Another Grove Bowl has come and gone and it looks like Randall Mackey and Barry Brunetti for the starting quarterback position. And yes, it should give you great pause to know that Brunetti isn't even officially eligible yet since he is still awaiting a waiver from the NCAA of the residency requirement for transfers. It should also give you some amount of concern that our top quarterback has speech issues in pressure-packed situations (none of which were present in a scrimmage) and that his top competitor for the position has a mysterious petroleum-like jelly on his fingers (How many times did Brunetti drop the ball again?) If anybody else out there took anything away from the Grove Bowl other than these observations, please initiate use of the new and improved ultra-cool commenting system below. 

It's LIVE and it's awesome!  The Ole Miss Spirit Message Board is about to be a thing of the past.  That's how awesome it is. So start posting!

Here's what you need to know:

1. You can either register with Livefyre or sign in using Facebook or Twitter.

2.  Flickr, Twitpic, tinypic, and Imgur are supported images sources, meaning you just copy and paste the URL into the comment box and the image shows up as a thumbnail.

3. For video, YouTube and Vimeo both work. Simply paste the URL.

 I'm super-excited about this new commenting system. I hope you use it. 

BASEBALL: Could somebody please explain how Ole Miss is tied for first in the SEC West? Bizarre.

I've been taking a little R&R from the blog as of late, okay that's a lie, I've been working as of late at a job that actually pays me, but anyway, the blog lives and I plan to resume posting soon. Like most of you I've been watching spring practice reports and I'm encouraged by the news that all-everything JUCO quarterback Randall Mackey is living up to the hype after taking a redshirt year, and I'm excited to hear the secondary is receiving badly needed coaching from new secondary coach Keith Burns, and I'm almost convinced that Brandon Bolden will get the ball the number of times he deserved with new OC David Lee calling the plays. Of course, none of this means anything until the Rebels take the field in September. Like many of you (or maybe none of you, I don't know) I'm jaded after the 4-8 season and the underwhelming year in 2009 (I know we went to a Cotton Bowl but the Sports Illustrated cover with the No. 6 preseason ranking is still hanging on the wall right behind my desk. Needless to say Nutt missed that mark.). But I'm here and I'm reading Kyle Veazey's stuff every day and I'm trying to quash my optimism as much as possible so that I don't watch my hopes and dreams get dashed against the rocks of the 2011 football season. After lunch the other day my little brother who has watched me sink into bouts of depression mid-fall in almost every one of my 35 years on this earth, asked me the other day why I'm ever optimistic about Ole Miss football. I'm still chewing on that one, but for now I guess my answer is because it's more fun to hope than it is to give up. But there's no doubt it takes a man (or woman) of pretty stout character to be able to remain a lifelong Ole Miss fan. Am I wrong?

But rest assured, I'm here and I plan to be there, with you, inside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, after which I'll return to my computer and unleash my furor into blog posts at everything that went wrong (or maybe even something that went right!). I'm headed to the bank this afternoon to work out a loan for my season tickets. 

First things first: CONGRATULATIONS TO THE OLE MISS BASKETBALL TEAM FOR WINNING AN SEC TOURNAMENT GAME!!!!!  Seriously, if more than one of Warren, Graham or Nelson could be hot in a game, Ole Miss should win. Do it again tomorrow against Kentucky and make my weekend!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled blog post....

So, as the world over has now learned, the Ole Miss Blog and its beloved and talented blogger are now famous thanks to this snippet on MTV.com's website. While I was grateful for the link (the hits are just rolling in, let me tell you!) the tiny snippet of my Q&A with Michael DiChiara (MTV Dude) is missing a little thing I like to call "Context". Without the context, I come off as a creepy ogler and while I probably am creepy and I have ogled (just ask my wife...I ogle her every day) there's more to me than that. So here you go - the entirety of my Q&A session with MTV Dude:

MTV DUDE: What is the Ole Miss Famous Cheer ?

ME: Okay, but get ready because I have to scream it....

I think Houston Nutt is starting to see the importance of winning the Egg Bowl in 2011. That's a sign hanging in the Ole Miss locker room. Wow. Give me November.





 

But that's okay, because I downloaded this awesome picture of Brandon Bolden off Facebook:

 

The warm weather and the defensive clinic put on by Alabama and awesome head coach Anthony Grant last Saturday and resulting annihilation of Ole Miss's NCAA hopes, created a void that can only be filled by the yearly competitiveness of Ole Miss baseball. Man, I simply can't wait to sit in the bleachers at Oxford University Stadium and watch the prettiest uniforms in baseball swing for the fences. That said, with the introduction of the new bats expect pitchers to be more important than ever this spring. The players to watch this weekend in the opening series against Wright State are going to be on the mound. 

David Crouse, Matt Goforth and Austin Wright are Biancho's weekend starters. 

Crouse is a tall left handed junior from Virginia who played in 21 games in 2010, finishing 5-1 with a save and a stingy 3.74 ERA. 

Goforth (Perfect name for a missionar, isn't it?) is a junior right hander from Philadelphia, Miss., who appeared in 22 games in 2010, initially as a closer before starting in the Governor's Cup game against Mississippi State. He finished the season 1-6, with three saves and a 9.43 ERA. Was the losing pitcher in last year's elimination game against St. John. While the numbers may make you cringe, he had some good moments last season, most notably in a scoreless relief appearance against 8th ranked Louisville.

Wright is another big lefty. The JUCO transfer from Illinois has the looks of a pitcher at 6-4, 235, but the junior is an unknown quantity for now. I'm looking forward to seeing him pitch. 

Play Ball! 

The Ole Miss Blog asked and Houston Nutt & Co. scambled to release the 2011 roster. It's amazing the power I have with this blog.

Stop laughing.

Anyway, with the release of the 2011 roster I was able to compare the 2010 signing class and there are some interesting findings. Of the 25 signees eight are not included on the 2011 roster; Nine redshirted; and 10 saw at least some game action, most notably Jared Duke, Jeff Scott, Damien Jackson (JUCO transfer) Wayne Dorsey (JUCO transfer) and Brishen Matthews. 

My conclusion? As exciting as the 2011 signing class is it's the players already on campus that really matter. Like you, BRANDON BOLDEN!!!! If this guy doesn't get 20 carries a game next year I'm going to lose chunks of my hair. Anyway, I digress. Below you can check out the 2010 signing class.

Delvin Jones - two games, one tackle.
Ralph Williams - REDSHIRT
Cordell Gates - Not on roster.
Vincent Sanders - REDSHIRT
Cedric Smith - No longer on roster.
Martez Eastland - 10 games, -2 yards rushing, 39 return yards. Not on roster.
Tony Grimes - nine games, 15 tackles. Not on roster.
Carlos Thompson - five games, one tackle, one sack.
Will Denny - REDSHIRT
Nick Parker - REDSHIRT
Quadaria Mireles - Not on roster.
Carlton Martin - REDSHIRT
Bryon Bennett - REDSHIRT
Wayne Dorsey - nine games, 12 tackles, one sack.
Terrence Hackney - Not on roster.
Damien Jackson - 11 games, 68 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss. 
Chase Hughes - REDSHIRT
Eric Mitchell - Not on roster.
Jeff Scott - 10 games, 425 yards rushing, 25 receiving, 416 return yards.
Jared Duke - Started some games on offensive line.
Cliff Coleman - REDSHIRT
Brishen Mathews - 12 games, 15 tackles, one pass break up.
Clarence Jackson - four games, two tackles.
Randall Mackey - REDSHIRT
Mike Thomas - Not on roster.

BASKETBALL: Ole Miss pulled it out against LSU last night and it is now apparent that Andy Kennedy is on a quest that will not end until he has made a complete idiot of me and my blog (leaving door wide open for comments). Ever since I said it was time to replace him he just keeps winning. Good job AK. Good job. That's three SEC wins in a row. Do it against Alabama and I'll start planning my recant.

Maybe.

Naaaahh. You gotta go to the Dance. THEN I'll recant. 

Houston Nutt loves mothers and mothers love Houston Nutt and some players love ponys and hunting and fishing and so does HDN and presto! Ole Miss signed a Top 20 recruiting class on National Signing Day. Ole Miss fans can't help but be pumped about C.J. Johnson, Tobias Singleton and Nickolas Brassel et al (that's a legal term for "everybody else"). Like you, I can't wait to see these guys in Red and Blue. Which got me to wondering...how long will I wait to see these guys playing in a game? I guess the only way to make an educated guess is to examine what happened with last year's signing class. So using my magical internet powers here's a rundown of class of 2010 and what happened their freshman year.

/several wasted hours and a day later...

Okay, I don't really have magical internet powers. And I have a real job. Like Dorah the Explorer says, "I need your help." (I have small children). Please help me populate this list readers. You can comment here or on the facebook page at facebook.com/jakesolemissblog

Thanks!

Delvin Jones - two games, one tackle.
Ralph Williams - REDSHIRT
Cordell Gates - 
Vincent Sanders - REDSHIRT
Cedric Smith
Martez Eastland - 10 games, -2 yards rushing, 39 return yards. 
Tony Grimes - nine games, 15 tackles.
Carlos Thompson - five games, one tackle, one sack.
Will Denny
Nick Parker - REDSHIRT
Quadaria Mireles
Carlton Martin - REDSHIRT
Bryon Bennett
Wayne Dorsey - nine games, 12 tackles, one sack.
Terrence Hackney
Damien Jackson - 11 games, 68 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss.
Chase Hughes
Eric Mitchell
Jeff Scott - 10 games, 425 yards rushing, 25 receiving, 416 return yards.
Jared Duke - played
Cliff Coleman
Brishen Mathews - 12 games, 15 tackles, one pass break up.
Clarence Jackson - four games, two tackles.
Randall Mackey - REDSHIRT
Mike Thomas - 

UPDATE: Just saw this Tweet from our tweeting AD Pete Boone regarding expanding the North End Zone at Vaught Hemingway - @peteboone: Continuing question re NEZ, depending on season ticket sales and design probably 3-5 years. Of course that's a soft verbal.  
That's pretty interesting. Pete, how about tweeting us an update on a new basketball facility? 

Okay, did I dream that or did Ole Miss beat Kentucky on national television last night?

/watches Chris Warren YouTube clip for 121st time


It was real and it was awesome. Speaking of real, let's be real a minute. It's not every day that Ole Miss beats a Top 10 (or 11) team in basketball. It's also quite the rarity for the Rebels to beat Kentucky in basketball. And for this season anyway, it's not often that Ole Miss gets a win in the SEC. So there are lots of reasons of celebrate, not least of which is beating John Calipari. I am happy for the team for pulling it together for the nation to see. The Chris Warren game-winning bomb from NBA land with a defender in his face is a memory he will surely have for the rest of his life, and no current Rebel deserves it any more than him. I'm also happy for Ole Miss fans, like myself, who have withstood quite the drought in big wins over the last 18 months. The 2009 football win over LSU was the last time Ole Miss experienced success of this magnitude and that seems like quite a long time ago now. Yep, it feels nice to finally have a victory worthy of celebration, and we all enjoyed it, but let's not get carried away.

If you think about it too long, like I do, the win is also a touch maddening. Why? Because if we played like that every night we'd be 5-2 in the SEC instead of 2-5!

One win over Kentucky does not a season make. It's about March Madness, and making it to the NCAA Tournament is still going to be a tall task for Ole Miss. The good news is the SEC East and the hardest part of the schedule is behind the Rebels. But Andy Kennedy needs to get this team to play with the same level of intesity every game all the way down the stretch and get a few lucky bounces if Ole Miss is even going to even sniff the Dance. The SEC West may be the weak sister, but the Rebels have demonstrated they are capable of losing on any given night. This is a streaky, hot/cold team and for right now, they are hot. The shower in my first New York City apartment was like that and the pleasurable moments of warm water were easily nullified by sudden shocking icey surges. My memories of those showers aren't good. My memories of this season won't be much better if the Rebels don't find some consistency. Let's hope Ole Miss can stay hot the rest of the way and at least get in the conversation in March. Wouldn't that be nice?

I guess Kennedy is right in one respect, this team does have "potential". If he can somehow use this victory to harness it and guide Ole Miss to a winning record in the conference I'll write a full mea culpa. 

Until then, enjoy your signature victory, Coach. I know I did.

CONGRATULATIONS 2011 SIGNING CLASS!: Congratulations to Nickolas Brassell and the rest of the signees sending your commitments in today  for making the right decision. You may not ever win a BCS Championship (Although we can dream, right?), but you'll never regret going to Ole Miss.... Okay, I guess I could think of a few tragic scenarios where you might regret signing with Ole Miss, but we won't go there. Chances are, unless you have some type of behavioral issue, it'll work out great. So good job. You made the right choice.

Dear Coach Nutt:

Don't listen to all those pot stirrer's on the internet trying to make trouble on the eve of signing day over this whole oversigning thing. If I got paid $2.5 million a year to win football games I'd be doing the same thing. Just win baby. Win. Win. Win.

Your biggest fan until you don't,

Jake 

KENTUCKY v. OLE MISS: Ole Miss hosts Kentucky tonight at 6 p.m. after which in all liklihood the Rebels will officially be 1-6 in the SEC. I will honor my pledge (see below) and say no more, however, please note, that according to John Calipari, Andy Kennedy is well thought of by Larry Brown. I'm not sure what to make of that, but it must be nice to be well thought of my a Hall of Fame NBA coach.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: Ole Miss is requesting that at least some Kentucky fans wear Red tonight in order to help us with that Sea of Red thing for ESPN. No need to run out and buy a new shirt. It will be on your seat when you arrive.