Rebel Nation Magazine March/April 2014

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2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 1

REBEL

GAMEDAY

ZONED IN. . >>>>>>>>> This Pride of the South member is “in the zone” during his performance during a recent half-time show in VHS. - Photo by Greg Pevey, Rebel Nation Magazine™ 2 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

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REBEL

GAMEDAY

IN>>>>>>>>> THE SPIRIT..

This Rebel fan is showing her Music City spirit during the Rebels’ 25-17 win over the Yellow Jackets in Nashville. - Photo by Bobby McDuffie 4 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

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REBEL

GAMEDAY

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I>>>>>>>>> GOT THIS..

Senquez Golson flips Georgia Tech RB Synjyn Days while fellow defenders pursue the play during the Rebels’ 25-17 win over the Yellow Jackets in the 2013 Music City Bowl.

- Photo by Bobby McDuffie

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REBEL

GAMEDAY

IN YOUR FACE... >>>>>>>>> I’Tavius Mathers stiff-arms a Georgia Tech defender during the Rebels win over the Yellow Jackets in the 2013 Music City Bowl.

- Photo by Bobby McDuffie 8 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

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Music City Bowl photos by Bobby McDuffie

REBEL

GAMEDAY

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REBEL

GAMEDAY

THE STREAK CONTINUES. . >>>>>>>>> The Rebels 25-17 win over Georgia Tech is the sixth bowl win in a row for Ole Miss tieing them nationally with Florida State in consecutive bowl game victories. - Photo by Bobby McDuffie

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ROAD BLOCK. . >>>>>>>>> Junior guard Jarvis Summers attempts to drive toward the basket but is stopped by a MSU defender during the Rebels trip to Starkville on January 11. - Photo

by Greg Pevey, Rebel Nation Magazine™ REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 13

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#FINSUP

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Quarterback Bo Wallace dives in for the score during the 2013 Music City Bowl.

- Photo by Bobby McDuffie

COMMENTARY 18 A New Day at Ole Miss

40 Yes, Recruiting Matters

By Brad Logan

By Bob Lynch

To Contact REBEL NATION MAGAZINE™ > LETTERS, STORY IDEAS AND PHOTO SUBMISSIONS • Email Rebel Nation Magazine™ at greg@rebelnationmagazine. com or mail to Rebel Nation Magazine™, P.O. Box 5842, Brandon, Mississippi 39047. Letters should include writer’s full name, address and telephone number and may be edited for clarity and space.

FEATURES

20 - John Fourcade

22 - Top 5 Coaches

26 - Will Allen

28 - Signing Day

30 - Garrald McDowell

32 - Chris Kiffin

34 - Spring Football

38 - Matt Mott

Visit us online at www.rebelnationmagazine.com REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 17

THE REBEL REPORT

>>>>>

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A New Day at Ole Miss BRAD LOGAN

W

Featured Columnist

hen Mississippi Director of Athletics Ross Bjork addressed a capacity crowd inside the Oxford Conference Center on National Signing Day, he was smiling ear to ear. Sure, reeling in another Top 25 class in recruiting was a delight.

Not to mention, the movement of dirt just West of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, as the new parking garage is being erected. With the Manning Center being coined by many as one of the elite facilities in the country, the new basketball arena is on the horizon. Also, the additional premium seating options are on the docket for the expansion of VHS, which over 90 percent of the future skybox suites have been sold.

Rather than open with the litany of accomplishments under his direction, he just smiled and thanked the fans.

He gets “it.”

I’m often asked what “it” is. Frankly, the word itself houses more meaning than you can imagine. Bjork understands the importance of the blue-collar worker sporting a broken-in baseball cap vs. the necktie wearing stock broker. When you are selling a program you have to sell yourself. Bjork excels and, make no mistake, understands that Ole Miss must appeal to all walks of life to succeed.

Let’s not mince words here. Following the 2011 season, Houston Nutt left the Ole Miss Football program lying face down in the middle of the northbound lane on Interstate-55 during rush hour traffic.

It was bad.

Once Vanderbilt destroyed the Rebels 30-7 in Nashville, the season was over. Compound a loss to rival LSU when Les Miles took a knee, in what seemed like the eight minute mark of the 4th quarter up 125-3, and you have a program in the tank.

It was over. It was ugly.

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What happened over the next few months will forever be viewed as the most critical months in both the university and athletic department’s history.

Enter Ross Bjork, Hugh Freeze and Michael Thompson.

Thompson, a graduate of Ole Miss, has transformed the image and perception of the athletics department. When the slogan “We are Ole Miss” was used during a moment of disappointment, Thompson went to work. He transformed the slogan by tweeting out the magic words after big wins. A slow process?

Sure, but a positive move. The audio/visual department, under the guidance of Thompson, is second to none and on the forefront.

His award-winning Photo

by RebelNation documentary style program “The Season” has transformed how universities produce coaching shows.

I am of the opinion there is a correlation with the success in recruiting and the video content produced under the direction of Thompson. I firmly agree it aided Ole Miss in reaching a plethora of high school athletes across the country. Both the 2013 and the 2014 recruiting classes were arguably the most heralded classes in its history.

Hugh Freeze? How important you ask?

When Rebel fans were celebrating a Cotton Bowl win over Oklahoma State, Hugh Freeze was busy guiding Lambuth to a record of 12-1 and a first place finish in the Mid-South Conference. The Independence, MS native parlayed his success into another head coaching opportunity at Arkansas State, guiding the Red Wolves to the GoDaddy.com Bowl and a record of 10-2.

Hugh came home.

Immediately, Freeze was instrumentally changing the culture at Ole Miss. Rather than hiding the past of Ole Miss, he brought it to the front and embraced it. Most importantly, he sold a vision of the future. While bringing in two incredible recruiting classes, taking teams to back-to-back bowl games, the program that was left to sink into oblivion has now been resurrected. Freeze has been a large part of that success.

The past? Ole Miss is a place steeped into it.

Marred with symbolic references to the Deep South, the previous administration simply tried to sweep the negative connotations under a rug. It wasn’t until now Cincinnati head coach and former Ole Miss head coach

Tommy Tuberville demanded the confederate flag be barred from games until any action was taken. While the move was monumental in the forward direction the program would take, there were a number of remaining variables that so many other athletic departments were using to recruit against the Rebels. With the combination of Freeze, Thompson and Bjork, the three have orchestrated a plan to respect and embrace the past accomplishments at Ole Miss, yet focus on the future.

Those negative recruiting tactics have been all but expunged by developing not only a great relationship with the future student-athletes, but with each of their family members.

Andy Kennedy, fresh off a NCAA Tournament appearance, has his work cut out for him to land in the Big Dance this season. Credit is due to the winningest coach in Rebel hoops history, as a great foundation has been laid for years to come. The Louisville, MS native understands the dynamic that is Ole Miss Basketball and continues to change the culture.

While football and baseball have been leaders in regards to attendance, basketball has always been the odd man out. In a vacuum, many lay claim Ole Miss is a football school. In true fashion, sans Kentucky, the entire Southeastern Conference has a difficult time filling its arenas. As with any program, winning breeds success. With Kennedy at the reigns, the numbers speak for themselves.

2014 is a big year for Mike Bianco. This is not earth-shattering news by any stretch. In fact, with Bjork only extending Bianco oneyear, the writing is on the wall. Make no mistake, Bianco is a winner. Like Kennedy, the numbers don’t lie. The disappointing factor for Bianco is he created a very successful program that was, at best, a middle to lower tier SEC team under the tutelage of Pat Harrison.

Bianco essentially architected the expansion of Oxford-University Stadium and made it one of the premier ball parks in the country.

Bianco recruited the elite players to campus, signed said players and has put many in the major leagues. When you build a program this big, win with a consistency Bianco has, you build a monster.

The monster is big. For the last few years, Bianco has not been able to feed the monster and the natives have gotten restless. This is a big season for the head skipper and my monSee New Day - Continued on Page 21

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REBEL LEGENDS

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John Fourcade:

Louisiana Rebel

BY MARK STOWERS

Contributing Writer Photos courtesy Ole Miss Media Relations

J

ohn Fourcade is one of those players who would thrive in any era of football. He chose Ole Miss after his high school career at Arch Bishop Shaw High School in Louisiana because the bigger schools said he’d have to ride the bench. This was in the late 1970s before 24-hour sports channels, social media and digital recordings. Before kids put college hats on a table and performed the three card Monty with their college selection on National Signing Day. Fourcade, like many, actually signed late. He was being chased by Notre Dame, Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama and a long list of other Division 1 schools to work under center.

But the Louisiana Rebel chose Ole Miss over the other college offers because it was the right fit for him. At the time, enrollment was under 10,000 and the campus wasn’t spread out and it was closer to home. The Rebels said come on up and compete for the starting position. John Charles Fourcade, Jr., ran the Split Back Veer offense at Shaw and he’d be running the same thing at Ole Miss.

He came in along with new coach Steve Sloan under the tutelage of quarterback coach David Lee. “Lee did most of the recruiting on me,” Fourcade said. “And he said ‘We are looking at you playing as soon as possible.’”

Fourcade visited Notre Dame and a few others because he “wanted to make sure Ole Miss was the school I wanted to go to.” So from 1978 to 1981, Oxford was home for the option quarterback. He would go on to gain 6,713 career yards – breaking the career record of Archie Manning. His name is scat20 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

tered among Ole Miss football records. He is on the list of: n Fewest interceptions in a season (4 in 1978 and 5 in 1981), n Tied at #18 for single game rushing (15 carries for 176 yards) n Tied for third with 22 career touchdowns n Fourth on the list in career passing yards (5,412).

The list goes on…

Archie Manning recruited Fourcade for Ole Miss but it wasn’t a hard sell technique.

“He told me, ‘I went to Ole Miss, I love Ole Miss but look, take your time and enjoy yourself. If you’re not going to stay in state and go to LSU then look at Ole Miss’ and I did. It was a good opportunity.”

Former Rebel head coach Steve Sloan arrived in Oxford late in the recruiting year

and knew that Fourcade was a fit for his offensive scheme.

“We were looking for an athletic quarterback. A guy who could run, throw and extend plays maybe into a big play,” Sloan said.

“And John was exactly that type of person.

We had a lot of option plays as well. It didn’t matter how tall a guy was he just needed to be athletic.”

But when Fourcade reported to fall practice, his name was at the bottom of the depth chart – number seven on the quarterback slot. He eventually worked his way up to around third string but with Bobby Garner and Roy Coleman in front of him, he settled into a “redshirt” year. But a few games into his true freshman campaign, Sloan called on the Louisiana Rebel to get the offense moving.

“We were getting pounded by Georgia and I remember the coaches came over and said, ‘we’re taking the redshirt off of you’,” Fourcade said.

Facing a third down and 36 to go for a first down, Fourcade entered the game. Sloan called the freshman’s number.

“I ran an option and got 37 yards for the first down,” Fourcade said. “I took it down the sideline in front of our bench. I ran the whole thing. It was welcome to the SEC and I played ever since that time.”

Sloan enjoyed his relationship with Fourcade as his coach.

“John had a linebacker mentality,” Sloan said. “I never had a problem with John at all.

We were always good offensively in the conference but we weren’t quite as good defensively to match it up. I consider it an honor to have coached him.”

Some of his more famous on the field moments took place in his final Egg Bowl.

Trailing the Bulldogs and less than a minute to go, Fourcade engineered a scoring drive, with a little help from a pass interference call.

“He played a fabulous game. I remember giving him the signal to run ‘38 Loaded,” Sloan said. “We needed the win, they were a lot better than us at that point. We got the ball on our 40 with 26 seconds to go and he completed a pass and another pass. Then we threw another pass in the end zone and got the interference and put the ball on the twoyard line with three or four seconds and he scored. I couldn’t believe it myself,” Fourcade recalled.

Fourcade would start every game the rest of the year and until he graduated in 1981.

He set records and he’s still ranked high in plenty of Rebel football statistics but had he

come along to play in today’s “pistol” type offenses, Fourcade may have set the bar for years to come.

“I threw 20 to 25 times a game and ran 15 to 20 times a game,” he said. “The thing they run today is out of the shotgun and it’s a variation of the split back veer but we were under center. If this offense right now in the NFL was around when I was playing with the Saints, that would have been more suited for me because I would run the football and throw the football. I’d probably still be playing, you never know.”

After completing his Ole Miss career, Fourcade played in the Senior Bowl, Hula Bowl and the Blue Gray Game. He was MVP

of the Senior Bowl and pocketed $1,500 for his efforts along with a new car that he gave to his mother. On draft day, the NFL didn’t call his name so he headed north of the border to play in the CFL for a few seasons with the B.C. Lions then he was traded to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

But he wasn’t happy with the CFL and came home to join the USFL first with the Birmingham Stallions and then with the Memphis Showboats. After the USFL folded, he had a tryout with the New York Giants who had coaches with Ole Miss ties.

Fourcade injured his back and was let go from the team. So he came back to Ole Miss and finished his degree. Fourcade still had the desire to play in the NFL and he wrote a letter to Jim Finks the general manager of his hometown New Orleans Saints.

“Sure enough I went down there and got a tryout and signed with the Saints in 1986,” he said. “Then they went out and signed Bobby Herbert, they had Dave Wilson on the roster and they signed Richard Todd. Then they let me go. I wasn’t too thrilled about that.”

But the 1987 NFL Strike took place and the Saints needed players. They called Fourcade but he was on his way to Oakland to sign and play. He was still upset with the Saints for how they treated him.

“I told them other teams are calling too,” he said.

Fourcade dropped his younger brother, Keith, off at the Saints facility and headed for the airport. Finks soon got to Keith and convinced him to come back and take the opportunity they had for him.

“He assured me that I’d be on that football club,” Fourcade said.

“I changed my mind and signed right there with the Saints.”

Fourcade led the team to a 2-1 record positioning them for a 12-3 record in 1987 before losing in the Wildcard game to the Minnesota Vikings.

“That was the first winning season ever for the New Orleans Saints and the first playoff season ever,” Fourcade said.

And that strike year set Fourcade up for success and honors.

“The funny thing is, I’m in the ‘NFL 100 Greatest Touchdowns’ and it’s in NFL Follies,” he said. “Prior to the half in the Rams game, I threw a hail mary and they intercepted it and ran it down the field and their DB fumbled it and one of their linemen picked it up and started running across the field.”

With Fourcade, the last man between him and the goal line, a teammate forced the Rams lineman to fumble.

“I picked it up and ran it back 80 yards for a touchdown,” he said.

Fourcade’s strike season theatrics was also the basis for the sports movie, “The Replacements” starring Keanu Reeves and Gene Hackman.

“People have told me in Hollywood that it was based off of our strike season team,” he said.

From 1987 to 1991, Fourcade played for

the Saints, first as a backup and then as a starter again.

“In 1988 I was the number two quarterback behind Bobby Herbert,” he said. “Then backup in 1989 then I started the last three games of 1989.”

Those last three games were all against teams vying for a playoff spot, but Fourcade and the Saints denied them all. They beat the Buffalo Bills in Buffalo, in the frozen temps and snow, and then hosted the Eagles and Colts.

Fourcade had injured his elbow and in 1991, Herbert came back, the team traded for Steve Walsh and had a much cheaper Mike Buck on the roster and the Louisiana Rebel didn’t heal well enough to beat them out. From there he put together a career in the Arena Football league as a player/coach through 2001 then a coach through 2008.

The arena league stops were from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Miami, Florida to Mississippi and Louisiana. He now works as a commentator on both TV and radio for college and pro sports and he’d welcome the opportunity to coach on the offensive side of the football on the college level. Fourcade has also donated a lot of time and money in helping natural disaster victims across the US. Fourcade has a nephew, Chase Fourcade, who is following in his footsteps in Louisiana as an All-State quarterback winning backto-back state championships. There could be another Louisiana Rebel in the making, but he’s got some big shoes to fill and a heck of a legend to follow. - RN

New Day - Continued from Page 18

ey says he knows it. Baseball aside, Ole Miss couldn’t ask for a better ambassador to represent its university. Bianco is, and always has been, a class act both on and off the field. Ole Miss is a better university with Mike Bianco as its head coach.

With another successful recruiting season in the books, fresh off another bowl win, Ole Miss will now get ready for spring football in anticipation of the 2014 kickoff vs Boise State in Atlanta. The 2014 schedule is one the fans can look to with excitement, hosting Alabama, Tennessee and Auburn. While Ole Miss fans dream of making it to Atlanta, it now will be the dream of making it twice in one year. If that happens, you will be able to hear the Hotty Toddy cheer all across the state of Georgia. I feel quite certain the trio of Bjork, Thompson and Freeze will smile and thank the fans.

I also feel quite certain that thankful outpouring of support will be reciprocated from their fans, tenfold. - RN REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 21

REBEL FOOTBALL

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Leaving Their Mark

A look at the top five Head Coaches in Ole Miss Football History...and why

BY SEPH ANDERSON Hugh Freeze photo by Greg Pevey, historical photos courtesy Ole Miss Media Relations

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I

n the storied history of The University of Mississippi football program, one which has claimed three national championships, six Southeastern Conference (SEC) championships and 22 bowl game victories among countless other accomplishments, a total of 37 men have served as head coach of Mississippi’s flagship institution.

On November 11, 1893, behind the watchful guise of the school’s first football coach and manager A.L. Bondurant, the University of Mississippi defeated Southwest Baptist University (Jackson, Tenn.) by a score of 56-0 to claim the program’s first gridiron win. It was a victory not only for the team, but also for the university and town at large. From that day forward, football would become an enduring part of the school’s identity.

But out of these 37 head coaches, which men have had the greatest impact during their tenures in Oxford?

Here’s a look at one writer’s Top Five head coaches, based upon each man’s overall impact on the program:

5

4

#

#

2011-Present

HUGH

FREEZE

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1998-2004 Photo by Greg Pevey

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> t’s a story still being written, but what Hugh Freeze has accomplished and the precedent he has set in only two short years as leader of Rebel Nation has been nothing short of profound.

Hired on December 5, 2011, inheriting a program that had dropped 14 straight SEC games and won only six games in the previous two years combined, the 37th head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels took reins of a program in the wilderness.

However, the upbeat, inspirational Mississippian would prove to be just what the reeling Rebels and divided fan base needed after a sour end to the Houston Nutt era. On National Signing Day 2012, the Ed Orgeron recruiting disciple (Freeze) inked high school All-Americans Trae Elston, Issac Gross and Channing Ward after only a couple of months on the recruiting trail. It was a sign of times to come.

Notably, the centerpiece of his first class was National Junior College Player of the Year QB Bo Wallace, the player around which he’s quickly transcended the red and blue from SEC doormat to winner.

In year one, Freeze orchestrated an amazing 7-6 turnaround campaign, including a convincing 41-24 win over rival Mississippi State and a 38-17 BBVA Compass Bowl win over Pittsburgh. Further, his inaugural year at the helm nearly witnessed the red and blue pull upset wins over a Johnny Manziel-led Texas A&M club (30-27) and hated rival LSU (41-35).

Having brought together the Ole Miss fan base in short time, Freeze next went on to ink ESPN’s No. 5-ranked recruiting class in 2013. Not only did he ink ESPN’s No. 1 overall high school recruit in DE Robert Nkemdiche, but he also signed three other five-star prospects in OT Laremy Tunsil, S Tony Conner and WR Laquon Treadwell. It was a banner day for the Ole Miss Rebel program, and one that will forever be remembered in Ole Miss lore.

The 2013 season began with a bang, as Freeze’s club pulled off a “Music City Miracle” to win at Vandy on opening night of ESPN’s Thursday Night Football. While there were disappointing losses against the likes of Texas A&M and Mississippi State during the season, a team reliant upon several key true freshmen showed glimpses of what was to come under Freeze in a road win at Texas and home upset of rival LSU. While Freeze comes in at No. 5 after only two seasons in Oxford, his chances to climb as one of the greatest Ole Miss head coaches of all time are quite promising with continued recruiting class hauls in coming years.

DAVID

CUTCLIFFE >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

S

purned by Tommy “Pine Box” Tuberville only weeks earlier, Ole Miss hired University of Tennessee offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe as its next head coach ahead of a pending bowl game. On the job for less than a month heading into the 1998 Independence Bowl, Cutcliffe’s first month on the job would be monumental.

Before traveling with his new squad to Shreveport, La., for the 1998 Independence Bowl, the new head coach helped land the Rebels a verbal commitment that would leave an impact on the school forever. In mid-December that year, Coach Cut landed a commitment from the youngest son of Rebel great QB Archie Manning— QB Eli Manning.

Choosing the Rebels over Texas and Virginia, Manning decided to join forces at his father’s alma mater under the same man that helped develop his older brother, QB Peyton Manning, into the No. 1 pick of the 1998 NFL Draft. Always wanting to help his kids make positive choices in life, as evidenced by Eli’s eventual 2004 NFL Draft Day decision not to sign with the troubled San Diego Chargers organization, Archie knew Eli could flourish under Cut’s watch.

Would Eli have picked the Rebels had Cutcliffe not been head coach? We’ll never know, but quite possibly not.

Shortly after receiving the commitment from Manning, Cutcliffe’s club would take on Texas Tech in the Independence Bowl. Behind three touchdowns from both QB Romaro Miller and RB Deuce McAllister, including a memorable 48-yard onside kick return touchdown, Ole Miss handled Texas Tech 35-18 to give Cutcliffe his first win..

Cutcliffe’s first win at Ole Miss would prove to be a sign of good things to come, as he would lead the Rebels to four more bowl games during his 73-game tenure wearing the red and blue. Notching six winning seasons over his first six seasons, Ole Miss would also claim the 1999 Independence Bowl, 2002 Independence Bowl and 2003 Cotton Bowl (the Rebels’ first since 1962).

Although the Rebels defeated Oklahoma State 31-28 in the 2004 Cotton Bowl behind an MVP performance from Eli Manning, the outcome of an earlier home game against hated rival LSU would linger in the minds of Ole Miss fans the entire next season.

On November 22, 2003, in Manning’s final home game as a senior, Ole Miss took on the Bayou Bengals for a chance to head to Ole Miss’s first SEC Championship Game. In a game for the ages, along with the See Cutcliffe - Continued on Page 25 REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 23

3

2

#

#

1983-1993

1930-1937

BILLY

ED

BREWER

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

T

hat’s right, none other than Billy “Dog” Brewer comes in as the third-greatest coach in Ole Miss football history, despite a tenure mixed with both times of good and bad.

Having not won more than six games in any single season between 1972 and 1982, the Ole Miss football program was not headed anywhere near the level of success experienced under John Vaught.

If the program were to return to the national scene, getting the next head coaching hire right would be absolutely crucial.

After the 1982 season, Athletics Director and former co-captain on Vaught’s 1960 national championship squad, Warner Alford, hired a fellow Vaught disciple by the name of Billy Brewer to lead the Rebels.

Rebel fans likely felt like history was destined to repeat itself, as Ole Miss would claim only one of its first six contests to begin the Brewer-era in 1983. However, any premature misconceptions about what Brewer would do for the Rebels quickly faded.

Beginning with a 20-7 road win at Texas Christian University (TCU) on October 15, 1983, “The Dog,” as he would affectionately become known, led his team to consecutive wins over Vanderbilt, LSU, Tennessee and Mississippi State to cap off the regular season.

Mixed with an earlier forfeit over Tulane, Ole Miss would finish with a 7-4 regular season mark. With an invitation to the 1983 Independence Bowl against Air Force, the Rebels headed bowling for the first time in more than a decade.

In compiling a cumulative head coaching record of 67-56-3 in his 11 years as the face of Ole Miss football, Brewer would post four seasons of eight or more wins and lead his club to five bowl games (1983, 1986 Independence; 1989, 1992 Liberty; 1991 Gator).

Further, The Dog helped produce four Ole Miss All-Americans— Defensive End Freddie Joe Nunn (1984), Punter Bill Smith (1985, 1986), Tight End Wesley Walls (1988) and Offensive Lineman Everett Lindsay (1991,1992)—and three First Round NFL Draft Picks in Freddie Joe Nunn (1985), Linebacker Tony “Alligator” Bennett (1990) and Defensive Tackle Kelvin Pritchett (1991).

With all the success Brewer had on the field, an enduring aspect of his legacy will forever be tied to an exuberant young man he welcomed to the Ole Miss roster named Chucky Mullins. In the midst of becoming a big-time defensive back in the SEC, Mullins suffered a paralyzing injury on a collision during the 1989 homecoming contest See Brewer - Continued on Page 25 24 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

WALKER

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

R

esponsible for leading the Rebels from 1930-1937, Ed Walker’s numerous accomplishments and contributions to the football program helped chart the course of Ole Miss football forever. Worth noting is the fact that Walker also coached the basketball team from 1930-1935, where he posted a winning record of 46-36 On January 1, 1936, Ole Miss took on Catholic University in the Orange Bowl, Ole Miss’s first bowl game appearance. While the Rebels fell 20-19 at Miami Stadium, Walker’s efforts in leading the school to its first bowl contest—not to mention producing the school’s first All-American in Frank “Bruiser” Kinard—were significant.

Another monumental accomplishment of Walker was helping establish the Rebels as a charter member of the Southeastern Conference in 1933. Ever since, Ole Miss has competed in the strongest, toughest conference in all of college football.

Walker was also instrumental in generating a long-term name for the school’s athletic teams. Referred to as “Red and Blue” (referencing crimson and navy, the official school colors of Ivy League universities Harvard and Yale, respectively), Ole Miss sought a stronger team name to further establish the program’s presence on a national stage.

A 1929 contest successfully produced “Mississippi Flood,” but ultimately the “Flood” simply failed to catch on. Despite the dismal longterm outcome of 1929 contest, in 1936 coach Walker helped convince the Mississippian that Ole Miss needed a true nickname to help enhance exposure on a national level. In fact, a major reason behind Walker’s insistence was likely the name by which one sportswriter casually referred the Ole Miss team.

The five options put before the Mississippian sportswriters were (in no particular order) the Confederates, Ole Miss, Raiders, Rebels and Stonewalls. In the end, Rebels received 18 votes, Raiders received two votes and Ole Miss received one vote. Ever since that momentous vote, University of Mississippi squads have been called the Rebels.

Remembering the great coach Ed Walker for all he had meant during his service to the University of Mississippi, the 1938 The Ole Miss stated the following: Gone from our midst is coach Edgar Lee Walker, but ever-present is the type of athletics he symbolized during his eight-year tenure at the University. A good coach, a man among men, an appreciative winSee Walker - Continued on Page 25

1

# 1947-1970, 1973

JOHN

VAUGHT

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

W

as there even any question here?

Having posted an overall record of 190-61-12 at Ole Miss, Vaught suffered only one losing season in his 25-year tenure. After winning the SEC Championship in his first year on the job (1947), Vaught went on to claim five more conference titles (1954, 1955, 1960, 1962 and 1963). The Rebels have been searching for number seven ever since.

As for National Championships, the coaching icon claimed three for the Ole Miss program over the course of his lengthy tenure (1959, 1960 and 1962). Over the 1950s, Vaught posted a record of 80-21-5.

However, the 1960s proved to be even more successful from a winloss standpoint behind the coach’s 72-20-6 mark with the red and blue.

On top of earning three national titles and six SEC championships, Vaught was named AP SEC Coach of the Year six times over his career (1947, 1948, 1954, 1955, 1960 and 1962). His record speaks volumes.

In what may be the least-recognized statistic of his career, the coaching legend went 23-2 in Egg Bowls. Beginning with a win in

1947, Vaught rallied off 17 consecutive Egg Bowl wins in his famed Rebel career. It’s a cumulative mark over a rival that’s simply unheard of today.

With incredible success, the head coach protected then-Hemingway Stadium like his life depended on it. From 1947 to 1973, he compiled a home record of 57-6-2. Vaught lost in front of the home crowd only six times during his 25-year coaching career in Oxford. Within those 57 wins, he posted a 34-game home unbeaten streak from 1952 to 1964.

On November 15, 1952, Vaught’s Rebels pulled off what was likely his greatest home win. Riding a 22-game winning streak, No. 3 Maryland fell 21-14 to No. 11 Ole Miss in front of the Rebel faithful. It was a win that propelled the Rebels to greatness over the next decade.

Vaught led his club to 18 postseason contests. From 1957 to 1971, the three-time national champion took the Rebs to 14 straight bowls.

By the time his coaching career finally came to an end, the Ole Miss great had notched a 10-8 bowl record, including five Sugar Bowl victories.

In terms of legends he helped produce, Vaught, produced 26 firstteam All-Americans and four Heisman Trophy candidates in 25 years.

The only Rebel Heisman finalist since Vaught’s tenure was Eli Manning in 2003.

The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and National College Football Hall of Fame inductee left a legacy on the Ole Miss program that will be remembered for eternity. Fittingly, a life-sized statue of Vaught was built behind the north end zone of the football stadium. - n Cutcliffe - Continued from Page 23

biggest crowd to ever descend upon the Grove, the Rebels fell three points shy of the win. Ole Miss was still able to claim the title of SEC Western Division co-champions, but seemingly more important, the loss cost the Rebels a chance to play for an SEC crown.

Minus Eli and on the heels of what Rebels fans still call “the one that got away” against LSU, the 2004 season would prove to be a difficult one for Cutcliffe. Starting off with a season-opening upset loss to Memphis at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, the Rebels would go on to post a 4-7 season in 2004—the team’s worst year since 1994.

For a program that had gotten used to winning in recent years, a 4-7 season didn’t sit well with many around the program. Despite five previous winning seasons, four bowl wins and an overall record of 4429, Cutcliffe was let go in December 2004 after not seeing eye-to-eye with Athletics Director Pete Boone and Chancellor Robert Khayat on changes necessary to move the program back in the right direction. It was a controversial decision that remains debated to this day.

Cutcliffe remains the only Ole Miss head coach to have won at least seven games in each of his first five seasons. Regardless of his popularity level among Ole Miss fans, there’s no question of the impact he had on the program. Had Cut not stepped in to pick up the pieces Tuberville left in Oxford, the program could have suffered a setback. - n Brewer - Continued from Page 24

with Vanderbilt. It was under Brewer’s leadership that both Mullins and his teammates dealt with the tragedy from the day Mullins was injured until the day he passed away.

Despite a head coaching career marked by times of good and bad and plagued with NCAA sanctions over alleged improprieties, the charismatic leader was successful in bringing Ole Miss football back to national prominence for the first time since Vaught. There’s simply no denying that.

In 2013, Brewer remains the second-winningest Rebels head coach of all-time behind Vaught. - n Walker - Continued from Page 24

ner and a good loser, one who rated sportsmanship far above the game itself -- Ed Walker -- a real gentleman, a true Rebel! - n REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 25

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

WILL

ALLEN Will Allen has big shoes to fill as he returns behind the plate for 2014

BY JOHN DAVIS

Contributing Writer - The Oxford Eagle Photos by Bobby McDuffie

26 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

OLE MISS BASEBALL - WILL ALLEN >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

>

There are a number of reasons why Ole Miss’ Will Allen is excited about the 2014 baseball season. The first big reason to be excited for the senior from Gainesville, Fla., is that he returns to the role of catcher for the Rebels.

Of course being his last season in Oxford, Allen, who is one of two team captains, is looking to lead the Rebels back to the NCAA Regionals and earn a host for Oxford-University Stadium in the process.

Allen came to Ole Miss as a catcher and he started there 56 games as a sophomore in 2012 before being replaced in the lineup at that position by Stuart Turner in 2013.

Turner went on to win the coveted Johnny Bench award as the nation’s top catcher and Allen has his sights set on following what his friend started.

“I’m extremely excited. That’s what I came to Ole Miss as out of high school. I came here to catch and that’s what I’ve done my whole life and I’m excited be back in the action the whole time,” Allen said.

“Being a tough competitor, I would have liked to have caught last year, but I’m a realist. Stuart won the Johnny Bench and was the best catcher in the country and I completely agree with him playing. He and I are great friends. We still keep in touch. I really wasn’t slighted by that.”

While Turner has moved on to professional baseball, — Allen said he was happy to have learned that Turner had been invited to spring training with the Minnesota Twins — the two remain close and in a sense, Turner’s insight into playing the most demanding position on the field would still be a part of the team.

“He’s always said if there was anything I ever needed to call him during the season with questions,” Allen said. “The main part he told me is to work hard day in and day out and just to continue to do what we do as a team with our coaching staff. Stuart told me to handle the pitching staff and to work hard on that and help my team win any way I could.”

Playing catcher at Ole Miss is a little tougher than at other schools simply because head coach Mike Bianco and his top two assistants, Carl Lafferty and Cliff Godwin, played the position as well in college.

“That’s a positive and negative about going to school at Ole Miss. All the coaching

staff caught, so we’re under a microscope constantly. The good thing about that is we’re going to learn day in and day out.

We’re going to work and bust our butts to get better every day,” Allen said. “They do put an emphasis on your defensive role and the pitching staff and blocking balls and receiving and throwing runners out. They’ve told us a bunch of times that the best defensive catcher is going to play. If you’re playing, anything you can do with the bat helps. I’ve been used to that since I’ve been here and out of high school. Just trying to work on both sides of the ball to help my team.”

Allen’s final fall didn’t go as planned as he suffered thumb injury that required surgery, causing him to be limited to just him conditioning his lower body during practice sessions and workouts. He got the green light to start practicing again with the team after he got back to school in early January and everything has clicked for him since.

“I started off this fall catching and then I got injured and had thumb surgery so I didn’t get as many reps I would have liked this fall. When I got back in the spring, I just got out there and went 100 percent with my work ethic and taking the extra reps that I need in the bullpen and catching off the machine and blocking to catch back up,” Allen said. “I really think my support staff, my coaching staff, the other catchers, they’ve all helped me jump back in there.

It is something to where once you learn it, you don’t really forget it. Now it’s all about the reps and doing it over and over again. I feel confident that we put in the work this spring to really be successful.”

Last season, Allen played in 60 games, starting 56 as a designated hitter. He hit four home runs and drove in 23 RBIs, but his average was just .231. When he was starting behind the plate as a sophomore, Allen hit .302 with 11 doubles and two triples and finished with 24 RBIs. Those types of numbers on offense, coupled with a great defensive game, should only help the Rebels reach their goal of making the NCAAs. Ole Miss was picked to finish sixth in the Southeastern Conference Western Division by league coaches, but Allen felt like outsiders don’t realize how hard the team has worked.

“We’re a very confident group. I think that’s going to show this year. I think we have a great mix of older, veteran guys who

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have been there before and know what to expect and had their successes and failures.

I think that’s huge experience and key to any successful team,” Allen said. “I think the new guys hit the ground running and they’ve worked so hard in the weight room and in conditioning and on the field. I think we have a great group. I think the big thing is we may not have the All-American guy that makes the preseason lists but I think we’re going to have some superstars. I think one through nine and through the (pitching) rotation, I think it’s going to be huge that we’re not relying on that one guy to make us successful, that one star pitcher one hitter that we’re relying on for us to come through for us.

“I think that’s huge for us so that when we go on the road and we’re playing somebody and they have scouting reports, they’re not going to have the focus of ‘this is the one guy that we can’t just let them beat us with,’” Allen added. “I think there are going to be some guys in the bullpen that are going to be huge for us and take people by surprise. The mentality of this team, we’re very confident and we honestly believe that we deserve success because we’re the hardest working team in the country. I think that’s going to show once the season starts.”

Allen felt like he, and Austin Anderson, the Rebels’ other captain, and some of the older players understood what was at stake for the program this year and how special he wants to make his final year playing at Ole Miss.

“I remember my first day of freshman year here like it was yesterday. The last four years have flown by and everybody told me that was going to happen. To grow in a program and to have been with this coaching staff ....this is my fourth year with Coach Bianco and fourth year with Coach Lafferty. This is my third year with Coach Godwin. I’ve built a great relationship with the coaching staff and the guys that are still here, we understand the importance of hosting a regional and super regional and getting to Omaha,” Allen said. “That’s been our team goal every year I’ve been here.

We want to win the SEC, host a regional, a super-regional go to Omaha and win a national championship. It’s obviously a great expectation but we realize this is our last chance to get it done. Austin Anderson, Preston Overbey. We understand what it takes and we want to get over that hump that we haven’t gotten to yet.” - RN

REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 27

REBEL RECRUITING

Follow @RivalsChase

Signing Day 2014 Hugh Freeze and staff sign 2nd consecutive Top 20 recruiting class

BY CHASE PARHAM

Contributng Writer - RebelGrove.com

N

ational Signing Day 2014 didn’t feature the hype of final-day fireworks of the year before, but the Rebels may have met just as many needs and signed a class that is deeper top to bottom.

Ole Miss signed 26 total prospects in the 2014 class including five junior college players and six early enrollees. The Rebels could have signed a maximum of 28 prospects, so head coach, Hugh Freeze, will have two left over for this coming December, and that number could increase of any of those on the current list greyshirt.

Freeze cited relationships with families and early identification as keys to the class that finished in the top 20 nationally by all rankings services. Ole Miss finished No. 14 by 247Sports, No. 16 by 247 Composite, No. 18

by Scout.com and No. 19 by Rivals.com.

“I think it’s pretty well rounded,” Freeze said. “There are always people that you wish you would have gotten that you felt like would have addressed needs more immediate. I’m really happy with the guys we have. We addressed almost every position… In this class we might be better top to bottom (than 2013).

Nineteen of Ole Miss’ signees were rated four stars or higher by at least one service, 28 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

(Left to Right) Breeland Speaks, Dayall Harris and Rod Taylor. (Front-Sitting) Ronald Walker committed to the Rebels last summer but will spend a few seasons at Co-Lin before suiting up for the Rebels.

and the Rebels won the state of Mississippi, signing the three players, according to Rivals. com (Rod Taylor, Breeland Speaks and CJ Hampton) and top four players, according to 247Sports (those plus Markell Pack). In all, Ole Miss added a dozen players from the Magnolia State.

Rivals.com uses a numerical system to rank prospects, and a 5.7 is one spot away from a fourth star. The Rebels added 10 5.7s along with seven four stars and had an average prospect score (5.74 to 5.66) that barely lost out to last year’s unanimous top 10 class.

Ole Miss will be at 85 total scholarships this

fall, a first for the Freeze era, and the Rebels landed prospects that should fill positions of need. Cornerback was a key concern, and Ole Miss landed Stockbridge, Ga., talent Kendarius Webster over Georgia and Florida State and flipped the nation’s top junior college cornerback, Tee Shepard, from Mississippi State on Signing Day. Shepard has work to do at Holmes Community College to get eligible, but should he accomplish that, the 6-foot-2 former Rivals100 standout should be in the rotation immediately. Shepard is hearing impaired, but it doesn’t severely impact him on the

C.J. Hampton - Meridian HS

D.K. Buford - Lafayette County

field, and he has a plan to gain eligibility in the classroom. The Rebels had stopped recruiting him for a while due to his academics but reemerged about a week before Signing Day. Shepard has only officially visited the Bulldogs, but Ole Miss kept working and announced his national letter of intent around noon on Feb. 5 - the last signee announced.

“We had recruited him very heavily earlier in the process,” Freeze said. “There was some uncertainty with us with exactly where he was going to be and what his future plans were.

Obviously we found out that he was back at Holmes and expecting to have a shot at qualifying and getting out for this year. We immediately got on it. He was really the one we had the best relationship with, even though we had taken a hiatus from his recruitment for a brief period of time. We immediately started doing what we do in most cases, recruiting the mom, dad, high school coach and him. I was very clear with Tee at the beginning, that if he had no interest I didn’t want to muddy the water and we’d move on. He continued to go down the road with us.”

Offensive line was another area of need, and Ole Miss added Taylor, a top 100 player and consensus No. 1 player in the state, Army All-America selection Jordan Sims, two Mississippi projects in Sean Rawlings and Tyler Putman and junior college and former Bowling Green tackle Fahn Cooper, who was thought to be a midyear enrollee but will have to return to his junior college before getting back to Oxford in May. Former Rivals250 tackle Christian Morris also signed, but the UCLA transfer is awaiting word from the NCAA on a hardship waiver that would eliminate the transfer rule that requires he sit out a year. Morris suffered an Achilles injury the

day after Signing Day that puts his season in jeopardy, regardless of the waiver.

“Fahn Cooper is going to be a guy that can come in and give us some quality depth at offensive tackle,” Freeze said. “Rod Taylor is as good as I’ve seen in drill tape. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a guy any better than his feet in those things. It means a lot more to me and hoping Matt Luke can get the most out of him; Jordan Sims, the same way. We’re going to stay on him about controlling his weight, but then watch his drill tape and see what he did at everybody’s camp. As soon as he goes to their camp he gets an offer because of what he can do athletically. Tyler Putman has a chance if he rehabs and gets back from (ACL injury).

Sean Rawlings, what a quality family. He’s a guy that wants to be at Ole Miss and wants to wear that helmet that says Ole Miss on it. It means a lot. He’s got a chance in the future.”

When Ole Miss starts up spring practice, Northeast Mississippi Community College athlete Jeremy Liggins, four-star safety CJ Hampton, prep school defensive end Marquis Haynes, quarterback Kendrick Doss and East Mississippi Community College middle linebacker Christian Russell will all be available.

Ole Miss secured Hampton following a tense couple weeks when Alabama made a significant run. Haynes is a former North Carolina signee, who can play outside linebacker or defensive end. At 225 pounds, he ran a 10.76 100 meter dash in high school. Liggins, who is from Oxford, Miss., and signed with LSU in 2012, could play a number positions including tight end, defensive line or quarterback in short-yardage situations.

“CJ Hampton and that recruiting battle, I’m glad that didn’t go on another two weeks,” Freeze said. “(Liggins) will split time at the

start of spring at tight end and quarterback and seeing exactly what he can do at the quarterback position. We’ve had the need for a bigger, more physical tight end. We sure hope he’s the answer to that.”

The Rebels also added high school talent on the defensive line, grabbing Covington, La., native Garrald McDowell away from LSU and holding off several programs for four-star defensive lineman Breeland Speaks. Victor Evans from Skyline, Texas, is listed as a linebacker, but he’ll play defensive end in college.

He was an Associated Press 5A All-State selection.

“Breeland Speaks is as good of a defensive lineman as anywhere in the nation,” Freeze said. “He was a priority for us within the state.

We had to battle other SEC schools the last two weeks. He’s a guy that used to play safety as a ninth grader, then linebacker as a tenth grader. Now he’s developed into a full-grown man… Garrald McDowell, his motor is unbelievable. Grant Heard did a phenomenal job recruiting him.”

Special teams players go under the radar in signing classes, but Ole Miss flipped the nation’s top kicker, Gary Wunderlich, from Virginia several months ago. The Memphis (University School), Tenn., native is expected to compete for punting and placekicking duties following the graduation of Tyler Campell and Andrew Ritter from the Rebels’ roster.

“Those guys tend to be forgotten, but they’re not forgotten when they are on the field,” Freeze said. “We’ll get through spring and fall camp and figure out who’s ahead. He’s going to be good.”

There were some misses in the class, as Rivals100 linebacker Nyles Morgan was thought to be a lock to the Rebels for months before Notre Dame’s degree prestige pushed the family to South Bend. Rivals250 defensive lineman Davon Godchaux signed with LSU despite favoring the Rebels the morning of Signing Day. And then there was Dacorius Law, who signed with Ole Miss, Utah and East Mississippi Community College. That’s obviously not allowed, and Ole Miss released the academic risk from his NLI to avoid the circus.

Freeze is happy about the overall depth of the class and thinks his second full recruiting class has him close to the target roster.

“I think we’re close,” Freeze said. “I consider it two recruiting classes. Everybody else says it’s three, but the first year I only had three weeks. I don’t really count that one. I said three full recruiting years that I thought we should have our roster where you look at it and think it’s an SEC roster. We’re definitely a lot closer. That first year we had 68 scholarships. That’s not counting the injuries that you have. Now we’re at 85. We’re really close.”

- RN Photo by Greg Pevey, RebelNation Magazine™ REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 29

REBEL RECRUITING

Follow @OxfordEagleJD

Signing Day 2014

HOME IS WHERE THE

HEART IS Covington, LA defensive lineman Garrald McDowell lets his heart lead him to Oxford

BY JOHN DAVIS

Contributng Writer - Oxford Eagle Photos - NolaSports.com

H

ugh Freeze got his first Christmas present five days before Dec. 25 when Garrald McDowell felt like Ole Miss was the school he wanted to play for. McDowell (6-foot-2, 260 pounds) is a highly recruited defensive line prospect who grew up around a bevy of LSU fans wearing purple and gold in his hometown of Covington, La. It would have been easy for him to put on the purple and gold of the Tigers as well and drive roughly 45 minutes to the west and play football rather than five hours north to play in Oxford.

McDowell bypassed safe and easy of playing for LSU and Les Miles and decided that the family atmosphere Freeze and his staff were pro-

30 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

moting was too much to pass up.

“I just felt it in my heart. I talked it over with my parents and my coaches and Ole Miss was in my heart,” McDowell said adding he had his number, 42, already picked out and ready to go. “Everything just felt comfortable there. After my visit to Ole Miss, it just felt home to me. My family felt like I would be taken care of here.

“There are a lot of LSU fans where I live; I mean I do live

in Louisiana. Most of the people that live here were happy for me when I made my decision,” McDowell added. “A lot of them thought I was going to go to LSU, but I just made my decision. I felt Ole Miss in my heart and I went with my heart.”

McDowell comes to Oxford after a very impressive high school career, one that includes an extensive résumé of pressuring and sacking quarterbacks and slamming running backs down behind the

line of scrimmage.

“They want me to play strong side defensive end but it doesn’t really what side defensive end I play. I want to do some damage,” said McDowell, who added he was good against the run and rushing the passer. “I feel like I’m pretty good at both. I use my hands to get to that quarterback.”

The stats back up McDowell’s ability, as does his invitation to play in the Under Armour All-America game

this past January. As a senior, McDowell finished with 128 tackles, nine sacks, six pass breakups, four forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.

He also played running back in certain packages in the red zone or on short yardage. He finished 2013 with eight rushing touchdowns and had 94 yards on 24 carries. As a junior, McDowell had 84 tackles, with 18.5 going for a loss, and 10.5 sacks.

McDowell was rated as the

12th-best strong side defensive end by 247Sports.com, while ESPN.com rated him as the 111th best overall prospect, regardless of position,

for the 2014 class.

Freeze raved about McDowell’s motor during his National Signing Day press conference and the job assistant Grant Heard did making McDowell feel like home, leading to his signature on his national letter of intent.

Playing college football, in

“I just felt it in my heart. I talked it over with my parents and my coaches and Ole Miss was in my heart,” McDowell said adding he had his number, 42, already picked out and ready to go. “Everything just felt comfortable there. After my visit to Ole Miss, it just felt home to me. My family felt like I would be taken care of here. the Southeastern Conference, has always been in the back of McDowell’s mind.

“It’s been a dream. When I was little, I used to always watch the SEC. I know they get after it. It’s the best conference to play in and I feel like I should be in there too,” said McDowell, who feels like his game is modeled after the Houston Texans’ JJ Watt. “He has a great motor and he uses his hands well. He gets after it, he’s a humble guy.”

Playing as a freshman doesn’t appear to be a major deal for McDowell, who is more interested in being ready than not.

“I just want to learn from the best and try to be the best I can be when I do step on the field,” McDowell said.

In order to get in better shape for his freshman season, regardless if he plays or not, McDowell was working out and throwing the shot put on the track team for the first time.

“I think it will be good for my flexibility and strength,” he said.

McDowell with more strength and flexibility, and speed, is not a good thing for quarterbacks and running backs who don’t wear red and blue in the future. - RN

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REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 31

REBEL RECRUITING

Follow @OxfordEagleJD

Signing Day 2014 HARD WORKING MAN

Building a close relationship with prospects is one of the keys to Chris Kiffin’s success on the recruiting trail

BY JOHN DAVIS

Contributng Writer - Oxford Eagle Photos by Greg Pevey

O

le Miss defensive line coach Chris Kiffin is a happy man. Sure, taking a few days off following National Signing Day has the ability to recharge a person’s battery but Kiffin was upbeat because of the defensive linemen signed for the 2014 class.

When you garner the signatures of Callaway’s Breeland Speaks, an athletic tackle who can rush the passer in the middle as well as stop the run, and a versatile Bandit (that’s what Kiffin calls his Strong-side defensive ends) like Garrald McDowell; it’s easier to feel good about the future.

“We couldn’t be happier with the defensive line. We got five guys for four different positions even though people think it’s just a tackle or an end. We’ve got a Bandit, nose, tackle and end. Garrald McDowell is going to play the Bandit position. He is going to start at the strong-side defensive end position for us.

Even though he’s not a little guy, he’s only 6-1.

We’ve got see how he develops and how we recruit next year, but he is already 260 pounds and he could grow into a tackle for us, which gives you flexibility,” Kiffin explained going over the signees.

“Chris Williams is a nose and then we were able to get two rush ends, which are the hardest positions to recruit. I feel really good about those two guys.”

The three-technique tackle, a player that lines up on either shoulder of the center, is the most athletic lineman in the scheme, a perfect mix of speed and power like the 6-foot-4, 285 pound Speaks is.

“Robert Nkemdiche is playing that posi-

32 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

tion now. If you can get one that started playing linebacker like Breeland did and have him grow into his body, now you know what to expect with his speed and athleticism,” Kiffin says adding the defense is faster with this group of signees.

“I think we got faster across the board.

Corner was a position of need and to get Kendarius Webster, one of the best players in Georgia, will be huge for us. I think we got a lot of good football players. Everybody says that every year but when it comes down to evaluating, it’s not all about the stars. I think you saw that last year with Evan Engram.

He wasn’t a very highly recruited kid and if he hadn’t gotten hurt, he would have been a freshman All-American. We got a lot of instate talent and we feel like we got faster on defense with C.J. Hampton and Kendarius

Webster, guys that are really good at the game and not necessarily the biggest recruits. They know how to play football and that’s the biggest thing.”

Fans are very into where a class ranks each year and while Kiffin and head coach Hugh Freeze like to be ranked high, meeting needs is an even bigger deal.

“There is a fine line and you’ve got to take some of (recruiting rankings) into account.

The analysts that do it year round, they get paid good money. This time of the year, moving on, you look at the computer and they’ve already been evaluating it and looking at it and know where they players are,” Kiffin says.

“As far as the fans that get caught up in the four and five stars, there are a lot of studies out there in the NFL about where a player was as a recruit. The Seahawks had a lot of two

“I think we got a lot of good football players. Everybody says that every year but when it comes down to evaluating, it’s not all about the stars. I think you saw that last year with Evan Engram. He wasn’t a very highly recruited kid and if he hadn’t gotten hurt, he would have been a freshman All-American.” star guys on the roster. The four and five star guys just develop a lot faster. As a senior in high school they are more physically developed and they run faster and hit you harder.

“Everybody is different and that’s why a guy’s redshirt year is so important. When you’re at a program where you can redshirt a lot of guys and take time to develop them, you don’t really know what you have. We have a bunch of those type of guys right now that we’re excited to see where they are after their redshirt year,” Kiffin continued.

“This is their second year in a system and they’re still developing in their college career.

Some of those guys are maxed out their senior year in high school as far as getting bigger and running faster where other guys are just getting started.”

In an ideal situation, Kiffin would like to see his signees redshirt, or play on special Photo by RebelNation™ Magazine teams, rather than have to start. Their addi-

tion to the roster, regardless of what happens, adds depth overall.

“We haven’t had that depth since we’ve been here. If we have an injury, we’ve scrambled moving guys around and you shouldn’t have to do that. You should be able to use those young guys that can run on special teams rather than having to use starters to run down on kickoffs,” Kiffin says. “The schools like Alabama and Georgia and LSU are using those freshmen receivers who aren’t getting snaps on special teams. They’re running down there on kickoffs and covering people. That’s what we want to do, to have 85 guys on scholarship that can help you everywhere.”

As the coordinator of defensive recruiting, Kiffin spends a lot of time on the road, which makes it tough on his wife, Angela, and his three children.

“In recruiting, the chunks of time aren’t really spread out. It hits you in the spring, which is four or five weeks. Right after spring ball we’ll be hitting the road. The good thing about spring recruiting is your family sees that it’s near the end. They know when you get back from recruiting in the spring that you can go on summer vacation and hang out with the family,” Kiffin says.

“It’s a grind right after the season. During the season, it’s not really that hard. You know that if it’s an away game, you’re going to go out the Thursday before and see kids on Friday. It’s a little tough to close the season out in December and January because you’re on the road for five straight days and then you come back and have an official visit weekend and then you’re back on the road that Sunday. So there really is no break for a few weeks. It’s just part of it and they understand. It’s an adjustment part when you get back home.”

When he’s out on the road, Kiffin will keep up with his children via Face Time through his iPad. “When I get to the hotel, I can do Face Time with them and they can see my face when they’re getting ready for bed. The good thing for me personally is my wife was in sports and coached herself,” Kiffin says. “She recruited for women’s basketball and overseas so she gets it. She does understand that it’s going to happen but it is different with three kids at home.”

Trying to sign players for the 2015 class has already started. Ole Miss has already hosted a Junior Day. Kiffin has even started looking at 2016 prospects, something that he says gets a little carried away.

“I think a lot of coaches would agree that it has gotten a little out of hand. The thing is you have to keep up with the other programs.

If somebody else is doing it, you have to do it.

It’s gotten out of hand because of the development of players. You may have a 14-, 15-year-

old sophomore who is way more physical than his classmates at his age. That doesn’t mean that’s where he’s going to be two years from now. So for a school to go after that kid, then everybody else feels like they have to go after him. Two years from now, is that kid really going to be an SEC player?” Kiffin says.

“Then you have to deal with who has offered and which offer is really committable.

That’s not necessarily fair to the kid or the family. In recruiting, for a year’s time, you’re developing relationships with the mom, dad, grandmother, aunts and uncles, whoever it is.

When you get to this point, you’re worried about signing your senior class. If you’re not going to fully recruit a kid at that age, then why is everybody getting so far ahead of the game? It’s not fair because he has to really wait until he’s a junior or senior. You can say you’re recruiting the kid but it’s not really recruiting until you can get him on campus.”

A big thing for Ole Miss is to evaluate a player at camp, once they get to campus, as well as to check into their daily lives.

“That’s the way it was done back in the day.

They would come to camp and compete and obviously an in-person visit is different than watching a video. You got to get to know the kid. When you’re making a four-year investment on a kid, just like he’s picking a school, why would you want to do that when you don’t know the kid and you only watch him on film?” Kiffin says.

“You want to know what his interests are and to really understand that you better talk to his coach. When you go to the school, you better ask everybody. Coach Freeze always talks about getting to know the janitor.

Nobody talks to them but they walk up and down the halls and see everything. A kid may act one way for a teacher in class and then outside he may be completely different.”

For a coach who grew up being around a father in the NFL and a brother that has been at other programs, working for Ole Miss is a blessing, Kiffin says.

“It’s really a God send. It’s the perfect place for Coach Freeze to come back home for himself and to bring a staff that really cares. Nobody has a big ego that’s looking for the next job every single day and on the phone like it is at some places. I don’t want to say content, but they’re happy with the family atmosphere,” Kiffin says of the staff.

“It’s very positive and you can’t ask for a better place to come to work at everyday. To top that off, you’re having success on the field now. We’re all ready to take that next step and we all feel in this building that we’re going to win the national championship. It’s just a journey and that’s what Coach Freeze talks about year one, year two and now we’re on year three of the journey. It’s just something really special.” - RN REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 33

SPRING FOOTBALL

Follow @RivalsChase

2014 SPRING FOOTBALL PREVIEW Rebels begin Chapter 3 of “The Journey” with visions of bigger and better things

BY CHASE PARHAM

Contributng Writer - RebelGrove.com

O

le Miss football hits the practice fields this March for spring drills with 15 wins in two years under head coach Hugh Freeze and the personnel to take another jump in 2014. However, these weeks leading up to the April 5 Grove Bowl are critical to try out position changes, get an early jump on the depth chart and see how players have responded to offseason strength and conditioning.

The Rebels welcomed in five midyear enrollees, who are on campus and ready for the spring and can also sort transfer players who sat out last fall into the depth chart.

Freshmen safety CJ Hampton and quarterback Kendrick Doss, prep school defensive end Marquis Haynes and junior college products Jeremy Liggins and Christian Russell will transition during the spring and get a head start on 2014 preparations.

UCLA transfer Christian Morris also enrolled in January but an Achilles injury has him sidelined for the foreseeable future. Morris was released from his UCLA national letter of intent but has not received a waiver to play in 2014.

Each position group has different situations so we take a position-by-position look at the Rebels heading into year three of the Freeze era.

QUARTERBACK Bo Wallace is back for his se-

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nior season and third year as the Ole Miss starter, and the shoulder is just now reaching 100 percent after surgery in early 2013. Wallace set the school’s total offense record as a junior and should receive All-SEC preseason consideration. The backup battle is what to watch, as redshirt freshmen Devante Kincade and Ryan Buchanan battle in their second year in the system. Kincade has a leg up because of his different skill set from Wallace, while Buchanan flashed excellent knowledge and footwork during his first year in Oxford. Keep an eye out for Liggins to get some short-yardage quarterback looks because of his past history at the position or for Southern Miss transfer Anthony Alford to get a shot at the wildcat package.

RUNNING BACK Ole Miss signed just one running back, Akeem Judd, in 2014, but the junior college power back won’t report until the summer, so the Rebels returning backs will compete for snaps and to turn heads. Rising juniors I’Tavius Mathers and Jaylen Walton headline the group, while sophomore Mark Dodson will go through his second spring. Keep an eye on Jordan Wilkins this spring.

Wilkins redshirted in 2013 and became a workout warrior, transforming his body into a physical specimen. He’ll get an opportunity, and how he does could dictate his lasting position. Wilkins tore his ACL in high school but is 100 percent with excellent flexibility. Speedster Kailo Moore needs to find packages to showcase his ability in space.

Bo Wallace WIDE RECEIVER Wide receiver will have a different look this spring, as Ja-Mes Logan graduated and Donte Moncrief opted to bypass his senior season and declare for the National Football League Draft.

That leaves 2013 SEC Freshman of the Year Laquon Treadwell and senior Vince Sanders to headline the unit. Senior Collins Moore and redshirt freshman Trey Bledsoe will get opportunities because of the limited depth chart, but the one to watch is Quincy Adeboyejo, who had seven catch-

Photo by Bobby McDuffie

es for 81 yards and a touchdown as a true freshman. The 6-foot-3, 191-pounder is very talented and has the skill set to be a serviceable step-in for Moncrief. Cody Core could play wide receiver or defensive back. When summer arrives, four-star signee Markell Pack will be counted on immediately.

OFFENSIVE LINE If you must pick an area of focus this spring, it’s the offensive line. Laremy Tunsil, Aaron Morris and Austin Golson are the building blocks, and Morris

is coming off a knee injury. The rest of the line will feature some combination of veteran Justin Bell, Robert Conyers, Ben Still and redshirt freshmen Daronte Bouldin and Davion Johnson.

Bouldin was awarded constant praise during his redshirt season and could help this coming season. Morris’ injury is a tough break for the group, and signee Fahn Cooper’s academic situation is another blow. Cooper signed in December but he had to return to his junior college to complete course work before returning to Oxford in May. Cooper played left tackle for Bowling Green as a freshman and should contribute when he arrives on

els need Sammie Epps ready to go in August. Keep an eye on Liggins, whose position is somewhat dependent on his weight and conditioning. Tight end could be the first spot he takes a shot at playing.

DEFENSIVE LINE This is the group that could see the most movement this spring, as several players are candidates for position switches. Two exciting newcomers to the depth chart are Haynes, who could play end or linebacker and was clocked at 10.76 seconds in the 100-meter dash in high school at 225 pounds and Fadol Brown, who transferred from FIU and would Photo by Greg Pevey

Laquon Treadwell

Photo by Greg Pevey

Evan Engram campus. Watch the battle at center, as Bell, Still and Conyers vie to replace Evan Swindall.

Denzel Nkemdiche

Photo by Greg Pevey

TIGHT END This is Evan Engram’s show, while others look for roles within certain packages. Nick Parker and Lavon Hooks are the most likely candidates for that, but all eyes will be on Engram, as he’s full speed after injury cost him a decent amount of his true freshman season, though he was still able to grab All-SEC honors and haul in 21 catches for 268 yards and three touchdowns. The Reb-

have likely started last season for the Rebels. He’s a versatile force for position coach Chris Kiffin.

Robert Nkemdiche and Bryon Bennett return as swing defensive linemen, and Woodrow Hamilton and Carlton Martin are back on the interior. CJ Johnson broke his fibula last spring, so it’s important that he’s 100 percent, but it’s also important to keep him healthy. Johnson is without a doubt Ole Miss’ best edge pass rusher. John Youngblood and Channing Ward continue to make strides at end, and Herbert Moore will try to get in the rotaREBELNATION MAGAZINE - 35

tion after a redshirt season. Issac Gross gets a spring practice, which is needed after last year’s struggles with a sports hernia, and Carlos Thompson is trying to recover from a nerve issue.

It’s likely the deepest Rebel front four in some time. It could also include DT Shackelford, the Rebels’ emotional leader who returns for his sixth season at linebacker and defensive end. Shackelford found his footing toward the end of 2013 and received All-Bowl accolades from several publications.

LINEBACKER Russell won a national championship at East Mississippi, and he’ll get a chance to win the starting middle linebacker job at Ole Miss. Mike Marry is gone, so the spot is open, and Russell has several similarities to Marry. He’s intelligent and gets to the right spot much more often than not. The 6-foot-1, 235-pounder is quicker during games than in simulated scenarios and has maturity after a long road to Oxford. Serderius Bryant and Denzel Nkemdiche give the Rebels versatility and

speed on the outside, and Keith Lewis and Temario Strong need to step up and challenge for playing time after playing sparingly in 2013. Lewis saw action in the 4-3 but hasn’t done as well in the 4-2-5. Ray Ray Smith bulked up to 210 pounds during his redshirt year and will get a look, though his likely contribution is special teams.

DEFENSIVE BACK Senquez Golson, Derrick Jones, Cliff Coleman and Bobby Hill – if his legal situation is cleared up – return with experience at cornerback, Quintavius Burdette, David Kamara and Quadarius Mireles are also cornerback options, and Mike Hilton can swing around everywhere in the secondary. Tony Conner is back after a Freshman All-America season, as is senior Cody Prewitt after a nod as an Associated Press First Team AllAmerica selection. Chief Brown and Trae Elston return at safety with experience, and Hampton will get his first taste of the SEC. The wildcard is Alford, who has dazzled in practices for a year

All-American Cody Prewitt and could have been a starter last season. He brings differencemaker athleticism to the unit.

SPECIAL TEAMS Australian freshman Will Gleeson is the only punter on the roster for spring practice, so he’ll get an excellent shot to replace Tyler Campbell. Meanwhile, there’s a crowd at placekicker.

Andrew Ritter’s job has five can-

Photo by Greg Pevey

didates before 2014 signee Gary Wunderlich, who is rated the No. 1 kicker nationally and is an Under Armour All-American punter, gets to campus this summer.

Nathan Noble and Andy Pappanastos are the early favorites, while senior Andrew Fletcher and freshmen Grant Warren and Kyle Fowler are also in the mix.

Noble had 27 kickoffs with 11 touchbacks in 2012. - RN

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LADY REBELS

Follow @OxfordEagleJD

TOGETHER WE STAND Team bonding is a big factor in the success of Ole Miss Soccer

BY JOHN DAVIS

Contibuting Writer - The Oxford Eagle Photos courtesy Ole Miss Media Relations

E

ver since he arrived in Oxford, Matt Mott and his staff had been building to the type of season on the soccer field his Rebels were able to produce in 2013. Mott, a former assistant at Texas, Auburn and Central Florida, helped guide Ole Miss to a school record 16 wins this past fall and to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2009; just the fifth time that’s happened overall.

The Rebels hosted an NCAA Tournament match for the first time as well in 2013 thanks to a team-first approach that Mott said was really the key to success.

“It was a great year. It was a fun year, an exciting year. We saw the fruits of our labor that we put in our first four years and what we thought our program can be. I think that’s the big thing for us,” Mott said.

“We came in, we changed the culture to what we wanted. Not that the culture was bad, but we wanted to increase the expectations.

We got players that were really trying to buy into what we wanted to do and we finally saw that kind of come to a fruition on the field and off the field maybe more. The team was really connected.”

Ole Miss became a more connected team through 1) recruiting better players and 2) improved team bonding. The Rebels were led by seniors Rafaelle Souza, who scored 22 goals and was named All-American, and Mandy McCalla, who was second on the team with 15 goals. But those two standouts weren’t the only reason the Rebels achieved at a high level. Mott felt like his first full recruiting class — 10 sophomores overall — and several key juniors really made a difference when it came to taking another step.

“I felt like the 2012 year, we made a really 38 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

big step forward. We were getting the pieces in place and we had a really good senior group but we knew this senior group was going to be one that really won with. You win with upperclassmen and we had a junior goal keeper and some other special players like Rafa Souza and they carried us, they carried us the whole time,” Mott said.

“They also set a standard in the locker room that this was how we did things. We worked with Josie Nicholson, our sports psychologist, and came up with Rebel Soccer Life. We said

if you’re going to be a Rebel soccer player, this is what you’re going to do. This is how you’re going to go to class, really a standard of how we do things. Every one of them bought into that and said that’s what we want to do.”

The team came up with a wristband that each wore. It featured the words “1992 Strong” which was all of the heights of all the players, support staff, et cetera working together as one unit. Mott said the seniors came up with the idea.

“It was like everybody was fighting for ev-

erybody. We were really together as a team and they always enjoyed each other. We would go out to meals and they would always be sitting with different players and I think that’s how you win, get a team that’s willing to fight for you,” Mott said.

“I also thought they really bought into our coaching style. They had been with us for three and four years and they understood what we want and how they want to play and all that just came to a head.”

The special season has carried over into recruiting for Mott and his staff, one that he is very close with. Soccer coaches can recruit 362 days out of the year, meaning Mott can be out on the road evaluating basically nonstop. His email has been full of new players and coaches sending him information, players that maybe wouldn’t have been looking at Ole Miss, or players they had to chase, prior to the 2013 season.

“We put ourselves on the map now. One of the big things I talk to the players returning is we’re not going to be a one-hit wonder. We’re going to be here and we’re going to continue to do the work to bring in good players. It’s important that we keep this going and they understood that. We have a group that really works hard. They don’t have a problem with working,” Mott said.

“That’s been a big plus to our success and it’s really our sophomore class, our first real big recruiting class, they really have turned the tables here. There are 10 of them and seven of them start or play all the time. Those girls really came in and really helped the senior class.”

Moving forward, Mott is looking to sign as many standouts like McCalla and Souza, a native of Brazil, as he can in the attempt to host more NCAA matches, not just the first round.

“This was a great step forward. The last two years have been very good steps for us. We got to take that next step to be in the top 15, top 10, to where we are a destination school for the top players. I think we have everything in place but we have to keep getting the best players,” Mott said.

“I tell my team all the time that it’s my job to go out and find better players than you and it’s your job to not let me do it. That’s one of the goals of our staff. I have a great staff and one of our goals is to develop them the best we can so we get the most out of them, so that when they’re done, they’re playing at their highest level.”

The success of the soccer program isn’t lost in translation to the local community.

Friday nights in Oxford aren’t all about high school football. Mott and his staff have been

very welcoming and his players have given up a lot of their time, signing autographs after matches and putting on clinics for young players that are involved in the Oxford Park Commission. All of that has led to large turnouts at soccer matches in the fall.

“This town has really taken to our team. We do a lot of the summer camps and go out to FNC Park and show our faces there. There are 800 kids playing soccer locally so that’s helping. It’s a good atmosphere, its fun out there on a Friday night. If you’re not at the high school football game, it’s a good option,” Mott said.

“In the fall, people want to be on campus so any reason they can get to come to campus, we just fit in that mold. I think we’re providing a quality brand of soccer and we were exciting to watch with Rafa and Mandy so I think that all helped. I think our girls are good ambassadors for Ole Miss and the sport of soccer. We have autographs after the game and I know that people like to stick around and meet the girls.”

Mott and his family — he has three children ages 12, 9 and 7 — love Oxford so much that he is building a pool at his house. It’s a major commitment, but another sign he’s ready to be at Ole Miss for a long, long time.

“My family is really happy here. I grew up in a small college town. My wife grew up in a small college town in upstate New York. We want to raise our children in that kind of environment and we feel like we found the perfect one. We wanted to raise our kids in the South.

I think this as far north wants to go. The community has been great to me and my family,” said Mott, who was in the U.S. Coast Guard for four years and loves watersports. “(Ole Miss Athletics Director) Ross (Bjork) said this to me, that there are only 14 of these jobs in the SEC and when I left Auburn and went to Texas, I always wanted to get back to the SEC. I knew when I was away from it that I was an SEC guy. When this position opened, I was thrilled to get an opportunity to interview and then be hired. We’re starting to make the program what I envisioned it can be and the sky is the limit for what we can do here.”

Mississippi soccer, at both the high school and club level, has improved over the years and Mott has made in-state recruiting a focus, as much as he can, which could also help grow the popularity of his program.

“Mississippi is producing, some years three, some years five, SEC level players that can come in and play. We’re trying to get the best one every single year,” Mott said. “If I can get one or two a year, that’s fantastic. We’ve always spent a lot of time in Tennessee but we do go up to St. Louis. That area and Tennessee have been really good for us as has Atlanta.”

- RN

REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 39

RED SOLO CUP

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Yes, Recruiting Matters BOB LYNCH

I

Featured Columnist

n the days, weeks, and months following National Signing Day, a common set of arguments are heard coming from many of the college football faithful, particularly those whose favorite teams did not fare so well in recruiting.

“Recruiting doesn’t matter to a winning program. Stars and player rankings don’t matter in their successes. What matters is player development/program management/personalities, and focusing on recruiting is simply paying attention to what the increasingly frenzied college football media wants you to.”

This is not true. Or, rather, it is a set of half-truths. Of course no fan or pundit would have you believe that signing the most highly ranked players and assembling the most highly ranked classes is the end-all be-all to college football. There are a whole multitude of factors that go into having your favorite school’s team ready and prepared to win football games on Saturday afternoons. Likewise, one cannot guarantee a team’s success based on the accolades its players received as high school stars.

Simply put, a team’s recruiting is an imperfect metric of a team’s potential success, and the astronumerical rankings players receive as college prospects are far from scientific. However, to ignore the importance of the pursuit that is recruiting is fairly ignorant of a very strong set of correlations which demonstrate that; generally speaking, teams which recruit well are more likely to perform well.

Consider this: since 2002, when recruiting service Rivals.com began ranking incoming college football classes, nine of the ten programs which have appeared most frequently in their National Signing Day top-10 have won BCS titles. The SEC’s most recent champion, the Auburn Tigers, have finished with a top-10 class seven times over that time period. Their predecessors, Alabama, have accomplished this feat eight times. The same goes for Florida and LSU, the SEC’s other recent football

40 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE

national champions. The one non-national championship holder over that period, Georgia, has still been a steadily successful enough program in a way that few division one programs can match.

So, if we are just going by recruiting rankings, there is a pretty strong relationship between successful recruiting classes and successful football programs.

Of course this correlation is far from perfect. Oregon and Stanford have only finished with a top-10 class once in that time span, and they rule the roost in a Pac 12 which, per such a metric, should be dominated by Southern Cal and UCLA. Michigan State beat both Ohio State and Michigan on their way to a PhotoBowl

by RebelNation Rose berth this past year, despite both programs putting together better recruiting classes than the Spartans. The Missouri Tigers have never finished near the top in these rankings, and yet they won the SEC East over Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina programs which all have on multiple occasions.

Still, when it was all said and done this season, Florida State, a team whose recruiting successes over the past decade can only compare to Southern Cal’s, hoisted the crystal football high.

Of course, there is then the idea that a player’s individual rank or “star count” is not a reliable indicator of how well he will play at the college level. Again, this is largely the same argument as before, but focused on an individual level. For Ole Miss fans pre-Freeze, the refrain was often something like “Patrick Willis and Dexter McCluster were two and three star recruits, not five star guys. We need more players like Patrick Willise and Dexter McCluster.”

Hey, I agree, we need some more P-Willies and Dexes (is that how you pluralize that?), but that is not reason enough to pursue twostar linebackers from 1A high schools in rural Tennessee in the off chance that maybe, just maybe, we find another Patrick Willis.

Sure, those guys were surely underrated, but did Michael Oher not deserve his fifth star?

What about Robert Nkemdiche or Laquon Treadwell? Donte Moncrief was definitely worth his four stars and then some, as was Peria Jerry.

Sure, a lot of not-so-highly recruited players turn out to be phenomenal. On the other

hand, however, many do not. Yes, UCF’s Blake Bortles will have a huge NFL salary as a rookie this fall, and nobody recruited that guy out of high school, but so will Alabama’s A.J. McCarron, who was one of the top quarterbacks of his high school class. Along those same lines, many highly recruited players fail to live up to expectations, something we know well at Ole Miss. But while Enrique Davis was a five star halfback, so was Trent Richardson. While Brent Schaeffer might have been a five star quarterback, so were Jamies Winston and Tim Tebow.

All of this is of course to say that recruiting is not a science. It is not a predictor of the future, nor is it a guarantee. But, just because some teams have bad luck with good recruits, or good luck with “bad” recruits, does not wholly disprove the plain and simple fact that championship-winning teams recruit good players.

This also is not to say or even suggest that recruiting is the only thing that matters to a football team’s success. As recruiting’s detractors like to point out, many important factors aside from the pursuit of talent are at play factors such as program management, player development, in-game strategy, and a myriad of intangibles related to the personalities of the players and coaches involved in college football. All of this is true. But just because guys like Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher manage their programs well, call smart plays, and motivate their players to rigorously practice and prepare does not mean that all of these positive coaching attributes are not bolstered by the presence of talent.

The best coach in the world can lose due to inferior talent – as Nick Saban did in his first year at Alabama when the Tide lost to ULM in Tuscaloosa – just as not-so-good coaches can win due to superior talent – how else do you explain Gene Chizik at Auburn? All of this suggests that coaches, good and bad, are bolstered by good players.

So, in short, recruiting does matter. If this were not the case, coaches would hardly bother with the year-round pursuit of high school football talent, and people would hardly notice a player’s high school accolades were they not a good indicator of college potential. Yes, college football recruiting has become a bit of an obscene media show and, yes, it is hardly scientific, but it matters a lot. - RN

REBELNATION MAGAZINE - 41