I am writing this as an attempt to put together my thoughts and the seeming thoughts of the rest of the Rebel nation on our game yesterday. I think is best to analyze the game from the perspective of each position in the first and second half. I was disappointed in several things in the game, yet there are also a few positives that can be gleaned from the game. This will not necessarily be a statistical analysis but more an attempt at capturing how the positional play was.

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In a slight break from sports material, Forbe's release their rankings of the best colleges in America today. As usual Vanderbilt is among the best in the nation. However only 2 SEC schools were ranked in the top 100. Find out how your school was ranked after the jump.

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The NCAA released APR data for coaches and this is how Ole Miss stacks up against the nation and the previous year:

Here is how the rest of the SEC stacks up and how Ole Miss compares:

The SEC APR is above the National APR in every category. The Ole Miss APR is above the SEC APR in every category. You can tell that aside from Football the SEC is fairly good about graduation rates and making sure that student athletes are earning their degrees. The only anomalies that I saw was LSU's Basketball APR at a dismal 827 for 2008-2009 and Auburn's Women's Track APR dismal 885 along with MS State's Women's Track APR at 909. Besides these the SEC seem fairly consistent throughout with of course Vanderbilt leading the way in almost every category. I find this impressive that we do this despite sending many players to the draft in football, baseball, and basketball.

As you can see each sport is better than the National APR and has show good improvement over last years results. The biggest stated improvement was in our football team jumping a clear 66 points. This is shows that each of our sports has not only improved in competitiveness but that we have also showed improvement academically. One thing that struck me as unique is that we maxed out in 3 separate sports which have not happened before at Ole Miss to my knowledge. I hope we continue this trend of academic improvement, as it is a good way to combat the detractors of Ole Miss' graduation rates for our athletes and shows that we are committed to the classroom as well as the sports arena.

via www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com

Monument to the 11th Mississippi at Gettysburg

On May 4, 1861, the students and professors of the University of Mississippi did what many brave Americans have done in standing up for what they believe in no matter the cost. They decided to stand up against what they perceived as injustice and sought a proper voice for their rights. On May 4th Company A of the 11th Mississippi was formed and became known as the Universtiy Grays. They were called the University Grays due to the fact that out of the 139 students in attendance at the University of Mississippi at the time, 135 joined this unit along with various professors, faculty and staff. On July 21, 1861, they saw their first action at the First Battle of Bull Run fighting alongside General Jackson. It was at this battle that their commanding officer, General B.E. Bee, rallied the 11th Mississippi by saying, "There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer. Follow me." This gave rise to General Jackson's nickname Stonewall Jackson. After the Confederate victory at Bull Run, the 11th retired to the Potomac River Valley until they were commanded into battle in the Battle of Seven Pines in May 1862. They were thrown into the heat of battle here to reinforce the crumbling Confederate left flank. They earned a reputation for being fierce in battle here by driving back the Union forces. After the Second Battle of Manassas, where the 11th found them again in the thick of the battle serving in General Hood's division, the 11th was incorporated into the Army of Northern Virginia. It was in this role that Company A distinguished itself above all. On July 1, 1863 the Army of Northern Virginia found itself engaged in intense skirmishing outside the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Battle of Gettysburg raged for about two days before Company A and the rest of the 11th Mississippi joined in the battle. Under the overall command of General George Pickett the 11th bravely charged the middle of the Union lines, in what is know as Pickett's Charge, amid a murderous artillery barrage. Company A distinguished itself with bravery and honor by advancing across open fields to the Union lines, and penetrating further than any other Confederate units into those lines despite the galling fire of Union muskets and artillery during the entire advance. However the 11th Mississippi sustained 340 casualties of the total force of 394, and Company A suffered 100% casualties with only 53 men surviving the charge. This did not stop the brave men of the University Grays however, as the survivors of Gettysburg served bravely at Wilderness, Talle's Mill, Spotsylvania, and finally Petersburg; where the 11th Mississippi was captured. Of these brave men of the University Grays only one was able to return to campus after the conclusion of the war. They helped inspire the two characters Charles Bon and Henry Sutpen, in Faulkner's novel Absalom!Absalom!. Our university forefathers did something that few Americans would do these days in standing up for their beliefs against overwhelming odds These men and others like them throughout history have added to the proud framework of Ole Miss and our country as a whole. Whether you support the beliefs of the Confederacy or not, please remember these men this weekend as they were a proud example to Ole Miss through their service in standing up for what they perceived as their country and rights. So have a great July 4th weekend and remeber the sacrifice these men made on July 3rd 147 years ago.