A friend and I traveled to Winston-Salem for my 1st in-person Ole Miss game of the year. Here are a few thoughts about what we experienced on the trip and saw at the game Saturday night.
The Trip
That area of the country is beautiful this time of year. I would like to be there about a month later, but it was still very soothing for those of us who love natural aesthetic beauty. We encountered numerous people along the way, and all were very friendly. The city seemed to be very clean and safe, at least where we were at. The downtown scene was not bad and is probably better when the weather is better.
We went to several places to mix and mingle. We tried MIssion Pizza, as it was rated one of the best pizza places in the country. I am not one to bad mouth, as it was good, but I have had way better at numerous places in Chicago, New York, and even in Mississippi. The fire-cooked chicken was absolutely delicious, salvaging the experience for us. We went to Burke Street Pub, 6th and Vine, Finnegans (we didn't see Neal there), and Fiddlin Fish Brewing Company.
It was a place adjacent to Fiddlin Fish where we had our most interactive experience at a spot that we hadn't mapped but were recommended by locals. Broad Branch Distillery was great. We met several nice people there, the crowd was closer to our age, and the tasting was tremendous. My friend and I exchanged coins with the owner. If you are military, you know what a coin is. He had a really cool whiskey club coin that he traded with us for one of ours. We also did Boutique Bowling at a recreation center called Roar. The crowd was a little young for us, but we had a great time there. Bottom line, the trip wasn't quite what I expected, as I thought there would be things associated with the tobacco industry there that would be easy to do, but it was a good trip nonetheless.
The Pre-Game
I mean no disrespect when I say this, but it didn't take but a second to realize the small-time atmosphere that would be present in this game. Tailgating was literally that, People sitting in lawn chairs behind their vehicles eating a sandwich or similar in an asphalt parking lot. There were some designated areas for tents, but, honestly, USM has a better experience than what I saw Saturday. Their band, all 57 of them (that is counting the majorettes, flag people, and 3 drum majors), did as much as their numbers allowed. 32 members had an instrument. Honestly, I couldn't believe it. I have seen high school bands that were bigger and better. Their pre-game "pep rally" was better attended by Ole Miss fans than their own. As I said, it was obvious that we were not at an SEC venue.
The Stadium
Small, in need of updating, and not intimidating at all. The announced crowd was a sellout of 32,849. I thought it was more like 27-28k. Lots of empty seats on the home side, and some on our side as well. Looked to be about like 7-8K Rebel fans there. I thought the row numbering system was confusing and the seats had new and old numbers on them, causing confusion to some around me. Again, don't mean to pile on, but there are a lot of High School Stadiums better than Allegency FCU Field.
The Game
Good
A. The first drive of the game looked like a team that was laser-focused on the task at hand and taking care of an overmatched opponent quickly to let the backups get some quality PT.
B. The offense had over 650 yards for the game.
C. Henry Parrish rushed for nearly 150 yards and continued to be a TD-scoring machine.
D. Jaxson Dart had a solid game, albeit a couple of bad decisions (more on that later), throwing for 377 yards and being responsible for 3 TDs, 2 in the air, and 1 on the ground.
E. Tre Harris and Cayden Lee both had solid games receiving, as did Juice Wells.
F. Jordan Watkins had a big catch for a TD. We really need to get him back at full speed.
G. Daquan Wright had a big catch over the middle and played a good game. I expect to see him and Prieskorn on the field together in SEC play.
H. The OL controlled the LOS and did a fairly good job of protecting JD.
I. TJ Dottery played well, recording 8 tackles. He had to sit last year, so he is still getting his game feels back. I expect to see continued improvement from him.
J. Jared Ivey had 2 sacks and a pass deflection. He is a big key for our pass rush. I hope he is ok and can return by the time we hit SEC play (more on him in a minute).
K. JJ is such an Xfactor. Dude can do so much. 3 tackles, 1 TFL and a sack. Walter Nolen (more on him in a minute) relieves so much pressure off him. I liked him at DE. Imposing lineup.
L. Chris Paul plays with such a passion. His effort and energy has to be contagious. 5 tackles and a pass deflection. His sig moment was fighting through a hold to make a tackle. Golden!
M. I thought Isaiah Hamilton had a solid game. We need to develop depth in the defensive backfield.
N. Great athletic play by Suntarine Perkins on the Int. Dude is an athletic freak!
O. We held WF to 46 total rushing yards for the game! Most of those were in the 4th. I looked up late in the 3rd at the scoreboard and the stats showed WF with -2 yards rushing! WOW!
Bad
A. We seemed to get bored and make some careless, sloppy mistakes, allowing them to stay around longer than they should have. We have to put teams like this away early.
B. 2 turnovers. The high snap cost us a TD and led to 3 points for them, so a 10-point swing. The int was a terrible, sophomoric decision by JD. He knows better.
C. It is official, UBIV is in the doghouse. There may be a turf toe thing, but he played special teams and got some mop-up carries for the 2nd straight week. We need him to get right.
D. We have got to improve our running game. SEC play is looming and championship teams run the ball successfully when everyone knows they are going to run. We aren't there as of now.
E. Still seem to be searching for the right combo on the OL. I was impressed with Scott, not so much Buelow. Hopefully we have spirited competition there and get the best 5 on the field.
F. Short yardage seems to be limited to JJ running over people, with Nolen blocking. Bold strategy there Cotton. Maybe we are saving creativity for SEC play.
G. How bad is Jared Ivey hurt? That guy is vital to our chance to play meaningful football in Dec/Jan. I pray that he is not hurt bad and recovers quickly.
H. We still give up big chunks of yards in the secondary, even with our pass rush. Hopefully we are still getting our sea legs and this area of concern will improve.
I. 11 penalties for 114 yards. Yes, some of the calls were bad. That is still too many penalties. This must be corrected.
WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!
A. Walter Nolen - Why is he diving over the top of a punt blocker to try and block WF's punt? I understand the reason he is out there is because we are in safe, but someone needs to communicate that the juice is not worth the squeeze. We have people to do that who aren't sure 1st rounders who influence the opposition's entire game plan.
B. Jaxson Dart - Why did he feel like he needed to remove his helmet on the play at the goal line? I assume he got caught up in the moment. He is after all, contrary to all the information he has given us so far this season, a human. Let's hope he keeps his hat on the rest of this year, Dallas Turner is finally in the NFL!
C. Coach Lane Kiffin - Why did we play the starters so long in this game? I cringed every time Tre Harris or Juice Wells got hit in the open field and I almost vomited when Jared Ivey was carted off the field. Seems to me this game was NEVER in doubt, so...why risk losing games we haven't even played yet due to an injury?
Ok, this post has gotten long enough. Overall, good trip, good game, good win. Next up on the preseason tour, Georgia Southern. LFG! HYDR!
The Trip
That area of the country is beautiful this time of year. I would like to be there about a month later, but it was still very soothing for those of us who love natural aesthetic beauty. We encountered numerous people along the way, and all were very friendly. The city seemed to be very clean and safe, at least where we were at. The downtown scene was not bad and is probably better when the weather is better.
We went to several places to mix and mingle. We tried MIssion Pizza, as it was rated one of the best pizza places in the country. I am not one to bad mouth, as it was good, but I have had way better at numerous places in Chicago, New York, and even in Mississippi. The fire-cooked chicken was absolutely delicious, salvaging the experience for us. We went to Burke Street Pub, 6th and Vine, Finnegans (we didn't see Neal there), and Fiddlin Fish Brewing Company.
It was a place adjacent to Fiddlin Fish where we had our most interactive experience at a spot that we hadn't mapped but were recommended by locals. Broad Branch Distillery was great. We met several nice people there, the crowd was closer to our age, and the tasting was tremendous. My friend and I exchanged coins with the owner. If you are military, you know what a coin is. He had a really cool whiskey club coin that he traded with us for one of ours. We also did Boutique Bowling at a recreation center called Roar. The crowd was a little young for us, but we had a great time there. Bottom line, the trip wasn't quite what I expected, as I thought there would be things associated with the tobacco industry there that would be easy to do, but it was a good trip nonetheless.
The Pre-Game
I mean no disrespect when I say this, but it didn't take but a second to realize the small-time atmosphere that would be present in this game. Tailgating was literally that, People sitting in lawn chairs behind their vehicles eating a sandwich or similar in an asphalt parking lot. There were some designated areas for tents, but, honestly, USM has a better experience than what I saw Saturday. Their band, all 57 of them (that is counting the majorettes, flag people, and 3 drum majors), did as much as their numbers allowed. 32 members had an instrument. Honestly, I couldn't believe it. I have seen high school bands that were bigger and better. Their pre-game "pep rally" was better attended by Ole Miss fans than their own. As I said, it was obvious that we were not at an SEC venue.
The Stadium
Small, in need of updating, and not intimidating at all. The announced crowd was a sellout of 32,849. I thought it was more like 27-28k. Lots of empty seats on the home side, and some on our side as well. Looked to be about like 7-8K Rebel fans there. I thought the row numbering system was confusing and the seats had new and old numbers on them, causing confusion to some around me. Again, don't mean to pile on, but there are a lot of High School Stadiums better than Allegency FCU Field.
The Game
Good
A. The first drive of the game looked like a team that was laser-focused on the task at hand and taking care of an overmatched opponent quickly to let the backups get some quality PT.
B. The offense had over 650 yards for the game.
C. Henry Parrish rushed for nearly 150 yards and continued to be a TD-scoring machine.
D. Jaxson Dart had a solid game, albeit a couple of bad decisions (more on that later), throwing for 377 yards and being responsible for 3 TDs, 2 in the air, and 1 on the ground.
E. Tre Harris and Cayden Lee both had solid games receiving, as did Juice Wells.
F. Jordan Watkins had a big catch for a TD. We really need to get him back at full speed.
G. Daquan Wright had a big catch over the middle and played a good game. I expect to see him and Prieskorn on the field together in SEC play.
H. The OL controlled the LOS and did a fairly good job of protecting JD.
I. TJ Dottery played well, recording 8 tackles. He had to sit last year, so he is still getting his game feels back. I expect to see continued improvement from him.
J. Jared Ivey had 2 sacks and a pass deflection. He is a big key for our pass rush. I hope he is ok and can return by the time we hit SEC play (more on him in a minute).
K. JJ is such an Xfactor. Dude can do so much. 3 tackles, 1 TFL and a sack. Walter Nolen (more on him in a minute) relieves so much pressure off him. I liked him at DE. Imposing lineup.
L. Chris Paul plays with such a passion. His effort and energy has to be contagious. 5 tackles and a pass deflection. His sig moment was fighting through a hold to make a tackle. Golden!
M. I thought Isaiah Hamilton had a solid game. We need to develop depth in the defensive backfield.
N. Great athletic play by Suntarine Perkins on the Int. Dude is an athletic freak!
O. We held WF to 46 total rushing yards for the game! Most of those were in the 4th. I looked up late in the 3rd at the scoreboard and the stats showed WF with -2 yards rushing! WOW!
Bad
A. We seemed to get bored and make some careless, sloppy mistakes, allowing them to stay around longer than they should have. We have to put teams like this away early.
B. 2 turnovers. The high snap cost us a TD and led to 3 points for them, so a 10-point swing. The int was a terrible, sophomoric decision by JD. He knows better.
C. It is official, UBIV is in the doghouse. There may be a turf toe thing, but he played special teams and got some mop-up carries for the 2nd straight week. We need him to get right.
D. We have got to improve our running game. SEC play is looming and championship teams run the ball successfully when everyone knows they are going to run. We aren't there as of now.
E. Still seem to be searching for the right combo on the OL. I was impressed with Scott, not so much Buelow. Hopefully we have spirited competition there and get the best 5 on the field.
F. Short yardage seems to be limited to JJ running over people, with Nolen blocking. Bold strategy there Cotton. Maybe we are saving creativity for SEC play.
G. How bad is Jared Ivey hurt? That guy is vital to our chance to play meaningful football in Dec/Jan. I pray that he is not hurt bad and recovers quickly.
H. We still give up big chunks of yards in the secondary, even with our pass rush. Hopefully we are still getting our sea legs and this area of concern will improve.
I. 11 penalties for 114 yards. Yes, some of the calls were bad. That is still too many penalties. This must be corrected.
WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!
A. Walter Nolen - Why is he diving over the top of a punt blocker to try and block WF's punt? I understand the reason he is out there is because we are in safe, but someone needs to communicate that the juice is not worth the squeeze. We have people to do that who aren't sure 1st rounders who influence the opposition's entire game plan.
B. Jaxson Dart - Why did he feel like he needed to remove his helmet on the play at the goal line? I assume he got caught up in the moment. He is after all, contrary to all the information he has given us so far this season, a human. Let's hope he keeps his hat on the rest of this year, Dallas Turner is finally in the NFL!
C. Coach Lane Kiffin - Why did we play the starters so long in this game? I cringed every time Tre Harris or Juice Wells got hit in the open field and I almost vomited when Jared Ivey was carted off the field. Seems to me this game was NEVER in doubt, so...why risk losing games we haven't even played yet due to an injury?
Ok, this post has gotten long enough. Overall, good trip, good game, good win. Next up on the preseason tour, Georgia Southern. LFG! HYDR!
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