So instead of trying to do everything we can to win...

[TR.sixpack]

including burning redshirts to get more talent on the field, Croom and Co. should just roll over and wait to be fired?

I'd think the sixpack would be happy that Croom is finally feeling heat to make something happen on offense. Did you really think if the heat got turned up high enough Croom would just give up? The guy is desperate and is trying to save his job. What do expect?

 

[TR.sixpack]

including burning redshirts to get more talent on the field, Croom and Co. should just roll over and wait to be fired?

I'd think the sixpack would be happy that Croom is finally feeling heat to make something happen on offense. Did you really think if the heat got turned up high enough Croom would just give up? The guy is desperate and is trying to save his job. What do expect?

 

[TR.sixpack]

including burning redshirts to get more talent on the field, Croom and Co. should just roll over and wait to be fired?

I'd think the sixpack would be happy that Croom is finally feeling heat to make something happen on offense. Did you really think if the heat got turned up high enough Croom would just give up? The guy is desperate and is trying to save his job. What do expect?

 

[Shmuley]

At this point, it doesn't matter what Croom does or does not do. Whatever he does, or doesn't do, will be fashioned into an argument supporting his departure. Period.

Let's be honest about it.

I just want him gone. Period.

 

[TR.sixpack]

But guess what. When you turn up the heat on coach to improve the offense, you can't whine when he starts pulling redshirts to get all hands on deck (to mix metaphors). And you can't whine about the guy fighting for his job.

 

[Shmuley]

you don't see me whining about it. Actually, I see these desperation, hail marys, that Croom is chunking as evidence that the pressure is working in the right direction.

I implore Croom to keep talking to the media about secret players and execution and feedback from opponent coaches. The more he runs his mouth, the better.

 

[patdog]

in a quick-fix effort to save his damn job. And burning a redshirt in the 8th game of the season isn't good in any way. If he's good enough to make a difference, why was Crxxm redshirting him in the first place? And if he's not, thanks for costing us his services in 2012 when he might be able to make a difference.

 

[Coach34]

I just hate it for Clark. Its ridiculous that Crooms is so stupid, its taken him this long to realize this young man is good enough to play and can help us win games.

I'm encouraged most that it appears the info I was given is correct and he has been made aware that if he doesnt win at least 4 games, he will no longer be employed at Mississippi State. When you are going all out to beat Middle Tennessee State, you know your damn job is on the line

 

[PBRME]

I firmly believe that regardless of what Croom does to quick fix the offensive woes...the offense will still be just as bad. After 4.5 years a light bulb doesn't suddenly go off and everything is right with the world. Burning a redshirt now is nothing more than a desperate attempt to save his own ***. See Omar Conner.</p>

 

[muddawgs33]

is that no matter what Croom and Co. do, it won't work... I mean you have a playmaker in Robinson that they never use, so what makes you think that Clark will be any different? I mean hell we didn't start using Elliot until late in the game at GT. That's 4 games into the season!!! 1 player is not going to help salvage our season, so there isn't any reason to waste Clark by playing him in the next 5 games, which means Croom will play him 3 or 4 plays against MTSU, and then never play him the rest of the season...</p>

 

[mstateglfr]

But guess what. When you turn up the heat on coach to improve the offense, you can't whine when he starts pulling redshirts to get all hands on deck (to mix metaphors). And you can't whine about the guy fighting for his job.

1. its sad that he is having to pull out all the stops for MTSU.

2. the offense has been total **** since he arrived. what sort of decision making skills does Croom have to redshirt someone who can contribute? why would Croom hold back a player that could improve the offense for 7 games??

...obviously, the above isnt taking into account the chance that Clark was crap in the start so they redshirted him, only for him to improve thru the season in practice.
and if that is the case, then cool...toss him out there to play.

 

[DerHntr]

I can whine that he wasn't good enough of a coach to see that what he was putting on the field back in the spring would not cut it.

The biggest thing about all of this is that I think it amounts to nothing in the grand scheme of Croom's season. We started off the season in the WCO and were absolutely never going to move to the spread. Then we were using a lot of the formations of the spread. Then we were an I-formation football team that had lost its identity and were now going to run the I-formation and if we can't win with the I, by busting people in the mouth, then we just simply would not win games. NOW...... we are supposedly bringing in some sort of secret weapon who has been on the damn team all along.

So for me, this is just another example of this coach not knowing what in the hell he is doing on Offense when it is supposed to be his specialty. Burning red shirts is fine by me but my complaint is why in the hell didn't we burn them from day one with at a minumum a mediocre scheme to win football games? I don't care if we burn it. I am not bitching about that. I simply want to know what in the hell he saw in our offense at the beginning of the year that told him we didn't need to use all the weapons that we have available. His assessment of our level of talent and of how our practices could translate to the game might be the most ridiculous of all of his missing coaching abilities.

 

[Coach34]

that one is the best yet on here and needs national recognition....

Congrats aGAIN for awesome work

 

[TR.sixpack]

But what most sixpackers want Croom to do is just give up and wait to be fired. That ain't happening.

 

[OMlawdog]

Really? He is going to make that big of a difference?

So a playmaker with this much potential has been sitting on the bench all season?

It's a selfish act by a coach that isn't thinking about the program's future. You don't burn a redshirt 8 games into a season unless you are forced to because of injuries. Who is Clark replacing in the lineup? Delmon Robinson the team's 5th WR, the guy who hasn't played in a handful of games this season?

Im pretty sure that MSU can beat MTSU without Clark, and if they can't well then its on Croom.

If Clark does what I expect which will be play in about 10-15 plays and probably get the ball in his hands maybe 5 times, and MSU wins by 17 points, is it really worth it? Of course not.

 

[maroonmania]

we had in the spring game that had Croom convinced the offense was set and ready to go for the fall. NOT!

 

[TR.sixpack]

It's not about the MTSU game, it's about getting more talent for the REST OF THE SEASON.

It's a selfish act by a coach that isn't thinking about the program's future.

I think winning games is pretty important to the program's future. More important than being nice and leaving the next coach an extra year of eligibility for a particular player.

 

[BlindDawg]

Its not that he is supposedly trying to do everything he can to win. Its that for the first seven games of the season, he obviously wasn't trying to do everything to win (see sitting on the ball with a minute and a half remaining in the 1st half with 3 timeouts at LSU or not utilizing Elliot and Robinson at all for parts of the season). Yes, I'm pissed about him pulling a redshirt 8 games into the season. That is stupid. If Clark could help this abortion we call an offense, he should have never been redshirted. Why would you pull the RS now and only give Clark basically 3 and a half years to play football? Clark is getting a raw deal, and Croom is sacrificing MSU's long term gain for his own potential short term gain. That is what pisses me off most about this. Its clearly a move of despiration, and its one that could potentially bite us in the *** in the future. Face it, the new coach is going to need as many playmakers as he can get when he gets in here, and for him to have one less year with a potential playmaker is a detriment not only to him but ultimately MSU. In my mind, Ron Polk got a lot of leeway when he put himself above the program just because of the things he accomplished here (not saying I agree with what he did), but Croom has accomplished little to nothing since he's been here ("little" being generous) and he gets no leeway from me for putting himself above the program.

 

[BlindDawg]

Damn right winning games is important to the program's future. Croom has won 19 <17> games!! I appreciate Croom showing a little urgency, but to do it when our season is already in the ******* just to save his *** does not sit well with me. If he was so damn worried about putting a winning product on the field, Clark should not have been RS in the first place, Delmon Robinson and Robert Elliot would have been better utilized, he would not have sat on a 10 point deficit with 1:30 and 3 timeouts AT LSU, he would have learned to manage a football game by year 5, he would have shown Woody's *** the door after 4 consecutive seasons of abysmal offense, etc., etc., etc. You and I both know that list can go a lot longer, so forgive me if I'm not jumping up and down for Croom doing one thing to potentially put us in a position to win this year. Its just the last 4 and a half years of him putting us in a position to lose kinda gets in the way of that. And, if you're honest with yourself, you and I both know that Clark playing 4 games this year really isn't going to alter the outcome of the season, its already a lost cause. So burning that RS is ultimately pointless and robs us down the road.

 

[DerHntr]

man i am ready for some damn basketball. glad to see ol' randy back in the sig.

 

[OMlawdog]

Delmon Robinson? He hasn't even played in several games this year. So you are burning a redshirt year so your 5th WR can be replaced.

That is like playing a 4th string RB even though the first three RB's are better, but you want to get him 3-5 carries even though the healthy players you have are better than him right now.

I think winning games is pretty important to the program's future. More important than being nice and leaving the next coach an extra year of eligibility for a particular player.

So MSU can't win the MTSU game without Clark and he is that big of a difference maker that he will an impact on the rest of the games this season? Really?

He is acting like a coach that knows he isn't going to be around, that is dangerous for a program because he isn't making decisions that is in the best interests of the program he is making decisions that are in the best interests of him. Only Coach O was stupid enough to burn redshirts for a couple of plays when there is nothing on the line, and playing Clark against MTSU is the definition of "nothing on the line".

You win the game regardless of Clark, and if you really think he makes a difference in any game the rest of the season, then we simply have a difference of opinion of what constitutes a difference maker. If this kid is Jerious Norwood then fine play him, of course he should have been playing the whole season, if he is a lesser version of Delmon Robinson, which would make sense since he was behind Delmon on the depth chart, then what is the difference between him and simply giving more reps to Co-Eric Riley or another WR.

If you are running some type of Wild Dog formation, I would think you want Ducre and Dixon running it or maybe even Pegues if he wasn't banged up.

I just find it funny that Croom is burning a redshirt to replace Delmon Robinson, the same Delmon Robinson who has 8 catches this season. You don't burn a redshirt for someone that is 5th string, you burn a redshirt to replace a starter, otherwise you simply have your 4th WR be your 4th and 5th WR.

Personally I hope Croom plays all his true freshman, burn every redshirt they have, I don't think it would make any difference and it would weaken the MSU program, so go ahead.

 

[BlindDawg]

Yeah, I was waiting on basketball season to come to break it back out, but since football is essentially over anyway, I figured it was about that time.

 

[TR.sixpack]

Again I say Croom has been backed into a corner, knows his job is on the line and is fighting back. For the record, I doubt Clark will make a difference, and I doubt we will win more than 2 more games.

 

[Shmuley]

to the overall health of the program, then perhaps Byrne should intervene?

I'm fairly confident that Byrne (nor any other AD) would intervene, which tells me that it's NOT really that big of a deal.

Again, I say let Croom keep making an idiot out of himself with his goofy decision-making. The goofier, the better.

 

[BlindDawg]

For the record, I doubt Clark will make a difference, and I doubt we will win more than 2 more games.

So, even with saying that, you're OK with Croom wasting a year of Clark's eligibility for nothing? That's what bothers me really. The fact that it is nothing other than a desperate grasp at trying to keep his job for a little longer. Its not Croom trying to help MSU, its Croom trying to save his ***.

 

[tat2ed]

He is doing Clark a disservice by burning his redshirt.

Edited to add: If Croom is trying to improve the offense and save his ***, he should have done this after the Auburn game.

 

[TR.sixpack]

So, even with saying that, you're OK with Croom wasting a year of Clark's eligibility for nothing?

I'm okay with Croom doing everything within his power to win ball games. He THINKS Clark can help him.

 

[MrHooch]

But guess what. When you turn up the heat on coach to improve the offense, you can't whine when he starts pulling redshirts to get all hands on deck (to mix metaphors). And you can't whine about the guy fighting for his job.

You can complain about it all day long when his pathetic attempts to jump-start an anemic offense not only don't work, but end up costing us years of eligibility in the long run. You most certainly can. And we will.

 

[TBonewannabe]

I just don't see wasting a redshirt on someone because a guy with 6 or 7 catches breaks his finger. If McRae went down I could see us possibly needing another receiver but we are a smash mouth I formation team. We don't need receivers.</p>

 

[Stormrider81]

He would have:

- fired Woody after last season
- hired a decent QB coach and OC
- signed a QB worth a crap at any time in his tenure
- made changes in scheme necessary to win
- used playmakers' abilities rather than ignoring them

Burning the RS here is a case of saving his own job, which I understand, but it is not the same as doing everything he can to win games. I will buy that Croom wants to win, but this is the first time that he has shown desperation and it reeks of self preservation rather than what is best for the program/players.

 

[OMlawdog]

So if Croom wanted to play every freshmen on the team, because he thought it "might" help the team win, you would be ok with it?

Regardless of the fact that the freshman wouldn't make much of a difference in a single game? That doesn't make sense. Its doing something for the sake of doing something, not actually giving the team a better chance to win the game.

Especially if Clark is on the field for 10-15 plays and touches the ball 3-5 times. What happens when Clark doesn't make any impact? Time to take the redshirt off another player, and maybe he will provide a "spark"?

I wouldn't be ok with a coach trying to play freshmen to "try and win a ball game" and playing them when they aren't ready just so he can say later that this year's team is young, look at all the freshman that played. Coach O did this, so maybe that is what Croom is trying to do, follow Coach O's lead. Great strategy.</p>

 

[TR.sixpack]

I was merely pointing out what happens when a bad coach is backed into a corner. State fans have been putting pressure on Croom to improve the offense. Well he's not suddenly going to morph into Bill Walsh, so the only thing left is to for him to hope new players are the answer.

2-3 more wins save your job, and hopefully salvages a good recruiting class.

 

[MSUCE99]

I'm okay with Croom doing everything within his power to win ball games. He THINKS Clark can help him.

He also THINKS that the only thing wrong with our offense is "execution". He THINKS it's wise to go for it on 4th and 1 from the 40, then punt on 4th and 1 from the 30. He THINKS it's wise to sit on the ball with a minute and a half left in the half. He THINKS 4 years of offense ranked 100+ and a spring game that has to go into overtime to put points on the board is just fine.

I can't realistically put ANY stock anymore into what this coach THINKS. Sorry, that's just me.

 

[Stormrider81]

he wasn't willing to do this sort of thing until it got to this point. A spark on offense could have helped us against Auburn and UT. Instead he waits until the season is all but down the drain in year 5 to make this kind of move. I hope this works out, I really do, but this does not appear to me a move with MSU or Clark's best interests in mind, nor does it appear to be a move simply to generate wins for the sake of pulling out a winning season. No, this has all appearances of being a move simply designed to preserve his job. He simply wants to limp to the finish in such a fashion that he will have this job next season. That's the problem. Rather than pulling out all stops to have a winning season, he is pulling out all stops to get enough wins to keep his job.

 

[Ole Miss Grad]

I'm still trying to figure out how a player that hasn't broken into the lineup in 7 games and had no other offers (please don't try to tell me Clemson and Ole Miss wanted to sign him February of 2008) is going to change anything.

It's simple, if a freshman is Top 2 on the depth chart at most positions....play him. At WR, the Top 3-4.

If not, let him sit.

If this is truly the player he's talking about, I don't see what difference it's going to make.

For the sake of MSU, hopefully I'll be proven wrong. If I am, then Croom is a certified dipshit for not playing him all year.

 

[KennyB]

from both Ole Miss and Clemson, I take it you have inside information that says otherwise?

 

[dawgstudent]

[No message]

 

[Todd4State]

at some point you have to let the coach do their job, and an AD doing that is kind of stepping out of bounds- unless your AD is Vince Dooley.

 

[BrandonAcctgDawg]

Please fire croom, and hire tuberville.</p>

 

[Ole Miss Grad]

Take your pick:

1) I know his family.

2) Read the articles, Yancy only interviewed him once--I think. The prior staff kept Yancy much more in the know than the current one.
Gene's Page interviewed him like they did Chris Garrett and anyone else they know you're going to get. (well, scratch the Garrett comment)

3) Even he claims in the later articles he's only hearing from MSU.

One has to figure if anyone else wanted him, he would have had contact by other schools up until signing day.

But, yes I'm a Rebel and I expect to be challenged on everything I post even though you didn't address the main point in my post.