Red Cup Rebellion

Rebel of the Week Poll

2010-09-06T18:13:17Z

It might be a little difficult to look back on Week 1 with any sense of "achievement." But, just like we did in 2009, we will offer you a set of Rebels who did well in the previous weekend. Even when, as whole, the team did everything far short of "barely okay," there are some individual bright spots that should give us some indicia of confidence heading into the Tulane game. Specifically:

Nathan Stanley threw good looking passes, for the most part. The offense looked pretty crisp with Stanley at the helm, and the biggest mix-up with Stanley at the helm was the fumble during his third possession.

Jeremiah Masoli showed that he works pretty well in the red zone.

Brandon Bolden had 100+ yards on the ground.

Bryson Rose made both mid-range field goals.

An Damien Jackson led the league in tackles.

Poll

Rebel of the Week: Yes, we're even doing it this week.

Blogpoll Draft Ballot - 09/06/10

2010-09-06T17:32:55Z

Every Monday, we post our first draft of the Blogpoll. This is especially therapeutic this Monday, since no one really wants to talk about Ole Miss. Things are all a little funky, since the biggest game of the week has yet to be played. What to do? The team that wins the Boise State - Virginia Tech deserves to be the top-ranked team in the country, based on our "resume-ranking" system. Of course, they cannot both be there. So, for the draft, we will assume that the Hokies win tonight because that is the prediction I made for the Pick 'Em. That being said, until there have been enough games played to get a good read, strict resume ranking creates funky results, like ranking Fresno State in the Top 10 for their quality win over Cincinnati. So, for this week, we'll try to rank using equal parts resume and expectation. Next week, we'll try to move that to 75/25. After the third week, we hope to be ranking solely by resume. Our ballot and brief commentary follow after the jump.

Red Cup Rebellion Ballot - Week 1

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Virginia Tech Hokies	--
2	TCU Horned Frogs	--
3	Utah Utes	--
4	Oregon Ducks	--
5	Ohio St. Buckeyes	--
6	LSU Tigers	--
7	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
8	Texas Longhorns	--
9	Michigan Wolverines	--
10	BYU Cougars	--
11	Nebraska Cornhuskers	--
12	Fresno St. Bulldogs	--
13	South Carolina Gamecocks	--
14	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	--
15	Georgia Bulldogs	--
16	Oklahoma Sooners	--
17	Penn St. Nittany Lions	--
18	Florida Gators	--
19	Kentucky Wildcats	--
20	Boise St. Broncos	--
21	Arkansas Razorbacks	--
22	Texas Tech Red Raiders	--
23	Kansas St. Wildcats	--
24	Iowa Hawkeyes	--
25	Missouri Tigers	--

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings "

This ballot assumes that Virginia Tech wins tonight. Only Boise State got a vote in the "resume" ballot with a (projected) loss at #25. No other 0-1 teams got credit. If Boise wins tonight, they'll move to #1 on the resume ballot and VT will move to #25. And teams who won their first game were ranked by the best win, which explains LSU's rise and Florida's fall. My Top 10 by resume are Virginia Tech, Utah, LSU, TCU, BYU, Michigan, Fresno State, So. Carolina, Notre Dame, and Jacksonville State, which lets you know exactly how weak the first week was in terms of quality wins. Put an asterik by Missouri, because Jacksonville State would have entered the poll at #19 if SBNation so allowed. The Top 10 by reputation is Ohio State, TCU, Bama, VT, Texas, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, Florida, and Oklahoma.

Remembering that this ballot will be 50/50 on resume and reputation, critiques are welcome.

Your loss is our gain.

2010-09-06T15:49:32Z

Your loss is our gain.

True to Rebel form, the dirty crumbling wreckage of our fandom showcased on Sunday brought in 8,375 visitors to our little website, the most in its history. Thanks to all the trolls, emotionally dependents fans, "been there" moral supporters from Tuscaloosa, and grammar Nazis who stopped by just to proofread Gonzo's celebratory posts (he's the bearded lady of the SEC; we're thinking about charging a nickel for you to look at him) for experiencing this monumental embarrassment with us. WE ARE ... a little ashamed of ourselves.

Enjoy Your Labor Day, Y'all

2010-09-06T14:07:07Z

More photos » Rogelio V. Solis - AP

Mississippi quarterback Jeremiah Masoli (8) runs away from Jacksonville State defenders Tim McGee (99) and Michael Ellis (91) in the third quarter of an NCAA college football game in Oxford, Miss., Saturday, Sept. 4, 2010. Jacksonville State won 49-48 in double overtime. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Browse more photos »

We'll get to the bloggin' tomorrow, I suppose.

A More Measured Response, or "Let's See Other People"

2010-09-05T19:41:54Z

More photos » Rogelio V. Solis - AP

This is absolutely unforgivable.

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I could write, and write, and write on this, but I'll keep it as brief as I know how (which, frankly, isn't worth much).

I'm sure certain folks experienced great Schadenfreude in yesterday's loss and my subsequent, justifiably furious reaction. You're welcome. I'm mostly over all of that now and have, to an extent, largely forgotten the feelings I felt after Jacksonville State's successful two-point conversion to seal the absolutely gut-wrenching victory over my Rebels. I'm still somewhat mopey and still keep wondering "why us, why is it always us," and ponder what could - or, rather, should - have been. But I've found some peace, I suppose.

There won't be a post-game report. There won't be any analysis. Nor is any of that stuff needed. Yesterday, a team which almost has no business being on our schedule, scored on their final six drives, five of which were touchdowns, one of which was a fourth-and-fifteen Hail Mary which was followed by a successful two point conversion. That is beyond bad luck. That is punishment from some ethereal force, some tormenting sports puppet-master who, fresh off of dicking around the New Orleans Saints for forty years, decided to spend a weekend in Oxford.

/scratcheshead

/looksoffintospace

/longdramaticsigh

Shit. Who am I kidding? This isn't new to us. What happened yesterday was momentarily surprising, sure, but any seasoned Ole Miss fan could tell you that such ineptitude, trepidation, and all-around lack of whatever "it" is that winning programs have have all been hallmarks of Rebel athletics - football, basketball, baseball, and tennis - for decades. Assholes from Arkansas will proudly thump their wimpy chests and gloat about how they "told us so" or "warned" us (Oh, gee, thanks for the neighborly "warning," dipshits. Don't play your semantic games with me, damnit, I'm above that.), but we all knew this would happen all along. We all knew the other shoe would drop at some point at some time because, at Ole Miss, it always does.

So while coming to more reasonable terms with that does, to an extent, temper my initial call for Houston Nutt's firing, it does not completely eliminate it. This type of aberration does happen; FCS schools do beat FBS schools, but they're usually of the "Turner Gill's first game at Kansas ends in a 6-3 loss to some Dakota school" or "Lloyd Carr and Sylvester Croom got fired within a couple seasons of losing to Appalachian State and Maine, respectively." So, while not without precedent, bad things tend to follow for the FBS coaches who lose to FCS squads because such coaches just don't deserve to lead teams against high levels of competition.

So, unless some miracle SEC championship season is pulled out of Tyrone Nix's rectum (hint: that won't happen), this should be the sunset of Houston Nutt's tenure at Ole Miss. We needed him to lift us out of the horrible situation Ed Orgeron's coaching put us in and, with a 9-7 SEC record and a couple fine recruiting classes, he has done largely that. But I seriously doubt it gets much better than the past two seasons. Those seasons are, undeniably, providing us with great momentum, but I doubt we're on track to really reach our full potential as a program, whatever that may be.

Finally, on a more personal note, I'm going to take a step back for a while. I won't go into details, but my behavior after yesterday's loss really showed me that I invest far too much time, money, and emotion into the Ole Miss Rebels. I spend several hours every single day reading, writing, talking, and thinking about the Rebels. Those hours could, honestly, be far better spent. I could catch up on my reading or dedicate myself more to my fitness. I could hone in my cooking skills or, taking a slightly less masochistic approach, revisit my golf game. Whatever it is I decide to spend my time doing, I know that it will be largely better spent. To be blunt: I just want to spend my time with something that actually becomes more enjoyable with the amount of effort one puts into it. A wacky desire, I know.

I'm not deluding myself. I know that loyalist in me will see me return to my fervent Rebel fandom, but I can't say when and under what circumstances. Perhaps revisiting the Grove for the first time this season before our Rebels square off against Vanderbilt in two weeks will do the trick. Or perhaps the inevitable mind-boggling upset of some highly-ranked team will have me back on track. But right now, I'm tired. I'm going to keep watching football, if only for the pageantry, athleticism, and strategy - but I won't cheer too hard one way or another. I won't put as much of myself into it as I have over the past several seasons. I just can't make myself do that right now.

As an aside: old people in the stands who I rag on a lot for not being as "into it" as the rest of us, I get you now. I'll never again pass judgment on you and your perceived lack of dedication or involvement.

I am sure someone will help pick up the slack around here. I am sure that you will all keep fanshooting and posting. I am sure that my friends - Juco, IT, One Man - will all have something to contribute over the next little while, but not me. I won't, and haven't, even spend time reading comments threads because, despite the fact that there are few things I enjoy doing more than discussing our Rebels with all of you, I just cannot do that to myself; not now, and especially not after yesterday. I just can't keep cheering for a football team which has always lost to teams it shouldn't, a basketball team which cannot get past the damned NIT, or a baseball team which, despite top-10 rankings, cannot get past that sport's respective "sweet sixteen." No, for the foreseeable future, I'm going to dedicate my time, energy, money, emotions, and acumen towards something which, at the very least, gives as much back to me as I put into it - something like... beer.

FIRE HOUSTON NUTT

2010-09-04T23:29:09Z

Hell yes this is a knee jerk reaction. And hell yes, I'm drunk. I don't care. Fire Houston Nutt. Fire Tyrone Nix. Strip all of our defenders of their scholarships. If they're not willing to at least pretend like they're in the SEC, then fuck 'em. Fuck 'em hard.

OPEN THREAD and NEW OPEN THREAD GUIDELINES

2010-09-04T14:39:13Z

The open threads were an absolute blast last season. It was great for everyone to give their up-to-the-second reports, opinions, and knee-jerk reactions to whatever was happening at the time both on and off the field. I want that to continue this year, but I want it to be a bit more in depth. With the fantastic inventions of smart phones, Wifi, and 3G networks, I expect comments from, frankly, all over and about, frankly, any-damn-thing. So, to get a better sense of community in our comments, promote some sort of consistency, and to get a better idea as to how everyone is spending their gamedays, I would like it if everyone introduced themselves in RCRadio fashion. For example:

This is the Ghost of Jay Cutler checking in to the comments thread from Washington, DC. I'm drinking some champagne right now - an appropriate celebratory drink, dammit - and look to turn to Makers Mark for lunch. I'm gonna grill up some chicken legs for my guests before wandering over to the local Ole Miss watering hole to watch the Rebels embarrass Jacksonville State.

Pretty simple, right? Once we've all introduced ourselves, the jokes, shit-talkin, and wacky image posting can commence. As always, just about anything aside from bigotry and downright trolling is allowed. Keep it pithy, keep it clever, and keep it honest.

Also, if you follow us on Twitter (@RedCupRebellion) and use a smart phone equipped with EchoFon or some other excellent tweeting application, tweet at us throughout the day. Photographs are highly, highly encouraged. The best ones will get re-tweeted, guaranteed.

IT'S GAMEDAY, Y'ALL!

VERSUS

HOTTY DAMNED TODDY!

Weekend Plans: GAME WEEK

2010-09-04T03:15:05Z

Once again, it's our summertime winds down in favor of the cool, crisp autumn. Fireworks have calmed, cold beer is replaced by stout liquors, and smoky barbecue still reigns supreme. We're having the times of our lives, and we would like you to as well. As this weekends will be engulfed in the conflagration of college football fandom, we Cuppers would like to share with you our weekend plans, along with the weekend plans of a few others of note, in order to hopefully give you ideas as to enjoyably bide your time until Saturday's kickoff.

Weekend Plans, you were wonderful to us this year. I hope y'all had great Summers, because I know we at the Cup certainly did. But Summer leaves us and, in her stead we have college football season, the undeniably most wonderful time of the year for any fan of "amateur" athletics. Oh, what a long, strange trip it has been this offseason but, by God, football is finally here and everything just feels oh so right once again.

The song of the week is the Pride of the South's warmup. Yes, it's goosebump time, y'all.

Click the jump, friends.

Ivory Tower - [Long-winded stuff using legal language which makes Ghost want to frown]. Ready.

Brian Walker's Elbow - Mike Bianco is terrible. And I'm ready.

@OleForty - Have y'all ever noticed those dudes with those haircuts? WTF #manlaws #freemasoli READY

Jerrell Powe - Prepared.

Jeremiah Masoli - Ready.

The NCAA - Not so fast.

Ole Miss Lawyas - Bull-fucking-shit "not so fast." Check yourself.

The NCAA - Fine. He's ready.

Jeremiah Masoli - Hell yeah I'm ready.

Ghost - Ready [bad internet meme joke], bitches.

Houston Nutt - Ready for a drink and a long nap, that's for sure. Well I tell ya. Stressful dealing with the NCAA, yessir. NCAA, not NAACP. Don't make that mistake. I did once, and let me tell you, Al Sharpton's secretary doesn't appreciate needless phone calls. And don't call them "CP" either, if you know what I'm saying. Old fashioned. Offensive. Confusing. Like books with too many words. I always liked the short ones, Like the magazines. But I don't subscribe to 'em. No sir I don't, just read 'em at the dentist's office. UMMC. Pete Boone. Terrell Brown. IPF. Tig Barksdale, good kid. Shorts. Floppy hats. Croakies. Hotty Toddy. But, yeah, I'm ready.

Juco - Ready.

WhiskeyWednesday - Ready?

Nathan Stanley - Ready. I promise.

Jacksonville State - *sigh* As ready as we'll ever be.

The only question which remains, Rebel fans, is are you ready?

Masoli decision overturned. Rebel Quarterback eligible immediately.

2010-09-03T19:08:30Z

Masoli decision overturned. Rebel Quarterback eligible immediately.

OleMissNow (Official Ole Miss Twitter)

HATERS GONNA HATE

Hasitly Thrown Together Game Preview of Jacksonville State

2010-09-03T18:30:26Z

Gamecocks don't squawk, do they?

Before each game, I'll be posting a prediction as to what I think will happen on Saturday. Generally, they'll be relatively in depth and largely inaccurate. This particular entry will definitely be the shortest of all the game previews this year. It's been a really rough day for me, and I'm busy at work too. Sorry. Deal with it.

The preview follows after the jump.

We'll run pretty well but struggle a bit passing. Our defense will destroy them.

We'll win. Probably not by as many as a good many of our fans think.

Rebels by 17.

That's my prediction. What's yours?

Ole Miss Rebels 2010 Football Season Preview: Ghost

2010-09-03T15:00:30Z

More photos » Rogelio V. Solis - AP

All eyes are on Jerrell Powe and the Rebel defense this season.

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So let me get this straight? We lose our team's most dynamic player in a decade, or perhaps ever, to graduation and the NFL draft; our team's talented but unwise, trigger-happy quarterback to ~~the NFL draft~~ a Home Depot in St. Petersburg, FL; our most athletic and consistent tacklers; our, let's say "free-spirited", sacks leader; most of the interior of our line; much of our secondary; and one of the greatest receivers to ever wear a Rebel uniform; yet most of us are still expecting a winning season complete with a bowl berth of some kind?

Well, yeah, and with good reason.

For starters, the Rebels went 9-4 (4-4) last season. That is with a team which ranked as the worst in all of the NCAA in interceptions thrown (alright, to be fair, we tied with the mighy Redhawks of Ohio's Miami) and second worst in the conference in turnover margin, beating out a Georgia squad which only recovered two fumbles over a thirteen game span. Our Rebels were horrible with the football last season, and much of the blame for such has, rightfully to an extent, been placed on Jevan Snead's shoulders. Three of the four Rebel losses can easily - and a bit conveniently - be blamed on Snead turnovers (back breaking pick 6's against Auburn and State come to mind along with a four turnover performance against Alabama). Of course, it's too simple to say that "well, without Snead we really lose an aberration to South Carolina," but it is important to indicate that the Rebels weren't dominated by a single opponent they faced. We tangled with our opponents and most certainly had chances and opportunities to win which, really, is what makes so much of last year a "disappointment" - it's having a legitimate reason to know you could have done much better.

But, in the face of significant attrition, it does give one cause to believe that, of the players we keep from last year's squad, at least a few of them know how to win enough - to put it kindly - games on an SEC level. And one has to hope that, no matter what we lose on the offensive side of the ball, a season which sees 31 Rebel turnovers is a rather distant possibility.

The Rebels of 2010 are not as talented as the Rebels of 2009, but that has never been up for debate. What is up for debate, interestingly enough, is whether or not this season's Rebels will be as mistake prone as last season's. The answer to that question could mean as much as the difference between a 5-7 season and an 8-4 season. Will Nathan Stanleyprogress through his receivers and make better decisions than Nathan Stanley? Will Melvin Harris and Jesse Grandy secure their catches better than Shay Hodge(sorry, Shay, we love you to death but you straight up gave Alabama and Auburn interceptions) and Markeith Summers? Will our halfbacks secure the ball? Will the blocking be there to give plays time to develop? I do not know the answer to any of these questions, and I cannot lie to you and say that I'm hopeful of such - Stanley aside, simply because any quarterback under anycoach throwing 20 interceptions is an aberration - but their answers are the key to whatever offensive success we may imagine having this year.

Defensively, though, we're telling a completely different story. Last season, the Rebels were the best defense in the SEC on third down, tallied the second most sacks, boasted the 2nd best red zone defense, and otherwise sat in the top-half of the conference in every single team defensive category except for interceptions (where the Rebs were 7th) and fourth down defense (10th). Considering that, it's no wonder Tyrone Nix was a candidate for the Florida DC job in the offseason. The Rebels success these past two seasons have been carried on the backs of the Landsharks, and this season will be no different. We return plenty of starters and, of those non-starters returning, most of them have legitimate playing time against high levels of competition (for example, Kentrell Lockett is technically not a returning starter). Scoring on our Rebels will be as difficult this season as it has been for the past two, one should think, which can, realistically speaking, be enough in and of itself to carry us to bowl-eligibility.

Alright, bullet points, some game-by-game stuff, and then I'll leave you the comments thread.

Who We're Gonna Miss the Most - Offense: C'mon. You know the answer.

Who We're Counting On - Offense: Nathan Stanley. Showing nothing but selflessness and maturity during the entire Masoli saga, Nathan Stanley has won this bloggeur over. He may not have the big arm or quicker feet of Jevan Snead, but he has shown himself to be nothing but mature and classy. And, for whatever it may be worth, the Cup's sources have said that his teammates trust him as much, if not more, than they trust Snead. So there.

Most Likely to Let us Down - Offense: The interior of our line. Our guards and, especially, centers have not wowed in practices thus far which is hardly a good sign if we're looking to rely on our rushing attack for offense.

Most Likely to Surprise Us - Offense: Enrique Davis. Break out, InRicky, please. Just get out there and live up to, fair compromise here, 65% of your potential.

Who We're Gonna Miss the Most - Defense: Kendrick Lewis. Talk about a guy with football instincts. The 2009 captain's consistency and propensity to be at the right place at the right time made us forget the once poor-tackling safety of the early 2008 season.

Who We're Counting On - Defense: Damien Jackson. Please, please be good. We have had excellent safety play over the past two seasons, having one taken in each of the last two NFL drafts (Jamarca Sanfordand Kendrick Lewis). If Jackson and Brown can continue this trend, look for Brown to have his name called by Roger Goodell in eight months.

Most Likely to Let us Down - Defense: The defensive backfield, all of them. You'll know what I'm talking about after the Alabama and Arkansas games. Hell, you might know after the Kentucky game. If these guys can't step up and complement the front seven, we could be in some serious trouble.

Most Likely to Surprise Us - Defense: Charles Sawyer. The redshirt freshman corner out of Miami is legit, y'all. I haven't seen too much of him in practices, but he is quick, possesses excellent feet, and is physical at his position. He just needs to make better decisions and develop a better understanding of the game before he's a legitimate SEC corner.

SCHEDULE
Jacksonville State
Tig Barksdale will finally suit up in Vaught Hemingway Stadium. Some halfback of ours will dominate, setting up our fragile hopes for their inevitable downfall at the hands of the Southeastern Conference. Rebels roll.

Tulane
I hope I'm sober enough to remember it. Rebels win by a wide margin and we all have a damn fine time dropping coin in the Crescent City.

Vanderbilt
I'll be there. Warren Norman should be close to 95% by then but, SEC F.o.Y. be damned, this is an untypically bad Vanderbilt team. Think about that for a few minutes. Yeah. Despite this, however, it will be close because, unlike the rest of the SEC, we aren't allowed to kick the shit out of Vanderbilt. There's some sort of conference by-law, I'm sure.

Fresno State
I have no idea what to think about this game. Fresno State is the Southern Miss of the West Coast: they produce a few great talents every few seasons; are not afraid to schedule "anyone, anytime" or "anywhere;" and I'm certain they annoy the shit out of Californians, a la Southern fans to Mississippians (just run with me on this one). They play with surprising swagger and shoulder chippage but, as Ivory Tower pointed out, they're not as tough as their reputation would suggest. After the departure of 2nd team All American Ryan Matthews, the Bulldogs look to take a step back offensively which plays right into our strengths.

Kentucky
Randall Cobb is arguably the conference's most dynamic playmaker. And, in looking at last year's schedule, two of Kentucky's biggest victories came as road team underdogs (Georgia and Auburn). We cannot, under any circumstances, look past the Wildcats. I hope the Rebel D can contain Cobb and company and, when considering those aforementioned road upsets came against two of the conference's worst defenses, I would call that a reasonable expectation.

Alabama
Oh, we'll lose, and it'll suck ass. Moving along.

Arkansas
At this point, we'll know who we are as a team offensively. I know Arkansas has likely improved from last season's worst defensive performance in the conference, but means that they've likely jumped from 12th to something like 8th or 9th. They'll be easy-ish to score on, ideally, and assuming our offense has, at this point, established its identity and playmakers. They will be, on the other hand, much more difficult to defend than they were last season. Ryan Mallettis good, but he didn't perform well against the conference's best defenses, struggling against Alabama, our Rebs, Florida, and LSU. If we're going to beat them, we're going to need to do what we did last season, and that's put a ton of pressure on Ryan Mallett. That should be doable, but I still don't have enough faith in our secondary to limit the Razorback offense as much. Oh, and the game's in Arkansas, remember? Ole Miss hasn't won in the Natural State twice in a row sine 1990 and 1992. So they've got that whole "home field advantage" thing going for them.

Auburn
Onterrio McCalebb, Michael Dyer, and Cameron Newton should give the Plainsmen enough of an offense to beat the Rebels. But, remember, Auburn's defense was the conference's second worst last season. We should be able to keep this one close but I wouldn't at all bet money on the Rebels here.

Louisiana Lafayette
I hope their fans share their jambalaya recipes with us. Whiskey Wednesday has, I must say, a pretty solid one, but I bet the folks from Acadiana could own his Jacksonian ass.

Tennessee
Here's the deal: Tennessee is gonna suck hard this year. I respect coach Dooley and I, frankly, respect the hell out of their program, but their defense - a good one last season - lost significant star power and their offense boasts a Juco quarterback, the least experienced line in the conference, and a bunch of skill players you've probably never heard of. But, when discussing this game, the-100,000 seat elephant in the room is Neyland Stadium. The Rebels have only won in Knoxville five times, the most recent of which came in 1983. An optimist would argue that the Rebels are "due" a win in Tennessee, a pessimist would use our history as an argument against a Rebel victory. So I'll take the fence-sitter approach: we should win in Knoxville this year, but it won't be easy.

LSU
Wouldn't it be fun to be the nail in Les Miles' coffin? And then they hire someone badass and start beating the horse piss out of us again? Oh wait, that last part isn't so much what I was going for but, I mean,

State
Hey State,

Don't look too much into the lyrics aside from the fantastically funky and NSFW refrain.

If we lose to State, especially with anything of consequence on the line, I'll buy "FireHoustonNutt.com" from whichever Springdale denizen owns it ($20? Fair price, sir or madam?) and put photoshopped pictures of him at Mexican cockfights hanging out with Marcus Vick. I promise. I know a lot of Mississippi State and SEC fans in general have been mystified by Dan Mullen, and he is undoubtedly an upgrade over Sylvester CroomS, but he's not going to win in Oxford. The last Mississippi State team to win in Oxford? the 1998 squad which went to the SEC Championship game. This team isn't that good. Sorry, Bulldogs.

Final record?- Eesh, y'all done put me on the spot here. Assuming we lose to a team we shouldn't right before or after beating a team we shouldn't, I'd give us an 8-4 record once again. Our schedule is just too easy to expect that many losses this year. Perhaps, though, I should revisit this assesment after the Vanderbilt game.

Rebel Roundup - September 3, 2010

2010-09-03T14:50:02Z

More photos » Brett Flashnick - AP

FOOTBALL HAS RETURNED! And, penalties aside, South Carolina looked good last night. They've got some legit playmakers on offense and a, frankly, badass seconary. Southern Miss though, errr, they tried hard 'n' stuff.

Browse more photos »

"Colonel Reb" Logo License Retired by Ole Miss | BaltimoreSun.com
Why this is on a Baltimore news site, I do not know, but here is a report on how Colonel Reb will no longer be on Ole Miss merchandise. As of yesterday, the license for marketers, clothing companies, etc., to use the Colonel expired meaning that, if you don't have anything with Colonel Reb on it, but would like some, you need to get what you can because it will all be gone soon. I give it a week or two tops before you won't be able to buy any Colonel stuff, which is just in time for HoTtY aNd ToDdY to take the mascot world by storm.

Mississippi's Masoli Ordered To Sit Out Season | NPR
I know that some of you may think NPR is just some radio station for those progressives and liberals and pinhead east-coast academic types (I WILL TAKE JT AND DAVE SHOW, SIR, THANK YOU), but the Masoli story made it onto the All Things Considered show. They remain stunningly neutral on the issue which is, frankly, refreshing.

SEC Best and Worst Case Scenarios | Alligator Army
Even though I think "Jeremiah Masoli stole stuff" jokes are way overplayed, I actually laughed at our worst case scenario - a Jeremiah Masoli crime spree which includes a break-in to Graceland - as dreamed up by miamiintampa at Alligator Army. Our best case scenario is a 10-3 final season after a defeat of Michigan in the Citrus Bowl, interestingly enough.

SEC West 2010 Expectations, In a Nutshell | Team Speed Kills
Arkansas fans need to read more Team Speed Kills. Year 2 has said this on his there blog a few times, but I'm going to restate it here for emphasis:

After back-to-back Cotton Bowl appearances [ED: Victories, sir], Ole Miss is probably set to take a step back this season. New coaches always have a transitional down year, and this appears to be it for Houston Nutt.

I know many of y'all weren't worried to begin with, but don't let our detractors change the narrative for you. Arkansas fans talking about how this is year three (as if the third year of a coach's tenure has some mystical quality to it) meaning it is time to put up or shut up regarding Houston Nutt's merit as a head coach, obviously don't watch much football outside of the fair confines of the Natural State. The notion that a new coach should, by year three, have all of the pieces in place to completely operate and manage his team as if he alone built it from the ground-up and in a vacuum is beyond stupid. Many coaches, even elite coaches, aren't immune to rebuilding years in their second, third, or fourth years at a job, and there are numerous examples to support this idea.

Image FanShot

2010-09-03T06:07:29Z

Local Voice #114

2010-09-02T19:00:36Z

This week for The Local Voice, we bring you Part VI of our season preview special "Six Drinks; One Cup," where we take a look at the Rebels' schedule. We can't remember whether or not we considered Jeremiah Masoli when we wrote this. We've been drunk since January, telling ourselves that we'd sober up for football season. But we were probably drunk when we made that promise to ourselves, so it doesn't count. Drinks are on you in the Grove! If you're still there, click the Rebel soldier for the TLV website or click the jump; either way, we'll talk about football!

After serving up some Kentucky Straight Offense, some young blue-tinted Special Teams, and a bevy of other beverages, fit to get you tight, we have come to the end of our six-part season preview "Six Drinks: One Cup." If you’ve been following along, you should be pretty wasted right by now, maybe even drunk enough to talk about Atlanta or Heisman or a season free from criminal conduct. But we’re not done yet. We’re going to do exactly what you might do when you return to the Grocery for the first time this fresh, new semester: in a drunken stupor, we’re ordering a glass of fine, old scotch.

What Scotch are we drinking? McCallan 12, son. It’s a mid-range, every-day type of Scotch that, staring in a few years, will be available in batches that have been hanging out in old bourbon casks since Robert Lane was a five-star recruit. We think McCallan 12 is, sort of like our football schedule, and we consulted one of our favorite blogs, www.boozebasher.com, for some quotent quotables.

"When first cracking the bottle and taking a whiff, The Macallan 12 year reveals a light and pleasant fragrance."

Light describes the front-end of the Rebels’ schedule about as well as any word can. Many prognosticators give the impression of being awfully bullish on the Rebels because they expect that Jacksonville State, Tulane, Fresno State, and Vanderbilt will provide little challenge for the Rebels and their strong defense, run-oriented offense, and comparatively northern geography (41-27!). If the Rebels beat Kentucky in Oxford – a thing that they haven’t failed to do since a 17-24 setback in 1978 – they ought to have the pleasant fragrance of a 5-0 record, leaving them one tiny little win away from being bowl-eligible.

Boy howdy! This whole ‘scotch’ thing is as easy and refreshing peppermint schnapps! Let’s read some more about this light, refreshing beverage.

"I wouldn’t call the taste harsh, but it is definitely forceful when you are expecting something light and subtle, [which] places The Macallan in a category I have christened ‘Man-Scotch.’"

YEAH! MAN-SCOTCH!

/fist pump

/crotch thrust

Forceful is what you call the pre-season top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, the sixth opponent for the Rebels in 2010, when you are trying to describe it to children without scaring them. After experiencing the singular joy of the Tide in Tuscaloosa, Hootie and the Gang go somewhere that does taste (look, smell, etc.) pretty harsh – the foothills of Fayette-nam, where Ryan Mallett will continue to treat opposing secondaries like the patients he met this summer at Gentle Paths.

After that – the most difficult two-game stretch anybody in the conference will face all year – the Rebels enjoy a sweet, mushy UL-Laff sandwich with a slice of Auburn and Tennessee on either side. Year-in and year-out a six-week stretch that includes Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, and Tennessee will be a punch in the gullet if you let the citrusy aroma of the first five games delude you. Got to be prepared because if you let it, that first swallow is going to knock you down, and you’ll miss the finish.

"The aftertaste is one of the more pleasant aftertastes that I have experienced from a similar Scotch in the same price range. It really made my tongue happy and kept me thirsting for more."

Honestly, boozebasher, you freaked me out a little with the "made my tongue happy" rhetoric, but it’s your whiskey review. The point is, like a road trip to Baton Rouge, some good cow-burning after winning the Battle for the Golden Egg, and an SEC bowl game not set in Birmingham, the finish to Scotch is the best part. We predict that a win over either the Tigers or the Bulldogs will give the Rebels their seventh win for the 2010 campaign, ending in a Thursday night in Nashville for the Music City Bowl to face the sixth selection from the ACC (a team, likely, to have spent at least one week on the carousel that is "Favorite to Win the ACC").

If you had to peg us down to picking each game, we’ll take the road of least resistance, calling wins against Jax State, Tulane, Vandy, Fresno, Kentucky, UL-Laff, and State (a real murderers row, huh?) and losses against Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Tennessee, and LSU. But, let’s be honest, when it comes to predicting the outcomes of Houston Nutt teams against a slate of opponents, you’re better off asking your grandmother to surprise you with a drink from the bar. Boxes of chocolates are banal and boring; it’s with Houston that you really never know what you’re going to get.

That’s what the bar is serving, sports fans. Pour yourself a big red cup of your pleasured poison, and we’ll see you in the Grove.

Go to the Spreadshirt shop (right hand toolbar, click on the TSUN shirt) to get your #FREEMASOLI...

2010-09-02T16:35:15Z

Go to the Spreadshirt shop (right hand toolbar, click on the TSUN shirt) to get your #FREEMASOLI shirts! Buy, consumer, buy!

Blogger Q&A: Jacksonville State

2010-09-02T16:00:52Z

This week's question and answer session was done with Gamecock Illustrated. My responses to their questions will be up soon I'm sure.

1. Talk a little bit about Jack Crowe's decision to take Tig Barksdale as a transfer this year and Ryan Perriloux two years ago. I personally think that coaches should generally take a player that will help them win, but that's not the opinion of some. What are some of the reasons that Gamecock fans are giving as to why it's acceptable to be the landing ground for players who have been kicked off of their teams at big programs?

Coach Crowe will take a transfer player if he believes that it is a good kid worthy of a fresh start at a new program. In Ryan's case, our understanding is that JSU did a lot of due diligence and thought that Ryan was such a player. Ryan even met with the President of the University before JSU admitted him. Once he was at JSU, he was extremely well liked by his teammates and there were very few problems. He was suspended for our season opener last year against Georgia Tech for undisclosed reasons, but that was it. Our understanding is that Ryan is only one class away from graduating and is now playing pro football in Canada. He was a great player to watch and a yes sir/no sir type person off the field. He certainly did not conduct himself in the "thug" like manner that he was portrayed by some in the media.

Tig's cousin, Kory Chapman, was a great running back for JSU and played for the Colts for a couple of years. We know Tig got a DUI a while back and was involved in another indiscretion, but again nothing to indicate that he cannot succeed if given a fresh start. He has not spoken to the press much since arriving at Jacksonville State, but what little he has said has shown us that he is a guy sorry about past problems and anxious to make the most of this opportunity. It says alot about the relationship between the two coaches that Coach Nutt recommended that Tig go to Jacksonville State.

2. Who's the best offensive player on your team about whom no one is talking? Defensive?

Offense- its hard to say because there is no Perrilloux this year. We have a senior left tackle named Curt Porter that is apparently projected to get drafted. Also, Calvin Middleton, our featured running back, gets better every year. JSU fans are particularly excited about him because he gained 147 yards in our Spring game against what we believe is a very good defense.

Defense- #90, Monte Lewis is a top player for us on defense. His teammates talk about him with some degree of awe as a big guy that can really run and hits hard. He is a classic example of the type of player FCS schools try to develop. He came to JSU at 6-2, 220 and is now 6-3, 280 and can still really move. We also have a cornerback named T.J. Heath that is a pre-season All American and really makes a lot of plays. He had one game last year where he had three intereceptions and returned two for touchdowns. We understand that we are heavy underdogs in this game but we are looking forward to seeing how our corners will do against SEC competition. We think they are really good.

3. What type of offense should we look for against Jacksonville State? (I'm looking for more than just the offensive mindset on this one. I want to know about specific plays that work well, four wides, utilization of particular playmakers, etc.)

If you look at Jack Crowe's history as a coach, he has always been run first. We had several 1000 yard rushers in this decade. The last couple of years we changed to a more pass oriented philosophy to take advantage of Perrilloux's talents. We look for the Gamecocks to run it more this year out of a traditional two back set. The offense really clicked in the Spring, but we lost a starting guard (Matt Jones) in summer practice. It would be hard enough to run against Ole Miss at full strength. You may see the Gamecocks try to work some short passes into the attack. Ivory is a very good quarterback and actually played well in his first start ever, JSU's opening game last season against Georgia Tech.   Much like Ole Miss, Tech had a dominant defensive line led by Derrick Morgan.

4. We were all cheering for you last year against Florida State. What did you do to stay in that game so well? What did Florida State NOT do?

Thanks. Despite some of the back and forth on the blog recently, we are SEC fans when we are not pulling for Jacksonville State. We recognize that the Rebels have an elite football program. The FSU game was quite an experience. The players that we have talked to said that early on in the FSU game they realized that they could stay on the field with them and that their confidence grew during the game. You could say JSU stopped the run or you could say FSU did not run well, it's a matter of perspective.   On offense, Jacksonville State did not run it well, but Perrilloux hit some big passes. While Jacksonville State did get some breaks, two plays stand out to us: 1) early in the 4th quarter, JSU went for it on 4th and 1. FSU did not cover the tight end and he was open for a touchdown. Perrilloux double pumped when he didn't need to and was sacked; 2) on the first or second play of what proved to be FSU's game winning drive, our cornerback Heath made a tremendous break on the ball and had both hands on what would have been a game winning interception. He just could not come down with it. If he did, JSU could have held the ball until time expired.

5. What's your prediction as to how this game will finish? What's the final score?

We will give you two predictions- one from the heart one from THE brain. Our heart says that Jacksonville State plays a perfect game led by what we believe is an elite FCS defense and perhaps takes advantage of the transition/uncertainty Ole Miss has at quarterback. Score - Jacksonville State 17 - Ole Miss 15. More objectively, we realize that Ole Miss has way more depth, more superstars, a great coach, and is at home against a team from a different classification. The fact that we are banged up on the offensive line really concerns us against Ole Miss' great defensive line. Score- Ole Miss 35 - Jacksonvlle State 14.   We will guarantee one thing however; JSU's players will never quit and will go hard for the entire game.

Who Is This Guy - Jacksonville State Ed.

2010-09-02T15:00:35Z

The Gamecocks put a scare in Florida State early last season. Can T.J. Heath help them exploit the Rebels' inexperienced passing attack?

View full size photo »

While blog coverage of games against FCS opponents can vacillate between boring and unnecessary, this, our weekly feature highlighting a player on the opposing team about whom our readers might not know a great deal, is both interesting and informative. Since even very dedicated college football fans often spend practically no time researching FCS players in whom they do not have some collateral interest (like that which we might have in third string Gamecock running back Darius "Tig" Barksdale), we can use this space to highlight one of their best players. This week, we are covering T.J. Heath, a Gamecock about whom you may be wondering, "Who is this guy?"

Those who read the Clarion-Ledger Ole Miss blog this week might have seen Rod Walker's piece "Jacksonville State 101" (by the way, Rod, we've got a tall plastic red cup full of brown liquor for you in appreciation for your service during this period of interregnum; we're not ready to call you an FotC, but it'd be inhospitable to deny you brown liquor in September). In it, Walker gave mention to Heath, saying:

Cornerback T.J. Heath is one of the best at the FCS level and should be a good test for the mostly untested Ole Miss receivers.

In fact, the senior from Alexandria, Alabama is an FCS All-American by Associated Press, College Sporting News, and Sports Network. Must have some pretty ballin' stats, huh? Meh, not so much. He broke up 10 passes, recorded 34 tackles, and had six interceptions. Not to insinuate that the boy is a slouch, those interception numbers are pretty strong. But, by comparison, Javier Arenas had 70 tackles. If Heath were putting up the same numbers in FBS, he'd be Marshay Green with an exceptional number of interceptions.

But, he did have his season-high seven tackles against Florida State, so maybe Heath just has Greg Hardy syndrome*. One more note, T.J.'s full name is Lee Anthony Heath, Jr.**

While Heath is, probably, not the type of FCS freak that will find himself in the NFL come April, he is someone to watch for, if only for a few hours on Saturday.

*Also noted once former Texas Tech WR Michael Crabtree, who "wasn't feeling it."

**Might be an academic risk.

HT: DuNing over GChat. Michael Scott = us. Toby Flenderson = The NCAA.

2010-09-02T14:50:33Z

HT: DuNing over GChat. Michael Scott = us. Toby Flenderson = The NCAA.

Rebel Roundup - Merry Football Day

2010-09-02T14:31:45Z

More photos » Rogelio V. Solis - AP

I'm looking forward to watching your Cocks tonight, OBC (no homo).

Browse more photos »

College Football Has Finally Arrived
We made it, y'all, and it feels so, so good.

Red Cup Radio
I think we did a fine job last night, if I say so myself. Thank you to BHamReb and USAV3T for joining us for discussion and pick 'em. And the chat room was as lively as it's been in a while thanks to everyone's participation. Despite the bad news we've received as of late, I think it's obvious we're all excited about the impending kickoff. Widget to listen while you procrastinate at work is below.

A Statement from the NCAA Regarding the Masoli Ruling | NCAA.com
The fact that they're issuing a statement only lends to the idea that this is indeed a controversial, capricious, and arbitrary process. Read it and have your hopes of Ole Miss winning their appeal (hopes which should have already been nonexistent) forever dashed, Rebels. And then just move on. I know this sucks and all, but we've got a football season to start and a talented Nathan Stanley to get behind. Let's not let this bullshit get in the way of our fun. Seriously.

Free Masoli on Twitter
It started when we unveiled the #FREEMASOLI hashtag. That blew up, especially after Kentrell Lockett got a hold of it, and has finally evolved into a brand new Twitter account entirely dedicated entirely to "freeing" Jeremiah Masoli from the crapricious bondage of the NCAA's red tape. It's all one big futile effort, but it's fun and somewhat unifying for an often divided fan base, so I'm cool with it. #FREEMASOLI

About Those Divisions | Off Tackle Empire
Once "The Rivalry, Esq," now "Off Tackle Empire," SBNation's premier Big Ten football blog (it loads a tad slower than Team Speed Kills /overdonejoke'd), looks at the new divisions in the new Big Ten With Twelve Teams and notices a similarity between the SEC's East and West divisions. Haven't I sorta been saying that everybody's just trying to duplicate the SEC for a while now? Kaproof'd

What to Watch in the SEC | ESPN.com
Chris Low focuses a good bit on the Rebels for this weekend, despite the fact that we're playing the Illegally-Raised Ornithological Combatants from Alabama. He says that, with Masoli out due to the NCAA's ruling and Lockett out due to his fluttering heart, folks will get to see how Nathan Stanley handles his first college start and what some of our defensive backups are capable of.

RED CUP RADIO!

2010-09-01T19:31:48Z

Do you want to hear us bitch and moan about Masoli's waiver denial while barely containing our excitement for the upcoming college football season? Great! Because that's exactly what we're doing tonight. So join in either by chatting, tweeting, or calling in or, if you're not one for participation, just give her a listen. If you want to hear us discuss anything else in particular then drop a comment, otherwise be there at 8PM Central. Chat link is here. Listening Widget is below.