Mullen, bears, Team USA recruits, and recruiting

[AlSwearengen]

There is quite a bit of angst among the bulldog faithful lately, some of that angst is warranted and some not. For those that continue to question Mullen, you need to take inventory of the past. Prior to this season, watching a Mullen coached team, I came away telling myself that this is the best coached MSU team that I have seen dating back to Emory Bellard (I'm really too young to judge Bellard though). We don't necessarily have the talent, but we at least look like we are disciplined and make few mistakes. This year, offensively, I think we ran an offense that suited our qb, but not much else. We looked good passing against lesser competition, really good actually. But, once we played the big boys it became obvious that we don't have the talent level at wr to do what we tried to do with the offense. The fact is that we aren't going to out talent bama, lsu, etc., etc. even after our talent level has "improved". That is why we need to run an exotic offense to have any hope to beat those types of teams. Let's not forget that our seniors were committed to Croom and the gulf coast offense. They really aren't geared to our version of the spread and what Mullen needs to run it.

That brings me to the one attractive thing about our program and that is the perception that a coach will be allowed some slack from an "understanding" fan base. For the longest, people would say that if we won more than we lost, we would be happy. Well, from reading this board, it looks like that is out the window already. I attribute that to fans that are looking at our neighbors (sec schools) and seeing them win but don't look at any of the reasons why they win. The reasons that they win is that they have things we simply don't have or don't have near enough of.

This brings us to the bears. It is no secret that when it comes to recruiting, their alumni are playing chess and ours really would prefer not to even have to play checkers. It isn't that they aren't willing, it is that we seem to get burned every time we try. And this is one of those things we don't have as much of as bama, lsu, auburn, and even the bears, that being alumni willing to get involved in recruiting. Once we learn how to play chess, recruits will pick us over the bears most of the time. Deep down, does a black kid want to go to a school where they call obama the n word during a protest and at the same time vandalize a black student's truck and run him off from the school? Outside of the athletic teams and band, how many black students attend olemiss? Not a lot.

Now back to Mullen and the two 2016 commits who are the top rb and wr in the country in their class right now. Our coaches are thinking outside the box which is what we have to do. They identified the "bell cow" in the Washington kid and that has gotten us in the door for others with his level of talent. Great players are around each other a lot with these all star games and camps and become friends and want to play together. Our coaches have pulled off the equivalent of signing a brother or sister (almost). Word is that Washington has a cousin playing corner that is one year behind him who is on the same type level and he wants to play with him and is waiting for us to offer. Of course, I'm not going to feel good about a commit in this year's class until they sign much less these kids, but at least they are interested in us and that is a start. And what chance do we have with them if we make Mullen want to leave with our ridiculous expectations?

Lastly, we will likely have a mediocre season or two coming up. But, mediocre is a hell of alot better than 4-7 which is what I grew up on mostly. Stop talking about mullen not beating anyone in the west or a ranked team. All you are doing is repeating the bear's propaganda. The only teams beating those guys are each other and it takes a&m getting lucky to beat bama. If you want to ***** about us not beating bama or lsu, I want you to go and kick Anderson Silva's or Randy Couture's asses. That is almost the equivalent. So everyone be prepared to be patient and supportive and we may get this thing figured out.

 

[tenureplan]

Sweegin! Wu say too long, **********!

 

[FISHDAWG]

good read - but I have to say that we are (IMO) overplaying the race angle ... it's like almost anything else - "a few bad apples" doesn't mean everyone is that way and I really don't think it helps us when it comes to recruiting ... I think Mullen is on the right track as far as recruiting and coaching , but indeed Rome wasn't built overnight .... I think your best point is how their alumni (or alumnus ? ) pitch in on the recruiting

 

[BigDog72.sixpack]

Good post, but on another note...

It appears to me that for MSU (with or without Mullen) to compete in the SEC with the big boys, then they will have to head out of state. That means hitting Florida and Texas especially hard. If you look at some of the national programs that have to go out of state to get players i.e. West Virginia, then you will see what I mean.

Texas has a popuation of over 25 million and Florida has over 19 million. Compare that to Mississippi (3 million) and you have two states with a combined 15 times more players to choose from.

Ole Miss is doing this in both states, especially Florida. Yes, we've owned "Our State" but we have to got make more in roads to these recruiting hot beds to compete. The levels of competition in these 2 states has been discussed many times on here before, but when you actually look at the population numbers, it really hits home.

 

[jacksonreb]

agree fishdawg. i don't know our % of black students but i believe it is comparable to msu and other sec schools. its a hill to climb but i can tell you factually that there are black ath at ole miss the racebaiting helped us get. after visiting and being around the campus it was like "this is nothing like school X, said it was." it proves the lie. kids are smart and they know there are bad apples everywhere and in more or less the same proportions.

 

[AlSwearengen]

I agree and I think looking at the last couple of years our coaches have decided to go out of state alot more.

 

[Optimus Prime 4]

I love lamp

 

[FlabLoser]

Good post. Would read again.

 

[engie]

Excellent post... agreed 100%.

Starting a new one with data showing WHY it is unfair to evaluate Mullen based on what previous coaches here were able to do, even though he is surpassing all of them in most regards...

 

[BiscuitEater]

Good read

Lastly, we will likely have a mediocre season or two coming up. But, mediocre is a hell of alot better than 3-5 which is what I grew up on mostly.

But I just don't see the 'doom and gloom' for next two years. We signed a good class last year; redshirted several and some got to play; QB situation is better than ever with a Senior leader & experienced backup; OL with zero losses; and experienced RBs.

Coaches are bringing in several JC DBs and defensive players for visits. I am causiously optimistic ... especially about next year but Mullen has a chance to impress in the upcoming bowl against a tough disciplined opponent.

 

[maroonmania]

agree fishdawg. i don't know our % of black students but i believe it is comparable to msu and other sec schools. its a hill to climb but i can tell you factually that there are black ath at ole miss the racebaiting helped us get. after visiting and being around the campus it was like "this is nothing like school X, said it was." it proves the lie. kids are smart and they know there are bad apples everywhere and in more or less the same proportions.

My personal opinion is that the average black person going to school as a student would likely feel more comfortable at MSU than OM strictly because of difference in the general culture of the schools, the difference in the importance of the Greek systems at the 2 schools and other factors BUT I don't really think most of that really translates to the recruiting of black athletes (and all football athletes) because they are treated pretty special at OM just like they are at all SEC schools and maybe even moreso. So whatever slight a minority might receive in the general population at OM, the black athlete is not likely going to experience that at all. And for that reason, unless the athlete's family has some issue with OM and its legacy going into the recruiting process, all that becomes basically a non factor so its really not something that a coach from MSU or any opposing school in the recruiting process should even get into.

 

[maroonmania]

But I just don't see the 'doom and gloom' for next two years. We signed a good class last year; redshirted several and some got to play; QB situation is better than ever with a Senior leader & experienced backup; OL with zero losses; and experienced RBs.

Coaches are bringing in several JC DBs and defensive players for visits. I am causiously optimistic ... especially about next year but Mullen has a chance to impress in the upcoming bowl against a tough disciplined opponent.

Most of the doom and gloom for me, at least for next year, is not that our team will get worse but that the schedule steps up in difficulty significantly. If we are EXACTLY as good next year as this year I could still easily see us going to the 4-8 to 5-7 range. AL, LSU, @A&M and @SC gives us four likely losses. Then we have the OK ST game that AT BEST is 50/50 for us and I personally wouldn't say the odds are that good (though I admit I don't know how many starters return for OSU). So that's easily 5 losses and then you have the somewhat toss up games of @Auburn, @Arkansas and UMiss. If anyone thinks Auburn and Arkansas will be as bad next year as they were this year you are dreaming and we play BOTH on the road. Worst case we lose both and then we get an UMiss team that will likely continue to improve even from this year so who knows there. Still feel like we screwed ourselves over with the OSU game. Granted it will look good if we win it but we will be in a tremendous hole to get bowl eligible next year if we lose it.

 

[karlchilders.sixpack]

I only have two compaints on the season...

1. That we laid down after getting ***** slapped around by the Bears in the second half.
Thought we were mentally and physically tougher than that. Total embarrassment.

2. That we did not have a steady diet of Corner/Safety/ LB blitzes on D. If you have some success in this area,
you will be surprised how much better your D line looks and does overall. Just too conservative for me.

Otherwise, I guessed 8-4 and possibly 9-3 preseason. I'm overall satisfied.

 

[patdog]

Below if taken from the 2011-2012 Fall enrollment factbook published by the IHL. USM is the most integrated school, followed by MSU and then UM.

Institution

White​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Black​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Other​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Men​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Women​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Resident​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Nonresident​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Total

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]Alcorn State University [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]125 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3,264 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]94.9% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]50 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1.5% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,183 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]34.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,256 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]65.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3,004 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]87.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]435 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]12.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3,439 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]Delta State University [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,596 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]59.2% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,539 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]35.1% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]251 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]5.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,521 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]34.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,865 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]65.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3,128 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]71.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,258 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]28.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]4,386 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]Jackson State University [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]511 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]6.1% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]7,675 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]91.5% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]201 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3,026 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]36.1% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]5,361 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]63.9% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]7,088 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]84.5% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,299 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]15.5% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]8,387 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]Mississippi State University [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]13,744 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]69.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]4,045 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]20.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,041 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]10.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]10,331 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]52.1% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]9,499 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]47.9% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]14,276 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]72.0% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]5,554 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]28.0% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]19,830 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]Mississippi University for Women [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,368 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]57.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]912 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]38.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]92 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3.9% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]422 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]17.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,950 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]82.2% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,140 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]90.2% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]232 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]9.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,372 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]Mississippi Valley State University [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]87 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]3.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,196 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]90.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]135 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]5.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]893 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]36.9% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,525 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]63.1% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,100 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]86.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]318 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]13.2% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,418 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]University of Mississippi [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]12,657 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]76.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,557 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]15.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,372 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]8.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]7,902 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]47.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]8,684 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]52.4% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]10,075 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]60.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]6,511 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]39.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]16,586 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]University of Southern Mississippi [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]8,851 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]59.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]4,390 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]29.6% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]1,599 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]10.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]5,606 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]37.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]9,234 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]62.2% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]12,582 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]84.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]2,258 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]15.2% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]14,840 [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

Total

39,939

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]55.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

26,578

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]36.8% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

5,741

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]7.9% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

30,884

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]42.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

41,374

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]57.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

54,393

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]75.3% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

17,865

[FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman][FONT=Times New Roman,Times New Roman]24.7% [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

72,258

<TBODY>
</TBODY>

 

[FlabLoser]

1. That we laid down after getting ***** slapped around by the Bears in the second half.
Thought we were mentally and physically tougher than that. Total embarrassment.

2. That we did not have a steady diet of Corner/Safety/ LB blitzes on D. If you have some success in this area,
you will be surprised how much better your D line looks and does overall. Just too conservative for me.

Otherwise, I guessed 8-4 and possibly 9-3 preseason. I'm overall satisfied.

3. Only 2-3 running plays, not counting our very poorly executed option plays. No jet sweeps? In a spread offense??

 

[FISHDAWG]

good find Patdog ... to me it appears a result of Geography / demographics ... but I am used to reading blueprints instead of interpreting census stats

 

[MSU_Beas_GIS]

That brings me to the one attractive thing about our program and that is the perception that a coach will be allowed some slack from an "understanding" fan base. For the longest, people would say that if we won more than we lost, we would be happy. Well, from reading this board, it looks like that is out the window already. I attribute that to fans that are looking at our neighbors (sec schools) and seeing them win but don't look at any of the reasons why they win. The reasons that they win is that they have things we simply don't have or don't have near enough of.

I agree but also the fans' expectations were raised by Mullen himself. He is the one that started talking about championships and that we were going to be great. Add to that the recruiting sites that pump sunshine all day long about pre-season practice and who's standing out, ya da ya da ya da...Personally, I love Mullen's cockiness. End the end he started talking the talk and the fans bought in and we were disappointed with the effort more than the outcome.

 

[Coach34]

1. I've been pretty much convinced by someone that Mullen is just trying to adjust as much as he can with Russell at QB these two years and wants to get back to being the Spread Option team he believes in. Dont look for any major concept change (air raid).

2. Mullen has elevated the program in his 4 seasons. We have gone from being ****** to a solid team and program. Raising the bar a 2nd time gets much tougher

3. We had a good recruiting class last year, and we are following it up with an even better one this time. THAT is how you get to the 10 win level.

4. Our DL should be improved next season- and that means our defense should be improved.

5. Next year we will be playing to have the first Sr class in the history of the school to play in bowl games all 4 seasons. Big year for us with the schedule ahead.

 

[#helpstate]

It's not so much that we lost, but that we weren't even competitive. We got dismantled in every loss. I'm for Mullen, but I also know we are a 5 win team this year if AU, ARK, and UT were strong. Recruiting to me is the mountain to climb.

 

[AlSwearengen]

Those are my thoughts on the QB and offense situation. We can't line up and run anything resembling an nfl offense and win in the sec. Considering that we ran an offense that isn't Mullen's first choice, we handled it fairly well. We just don't have the athletes and the read option with a running threat at QB should level the playing field for us to some extent.

 

[johnson86-1]

But I just don't see the 'doom and gloom' for next two years. We signed a good class last year; redshirted several and some got to play; QB situation is better than ever with a Senior leader & experienced backup; OL with zero losses; and experienced RBs.

Coaches are bringing in several JC DBs and defensive players for visits. I am causiously optimistic ... especially about next year but Mullen has a chance to impress in the upcoming bowl against a tough disciplined opponent.

On offense, we shouldn't be any worse, but it's not clear we're going to have much improvement. With a few exceptions (Nick Griffin, Day, Malone), it seems like most of our players are what they are going to be. They'll improve, but most of our returning starters are old enough and have enough experience that it's unlikely there are going to be huge improvements. And our new starters are replacing relatively mediocre players, which means we likely won't have much drop off, but at the same time, if they really had the potential to be good, they would have likely gotten more playing time this year.

On defense, we lose a couple of NFL caliber players and will be relying on a lot of new faces next year. We should get more athletic in the front 7, so that will help, but the DL would need to be much better if our DC is as bad as he looked thsi year.

Overall, unless our JUCO commits provide some serious playmaking ability, we should be basically the same next year against a much tougher schedule. That makes 5-7 a pretty decent possibility.

 

[maroonmania]

The ONLY offensive player we will miss next year is Bumphis.

On offense, we shouldn't be any worse, but it's not clear we're going to have much improvement. With a few exceptions (Nick Griffin, Day, Malone), it seems like most of our players are what they are going to be. They'll improve, but most of our returning starters are old enough and have enough experience that it's unlikely there are going to be huge improvements. And our new starters are replacing relatively mediocre players, which means we likely won't have much drop off, but at the same time, if they really had the potential to be good, they would have likely gotten more playing time this year.On defense, we lose a couple of NFL caliber players and will be relying on a lot of new faces next year. We should get more athletic in the front 7, so that will help, but the DL would need to be much better if our DC is as bad as he looked thsi year. Overall, unless our JUCO commits provide some serious playmaking ability, we should be basically the same next year against a much tougher schedule. That makes 5-7 a pretty decent possibility.

He was the only real "playmaker" we had this year at WR. Everyone else was strictly a possession WR which should be replacable if you have guys that can run routes and catch the ball. And as I post this I will assume that Tobias Smith gets another year. He's a pretty big difference maker when he's in there but with his injury problems its hard to count on him.

 

[RocketDawg]

I didn't realize we had almost 24,000 students. And 48% women. When I was there women made up less than 10% of the student body.

 

[RocketDawg]

Do you mean MSU compared to UM? There's actually not that much difference in makeup of percent of black students compared to white/other, or percentage of women compared to men. And I'll betcha there's very little difference in "sophistication" either ... that's merely a myth. And if you looked at average family income at each school, it'd be very near the same.

 

[RocketDawg]

You are absolutely correct ... we have to recruit not only Texas and Florida, but nationally too. And it appears that Brewster may be making those inroads. According to the chart that someone posted a few weeks ago, Mississippi has a large number of kids playing football, but very few of them make it to the college ranks.

 

[RocketDawg]

On offense, we shouldn't be any worse, but it's not clear we're going to have much improvement. With a few exceptions (Nick Griffin, Day, Malone), it seems like most of our players are what they are going to be. They'll improve, but most of our returning starters are old enough and have enough experience that it's unlikely there are going to be huge improvements. And our new starters are replacing relatively mediocre players, which means we likely won't have much drop off, but at the same time, if they really had the potential to be good, they would have likely gotten more playing time this year.

On defense, we lose a couple of NFL caliber players and will be relying on a lot of new faces next year. We should get more athletic in the front 7, so that will help, but the DL would need to be much better if our DC is as bad as he looked thsi year.

Overall, unless our JUCO commits provide some serious playmaking ability, we should be basically the same next year against a much tougher schedule. That makes 5-7 a pretty decent possibility.

It's true that we lost those guys, but it may not be much worse, if any at all. The last 4 out of 5 games, we averaged allowing about 40 points to be scored against us. And that's not very good. I think our NFL players were playing not to get hurt and harm an NFL career. I can't blame them all that much, but they didn't play up to potential by a long shot.

And I think offense will be better. Tyler will be matured one more year, and Dak will too. If we have somebody to catch the ball we could be pretty good.

But the truth of your schedule comments makes next year a long row to hoe. But I think we beat OM in Starkville, and this year Alabama showed a lot of vulnerability toward the end of the season. And we played LSU very well ... were in the game until the interception with a couple minutes to go ... basically a 14 point swing in that one play. So you never can tell ....

 

[RocketDawg]

Mullen may have had us expecting too much with his talk, but I like his optimism nevertheless. He should definitely talk like that. I like him talking about winning championships, and I think we will before long. He's only been here 4 years. I like the "this is our state" mantra a bit less though ... and can't stand the hashtags and special uniforms and all the hype before big games ... only to lose them and look foolish. We're taking a big risk there.

One thing that inflated our, the fans', expectations is that we had a very easy front-loaded schedule with cupcakes, and were fortunate that Auburn and Tennessee sucked this year. So we were 7-0 and thought we were dragon slayers. The fall from the pedestal was painful.

 

[RocketDawg]

And the Bears were a 9-3 team if things had gone just a little bit differently in the A&M, Vandy, and LSU games.

 

[Apoplectic_Objurgator]

The problem was the D sucked - has nothing to do with russell

1. I've been pretty much convinced by someone that Mullen is just trying to adjust as much as he can with Russell at QB these two years and wants to get back to being the Spread Option team he believes in. Dont look for any major concept change (air raid).

2. Mullen has elevated the program in his 4 seasons. We have gone from being ****** to a solid team and program. Raising the bar a 2nd time gets much tougher

3. We had a good recruiting class last year, and we are following it up with an even better one this time. THAT is how you get to the 10 win level.

4. Our DL should be improved next season- and that means our defense should be improved.

5. Next year we will be playing to have the first Sr class in the history of the school to play in bowl games all 4 seasons. Big year for us with the schedule ahead.

Or the type of O we were running.

 

[Victory Red]

Below if taken from the 2011-2012 Fall enrollment factbook published by the IHL. USM is the most integrated school, followed by MSU and then UM.

Institution	White​	Black​	Other​	Men​	Women​	Resident​	Nonresident​	Total
Alcorn State University	125	3.6%	3,264	94.9%	50	1.5%	1,183	34.4%	2,256	65.6%	3,004	87.4%	435	12.6%	3,439
Delta State University	2,596	59.2%	1,539	35.1%	251	5.7%	1,521	34.7%	2,865	65.3%	3,128	71.3%	1,258	28.7%	4,386
Jackson State University	511	6.1%	7,675	91.5%	201	2.4%	3,026	36.1%	5,361	63.9%	7,088	84.5%	1,299	15.5%	8,387
Mississippi State University	13,744	69.3%	4,045	20.4%	2,041	10.3%	10,331	52.1%	9,499	47.9%	14,276	72.0%	5,554	28.0%	19,830
Mississippi University for Women	1,368	57.7%	912	38.4%	92	3.9%	422	17.8%	1,950	82.2%	2,140	90.2%	232	9.8%	2,372
Mississippi Valley State University	87	3.6%	2,196	90.8%	135	5.6%	893	36.9%	1,525	63.1%	2,100	86.8%	318	13.2%	2,418
University of Mississippi	12,657	76.3%	2,557	15.4%	1,372	8.3%	7,902	47.6%	8,684	52.4%	10,075	60.7%	6,511	39.3%	16,586
University of Southern Mississippi	8,851	59.6%	4,390	29.6%	1,599	10.8%	5,606	37.8%	9,234	62.2%	12,582	84.8%	2,258	15.2%	14,840
Total	39,939	55.3%	26,578	36.8%	5,741	7.9%	30,884	42.7%	41,374	57.3%	54,393	75.3%	17,865	24.7%	72,258

<tbody>
</tbody>

So, the Great Racists of North Mississippi are a mere 5% behind the Great Liberators of East Mississippi in black student population, all while nominating a black female for student body president and a black female for Homecoming Queen.

Interesting...

 

[o_hacker]

Or the type of O we were running.

You're wrong. The O wasn't exactly explosive the second half of the year.

 

[SkinkTyree]

MSU has the highest % of African-American students in the SEC.

Ole Miss has the second highest %. At least that was the breakdown a few years ago. Both were between 15% and 20%.

Compare that to a place like Texas, which is around 6%. The truth is that both the Mississippi schools have a very high % of AA students for major universities. And that makes me smile. It's yet another misconception about this state.