yes, freshmen, one more thing: plan on spending New Year's Day at a bowl game.

Did you? Is that not almost the exact same language we saw in just about every one of this season's preview magazines? History repeats itself again.

Oh, and for those who aren't aware, the Rebels finished 7-3 that year with losses to Southern Miss, State, and LSU. They didn't go bowling.

So, for disgruntled Rebel fans, groupthink-shackled media folks, and stupid ass SEC rivals, don't take the easy way out. This especially goes out to my fellow sporters of the Yale Blue and Harvard Crimson. Let's take a frank look at ourselves here: we all, against our best judgement, bought into the Rebel hype this year. Most of us cannot recall a time when the gridiron Rebels were so highly thought of by the mainstream sports media and we let it get to our heads. We all knew, somewhere deep inside, that this would likely all come crashing down. But we suppressed that because, "hey, this is fun, what with ESPN saying all of these neat things about us and Jevan Snead!!11"

I know it is going to sting a little, but say it with me: "So long as Ole Miss is favored to win something, it won't. Ever. There is something longstanding and subliminal about our sports programs which will ensure this. We'll continue to lose games, yet never lose parties."

No, I truly posit that this season is not Houston Nutt's fault. Such a line of thinking is exactly along the lines of Arkansas fans--along with some outsiders--claiming that Houston Nutt is not good at coaching his team during bowl games. They, of course, are using his 2-6 bowl record while the head coach of the Razorbacks as their argument's basis; but that completely ignores the fact that, as a program, Arkansas has always been poor in postseason play. Before Nutt even arrived to coach in Fayetteville, the Hogs "boasted" a 9-16-3 (.321 winning percentage) record in bowl play. It is easy for them to say "Coach Nutt lost those bowl games." It isn't so easy to say "there is seriously some longstanding, institutional problem with our football program which is not at all looking to change anytime soon."

I'm sorry, Rebels. We are...Ole Miss. Again.

Oh yes, I do very much realize that this is a fairly pathetic, defeatist attitude. But until any Ole Miss athletics program give me reason to approach Rebel athletics in a different manner, this will be my take. I know that's not exactly "changing the culture of Ole Miss athletics," but, considering our stereotypical ineptitude towards change, it's more appropriate than most of us are willing to admit.

Know Your Opponent: That College Up North

jeremyflint — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 22:56:53 -0000

Here is a late Q & A with the guys over at Red Cup Rebellion. The Egg Bowl kicks off tomorrow at 11:21am CT on SEC Sports Network. GTHOM!

1. Ole Miss started the season with a lot of hype and presictions of greatness. Has the season lived up to expectations? Why or why not?

If you had asked this question of me a month ago, I would have answered with a resounding "no." However, our offense has averaged over 450 yards per game since then, and our defense looks to be crushing opposing ballcarriers.

Before the season began, I predicted that the Rebels would go 10-2 with losses to Alabama and Arkansas, placing them second in the West. Assuming that we take care of business against MSU this Saturday, we will have fallen only one win short of that and still place second in the West.

As the fan of a team from Mississippi, it's foolish to be dissatisfied with nine regular season wins.

2. Dexter McCluster is obviously the centerpiece of the Rebel offense. If you were Carl Torbush, how would you try and limit his success in the game?

Honestly, I know this would be crazy, but I would move a fast safety into your linebacking corps and spy Dexter with him on every single play in which Dex is in the game. If you try to do what LSU did, getting Chad Jones to spy McCluster out of a traditional safety spot, Snead will simply pick on that safety's side of the field. The key is having someone with Dexter McCluster's speed whose only job is to take care of McCluster.

Still, Dexter's best quality is his ability to make something out of nothing. Plenty of times in the last few games, opposing defenses have had players in the right place only to see Dexter switch directions or simply outrun said defenders. He's lighting in a bottle, and there's no true way to stop him.

3. Aside from McCluster, what other weapons does Jevan Snead have available.

Well, I don't know if you have ever heard of Shay Hodge. He leads the SEC in receiving yards. Hodge is obviously Jevan's favorite target, and it has shown. Shay catches many many more balls than any other receiver, and Jevan appears to stare him down sometimes.

But we have some other receivers and backs worth noting.

Tailback/Fullback/H-Back Brandon Bolden has soft hands and can make something happen after he catches the ball out of the backfield. He's a devastating runner who can level players in the secondary.

Our only tight end of note in the passing game is Ferbia Allen, a freshman who may not have many catches but has made his touches matter. Against Tennessee, Allen had an incredible catch for a first down on a ball that was poorly thrown and required a lay-out grab.

The other receivers of note are Markeith Summers, a balanced receiver who has a little trouble bringing the ball in sometimes, Lionel Breaux, a speed receiver who also has trouble bringing the ball in, and Patrick Patterson who has no trouble holding onto the ball but can't get separation to save his life.

4. Give me the run-down of your best players on both sides of the ball.

I'm going to assume you meant along the lines since I've essentially already discussed all the skill players on offense.

On the offensive line, John Jerry was a decent right tackle. Then true freshman mammoth Bobby Massie was moved to the starting job at RT allowing Jerry to move to right guard. It turns out that while Jerry was only an adequate tackle, he's a fantastic guard. Baby J has been able to open countless holes for the running game, and Massie has also played well. The late-season line adjustment is just what the doctor ordered.

On the defensive line, our best pass-rushing defensive end is done for the season in Greg Hardy, but the line is still full of stars. In fact, the two best return (fingers crossed) next season. Juniors Kentrell Lockett (DE) and Jerrell Powe (NT) are phenoms who get after the quarterback as well as they bring down the ball carrier. It's a pleasure to watch them both play as they both specialize in disrupting the backfield and busting plays.

5. How do you see this game playing out and what will the final score be?

I don't think it's just the Rebel in me that's calling this a win for Ole Miss. MSU has nothing for which to play, and the Rebels are shooting for a Capital One Bowl berth with this win. Sure, it's a rivalry, but, much to the surprise of many fans, the better team has usually won for the past decade or so. Here, Ole Miss is the better team.

I imagine that we'll have trouble containing Anthony Dixon, but the defense has come up strong against some great backs, and I can't imagine Dixon having a day like he did against Kentucky. We'll be keying in on him, and neither Tyson Lee nor Chris Relf have the arm to beat our secondary.

On offense, I imagine we'll just continue to let McCluster run wild, but if State keys in on him too much, we'll use him as a distraction like we did against LSU. Your defense can't overcommit to McCluster, or you're toast.

Rebels win 31-17.

Guest Blogger: Juco All-American Answers Five Questions

Poseur — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:22:35 -0000

Let's all welcome JUCO All-American from the Ole Miss blog, Red Cup Rebellion. We've had some making fun of RCR this season, but we put the knives away before the game to ask each other five questions on the game. Go visit RCR and see my answers to their questions as well. Come back and call me a moron.

OK, we all know Dexter McCluster is awesome. So why has Brandon Bolden gotten more rushing attempts (barely, but still, what's up with that)?

Um... in some ways your guess is as good as mine. Let me say this. In practice during the Spring and Fall, Bolden was awesome. In the spring game, he only played in the first drive, but that drive was the Brandon Bolden show. He is a threat catching the ball out of the backfield but is a power runner capable of bulldozing defenders.

The problem this season has been that because of Snead's struggles, Bolden has been removed from the game. Opposing defenses stack the box when he's in, and he doesn't get a good head of steam running the ball before getting hit. He has still been serviceable, helping us beat the teams that are significantly interior to us in terms of talent, but he hasn't been what people expected, and a lot of that falls on the offensive line.

Dexter McCluster spent the first half of the season being a receiver first and a running back second. I think that the coaches were dissatisfied with the play of other receivers not named Shay Hodge, so they wanted to put their best playmaker out there to give matchup difficulties. The problem is that they didn't really use him there. He was a diversion at best, displaying an inability to get open on routes that seemed to be there last year. But more than Dexter's problem, it was still an issue with the offensive line. Jevan didn't have time to get him the ball.

Now, the coaches have realized what they should have at the beginning of the season. Dexter McCluster is essentially un-defendable. Give him the ball as much as possible, and let him win the game. Against Tennessee, McCluster got the ball as the halfback in the I, the fullback in shotgun two-back sets, slot receiver, and even split end. So in some ways, he was used the way they intended from the beginning. The only difference is that now he's primarily a running back who plays wide receiver in some situations.

I know that's not directly to the point of your question, but I think it answers it adequately.

Ole Miss has been incredibly efficient inside the red zone this season, scoring 94% of the time, and scoring a touchdown on 77% of red zone opportunities. Why do you think that is?

It's a really astonishing statistic considering the problems we've had offensively. I think that it comes down to a few things. First of all, the teams that have beaten us have rarely allowed us into the red zone. That means that the stat gets great help against UAB, Southeast Louisiana, Northern Arizona, and Northwest Southeast Direcitonal Michigan (ok... I made that last one up), but it doesn't get hurt by our abysmal performances against Alabama and South Carolina.

The Rebels have a relatively strong gameplan in the red zone. We have four options for scoring play types between the twenties.

1. Throw a corner route or timing route to Shay Hodge.

Seriously, we do this every single time we get in the red-zone. It makes sense because Shay is excellent in one-on-one situations, but it just isn't working. The throws haven't been there.

2. Give the ball to Dexter McCluster. Let him do something.

Yeah. As I mentioned before, he's pretty good.

3. Run conventionally

This doesn't work all that well, but we've gotten lucky a few times running up the middle in the red zone, and Brandon Bolden, as mentioned earlier, can run really hard.

4. Play action pass to fullback or tight end

We do this often as well, but it hasn't gotten the results that most of our fans expected. From TE drops to QB miscues, the pass to the tight end isn't working for us. The passes to our fullback in the flats work fine, but Hartman (our starter) isn't really capable of getting more than 6 or 7 yards, and you need more than that to make a play this risky profitable.

Anyway, all four options are pretty reliable, and considering that we haven't been in the red zone much against quality opponents, the statistic looks excellent.

Most people focus on the Rebels offense, however the defense is in the top half of the conference in scoring defense, total defense, and rushing defense. Give us your thoughts on the OM defense this season. What should cause LSU fans to worry?

First off, our highly aggressive defense does a very good job of disguising blitzes. We'll motion to linebackers up to the line of scrimmage only to have them break back into coverage on the snap while the linebacker who stayed back blitzes against an unsuspecting offensive line. Defensive Coordinator has a few faults, but he's tremendous at drawing up blitz schemes.

Also, our defensive line is pretty ridiculous. At any given time, two defensive linemen are in the game who specialize in rushing the passer. The other two are good at stuffing the run. Our pass rushing specialists are DE Kentrell Lockett, DE Emmanuel Stephens, DT Jerrell Powe, and DT Lamarck Armour. All four are capable at getting into the backfield and disrupting the play. Our run stuffers are DE Marcus Tillman, DT Ted Laurent, and DT Lawon Scott. They're big bodies who excel at filling up holes and letting the linebackers make plays.

Our linebackers were a weakness at the beginning of the season, but they're starting to play very well. MLB Jonathan Cornell and WLB Allen Walker are both very complete players who can follow the ball well. SLB Patrick Trahan is a blitzing specialist, but he's not bad in coverage. There's no one in this group that's terrifying, but they're all adequate.

The secondary is certainly the weakness of the unit, but it's not awful either. We've seen a dip in production in terms of intercepting passes, but receivers are covered better than any year I've been following Ole Miss football.

The Rebels rank 5th in the conference in passing offense and only 8th in passing efficiency, even behind LSU, whose passing offense has at times made me want to strangle the life out of Gary Crowton. Which begs the question, what on earth is wrong with Jevan Snead?

Jevan's issues are a combination of three things.

He has accuracy issues.

Jevan himself struggles a little with ball placement. He doesn't have a total inability to place the football, but he does struggle with underthrowing or overthrowing targets. This leads to balls hitting the ground in front of receivers as well as balls flying over the heads of open pass catchers. It's frustrating.

The offensive line has been consistently bad

We have struggled in pass protection all season. Jevan was even flushed out of the pocket by Memphis. It has been tough and has obviously gotten into his head. He has happy feet now, a new development for Snead. Last season, he was poised and calm in the pocket. This year, he's frightened. Couple this with Jevan's gunslinger (Brett Favre buzzword) mentality and accuracy issues, and it's a recipe for disaster.

Receivers that aren't wearing #3 drop passes

None of us really know what we're going to do next year without Shay Hodge. Jevan often stares him down on plays, but who can blame him considering the fact that Hodge is the only receiver on our team who is reliable to catch the football. True freshman Pat Patterson has good hands too, but he can't get open very often. The other receivers on our team are just disappointing. Because of this issue, when teams have taken away Hodge, we haven't had an answer.

We try to avoid predictions at ATVS, but since you asked me, I might as well return the favor: what's the likely outcome of this game and why?

Yeah. We try to force people to make predictions in order to later look silly. I'm actually the one who writes our prediction on Friday, and I've looked ridiculous three SEC weeks in a row. I said the Rebels would:

Lose to Arkansas
Beat Auburn
Lose to Tennessee

I guess I'll predict LSU wins this one?

Let me explain.

LSU's offense has struggled a good bit, and if Jordan Jefferson isn't 100% ready to go, our defense will stifle you. We can stop the run when there's not a legitimate threat to pass. The times we have trouble against the rushing game are when quarterbacks can scramble or opposing teams call a lot of misdirection draws in odd situations. I imagine that Keiland Williams will be used in a generally normal way as a halfback and not in some sort of innovative spread gimmick. We can probably stop him at that. Even with a healthy Jefferson, I'm not concerned about your passing game. Sure, you have two excellent receivers, but we haven't seen many games where even Jefferson could get them the ball in space on a regular basis.

Now, I'm very afraid of your defense. I think that in the wrong situation, you could stuff us and make us look like Alabama and South Carolina did. The only thing I think we have going for us in that matchup is Dexter McCluster. You may be able to hold him in check, but he's going to have a few big plays, and that may be the difference in a low scoring affair.

So yeah. Ole Miss has the edge, but in a surprise twist (to please the sports gods), I'm predicting LSU to inexplicably win the game by three.

~~In reality, I think the Rebels will win 17-14.~~

ATVSSECOSPPOW: Week 11

Richard Pittman — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:22:12 -0000

More photos » by Michael H. Miller - AP

about 1 month ago: Mississippi running back Dexter McCluster (22) runs for his fourth touchdown of the day, a 71-yard run, during an NCAA college football game against Tennessee in Oxford, Miss., Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/Michael H. Miller)

Browse more photos »

There were a few nice games in Week 11 around the SEC. Mark Ingram rushed for 149 yards and 2 touchdowns in an easy win over Mississippi State. Tim Tebow had 8.0 yards per pass attempt to complement a solid running game and Riley Cooper went over 100 yards receiving as Florida beat South Carolina. Likewise Joe Cox complimented a solid running effort with over 10 yards per pass attempt without an interception and with one touchdown as Georgia won a tight one over Auburn. Derek Locke had 150 total yards as Kentucky beat Vandy.

But clearly, obviously, the player of the week in the SEC last Saturday was Ole Miss do-everything guy Dexter McCluster. He scored 4 touchdowns, and ran for 282 yards, and even found time to catch 4 passes for 42 yards. He scored Ole Miss's first 3 touchdowns of the game on runs of 15, 23, and 32 yards, the last of which gave Ole Miss the lead for good. His last touchdown put the game out of reach, 35-17, on a spectacular 71 yard run. YouTube to follow:

He may weigh only about 125 pounds, but there is no give in him. He runs hard, whether it is up the middle against defensive tackles who are twice his size (literally) or outside against safeties and corners who theoretically should be a match for him athletically.

Lately, Ole Miss has radically re-worked its offensive strategy. Here are McCluster's touches, by game, from the start of the season: 15, 3, 15, 9, 9, 3, 29, 26, 0, 29.

That zero represents a game against Northern Arizona in which McCluster was rested to heal injuries and/or keep him fresh, but you can see a definite trend line if you exclude that aberrational 0 number. They are giving the ball to McCluster a heck of a lot more in the second half of the season than they were in the first half. Strangely, Jevan Snead's numbers have not declined. Here are his pass attempts by game: 22, 28, 21, 34, 34, 22, 33, 35, 29, 20.

In fact, try as I might, I can't find ANYONE whose touches are decreasing in order to make more room for McCluster. Their traditional tailback, Brandon Bolden, is getting about the same number of rushes, and if anything his participation in the passing game has increased, as he has gotten 10 of his 19 pass receptions in just the last 4 weeks. So what's the deal? Obviously, Ole Miss is running more plays, probably because they're getting more first downs. The extra plays are because of giving the ball to McCluster more, and McCluster is reaping the benefits, but no one is really suffering (except the opponents).

There's a lesson in there somewhere. A rising tide lifts all boats? Was Reagan right all along, only applying trickle-down economics in the wrong context?

Anyway, if this is Ole Miss preview Part II, the take-home lesson is TACKLE THAT GUY.

Ole Miss Preview

Richard Pittman — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:40:09 -0000

More photos » by Butch Dill - AP

about 1 month ago: Mississippi receiver Dexter McCluster (22) breaks free for a 79-yard touchdown against Auburn during an NCAA college football game on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/ Butch Dill)

Browse more photos »

Last year, I was not a big fan of Dexter McCluster. I thought he was only so-so; that he fumbled in key situations; that he was predictable. I thought that Ole Miss's offense ran better when they let Jevan Snead do his thing. Not this year. If you were making up a list of offensive players of the year in the SEC, this list would not have to be very long to get to McCluster. Let's see. Ingram, McCluster, Green, Tate. Am I missing anyone? See, you don't have to go very far at all, and Jevan Snead is not on that list.

McCluster's last 3 games in which he played any appreciable time (he mostly sat out two weeks ago against Northern Arizona), he has rushed for 123, 186, 282. He has received for 137, 17, and 42. He's scored 6 touchdowns in that time.

Meanwhile, Jevan Snead, who was one of the Big 3 quarterbacks in the conference before the season started, is not in the top 10 in the conference in passer rating.

To be honest, we don't really match up very well against this Ole Miss team. We struggled last week to catch and tackle small, shifty running backs, and McCluster is the smallest, shiftiest around. Jevan Snead can be taken off his game with a strong pass rush, but we don't really bring a strong pass rush very often. I wish I could say more, but that's about it.

Jevan Snead's favorite target is Shay Hodge, who I think is a terrific player. He's had three 100-yard receiving games this year. He's not a speedster, but he gets open and catches everything. I don't know if he's the kind of receiver who will get the dreaded Peterson Shadow, but maybe he should.

Defensively, Ole Miss is a surprisingly good team, 4th in scoring defense, 5th in total defense, 3rd in passing efficiency defense, 3rd in sacks, 3rd in 1st downs against, 1st in 3rd down defense. They do it with a defensive line that gets after it, though they are now missing Greg Hardy who is their best defensive player, though he's been limited for weeks before he was finally finished for the year. They've mostly done it without Greg Hardy all year. Jerrell Powe and Kentrell Lockett headline this group, and they can both play.

The key is that our defense will have to step up and defend against McCluster. If we can keep Dexter McCluster from running all over the place, we will have a very good chance of winning. If we can get a pass rush on Snead, we can take him out of his rhythm. Expect to see a lot of blitzing on passing downs, but blitzing is dangerous with McCluster back there. They could very well give him the ball on 3rd and 8, and if there is a blitz, he could be gone upon getting through the first level.

On offense, we will have to stay out of 3rd and long situations. Ole Miss is a very good 3rd down team, and their defensive line can bring a lot of pressure. I would mix a lot of run and pass on 1st and 2nd downs, trying to be unpredictable but at the same time having a logic to the plan that is often lacking in our offense. Our offensive line has been a lot better of late, and we will need that to continue, so we can avoid negative plays.

I will really be looking to see if we can ramp up the intensity level, or if the La Tech game was a sign of things to come. Really, I expect us to come out a lot stronger this game than we did last week.

This is an abbreviated preview today, because time is an issue for me this morning. I'll be back with more later.