Yesterday the Nettleton Legend and I drove the hour west on Mississippi Highway 6 and watched Ole Miss defeat traditional power Oklahoma 26-14 in front of a record crowd of 67,926 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The game was ugly. We did not play anywhere near our best. There were several moments in the game where I had flashbacks of the Kentucky game. I completely embarrassed myself and the Legend when I lost my cool when OU scored right before the half on a play where we had the QB sacked and let him get away, throwing my water bottle down in disgust. The bottle exploded (it was capped, but the force of my action made that a moot point) and it went all over the couple in front of us. Thankfully, I didn't get punched and they, after getting over the shock, accepted my sincere, humble apology. I checked my emotions for the remainder of the game, only yelling when we scored. Now that I have shared my incredibly juvenile actions with the world, I might as well keep the gloves off and share what I saw and think after yesterday's game.
1. BLUF: We are NOT a playoff team. Not the one we saw yesterday anyway. We have serious issues in two position groups, OL and RB. Show me a good team, and I will show you a great Offense with an OL who can run the ball whenever they want. We can't because the OL is not great. Heck, it is not performing good as of now. We ran for 69 yards on 31 attempts yesterday. That is not a stat of championship teams.
My primary concerns of the defense is missing tackles and having difficulty closing out possessions (getting off the field, particularly on 4th down).
I have been a part of teams who had great expectations coming into a season, and I learned (the hard way, unfortunately) that management of those expectations, even attacking and squashing those expectations on some level (aka rat poison comments by CNS) is an important piece of the puzzle that can't be measured. I wrote as much in a post I wrote before the season. Some criticized the post. We CAN still win our remaining games. The ingredients are there. It won't happen unless we get better up front and achieve more balance in the offense. More on the OL in the next point.
2. About the OL. Again, I am not at practice, so I don't have adequate information to share anything more than educated guesses on the 5Ws.
Are some of the players more hurt than the coaches are disclosing? Are there internal issues amongst the position group? Are the coaches playing personal choices (unfortunately, it happens more than most would admit)? Are decisions being made based on NIL/Transfer Portal decisions?
I have stated in previous posts that I liked certain players more than others in this group. Some thoughts I have that I will share: How is it that Caleb Warren and Jeremy James are good enough to start over 30 games the last 4 years and have notched over 30 victories apiece in a Rebel uniform, but can't crack the lineup this season? Warren has been able to play since USCe (he played a few snaps in relief), yet he has not seen extended time. Not sure about James. Why can it not be communicated to Pettus that his future, where he can make generational money, is inside and not at RT? Is Beulow, who is a decent pass blocker (decent= ok, not great) but is a terrible run blocker who gets controlled by defenders when we run, the best option at RT in Pettus's absence? Is Pounds better than Beulow/Pettus/ all at LT? Is McIntyre our best option at C?
From my seat on the east side of VHS, not at practice, in the locker room, etc. I would like to offer for discussion this solution: LT - Williams (Pounds, reluctantly, until when/if WIlliams comes back) LG - Kalepo, C - Warren/McIntyre, RG - James (if Pettus would buy in and accept reality, Pettus is the choice here), RT - Pettus (see RG regarding Pettus, James if Pettus at RG), 6th man - Beulow. Ok, there it is. Sharpshooters, GO!
3. Dart's MOJO. Am I the only one who thinks JD has lost some of his MOJO? I can't quite put my finger on it, but he doesn't seem to be playing with the same reckless, Viking-esque guts and resolve that has endeared him to me and made me accept him as QB1 quickly after he won the job over a personal friend's son (Go Illini). I may be expecting too much, but he just seems a little off.
4. Play Calling/Coaching. It appears we drew up some different concepts for this game. We had several plays over the middle to Prieskorn and Wright. We used 2 TE sets. We even put a receiver number on Acker (73 to 49) in the event we want to throw him the ball on short yardage. Bottom line: I think the coaches are beginning to "open up the playbook" a little. I get it, you can't shoot all of your bullets before the stretch run. You do have to shoot enough of your bullets to get to the stretch run with a fighting chance. Things I would like to see:
A. More use of the TEs - Prieskorn and Wright are big-bodied, agile guys who have the size to make DB's look for them over the middle, not the other way around. I liked the 2 TE sets. It is a matchup nightmare for DCs.
B. More crossing routes - Get Watkins and Lee in space. Those guys have SPEED.
C. Isolate Juice Wells - Dude has all the tools. Get him into 1v1 situations to the wide side. Make him put out or get out (figuratively speaking).
D. Slip screens/RB screens - This concept would give the QB easy throws, get the ball out quickly, get the ball into our playmaker's hands, slow the rush, etc. Further, it would make rushers think, am I beating the OL guy that bad or is he INTENTIONALLY letting me go for the slip screen? That seed of doubt alone would slow the rush down.
E. Designed QB runs - We ran Dart more as a sophomore, when we had a backup in name only (Altmyer was transferring unless Dart got hurt). Design some runs where we are able to gain a numerical advantage through shifting/motion and run the QB so we have an extra blocker.
5. Five things I can't stand/understand about college football today.
A. Fake Injuries. Two things:
1. We ain't the only ones doing it. OU better be getting a requirement from the SEC to send information on their "injuries". I expect to see a statement from the OU administration this week. (S)
2. The practice is a detriment of the game. The only way to stop it is to limit participation. 1st offense - No return for the series. 2nd offense - No return for the quarter. 3rd offense - No return for the half.
B. Targeting - The worst, incomprehensible, degradation of the game in my lifetime. Completely judgemental. Unevenly applied. Unable to apply common sense (well, they did apply it against us at LSU, but that is the FIRST TIME I HAVE EVER SEEN IT DONE). I get the idea of player safety, but the rule as it is written and applied is destructive to the game. The defender has no chance (ever seen OFFENSIVE targeting called?). Same penalty (ejection) for obviously unintentional offenses and obviously intentional. Bottom line: The rule needs to either be revised or thrown out altogether.
C. Hurry up to the line and run it up the middle on 3rd and short. Has anyone EVER seen that play work?
D. Early home games. Yeah, I like getting home early, but there is a noticeable difference in the vibe in VHS. I would rather be a little inconvenienced and win vs a dead atmosphere like was prevalent at the start of the game Saturday.
E. College Replay - See targeting complaints above. Seriously, it is unevenly applied, unevenly reviewed, and the rules makers are not even a little afraid of insulting our intelligence by bending or even changing the rules when necessary (LSU non-targeting call, for example).
6. Special teams comment. Caden Davis has a big leg and has been great at kicking the ball into the end zone. He has been fairly good with FG kicking as well. That said, I wish I was as confident in him when we line up for a FG/PAT as I was with Costa. Most of his misses are to his left. This is usually due to overstepping with his plant foot.
7. Officiating. We had 7 penalties for 94 yards, OU 7 for 71 yards. After looking at the tape, we were guilty of all the calls that they made. What bothered me at the game yesterday, and was further confirmed by the tape, was the non-calls of the Referee and the Center Judge on OU. They were holding our rushers on every play, and we still had 10 sacks. Heck, we made 2 sacks where the OU OL was STILL HOLDING our guy when he got their QB to the ground. To be completely fair, they missed one fairly obvious hold on Pounds that I saw. I sat next to the white hats family at USCe. Good people. Just seemed that the level of egregiousness with which we are flagged is way lower than the level OU had to attain to get a flag. I am biased. I admit it.
8. Non Ole Miss vs OU observations.
A. I have said LSU and Nussmeier are NOT GOOD. I have not been able to understand how the media has fawned all over Nuss. His stats are not good, especially when you consider his supporting cast. He has 2 OTs who will be 1st rounders. 2-3 WRs will be 1st rounders. Taylor is a 1st rounder at TE. Yet, He completed 43% of his passes against us and 50% against A&M. He threw 3 CRITICAL picks against A&M that changed the course of the game as much as Reed's running. LSU is not done losing. IMHO, 9-3 is the ceiling and 7-5 is the floor. 8-4 is the likely result.
B. Texas A&M is not any better than LSU. I am sure Neal will have them at the top of his SEC list in his 10 thoughts column. I get it. That said, LSU had them until they went to Reed. Hot take: USCe will beat A&M this weekend. 9-3 is their likely record, assuming they beat Texas on Thanksgiving, which I expect them to do.
C. Where do the networks find these people who commentate games? I am glad that I was at the game and only had to endure those guys on tape, so I could fast-forward when necessary. My goodness. They have no original thoughts or reality compasses. They merely spend their time trying to explain to us common folks how we are supposed to accept the crappy calls (the targeting call on Graves, for example) even while looking at the same video they are. It is an insult to our intelligence.
D. OU fans. The best, most well-mannered, respectful people I have encountered from another SEC school. The Legend and I talked about this as much as anything else on our short ride home. We are looking forward to the trip to Norman next season.
Ok, I apologize if this is TLDR. I had a lot of things to say, and you all have been gracious in the past with my comments. I am officially done with my full-time job with the military at Camp Shelby and am merely awaiting final medical processing for retirement. That was my warning. I will be home this week so I will most likely be bored, which means I will most likely make a post or two about the upcoming game with Arkansas. CPT Obvious: It is a gateway game. We must win IOT get through the gate to a big showdown the next week with UGA. One game at a time. 1-0 this week is the goal. All that matters right now is The Hogs! LFG! HYDR! Beat Arkansas!
1. BLUF: We are NOT a playoff team. Not the one we saw yesterday anyway. We have serious issues in two position groups, OL and RB. Show me a good team, and I will show you a great Offense with an OL who can run the ball whenever they want. We can't because the OL is not great. Heck, it is not performing good as of now. We ran for 69 yards on 31 attempts yesterday. That is not a stat of championship teams.
My primary concerns of the defense is missing tackles and having difficulty closing out possessions (getting off the field, particularly on 4th down).
I have been a part of teams who had great expectations coming into a season, and I learned (the hard way, unfortunately) that management of those expectations, even attacking and squashing those expectations on some level (aka rat poison comments by CNS) is an important piece of the puzzle that can't be measured. I wrote as much in a post I wrote before the season. Some criticized the post. We CAN still win our remaining games. The ingredients are there. It won't happen unless we get better up front and achieve more balance in the offense. More on the OL in the next point.
2. About the OL. Again, I am not at practice, so I don't have adequate information to share anything more than educated guesses on the 5Ws.
Are some of the players more hurt than the coaches are disclosing? Are there internal issues amongst the position group? Are the coaches playing personal choices (unfortunately, it happens more than most would admit)? Are decisions being made based on NIL/Transfer Portal decisions?
I have stated in previous posts that I liked certain players more than others in this group. Some thoughts I have that I will share: How is it that Caleb Warren and Jeremy James are good enough to start over 30 games the last 4 years and have notched over 30 victories apiece in a Rebel uniform, but can't crack the lineup this season? Warren has been able to play since USCe (he played a few snaps in relief), yet he has not seen extended time. Not sure about James. Why can it not be communicated to Pettus that his future, where he can make generational money, is inside and not at RT? Is Beulow, who is a decent pass blocker (decent= ok, not great) but is a terrible run blocker who gets controlled by defenders when we run, the best option at RT in Pettus's absence? Is Pounds better than Beulow/Pettus/ all at LT? Is McIntyre our best option at C?
From my seat on the east side of VHS, not at practice, in the locker room, etc. I would like to offer for discussion this solution: LT - Williams (Pounds, reluctantly, until when/if WIlliams comes back) LG - Kalepo, C - Warren/McIntyre, RG - James (if Pettus would buy in and accept reality, Pettus is the choice here), RT - Pettus (see RG regarding Pettus, James if Pettus at RG), 6th man - Beulow. Ok, there it is. Sharpshooters, GO!
3. Dart's MOJO. Am I the only one who thinks JD has lost some of his MOJO? I can't quite put my finger on it, but he doesn't seem to be playing with the same reckless, Viking-esque guts and resolve that has endeared him to me and made me accept him as QB1 quickly after he won the job over a personal friend's son (Go Illini). I may be expecting too much, but he just seems a little off.
4. Play Calling/Coaching. It appears we drew up some different concepts for this game. We had several plays over the middle to Prieskorn and Wright. We used 2 TE sets. We even put a receiver number on Acker (73 to 49) in the event we want to throw him the ball on short yardage. Bottom line: I think the coaches are beginning to "open up the playbook" a little. I get it, you can't shoot all of your bullets before the stretch run. You do have to shoot enough of your bullets to get to the stretch run with a fighting chance. Things I would like to see:
A. More use of the TEs - Prieskorn and Wright are big-bodied, agile guys who have the size to make DB's look for them over the middle, not the other way around. I liked the 2 TE sets. It is a matchup nightmare for DCs.
B. More crossing routes - Get Watkins and Lee in space. Those guys have SPEED.
C. Isolate Juice Wells - Dude has all the tools. Get him into 1v1 situations to the wide side. Make him put out or get out (figuratively speaking).
D. Slip screens/RB screens - This concept would give the QB easy throws, get the ball out quickly, get the ball into our playmaker's hands, slow the rush, etc. Further, it would make rushers think, am I beating the OL guy that bad or is he INTENTIONALLY letting me go for the slip screen? That seed of doubt alone would slow the rush down.
E. Designed QB runs - We ran Dart more as a sophomore, when we had a backup in name only (Altmyer was transferring unless Dart got hurt). Design some runs where we are able to gain a numerical advantage through shifting/motion and run the QB so we have an extra blocker.
5. Five things I can't stand/understand about college football today.
A. Fake Injuries. Two things:
1. We ain't the only ones doing it. OU better be getting a requirement from the SEC to send information on their "injuries". I expect to see a statement from the OU administration this week. (S)
2. The practice is a detriment of the game. The only way to stop it is to limit participation. 1st offense - No return for the series. 2nd offense - No return for the quarter. 3rd offense - No return for the half.
B. Targeting - The worst, incomprehensible, degradation of the game in my lifetime. Completely judgemental. Unevenly applied. Unable to apply common sense (well, they did apply it against us at LSU, but that is the FIRST TIME I HAVE EVER SEEN IT DONE). I get the idea of player safety, but the rule as it is written and applied is destructive to the game. The defender has no chance (ever seen OFFENSIVE targeting called?). Same penalty (ejection) for obviously unintentional offenses and obviously intentional. Bottom line: The rule needs to either be revised or thrown out altogether.
C. Hurry up to the line and run it up the middle on 3rd and short. Has anyone EVER seen that play work?
D. Early home games. Yeah, I like getting home early, but there is a noticeable difference in the vibe in VHS. I would rather be a little inconvenienced and win vs a dead atmosphere like was prevalent at the start of the game Saturday.
E. College Replay - See targeting complaints above. Seriously, it is unevenly applied, unevenly reviewed, and the rules makers are not even a little afraid of insulting our intelligence by bending or even changing the rules when necessary (LSU non-targeting call, for example).
6. Special teams comment. Caden Davis has a big leg and has been great at kicking the ball into the end zone. He has been fairly good with FG kicking as well. That said, I wish I was as confident in him when we line up for a FG/PAT as I was with Costa. Most of his misses are to his left. This is usually due to overstepping with his plant foot.
7. Officiating. We had 7 penalties for 94 yards, OU 7 for 71 yards. After looking at the tape, we were guilty of all the calls that they made. What bothered me at the game yesterday, and was further confirmed by the tape, was the non-calls of the Referee and the Center Judge on OU. They were holding our rushers on every play, and we still had 10 sacks. Heck, we made 2 sacks where the OU OL was STILL HOLDING our guy when he got their QB to the ground. To be completely fair, they missed one fairly obvious hold on Pounds that I saw. I sat next to the white hats family at USCe. Good people. Just seemed that the level of egregiousness with which we are flagged is way lower than the level OU had to attain to get a flag. I am biased. I admit it.
8. Non Ole Miss vs OU observations.
A. I have said LSU and Nussmeier are NOT GOOD. I have not been able to understand how the media has fawned all over Nuss. His stats are not good, especially when you consider his supporting cast. He has 2 OTs who will be 1st rounders. 2-3 WRs will be 1st rounders. Taylor is a 1st rounder at TE. Yet, He completed 43% of his passes against us and 50% against A&M. He threw 3 CRITICAL picks against A&M that changed the course of the game as much as Reed's running. LSU is not done losing. IMHO, 9-3 is the ceiling and 7-5 is the floor. 8-4 is the likely result.
B. Texas A&M is not any better than LSU. I am sure Neal will have them at the top of his SEC list in his 10 thoughts column. I get it. That said, LSU had them until they went to Reed. Hot take: USCe will beat A&M this weekend. 9-3 is their likely record, assuming they beat Texas on Thanksgiving, which I expect them to do.
C. Where do the networks find these people who commentate games? I am glad that I was at the game and only had to endure those guys on tape, so I could fast-forward when necessary. My goodness. They have no original thoughts or reality compasses. They merely spend their time trying to explain to us common folks how we are supposed to accept the crappy calls (the targeting call on Graves, for example) even while looking at the same video they are. It is an insult to our intelligence.
D. OU fans. The best, most well-mannered, respectful people I have encountered from another SEC school. The Legend and I talked about this as much as anything else on our short ride home. We are looking forward to the trip to Norman next season.
Ok, I apologize if this is TLDR. I had a lot of things to say, and you all have been gracious in the past with my comments. I am officially done with my full-time job with the military at Camp Shelby and am merely awaiting final medical processing for retirement. That was my warning. I will be home this week so I will most likely be bored, which means I will most likely make a post or two about the upcoming game with Arkansas. CPT Obvious: It is a gateway game. We must win IOT get through the gate to a big showdown the next week with UGA. One game at a time. 1-0 this week is the goal. All that matters right now is The Hogs! LFG! HYDR! Beat Arkansas!
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