WorldClassGlass

2009-05-25T19:29:00.003-07:00

2009-05-25T19:29:00.001-07:00

2009-05-25T19:28:00.005-07:00

2009-05-25T19:28:00.003-07:00

2009-05-25T19:28:00.001-07:00

Dogs Take Bite Out of Rebs

2009-05-10T05:31:00.000-07:00

Report from the Atlanta airport-

Mississippi State showed up to play this weekend and obviously cared more than the Rebels. The Dogs won the series, knocking the Rebels out of contention for the SEC Championship and possibly killing their oppostunities to host a regional.

Terrible running mistakes, poor pitching, and non clutch hitting led to the Rebels defeat. You got to give it to the Bulldogs for showing up to play when they had nothing but pride to play for.

I'm leaving for a week and expect the Rebels to be a 5 seed in the SEC tourney when I return. A long way from my thoughts just last week.

Oh well.

NCAA Strikes Again

2009-04-28T20:00:00.000-07:00

How the Number 2 team in America is declined to host an NCAA Regional is beyond me. Not only is the Ole Miss men's tennis team Number 2 in America, they have been leading the nation in attendance. What these boneheads in Indianapolis do not realize is that is potentially lost revenue for them. Multiple SEC teams were allowed to host. Yet the NCAA regular season and tournament champions were denied. I don't buy be the talk about travel, because they can not back that claim up with where they sent schools like Boise State and Binghamton.

UMAA officials have hosted a regional for the past 8 years, luckily I have been able to attend quite a few of them and they are very well run. Arguably the best team we have had in those eight years is our current team. This is unreal and officials in Oxford are outraged. Notice the quote from Pete Boone below.

I can't wait to hear the total BS the NCAA puts out. I can imagine they will be receiving multiple phone calls and emails tomorrow.

(Clarion Ledger)
OXFORD — In a turn of events that left coach Billy Chadwick fuming, fans frustrated and players shellshocked, the Ole Miss men’s tennis team will not be one of the 16 host teams for the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament despite being the No. 2 overall seed in the country.

“It’s a very hard pill to swallow,” said Chadwick, whose Rebel team recently completed an undefeated regular season in the Southeastern Conference and has won its past 17 matches.“There’s no words that can express the boneheadedness of this decision,” said Ole Miss athletic director Pete Boone. “It’s truly beyond comprehension. ... We’re certainly going to be on the phone in the morning with the NCAA trying to find ou what the hell happened.”As expected, the Rebels treceived the No. 2 overall seed in the nation when the NCAA Tournament announced its 64-team bracket. But because of a new NCAA travel rule, the Rebels will travel to Baton Rouge for the four-team regional, which includes Ole Miss, LSU, Rice and Alcorn State.The announcement breaks the Rebels’ eight-year streak of hosting a regional.Chadwick said NCAA officials called about 20 minutes before the selection show to inform associate athletic director Lynnette Johnson that the Rebels would not host based on a rule that was put in place to help cut down on travel expenses.The explanation given was that since the regional will be held at LSU, all three other teams could presumably drive. If it were at Oxford, the Rice players would likely have to fly.But Chadwick said the small difference in travel shouldn’t negate what the Rebels have worked for all season — having home court advantage through the NCAA Tournament’s first two rounds. Ole Miss leads the nation in average announced attendance with 582 per match.“If you’re trying to grow the sport, it seems very odd that the place leading the nation in attendance that’s also the second best team in the nation doesn’t host,” Chadwick said.Ole Miss (27-2) will face Alcorn State (5-10) in the first round on May 9, with LSU playing Rice. The winners will meet on May 10, with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line.“I don’t have any idea (how this happened),” Chadwick said. “But the only thing we can do is swallow our medicine, get tough and go down to Baton Rouge.”

Rebs Dominate Dog$

2009-04-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

PEARL, Miss. -- Senior left-hander Brett Bukvich struck out a career-high 11 batters and did not walk one on the way to Most Valuable Player honors has he helped lead No. 16 Ole Miss (26-10) to an 8-1 win over Mississippi State (19-18) and helped the Rebels claim the Governor’s Cup.
A crowd of 7,458 - the fifth largest in Trustmark Park history - watched Bukvich (5-1) work 6.0 innings and allow only one run on five hits with no walks and 11 strikeouts as the Rebels claimed the annual non-conference contest between Southeastern Conference foes.
Ricky Bowen (2-2) suffered the loss for the Bulldogs as he allowed two runs on two hits with two walks and no strikeouts in 1.0 inning of work. Mississippi State would use five pitchers on the night.
“I thought Bukvich did a terrific job tonight,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “He really only got into trouble one or two times and did a tremendous job. He is a senior from this area who can understand and appreciate this game. It was nice to see him perform so well in a last hurrah so to speak.”
Ole Miss got on the board first when Jordan Henry scored in the first on a single up the middle from Matt Smith. Henry walked to open the game and moved to second on a walk of Logan Power before scoring on the Smith hit two batters later.
Mississippi State tied things in the top of the second as Scott DeLoach scored on a groundout to short from Jet Butler. DeLoach tripled off the wall to open the inning and scored on the Butler groundout in the next at bat.
The Bulldogs would get no closer as Ole Miss would hold Mississippi State off the board the rest of the way.
Zach Miller broke he 1-1 tie in the second when he scored from first on a double down the left field line from Michael Hubbard. Miller was hit by a pitch to reach base to open the inning.
Ole Miss would add two runs in the fourth inning on a two-RBI double from Kevin Mort that scored both Miller and Hubbard who had reached on singles prior to the Mort hit. The runs pushed the Rebels out to a 4-1 lead.
Three more runs crossed the plate for the Rebels in the fifth. Logan Power opened things with a double and scored on a single from Matt Snyder. Two outs later, Miller was again hit by a pitch to reach safely and back-to-back singles from Hubbard and Mort scored Snyder and Miller to give the Rebels a 7-1 lead.
Ole Miss added its final run of the game in the sixth when Henry scored on a bases loaded single from pinch-hitter David Phillips to give the Rebels the final margin of 8-1.
Ole Miss will return to action this weekend with a three-game series at No. 20 Florida this weekend. First pitch of Friday’s contest is set for 5:30 p.m. CDT.

AK to Settle

2009-04-14T18:40:00.000-07:00

From Parish Alford of the Daily Journal:

Breaking news here from a source with knowledge. Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy will plea to a disorderly conduct — a fourth-degree misdemeanor in the state of Ohio — and not the simple assault with which he was charged after an altercation with a cab driver on Dec. 18 in Cincinnati.
Kennedy will appear in court in Cincinnati to make the plea on Monday, which is his scheduled trial date. There will be no trial.
The plea does not immediately affect the civil suits filed by cab driver Mohamed Jiddou and Kennedy against one another. However, Jiddou’s suit charges Kennedy with assault. After the plea on Monday the state of Ohio will not recognize assault, which could impact Jiddou’s case.

Been Away

2009-04-14T18:35:00.000-07:00

I've been away for a while as my computer does not like Blogger right now. Alot of stuff has happened in the past few weeks. Including two basketball players leaving the team. David Huertas and Malcolm White, both starters, have left Ole Miss. White, who has about as much cordination with has hands as Sterling has left the team. Not a big loss in my opinion. White seemed to always be visably upset with the coaches and always seemed to be arguing with several of the assistants.

David was not that different. On several occasions David and AK were seen yelling at each other in the huddle. While I was at first happy to see David lead, because I hate ball hogs and selfish players, but the more I think about it, it is going to be a big loss for the Rebels. Huertas scored alot of points while playing for the Rebels, and even though several key players are returning from injuries, Huertas would have contributed valuable minutes and points. Why David is going to take a raft back to his native country to play pro basketball over there is beyond me.

What a Joke...

2009-03-17T20:42:00.000-07:00

I hope the media has a field day with this as the Rebels have scheduled two FCS schools for next years football season. There is no reason a school in the best football conference in America should be scheduling schools like Northern Arizona. Why not go ahead and play the Valley, it's the same thing.

I love these excuses that Pete Boone tries to point out in the press release. I don't give a damn who Duke and North Carolina are playing, nor do I care what teams have played the Lumberjacks in recent years. Who cares? Bottom line is there is no reason for Ole Miss to schedule them. This press release does nothing but show how weak the administration is with its excuse making.

We are.......Ole Miss

(UMAA)
, Miss. – Following a lengthy process to accommodate ESPN’s request to add this year’s Ole Miss game at South Carolina to its Thursday Night national television package, Athletics Director Pete Boone announced Tuesday the Rebels’ complete football schedules for the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
Highlighting the 2009 schedule will be home Southeastern Conference dates with Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee and LSU, while SEC road trips will be to South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Auburn and Mississippi State.
The non-conference schedule has Coach Houston Nutt’s Rebels visiting Memphis to open the season on Sept. 5, while home games with Southeastern Louisiana, UAB and Northern Arizona will provide non-conference opposition in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Ole Miss will be facing the Lions, Blazers and Lumberjacks in football for the first time in school history, with the Oct. 17 UAB game designated as Homecoming on the Oxford campus.
Moving the South Carolina date from a Saturday to Thursday night resulted in two additional schedule adjustments for Ole Miss in 2009. Ole Miss was to have played Vanderbilt on Sept. 19, but that game is now scheduled for Oct. 3. Another change that became necessary was to move a scheduled home game with Southeastern Louisiana from Sept. 12 to Sept. 19.
“Over the past several months, due to the ESPN request, we have been in and out of discussions with literally 15 to 20 schools in order to complete our 2009 schedule,” Boone said. “When you have to consider things like available dates and each team’s needs for home and away games, it does complicate the decision-making process.”
The final piece of the puzzle fell into place this week when Ole Miss added Northern Arizona for a game on Nov. 7. The Rebels will have an open date on Sept. 12.
While the 2009 schedule includes two Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) teams in Northern Arizona and Southeastern Louisiana, Boone noted that this year’s schedule was an anomaly. “We didn’t intend to schedule two I-AA teams nor do we anticipate scheduling two I-AA teams in the same year again,” he said.
In the past six seasons, Northern Arizona has played Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) teams Arizona (2004, 2005, 2007), Arizona State (2006, 2008) and Utah (2006). In addition to playing Ole Miss this season, the Lumberjacks will also face Arizona.
The Rebels are among a number of BCS schools playing two FCS opponents this season. They include Atlantic Coast Conference members Duke, North Carolina and North Carolina State; Big 12 Conference member Kansas State; and Big East member South Florida.
The 2010 schedule will have Kentucky replacing South Carolina inside the SEC for a game to be played in Oxford. Other home dates with SEC teams include Vanderbilt, Auburn and Mississippi State, with SEC road games set at Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee and LSU. Non-conference opponents at home in 2010 will be Fresno State, Jacksonville State and Louisiana-Lafayette, with Tulane on the road.
Boone also announced additional non-conference opponents for the future, which will include home-and-home dates with Texas, Tulane, Clemson and Georgia Tech as well as return dates with UAB and Fresno State, plus home games with Southern Illinois and Central Arkansas.

OLE MISS 2009 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
DATE
OPPONENT
LOCATION
Sept. 5
Memphis
Memphis, Tenn.
Sept. 12
Open
Sept. 19
Southeastern Louisiana
Oxford
Sept. 24
South Carolina (ESPN)
Columbia, S.C.
Oct. 3
Vanderbilt
Nashville, Tenn.
Oct. 10
Alabama
Oxford
Oct. 17
UAB (HC)
Oxford
Oct. 24
Arkansas
Oxford
Oct. 31
Auburn
Auburn, Ala.
Nov. 7
Northern Arizona
Oxford
Nov. 14
Tennessee
Oxford
Nov. 21
LSU
Oxford
Nov. 28
Mississippi State
Starkville, Miss.

OLE MISS 2010 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
DATE
OPPONENT
LOCATION
Sept. 4
Jacksonville State
Oxford
Sept. 11
Tulane
New Orleans, La.
Sept. 18
Vanderbilt
Oxford
Sept. 25
Fresno State
Oxford
Oct. 2
Kentucky
Oxford
Oct. 9
Open
Oct. 16
Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Oct. 23
Arkansas
Fayetteville, Ark.
Oct. 30
Auburn
Oxford
Nov. 6
Louisiana-Lafayette
Oxford
Nov. 13
Tennessee
Knoxville, Tenn.
Nov. 20
LSU
Baton Rouge, La.
Nov. 27
Mississippi State
Oxford

Ole Miss future non-conference games scheduled:
2011
Sept. 3
Southern Illinois
Oxford

Oct. 1
Fresno State
Fresno, Calif.

2012
Sept. 1
Central Arkansas
Oxford

Sept. 8
UAB
Birmingham, Ala.

Sept. 15
Texas
Oxford

Sept. 22
Tulane
Oxford

2013
Sept. 14
Texas
Austin, Texas

2015
TBA
Clemson
Clemson, S.C.
TBA
Fresno State
Oxford

2016
TBA
Clemson
Oxford
TBA
Tulane
New Orleans, La.

2017
TBA
Tulane
Oxford

2019
TBA
Georgia Tech
Oxford

2020
TBA
Georgia Tech
Atlanta, Ga.

Rebs Take 2 of 3 on the Road

2009-03-15T20:00:00.000-07:00

Bianco's boys had a good weekend for the most part. Pitching is still a little shaky. Bottom line is Barrett has got to go as a weekend starter. As of now, he is just not going to cut it in SEC ball. Most people are saying that Buckvich or Baker should be given a chance to start against Bama in the upcoming series and I tend to agree.

Miller also was injured today, so it should be interesting to see how Bianco will play the infield, but with Evan Button back it should not be too hard to figure it out.

The Rebels take on Arkansas State and Memphis mid week and need to win them both.

(UMAA)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Jordan Henry went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI while Logan Power went 2-for-4 with two RBI, but it wasn’t enough as No. 14 Ole Miss (11-4, 2-1 SEC) dropped the second game of a doubleheader against Vanderbilt (11-6, 1-2 SEC) by a score of 7-6.
The Rebels claimed the weekend series 2-1, but missed out on the sweep as the Commodores picked up the 7-6 win in the series finale. It was the second game of a doubleheader. Both games were seven inning contests and the Rebels picked up the first game of the twin bill 6-1 earlier in the afternoon.
Scott Bittle (1-2) suffered the loss in the second game as he allowed one unearned run on no hits with two walks and three strikeouts in 2.1 innings of relief work.
Reliever Sonny Gray (1-0) picked up the win for the Commodores as he worked 3.2 innings and allowed one run on two hits with two walks and three strikeouts.
“Any time you win the first two games, it’s not a good feeling when you lose the final game of the series,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “Anytime you don’t play well in this league, you’re going to get beat, but you have to credit Vanderbilt for hanging in there and continuing to battle the whole weekend.”
Ole Miss got on the board in the first when Jordan Henry scored on a single through the right side from Logan Power. Henry doubled down the left field line to open the game and moved to third on a passed ball to get into position to score on the Power hit.
The Commodores opened the second inning with four straight hits, including back-to-back doubles to push two runs across and take the lead. With runners at first and second, Aaron Barrett got Aaron Westlake to ground into a double play before a fly out from Richie Goodenow got the Rebels out of the inning trailing by one.
Ole Miss moved back into the lead in the second with a wild inning that saw Michael Hubbard lead off with a single and then score two batters later on a double from Zach Miller. Miller then scored on a single to left field from Henry. The Rebels held the 3-2 lead after one and a half innings played.
Vanderbilt reclaimed the lead in the bottom half of the inning, pushing three runs across with a bases loaded single and then walking in a run as the Commodores put together a big inning with four hits and a pair of walks to take the 5-3 advantage.
Another run in the third extended the lead to 6-3 in favor of the Commodores.The Rebels answered in the fourth, using three hits and a pair of walks to push three runs across the plate and tie things at six. Matt Snyder opened the inning with a double, pinch hitting for Brett Basham to lead off the inning and start the Rebel rally. The rally was capped by a chop groundout down the first base line from David Phillips with the bases loaded that scored Tim Ferguson from third and knotted the score before a groundout from Michael Hubbard ended the inning.
Vanderbilt moved back into the lead with a single run in the fifth as Harris came up with a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Loftus from third. Loftus walked to open the frame and then stole second before moving to third on a throwing error off a grounder to short from Esposito.
Ole Miss would not score again as Vanderbilt picked up the 7-6 win and avoided the sweep.
Ole Miss will return to action on Tuesday when the Rebels travel to face Arkansas State in Jonesboro, Ark. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.

The Infamous 12th Game

2009-03-09T19:57:00.000-07:00

Georgia Tech? No
Army? No
TCU? No
Idaho? No

This is only a very small list of schools that have been thrown around for the 12th football game next year. Oh yeah that is correct Ole Miss does not have a full football schedule next year and the season is six months away. It is absolutely ridiculous and in my opinion someone should be fired. Yes I know it is extremely difficult to get a team to play a home game in Oxford next year for the amount we want to pay, but UMAA should make sacrifices. I can only imagine what our negotiations are like with this schools. How do TCU and Clemson work out a deal so fast? Now how does Idaho work out a deal with someone the way they did? Yet our people can't figure it out.

Now it looks like the Rebs are going to have to schedule a D II school next year because we have exhausted all options in scheduling.

If someone dropped the ball like this or couldn't negotiate in the business world they would be fired. Why does this not happen in intercollegiate athletics? Its inexcusable and I can imagine it is just another case of Ole Miss being cheap. What a joke UMAA is.

T White Continues to Dominate

2009-03-09T19:55:00.000-07:00

Surely this guy is going to get Freshman Player of the Year in the SEC.

(SEC)BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – For the third time this season, Ole Miss point guard Terrico White has been named SEC Freshman of the Week, the league office announced Monday morning.
White scored 25 of his career-high 29 points after halftime in leading the Rebels to a 98-91 overtime win at Arkansas. It was the most points by an Ole Miss freshman in a game since Keith Carter had 29 in the 1995-96 season. He also added seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals against the Razorbacks.
The Memphis native notched his fourth straight 20-point performance with 21 against Mississippi State (on his birthday), giving him eight 20-point outings in SEC play.
White’s three selections as SEC Freshman of the Week are the most for any league player this season.

Big Road Win

2009-03-04T21:05:00.000-08:00

Yeah Arkansas is terrible this year, but I will call the win by the Rebels tonight a big road win for the team. They took the Pigs to overtime and outscored them in second half and OT. It was a outstanding game for Will Boggan and Terrico White. Boggan had 7 assists and 16 points with White contributing 29. The deal with this game is that David Huertas did not play due to injury. Many have said this team can not win without David, but they played pretty darn well without him. Many times throughout the year it has seemed that Huertas is a distraction. Tonight they did it without him.

The Rebs are a win away from finishing the season with a .500 conference record. With the way this season has gone, it will be a pretty big accomplishment. The SEC Tourney should be interesting for everyone, and the NIT should be considered an accomplishment. Say what you want but AK and his staff have done a great job.

(UMAA)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) - Terrico White scored 25 of his 29 points after halftime to lead Ole Miss to a 98-91 win at Arkansas in overtime Wednesday night.
The Rebels (16-13, 7-8), playing without injured guard David Huertas, trailed by 12 in the first half before rallying. Ole Miss led 73-66 after an 11-5 run that included three 3-pointers by White. Then it was Arkansas' turn to bounce back. The Razorbacks (14-14, 2-13 Southeastern Conference) took an 84-82 lead on Stefan Welsh's 3-pointer with 52.5 seconds left.
White tied it on a drive with 32.3 seconds remaining, and the teams headed to overtime after Welsh's 3-pointer in the final seconds rattled out.
Michael Washington opened the scoring for the Razorbacks in overtime, but the Rebels answered with a 9-0 run. Zach Graham scored seven consecutive points during that decisive stretch.
Graham added a career-high 20 points, while Will Bogan also scored a career high with 16 points in the road win.

Extremely Dissapointing

2009-02-22T21:25:00.000-08:00

Many of the Rebel faithful are extremely dissapointed after the pathetic effort the Ole Miss basbeall team put up in Mobile this weekend. Sources who were at the games are saying this team did not show much talent nor did they show much energy or desire to win. While I know this is only the first weekend of play of a very long season, but what I heard was pretty upsetting.

It appears the Rebels of this year picked right up where the Rebels of last year left off. Still can not bunt to save their lives, continue to hit into double plays, and make careless errors in the field. I was hoping that Bianco and his young staff would turn things around this year and get back to domination of yesteryear's.

The bright side is the season is extremely young and we have only played three games. You do not win them all in baseball. But you also can't lose early games and expect to host a regional in June, because the SEC is as good as it gets and you need every win you can get outside of the conference. Let's re-evaluate this team a week from now and see if improvements have been made.

(UMAA)
MOBILE, Ala. – The Rebels managed 11 hits and a rally to force extra innings, but it wasn’t enough as South Alabama (2-2) came up with a bases loaded single in the 10th to defeat No. 6 Ole Miss (1-2) by a score of 3-2 on Sunday at the Coca Cola Classic.Scott Bittle (0-1) suffered the loss as he gave up the game-winning hit in the 10th. Bittle struck out five and walked three while allowing only the one run on three hits in 2.1 innings. The hit from Sean Laird in the 10th proved to be a big one as he took a 2-2 pitch with the bases loaded and sent it back up the middle to record the game-winning run. Starter Phillip Irwin worked 5.0 innings and allowed two runs on eight hits with five strikeouts.Greg Johnson (1-1) picked up the win in relief for the Jaguars as he worked 2.0 innings and held the Rebels scoreless and limited them to only one hit in his time on the mound. Starter Lance Baxter worked 6.2 innings and allowed nine hits, but only one run.
“It was a tough day offensively,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “We couldn’t string the hits together. We had some opportunities and just couldn’t get the guy home. Runs were at a premium today, and when that is the case you have got to do more. South Alabama played tremendously defensively and deserved the win.”The win was the 1,000th for South Alabama head coach Steve Kittrell, who is in his 27th season as a head coach.The Rebels scored first as a single from Taylor Hashman to right field scored Jordan Henry from third. Henry walked to open the game before moving to second on a groundout from Jeremy Travis. He then took third on a hard shot back to the pitcher from Logan Power before scoring on the Hashman hit. South Alabama tied things in the bottom of the second when Ryan Bohannan scored from second on a single up the middle from David Doss tipped off the glove of a diving Evan Button. Doss was thrown out trying to take second however, leaving the bases empty with one out. Bohannan doubled to the wall to open the inning. Irwin then struck out the next two batters to get the Rebels out of the inning.The Jaguars threatened in the fifth as Zach Grichor stole second and moved to third on a throwing error on the steal attempt with one out on the board. A single up the middle from Clint Reynolds on a full count drove Grichor in and gave South Alabama the 2-1 lead.With two on and no outs in the sixth, the Rebels went to the bullpen for southpaw Kyle Barbeck. Barbeck then got the Rebels out of the inning with no damage as he got a groundout, pop out and ground out to end the inning.Ole Miss tied the game in the seventh when Jeremy Travis scored from second on a single to center field from Matt Smith. Travis reached on an error and moved to second on a wild pitch. Smith was then thrown out stealing to end the inning with the score tied at two. The Rebels threatened in the ninth with runners at the corners and two outs, but a groundout to third ended the inning for Ole Miss and kept the score knotted at two.With two outs in the bottom of the 10th, the Rebels intentionally walked Doss to load the bases and get to Laird. Laird then became the hero for the Jaguars as he laced the offering from Bittle back up the middle to give South Alabama the 3-2 win.Ole Miss will return to action on Tuesday, February 24, when the Rebels host Central Arkansas at the newly renovated Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.

Woof Woof!!

2009-02-22T21:22:00.000-08:00

Great Spelling!

Rebs Put Up Impressive Win

2009-02-18T20:08:00.000-08:00

An impressive win by Coach Andy Kennedy and his inexperienced team tonight. The Rebels came to play early and dominated the second half. One thing about this team is they have drastically improved their rebounding skills. I would argue this team has improved better than any team in the NCAA in rebounding from the beginning of the season until now. Murphy Holloway had his best game as a Rebel tonight, he can really get up.

I know it has been said several times and will be said again, but I can only imagine how good this team would have been if they were all healthy. I truly believe they would lead the SEC with the way the league is this year. But we can only dream. I have still been impressed with the way this team has played this year, their record does not indicate how well they have played with what they have.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - Terrico White scored 21 points, Murphy Holloway had a career-high 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Ole Miss beat Tennessee 81-65 on Wednesday night, further muddling the race for the Southeastern Conference title.
The Rebels (14-11, 5-6) held the Volunteers (16-9, 7-4) without a field goal for more than 5 minutes to take control, and the SEC's hottest shooting team hurt itself by missing 33 of 57 shots and 13 free throws.
Wayne Chism had 19 points and Tyler Smith added 16 to lead Tennessee, while David Huertas scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half to boost Ole Miss.
Ole Miss out-rebounded Tennessee 44-30. Holloway's double-double was his second straight and third of the season.
The win snapped a two-game losing streak for Ole Miss and a two-game winning streak for Tennessee. The Volunteers had won four of their last five to move into a first-place tie in the SEC East and could have taken the lead with a win after South Carolina lost to Mississippi State on Wednesday.

Some of Alabama's Finest

2009-02-18T18:51:00.001-08:00

Its Almost Here

2009-02-16T20:03:00.000-08:00

Baseball season starts on Friday with the first pitch in Mobile for the Rebels. Today the coaching staff announced the starting lineups(not batting order) along with the weekend rotation. Several players are suspended this weekend for former run ins with OPD, but the lineups and rotation are interesting in my opinion. Probably not who I would have projected, but I like the changes. How do yall think we will do? And how will the Bulldog$ do for those who like Dudy Noble?

1B Matt Smith
2B Zach Miller
SS Kevin Mort
3B Evan Button
C Brett Basham
LF Logan Power
CF Jordan Henry
RF Jeremy Travis
DH David Phillips

Friday:Aaron Barrett
Saturday: Chris Corrigan
Sunday: Phillip Irwin

All Century Team Announced

2009-02-12T21:01:00.000-08:00

While Ole Miss basketball has historically not been a strong basketball program there have been some decent players come through over the years. This year marks the 100th year of the program and the university announced an all century team today. Below are those selected. Many who read this blog have no clue who have these players are, but they all had a major part of Ole Miss basketball history. My votes were as follows

1.Gerald Glass
2.Sean Tuohy
3.Eltson Turner
4. Johnny Neumann
5. Joe Gibbon
6. Justin Reed

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. -- The Ole Miss athletics department proudly announced the members of its CellularSouth All-Century men’s basketball team here Thursday at Tad Smith Coliseum.
The All-Century honorees, as well as all other former Rebels, will be honored at the Feb. 21 Georgia game in the culmination of this year’s celebration of the “First 100 Years of Ole Miss Basketball.”
The All-Century Team was selected following a vote of fans on OleMissSports.com and a committee of officials from the athletics department and the M-Club Alumni Chapter. With over 2,000 online ballots cast, the fans’ top 10 vote getters were automatic qualifiers, and the remaining spots were chosen by the committee.
The ballot included any Rebel that earned All-SEC honors or scored 1,000 or more points in his career, excluding current players, for a total of 41 nominees. Fans also had the opportunity to email write-in votes.
The All-Century Team was not divided by position or first, second or third team, as all 19 players hold the same rank on the squad.
The team includes all 12 Rebels that earned All-America honors in their career and the top nine scorers in school history. The list also contains three Associated Press SEC Players of the Years (Denver Brackeen, 1955; Johnny Neumann, 1971; Ansu Sesay, 1998).
While honored for their performances as players, the All-Century Team coincidentally includes the three winningest coaches in school history (B.L. “Country” Graham, 145 wins; Rod Barnes, 141; Cob Jarvis, 87).
Headlining the All-Century selections is two-time All-America honoree John Stroud. The forward from New Albany, Miss., is Ole Miss’ all-time leading scorer and ranks third in SEC history with 2,328 career points. Stroud topped the conference in scoring in 1979 and 1980 and was named 1980 SEC Player of the Year by the Tuscaloosa Tip-Off Club.
The remaining members of the All-Century Team include:
B.L. “Country” Graham (F, 1936-38),
Cob Jarvis (F/G, 1952-54),
Denver Brackeen (C, 1954-55),
Joe Gibbon (F, 1954-57),
Jack Waters (F/G, 1959-61),
Don Kessinger (G, 1962-64),
Johnny Neumann (F, 1971),
Coolidge Ball (F, 1972-74),
Elston Turner (F/G, 1978-81),
Sean Tuohy (G, 1979-82),
Carlos Clark (G/F, 1980-83),
Rod Barnes (G, 1985-88),
Gerald Glass (F, 1989-90),
Joe Harvell (F, 1990-93),
Ansu Sesay (F, 1995-98),
Keith Carter (G, 1996-99),
Rahim Lockhart (F, 1998-2001)
Justin Reed (F, 2001-04)
Fans may bid on the opportunity to meet the greats of Rebels Hoops at the exclusive "100 Years of Ole Miss Basketball" celebration reception on the evening of Feb. 20 by visiting OleMissSports.com Auctions. Also available for bid is a basketball that will be autographed by the All-Century Team during the celebration weekend.

Gamecocks Scheduled for Thursday Night ESPN

2009-02-12T20:46:00.000-08:00

Ole Miss will be returning to Thursday night ESPN this year with the South Carolina game being picked up by the network. With the new change in kickoff this changed the schedule around a little bit for next season. However there is still one game open on the schedule. At the current time Ole Miss only has eleven games scheduled for next year and kickoff is seven months away. In my opinion it is absolutely ridiculous for the schedule to not be complete. I was under the impression most schools had their schedules set several years in advance. It is absolutely pathetic we are waiting to find out who to play. I would guess it is going to be some small D2 school that all other SEC schools are going to laugh about us playing. Typical.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss and South Carolina announced Thursday it has switched the Rebels’ visit to Columbia this season from Sept. 26 to Sept. 24 in order to accommodate a request from ESPN to make the contest a part of its Thursday Night national television package. Kickoff from Williams-Brice Stadium is set for 6:30 p.m. Central.

“We appreciate the help of Mark Womack in the Southeastern Conference office for assisting us to make this telecast possible,” said Ole Miss Athletics Director Pete Boone. “Several schools, both inside and outside the SEC, were asked to make schedule changes in order to honor ESPN’s request, and we are grateful for their cooperation.”

The switch of dates with South Carolina resulted in two additional schedule adjustments for Ole Miss in 2009. Ole Miss was to have played at Vanderbilt on Sept. 19, but that game is now scheduled for Oct. 3. Another change that became necessary was to move a scheduled home game with Southeastern Louisiana from Sept. 12 to Sept. 19.

“We are very pleased that Ole Miss will be returning to our Thursday Night schedule in 2009,” said Dave Brown, vice president of programming for ESPN. “As the defending Cotton Bowl champions and a consensus pre-season top 20 pick, the South Carolina game is a great addition to our Thursday package this year. We extend a special thanks to Pete Boone, John Hartwell and Coach Houston Nutt for making this happen for us.”

The last time Ole Miss was included in ESPN’s Thursday Night package was Nov. 27, 2003, when the Rebels defeated Mississippi State in Starkville. ESPN had telecast the annual Ole Miss-Mississippi State game on Thursday night for a number of years until that point.

Rebs Add Green Wave Back to Schedule

2009-02-12T20:40:00.000-08:00

I have been saying for some time that Tulane was always a good non conference game for Ole Miss to play for several reasons. For one it is a home and home type series that Ole Miss does not have to shell out alot of cash for a team to come to Oxford. Another reason is that many Rebel fans will make the trip to New Orleans. It is always good to have road warriors and there will no doubt be at least 15,000 that travel to this game and probably more.

My only beef about this is that we play LSU on the road in this year also. I would have liked them to alternate the LSU and Tulane road games. That way you have New Orleans to go to for one game a year instead of twice in one season. At any rate good move by UMAA.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. - Following a nine-year break, a football series which dates back to 1893 will resume in 2010 when Ole Miss travels to New Orleans to play Tulane University, it was announced Thursday by the two schools.

The 2010 home game for Tulane is set for Sept. 11 in the Louisiana Superdome, while the Rebels will host a return game with the Green Wave here in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Sept. 22, 2012. Two additional games are scheduled in the future, with Ole Miss at Tulane in 2016 and Tulane at Ole Miss in 2017. Specific playing dates in 2016 and 2017 are yet to be determined.

“We are pleased to be able to resume this storied series,” said Ole Miss Athletics Director Pete Boone. “Tulane is probably the most requested non-conference opponent from our fan base, and Ole Miss fans have traditionally enjoyed the trip to New Orleans to play the Green Wave.”

Ole Miss and Tulane have met 69 times with the Rebels holding a 41-28 advantage in the series. The first 31 games in the series were played in New Orleans before Ole Miss finally hosted Tulane in Oxford in 1951, a game Coach John Vaught’s Rebels won 25-6.

For Ole Miss, the 69 meetings with Tulane ranks as the fourth most in school history behind Mississippi State (105), LSU (97) and Vanderbilt (82).

Ole Miss holds a 12-2 advantage in games played in Oxford as well as a 4-1 lead when the two teams have played in Jackson, the last in the Capital City being in 1982 when the Rebels prevailed 45-15. The series is tied, 25-25, for games played in New Orleans. The last meeting between the two teams took place in Oxford during the 2000 season opener for both schools.

Common opponents for much of the 20th century, Ole Miss and Tulane have been members of the same conference three times, beginning with the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association, one of the first collegiate athletic conferences formed in the United States. Tulane was a member of the SIAA from 1896 to1921, while Ole Miss held membership in the SIAA from 1899 to 1921.

Both Ole Miss and Tulane were members of the Southern Conference from 1922 to 1932 before becoming two of the 13 charter members to form the Southeastern Conference in 1933. Tulane remained a member of the SEC until 1966, while Ole Miss continues as a league member.

"We're pleased to restart this four-game home-and-home series," said Tulane Athletics Director Rick Dickson. "This adds back another of our historic rivalries to our schedule along with Alabama, Georgia Tech and others."

The University of Mississippi first fielded a football team in 1893 with Dr. A. L. Bondurant serving as the first coach. Led by Captain Alfred H. Roudebush, that first team finished the year with a 4-1 record, including a 12-4 victory over Tulane on Dec. 2 in New Orleans.

Tulane’s longest winning streak in the series is 12 games, while the longest winning streak for Ole Miss is 10 games. The Rebels have won the last nine meetings.

A Nice End to Recruiting Season

2009-02-04T20:02:00.000-08:00

Coach Houston Nutt wrappep up recruiting season today with the signing of several highly recruited players including Patrick Patterson and Bobby Massie. The Rebels gained alot of national attention today and boosted their stock by picking up a few highly rated signeess. This class is one of the better in Ole Miss history. Yeah we signed 38 guys, the most in college football, but they all will not make their grades and others will greyshirt. Overall very pleased with this class and continue to build on a great season. Thoughts??

Darius Barksdale DB 6-0 190 Batesville, Miss. South Panola; Hargrave
Michael BrownOL 6-6315 Lexington, Tenn.Lexington
Ryan Campbell DB 6-0 175 Columbus, Ga. Carver
Tyler Campbell P 6-2 210 Little Rock, Ark. Catholic
Logan Clair*OL 6-5 305 Mustang, Okla. Mustang; Northeastern Okla. C.C.
Raymond Cotton QB 6-4 220 Fort Meade, Md. Fort Meade
Frank Crawford DB 6-1 170 Miami, Fla. Gulliver Prep
Willie Ferrell LB 6-0 220 Tallahassee, Fla. Florida A&M High
Craig Drummond*DE 6-5 260 Chicago, Ill. Morgan Park
Corey Gaines DT 6-1 280 Tallahassee, Fla. Godby
Jesse Grandy ATH 5-11 180 Pine Bluff, Ark. Dollarway
Terrell GrantWR 6-3 200 Cleveland, Miss. Cleveland
A.J. Hawkins*OL6-3315 Lithonia, Ga. Martin Luther King
Jamar HornsbyDB 6-3 215 Jacksonville, Fla. Sandalwood; Florida; East Miss. C.C.
Stephen Houston RB 5-10 210 West Chester, Ohio Lakota West
Gabriel Hunter RB 5-11 185 Memphis, Tenn. Kingsbury
Dele Junaid DB 6-3 195 Sugar Land, Texas Hightower
Artice Kellam DB 5-11 180 Miami, Fla. Gulliver Prep
Joel Kight LB 5-11 220 Lithonia, Ga. King
DeMarcus Knight LB 6-2 230 Morristown, Tenn. Morristown-East
Ja-Mes Logan WR 6-2 195 Houston, Texas Westfield
Mike Marry LB 6-3 225 Clearwater, Fla. Largo
Z. Mason TE 6-5 255 Nashville, Tenn. Christ Presbyterian Academy
Bobbie Massie OL 6-7 345 Lynchburg, Va. Liberty Christian Academy; Hargrave
Emmanuel McCray OL 6-4 280 Jackson, Miss. Forest Hill
Korvic Neat RB 5-8 170 Hallandale, Fla. Hallandale
Pat Patterson WR 6-3 215 Macon, Miss. Noxubee County
Montez Phillips ATH 6-3 190 Oxford, Miss. Lafayette County
Andrew Ritter K 6-3 200 Jackson, Miss. Jackson Academy
Charles Sawyer DB 5-10 180 Miami, Fla. Coral Park
Rodney Scott RB 5-9 195 Cross City, Fla. Dixie County
D.T. Shackelford LB 6-1 230 Decatur, Ala. Austin
Tim Simon RB 6-2 210 Cordova, Ala. Cordova
Eric Smiley DT 6-5 280 West Helena, Ark. Central
Evan Swindall C 6-3 285 LaFayette, Ga.LaFayette
Mike Thomas DT 6-4 270 Mobile, Ala. St. Paul's Episcopal
Cameron Whigham DE 6-3 230 Lithonia, Ga. Shiloh
Alex Williams DE 6-4 215 Tallahassee, Fla. Florida A&M High

Rebs Make It Three In A Row

2009-02-04T20:01:00.000-08:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - Terrico White scored 19 points and sparked a decisive first half run Wednesday as Ole Miss defeated Auburn 78-59.
Ole Miss (13-9, 4-4) extended its winning streak to a season-best three games and moved into third place in the SEC Western Division. White, who added a career-high eight rebounds and a pair of assists, paced a balanced attack that put five Rebels in double figures.
“This team knows that if they want to be relevant, they've got to earn your way,” Mississippi coach Andy Kennedy said. “Slowly we're doing that. We had a lot of guys step up tonight.”
David Huertas scored 16 points, Zach Graham had 11 while Terrance Henry and Malcolm White added 10 apiece. The Rebels used a 21-5 first half run, highlighted by a pair of Terrico White dunks, to build an insurmountable 46-28 halftime lead.
Auburn (13-9, 2-4), led by Korvotney Barber with 17 points and 13 rebounds, never seriously threatened again. The Tigers could not get any closer than 13 points and the Rebels led by as many as 22 points in the final seven minutes.
DeWayne Reed and Frankie Sullivan added 14 and 12 points, respectively for the Tigers, who were outrebounded 42-36. Forced to shoot from the perimeter in a comeback effort, Auburn managed only 6-of-27, 22 percent, from three-point range.
Ole Miss was 27-of-63 from the field, 43 percent, but had only eight turnovers. The Rebels were 10-of-28, 36 percent, from the three-point line. Terrico White, Graham and Huertas had three long range shots apiece to showcase the offensive balance.
The Rebels, who lost a pair of starters and a top reserve to season-ending knee injuries in the first half of the season, have joined LSU as the hottest teams in the conference with three-game winning streaks. The victory margin was the largest in an SEC game during Kennedy's three seasons.
“We're playing with a little momentum and the wins energize you,” Kennedy said. “It's great, but it's part of the process. Every day is a new day when you have so many young players.”

A Funny Story Out Of Mobile

2009-02-04T20:00:00.000-08:00

Take a look at this story and click the video from a Univeristy of South Alabama basketball game when the coach finds out the home team does not have instant replay. Its a classic

http://www.wkrg.com/local/article/coach_goes_crazy_on_the_court/22994/

T. White Honored Again

2009-02-02T20:39:00.001-08:00

(UMAA)BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – For the second time in three weeks, Ole Miss point guard Terrico White has been named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week, the league office announced Monday morning.
The Memphis, Tenn., native averaged 19.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in Rebel wins over No. 24 Kentucky at home and Mississippi State on the road. The 6-foot-5, 211-pound athlete has come on strong of late, averaging 16.5 points per game over the last six contests and helping fill the void left by the season-ending injuries of three of the team’s top backcourt members.
White scored 21 points with five boards, seven assists and just two turnovers to help the Rebels to their first win over the Wildcats since 2001 this past Tuesday. He played 37 minutes against UK and had a highlight-reel dunk that landed at No. 2 on Sportscenter’s Top 10 plays of the day despite being a game-day decision with a bruised knee.
Then on Saturday he recorded 12 of his team-high 18 points in the second half to help Ole Miss come from behind in a 67-63 win in Starkville, the team’s first victory there since 1998. He drained a career-high four three-pointers in the contest.
This is the third time a Rebel has earned freshman of the week accolades this season. White also earned the honors on Jan. 19, while Murphy Holloway was the league’s top freshman pick on Dec. 29.

Rebs Stun Dogs at the Hump

2009-02-01T13:56:00.001-08:00

An interesting twist to a hot topic of Worldclassglass lately.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Ole Miss' young lineup is gaining maturity fast.
Freshman Terrico White scored 18 points and sophomores Zach Graham and Malcolm White had 13 and 11 to lead the Rebels to 67-63 victory over Mississippi State, winning in Starkville for the first time since 1998. The trio continues to push Ole Miss to unexpected success after a string of seemingly devastating injuries depleted the roster.
"In the summer we knew they had the potential to win," Ole Miss' David Huertas said of the underclassmen. "They didn't have the experience, but after 20 games they're all grown up."
And it's showing this week. The Rebels (12-9, 3-4 SEC) started out Tuesday with an 85-80 upset of No. 24 Kentucky. They faced an even bigger challenge on the road in Starkville, where Ole Miss has had little success in the Southeastern Conference's most-played rivalry.
The win snapped a 10-game losing streak at Mississippi State (14-7, 4-2) and was just the third win on the road in the series since 1984. It was coach Rick Stansbury's first home loss against Ole Miss in 11 seasons.
The Rebels overcame a slow start by tightening down the defense on the Bulldogs, a rare reversal against a team known for its stifling defense. And it looked early as if Mississippi State would smother Ole Miss again, jumping out to leads of 9-0 and 25-12.
Coach Andy Kennedy "called a timeout and he yelled at us," said Huertas, who finished with 16 points. "He went crazy."
Ole Miss then countered with a 16-2 run and outscored its rival 20-8 while holding Mississippi State without a field goal for 8:44 to trail 37-33 at halftime. The Rebels held the Bulldogs without a field goal for stretches of 8:27 and 6:56 - totaling 15:23 with just one field goal - to pull away.
As he did in Ole Miss' upset of Kentucky, Huertas - the team's leading scorer and only returning starter left on the roster - started slowly with six points and not much of a presence in the first half. But he hit back-to-back 3-pointers in a crucial 10-1 run early in the second half that gave the Rebels the lead for good. The SEC's No. 3 scorer also hit a driving layup midway through the half that gave Ole Miss a 54-48 lead, it's biggest of the game.
Terrico White also had a strong second half, scoring 12 points and using his 6-foot-5 frame to full advantage on a handful of stop-and-pop field goals to help Ole Miss pull away.
Both Kennedy and Stansbury credited the Ole Miss' 2-3 zone defense for the cold stretches.
"They play a lot of zone, so you have to make some shots," Stansbury said. "You have to get the ball inside. We went 3-for-16 from the 3-point line in the second half. We shot too many 3-pointers and didn't get it inside enough."
That focus on 3s helped Ole Miss hold leading scorer Jarvis Varnado to eight points, five below his average, though he had 15 rebounds. Only Ravern Johnson was really connecting from the outside, hitting four 3s on the way to 20 points. Dee Bost added 13 and Barry Stewart scored 10.
Overall the Bulldogs hit just 31.5 percent of their shots (17-of-54) and only had five field goals in the second half on the way to 26 points. And the Rebels did that without their two best defenders, Chris Warren and Eniel Polynice, lost for the season to knee injuries.
But the Rebels are no longer thinking about the players they don't have.
"In the beginning I was worried, I'm not going to lie," Huertas said. "Now I see the guys believe in themselves."

Rebs Surprise Cats

2009-01-27T21:01:00.000-08:00

It was a surprising win for Andy Kennedy and his team tonight with their win over Kentucky. This team has been playing hard over the last few games, but have not been able to keep it together for a full game to pull out a win. Very glad they were able to get a win over such a storied program that Ole Miss has had little success with.

A few thoughts:

Great game plan by Andy Kennedy and staff. They had the Cats scouted well and played exceptional defense to control many of Kentucky's scoring threats.
Terrico White is one heck of a player. Even with an injured knee, he played extremely well. His dunk in the first half was quite a play. Probably one of the best dunks I have seen in quite some time.
This was the first game in his career that Malcolm White really showed up to play. He played well on both offense and defense. Where has this guy been? He has the talent but normally starts pouting and gets stuck in foul trouble.
Obviously this team is going to be up and down for the rest of the season with the injuries they have, but a win like this always helps the spirit of the team.

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - Terrico White and David Huertas each scored 21 points and Ole Miss upset No. 24 Kentucky 85-80 on Tuesday, snapping the Wildcats' five-game win streak a day after they entered the Top 25 for the first time this season.
Neither Kentucky's Jodie Meeks nor Huertas - the Southeastern Conference's Nos. 1 and 3 scorers - managed a field goal in the first half. But Huertas hit a 3-pointer with 11 seconds gone in the second half and the injury-ravaged Rebels (11-9, 2-4 SEC) managed to overcome 24 points from Patrick Patterson for a rare win over the Wildcats (16-5, 5-1).
The win snapped Ole Miss' current three-game losing streak and its nine-game slide to Kentucky, which had won 11 of 12 overall coming into the game. It was just the 12th win for the Rebels in 107 games against the Wildcats.
The Rebels, without three of their best players due to season-ending knee injuries, managed one of their best defensive games of the season.
The Wildcats were fourth in the nation with a shooting percentage of 50.2 percent per game, but struggled against Ole Miss' 2-3 zone and shot 34.3 percent (25-of-65). It was an especially difficult night for Meeks, the nation's No. 3 scorer coming in with 26.1 points per game.
The Rebels held him without a field goal for the first 28:04 and he finished 4-for-15 fro the florr with 21 points. He had eight in the first half, all on free throws, after scoring in double figures in the first 20 minutes of nine of the Wildcats' last 10 games and 14 of 20.
Huertas quickly got open on the left wing on the opening possession of the second half and buried a 3. That spurred Ole Miss to a 16-4 run to open the half that featured four 3-pointers. Graham's second 3 of the run put the Rebels up 53-43 and Kentucky never crept closer than three points after Meeks hit his first two field goals of the game to make it 58-55 with 11:18 left.
Malcolm White scored five points and Huertas hit another 3 during a quick 8-2 run to put the game out of reach.
Ole Miss hit 10 of 26 3s in the game and outrebounded Kentucky 45-40. The Wildcats were just 7-of-28 from the 3-point line.
Terrico White had an especially big game for the Rebels. The freshman finished a point shy of his career high, set one with seven assists and had five rebounds in 37 minutes despite being a game-time decision due to a bruised knee.
Ole Miss led much of the first half, only succumbing to a quick 7-2 run by Kentucky to end the half with a 39-37 lead.

Top 10 Pre Season Ranking for Rebel Baseball

2009-01-20T20:10:00.000-08:00

Baseball America
1.Texas A&M
2.Louisiana State
3.North Carolina
4.Texas
5.Cal State Fullerton
6.Mississippi
7.Rice
8.Baylor
9.UC Irvine
10.Missouri
11.San Diego
12.UCLA
13.Arizona State
14.Georgia
15.Stanford
16.Oklahoma
17.Pepperdine
18.Kent State
19.Clemson
20.Georgia Tech
21.Alabama
22.Arkansas
23.Louisville
24.Florida State
25.Oregon State

Rebel Football Ranked 24th Best Program of All Time

2009-01-20T19:57:00.000-08:00

ESPN is currently ranking the top 119 programs of all time. The Rebs were ranked in the top 25 programs of all time coming in at number 24.

24. Ole Miss Rebels
Total points: 477

Positives: The Rebels have 20 bowl wins (12th-most since 1936). The glory days in Oxford were a half-century ago, as the program was ranked fifth-best in the nation in the '50s and '60s. The Rebels enjoyed four straight top-5 finishes at one point (1959-62).

Negatives: Ole Miss hasn't had a major bowl appearance since the 1969 season. The NCAA also put it on probation three separate times, costing it 21 points in our tabulations. Plus, Rebels fans should just block out the '80s, when they accrued minus-5 points (77th in the nation).

Through the decades: Through 1958: 23rd 1968: 10th 1978: 13th 1988: 16th 1998: 24th

Did you know? Only 11 programs have won more bowl games in the BCS era than Ole Miss (5).

White Named Player of the Week

2009-01-19T18:52:00.000-08:00

Ole Miss freshman Terrico White was named SEC Player of the Week for his performance against Arkansas and LSU. Terrico has been one of the few bright spots on what has been a terrible season thus far for the Rebs in a number of different ways. After the Arkansas performance I thought White had earned the roll as starting point guard. However in the LSU game the coaching staff decided to start Will Bogan which is still a mystery in my mind. Bogan is not ready for SEC ball, White is. Hopefully the coaching staff has learned their lesson and we will see Terrico in the starting lineup at Tuscaloosa on Wednesday.

(UMAA)BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – After posting back-to-back career-high scoring efforts against Arkansas and LSU, Ole Miss freshman guard Terrico White was tabbed with Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week honors by the league office Monday.
A native of Memphis, Tenn., White tallied 18 points in a 74-65 win over the Razorbacks on Wednesday before pouring in 22 against the Tigers on Saturday. Playing at both the point and shooting guard spots, the 6-foot-5 rookie drained three shots from downtown in each game.
White leads Ole Miss and ranks seventh in the SEC with a 15.7 scoring average in league games.
He is the second Rebel to receive a weekly honor by the league office this season. Forward Murphy Holloway was a freshman of the week selection on Dec. 29.
White and the Rebels hit the road for a pair of league contests this week. They will visit the Alabama Crimson Tide on Wednesday (7 p.m. CT tip), followed by an FSN South-televised matchup with South Carolina in Columbia on Saturday (7 p.m. CT tip).

Nutt, Oher Gain More Honors

2009-01-19T18:51:00.000-08:00

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. -- The Touchdown Club of Atlanta will honor Ole Miss Coach Houston Nutt and senior lineman Michael Oher at its 71st Annual Awards Ceremony on Feb. 7 at the Rialto Center for the Arts located on the campus of Georgia State University.
Nutt has been selected by the Touchdown Club as SEC Coach of the Year, while Oher will be awarded the Shug Jordan Award for Top Southeast Offensive Lineman.
The last time an Ole Miss coach earned SEC accolades from The Touchdown Club was in 1947 to legendary coach John Vaught. Also, this marks the first time since Kenny Dill’s award in 1963 that an Ole Miss lineman was distinguished by the organization.
Nutt was named SEC Coach of the Year by the league coaches and the AFCA Region 2 Coach of the Year. In his first season in Oxford, Nutt immediately reversed the Rebels’ fortunes and became just the fifth Ole Miss coach to guide the Rebels to a bowl in his first season. The Cotton Bowl victory over Texas Tech completed a 9-4 campaign, marking the team’s best improvement from one season to the next since Vaught’s debut in 1947.
This season was Nutt’s seventh with nine or more wins in his 16 years as a head coach. He earned SEC Coach of the Year accolades for the third time in his career and top Region coaching honors for the fifth time.
Oher was a consensus first-team All-American and All-SEC selection this season for the Rebels. The Memphis native also picked up the Jacobs Blocking Trophy as the SEC's best blocker and was one of three finalists for the Outland Trophy. The 6-foot-5, 318-pound left tackle helped the Rebels rank second in the SEC in rushing with 186.5 yards per game and fourth in sacks allowed with 1.5 per game in 2008.

Nice Win By The Rebs Tonight

2009-01-14T21:01:00.000-08:00

Very nice win by Kennedy and the boys tonight. Glad to see them play Terrico White at the point. It looks like White is going to be able to handle it better than Will Bogan. Should be an interesting game vs LSU on Saturday.

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - Ole Miss was forced to come up with new goals after season-ending knee injuries to a pair of starters and a top reserve prior to Southeastern Conference play.
“We want to be the most improved team in the SEC from the start to the finish,” said Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy, after Wednesday's 74-65 win over Arkansas. “We took a big step toward that goal with this win.
Ole Miss, who never trailed, led by as many as 21 points in each half and placed four players in double figures, led by freshman Terrico White with a career high-tying 18 points. David Huertas scored 16 points, with four rebounds and two assists, while Zach Graham and Murphy Holloway added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
“The reality is Terrico White hasn't played point guard in his life until three games ago,” Kennedy said. “It's been a bit of a challenge, but I thought he was tremendous tonight. A win like this shows what we're capable of.”
The win continued the home court mastery over Arkansas, as the Rebels (10-6, 1-1) have won 13 of the last 14 games. Arkansas (12-3, 0-2) has dropped successive division games after riding a 10-game winning streak prior to SEC play.
Courtney Fortson had a game-high 24 points and Jason Henry added 19 points for the Razorbacks.
The Rebels built a 32-11 in the opening 15 minutes to take a 34-24 halftime lead. Ole Miss rebuilt the lead to 53-32 with 11:21 left and hit 16 of 18 free throws the rest of the way to seal it.
“It's so unreal to go from playing so well to playing so bad in the last two games,” Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said. “We're just not playing as well as we were. We're better than what we've performed in the last two games.”
The Razorbacks got within 34-28 on a basket by Fortson with 18:23 left, but Ole Miss responded with a 19-4 run to put it away. Arkansas never got closer than nine points, which came within the final 15 seconds.
“We started clock watching in the final few minutes,” Kennedy said. “But, except for a couple of minutes at the end of each half, we played well. After all our injuries, nobody has as much room to improve as us, but this was a great start for us.”
Ole Miss finished 24 of 56, 43 percent, from the field and outrebounded Arkansas 36-34. The Razorbacks were 23 of 53, 43 percent, from the field, but managed only 3 of 15 from three-point range.

Rocker Out at Ole Miss

2009-01-12T19:44:00.000-08:00

Well the Rebels lost their defensive line coach to Auburn today. Tracy Rocker who was an All American at Auburn is returning to coach at the school he played college ball for. Rocker is reportedly going to get paid $400,000. Paying that much money for a D-Line coach in my opinion is absured. Rocker was my favorite assistant coach on staff. I watched him at the first day of practice in the summer and he impressed me. But not worth $400,000. It is my understanding Ole Miss played the cash game with Rocker during negotiations this weekend. But enough is enough. I dont blame Pete Boone and Nutt one bit for not matching the offer. We can go out and find another D-Line coach for almost half of that. From what I have heard there have been several coaches contact Nutt about the position open on his staff. I feel confident Nutt will find a replacement, a good one at that, real soon.

(Clarion Ledger)OXFORD — Defensive line coach Tracy Rocker has left Ole Miss to take a similar position with Auburn, according to Rebels’ head coach Houston Nutt.Rocker was instrumental in turning UM’s talented defensive line into one of the best in the country, led by All-American senior defensive tackle Peria Jerry. The Rebels finished the season with a 9-4 record and won the Cotton Bowl over 8th-ranked Texas Tech 47-34 on Jan. 2.“There’s no question he did a phenomenal job with our line,” Nutt said. “Especially when some of our guys were out early with injuries, he really built some outstanding depth that helped us win games this season.”The Ole Miss defense tied for the national lead with 112 tackles for loss in 13 games, with the majority of those coming from Rocker’s defensive line.Rocker had been with Nutt for six years as a defensive line coach, including five at Arkansas and one at Ole Miss. When he came to Oxford last year, he signed a 3-year contact worth $210,000 per year.Nutt and his assistants were given raises in December, but Rocker’s new contract had not been released. Nutt said he did not know if money was a factor in Rocker leaving for Auburn.“It was a tough decision for him because we’ve had a great working relationship for six years,” Nutt said. “But it’s his alma mater and he’s got family less than an hour away, so it was something he felt like he needed to do. It’s a tough loss, but I understand why he did it.”Rocker played for Auburn in the 1980s, where he was an All-American and Outland Trophy winner on the Tigers’ defensive line. Auburn recently hired coach Gene Chizik to replace Tommy Tuberville, who had been with the Tigers for 10 seasons.Nutt said he was in Nashville at a coaching clinic, working on finding Rocker’s replacement. He said he hoped to name a successor soon.

Cotton Bowl Time

2008-12-28T18:59:00.000-08:00

Below is a small article from the Dallas Morning News about Ole Miss gaining respect with a win over Texas Tech. Interested in people's thoughts on the game. Can the Rebels Win? Score?

(DMN)Ole Miss defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix is using perception by some pundits that Ole Miss is unworthy of a Cotton Bowl berth as motivation.
Even though Ole Miss ended the regular season sizzling on a five-game winning streak, recognition has been hard to come by.
"Our kids are fired up about the opportunity to go out and try to earn some respect," Nix said. "That's our biggest challenge. We've told people that no one respected Ole Miss, and it's obvious, and we're just fortunate to be here. No one respected us, so let's see what happens."

Road Trip From Hell

2008-12-18T20:36:00.000-08:00

1) 1: 15 am Your head coach and one of his assistants gets arrested for allegedly assaulting a muslim cabbie. As the day progresses, it appears the coaches(while under the influence of alcohol) were not as guilty as first reported. After hearing the coaches story about the incident they are cleared by university officials to coach and the university believes everyone will be ok.

2) 8:00 pm Tip off against the No. 9 team in the country, things start ok, but quickly turn downhill. As the game progresses, you work your way back into and actually make it a very interesting second half even taking the lead a couple of times, but in the end experience and depth prevail and you lose by nine points to a top 10 team.

3) 10:10 pm you find out your best player tears his ACL(Yes Chris Warren is more than likely done for the season). This is the third of your top 4 players to go down for the season in the first two months of play. And now the only point guard you have is a freshman from Idaho.

This has to be the worst road trip in the history of SEC basketball.

Kennedy To Coach Tonight

2008-12-18T10:35:00.000-08:00

You all have heard various reports on what happened last night. The latest news is that Pete Boone and AK met this morning and Kennedy will coach tonight. Evidently there are several sides to this story and Boone believes that AK and company are innocent. Based on several reports I have read it appers that the "cabbie" involved in the altercation started the fight and Kennedy responded to a racial slur against assistant coach Torrey Ward, who is black.

Obviously there are many sides to this story, and I have no idea whats true or not. But until the court proves otherwise, I will take the side of the OM coaching staff instead of Mohammed Ould Jiddou.

One interesting note is that the police report states Bill Armstrong was kicked out of The Lodge Bar however the general manager denied this story.

All in all the Rebs were going to get killed with or without their head coach tonight.

(Clarion Ledger)Ole Miss men’s basketball coach Andy Kennedy, who was arrested this morning in Cincinnati, will coach tonight in the Rebels’ nationally televised game against ninth-ranked Louisville in Cincinnati, a school spokesman said. Kennedy, 40, was arrested at 1:45 a.m. today, accused of attacking a taxi driver and shouting racial slurs in downtown Cincinnati, according to a Cincinnati police report.Bill Armstrong, the director of Ole Miss basketball operations, was also arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, according to police reports.A UM spokesman said that Kennedy met this morning with athletic director Pete Boone to discuss the incident and that Kennedy is scheduled to be on the sidelines when Ole Miss faces Louisville in the SEC/Big East Challenge at 8 p.m at U.S. Bank Arena. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN. The spokesman said the university would release a statement about Kennedy later today.According to police and court documents, Armstrong was “intoxicated and ejected” from the Lodge Bar in downtown Cincinnati.Alex Moller, who identified himself as the general manager of the Lodge Bar, disputed the police report when reached by telephone today.“The reports that they were kicked out are untrue,” said Moller. “They were here, but they left on good terms. As for what happened after they left the bar, I don’t know, but there was no incident here.”After leaving the bar, Armstrong and Kennedy got into a cab. That’s when, according to police reports, Armstrong taunted the driver, “in which his conduct was likely to cause a violent response.”Police reports also say that Kennedy “was the aggressor” and punched driver Mohammed Ould Jiddou and used “racial slurs.”According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Kennedy has hired attorney Mike Allen to represent him. Allen is the former Hamilton County Prosecutor, which is where Cincinnati is located.Allen entered a not guilty plea on behalf of his client this morning, the newspaper reported. In the report, he said Kennedy “emphatically denies this and emphatically denies making any racial slurs.”Steve Kennedy, Andy’s brother, said he has not talked to his brother yet but has spoken with family members, including Andy Kennedy’s wife Kimber. “This is one of the most unfair situations we’ve ever seen,” Steve Kennedy said. “Andy’s still got a lot of friends in Cincinnati that are going to help him fight this.”

Two Rebs Named First Team All American by AP

2008-12-16T18:20:00.000-08:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. -- Ole Miss' Peria Jerry and Michael Oher were both honored as First Team All-Americans today, as the Associated Press released its college football All-America teams. It marks the first year in school history to have two Rebels selected to the AP first team.
In addition, Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt was named one of eight finalists for the Paul “Bear” Bryant College Football Coach of the Year award, as announced by the Bryant Awards committee of the American Heart Association. The winner will be voted on by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association (NSSA) and named live at an awards dinner benefiting the American Heart Association on Jan. 15, 2009 at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Houston.
Other finalists include Mack Brown, Texas; Turner Gill, Buffalo; Mike Leach, Texas Tech; Chris Petersen, Boise State; Nick Saban, Alabama; Bob Stoops, Oklahoma and Kyle Whittingham, Utah.
Nutt, who was honored as SEC Coach of the Year by the AP last week, was also recently chosen as the AFCA Region 2 Coach of the Year. This marks the fifth time in Nutt's career to earn region top coaching honors from the American Football Coaches Association.
Jerry, a senior defensive tackle, picks up First Team All-America distinction for the first time in his career. The Batesville, Miss., native had been chosen to the Rivals second team earlier this month. Jerry was a four-time SEC Player of the Week honoree and tops the conference in tackles for loss.
Oher has been a consensus First Team All-American offensive tackle this postseason. Led by the senior from Memphis, the Ole Miss line ranks fourth in the SEC in fewest sacks and has helped the Rebels' rushing offense pile up the third-most yards on the ground.

Going to the Big D!

2008-12-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

It's Going to Be a Long Year

2008-12-03T20:22:00.000-08:00

The Ole Miss basketball team and their fans are in for a long year. This team is so up and down it is incredible. They played well for about 12 minutes combined tonight, but a basketball game last 40. They absolutely blew it in the end. A missed free throw and a dribble off the leg in the last minute are not going to get you anywhere. I felt like we should gone without a timeout at the end, but what do I know.

Aside from Huertas(who has improved) and Warren, this team has noone. And in the games I have seen Warren has taken a slight step back. It looks like Barnes talent out there aside from those two. The loss of Polynice and Gaskins hurt extremely bad, but we have been told our recruiting has been up so we should be able to fill those holes.

Don't get me wrong I really like AK. But he has to figure out how to win without Gaskins and Polynice.

Maybe I'm just mad about this loss, but it doesn't look good for the Rebs.

Are You Kidding Me

2008-12-02T20:08:00.001-08:00

The Conerly Trophy, for the most valuable player in Mississippi, was announced tonight and awarded to Juan Joseph of Millsaps. The Millsaps quarterback won the award ahead of Ole Miss players Michael Oher and Peria Jerry, both all SEC lineman. I am not going to get too deep into this, because I am sure Joseph is a great player. But you can't tell me a QB from some Division III school is a better player than Peria Jerry or Michael Oher. I mean this guy goes to Millsaps. Half of the people that comment on this website could have played and started for Millsaps. Peria Jerry was the most dominant player I have seen at Ole Miss in quite sometime. He is without a doubt one of the best SEC lineman in the past few years. I just lost all respect for this award.

I hope they make these media votes public. Because I would love to know how some of these guys voted.

(Clariion Ledger)CLARKSDALE — Millsaps quarterback Juan Joseph capped a stellar small-college career tonight with one more surprising victory — in the voting for the Cellular South Conerly Trophy. Joseph won the award, representative of the best college football player in Mississippi, over a pair of projected NFL first-round draft choices from Ole Miss, defensive tackle Peria Jerry and offensive tackle Michael Oher.Although two players from Division II Delta State have won the award, Joseph is the first player from the NCAA’s lowest level (Division III, where athletic scholarships are not awarded) to win in the trophy’s 13-year existence.A senior from Edgard, La., Joseph led Millsaps to an 11-1 record this season. The Majors were ranked as high as No. 3 nationally in one Division III poll and reached the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs, where the Majors lost 35-20 last Saturday to Washington and Jefferson College.Joseph led Millsaps in rushing with 76 carries for 412 yards and four touchdowns and he completed nearly 68 percent of his passes (301 for 445), for 3,463 yards, 32 TDs and only six interceptions.A panel of about 60 media representatives around the state voted on the award, which was handed out following a ceremony at Clarksdale Country Club in the hometown of Charlie Conerly, the former Ole Miss quarterback for whom the award is named.

The Waiting Game

2008-12-01T19:30:00.000-08:00

It appears no decision is going to be made until Sunday morning on the future of the Ole Miss football season. UGASports is reporting that Florida Citrus Sports spokesman Greg Creese said a final vote will not be taken until Sunday on who will play in the Capital One Bowl.

While I feel strongly that it will be the Cotton Bowl for the Rebs, there is still a small possibility the Rebels could play in Orlando on New Years Day.

All I know is the Rebel nation is fired up and everyone I talk to is going to the bowl game. Whether its Dallas or Orlando it looks like there will be alot of Rebels there.

Thoughts........

2008-11-30T20:30:00.000-08:00

The Weekend That Was

2008-11-24T18:23:00.000-08:00

On the Magnolia Bowl:It was one of the most fun games I have ever been to. The Rebels pretty much dominated the whole game, aside from when Snead appeared to be hurt towards the end of the first half, I felt pretty good. Peria Jerry continues to be the most dominate player at Ole Miss in quite sometime. That is really a guy that we are going to miss next year. He clogs up the middle better than anyone in the SEC and dominates the offensive front of the opposing team. Hard to argue that he is not an All American. Also outstanding play from Kendrick Lewis last weekend. I thought he brought his A game and when not catching passes he was throwing some hard licks on defense.Bottom line this was the most sound game a Rebel team has played in several years. And I loved every minute of it. Congrats to Houston and staff.

On the Egg Bowl: As it is an instate rival, you can throw all the records out the window. Bottom line if the Rebels show up to play we win. I think that Ole Miss is more talented that the Bulldog$ and should show up. I think Houston will have this team ready. Don't get me wrong, I will be nervous to the very end, and am not taking this game lightly. One thing I do know if we do win, we will not put up billboards across the state like some classless teams may do.

On the Bowl Season: Win and the Rebels probably play in the Cotton or Outback. Lose and the Rebels play in Peach or Music City. While I would to have the honor again of going to the historic Cotton Bowl, I am afraid of what may happen if we do. A Big 12 matchup does not pose well for the Rebels. My first hope is Outback but understand it is a stretch. On the flip side if we mess around and lose to the Bulldog$, I think the Rebels will go to the Peach. I don't buy this argument that the Peach does not want Ole Miss. Let me restate, lets don't look past the $tate game.

On Houston Nutt: Man what a great addition this guy is to the University of Mississippi. He brought more life back to the Rebel fan base than I thought he could in one year. He has done great things with this team, and they all seem to love him. Thank you Arkansas. I will tell you this if our athletic department screws around and messes something up with him, I will personally lead the charge for an administration change. We should all demand immediately lynching.

On the Fans: Most of you know my opinion of the Ole Miss fanbase this year. But there is no excuse we should not have the stadium full on Friday(while we are on it, this game should move this game back to Saturday). The RoadRebels in Baton Rouge were awesome. It was a great crowd, and I was very proud to be a part of it. Glad to see everyone supporting the team. I don't care where you have Turkey on Thursday, most do not have work, so get to the game.(Rebel or Bulldog)

Couple of Rebs Pick Up Honors

2008-11-24T18:21:00.000-08:00

(UMAA)BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- For only the second time since the Southeastern Conference began handing out Players of the Week awards in 1983, Ole Miss has two selections from one game, as Peria Jerry and Daverin Geralds are this week's defensive line and offensive line honorees, respectively, the league office announced today.

Jerry becomes only the second Rebel to receive weekly accolades from the conference three times in one season, as he also earned defensive line distinction following the Arkansas and Vanderbilt games. Running back Randy Baldwin was also a three-time honoree for Ole Miss in 1990.

A senior tackle from Batesville, Miss., Jerry accounted for three total tackles with 2.5 TFLs, including a sack in Ole Miss’ 31-13 win at No. 18 LSU Saturday. Jerry helped the Rebels limit the Tigers to just 37 rushing yards on 29 attempts and sacked LSU quarterbacks four times.

An All-American candidate, Jerry is second in the SEC in tackles for loss, with 13 in 10 games played and boasts four sacks. He captains an Ole Miss defense that ranks second in the nation in TFLs (8.36 pg) and ninth in rushing yards allowed (97.4 ypg), which is second-best in the SEC.

Geralds' Player of the Week selection is the first of his career and gives the Rebels an offensive lineman honoree for the third straight game, as Maurice Miller took home POW accolades following the Auburn game and Michael Oher after ULM.

A junior center from Baton Rouge, Geralds returned home to grade out at 88 percent with eight knockdown blocks and 12 finishes against LSU. The Rebels gained 409 total offensive yards and kept the ball for 34:38 against the Tigers.

In the final quarter, Geralds and the Ole Miss offense kept the ball for 10:01, and in five scoring drives, the Rebels averaged 7.6 plays and 69 yards per drive.
After beginning his career on the defensive front, Geralds shifted to the offensive line midway through the 2007 campaign and has started every game at center this season. He has helped Ole Miss rank third in the SEC in rushing offense (180.1 ypg) and fourth in fewest sacks allowed (1.36 pg) this year.

The last time Ole Miss had two SEC Players of the Week from the same game was 1991, when kicker Brian Lee and defensive tackle Chad Brown were distinguished following the 22-3 season-opening win over Tulane. The Rebels have garnered seven weekly awards from the conference this season.

Ole Miss (7-4, 4-3 SEC) closes out the regular season Friday against Mississippi State (4-7, 2-5) in the 81st Battle for the Golden Egg and the 105th meeting in the series, which the Rebels lead 59-39-6. The game will be televised by Raycom Sports with kickoff set for 11:30 a.m. CT from Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Huge Blow For Rebels

2008-11-18T17:40:00.000-08:00

Combining the loss of Trevor Gaskins and Eniel Polynice is a huge blow for the Rebel basketball team. Pre-season this was looking like it could be a pretty good season for the Rebs. But the loss of two of the top players will truly hurt the Rebels this year. It is going to be hard to recover.

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss men’s basketball team lost a key member of its backcourt for the second time in less than two weeks when the team learned Tuesday that starting junior guard Eniel Polynice will miss the remainder of the season following knee surgery.

Polynice had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Tuesday. The procedure was a follow-up to an initial injury at the end of last season, when he missed the Rebels’ first-round NIT game against UC Santa Barbara.

“The surgery consisted of an articular cartilage transplant, removal of loose fragments and addressing a torn lateral meniscus,” said surgeon William Geissler of the University of Mississippi Medical Center. “He will be in rehabilitation and out of play for the next four to six months.”

In his third season as a member of the Rebels, Polynice was expected to be one of the primary pieces of a Rebel backcourt touted by at least one publication (Blue Ribbon Yearbook) as the best in the Southeastern Conference. The Sarasota, Fla., native averaged 10.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 34 games last year, including 31 starts. Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy has routinely called Polynice the team’s best perimeter defender, as well.

“Anytime a team loses its most experienced player, there will obviously be adjustments that have to be made,” said Kennedy. “I feel bad for EP because I know how hard he worked in preparing for his junior year. The season-ending surgery was necessary to ensure his future as an athlete. We will apply for a medical redshirt, which we feel confident he will get. His loss creates a great opportunity for our young players.”

The news comes just 11 days after the team found out that sophomore guard Trevor Gaskins, an SEC All-Freshman pick a year ago, would be lost for the year after suffering an ACL tear in his left knee.

Five scholarship guards remain on the Rebels’ roster, including Preseason All-SEC first team point guard Chris Warren, junior David Huertas, sophomore Zach Graham and freshmen Will Bogan and Terrico White.

The Rebels will take their thinned-out roster into a non-league clash with South Alabama tonight at 7 p.m. at Tad Smith Coliseum.

A LEGEND RETURNS

2008-11-13T08:12:00.000-08:00

OXFORD — When the whistle blows on Friday night, signalling the first timeout of the game between Ole Miss and Arkansas State, the Rebels' student managers will scurry around the team, arranging chairs, grabbing towels and filling water cups.And a 41-year-old man with salt-and-pepper hair will be among them.His role will be slightly different, listening in on the huddle talk and offering some occasional encouragement. But mostly he'll try to stay in the background, listen and learn, blending in with the rest of the managers.And that's just fine with Gerald Glass, who's had his time in the spotlight at Tad Smith Coliseum. These days, he's happy to go unnoticed."I'll just soak it all up," Glass said. "Basketball's my passion. It's what I love. To have this opportunity is unbelievable and something I couldn't refuse."Nearly 20 years after averaging 26.1 points per game during a terrific two-year career at Ole Miss, Glass has returned to Oxford to finish his undergraduate degree."It's time for me to get that paper," Glass said.And to help pay for the final 42 credit hours he needs to complete his criminal justice major, Glass is on scholarship as an undergraduate manager for the basketball team.He and Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy are contemporaries from their playing days (Kennedy played at UAB) and even toured together on the same NIT All-Star team that played for a few weeks around Europe in 1989.So when Kennedy heard Glass was looking to finish his degree, he jumped at the chance to get him on staff."It's great to have a guy that's not only talked the talk but walked the walk," Kennedy said. "All these kids want to play in the NBA and think they're first-round picks. Gerald's been there, done that and can offer our kids some perspective on a variety of issues."Glass was taken by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 20th overall pick in the 1990 NBA draft. He played in the NBA for four seasons and spent several more overseas before coming home to Mississippi in 1999 and finding that life without "that paper" made things difficult.First, it was a stint in Jackson where he managed rental properties. Then, he moved down to Port Gibson where he worked at a casino for four years. They weren't bad jobs, but they certainly weren't fulfilling."It paid the bills," Glass said. "But I missed basketball. And I couldn't get a coaching job at any level without getting that paper - that degree."Most of the current Ole Miss players were in diapers when Glass was playing in the SEC, but even though he's old enough to be their dad, his easygoing personality has meshed well with the team.Sophomore Zach Graham said the connection with Glass was instant and players constantly pick his brain about what life was like in the NBA."He's a great presence on the court," Graham said. "We sit and talk to him about the Timberwolves or sometimes we just talk about life. He's exactly like us, just older."While basketball is certainly a major part of his life these days, Glass is also having to take a heavy class load so he can be done by his target date of August. He has a small apartment in Oxford, but his wife - the former Jackie Martin, who was also a star basketball player at Ole Miss - and two sons, 12-year-old Gerald Jr. and 8-year-old Jalen have stayed back in Port Gibson. Being away has been tough.Gerald Jr. is only in seventh grade but already is over 6 feet tall and wears a size 13 shoe. Considering his pedigree, his dad has little doubt he'll be an outstanding basketball player someday.But he also wants him to know that should basketball not work out, there's other ways to make a living. And it's a lot easier if you've got that paper."I've always wanted to be an example to my kids," Glass said. "Being away from them is tough, but the cause is worth it."

Listen Up!

2008-10-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

Below is an article from the Clarion Ledger focusing on the atmosphere at Ole Miss football games. This is something I have been meaning to write about for quite sometime. It is a topic that I can ramble on and get fired up about, but I will try and keep it to a minimum.

Bottom line, I am sick of three types of Ole Miss fans.

1) The student and younger population that goes to the games and do not even pay attention to the games. Most of these just go to the game to drink and don't even care if we win or lose.

2) The population of people that come to Oxford just to go to the Grove and not the game. Many of these so called "fans" do not even step foot in Vaught Hemingway stadium until well into the first quarter if at all. A large portion of them stay in the Grove and have no concern whatsoever about the game going on. I really wish these people would not come to Oxford at all. All they do is make the Grove more crowded than it needs to be. (I understand there are plenty of females out there that do not enjoy football and have no desire to go the game, this is not the segment of people I am talking to)

3) The larger portion of Ole Miss fans who do not get involved with the game. I have been to home and away games before and seen this contingent of mainly older Ole Miss fans who do not want people around them to yell, stand up, etc. I understand that some people can not stand up during the whole game and try to be respectful of those around me that can not. But there is no reason you should be at a game and not be cheering for your team on a third and one.

While I am done segmenting our fan base, I would like to point out the fair weather fans. To have less than 55,000 people at a home SEC game is absolutely ridiculous. The amount of fans that live within a 3 hour drive of Oxford is very high. There is no reason in the world we can not get 60,000 people at a game.

I'm not asking everyone to be a fanatic like myself, I truly understand that everyone does not have the same emotion I have with Ole Miss. But I am asking those "fans" to get to the game, be loud, have fun...and then we can party in the Grove afterwards. But support the team first.

Finally, for those of you that have read this blog since the beginning, you know my hatred of the the game day management, marketing groups involved with Ole Miss athletics. This year we install a multi million dollar jumbotron, yet we get no improvement in animations with the new addition. Yeah, they have put together some cool videos of old plays, the band, etc. and that's great. But this does nothing to fire up the fans. The video board and new speakers should be a huge asset to the game day experience, but it is not used at all. It is absolutely pathetic. In addition, the band has done the same boring routine they have used since I have been alive and for the most part it is boring. Nine times out of ten the band, cheerleaders, and video board are not in sync, and it looks like a catastrophe. Nothing irritates me more when the opposing team gets louder in our stadium while our band and cheerleaders just sit and look at them.

It's time for new blood at Ole Miss. Out with the boys who played for Vaught and in with the new. It's time for a change.

I told you I would ramble.....

(C-L)OXFORD — Want to know why Ole Miss has a six-game home losing streak in the Southeastern Conference? Well - senior fullback Jason Cook has a theory for at least part of the problem.

And here's a little warning Rebels fans: brace yourselves. Because Cook, who's one of four team captains, wasn't afraid to step on some toes Monday afternoon.

"I've boiled it down to two groups of fans," Cook said. "You're gonna have fans that are really about the game and you're gonna have the fans that are there for the social atmosphere and the cocktail party, so to speak."

Ole Miss has long been known for its parties in the Grove, both pre-and postgame. And while Cook said there's nothing wrong with that, there's a feeling among the players that the party often means more than the game.

And for once, Cook would like those two priorities switched when Ole Miss (4-4, 2-3 SEC) hosts Auburn (4-4, 2-3) at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. It's the first game with serious bowl implications for the Rebels in years.

"Am I saying that's the reason we don't win games? Not at all," Cook said. "We're the ones making plays on the field. We're the ones out there sweating and bleeding. But it means a lot when your fans are behind you the entire time, in every play, screaming for you as opposed to just enjoying themselves."

In what has amounted to an uneven season for the Ole Miss football team, the Rebels have gained quite the reputation for going on the road in hostile environments and pulling off victories.

It's happened twice already. The first was against then No. 4-ranked Florida with a shocking 31-30 victory in the famed Swamp, and it happened again Saturday, when a raucous Arkansas crowd booed their former coach Houston Nutt without mercy, but the Rebels led their new leader to a 23-21 win in Fayetteville.

Before that Arkansas game, Cook said he had no doubt the team was ready to play because the stadium was packed with 74,168 fans who's energy and focus were palpable for both teams.

"It was a sight for us captains as we were standing on the field before the game to see the guys standing, locked up and swaying (in the tunnel before coming onto the field)," Cook said. "You could just see them feeding off the negativity."

The problem is this: Ole Miss won't have those negative vibes to feed off of when Auburn comes to town. Instead, Nutt hopes the team can learn to focus on the positive aspects of playing in front of 50,000 to 60,000 fans who actually like them.

"The one thing we feel is we really owe our home fans a ballgame," Nutt said. "Four quarters, 60 minutes. We've let some games slip here and it's hard to get out of my mind."

And Auburn would appear to be a team ripe for the taking come Saturday. The Tigers have lost four of their past five games while the coaching staff - led by former Ole Miss coach Tommy Tuberville - has been under constant scrutiny.

But Auburn has always been a tough mystery for the Rebels to solve in Oxford. The Tigers have an 8-1 all-time record at Vaught-Hemingway while Tuberville is 4-0 against his former employer.

Numbers aside, Cook says this is a different Ole Miss team - one that's playing meaningful football in November for the first time in a while. And he hopes the fans have the same sense of urgency come Saturday.

"A man who's got a purpose and plays with a purpose is a very dangerous man," Cook said

Article from Mobile Press Register

2008-10-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

(AL.com)TUSCALOOSA — Of his latest date with Ole Miss, Alabama senior quarterback John Parker Wilson's best remembers a pair of high-heeled shoes.

Bright red and strewn behind the end zone at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, they were a unique symbol of football craziness in the Deep South, one that defied any reasonable explanation beyond the final score.

"It was the girls' shoes that really stuck with me," Wilson said. "I couldn't believe it. We've had stuff thrown on us, but not shoes."

When second-ranked Alabama (6-0, 3-0 SEC) relives its long-standing rivalry with Ole Miss (3-3, 1-2) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium, be warned that strange things can happen.

It's a wild series not shy on history despite its overwhelmingly one-sided nature. The Crimson Tide is 22-1 all-time against the Rebels in Tuscaloosa, but that one defeat — a 22-12 decision in 1988 — led to a tale of a brick being thrown through former coach Bill Curry's office window.

Alabama has since won 15 of the past 17 meetings and boasts a current four-game winning streak. The past three victories, however, have each been thrilling three-point games not decided until the final seconds.

Jamie Christensen booted a game-winning 31-yard field goal in Oxford in 2005. Alabama scored a touchdown for an overtime victory in 2006. And then there was last year's melee. Referees overturned a 41-yard, fourth-down completion with seven seconds to play. Replay officials ruled that Ole Miss receiver Shay Hodge stepped out of bounds before wrestling the ball from former Crimson Tide cornerback Lionel Mitchell.

Home fans were not amused, and Alabama players donned helmets and raced to the locker room with a 27-24 victory.

"It was just a rough place to be in," Crimson Tide tailback Glen Coffee said.

Such memories make an unmistakable caution flag for Alabama, which senses the danger as it chases national and conference title hopes.

"Everybody knows Ole Miss can play," defensive end Lorenzo Washington said.

"They're no pushover team. Everybody has their mind right coming off the break."

Alabama coach Nick Saban liked the timing of last week's bye, because it gave his team a chance to recharge emotionally as much as physically. Indeed, not one player missed practice Monday because of injury.

The same can be said for a healthy Ole Miss, which was also idle last week.

"Strategically, this landed right for us," Saban said. "But we'll see what kind of advantage it is relative to how we go out and play. There are those who would say if you're playing well and have good momentum in the season, you'd rather keep playing."

In preparing for these Rebels, the Crimson Tide's defense has actually spent more time examining tape of Arkansas. Houston Nutt left Arkansas this past offseason to take over at Ole Miss, where Saban has noticed clear "similarities in the kicking game and similarities in things that they do on offense."

"It's the exact same thing," Alabama cornerback Javier Arenas said. "We watched film of Houston Nutt when he was at Arkansas and the plays that they ran against us last year. Then coach will flip on the play from this year and Ole Miss and it will be the exact same play."

Nutt's one conference victory to date at Ole Miss came against what was the nation's No. 4-ranked team. It shouldn't have been so surprising. By winning at Florida 31-30 on Sept. 27, Nutt improved to 5-7 all-time against top-five opponents.

Nutt has now beaten two top-five teams in a row. The Razorbacks edged then-No. 1 LSU in three overtimes late last season.

"In the Florida week, we just had an attitude of knowing that no one was going to give us a chance anyway, so we went in there relaxed and poised and ready to execute the game plan," Ole Miss center Daverin Geralds said. "That's what we did pretty much, and we ended up being successful. That's the attitude we had this last week."

The first year at Ole Miss hasn't been without growing pains for Nutt and his staff. Coupled with the Florida upset — which earned the cover of Sports Illustrated — were home defeats to Vanderbilt and South Carolina.

Nutt's physical diet of run-first football and field position has been hampered by a minus-6 turnover margin and a time of possession total ranking 11th in the SEC.

In fact, Alabama has actually used that formula far better than Ole Miss this year, leading the SEC in both rushing offense and defense.

"I know we're going to be able to get ours though, in time," Nutt said of his team's offensive progression. "There's no question in my mind, where we're located, the facilities that we have, it's not going to take us long. But I'm used to seeing our name up there as the No. 1 rushing team."

Just In Case You Missed It

2008-10-14T10:34:00.000-07:00

One of our long time followers and readers was recently quoted at a M$U football game. Hear his comments below:

http://sportjox.com/articles.php?vid=682

Marshay Sums It Up Best

2008-10-05T20:00:00.001-07:00

"Everyone hates to lose, but the way we are losing is even tougher. We aren't playing teams that are better than us. Sometimes that is easier to accept, that a team is just better. We are beating ourselves against teams we know we are as good as. That hurts worse."

New SI Cover

2008-09-30T10:39:00.000-07:00

Has John McCain Lost His Mind??

2008-09-24T20:09:00.000-07:00

Someone on his staff should be fired.

Roundball Schedule Released

2008-09-23T19:30:00.000-07:00

Fri, Oct 31 North Alabama (Exhibition) Oxford, Miss. 4:00 p.m.
Fri, Nov 14 Arkansas State Oxford, Miss. TBA
Tue, Nov 18 South Alabama Oxford, Miss. TBA
Fri, Nov 21 Utah at Daytona Beach, Fla. 5:30 p.m.
Sun, Nov 23 Marshall at Daytona Beach, Fla. 3:00 p.m.
Wed, Nov 26 UCF Oxford, Miss. TBA
Sat, Nov 29 Morgan State Oxford, Miss. 1:00 p.m.
Wed, Dec 03 West Virginia Oxford, Miss. TBA
Sat, Dec 06 New Orleans at New Orleans, La. TBA
Sat, Dec 13 New Mexico at Albuquerque, N.M. TBA
Mon, Dec 15 Alabama State Oxford, Miss. TBA
Thu, Dec 18 Louisville at Cincinnati, Ohio 8:00 p.m. ESPN
Mon, Dec 22 Florida A&M Oxford, Miss. TBA
Tue, Dec 30 Southern Miss at Biloxi, Miss. TBA
Sat, Jan 03 Nicholls Oxford, Miss. TBA
Sat, Jan 10 Florida * at Gainesville, Fla. 5:00 p.m. FSN
Wed, Jan 14 Arkansas * Oxford, Miss. TBA
Sat, Jan 17 LSU * Oxford, Miss. 3:00 p.m. Raycom
Wed, Jan 21 Alabama * at Tuscaloosa, Ala. TBA
Sat, Jan 24 South Carolina * at Columbia, S.C. 7:00 p.m. FSN
Tue, Jan 27 Kentucky * Oxford, Miss. 6:00 p.m. ESPN
Sat, Jan 31 Mississippi State * at Starkville, Miss. 12:00 p.m. Raycom
Wed, Feb 04 Auburn * Oxford, Miss. TBA
Sat, Feb 07 Vanderbilt * at Nashville, Tenn. 12:00 p.m. CBS
Sat, Feb 14 LSU * at Baton Rouge, La. 6:00 p.m. FSN
Wed, Feb 18 Tennessee * Oxford, Miss. 7:00 p.m. Raycom
Sat, Feb 21 Georgia * Oxford, Miss. 4:00 p.m. FSN
Wed, Feb 25 Auburn * at Auburn, Ala. TBA
Sat, Feb 28 Alabama * Oxford, Miss. 3:00 p.m. Raycom
Wed, Mar 04 Arkansas * at Fayetteville, Ark. TBA
Sat, Mar 07 Mississippi State * Oxford, Miss. TBA

Rebs Set to Make First 11:30 Kick-off at Florida

2008-09-15T19:17:00.001-07:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. -- The Sept. 27 Ole Miss-Florida game is set for an 11:30 a.m. CT kickoff in Gainesville and will be televised by Raycom Sports, as announced today by the SEC office.

This will mark the Rebels' second TV game of the year and 162nd all-time since making their network TV debut in the 1953 Sugar Bowl versus Georgia Tech. A total of 78 Ole Miss games have been on TV over the past 12 seasons.

The Rebels (2-1) open conference play this week with Vanderbilt at home, while the fourth-ranked Gators travel to Tennessee. Ole Miss leads the all-time series with Florida 11-10-1, including a 5-3-1 record in the Swamp. The Rebels have won two of the last three meetings.

Ingram Suspended for Vandy Game

2008-09-14T19:11:00.000-07:00

(Clarion Ledger)

Ole Miss safety Fon Ingram has been suspended one week “for breaking team rules and will not play against Vanderbilt” after being arrested and charged with driving under the influence and careless driving early Sunday morning.

Coach Houston Nutt was not immediately available for comment.

Oxford police confirmed Sunday afternoon that Fonterrian Ingram was arrested at 1:25 a.m. A full report was not yet available.

Ingram, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound sophomore, has played on the second team this season, backing up senior Jamarca Sanford. He had a season-high four tackles against Samford on Saturday.

Ole Miss (2-1) will face Vanderbilt (3-0) at 6 p.m. on Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Rebs Add More Bulldogs to Future Schedule

2008-09-10T18:04:00.000-07:00

OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss Athletics Director Pete Boone announced Wednesday a three-game football series with Fresno State University, which will mark the first gridiron meetings between the two schools.

The first game is scheduled for Oxford on Sept. 25, 2010, while Ole Miss will then return the game to Fresno, Calif., on Oct. 1, 2011. The final game of the series will be in Oxford in 2015, with the date yet to be determined.

“We are excited about adding Fresno State to our non-conference schedule,” Boone said. “Fresno State has a great tradition in football and Coach Pat Hill continues to keep the Bulldogs competitive on the national scene. I anticipate three hard-fought games, and the 2011 season will also provide a great trip to the West Coast for our fans.”

Currently a member of the Western Athletic Conference, Fresno State has won a total of 23 league titles, including three WAC crowns, and participated in 21 bowl games.

Its Been A While

2008-09-02T20:02:00.000-07:00

Well its been a while since a new post has been made, and it might be a while before another as we figure out the future of the blog. However, I would like to make a few comments on the weekend.

The Rebels performed well. While there were a few areas that showed need for improvement, overall I was very satisfied with this first game. The offense showed signs of promise and was very exciting to watch. I love the Wild Rebel and I love our new running backs. This is going to be a fun season to watch the offense. The defense has some gaps and we need our starters back. They did hold Memphis for much of the game, but the big men are needed back on the line. All in all great game and glad to have excitement in Oxford back. The upcoming game against Wake Forest will be extremely tough. Wake is a good team and going on the road is never easy, especially while having to dodge a hurricane. It is going to be tough for the Rebels to pull this one off. As far as the season goes I see the Rebels going 6-6 or 7-5 and if they can do this it will be a major accomplishment for the Nutt. In order to do this he absolutely must start the season 3-1.

The atmosphere at the game was great. The athletic department made a great move in moving all games to night games. The stadium has so much more energy and overall it makes it just a great day. A new video board addition to the stadium was outstanding. I will admit I did not think they could pull it off by the first game, but the production staff did a very good job. Some might disagree with me on this statement, but in my opinion the Elvis concert shown at the end of the game was outstanding. Whoever had this idea should be given a raise. I thought it was awesome.

Finally, Oxford has changed for the better. Two new additions to the Oxford square added great entertainment for the weekend. Rooster Blues House on the Ajax side of the Square is a welcomed addition. The two story restaurant and blues hall filled a gap that was needed. It is a large venue with live blues every night. It really is a neat place. And finally the remodeling of The Lyric into a music hall/bar is a huge addition to the Square. This place is awesome and remarkably large. The talent they have lined up to perform brings great bands to Oxford over the coming months, and have already brought national acts in the short time they have been opened. I encourage everyone to stop by next time in Oxford.

Freshman Makes a Statement

2008-09-02T20:01:00.000-07:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. – After helping Ole Miss defeat Memphis 41-24 Saturday, Rebel running back Brandon Bolden was named SEC Freshman of the Week Tuesday, as announced by the league office.
Bolden led the team in rushing in his collegiate debut, racking up 76 yards on eight carries and breaking several tackles in a 10-yard touchdown run. He also completed a 37-yard pass to Jevan Snead.
A native of Baton Rouge, La., Bolden came to Ole Miss from Scotlandville Magnet High School, where he rushed for 866 yards and 12 TDs and caught 12 passes for 256 yards as a senior. He was ranked the No. 21 player in Louisiana and No. 34 RB in the nation by Rivals.com.
Bolden becomes the first Rebel to be chosen SEC Freshman of the Week since 2006, when both Dexter McCluster and Marshay Green received the honor.

Good Deal for the SEC

2008-08-25T20:24:00.001-07:00

And by the way there will still be 11:30 kickoffs with this new deal.

(AL.com)Starting next season, SEC football games will find a home on ESPNU and ESPN Regional Television, in addition to ESPN, ESPN2 and CBS.
As part of the SEC's 15-year, $2.25 billion deal with ESPN, at least 20 SEC games annually will be televised on ESPN and ESPN2, including Saturday night and two primetime Thursday games. ESPNU will show a minimum of 13 games, generally in primetime on Saturday. ESPN Regional Television will feature at least 13 games each Saturday as a syndicator, generally at 11:30 a.m.
Live games will be simulcast on ESPN Mobile TV and ESPN360.com.
In men's basketball, the SEC Tournament semifinals and championship will move to ABC, a sister network of ESPN. It's the first time ABC will show conference basketball tournaments.
An ESPN outlet will show every SEC conference game, excluding those on CBS, and numerous out-of-conference games. ESPN and ESPN2 will triple their offerings of the SEC by featuring the conference three nights per week, with a minimum of 24 conference games and six non-conference games each season.
The SEC will continue to have a Tuesday slot on ESPN plus appearances on Thursday and Saturday (ESPN or ESPN2). ESPNU will televise a minimum of seven conference games and five non-conference games. ESPN Regional Television will syndicate a minimum of 37 conference games and the first two rounds of the SEC Tournament.
The deal also includes at least three regular season SEC baseball or softball games on ESPN or ESPN2, and three regular-season gymnastics matches. The SEC championships in gymnastics, baseball and softball will be televised.
ESPNU will show at least 25 regular-season events from sports such as baseball, softball, volleyball, gymnastics, soccer, swimming and diving, and track and field.

Moo U

2008-08-20T18:25:00.001-07:00

Another One Bites the Dust

2008-08-18T20:33:00.000-07:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. - Following an MRI in the morning that showed a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee, Ole Miss senior defensive tackle Peria Jerry underwent arthroscopic surgery Monday afternoon to repair the cartilage. The procedure was performed at the Oxford Surgery Center, and rehab started immediately. There is no timetable for his return, according to Ole Miss head athletic trainer Tim Mullins.”We’re thankful a ligament was not involved, and we’re glad Peria will be back this season,” said Rebel head coach Houston Nutt. “We’ve had a bad injury bug to our defensive line this preseason. Fortunately, we feel none of the injuries have been season ending, and we’re looking forward to getting everyone back.”A native of Batesville, Miss., Jerry missed time earlier this preseason with an unrelated injury to his right knee, and had returned to the practice field on Thursday. A preseason All-America honoree by Phil Steele, Jerry is on watch lists for the Nagurski Trophy and Outland Trophy and was rated the nation’s No. 1 senior defensive tackle by Pro Football Weekly.

One of Rebel's Best Out for Possibly Two Months

2008-08-11T19:23:00.000-07:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss junior defensive end Greg Hardy underwent outpatient surgery Monday afternoon on his right foot to repair a stress fracture in his fifth metatarsal.
The procedure was performed at the Oxford Surgery Center, and the Millington, Tenn., native is expected to miss six to eight weeks of action, according to Ole Miss head athletic trainer Tim Mullins.
“It’s an unfortunate setback for Greg, but we’re glad the surgery went well and he can begin his recovery,” said Rebel head coach Houston Nutt. “We look forward to getting him back on the field later this season.”
Hardy has earned preseason All-America honors from several media outlets and was named to watch lists for the Rotary Lombardi Award, Nagurski Trophy and Hendricks Award. Last year, he topped the SEC in sacks (10.0) and ranked second in TFLs (18.5).

Not a Great Start to the Nutt Era

2008-08-11T19:12:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure I have ever seen this many injuries a week into practice of which only one day was in full pads. What causes this? Is it just a bunch of freak incidents? Were they not training well? Bad Luck? What? This just seems to be more injuries than I have ever seen in a week of practice:

LB Allen Walker: Knee injury
WR Melvin Harris Broken Foot
LB Lamar Brumfield kidney bruise,
DT Ted Laurent: Knee Surgery
FS Johnny Brown: Hamstring
WR Mike Wallace: Hamstring
DT LaMark Armour: Knee injury
DE Greg Hardy stress fracture in foot
DT Peria Jerry: Knee injury
LB Don Hargroder: Concussion
FS Kendrick Lewis: Ankle injury
LG Reid Neely from Achilles tendon strain.

Has Pete Gone Nutts?

2008-07-29T19:13:00.000-07:00

Pete Boone sure has made some decisions that have made the fans happy over the past couple of months. Wonder what has gotten into him. I love night games, and those 1:00 games the Rebs used to play never made any sense to me.

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. -- Due to expected high temperatures, Ole Miss is announcing a 6 p.m. CST kickoff for the Aug. 30 opener against Memphis and any non-television September home games this season, including the Sept. 13 meeting with Samford.
The Vanderbilt game on Sept. 20 is tentatively set for 6 p.m., pending the announcement of the SEC TV schedule for that week.
"The heat factor played a major role in this decision," said Ole Miss Athletics Director Pete Boone. "We have experienced exceptionally hot weather in Oxford this summer, and we hope to provide as much relief as possible for our fans in the early-season games."

It's Officially Here

2008-07-28T20:10:00.001-07:00

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. - The University of Mississippi announced Monday that Jerrell Powe will be eligible to practice and compete during the upcoming 2008 football season.
Powe, a defensive tackle from Waynesboro, Miss., was permitted to enroll at Ole Miss last year and receive financial aid, but could not practice or compete in order to concentrate on his academic development. Powe has met University academic requirements, has fulfilled NCAA continuing eligibility standards and is now cleared for full participation.
Following completion of Powe's summer academic courses, the University asked the Southeastern Conference office for an interpretation of SEC Bylaw 14.3.2.1 in effect at the time of his enrollment.
The SEC informed the University of the following, "Under SEC legislation in place at the time of Mr. Powe's initial enrollment at the University of Mississippi during the fall semester 2007, a partial qualifier may be deemed eligible after successfully completing an academic year in residence including fulfillment of NCAA progress toward degree requirements. The NCAA's action of September 7, 2007 effectively made Mr. Powe a partial qualifier; therefore, based upon his academic record at the University of Mississippi he is deemed eligible under SEC Bylaws."
"Jerrell has been a student at Ole Miss for the last year, and has met academic requirements as established by the NCAA and the University of Mississippi," said Ole Miss Athletics Director Pete Boone. "We are pleased that Jerrell will now become a student-athlete. It has been a long process and it is now time to move forward."
"We are excited that Jerrell is getting this opportunity and will be able to join the team for preseason practice," said Rebel headcoach Houston Nutt.
Ole Miss will begin preseason drills on Monday, August 4, and will open the 2008 season at home against the University of Memphis.
Statement from Jerrell Powe
“I am deeply grateful to Ole Miss and to the SEC for the opportunity to be admitted here and to prove that I can succeed academically and on the football field. I have always had faith and a plan and both are beginning to show results.
“Through God’s help and help from Ole Miss professors, counselors and coaches, I have successfully completed my first year of school at Ole Miss. However, my journey is just beginning. I have to continue to work hard in the classroom, and I still must prove myself on the football field in the SEC.
“Therefore, I have decided that I don’t deserve to give interviews yet, and that I will not give any interviews until such time as I have proven myself both in the classroom and on the football field. The teachers and the coaches will make that decision for me.
“Thank you for your interest in me. However, there are other Ole Miss student-athletes who are more deserving of your time and interest since they have already proven themselves.
“Thank you and God bless ... Jerrell Powe #57"

AK Announces Schedule

2008-07-22T19:09:00.000-07:00

Nov. 14 Arkansas State Oxford, Miss.
Nov. 18 South Alabama Oxford, Miss.
Nov. 21-23 Glenn Wilkes Classic Daytona Beach, Fla.
Nov. 26 Morgan State Oxford, Miss.
Nov. 29 UCF Oxford, Miss.
Dec. 3 West Virginia Oxford, Miss.
Dec. 6 at New Orleans New Orleans, La.
Dec. 13 at New Mexico Albuquerque, N.M.
Dec. 15 Alabama State Oxford, Miss.
Dec. 18 vs. Louisville @ Cincinnati, Ohio
Dec. 22 Florida A&M Oxford, Miss.
Dec. 30 vs. Southern Miss Biloxi, Miss.
Jan. 3 Nicholls State Oxford, Miss.
Jan. 10 at Florida* Gainesville, Fla.
Jan. 14 Arkansas* Oxford, Miss.
Jan. 17 LSU* Oxford, Miss.
Jan. 21 at Alabama* Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Jan. 24 at South Carolina* Columbia, S.C.
Jan. 27 Kentucky* Oxford, Miss.
Jan. 31 at Mississippi State* Starkville, Miss.
Feb. 4 Auburn* Oxford, Miss.
Feb. 7 at Vanderbilt* Nashville, Tenn.
Feb. 14 at LSU* Baton Rouge, La.
Feb. 18 Tennessee* Oxford, Miss.
Feb. 21 Georgia* Oxford, Miss.
Feb. 25 at Auburn* Auburn, Ala.
Feb. 28 Alabama* Oxford, Miss.
Mar. 4 at Arkansas* Fayetteville, Ark.
Mar. 7 Mississippi State* Oxford, Miss.

The Time Has Come

2008-07-14T20:30:00.001-07:00

Numerous sources are reporting that Jerrell Powe has been cleared to participate in football activities for Ole Miss. The most talked about football player in history to never step foot on the field for Ole Miss will finally get his chance this fall. Many questions are still to be answered - What type of shape is he in? How will he react after not playing for over two years? Time will tell.

The good thing about this news is that it came when it did. While I would have much rather received this news years earlier, at least it did not come the day before the Memphis game. Powe will now be able to condition with the team and participate in two a day drills in several weeks.

Im sure more on this will come out in the coming weeks.

Could He Come Back

2008-07-09T17:42:00.000-07:00

As a loyal reader posted earlier, Scott Bittle an all star pitcher for the Rebels last year who was drafted by the Yankees could be returning for the 09 campaign. I do not know how the draft works as how much a discussion a prospect can have and still be able to return to college. From my readings it appears Bittle has failed his physical due to some cartilage issues in his shoulder? It seems funny to me that Bittle had an outstanding year for the Rebels yet failed his physical and will more than likely not play in the MLB next year. All in all I hate it for Bittle not being able to make it to the pros next year, but it could be a huge blessing for the Rebs to have Scott on the mound next year.

(C-L)Ole Miss reliever Scott Bittle, who put up blistering numbers in his junior season, apparently is pretty far apart in negotiations with the New York Yankees, who selected him in the 2nd round of the MLB draft in June. Bittle told me that the Yankees are concerned about a physical he took, which revealed some wear and tear with his shoulder. So now the Yankees are being cautious about offering the normally big signing bonus that a No. 75 overall pick would demand...

Bittle said his shoulder feels fine and he's working out in Oxford. He said there's no way to know for sure, but there would at least be a chance he could end up back at Ole Miss next year if things don't work out with the Yankees. The deadline for negotiations with MLB clubs is Aug. 15. It'll be interesting to see what transpires..

Following Again

2008-07-02T20:43:00.001-07:00

Is it just me or is that everytime Ole Miss comes up with a capital improvement to their facilities that M$U comes out with something new a few months later. The basketball practice facility, the house that steroids built, coaches salary, the junction, and now the scoreboard. While I understand that Ole Miss did not invent any of these and are without a doubt behind the times compared to other universities in some categories, but will the Dogs ever do something without following Ole Miss. Its almost like their is someon in Starkville that says, "well Ole Miss is building this, so I guess we better build one too, and while we are at it, lets make it a foot bigger, to say ours is better"

(MSU)STARKVILLE — Work has begun at Mississippi State’s Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field on one of college football’s largest high definition video boards, MSU Director of Athletics Greg Byrne announced Wednesday.
The $6.1 million true HD board, will span the roof of the Leo Seal M-Club Centre in the south end zone at Scott Field, and will be operational by October, 2008. When completed, the new board will measure 152 feet wide by 135 feet, 6 inches tall, with a main HD screen 111 feet wide by 47 feet high. It will be the largest true high definition board in the Southeastern Conference. The board will also contain two vertical HD displays and one horizontal scoreboard display.

The DM Updates on Basketball

2008-06-29T18:05:00.001-07:00

(Jacob Threadgill)When initial plans for the basketball practice facility were announced more than a year ago, there were many who speculated the project would never come to fruition- but Ole Miss men's basketball coach Andy Kennedy was not one of them.
"A lot of people were wondering if this was going to be a reality, and we never doubted that it was," he said. "We're just pleased that we can finally see progress."
The UMAA Foundation's acceptance of Yates Construction's $ 10.6 million bid for the 51,000 square foot facility disproved the doubters and came at the approval of Kennedy.
"I could not be more excited that Yates Construction is handling that development," Kennedy said. "They are well respected and have done a lot of great work on our campus already. They're working on the law school, we're less than a mile down the road, and so we'll always know where to find them. Our expectation is that over the next two weeks we'll start seeing some new progress."
Signee Updates
Incoming freshmen Terrence Henry, Will Bogan and Terrico White were enrolled for the first session of summer school and have gone through conditioning and pick-up games with the rest of the Rebels.
With any luck, freshman forward Murphy Holloway and JUCO transfer forward DeAundre Cranston will be able to join them for the second session. At the start of the second session on Thursday, Kennedy said the staff was still waiting on grades to get them enrolled.
"We can't do anything until we get the grades, so we're at the mercy of the schools in which they are currently at," he said.
It appears 6-foot-5 guard Brandon Wilson will have to wait to join his high school teammate, Henry in Oxford. Wilson is expected to enroll at Jones Community College in Ellisville, Miss. after failing to qualify academically out of Carroll High School in Monroe, La.
Kennedy is not able to spend any time on the court with his team until the start of individual instruction periods in July, but he has already been impressed with what he has seen from Henry, Bogan and White.
"They are great kids that are working hard," Kennedy said. "We're getting grades back from the first session, they've all done well, and they're working hard at their weight training and conditioning in the areas that we can be involved. I've been really pleased with the transition they have made."
Henry, Holloway and Cranston will be counted on to provide an immediate impact, as the Rebels' only return sophomore Malcolm White and red shirt freshman Kevin Cantinol along the frontcourt.
"There is a lot of opportunity for Terrence Henry, Murphy and DeAundre," Kennedy said. "Hopefully we can get them in here this summer and start to get them acclimated to just the change in life from going from one place to another."
Bogan will have a chance to fill the void left by Brian Smith's graduation as the back up to starting point guard Chris Warren. White will have to find playing time with returning wing players David Huertas, Eniel Polynice, Zach Graham and Trevor Gaskins.
"With the returning guys we have in the perimeter, that should take some pressure off of Terrico and Will," Kennedy said.
Sorting out the Schedule
Kennedy and staff have completed the non-conference schedule and are awaiting the SEC portion, which will be announced in late July.
"We set it up to where we think it will prepare us for the rigors of league play," Kennedy said. "It will be highlighted with a home date against West Virginia. Coach Huggins and I, obviously our relationship goes way back, so we've decided to play a home and home series. He will come to Oxford in early December."
In addition to hosting the Mountaineers, Ole Miss will have home dates against South Alabama, Central Florida and open the season against former LSU head coach John Brady and his Arkansas State Red Wolves.
The Rebels will travel to Albuquerque to finish a home and home series with New Mexico and make up last season's cancelled date at the University of New Orleans. The rest of the non-conference schedule includes a neutral site game against Southern Miss in Biloxi, in the second year of a three-year series. The Rebels will also take place in an exemption tournament in Daytona Beach, Fla. where they are scheduled to play Marshall, Utah and a third team that will be determined on the Rebels' performance.
Kennedy will return to the city of his former job to take on Louisville as a part of the Big East / SEC showdown in Cincinnati as apart of an ESPN broadcast.
Unlike last season where the Rebels went almost the whole month of December without playing a game in Oxford, the Rebels will have to play at Tad Smith Colisieum while the student body is off for winter break.
"We couldn't make it work as efficiently as we did last year as we will have a few home games sprinkled in December," Kennedy said. "We've always tried to be cognizant of the face that we want to schedule as many games as we can around football weekends, and we also want to try to play as many as we can when our student are still on campus."

Will It Happen

2008-06-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Is there anyone that actually thinks this new scoreboard will be up and operational in time. I will go ahead and predict they will be working on this thing the Friday before the Memphis game and only half of it will work by kickoff time. This is how most things go down in the Ole Miss athletic department. This has taken way too long to resolve.

On the flip side, I was glad to see Telesouth step up and do this. The new scoreboard is a much needed improvement to a part of Vaught Hemingway that is pretty unattractive. It is going to be a major upgrade to VHS.

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss has chosen to partner with Daktronics Inc., to design, manufacture and install a $6 million integrated system featuring a large high definition video display at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/ Hollingsworth Field.
"We are very pleased to have teamed with an industry-leader in Daktronics,” said Ole Miss athletics director Pete Boone. “With their experience and state-of-the-art technology, the company has shown their ability to handle large projects, particularly in our time sensitive situation.
“What we’re most excited about is how this board will enhance the gameday experience and entertainment for our fans. Longevity was also a major key, and Daktronics has proven the board’s clarity will maintain for the next 10 years.”
The video display will be the largest true high definition display in the Southeastern Conference. Scheduled to be installed and operational for the home opener on August 30, 2008, the display incorporates the latest HD technology from Daktronics, which is based out of Brookings, S.D.
Daktronics HD-X technology and its control system allows for complete flexibility in programming. The video board can serve as a single giant display or be divided into multiple zones (windows) to show a wide variety of statistics, information, graphics, animation and live and recorded video.
The seamless display of scoring, timing, statistics, out-of-town game scores, public service messages, in-game promotions, graphics, animation, video replays and live video, delivered through a truly integrated system, provides fans with a more entertaining game experience.
Daktronics PS-X video display technology will also be featured in the stadium, both on the front of the display and greeting visitors on the back of the display. Light emitting diode (LED) video displays from Daktronics use the latest in red, green and blue (RGB) LED technology to present live and recorded video images, colorful animation and vivid graphics with incredible brightness and wide-angle visibility.
A complete sound system from Daktronics Sportsound® division completes the integrated system. The sound system speakers will be based in a cabinet above the video display. The video, scoring, timing and sound components will be integrated through Daktronics proven control system.
“Daktronics is excited to bring the largest true high definition video display in the SEC to Ole Miss,” said Brent Stevens, Daktronics regional sales manager. “Ole Miss has been a strong supporter of Daktronics over the years and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership with them.”
Ole Miss joins a number of SEC schools that have chosen Daktronics for integrated video and scoring systems including Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, South Carolina and Vanderbilt.
The video board will be paid for through increased rights fees to TeleSouth Communications, Inc.

Nutt to Make TV Debut with Rebels

2008-06-04T19:17:00.001-07:00

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. - The Southeastern Conference announced Tuesday that the Sept. 6 game between Ole Miss and Wake Forest will be carried by ABC, beginning at 2:30 p.m. CT from BB&T Field in Winston Salem, N.C.

“We’re excited that ABC chose to pick up our game with Wake Forest and proud to have this early opportunity to be on TV,” said Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt. “It will certainly be a challenge on the road for us as we play a Wake Forest team which has won 20 games over the last two years.”

Scheduled to be shown regionally by ABC, the Ole Miss-Wake Forest game is also being televised to areas outside of the regional window, expanding the coverage to most of the nation on ESPN2.

Pom Gets PostSeason Awards

2008-06-04T19:14:00.000-07:00

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. – Freshman southpaw Drew Pomeranz was named a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America selection by Collegiate Baseball, the publication announced on Wednesday.

Pomeranz joins a long line of Rebels who have been named Freshman All-America selections, including current teammates Jordan Henry and Zach Miller who were named to the honor last season.

“This is a tremendous honor and one that Drew certainly deserves,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “He had a great season for us with some impressive wins over some good Southeastern Conference teams after moving into the starting role a couple of weeks into league play.”

Finally an End

2008-06-01T19:50:00.000-07:00

Finally an end to what was a long season, that was full of frustration with a bit of excitement every now and then. We will take a final look at the season later in the week. The Rebs bounced back today in the first game to beat Missouri with the help of Logan Power's grand slam in the eighth inning. A second game followed with overall number one seed Miami. Miami was just too powerful for Nathan Baker, who surprisingly started for the Rebs. It was an up and down day and many fans of the Rebs hated to see the season come to an end, but were glad the frustrations are now over.

(UMAA)CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The Rebels fought hard but ran out of gas in the second game of the day as Ole Miss (39-26) fell to No. 1 Miami (50-8) by a score of 11-2 in the Championship game of the NCAA Coral Gables Regional on Sunday.Juniors Cody Overbeck and Logan Power were named to the All-Tournament Team for the Coral Gables Regional after their performances on the weekend.Ole Miss fought through a tough elimination game with No. 12 Missouri earlier in the day before taking the field 45 minutes later to face the top-ranked and top-seeded Hurricanes.Nathan Baker (3-6) suffered the loss for the Rebels as the sophomore allowed six runs on eight hits with a walk and a strikeout in 2.1 innings of work.Eric Erickson (8-1) picked up the win for the Hurricanes as he worked 7.0 innings and allowed two runs on six hits with a walk and five strikeouts. Both runs allowed came on a two run home run from Cody Overbeck.“It’s always tough at the end like this,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “We just played a very good Miami team. I’m proud of the way we competed and the way we got to this point. It’s been a crazy year. There were a lot of expectations coming into this season and for whatever reason, we seemed to struggle all year.“I am so proud of this team because three weeks ago no one thought we would be in a regional championship playing the number one team in the country,” Bianco said. “Eric Erickson was good for them today. I thought we could get to him early, but then he settled in.”
Miami scored early, pushing three runs across to take the quick lead as the Hurricanes used a walk and three hits – including a solo home run from Ryan Jackson – to jump out of the gates.

A Quick Look at Mizzou

2008-05-29T20:20:00.000-07:00

The Rebels take on Mizzour tomorrow morning in what is built up to be a show down on the mound. The game will showcase two of college baseballs top pitchers. While Lance Lynn has been up and down this season, he is still considered one of college baseballs best. While Crow from Missouri is without a doubt one of the top 5 in baseball. Crow holds a 12-0 record and up until the Big 12 tourney had something like 42 scoreless innings or some crazy stat like that.

I don't see the Rebels making it out of the sunshine state. I see the Rebels going 1-2 in Miami and calling it quits on the season. If it was in anohter bracket, that would be a different story, but the Rebels are in too tough of a regional to make it out. They are the three seed in a regional in which three of the four could make it to Omaha. Oh well.

(UMAA)
THIS SERIES: Ole Miss and Missouri have faced off six times in the history of the series with a 3-3 record in the overall series. The Rebels and Tigers last met in the 1987 season with Ole Miss claiming the series win two games to one in Oxford. The first time the two teams met was in the 1958 season with the Tigers claiming both games played between the two teams. Ole Miss and Missouri also faced off in a singe game in the 1978 season with the Tigers claiming the victory.

HOW TIGERS GOT HERE: Like the Rebels, Mizzou is making its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and is 38-19 on the year after finishing fourth in the Big 12 Conference. The Tigers are led by junior RHP Aaron Crow, who was the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year. Crow is tied for the lead nationally with a 12-0 record and led the Big 12 with 117 strikeouts on the year. Joining Crow on the All-Big 12 First Team were sophomore LF Aaron Senne and senior DH/RF Jacob Priday. Senneo is hitting .358 on the year with 13 home runs and a team-best 63 RBI, and Priday leads Mizzou with 16 home runs on the year, hitting .343 with 62 RBI.

Back Again

2008-05-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

For the sixth consecutive year, Mike Bianco has taken his Ole Miss baseball team to the postseason. However this year, the Rebs will take their show on the road for this year's regional and will go to arguably the toughest regional of all the 16 host sites. Ole Miss is matched up in the Coral Gables regional with #2 seed Missouri on Friday and would more than likely take on #1 overall seed Miami, should they be able to get passed Mizzou.

Missouri is a very good team that has one of the best pitchers in the country. This will be a huge challenge for the Rebels to take on Missouri in what will probably be the best 2-3 matchup pitching wise in the entire tournament.

Some Rebel fans would like to blame certain AD's or committee's for this draw. While they definitely had a decision in placing the selected schools, they are not the sole reason for the tough draw the Rebs will face. This Ole Miss baseball team did it to themselves. When a team loses to the likes of Central Arkansas and barely gets into their own conference tournament they deserve a low seed. Let's face it just because they won three games in the conference tourney doesn't mean they should automatically make a huge jump up in the polls or seedings.

It's a tough job to get to Omaha no matter where you play.

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss (37-24) advanced to its sixth consecutive NCAA Regional on Monday when the field of 64 teams for the NCAA Tournament was announced, and the Rebels will open tournament play against Missouri (38-19) on Friday, May 30 at 11 a.m. CDT.

The Rebels are a three seed in the Miami Regional while Missouri is the two seed. Also competing in the regional are host and ACC Champion Miami (46-8), the nation’s top overall seed, and fourth seeded Bethune-Cookman (36-20), who won the MEAC Championship.

“Everyone who has played Miami this season has said they are the best team in the country, so it will be a huge challenge to go to their regional,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “But the thing about this tournament is you have to go somewhere and play someone good.

“They have a great stadium down there in Miami and they will draw well,” Bianco said. “They have a great atmosphere.”

Rebs Fall Short in Hoover

2008-05-26T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well it was an eventful tournament for the Rebels that found them one win short of another title. Ole Miss became the first number eight seed to make the tourney finals under the new format, but a strong LSU team fought hard and took control of the championship game on Sunday.

Overall the Rebels had a pretty good tournament. Michael Guerroro was outstanding and carried the Rebs in many of the games. Several other players performed well for the Rebs on the weekend including Jordan Henry, Lance Lynn. The middle of the infield continues to be miserable and is the reason many of the unearned runs cross the plate. Their performance really hurts this team.

All in all an impressive run.

(UMAA)HOOVER, Ala. – The Rebels made a spectacular run to the championship game, but the run came up short as Ole Miss (37-24) fell to eighth-ranked LSU (43-16-1) by a score of 8-2 on Sunday at the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala.The championship game appearance marked the third time in four years Ole Miss had advanced to the final game and was the first time an eight seed had advanced to the finals. The Rebels won the SEC Tournament in 2006. Nathan Baker (3-5) suffered the loss for the Rebels as he allowed four runs on five hits with no walks and three strikeouts in 4.0 innings of work. Only three of the runs were earned.Louis Coleman (6-0) picked up the relief win for the Tigers as he held the Rebels scoreless after entering the game in the fourth and worked 6.0 innings. Coleman allowed three hits and struck out seven.Michael Guerrero turned in his SEC Tournament leading fifth home run in as many games in the second inning as he went 1-for-4 at the plate and gave the Rebels an early lead.Guerrero was one of three Rebels to garner All-Tournament honors as he joined sophomore outfielder Jordan Henry and junior pitcher Lance Lynn on the All-Tournament team. “I thought we competed hard and am proud of how we went after LSU,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “We opened the door in the fifth inning and LSU took advantage of it. That’s why they are the hot team right now. They get the big at bat, they make the plays and they make the pitches.”

Well We Made It

2008-05-19T18:38:00.001-07:00

Well the Rebels snuck into the tournament with the eight seed as they inched out a win in the eleventh inning at Lexington on Saturday. The Rebs will take on the #1 Georgia Bulldogs. Some fans were expressing their opinions that they would rather play LSU, however I have to disagree. LSU is the hottest team in the nation right now. Even though we won the series against them I still like my chances more against Georgia who is banged up a little bit and lost two against Alabama last weekend.

What will the outcome be of this tournament? I have no clue. Thi sis probably the most balanced field the SEC has seen in quite sometime. While there are obviously some teams that are hotter than others I think the talent is pretty equal across the board. As in all sports, the postseason is a new season. You never know when a team might get hot and make a run in the post season. While I feel like the Rebels are in the NCAA Tournament some will disagree, however one win in Hoover will probably just about wrap it up for an NCAA bid.

I'll see you all in Hoover.

First Round SEC Tourney Bracket

2008-05-19T18:36:00.000-07:00

Game 1
10:00 a.m.
#7 South Carolina vs. #2 LSU [CSS HD] (XM 199)
Game 2
1:00 p.m.
#6 Vanderbilt vs. #3 Florida [CSS HD] (XM 199)
Game 3
5:00 p.m.
#8 Ole Miss vs. #1 Georgia [CSS HD]
Game 4
8:00 p.m.
#5 Alabama vs. #4 Kentucky [CSS HD]

Bittle Wins Ferris Trophy

2008-05-19T18:35:00.000-07:00

(UMAA)OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss junior right-hander Scott Bittle claimed the 2008 Cellular South Ferriss Award honoring the top collegiate baseball player in the state of Mississippi, it was announced at Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum on Monday.Bittle is the third Rebel player to receive the award in its five year history. He joins former Rebels Stephen Head and Brian Pettway in earning the distinction.“We are very proud of Scott and proud for Ole Miss,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “Certainly it’s a great honor, but one that is very well deserved. He’s a kid who has been dominant from the first game to the last game. We all know as Ole Miss fans what he’s meant to our team and our program.”“It’s a tremendous honor to win this award because it’s named after “Boo” Ferriss and because of who he is,” Bittle said. “Any of the three of us who were finalists for this award would have been deserving winners.”Bittle has been a force on the mound for the Rebels this season as he has posted a 6-1 record on the season and picked up seven saves on the season. His wins include victories over Mississippi State, No. 6 Vanderbilt, at No. 8 Georgia and most recently at No. 20 Kentucky where he pitched a career-long 7.1 innings in relief and struck out a career-high 10 batters.

Hanging by a Thread

2008-05-15T20:17:00.000-07:00

The Ole Miss baseball team is hanging by a thread with their chances to make the SEC Baseball Tournament next week after a miserable loss tonight to Kentucky. The Rebels never led and aside from one inning were never really a threat. They got base runners on and leadoff batters on base, but as usual seemed to get nothing out of it. It was a bad game for the Rebels and Lance Lynn went out of the game with a hurt leg midway through the game.

Thanks to the Dog$ and the Vols the Rebels are tied for seventh in the overall SEC and still need to win in order to get to Hoover. It isnt looking to good for the Rebels to make the tournament, however they may back their way in with the help of some other teams that have nothing to play for.

(UMAA)
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Rebels found themselves in a hole early and could never climb out as Ole Miss (33-21, 14-14 SEC) fell to No. 20 Kentucky (40-14, 15-13 SEC) by a score of 12-4 on Thursday in the opening game of the final series of the regular season.
Lance Lynn (6-3) suffered the loss as he allowed eight runs on eight hits with three walks and three strikeouts in 3.1 innings of work. Lynn left the game due to injury in the fourth inning as Bukvich came in to work in relief.Chris Rusin (6-2) picked up the win for the Wildcats as he allowed three runs, only two earned, on nine hits with one strikeout and one walk.Cody Overbeck led the Rebels at the plate with a 3-for-5 performance, while Jordan Henry and Fuller Smith were both 2-for-5 with an RBI.“You have to credit Kentucky, they really battled at the plate” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “Lance was good early but then he got frustrated and then he got tired. It was a tough night for our pitchers, but I thought Brett Bukvich really did a good job and gave us a chance there before they figured him out. We gave up too many runs early and Kentucky was able to put innings together. We missed out on the big hit tonight.”

Chadwick's Boys at it Again

2008-05-15T16:34:00.000-07:00

(UMAA) TULSA, Okla. – The No. 5 seeded Ole Miss men’s tennis team arrived in Tulsa, Okla., Tuesday, and is preparing to face 12th-seeded North Carolina in the Sweet 16 Friday at 9 a.m., at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center.

“We feel like we’re peaking at the right time,” said head coach Billy Chadwick, of his team, winners of 11 straight. “The guys are looking forward to the match with North Carolina. We beat them early in the year. They have consistently stayed ranked around 12th in the country. They’ve had an outstanding year. We took the doubles point from them, and that’s their forte’. So we’re hoping to take the doubles point again from them, and move on from there.”

With four seniors leading the way, the Rebels are in the Sweet Sixteen for the 14th time overall and the fourth year in a row. They are hoping to advance past this round for the first time since their Final Four showing in 2005.

“We want to go and advance,” senior Robbye Poole said. “It was a bad feeling last year not being able to advance. Erling (Tveit) and I stuck around (for individuals), and it was hard watching all of the other teams still playing, because we knew we should have been one of them. That was a terrible feeling, and I don’t want that to happen again, especially my last year.”

Ole Miss dominated Marist College 4-0 in the first round and then downed Vanderbilt 4-1 in the second round to advance. This will be the second meeting between Ole Miss and North Carolina. The Rebels defeated the Tar Heels 4-1 in the first round of the National Team Indoor back in February.

Strong Withdraws from School

2008-05-15T16:30:00.000-07:00

Much like Ding Dong another Strong dissapoints the Ole Miss football program as Chris Strong withdrew from school today due to trouble in the classroom. Below is the story from the Clarion Ledger:

(UMAA)OXFORD - Chris Strong, The Clarion-Ledger's Mississippi Mr. Football selection in 2006 out of powerhouse South Panola High School, has withdrawn from Ole Miss after one season with the team.

"We do not expect Chris to be with us this fall, but wish him well in whatever his future holds," Nutt said in a statement released by the university.Strong's mother, Brenda, said last week that her son struggled with his grades throughout his freshman year at Ole Miss. The 6-foot-2, 280-pound defensive lineman struggled to qualify academically out of high school, enrolling at controversial prep school Genesis One in the spring semester of his senior year to finish work needed to meet the NCAA minimum standards for freshmen eligibility.On the field, weight problems and ineffectiveness plagued his performance. Despite coming into Oxford as one of the most celebrated recruits in year, he had just 19 tackles, 10 solo, playing at linebacker and defensive line.Under new coach Houston Nutt, Strong focused on the defensive line during spring drills.

The Final Weekend

2008-05-14T18:26:00.000-07:00

It all comes down to this, the final weekend of SEC Conference play. The winners more than likely go to Hoover and the losers stay home next week. While there are other games that will be played this weekend that could change that statement, Kentucky and Ole Miss are basically playing to stay alive.

Which Ole Miss team will show up will determine if they will continue their season. If the team that drops fly balls, makes fielding errors, and can not bunt shows up then we are doomed. But if the bats and common sense show up the Rebs should win. Kentucky is a good team that has had its ups and downs on the season, but have the talent to make it to Hoover with a series win over the Rebels.

If this Rebel team does not make it to Hoover, it could be the biggest disappointment in modern day Ole Miss athletics. For a team that was once ranked #2 in the nation to not make its own conference tournament is a huge letdown. Many Rebel fans have been frustrated all season long,because of the talent we were told was on this team and the expectations were very high. Two wins could turn this thing around. We all know the post season is a new season and anybody could get hot in baseball and win it all.

The bottom line win two and lets start a new season. It's going to be a tense weekend starting tomorrow.

(DJ)
Thursday, 5:30 p.m.
Ole Miss RHP Lance Lynn (6-2, 3.6 vs. Kentucky LHP Chris Rusin (5-2, 2.85)
Friday, 5:30 p.m.
Ole Miss LHP Drew Pomeranz (4-2, 3.66) vs. Kentucky LHP James Paxton (3-2, 3.15)
Saturday, 12 p.m.
Ole Miss RHP Cody Satterwhite (3-5, 5.01) vs. Kentucky RHP Greg Dombrowski (5-0, 3.57)

Current SEC Standings

2008-05-14T18:16:00.000-07:00

EASTERN DIVISION
Georgia 19-7-1 34-17-1
Vanderbilt 15-11 37-15
Kentucky 14-13 39-14
Florida 14-13 31-20
S. Carolina 13-14 35-18
Tennessee 11-16 26-27
WESTERN DIVISON
LSU 15-11-1 36-16-1
Alabama 14-13 30-23
Ole Miss 14-13 33-20
Arkansas1 3-13 32-20
Auburn 11-16 28-25
Miss. State 7-20 21-32

3 Down, 3 to Go

2008-05-12T19:45:00.001-07:00

It went just about as predicted this weekend as far as the results go. I somewhat figured the Rebels would go 2-1 on the weekend, however I did not think that Auburn would control most of the weekend from a runs standpoint. It took a walk off homer on Friday for the Rebels to win. Saturday was the ugliest game I have ever watched, and Sunday had the Rebels come from behind for the series win. Fuller Smith played well as did Scott Bittle and obviously Tim Ferguson. The errors on Saturday were unbelievable as was the base running on Sunday. It was miserable and if they play like that this weekend, no chance they get to Hoover.

With three games to play the Rebels will be traveling to Kentucky for a Thurs, Fri, Sat series. All in all the Rebels need to win the series to make it to Hoover. The race is too close right now and there are multiple teams trying to keep their slot in the tournament and others very close to playing their way in. The problem is the Rebels lose the tiebreaker to many of those teams they are tied with right now in the race. I will take a look at this in more detail as the week goes.

Fergie Named Freshman of the Week

2008-05-12T19:44:00.001-07:00

(UMAA)Rebel shortstop Tim Ferguson didn’t get many swings in the weekend series against Auburn, but the ones he got counted for a lot as the infielder was named Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week, the league office announced on Monday.

Ferguson hit a 3-run walk-off home run against Auburn on Friday night in his only at bat to give the Rebels a win in the series opener and set the stage for the Rebels to win the final home series in SEC play for the 2008 season. The Beaumont, Texas, native entered the game in the eighth inning as a defensive substitute before making his one at bat in the game count.

Ferguson hit .500 for the weekend and did not commit a single fielding error at shortstop as he helped the Rebels to the series win over the Auburn Tigers.

How Will They Finish??

2008-05-08T19:08:00.000-07:00

There are six games left in the Ole Miss baseball season, all conference games. Three at home and three on the road. More than likely the last three games at home of the season will be played this weekend at Swayze Field.

Auburn is a team of ups and downs on the season. They made a stretch run through the season where I really thought they were going to be a contender, but they dropped off a good bit. The Rebels are very capable of making a sweep of the Tigers. If they can sweep the Tigers, I feel like that would earn their way into the Hoover, however to be honest I would be surprised to see the Rebels sweep. It has been hard to find a weekend where the Rebels have played three solid games of baseball. With that being said I expect us to win 2 out of 3 and sweat next weekend out at Kentucky to see if the Rebs make the SEC Tourney.

(UMAA)
THIS SERIES: Ole Miss and Auburn have faced off 139 times with the Tigers holding a slim lead in the overall series at 70-68-1. Ole Miss took the series last season in Auburn 2-1 and have won two straight weekend sets in the overall series. Auburn last won the series in the 2005 season on the Plains. The two teams first met in the 1938 season , splitting a pair of one run games as Auburn won 6-5 and Ole Miss won 4-3.

FRIDAY, 6:30 P.M.
AU - Grant Dayton, Fr., LH
POM - Lance Lynn, Jr., RHP
NOTING LYNN: Lynn enters the weekend contest looking to pick up his seventh win of the season after taking a tough loss at Georgia last weekend. It was only the second loss in 12 starts for the junior. Lynn has struck out 77 batters this season to take the career strikeout mark and currently sits at 299 strikeouts for his career. For more information on Lynn’s performances in career starts, please see the chart on p. 7.
SATURDAY, 4:00 P.M.
AU - Taylor Thompson, Soph., RHP
OM - Drew Pomeranz, Fr., LHP
NOTING POMERANZ: Pomeranz took no decision on Saturday aganist Georgia as the Rebels rallied to claim a 9-4 win with a 6-run eighth inning. Pomeranz has struck out 60 and walked only 22 on the season after moving into the weekend rotation against Alabama. He was named SEC Freshman of the Week after posting a shutout of #6 Vanderbilt that kicked off a streak of 21.0 IP that saw him allow only two runs. For more information on Pomeranz’s starting performances, please see the chart on p. 7.

SUNDAY, 1:30 P.M.
AU - Luke Greinke, Jr., RHP
OM - Cody Satterwhite, Jr., RHP
NOTING SATTERWHITE: Satterwhite suffered his fifth loss of the season on Sunday despite walking only one and striking out five as Georgia came up with three home runs off the junior right-hander. Satterwhite moved to the Sunday role against Alabama when Pomeranz moved into the weekend rotation replacing Nathan Baker.

What is APR??

2008-05-07T18:33:00.000-07:00

I have no clue how the formula works, and I am not sure there are too many people that do, but it appears the Rebels are good to go and will not lose any scholarships this year unlike several other schools around the country. I have tried to understand how the system works but I can not understand the formula and where they come up with the rankings.

Below is a piece from the Clarion Ledger blog on the Rebels and their rankings. I understand how the Rebels basketball team is so low, because it seems like every year there are a couple of players that leave the program and the same goes with the Bulldog$. At any rate here is the info if anyone cares:

(C-L)The Academic Progress Rate numbers have been released and Ole Miss will not face penalties in any sport. The lowest results were in men's basketball (917) and men's indoor (908) and outdoor track (915). Schools are supposed to receive penalties for marks of 925 or below, but can avoid them by having some mitigating circumstances (which these three Ole Miss sports obviously had). The goal of APR is to keep athletes academically eligible and in school.

Rebs Lose Series at UGA

2008-05-04T19:30:00.000-07:00

The Rebels lost the series at Georgia this weekend, in one they let get away. The Rebs lost by one on Friday night in a game in which they gave up three unearned runs. On Saturday they brought the heat late in the game to get a big win, but fell hard on Sunday to an 11-4 defeat. I did not watch or listen to most of the games, but it is my understanding Satterwhite is still not pitching well and our fielding problems and errors have not been corrected.

With that being said, the Rebs have six SEC games to go, and in my opinion a .500 record of 3-3 will have them crawling into Birmingham, a 4-2 record definitely gets them in and anything less they should go ahead and get ready for the 2009 season. Bianco's boys throughout the years are known for their up and down swings and hopefully an up swing of wins will come in the next month, but don't be surprised if this team does not make it to Birmingham.

One plus is that there are no mid week games this week, so the Rebs when not taking finals will be able to get some good practice in this week. The new NCAA rules which made the season more compact, led to fewer practice sessions and not much time to correct fundamentals. Let's hope more practice will help this team.

ATHENS, Ga. – The Rebels scored first on Sunday, but the Bulldogs answered with a barrage of home runs as No. 25 Ole Miss (31-19, 12-12 SEC) fell 11-4 to No. 8 Georgia on Sunday in the rubber match of the weekend series.Tim Ferguson and Cody Overbeck both hit home runs for the Rebels to pace the Ole Miss offense.Cody Satterwhite (3-5) suffered the loss as he allowed six runs – four earned – on seven hits with a walk and five strikeouts. Three of the seven hits were home runs.Nathan Moreau (2-2) picked up the win for the Bulldogs as he held the Rebels to two runs on five hits with three walks and four strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work.
“We competed hard and were really into the game, they just played a little better than we did,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “They did a few more things better and that got them the runs. That’s why Georgia is in the position they are in our league. They are a good ball club.”

Ole Miss will have the week off for final exams before hosting Auburn in a weekend series at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field First pitch on Friday is set for 6:30 p.m. in the final regular season home games for the Rebels

Current Look at the SEC Standings For Hoover

2008-05-04T19:29:00.001-07:00

1) Ga 17-6-1
2) Vandy 14-9
3) Fla 13-11
3) Sou Car 13-11
5) LSU 12-11-1
7) Ala 12-12
7) OM 12-12
8) Ky 11-13
8) Tenn 11-13

Rebs Wrap Up Non Conference Play

2008-04-30T20:56:00.000-07:00

Ole Miss wrapped up nonconference play tonight with a win over SWAC leading Jackson State. Low production night as far as runs go, and it appears the fielding/throwing errors are still an issue. All I know is the toughest weekend of the season is upon the Rebels as they travel to Athens. UGA is beatable, but with the way this team has played some games this year, the Rebels will probably only squeeze out one win in Athens. A sweep at Athens and next weekend in my opinion is about the only thing that could have the Rebels on the bubble as far as hosting, that includes a hot run in the SEC Tourney. But my true belief is they blew their chances a couple of weeks ago in a bid to host a regional.

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. – The Rebels got a pair of key home runs from Fuller and Matt Smith on Wednesday night as No. 25 Ole Miss (30-17) picked up a 5-3 win over Jackson State (33-16) at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field.
Fuller Smith was 2-for-4 with a run scored and two RBI on the night, while Matt Smith finished 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.
Nathan Baker (3-4) picked up the win as he worked 5.0 innings, allowing three runs, one earned, on seven hits with two strikeouts. Scott Bittle picked up his seventh save of the season as he closed out the ninth and retired the side in order to preserve the 5-3 win. Jake Morgan worked 3.0 innings of relief with one walk and five strikeouts as he held Jackson State hitless in his time on the mound.
Charles Williams (9-3) suffered the loss for Jackson State as he allowed three runs on seven hits with one walk and two strikeouts.
“Jake Morgan pitched well and has done a great job all year,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “We pitched really well. I thought Jackson State was tremendous tonight. They were able to do some things offensively to put some pressure on us.”
Ole Miss got on the board in the second inning when Fuller Smith came up with an RBI single to short to score Cullan Kight from third. Kight reached on a single to right field before moving to second on a single to left from Jordan Henry. Kight then moved to third on a fielder’s choice to short from Basham that saw Henry erased from the path at second. Basham moved to second on the single from Fuller Smith before scoring on a single down the left field line from Logan Power. Ole Miss led 2-0 after two innings of play.
Jackson State scored in the third when Marquise Zachary scored from third on a throwing error to second off a steal attempt. Zachary reached on a fielding error at short before moving to third on a single through the right side from Charles Brown. Brown moved to second on the steal play that allowed Zachary to score. A single from Jerome Tyes scored Brown and tied the game at two.
Matt Smith homered to open the third inning and give the lead back to the Rebels before Fuller Smith homered to open the fourth inning and give the Rebels a 4-2 lead. Two walks sandwiched around a double from Overbeck loaded the bases with no outs. A fielder’s choice from Cullan Kight pushed Power across the plate and gave the Rebels a 5-2 lead with two outs.
Jackson State cut into the lead in the sixth as three straight singles pushed a run across and left runners at second and third with no outs before the Rebels went to the bullpen for Morgan. Morgan then got a strikeout and a line out into a double play to end the inning with the Rebels leading 5-3.
Morgan kept Jackson State off the board through the eighth before Bittle closed out the ninth.
Ole Miss returns to action this weekend, taking to the road for a showdown with the eighth-ranked Georgia Bulldogs in Southeastern Conference action. First pitch for Friday’s game will begin at 5:30 p.m. CDT. Saturday’s game will be televised by ESPNU at 2:00 p.m. CDT.

Rebs to Host

2008-04-30T18:28:00.000-07:00

THE ONLY SPORT THEY WILL HOST IN THIS YEAR

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. – The No. 4 nationally ranked Ole Miss men’s tennis team will have five players represented in the NCAA Individual Championships as those selections were announced Wednesday.

Senior Erling Tveit, ranked No.22 in the nation, will be making his third consecutive appearance at the NCAA Singles Championships as well as his third straight doubles appearance. The two-time All-American reached the semifinals in singles in 2006, becoming the fourth Rebel to advance that far. Last year he advanced to the quarterfinals in doubles with former All-American Eric Claesson.

Robbye Poole also received an at-large bid to the 64-player field, and will be going for the second year in a row. The senior reached the round of 16 in his first appearance last year, becoming the 20th All-American in the history of the program.

Senior Matthias Wellermann earned his first ever NCAA singles bid. He is ranked No. 29 in the nation with a 21-13 overall record.

Ole Miss will have two doubles teams in the 32-team field. Tveit and junior Jonas Berg earned the No. 4 seed in the draw. They are ranked No. 5 in the nation with a 25-7 overall record.

Joining them will be Wellermann and Bram ten Berge. The two are ranked No. 21 in the nation, but have not played together in a month with ten Berge missing the last nine matches with an injured foot. ten Berge is practicing full time now and should be ready to go for the NCAA Championships.

Ole Miss tied with five other schools for the most singles selections and with one school for the most doubles selections.

The singles and doubles competition will be conducted May 21-26 at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa, Okla., following the conclusion of the team championship (May 16-20).

Bad News Bears

2008-04-27T19:44:00.000-07:00

As it has happened many times this season, just when you think the Rebels have it back together, they drop back to their old ways of careless baseball. When I say careless, I mean it seems like they could care less rather they win or lose. The Saturday performance by this Ole Miss baseball team was a joke. In the first game they fought back from being way down to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth to watch it go away in the tenth. They followed that up with one of the worst games I have seen in the second game of the double header.

The entire weekend, I have never seen more mental mistakes by a Bianco team. Two dropped fly balls on Friday and numerous fielding errors on Saturday, made the team look like the Bad News Bears and several well juiced fans called them that in left field. I don't know what to say or how they should change things to turn into a winning program, but at this rate a three seed in the NCAA tourney would be lucky. If the SEC West was not as bad as they are this year, this Ole Miss team would not be in Birmingham late May. All in all a terrible doubleheader in what was a fun Oxford weekend.

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. – The long ball proved to be the Rebels undoing on Saturday as No. 21 Ole Miss (28-17, 11-10 SEC) dropped both games of a doubleheader to Arkansas (26-18, 9-11 SEC) as the Razorbacks used five home runs through two games to claim the series.
Ole Miss managed double-digit hits in both games, but left 20 men stranded in the two games combined. The Rebels also committed five errors on the day in the losses.
Brett Basham was 2-for-4 with an RBI in the nightcap to lead the Rebel offense and also led the team on the day as he was 6-for-9 at the plate on the afternoon with two RBI and a run scored.
Cody Satterwhite (3-4) suffered the loss in game two as he worked 4.2 innings and allowed three runs on seven hits with four walks and six strikeouts.
Cliff Springston (5-2) picked up the win for the Razorbacks as he worked a complete game, allowing four runs on 11 hits with three walks and nine strikeouts.
“That shows you why this is an amazing game,” Bianco said. “Last night we pitched so well and were able to handle them. Today no one could handle them. We had no answers and they were just unconscious.We’ve never been hit like that, not that many home runs” Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said. “It wasn’t even the amount of hits; it was the amount of home runs. We couldn’t keep the ball in the ballpark.”

Rebs Rebound With Big Bats

2008-04-22T21:15:00.000-07:00

The Ole Miss baseball team rebounded tonight in a big way. It should be interesting to see how they take on Arkansas State, it is a game that is a must win. However, the Indians(or whatever they are now) are always fired up for the Rebels and normally play us a very tough game, already beating us once this year. It will not surprise me one bit to see Arkansas State win this game. But it is a must win game for the Rebels who have already given up many non conference losses this year.

(UMAA) OXFORD, Miss. – The Rebels tied a season-high with 21 hits as No. 21 Ole Miss (26-15) got the offense goin and used two big innings to claim a 15-5 win over Murray State (14-21) on Tuesday at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field.
Fuller Smith hit his fourth home run of the season and was 4-for-5 on the night with two runs scored and two RBI to lead the offense. He was one of six Rebels to notch multiple hits in the outing, including three hits each from Logan Power, Matt Smith and Zach Miller.
Nathan Baker (2-4) picked up the win as he worked 6.0 innings and struck out a career-high 11 batters. Baker allowed four runs – two earned – on two hits and walked three batters in the outing. Baker struck out six of the first seven batters faced to open the game. Rory McKean and Matt Tracy pitched the final 3.0 innings, holding the Thoroughbreds to one run the rest of the way.
Matt McGaha (2-1) suffered his first loss of the season as the Rebels got to him early. McGaha gave up nine runs on 13 hits, including five runs in the first inning, as he walked one and struck out one in 5.1 innings of work.
“Nathan Baker did terrific tonight,” said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. “I thought he pitched well. It’s the best I’ve seen him pitch since he got here. His slider looked good and he had the ability to miss a lot of bats and struck out a lot of people.”

Slip Siding Away......

2008-04-21T20:20:00.000-07:00

Baserball America Top 25

1.Miami33-4
2.North Carolina34-7
3.Florida State34-5
4.Missouri28-10
5.Stanford21-12
6.Arizona State31-6
7.California26-10
8.Nebraska28-7
9.Rice31-10
10.Georgia27-12
11.San Diego31-11
12.South Carolina29-11
13.Oklahoma State27-11
14.Wichita State30-7
15.Cal State Fullerton23-13
16.UC Irvine24-9
17.Vanderbilt28-11
18.Texas A&M33-7
19.Michigan28-8
20.Coastal Carolina33-7
21.Mississippi25-15
22.Kentucky30-9
23.Arizona25-11
24.North Carolina State27-12
25.Long Beach State23-14

In Case You Missed It-SEC Champs

2008-04-21T19:57:00.000-07:00

(UMAA)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 2 seeded Ole Miss men’s tennis team downed fourth-seeded Florida 4-1 to capture the SEC Tournament Championship here Sunday at the Billingsley Tennis Center. This marks the Rebels (21-4) second tournament championship as they also captured the event in 1997.

“We knew that we were going to have to play great to beat Florida because they just came off of a big win against Georgia,” head coach Billy Chadwick said. “Florida beat us (in Oxford) this year during the regular season. If we weren’t at our best, we weren’t going to have a chance.”

Senior Erling Tveit, ranked No. 30 in the nation, saved his best match of the year for the SEC Tournament final, taking down the nation’s No.2 ranked player, Greg Ouellette, in straight sets to clinch the championship for the Rebels. Tveit won the first set 6-4 and then raced out to a 3-0 lead in the second set and never looked back, winning 6-2 to clinch.

“It was great (clinching),” Tveit said. I was struggling in the beginning of the match, but I was able to hang in there. Fortunately, I was able to get a break and serve for the first set. I got up 3-0 in the second and gained the momentum. I hadn’t finished a match in the tournament, so I guess it was my turn.”

Junior Jonas Berg was named the SEC Tournament Most Valuable Player, and he earned it, going 4-0 in singles and doubles on the weekend. In singles, he lost only nine games in three matches. The two-time All-SEC honoree has now won 12 in a row. His 6-1, 6-3 win over Gator Jeff Dadamo at No. 4 singles gave the Rebels a 2-0 lead.

AK Signs South Carolina Mr. Basketball

2008-04-16T20:06:00.000-07:00

(UMAA)
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss bolstered its strong 2008 hoops signing class on Wednesday when Andy Kennedy’s Rebels inked Murphy Holloway to a national letter of intent.

An athletic 6-foot-7, 215-pound forward, Holloway will arrive in Oxford as one of the top-rated recruits in Ole Miss history after a decorated career at Dutch Fork High School in Irmo, S.C.

Ranked as the nation’s No. 65 overall recruit by ESPN/Scouts, Inc. and the No. 67 recruit by Scout.com, Holloway recently garnered the titles of Gatorade Player of the Year, 4A Player of the Year and Mr. Basketball for the state of South Carolina.

“We’re excited about having the 2008 South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year join our program,” Kennedy said. “Murphy’s athleticism and versatility at the forward spot will give him an opportunity to come in and pay immediate dividends. We think he’s an excellent addition to our team.”

He was named MVP of the state tournament after leading Dutch Fork to the semifinals and scoring 32 points with 12 rebounds and 10 blocks in the semifinal game, his sixth triple-double of the season. He averaged 28 points and 15 rebounds as a senior after putting up 25 points and 13 boards per game as a junior.

Holloway, who plays AAU ball with the South Carolina Ravens, was also selected to participate in the North Carolina-South Carolina All-Star game. He chose Ole Miss over Tennessee, Clemson and Maryland, among others.