This post is a result of my decision to share my experiences from this past week at the MS/AL game in Hattiesburg with the board. Full disclosure as to the access I had, as I am a nobody in that world. I was the OIC (officer in charge) for the MSARNG liaison team that hosted both teams at Camp Shelby. Camp Shelby and the MSARNG partner with the MAC to provide housing, some of the meals, and other logistical requirements for the game when it is held in Mississippi. It has been a partnership of many benefits for all parties involved. I was honored to be a part of it this year and serve in this capacity for the benefit and betterment of the event and the kids and adults involved.
My position on our liaison team allowed me to have access behind the curtain and see how things were with the cameras off. It also allowed me to interact with the administrators, players, and coaches and get to know them personally. Here are some of the things I observed throughout the week:
1. From the time they stepped off the charter buses that brought them, the Alabama team seemed to be on a mission. They were very aware that they had not won the game in Mississippi since the site started rotating here every other year in 2015, and seemed to bring a different level of focus, a business-like approach, to everything that they did. Beginning on Tuesday when they arrived, I told all that I came into contact with that I didn't know who was going to win the game, but I knew who won the warmup. Alabama had some "pretty" players. Some dudes! Now, we did too, but not as many and not as pretty, IMO at least.
2. Mississippi had several top-line guys not in the game, opting out if you will. Alabama may have too, I don't know. I do know this, MS is about half the size as AL population-wise. We don't have the numbers to have our best opting out due to injury risk or NIL. I spoke to one of the coaches at the game yesterday who had a player opt-out. He told me that the school (out of state) that he was committed to advised his kid to opt out. I voiced my "concerns" and the coach's response was "Hard to argue with XXXX when they are offering $175K". IMHO, that approach is short-sighted and selfish, on both the players and the adults' part. I understand that is a lot of money in the short term, but to be denied a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity over money that another school would most likely pay... I also understand the issue of potential injury if the player is projected to play as a freshman. That was a primary reason for moving the game to December. Playing in a game like that is a once-in-a-lifetime honor, to represent your entire state in a competition against a neighboring state. It is a decision that they will regret later in life and one that likely played a part in the outcome of the game. JMHO.
3. Yesterday's game showed me how dominant Mississippi could be if we only had one major university (SEC) in our state. Our top group is as good as anywhere in the country, we just don't have the depth of larger states. Those kids were very proud of the name on the front of their jersey, they wanted to win that game BAD! (as I said above, Alabama obviously wanted it too) I was with them all week, I heard them talk about the fact that Ole Miss, MSU, JSU, USM, etc fans would ALL be rooting for them on Saturday. They liked that! I was in the locker room pregame. They were dialed in. They kept playing despite the 3 turnovers that led to 19 Alabama points. It is just a shame that we (Mississippi schools) spend so much time trying to drag each other down and gloating when the other is doing terribly. I absolutely agree that MSU, from their president down to the lowest of fans, is much worse in this zeal than we are, but we have people on this site who spend a lot of energy wanting MSU to be terrible and cheering anything that can be perceived as bad for MSU. How about we just focus on Alabama, Georgia, and LSU?
4. There was a lot of Ole Miss BUZZ all week! Even some of the Alabama players were talking up Ole Miss. They may have just been pulling my chain, as I am sure my allegiance showed through, despite my best efforts to be covert in my loyalties. I spoke individually with all of our commitments on both teams, and (with one exception who will remain nameless, maybe he was just having a bad day) came away very IMPRESSED with each of them. They were genuine, respectful, and engaged with you when you were trying to speak with them. They all (again, one exception) had great body language and seemed excited and humbled to be a part of such a great event. Had a great conversation with a certain player who is coveted by both Ole Miss and MSU, and all I will say is, he is genuinely a great kid! I hope he decides to come to Ole Miss and be AJ 2.0. My favorite players of the week for the Mississippi team were the LB from West Jones and the small linebacker from Picayune. I could see the West Jones kid being Chance Campbell 2.0 for someone and the Picayune kid...I know he is small, but that dude is an absolute tackling machine! He would be an incredible special teams player! Alabama had a couple of kids that made a positive impression above that of others. They have a couple of OL/DL that look like they are draft-ready right now. Franklin for MS looks like a NFL player also. My goodness, what are they feeding these kids?
5. About the game... my first impression on Tuesday came (somewhat) to fruition on Saturday. Alabama looked awfully pretty and they seemed to play more focused, team-oriented football. They did a good job of getting the ball to the WIlliams kid (He is worth all 5 stars) who is committed to Alabama. Our liaison who was assigned to Alabama's team told me all week that he would be "one to watch" on Saturday. He was absolutely correct! As I said, they scored 19 points on 3 Mississippi turnovers. They had a blocked punt that resulted in a 6-yard drive for a TD, a scooped fumble right before half that resulted in a 4-yard drive for a TD (the TD before half was the backbreaker, IMHO), and an 80-yard TD pass to Williams a couple of plays after they had intercepted a Mississippi pass in the end zone to kill a great drive. A couple of questions for you analytics gurus, both coaches (both great guys) made decisions on PATs, where I would have DEFINITELY gone the other way. Alabama scores on the long pass to Williams to go up 26-10 middle of the 3rd. They decide to go for 2, which they didn't get. Kicking the PAT there would have put them up 3 scores. Maybe their kicker was hurt? I noticed one of their QBs kicking off (and not very well). Later, Mississippi scored to cut the lead to 26-16. We decide to kick the PAT instead of going for 2 to cut it to a one-score game? What do you analytics guys say?
All in all, it was a great week. I was honored to be a part of the game and provide support for the teams and coaches. The average fan who comes to the game and pays their admission has NO IDEA what all goes into pulling something like that off. Both state associations had numerous people who put in countless hours to make it all happen. Everything didn't go smoothly, but everything (except the final score) went great! That is all.
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