In or Out??

Former Ole Miss football player McKinley Boykin has been excused from New Orleans Saints training camp to attend to a personal matter, coach Sean Payton said after today’s morning practice.
Boykin, who was not selected during the two-day NFL draft in April, signed a free-agent contract with the Saints immediately after the draft.The 6-foot-2, 289 defensive tackle has missed Saturday afternoon’s workout, both practices Sunday and will not attend either practice today. Payton said Boykin is still on the team.“He had a personal issue, he came to meet with me, I excused him and I think he’ll be back tomorrow,” Payton said. “He’s still with us, yeah.”Boykin has, however, fallen behind in his attempt to make the team’s 53-man roster for the season. He’s worked out with the team in May and June mini-camps, but has not participated in training camp at Millsaps because of a right hamstring injury.Boykin rode a stationary bike during two Friday practices, but said his condition was improving.Boykin was a two-time All-SEC pick at Ole Miss, but his career was plagued with injuries. He is reunited in New Orleans with Saints defensive line coach Marion Hobby, who coached at Ole Miss for six seasons on former head coach David Cutcliffe’s staff.If Boykin makes the team, he will earn $275,000 this season and $360,000 in 2007, according to the NFL Players’ Association Web site.

Ridiculous

This appeared in the Birmingham News this morning. It is absolutely ridiculous this happened. For a school like us that has had little athletic success the past couple of years, we should be bending over backwards to be nice to fans. I am sure this was Langston's doings. Always shuffling people in and out of places like they are the freaking president, not having time to interact with the fans. The article goes on to discuss how the Florida players and coaches stayed to sign every fan that wanted a Florida autograph. Glad I decided not to go to Media Days.


Phil Kurzyna, a 19-year-old from North Carolina, said this year was his third trip to Hoover for SEC Media Days. Kurzyna and his father collect and sell autographs.
By the end of the three-day event, Kurzyna said he had collected signatures from every coach and player attending, with the exception of the Ole Miss players.

"The people that were with the Ole Miss guys wouldn't let them sign," Kurzyna said. "They just kept telling us they would sign later. Usually it's not the coaches and players you have to worry about. It's the people with them."

Maxim's All Time Worst College Coaches

8. Jackie Sherrill(180-120-4)There’s no better way to motivate a football player than to challenge his manhood. That said, former Mississippi State coach Sherrill may have taken things too far when, before the 1992 season opener against the Texas Longhorns, he had a calf castrated on the practice field. Sherrill put on the scrotum show because he asked his players “what a steer was, and none of them knew” (for the record, a steer is a calf post-Bulldogs pregame rally). Inspired—or at least terrified—his team routed Texas 28-10. Sherrill later said, “If this incident was in any way not perceived as proper by those who love Mississippi State, then I apologize,” but Texas fans have yet to uncross their legs.

Willis at the Top Again

Has any other Ole Miss football player ever received this type of attention from the coaches and media in recent future? I could be wrong, but I do not think Eli got this many votes.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - After being the only unanimous All-Southeastern Conference pick of the league coaches last week, Ole Miss senior linebacker Patrick Willis was the top vote getter for the 2006 SEC Media Days Preseason All-SEC Football team, as announced Friday by the conference office. Rebel offensive lineman Michael Oher was honored on the second team.

Houston: This Guy Is Nuts

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) -- Arkansas tailback Darren McFadden, a first-team All-SEC selection, underwent surgery on his toe Saturday morning following an overnight bar fight and is doubtful for the Razorbacks' season opener against Southern California.
McFadden got into a fight at 4:20 a.m. Saturday in the parking lot of Palace the Club, a Little Rock private club, according to a police report. The fight was still going on, and a crowd was watching, when officers arrived.

Media Daze

As I stated yesterday I felt like most of the media's attention in Friday's newspapers would be about Brent Schaeffer and him qualifying. While much of the reports throughout the south were about this several were not.

Let' start with the bad. Rick Cleveland's article today was just plain pathetic. I am normally a fan of Rick Cleveland and his articles. Heck I have even read his book of all his articles and it is very good, but man was I not happy with this article. His article today was just plain bad work for a guy that is well respected among sportswriters. Granted he catches a lot of flack from MSU and Ole Miss fans for the articles he writes and I have never agreed with either side. Todays article feels like some article covering the MPSA media event they have before the championship game. It was poor journalism at its best in my opinion. Maybe Rick Cleveland stayed out at Bell Bottoms in Five Points too late the night before, but here it is: http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060728/COL0504/607280356/1287

On the flip side Geoff Calkins article titled "Digging Deep" was one of the better stories I had read in quite sometime. The Memphis Commercial Appeal really hit home when they ran this article in Friday's paper. I guarantee you there were several teary eyes from grown men after they read this article about Patrick Willis and having to bury his brother last week. Calkins outstanding article hit the email waves fast. By 9:00 I had already received about 5 emails from people sending out this article to the Rebel family. This article was outstanding and a tough read for anyone with a heart, Bulldog, Vol, Tiger, it did not make a difference who you pulled for when you read this article. In the near future I just might have to read the Commercial Appeal before the Clarion Ledger. In case you missed it here is the excellent article: http://www.commercialappeal.com/mca/sports_columnists/article/0,1426,MCA_468_4875969,00.html

Late Thoughts from Today

It was a pretty busy day for Ole Miss football fans. Ole Miss was one of four featured schools at SEC media days. When the papers come out across the South tomorrow, the majority of them will focus on the status of Brent Schaeffer and him qualifying for school. While the topic has been going on amongst Ole Miss fans for several months, some more intersting news came out today along with the Schaeffer topic. So here it goes:

Coach O says that "if everything goes as planned, Brent Schaeffer should report with the team on August 3rd. Brent Schaeffer is going to be our starting quarterback. We're excited about Brent Schaeffer"(As others have stayed the everything that goes well, is that if Schaeffer made a C in the class he was taking.

The one big thing that I picked up today is that "We expect Rory Johnson, a junior college transfer who has not finished his course work, to be eligible and to be able to compete at that position." I do not know about yall, but I had pretty much written this guy off as not getting in. This go supposedly can play and will be huge for the Rebels if he can get in. He will especially come in handy if my prediction holds up that Patrick Willis will not be healthy for the first game."

Concerning the offense: " You will see a lot of times we'll be playing two tight ends in the ballgame at the same time." I really look forward to this, I love a tight end set. I honestly think that Robert Lane is going to be a playmake for us at this position and am looking forward to see what he can do. I have been saying since he got here that is where he belonged(believe me if you want to)

Hate to hear this concerning Powe "He has not been cleared through the clearinghouse yet." We really need him. From what I have read no Hargrave "graduates" have been cleared by the clearinghouse for any school as of yet.

That is all of the qoutes that really stuck out to me. It is really funny to read the transcript from the SEC repoter. There are several times where the reporter could not make out what Coach O was saying.

A note that came up today concerns Willie Williams. Williams was a standout all american out of high school that originally went to Miami. The deal is though that Williams has the Dontae Jones Marcus Bullard syndrome and has been tied up with the law for quite sometime. Talk today was on Williams coming to Ole Miss. I do not know what to think about this. I am 50/50 and can go either way if this guy decides to come to Ole Miss. I do not know how everyone else feels. There will be some that say we dont need that kind of stuff, but I can live with it. Let's just win.

Rumors Flying

Over the last couple of days a certain internet site has claimed that Brent Schaeffer is either on his way or on campus. Well today they reported that 4 people had seen him on campus. I have asked our Oxford correspondents to check into it, but I am not buying it until I hear it from a reliable source. It is getting down to the time of year when summer schools are wrapping up. So it is a strong possibility that he could be there. Now the question is did he make the grade we needed him to make in summer school to qualify. Story is still developing.

Just In Case

Just in case you did not know SEC Media Days start tomorrow here in Birmingham. Ole Miss will be in the spotlight on Thursday morning. Robert Lane and Patrick Willis are scheduled to be in attendance along with Coach Ed Orgeron and will be open to the media. Unfortunately Worldclassglass was denied a media pass to the event, so we will be getting reports from local media outlets.

Another Summer Baseball Update

OXFORD, Miss. - Summer ball is a time for players to go out and hone their skills. It's an off-season workout that keeps a player mentally and physically locked in on the game of baseball, while keeping the athlete focused and competitive as a part of a team.
Three Rebels are making the most of that opportunity as Brett Basham, Zach Miller and Cody Overbeck are a part of something special with the Thomasville HiToms in the Coastal Plains League (CPL).
Hot on the heels of a Super Regional appearance and a Southeastern Conference Tournament title, the trio finds itself playing for another team in the thick of a title hunt as the HiToms sit atop the Western Division standings of the CPL by one game.
All three Rebels look to that run in the SEC Tournament and coming within a game of the College World Series as experience to keep them focused on bringing a title to Thomasville.

Post of the Month

Every now and then I will pick out a post that really made me laugh and post it on the main page. This post of the month award goes to Sparky in his reference to Trusty coming over to post a little bit. His post is so very true:

"It's good to have another level headed Greenwood native on here to cancel out the village idiot, Sterling."

Cody Overbeck Coastal Plains Hitter of the Week

Overbeck had a big week, starting all four games for the HiToms. The freshman from Mississippi featured a .467 average with seven hits, including a double and three home runs to go with five runs scored and eight RBIs. Overbeck also sported a league-high 17 total bases and a league-best 1.133 slugging percentage, as well as having a .500 on-base percentage on the week.

No More Number 38

I have expressed my opinion on this before and I will say it again. I think this is ridiculous that Ole Miss is doing this. The tradition of having a defensive back wear number 38 was a tradition like no other in college sports and now we are throwing it all away. If Patrick does not want to wear number 38 then give it to someone else that does. I know thousands of people that wish they had the talent Patrick did and would love nothing more than to wear number 38. It was the highest honor an athlete at Ole Miss could receive and now we are doing away with it. I like the idea of the bust of Chucky by the endzone, but that is the only think I like about this. Pure selfishness if you ask me. No reason Ole Miss should be bending over backwards to do this.

OXFORD, Miss. - In Ole Miss' storied 111-year football history ­ which has produced a share of three national championships, six Southeastern Conference titles, 31 bowl teams, 42 first-team All-Americans and sent over 200 players into the professional ranks ­ there has been only one player number ever retired.
That's about to change as the University of Mississippi is preparing to grant the ultimate honor to another former football player.
To expand and insure the continuing legacy of the late Chucky Mullins, Ole Miss Athletics Director Pete Boone announced Monday that the University will retire Mullins' No. 38 football jersey during pregame ceremonies Sunday afternoon, Sept. 3, when the Rebels open the 2006 season here against the University of Memphis in a game to be nationally televised by ESPN.
"The Ole Miss M-Club Alumni passed a resolution recommending the permanent retirement of Chucky's No. 38," Boone said. "We are honored and pleased to do this.

Dickie V Talking About the Rebs

I found this on Dick Vitale's web site about our new signee that will be eligible for to play for the Rebels next season. It has been quite a while since DickVitale has mentioned the Rebels.

Out at Oxford, Mississippi, they are jumping for joy with the verbal commitment of 6-5 point guard Eniel Polynice from Sarasota, Florida. He has a world of potential and he flew under the radar. He came on strong his senior year and Andy Kennedy got himself a good one. A number of schools made a late push for him, including USC and coach Tim Floyd. Kennedy has to be thrilled with this addition. He can score, handle the basketball and he led Booker HS to a Florida state championship. Polynice was not a highly-regarded diaper dandy at first in terms of big-name reputation, but he can flat-out play. Kennedy also did a good job retaining assistant coach Michael White. A former Rebel basketball player, White is also the son of Notre Dame athletic director Kevin White.

Updates from the CL

In the next 30-45 days, Ole Miss plans to begin construction on its new baseball coaches' offices and on its new outfield stands, athletic director Pete Boone said this week. But that's only the beginning.
"We're going to add a couple more tiers and then extend it around through center field," Boone said. "Then we'll add some (seats) in right field where the students are."
Boone estimated the cost at $300,000. After next season, the real work begins. That's when Ole Miss starts its major expansion of Oxford-University Stadium, which Boone said will cost $8 million.
Along with the baseball plans, Boone hopes to make architectural changes to the inside of Tad Smith Coliseum by the time the season starts. But unless the renovations can be completed by tipoff, they'll be put off until after next year

The Coaches Pick Their Team A Couple Of Rebs Make The List

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Ole Miss senior linebacker Patrick Willis was the only unanimous first team choice for the Southeastern Conference Coaches Preseason All-SEC Football Team, which was announced Thursday by the league office. Also, Rebel offensive tackle Michael Oher was selected to the third team.
Since coaches cannot vote for their own players, Willis was listed on 11 of the 12 ballots. The Bruceton, Tenn., native has received a wealth of honors this preseason, earning First Team All-America distinction from six different media outlets. Four of those publications tagged him as the nation's No. 1 inside linebacker

Fox Sports Ratings

Fox Sports recently rated the top 100 players on the Heisman Trophy watch list. Ole Miss landed a player on this list. Surprisingly it was not Patrick Willis. While I do not think anyone on our team is capable of winning the Heisman if any name is going to be mentioned I would figure it would be Willis. Instead it is the signee who is not even enrolled at the University yet, quarterback Brent Schaeffer. Scheffer's wright up that appeared on the Fox Sports website is pasted below.

67. QB Brent Schaeffer, Ole Miss – A real wildcard this year, Schaeffer was last seen flashing gobs of potential as a young member of the Tennessee Volunteers. After a short and successful stint in junior college, he’s back in the SEC and determined to be the Rebs’ offensive savior.

In Trouble

You know we have not sold any tickets when we have resorted to this. To put in perspective a majority of our SEC opponents have already sold out to most of their games this season and tickets are already being scalped on the internet. But little Ole Miss is trying to basically give away tickets for anyone that will take them. Financially we desperately need a good season. I have not seen Ole Miss put together a package to try and sell tickets to fans at a discount in my life time. If anything they are trying to scam people out of money with tickets. But here is the scoop on the package that will be offered:

Ole Miss is now offering a 4-game season ticket package for the following games: Wake Forest, Georgia, Vanderbilt, and Auburn.The total price for these 4 games is $130 on the east side or west side or south end zone. The price is $90 in the north end zone.Those who purchase will have seats in the same location for each of the 4 games. The tickets will be paper (not e-ticket), and no special requests (other than north, south, east, or west) may be made as far as location.

The Official Word

Prized Ole Miss transfer Brent Schaeffer may not be with the team when it opens practice in August.The former Tennessee quarterback has returned to Visalia, Calif., to finish course requirements at College of the Sequoias, Rebels coach Ed Orgeron said tonight. Schaeffer must graduate from the juco before he can enroll at Ole Miss.Rebels players report on Aug. 3. The College of the Sequoia's final summer term, during which Schaeffer is enrolled, ends the same day, according to the school's Web site.Ole Miss' first full-squad practice is Aug. 5.When asked if Schaeffer would be with the team when camp starts, Orgeron said, "He's going to be here when he finishes."Orgeron was in Jackson tonight to speak to fans and alumni at the annual Rebel Reunion at the Jackson Trade Mart.Schaeffer was declared the Rebels starting quarterback when he signed a national letter of intent in February. Schaeffer played his freshman season at Tennessee, but was suspended the following summer and transferred to COS shortly after.

Sad News

Detris Willis, the brother of Ole Miss football linebacker Patrick Willis, drowned today. Detris was a rising senior at Bruceton High School and a native of Bruceton, Tenn. The Ole Miss Rebels showed interest in the senior as a possible player during his collegiate career. Detris was a vital force for Central's football team as a starter on both offense and defense, scoring over 100 tackles and three sacks his junior year.(DM)

Former Greenwood Resident, Prep Lineman Released From Texans

News from the weekend was that Todd Wade was released from the Texans. The Texans are looking to free up some money and Todd's knee injury continues to bother him. He is still not 100% and will be that way for the next several months. Someone will eventually pick Todd back up. While he does not have the quickest feet, he does have the skills and size to play in the NFL, I do not have one doubt that he will not be picked up by someone.

The 6-8, 314-pound tackle was lured away from the Miami Dolphins with a $10 million signing bonus in 2004. He started 22 games for the Texans before spraining his medial collateral ligament against Indianapolis on Nov. 13. His rehabilitation continued this offseason, and Wade was unable to participate in the Texans' workoutsWade, a starter since he entered the league in 2000 out of Mississippi, likely will be picked up quickly by another team. He was not able to be reached for comment.
Texans guard Steve McKinney said Wade will be missed when camp begins July 27.
"It's tough, because Todd was a good friend," McKinney said. "The unfortunate problem was his injury came at a time when there was a coaching change and the offensive line was having fingers pointed at it. Changes were inevitable, and sometimes you get lost in the shuffle when you're in an injury situation.".

In Case You Did Not Know

In case you did not know former Rebel Bobby Kielty is in the pros playing for the Oakland A's. While I know most of you turn the channel when the A's are playing because they are not as interesting as when the Bash Brothers were there, but now you have a reason to watch them Kielty plays outfield for the A's and came up big in the game posted below.

Ole Miss alum Bobby Kielty singled in the go-ahead run in the 11th, then stole second and scored an important insurance run to give the A’s their league-leading 18th one-run victory in a 5-4 win over the Red Sox. Kielty also had an RBI grounder in the seventh that Loretta missed to allow a second run — one earned, one unearned — to score and make it 3-3.(Eagle)

NY Times

On a slow news day, I will post the link from the NY Times article concerning academic integrity at Auburn. I had posted earlier they were looking into particular players and their high school credits, but it appears they have turned to on campus academics. Why they picked Auburn I do not know. This type of stuff happens on every college campus in America. It is an interesting article nonetheless:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/13/sports/13cnd-auburn.html?hp&ex=1152849600&en=c25d9c5a7d313bfc&ei=5094&partner=homepage

J.D. Hanging Up Cleats...Not Sure Why

OXFORD, Miss. ­ Ole Miss freshman wide receiver J. D. Lawhorn of Memphis, Tenn., announced Wednesday that he is leaving the Rebel football program. "I have decided to leave the team for personal reasons and to explore other options," Lawhorn said.Lawhorn, a first-team All-State selection while playing at Memphis University School, did not see any action during his true freshman season at Ole Miss in 2005 and was redshirted. "We appreciate J.D.'s contributions during his redshirt year and certainly wish him well in whatever he decides to do," Ole Miss head coach Ed Orgeron said.

Not Good For Ole Miss

The charter of the Ole Miss Chapter of Kappa Sigma Fraternity has been revoked. According to Kappa Sigma Fraternity's National Executive Director, Mitchell Wilson, the Supreme Executive Committee revoked the charter after a code of conduct violation. The Kappa Sigma Fraternity has 30 days to request a hearing on this matter. If the fraternity fails to request a hearing the decision is final. University of Mississippi Dean of Students, Sparky Reardon, said, "[the University] was informed there had been a revocation of the charter by national headquarters in Charlottesville, Virginia and we are working with headquarters and local alumni to see what needs to be done." Reardon also said that due to an agreement with the national headquarters and local alumni the University will not be responsible for releasing information.(The Daily Mississippian)

Many of You Already Know This

I know many of you already know this, but this came from the Commercial Appeal web site. Thanks to a certain reader and his Waynesboro counterparts Powe is in Oxford:

The defensive prize of Ole Miss's 2006 signing class, lineman Jerrell Powe of Waynesboro, Miss. has finally arrived in Oxford. He was seen Monday afternoon in the Indoor Practice Facility. Powe, a Parade All-American who originally signed with Ole Miss in 2005 before attending Hargrave Military Academy, was rated the No. 3 prep school player in the country last year Rivals.com. The 6-2, 330-pounder is expected to immediately challenge for a starting position when preseason practice begins in August.Supposedly, the only two members of Ole Miss's incoming class yet to arrive on campus are freshman receiver Terry Levy of Kosciusko, Miss. and junior college transfer quarterback Brent Schaeffer.

Ramblings

First off the staff at worldclassglass would like to wish longtime reader Sparky Luster a happy birthday.

I just returned from Jackson from a wedding attended by about half the population of the entire city of Jackson, but alot of the talk was on Ole Miss football. Most of the Jackson elderly men expressed the same concern of most Rebel fans which concernced Shaeffer and his academic status. No one has flat out said he will not be here. I would say most people give him about an 80% chance of him being at the first game. As we inch closer and closer to the season football fans are beginning to get anxious and ready to see teams strap it on. Personally I am tired of the Shaeffer talk and would like to move on to another subject about the football team sooner rather than later.

I read on another message board that Ole Miss will be playing LA Tech in 2007 but then return to Wake Forrest in 2008. I dont like this move and dont know why we would do this. Replacing Tech for Wake for one year is not an even trade and I am pretty dissapointed we did this. I hope there is something I do not know about in the reasoning behind this scheduling.

Ole Miss sports news is getting a little slow right now. I will see what I can come up with soon to spark some conversation. Let me know if any of you have any ideas.

Two Questions

I would like to pose two questions to the few readers on here?

1) Will Brent Shaeffer be a member of the Ole Miss football team next year?

2) Will Patrick Willis play in the first game against Memphis?



My answers:
1) Yes Shaeffer will be here and will play and be a pretty good player for the Rebs that will get better as the season goes along.

2) I predict Patrick Willis will not play in the first game of the season and it could even be mid season until he is healthy.

Rumors

The word I am hearing in the state of Alabama on radio stations is that Auburn University is being investigated. Not by the NCAA but by the New York Times. Evidently a Times reporter is investigating several Tigers who were questionably admitted to the school and investigating their performance in the classroom in college. Not sure if this is just rumors or not, but will be an intersting story if it ever comes out.

Big News Over The Weekend

Since the last time I was on the internet, coach Andy Kennedy inked two players to join the Rebel basketball team. The fact that he has found two players in the middle of the summer 6 weeks before school starts is huge for this team. And it shows how much of a dedicated worker Kennedy is. There are plenty of coaches out there who are hired after the recruiting season and just sit on their hands until next season. They then blame the poor season on the fact they have not had a chance to recruit.

Kennedy is not going to make any excuses. He is trying to build his own team his way and is going to work his tail off until he gets it. Interested to see how the kid from Sarasota turns out. The story on the two are below.

Kennedy Signs Up Two

OXFORD, Miss. - Andy Kennedy's Ole Miss basketball team reinforced the future of its backcourt with championship experience Wednesday, announcing that David Huertas of the national-champion Florida Gators is transferring to join the Rebels.
Due to NCAA transfer rules, the 6-foot-5, 178-pound guard can start practicing with the team in the fall but is ineligible for the 2006-07 season. Huertas may begin playing in the 2007-08 campaign with three years of eligibility remaining.
"David is a quality young man and a big guard with the ability to score in a variety of ways," said Kennedy, who is preparing for his first season as Ole Miss head coach. "He is obviously familiar with the SEC and comes from a winning program.
"With the players we have graduating after this upcoming season, it's an ideal situation for us to have a player of David's caliber sit out a year and come back with three years left."
A rising sophomore from Humacao, Puerto Rico, Huertas is currently working out at the Puerto Rican national team trials and is the youngest member of the preliminary roster.
He played in 35 games as a freshman for the Gators in 2005-06, including all 16 SEC contests, the NCAA Elite Eight win over Villanova and the Final Four victory against George Mason. Huertas connected on 33.3 percent (12-of-36) from three-point range last year and scored a career-high 15 points against Savannah State.

OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss continues to bolster its 2006-07 basketball lineup, inking Eniel Polynice of Sarasota, Fla., to a national letter of intent on Monday as announced by Rebel head coach Andy Kennedy. The 6-foot-5, 180-pound guard from Booker High School will be eligible for the 2006-07 season as a freshman.
"Eniel is a very talented, multi-dimensional lead guard with the skills to help us at both backcourt positions," said Kennedy. "He comes from a very successful high school program and led his team to a state championship. Eniel was heavily recruited by a number of other schools, and we feel fortunate he chose to be a part of our program."
The Sarasota Herald Tribune Co-Player of the Year, Polynice helped guide Coach Derrick Kirce's Booker Tornadoes to a 30-3 season and the 2006 4A state title, earning tournament MVP honors. As a senior, the all-state point guard averaged 17.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 5 steals and 4 blocked shots. He was also MVP of the Sarasota County All-Star game.