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No, not really, but it got your attention didn't it?

For a fan, spring practice as it is today is like sitting down at a fine restaurant, sipping on a cool glass of ice water, perusing the menu of things like an 8 oz. filet topped with crab meat or a delightful recipe of redfish and then walking out of the place without ever taking the first bite.

It ends with no satisfaction, only hunger. After the conclusion of the Grove Bowl Ole Miss fans will probably know that there still isn't a declared starting quarterback, the defense looked good (or did it?) and those receivers made a couple nice catches, but the fact is when a team is playing against itself there's no way to measure the success of spring drills. The team is still an unknown quantity. There's no way to know whether the defensive line is going to be able to make key stops, and there's no way to know if the quarterbacks can read a defense if they're playing against one they've been looking at for three straight weeks. Nevermind the emptiness from having invested one's self in a match that doesn't end in a win or a loss. That's just not the way we're programmed. We need to see a conclusion, be it victory or defeat.

You just can't simulate a game.

Yesterday, I saw the suggestion from Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee that spring scrimmages against other teams would be a great solution to those feelings of emptiness and longing fans feel after those April scrimmages. I was instantly intrigued and after giving it some thought, I've got to say - I'm all in.

Imagine the level of excitement you would have right now knowing that in two weeks Ole Miss was going to play Memphis or Tulane. Better yet, imagine how much more lively the practices would be for players and coaches knowing the clock is counting down to a game against a real competitor. Having a game on the calendar could only help coaches maintain the team's focus. There's nothing like a game when it comes to motivation. 

I mention Memphis and Tulane as examples for two reasons: 1. The games should be against non-conference FBS teams so as not to give anything away when it comes to the regular season; and 2. The games should be against teams that are easy road trips for Ole Miss fans. Who wouldn't enjoy a weekend in New Orleans or Memphis every now and again?

It would definitely be a money-maker for the schools. There'd be no need to use a concert in the Grove to bait fans if you could advertise a live game on Saturday against SMU or USM.

The fans could have a lot of fun with it, too. What if every other April Ole Miss traveled to New Orleans and played Tulane in the spring game combined with a weekend baseball series against the Green Wave? Or Ole Miss could play Memphis in the Liberty Bowl on Saturday morning and the at Autozone Park on Saturday afternoon. I don't know about you but a Friday night at the Rendezvous followed by some baseball and a Saturday morning football game would suit me just fine.

Attendance at the games would shoot up. The games might even have an effect on preseason rankings. They'd no doubt be televised. Real spring games would probably even be the spark that reignites the national economy. Now I'm getting carried away...

It's fun to think about. 

Ole Miss (18-7) got just what the doctor ordered in a midweek tuneup game against Jackson State Tuesday night. Baseball can be such a mental game, so the 12-0 shutout over the Tigers may have been the perfect confidence booster, or perhaps sustainer, before charging into a matchup with the No. 1 Florida Gators on Friday. 

Hammerin Rebels: Alex Yarbrough hit a double and Zack Kirksey followed it with a 3-run homer in the first inning.  It's the exact setup you want to see from those two. Yarbrough has the 3rd best batting average in the SEC at .407 and Kirksey was tied for second in the league with 8 home runs prior to this one. His 9th should have moved him into a 1st place tie with Florida's Mike Zunino. The success of the Yarbrough, Kirksey combination will be key for the Rebels this weekend. 

Rebel Throwin Smoke: Chris Ellis gave up only one hit and posted six strikeouts in four innings of work - his first career start for Ole Miss. The 6-foot-5 freshman from Birmingham moved to 2-0 on the season. 

If there was ever any doubt in your mind as to whether Mississippi State Athletic Director Scott Stricklin goes to bed at night scheming of ways to twist the knife as deep into the back of Ole Miss as possible then doubt no more. ESPN's Jason King is reporting that Sticklin is interested in hiring Bryce Drew to be State's next basketball coach. Yeah, that's right, THAT Bryce Drew. If Drew is hired you can fully expect to see this clip at every basketball game played in Starkville from now until Kingdom come. Sticklin, you old nemesis...

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Ole Miss (17-7, 3-3 SEC) grabbed a series it absolutely had to have this past weekend at Alabama, breaking a mini-slump and putting on some solid hitting. A 7-run seventh inning propelled the Rebels to an 11-7 Friday night win, and Ole Miss slapped 16 hits on Sunday to win 8-4 and claim the series. Ironically, the best pitching performance of the weekend ended in a loss. R.J. Hively had a brilliant outing on Saturday, allowing only four hits and one unearned run over eight innings, but the Rebels were done in by their inability to score and a 9th inning two-out homer off of closer Brett Huber that won it 3-2 for the Tide. Speaking of irony, Biancho lost the previous Sunday to Auburn in almost identical 9th-inning fashion and took heat for leaving starter Mike Mayers in to go for the complete game victory. Mayers gave up two runs before he could get the final out. Against Bama, Biacho went straight to his pen for Huber and still lost, which goes to show that sometimes baseball is just a game of chance. That said, a few more well-timed hits and a couple runs would help keep it out of fate's hands.

Hammerin Rebels: Third baseman Andrew Mistone had four RBI on two hits, including a triple on Friday night. Alex Yarbrough had two hits and a run in the Saturday loss. First baseman Matt Snyder had a double and a homerun to lead the Rebs on Sunday.

Rebels Throwin Smoke: Middle reliever Dylan Chavez snagged Friday night and Sunday victories, and as mentioned above, R.J. Hively threw eight great innings in Saturday's 3-2 loss.

Looking at Stats: At 3-3 in the SEC after the first two series, Ole Miss is still looking good in SEC statistics. Here's a few choice stats for you:
  Batting avg:   2nd to Kentucky batting .310
  Slugging pct:  3rd to KY and Florida (the next two opponents) at .447
  Runs scored:  3rd with 175
  Hits:   2nd with 258
  Runs batted in:  3rd with 163
  Home runs:  Tied with Arkansas for 3rd with 19
  Strikeouts:  Ole Miss has the least number of strikeouts of any SEC team with 114.

On the pitching side of things Ole Miss is middle of the pack in most categories, but are 3rd in hits allowed with 188 and 1st in Walks allowed giving up only 42. The Rebel pitching staff has also given up only seven home runs on the season, which is good enough for 2nd place.

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Spring practice started Friday, and after three days of practice it can be summarzied as follows: Fast, lots of hitting, no depth chart, loud music and a bunch of excited coaches and players jumping around, slapping, hitting and whooping. That's right - whooping.

Notes of interest: Hugh Freeze told reporters Bo Wallace and Barry Brunetti were ahead of the pack at quarterback right now, but that could change. This could be explained simply by the fact that of all the different quarterbacks on campus Freeze is most familiar with Wallace and Brunetti. Wallace spent a year under Freeze at Arkansas State, and Brunetti is from Freeze's old hometown of Memphis and was recruited by Freeze out of high school.

Former South Panola standout Nick Parker's name is getting said a lot at running back. Again, the Rebels don't have much depth in the backfield this spring, with Jeff Scott the main returning ball carrier. This is good for Parker, who could use these few weeks of practice to get an edge on a group of talented freshmen who will report in August. 

The coaching staff is already talking about looking for different ways to get the big athletic tight end Jamal Mosley into the offense. They'll put him anywhere from tight end to wide out to in the backfield looking for avenues for getting him the ball. After watching the tight end become such a huge part of NFL offenses in recent years, it's good to see the Rebels looking for ways to involve Mosley. His combination of size, speed and hands could easily be used to create mismatches against a defense.

The great thing about practice and football in general is that it starts out as raw man-on-man, let's get after it and hit somebody action and over just a few weeks it gets molded by coaching, repitition and hard work into a fine-tuned, well-oiled and organized machine. At least that's always the hope. For this opening weekend of drills, it looks more like the raw man-on-man part. 

Check out this video from Ben Garrett:

Spring Practice Highlights: Full Pads from Benjamin L Garrett on Vimeo.

It's starting to seem like old hat at Ole Miss these days.

Ross Bjork was introduced as the next Ole Miss Athletic Director yesterday in the South End Zone of Vaught Hemingway Stadium. He had the look - a strong jaw, broad shoulders, and a well-tailored suit with the required cardinal red tie. His presence alone commanded attention. He also said all the right things, generally impressing everyone who watched and listened. As he spoke, Bjork had the appropriate mixture of seriousness and warmth. He had just the right amount of charisma without being confused as "rah rah" coach. Bjork's not a coach. He's a leader of coaches, and he made it clear yesterday that he felt his job was to help his coaches succeed. That must be of some comfort to the Rebel coaches who are just meeting their new boss. The best thing Bjork said yesterday, he said to Richard Cross on Head to Head Radio:

"I'll never tell a coach 'No,'" he said. "I may have to say 'Let me see what I can do and get back to you, but my default response will always be to at least try to make it happen.'" 

Bjork knows that to a large degree his success rests in the hands of his coaches. If they're successful, Bjork will be likewise. Helping them win while delivering a quality University experience for the hundreds of student athletes on the Ole Miss campus is his mission.

Everybody knows that wins and losses are how coaches are measured, and that statistic eventually trickles up. Bjork knows it, too. He didn't say it in his press conference yesterday, opting instead to focus on the ideals - integrity, hard work, academic achievement and so on - but he learned it well in his years at UCLA, Missouri, Miami and Western Kentucky. In the short term he has to recreate an athletic department in a leaner image of its bigger SEC brethren. He also must hire a women's basketball coach and get Andy Kennedy's contract straightened out, finding the perfect balance of commitment to not selling the farm to a coach who still hasn't quite gotten there after six years but still might (and good luck with that).

In the long term Bjork will eventually be measured by bowl games, NCAA appearances and maybe even that ever-evasive trip to Omaha. He'll also be measured by how quickly the red brick walls are erected on that expensive new and much longed for basketball arena, and how fast he can raise the money so that North End Zone can mirror the beautiful one to its South. In accomplishing all of that he has to pull a fanbase together that's been bogged down in an epidemic of gripes and displeasure. Simply winning will solve a lot of it. From raising money to pleasing the unhappy fan, winning will be the balm that heals. After all, it cures everything.

The mission is clear. The objective determined. Now we all get a chance to see what Bjork can do. 

Yesterday and all through the night mother nature does what she is want to do in March in Mississippi. She brought forth a welcome deluge, finally washing away those golden layers of pollen that crusted cars, mailboxes, lawnchairs and anything and everything else exposed to the springtime air. Many of us probably awoke to the sound of heavy rain falling on rooftops in the dark hours after midnight, turned over on our pillows thankful for the soft music and then proceeded to sleep the night away in that deep, restful way that we only get on rare rainy nights. Today as the storms blow off to the east and the sun shines down on all that has been washed clean, trees will bloom, flowers will blossom, grass will grow and everything will begin to take on the hue of sparkling green emeralds. It's springtime in Mississippi.

It's also springtime at Ole Miss. An Ole Miss Spring.

After a long winter, darker and colder than most in the history of Ole Miss athletics, spring is finally here. With Chancellor Dan Jones' decision to hire the young, energetic new blood of athletic director Ross Bjork, an athletic department, a school and a fanbase can finally begin afresh. Winter is over. Spring is here and there's no more time or need to worry about the past, the politics, the decisions and the grudges gone by. It's a time for renewal. For optimism. Hope even. Hope that Ole Miss can now arise from the cold depths of the SEC and compete again. Like an optimistic delta farmer preparing his sprawling fields for planting, Ole Miss can now get about working toward and looking forward to its next harvest. The future. Her faithful can once again return to dreaming about good things to come instead of griping about bad times of old. They're free to dream again. In an Ole Miss Spring the fans order season tickets and hope to beat three different schools from Texas in the same season. They talk spring ball and long for a quarterback that can at least be compared to the greats like Archie and Eli. It's been a while. 

Speaking of Archie, that's a man who's been hard at work since he was called upon last November to help the school of which he is its living hero find its way again. Manning and Mike Glenn did the job they were called upon to do. Along with their committees they recommended youth and vigor. Their job is finally over. Now they can watch like the rest of us.

In Hugh Freeze they saw a rapidly growing sapling of a coach from the Sunbelt and NAIA and they told Chancellor Jones that he's got the potential to be a giant solid oak in the SEC. The next mission was to give their new coach the very best chance for success they could and so they found a young whipper snapper from Western Kentucky. He's 39, his name is Bjork and he's only been an athletic director for two years, but that's okay because Freeze was only a head coach at Arkansas State for one. It's spring at Ole Miss and it's time for youthful exuberance and the belief that it really can accomplish anything it sets its mind to. Like raising another $100 million to build a new arena and expand the football stadium. Whether it's raising $100 mill or beating Alabama, Freeze and Bjork think they can do it, no matter how many people tell them they can't. That's the beauty of youth and exactly why Ole Miss needed it.

Speaking of spring and quarterbacks, what better time to kick off spring football practice than the day after the coming of Ole Miss Spring itself? Freeze has his press conference this afternoon. Afterward Ross Bjork will make his introduction to the red and blue masses. It's a time to be happy if you're an Ole Miss fan. It's a time to enjoy the good things SEC sports have to offer, like a healthy quarterback competition, shoring up that offensive line and getting a defense right again. Winter is over. Ole Miss Spring is here. Summer is coming. And after that...well there's reason to be optimistic about that crop now and that sure is fun.  

A Message from Ross Bjork from Ole Miss Rebels on Vimeo.

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