Should expectations be higher for Ole Miss this season? My answer to that question, plus thoughts on the NBA draft, Major League Baseball, the AFC West and much more follow here, thanks to Oxford-based RE/MAX agent Harry Alexander.
1. A Twitter follower who is fan of one of Ole Miss’ rival schools messaged me this week. His question, frankly, was a good one.
“With the possibility of three first-rounders and maybe a fourth in the late first or second round and lots of preseason All-Americans, how is there not more hype for Freeze to win the SEC West?” he wrote. “Why is that not an expectation?”
I was on vacation and not paying a ton of attention to social media, but sometime in the 24 hours before or after receiving that message, I noticed Athlon had released its preseason All-American teams.
http://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/se...season-american-teams-feature-27-sec-players/
Ole Miss was certainly well represented. Defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche, safety Tony Conner, wide receiver Laquon Treadwell and offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil were named first-team All-Americans. Tight end Evan Engram was named to the second-team.
Still, no one is predicting Ole Miss to win the SEC West. Alabama, understandably, is getting most of the preseason picks. Auburn, this year’s sexy preseason pick, is getting plenty of pub as well. Some, self included, are bullish on Arkansas. Ole Miss is getting plenty of respect in the form of a spot in the top 25 and loads of individual accolades, but few are predicting the Rebels to be a real factor in the championship chase.
Why is that? I have my own set of questions, and I’ve mentioned them in this space before. Can someone step up at quarterback, manage the offense and make plays while limiting turnovers? Can Ole Miss’ running game improve? Can the thin offensive line remain healthy? Is there an answer at middle linebacker? Can the schedule, complete with trips to Alabama and Auburn and Mississippi State, be overcome? I see an 8-4 or 9-3 team, one that is intriguing and scary but not complete enough to win the toughest division in college football.
My follower’s question, though, remains a good one. I’ll add to it. If this Ole Miss team, with all of its NFL talent and with its set of question marks, wore Alabama or Auburn uniforms, would it be getting more scrutiny as a title contender? Is Ole Miss’ lack of true contention in the past several decades costing the Rebels preseason respect? I don’t know the answer.
I do know there’s only one way to earn it, and that’s on the field. As I’ve said repeatedly, it’s my opinion the 2015 season will go a long way towards shaping the way Ole Miss football is perceived for the next several years, one way or the other.
2. I missed the debate on the podcast for the past week, but my stance on the Confederate flag issue is well known if you’ve followed me on this site or on Twitter or if you’ve ever known me: The Confederate flag belongs in a museum and nowhere else. It doesn’t belong on the grounds of a state capitol or on a state flag or anywhere where people have no choice but to see it.
I’m always amused by the debate, for even those who defend the use of the flag know it is offensive to many African-Americans who view it as a symbol of hate and oppression.
It’s my opinion, and it has been my opinion for as long as I can remember having one, Mississippi should remove the Confederate flag from the official state flag. It’s detrimental to the state’s economy and provides another reason for corporations to take their business elsewhere. In a state desperate for growth and jobs, I fail to see the logic of blindly ignoring something so obviously detrimental to the state’s future.
Frankly, it’s embarrassing. Mississippi has many problems, some of which are likely irreparable. The state flag is an easy fix.
Personally, I don’t think the flag is an athletics issue. I think it’s much bigger than that. However, if I were a coach at Ole Miss or Mississippi State trying to recruit African-American student-athletes into my program, I’d want the Confederate flag off the state flag yesterday. In such a competitive environment, anything can sway a decision.
Of course, that applies to the people trying to bring commerce to Mississippi, or at least I think it should. It’s why I’ve been shocked this week, as leaders such as Ross Bjork publicly support a petition to remove the Confederate flag from the state flag, so many state leaders have gone silent.
Alabama has addressed the issue. So has South Carolina. So has Virginia. Why Mississippi, a state already fighting perception based on its racially-charged history, would risk being the last state holding onto a symbol embraced by the Ku Klux Klan is simply beyond my understanding.
On a related note, even NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt Jr., has come out against the Confederate flag.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nasca...th-criticized-confederate-flag-165220032.html
3. The New York Knicks were lambasted Thursday night for selecting Kristaps Porzingis with the fourth pick in the NBA draft. I actually liked that pick, as his comparables _ Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant _ make for a stunningly high ceiling. I liked that selection much more than I did the picks Philadelphia made at No. 3 and Sacramento made at No. 6.
I loved the Lakers’ selection of Ohio State guard D’Angelo Russell at No. 2. In a conference that features loads of point guards _ Mike Conley, Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, Steph Curry, to name a few _ the Lakers’ rebuild had to include a point guard to build around. Russell should be that. I loved Justise Winslow to the Heat. The former Duke forward will fit right into a lineup that already includes Dwayne Wade, Goran Dragic, Chris Bosh and Hassan Whiteside. Finally, I loved Arkansas’ Bobby Portis to Chicago and was thrilled when Murray State’s Cam Payne fell to Oklahoma City at No. 14.
4. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to take a look at an NFL division in this space. It will be quite a rudimentary exercise but one that will force me to prepare a bit for the NFL season (the topic comes up on the podcasts quite often, and I watch far less football than either of my two colleagues).
I’ll start with the AFC West, which has been owned by the Denver Broncos for the past four seasons. Peyton Manning is 39 now, and he looked awfully vulnerable late last season. Denver’s defense, however, features five returning Pro Bowl selections, and the Broncos’ schedule is favorable.
Kansas City’s schedule is far more daunting, but I’m in the minority when it comes to the Chiefs’ chances to supplant Denver: I like them. I can’t forget what I saw with Manning at the end of last season, and I think the Chiefs will win the division in Year 3 of Andy Reid’s regime. I think Alex Smith will take a big enough step forward and he’s a fit in the Chiefs’ system. He’ll benefit greatly from the signing of wide receiver Jeremy Maclin.
San Diego remains a wildcard with the Phillip Rivers saga somewhat solved for now. Rivers is seventh all-time in quarterback rating among signal-callers with at least 45 starts, but his tenure with the Chargers appears to be nearing an end. Oakland, meanwhile, remains destined for the cellar, winners of just 11 games over the past three seasons.
5. In the last three months, I’ve knocked three major league stadiums off my bucket list. In April, I saw the Giants beat the Dodgers at AT&T Park in San Francisco. Earlier this month, I saw the Nationals beat the Cubs at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. Last weekend, I attended two games at Target Field in Minneapolis. I saw the Twins beat the Cardinals, 2-1, in walk-off fashion on a Thursday afternoon and then saw the Cubs pound the Twins, 8-0, on Father’s Day.
Of the three, I preferred AT&T Park for its vistas, Nationals Park for the amenities and Target Field for the atmosphere. The views of McCovey Cove behind the outfield in San Francisco are worth the trip. Target Field’s Midwestern hospitality was remarkable. Of course, the Twins’ personnel had no choice but to be hospitable as both the Cardinals and Cubs’ fan bases turned out in droves for a rare series in Minneapolis. Twins fans couldn’t be nicer. Nationals fans, at least the ones I was around, were funny. The Giants fans, however, were some mean, caustic SOBs. Seriously, after the game _ a 10th-inning walk-off win for the Giants _ ended, fans of the home team were harassing kids in Dodger gear as they made their way down the exit ramps. It wasn’t a good look.
6. Speaking of baseball, the sport is nearing the halfway mark. The weekend was marred by news that Miami Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton suffered a broken hand and will miss a considerable amount of the second half of the season. It was marked, meanwhile, by the continued success of the St. Louis Cardinals, who are running away with the National League Central despite injuries to key cogs Adam Wainwright, Lance Lynn, Matt Holliday and Matt Adams.
Besides the Cardinals’ dominance, the headline-grabbing stories approaching the midpoint are Houston’s shocking four-game lead in the American League West, the New York Mets’ contention in the National League East (just two games behind Washington) and Kansas City’s continued success atop the American League Central.
I know this: Those of us (yes, I’m guilty) who wondered if baseball was dying were really, really wrong. From what I’ve seen, both in person and on television, the game has never been healthier than it is as the calendar turns to July 2015.
7. I spent much of last week in Perdido Key, Fla., right in the heart of the Redneck Riviera. As expected, there was plenty of sun, plenty of suds, plenty of sand and plenty of Alabama fans. Seriously, as anyone who’s been to the beach in the last few years knows, the Crimson Tide nation knows how to make its presence felt on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico.
As a caveat, I’ll admit I’m an outlier when it comes to this sort of thing. I have two alma maters and don’t own a stitch of clothing related to either one. I understand that’s odd, especially in the South. However, I can’t be the only person who notices Alabama Fan’s obsession with team-related clothing. All week, it was everywhere. Alabama visors on guys with mullets and beer guts challenging the elastic waistband of their crimson swim trunks? Check. Over and over. Alabama football jerseys on grown men? Yep. Alabama caps on men’s heads INSIDE nice dining establishments? Oh, you bet. Car flags in June, some nine weeks before the Tide’s season opener? Was there ever a doubt?
Again, I realize I look like a foreigner with my Chicago Blackhawks cap and my t-shirt advertising the Pump ‘N’ Munch convenience store in Pine City, Minn., but damn, the preponderance of Tide gear felt like overkill. Come to think of it, I never saw a University of Alabama alumni sticker.
8. I’ve been in several states in the past few months, and I feel compelled to report to you that we have an epidemic. From Mississippi to California to Maryland to Minnesota and back again, I’ve traveled and reached the same unfortunate conclusion: Elevator etiquette is dead, and we have to fix it.
Here’s the primer: When one is waiting to get on an elevator, one should wait until any and all occupants exiting the elevator are off the elevator before boarding said elevator. Entering the elevator while others are exiting is poor form, worse than the airline passenger (hello, strange Asian man who kept reclining despite my requests for you not to do so due to a lack of legroom on that flight from Minneapolis to Memphis) who reclines even when there is no room to do so. It’s not more complicated than that, really.
Let’s get this fixed, America.
9. All of our elevator inadequacies and such aside, this country is still a pretty cool place to live. I was reminded of that in Duluth, Minn., last weekend. It was raining and in the low 50s for the first half of Grandma’s Marathon, a welcome respite for those of us who trained in the soup that is Mississippi in late May and June.
For the hundreds and maybe thousands of volunteers lining the route from Two Harbors to downtown Duluth, that meant sitting and standing in the cold, soaked.
Still, at every stop, there they were, passing out water and Powerade. Later in the run, they passed out fruit and energy gels, but all morning long, they were there, old and young alike, trying to make the marathon more pleasant for people like me. There was the military veteran sitting in his wheelchair passing out Powerade. There were little kids handing out water and sponges _ oh, man, those sponges were the freaking bomb _ at the midway point. Everyone smiled and encouraged. When I thanked them for being there, they thanked me in turn for running.
Later in the race, once we had gotten into Duluth and were winding toward the downtown area on the shores of Lake Superior, residents turned out in droves. Some college-aged boys offered bacon around Mile 22 (bacon has never tasted so good). A mile later, a different set of guys offered small cups of beer. I actually declined, though I’m not sure why.
Anyway, the race came just days after the tragedy in Charleston and in the midst of news coverage that made it seem like all of us in this country are animals on the cusp of killing one another. Make no mistake, the situation in Charleston was horrific and sad and thought-provoking and tragic and gut-wrenching. Most of us, though, are good. Most of us prefer love to hate. Most of us aren’t racists. Most of us are just trying to do the best we can. In case I needed that reminder, I got it in Duluth.
10. My Labrador retrievers, Wrigley and Miller, died in 2010 and 2011, respectively, each at the age of 13. We’ve never really replaced them, though we had a very failed attempt at raising a Springer spaniel (long story, bad ending, key words: Aggressive biter). Anyway, I’ve chronicled my relationship with Miller here before. He was a black Lab with crazy athleticism. Think the canine version of Clyde Drexler. As he got older, he was a companion, and in the year after Wrigley died, he became a dear friend.
We brought home a new black Lab on Sunday. We bought him from an Oxford-based breeder (RebelGrove.com subscriber, too) who was kind enough to keep up with him over the past few weeks before he was old enough to join us.
As I write this, Gus (the kids named him after a character in the Hunger Games series, I think) has been at home for about four hours. It’s a little early to make snap judgments, though he’s clearly brilliant and, in the words of Jeffrey Wright, “painfully adorable.”
If Miller is somehow somewhere where he can be aware of this development, I’d like to think he’s pleased. Gus will have to be one hell of a Frisbee catcher to equal Miller’s athletic prowess, but I have no doubt he’s going to be a good friend one day. I suspect you’ll hear of him in this space from time to time.
Here are some other links of interest, at least to me:
It’s a guilty pleasure, but I’ll own it: I love listening to Taylor Swift music when I run. It’s not the only thing I listen to, not by a long shot, but I like her stuff. I’m apparently far from alone.
http://www.esquire.com/entertainmen...0002&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter
Painkillers are turning a scary number of young athletes into heroine addicts, per a special report in SI.com.
http://www.si.com/more-sports/2015/06/18/special-report-painkillers-young-athletes-heroin-addicts?xid=aol_home&icid=maing-fluid|bon-sports|dl3|sec1_lnk1&pLid=518421833
Brooklyn’s Susannah Mushatt Jones eats bacon every day. She’s 115. Good enough for me.
http://www.foodandwine.com/fwx/food...y-115-years-old?xid=soc_socialflow_twitter_fw
NASA scientists believe we’ll see proof of extra-terrestrial life in the next 25 years or so.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/08/us/feat-nasa-scientist-alien-life/index.html
Just a helping hand to those of you out there whose hair follicles aren’t as clogged as mine: According to five women polled by Esquire, there’s one man’s haircut all women love.
http://www.esquire.com/style/groomi...0006&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter
