My God- watching the 2007 Egg Bowl is sickening

[Coach34]

how bad both those teams were.

[fader2103]

Croom at least found a good kicker!*

[Billy Ray Valentine]

Croom at least found a good kicker!*

He makes this one but good might be a bit of a stretch

[Coach34]

good for Carlson. Every player should have a good memory to think back on- he definitely has one to live off.

[fader2103]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)

[messageboardsuperhero]

The quality of play was so bad... And to think that the media tried to shame Byrne for canning Croom.

[Original48]

Russell Athletic

[ShotgunDawg]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)

True, but he was paid to coach, not be a good guy.

[messageboardsuperhero]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)

I've never seen any State fans criticize him as a person. He was a terrible head coach and deserved that criticism.

[Harrydawg]

I really think we are about to look at basketball the same way.....in short time, we'll look back and chuckle at how ugly we have been in the past few years.

It's hard to believe how far we have come in football in less than 10 years.

[BeardoMSU]

Ironically they just replayed "Croom" tonight. I just loved watching him throw us under the bus again. "I just thought the administration would have understood all the injuries [and arrests, ha!], but at the same time forget about the fact I didn't have a SWAC calliber QB on campus, or a single WR over 6' tall. Yes!!!111!!!....I got asked to step down because they didn't see how our program was progressing in a positive manner...I just needed 1 more year".*



http://i.imgur.com/MPFi2xN.gif
*This is not a direct quote, but instead my own interpretation.

[basedog]

Watching the replay and seeing O on the sideline with no emotion, I suppose he was drained from all the stress and failure he endured. That 4th Quarter was just flat out shocking! I remember leaving the stadium in the 4th before our comeback disgusted, turned on the radio and Jack had me swaying all over the road, he painted a perfect picture of the game for me as I was excited and shocked! RIP Jack!

[BulldogBear]

Watching the replay and seeing O on the sideline with no emotion, I suppose he was drained from all the stress and failure he endured. That 4th Quarter was just flat out shocking! I remember leaving the stadium in the 4th before our comeback disgusted, turned on the radio and Jack had me swaying all over the road, he painted a perfect picture of the game for me as I was excited and shocked! RIP Jack!

I was thinking at the time how cool it must be for those that left to get to hear Jack make them wish they stayed!!!


It's something it seems I'm never going to as I am OCD when it comes to the fact that I have never left sight of the field until that last tick of the clock. Oh I'll leave my seat and all but won't leave the stands till it's over. And I've only been late twice, '05 Egg Bowl and '06 Arkansas. It's like if I physically inhabit the game I want the whole experience and all my moneys worth!

As far as that '07 Egg Bowl..... It was the first year I carried cowbell to football games. My best friend since 9th grade is Beardshark and we've been to every Egg Bowl together without fail since '02 (This season will be 14 straight), with the "home" side providing seats, food, refreshment, etc. Well, I hadn't had a reason to ring the bell all game And he didn't even know I had it. What a joy it was to bring it out near the end and be an obnoxious ringer. He's gotten used to it now!

[West Houston Dog]

I could swear I saw him on their sideline.

And I forgot how Croom was overcome with emotion when interviewed after the game. You know, we had to make the coaching change, but I thank Croom for what he did and do admire him.....

[Jack Lambert]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)

I kind of feel the same about Croom but the ending of his SEC story kind of turn me off a little. I do think his firing has a little to do with the why ESPN and other sports media don't give us any respect. I hope tha statement donesn't get me in trouble.

By the way I did not watch the SEC network. I was watching the 1976 and 1977 ARkansas vs Texas on the LHN. Both teams were 5-5-1 in 1976 and I think both coaches got canned but in 1977 at the time of the game Texas was number 2 and ARkansas was number 8. HOw do you do that? Lou Holtz was a young man and Earl Campbell was a beast. I tried to watch Holtz to see if he left wet spots on the side line when he talked.

[maroonmania]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)

While he certainly is a great man from all indications and while I'm sure he cared deeply for his players he did very little to endear himself to the MSU fanbase. He never really embraced MSU because IMO he was too emotionally tied to the school 90 miles to the East. He never got involved in the community and I, to this day, couldn't tell you that Sly was married because his wife never showed her face in public ever that I'm aware of. He was stubborn and hardheaded to a fault and overall very antagonistic toward the fans relative to any criticism of how he was running the program. And I mean its great to be loyal to a friend but the whole Woody McCorvey fiasco was ridiculous. Without the 2007 year with Ellis Johnson's defense pretty much single handedly winning us 7 games the entire Croom tenure would be a string of nothing but disgraceful 3 and 4 win seasons.

[TrapGame]

Wesley Carrol saved Croom's ass in 2007. He'd audible out of Woody's play at the line most of the time. It pissed Croom off but he still couldn't see his twenty yr old QB was far better at calling plays than his OC.

[BulldogDX55]

Wesley Carrol saved Croom's ass in 2007. He'd audible out of Woody's play at the line most of the time. It pissed Croom off but he still couldn't see his twenty yr old QB was far better at calling plays than his OC.

Eighteen or nineteen year old. Dude was a true freshman that year.

[Dawgtini]

I was surprised that Wes Carrol left when mullenz was hired. I thought he might have flourished in this offense.

[TrapGame]

Eighteen or nineteen year old. Dude was a true freshman that year.

Which makes it even more hilarious. Wes ran the offense better than Woody on his best day after staying at a Holiday Inn express the night before.

[LC Dawg]

Croom is an NFL position coach. We gave him a shot to be a college head coach and he failed miserably. It pisses me off that we get any criticism for firing him. I think the fact that no one else has hired him as a college head coach or even coordinator speaks for itself.
Its been a while since I watched the "Croom" but I seem to remember Saban sticking up for him at one point. I wish someone would ask Saban that if Croom is such a great coach why he is not on his staff. (If I'm not remembering correctly just disregard the last statement).

[BrunswickDawg]

I was surprised that Wes Carrol left when mullenz was hired. I thought he might have flourished in this offense.
But that would have denied us the joy of arguing about if true freshman Tyler Russell would have been better than Tyson Lee. Get your priorities straight mane!***

[maroonmania]

I was surprised that Wes Carrol left when mullenz was hired. I thought he might have flourished in this offense.

Yea, that one never made much sense to me unless he was just homesick. I mean you leave an SEC school with a QB coaching guru coming in as a HC to leave for somewhere like FL International? Of course he did lose his starting job to Lee in 2008 under Croom so his mind may have already been made up even before we hired Mullen.

[5 Star]

I was surprised that Wes Carrol left when mullenz was hired. I thought he might have flourished in this offense.
Wes Carroll had decided to leave before Mullen was hired. He was mad that he had to split time his sophomore year with Tyson Lee, and I saw his point at the time. Yes, it technically happened on Mullen's watch, but he was already disgruntled and had made his mind up to go home before that.

[5 Star]

The quality of play was so bad... And to think that the media tried to shame Byrne for canning Croom.
I do not remember this. I remember most of the media supporting the decision, including Mark May. They all knew it had to be done, PC or not. All of us fans knew that he was terrible in 2005.

To this day, I do not really give Croom credit for leaving Mullen a good base. I think the biggest thing he did was lower expectations so badly, that we were able to attract a good coach simply because they knew they could go to a bowl and it would be success. While he did get rid of some cancers, he also recruited his own cancerous players, and his teams were very undisciplined (despite all the media drabble), except Ellis Johnson's defense. He upgraded talent in some areas but drastically cut it in others.

[tcdog70]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)



GAG ME WITH A SPOON

[HSVDawg]

how bad both those teams were.

I would argue that the teams were no better and arguably worse in the 2011 Egg Bowl. Only difference is the coaches were better in 2011. Our 2007 team on the field was far better than 2011. 7-5 > 6-6 and 4-4 SEC > 2-6 SEC.

[5 Star]

I would argue that the teams were no better and arguably worse in the 2011 Egg Bowl. Only difference is the coaches were better in 2011. Our 2007 team on the field was far better than 2011. 7-5 > 6-6 and 4-4 SEC > 2-6 SEC.
Yeah this is not true. Our 2011 team would beat the 2007 team 8 out of 10 times. Those two losses would be due to turnovers and fluke pick-6's. In addition, the entire SEC elevated from 2007 to 2011. The 2007 team had LSU, while the 2011 SEC West had 3 of the top 5 teams in America.

[Coach34]

I would argue that the teams were no better and arguably worse in the 2011 Egg Bowl. Only difference is the coaches were better in 2011. Our 2007 team on the field was far better than 2011. 7-5 > 6-6 and 4-4 SEC > 2-6 SEC.

totally disagree. It would have taken 5 games for the 2007 team to score on the 2011 team

[drunkernhelldawg]

While he certainly is a great man from all indications and while I'm sure he cared deeply for his players he did very little to endear himself to the MSU fanbase. He never really embraced MSU because IMO he was too emotionally tied to the school 90 miles to the East. He never got involved in the community and I, to this day, couldn't tell you that Sly was married because his wife never showed her face in public ever that I'm aware of. He was stubborn and hardheaded to a fault and overall very antagonistic toward the fans relative to any criticism of how he was running the program. And I mean its great to be loyal to a friend but the whole Woody McCorvey fiasco was ridiculous. Without the 2007 year with Ellis Johnson's defense pretty much single handedly winning us 7 games the entire Croom tenure would be a string of nothing but disgraceful 3 and 4 win seasons.

This is really the root of the Croom hate. He wasn't as bad a coach as people say he was, but the people in the inner circle didn't like him. He was right to say on the 30 for 30 that he got no support because he didn't. Look at the facts: After leading us to our only winning season of the decade he was basically gone as a head coach for losing in an upset in the first game of the following season. That was shocking. Also, look at people's attitude toward his winning season, that it was all luck. I've never seen so many Bulldog fans pull against the Bulldogs.
Mullen seems to be working out. He's certainly got the schmooze factor mastered, unlike Croom. This next season we have a huge challenge ahead of us. We'll see how the fans react to whatever disappointments we encounter next season.
My problem is that fans put the coach at the pinnacle of the program even though the coach in always a temporary Bulldog. I think we've suffered a lot from inertia within the institution over the years.

[Dawg61]

Croom never had an offense ranked better than 100. For five straight years we had to watch shitty offense. He lost to Maine. MAINE

[maroonmania]

This is really the root of the Croom hate. He wasn't as bad a coach as people say he was, but the people in the inner circle didn't like him. He was right to say on the 30 for 30 that he got no support because he didn't. Look at the facts: After leading us to our only winning season of the decade he was basically gone as a head coach for losing in an upset in the first game of the following season. That was shocking. Also, look at people's attitude toward his winning season, that it was all luck. I've never seen so many Bulldog fans pull against the Bulldogs.
Mullen seems to be working out. He's certainly got the schmooze factor mastered, unlike Croom. This next season we have a huge challenge ahead of us. We'll see how the fans react to whatever disappointments we encounter next season.
My problem is that fans put the coach at the pinnacle of the program even though the coach in always a temporary Bulldog. I think we've suffered a lot from inertia within the institution over the years.

No, he WAS as bad a coach as people say at least as a HC in college. 3-8, 3-8, 3-9, 4-8 were his records outside of 2007 which was 8-5 and only that one year won more than 2 conference games in a season. And yes, 2007 was a TON of luck. I witnessed those games and I've never seen a season with so many defensive and special teams TDs to pull out close games in my life. It doesn't take much luck to get turnovers if you have a good defense but it does take a lot of luck for those turnovers to regularly translate into touchdowns without the offense ever having to come on the field. Anyone who thinks you can build a program long term off of depending on your defense to score a significant percentage of your points is just hoping against hope. We finished below 100th in total offense every year he coached. So not only did we not win 4 out of the 5 years he was here but we were totally boring to watch as well. But there is also no doubt that he was very defensive and seemed to keep his distance from the fanbase. Croom had never been thrust into the position of being the "PR man" of a program, which the HC is, and he didn't do a very good job with that part of the deal either.

[HSVDawg]

totally disagree. It would have taken 5 games for the 2007 team to score on the 2011 team

I think you're reaching. The 2011 team didn't beat anyone with a pulse all season, and was no offensive juggernaut either. Are you forgetting the 20 points scored against La Tech in regulation, the 6 points against LSU, 12 against USC, 10 against UGA (7 of which was on a pick 6), 17 against Arkansas, 21 against UAB, and 7 against Alabama? Thats over half our SEC schedule that we didn't score over 17 points and exactly half of our nonconference schedule against much lesser competition that we didn't score over 21. That team was a joke offensively and it showed in the W-L record. Granted, this was in large part due to OL / QB injuries, as well as Croom's terrible OL recruiting that left us with no depth, but the point remains.

The 2007 team was comparable offensively in terms of numbers, but a little bit better defensively. They also got the job done in the close games and had some big road wins at Auburn and at UK in dominating fashion. UK was ranked in top 15 and beat eventual national champion that year on the same field that we skull dragged them.

[Ifyouonlyknew]

This is really the root of the Croom hate. He wasn't as bad a coach as people say he was, but the people in the inner circle didn't like him. He was right to say on the 30 for 30 that he got no support because he didn't. Look at the facts: After leading us to our only winning season of the decade he was basically gone as a head coach for losing in an upset in the first game of the following season. That was shocking. Also, look at people's attitude toward his winning season, that it was all luck. I've never seen so many Bulldog fans pull against the Bulldogs.
Mullen seems to be working out. He's certainly got the schmooze factor mastered, unlike Croom. This next season we have a huge challenge ahead of us. We'll see how the fans react to whatever disappointments we encounter next season.
My problem is that fans put the coach at the pinnacle of the program even though the coach in always a temporary Bulldog. I think we've suffered a lot from inertia within the institution over the years.

No he was pretty bad. If you coach for 5 seasons & you have 1 winning season that's bad. Especially when you're not close to a winning season the other 4. 21-38 (10-30 SEC) is bad no matter how you slice it. The La Tech was the beginning of the end but it didn't get him fired. 45-0 to OM got him fired. His players got him fired when they decided not to show up & they didn't want to play for him anymore. That was the bottomline. We can talk about his offense & stubborness all we want but when the players lay down & stop playing for you then you know it's time for a change.

[HSVDawg]

Yeah this is not true. Our 2011 team would beat the 2007 team 8 out of 10 times. Those two losses would be due to turnovers and fluke pick-6's. In addition, the entire SEC elevated from 2007 to 2011. The 2007 team had LSU, while the 2011 SEC West had 3 of the top 5 teams in America.

I disagree for the reasons already noted in my response to Coach34. And in regards to your note about the strength of the SEC West, 2 of those 3 teams (Arkansas and LSU) beat us in 2007 as well and none of the 4 games played in either year were close. The only team that was worse in 2007 than 2011 that we beat in 07 was Alabama. Furthermore, our nonconference schedule was much tougher in 2007 with the road trip to a ranked WVU team, so the schedule comparison ends up being a wash overall.

[5 Star]

I disagree for the reasons already noted in my response to Coach34. And in regards to your note about the strength of the SEC West, 2 of those 3 teams (Arkansas and LSU) beat us in 2007 as well and none of the 4 games played in either year were close. The only team that was worse in 2007 than 2011 that we beat in 07 was Alabama. Furthermore, our nonconference schedule was much tougher in 2007 with the road trip to a ranked WVU team, so the schedule comparison ends up being a wash overall.
All insignificant statistics aside, who would win the game?

This is an easy pick.

[BulldogBear]

2007 we won two games because the defense scored, Auburn and Alabama. Alabama was about to put us down 16-3 at the half and kick our a$$ses. That pic 6 changed the whole game. The system was not working. The defense is why we went 7-5.

Croom started losing me when he kept dumming down the most predicatable offense in the SEC instead of opening up the playbook. He wanted to win the Alabama way and win doing basic stuff that works for schools like Alabama because they usually have the hosses. We weren't going to out athlete the SEC at the Time. I got so tired of "we didn't execute." You know... sometimes the other guy is just kicking your a$$. If that DT is owning you, quit running at him 2 of 3 plays. Do something they don't expect. Sometimes the other guy whoops you because he is better than you not because you didn't execute. Do something else! Croom never could wrap his mind around that concept.

He lost me completely and instantly when he implied (2008) that the reason we weren't winning was we weren't getting enough defensive scores. Blamed. The. Defense. ...instead of his inept offense. He was in way over his head as a HC.

[drunkernhelldawg]

No, he WAS as bad a coach as people say at least as a HC in college. 3-8, 3-8, 3-9, 4-8 were his records outside of 2007 which was 8-5 and only that one year won more than 2 conference games in a season. And yes, 2007 was a TON of luck. I witnessed those games and I've never seen a season with so many defensive and special teams TDs to pull out close games in my life. It doesn't take much luck to get turnovers if you have a good defense but it does take a lot of luck for those turnovers to regularly translate into touchdowns without the offense ever having to come on the field. Anyone who thinks you can build a program long term off of depending on your defense to score a significant percentage of your points is just hoping against hope. We finished below 100th in total offense every year he coached. So not only did we not win 4 out of the 5 years he was here but we were totally boring to watch as well. But there is also no doubt that he was very defensive and seemed to keep his distance from the fanbase. Croom had never been thrust into the position of being the "PR man" of a program, which the HC is, and he didn't do a very good job with that part of the deal either.

After La. Tech, did Croom get any fan support? The answer is no. I stand by my statement that it was over then. A lot of people were waiting for any reason to build discord. They took full advantage of the La Tech fiasco with great success. Ironically, La Tech went bowling that year, as did I think every other team that beat us (except maybe one, not totally sure).

[BulldogBear]

No he was pretty bad. If you coach for 5 seasons & you have 1 winning season that's bad. Especially when you're not close to a winning season the other 4. 21-38 (10-30 SEC) is bad no matter how you slice it. The La Tech was the beginning of the end but it didn't get him fired. 45-0 to OM got him fired. His players got him fired when they decided not to show up & they didn't want to play for him anymore. That was the bottomline. We can talk about his offense & stubborness all we want but when the players lay down & stop playing for you then you know it's time for a change.

Don't forget burning Ralph's redshirt in a 45-0 game last game of season.

[Coach34]

I think you're reaching. The 2011 team didn't beat anyone with a pulse all season, and was no offensive juggernaut either. Are you forgetting the 20 points scored against La Tech in regulation, the 6 points against LSU, 12 against USC, 10 against UGA (7 of which was on a pick 6), 17 against Arkansas, 21 against UAB, and 7 against Alabama? Thats over half our SEC schedule that we didn't score over 17 points and exactly half of our nonconference schedule against much lesser competition that we didn't score over 21. That team was a joke offensively and it showed in the W-L record. Granted, this was in large part due to OL / QB injuries, as well as Croom's terrible OL recruiting that left us with no depth, but the point remains.

The 2007 team was comparable offensively in terms of numbers, but a little bit better defensively. They also got the job done in the close games and had some big road wins at Auburn and at UK in dominating fashion. UK was ranked in top 15 and beat eventual national champion that year on the same field that we skull dragged them.

2011 had some injury issues and that caused some offensive problems- but let's compare:

2011:

25.3 PPG
18.5 1st downs per game
Total O- 357.2 per game
5.39 yards per play

2007:

21.5 PPG
Total O- 297.2 per game
1st downs- 16.6 per game
4.4 yards per play

(2007 had 6 Defensive/Special Teams TD's added to PPG)

[Rayburn8]

As much as I hate Croom, that 2007 egg bowl still is my favorite and gave me my favorite bulldog play by my favorite bulldog player of all time.

[LC Dawg]

There are many things we Mississippi State fans can argue about but I am shocked that we are arguing whether or not Sylvester Croom was a good head coach.
As I said before, if he was such a good head coach how come the only jobs he's had since our job is as an NFL position coach?
He was not a good head coach and I think deep down inside he felt that the Mississippi State job was beneath him.

[HSVDawg]

All insignificant statistics aside, who would win the game?

This is an easy pick.

So Win-Loss records and number of points scored are insignificant statistics?

I honestly think its 50/50. I think they'd probably split 10 games against each other. Neither team was very good, but they were comparable in terms of overall results against similar competition with maybe a slight edge to the 2007 team. Thats all I was saying. You can't say that just because we had a better coach and were running a better offensive system in 2011 that the team was better as a whole.

[Coach34]

He lost me completely and instantly when he implied (2008) that the reason we weren't winning was we were getting enough defensive scores. Blamed. The. Defense. ...instead of his inept offense. He was in way over his head as a HC.

Crooms had many wtf moments- and this is one that still amazes me that this was actually said. Somebody being dumb enough to make that statement yet got paid over a million dollars just pisses me off.

[Bully13]

This is really the root of the Croom hate. He wasn't as bad a coach as people say he was, but the people in the inner circle didn't like him. He was right to say on the 30 for 30 that he got no support because he didn't. Look at the facts: After leading us to our only winning season of the decade he was basically gone as a head coach for losing in an upset in the first game of the following season. That was shocking. Also, look at people's attitude toward his winning season, that it was all luck. I've never seen so many Bulldog fans pull against the Bulldogs.
Mullen seems to be working out. He's certainly got the schmooze factor mastered, unlike Croom. This next season we have a huge challenge ahead of us. We'll see how the fans react to whatever disappointments we encounter next season.
My problem is that fans put the coach at the pinnacle of the program even though the coach in always a temporary Bulldog. I think we've suffered a lot from inertia within the institution over the years.

If yall go to the political board, you'll better understand after reading some of his stuff over there

[SheltonChoked]

He wanted to win the 1970's Alabama way and win doing basic stuff that works for schools like 1980's Nebreaka and 1970's Alabama because they usually have the hosses and the defenses were slower.
FIFY

[SheltonChoked]

This is really the root of the Croom hate. He wasn't as bad a coach as people say he was,...

No he was worse. He is a good man, and had enough charisma to assemble a very good staff in the beginning, and all of the good coaches jumped ship. That should have been a clue to us. The thing about Sly is he is like Jack Lemmon's character in Glengarry Glen Ross. He thought he had it figured out. He's a nice guy, he put in the work. He deserved to have the time to get the job done. But that's not coaching. Coaching is winning.

Watch this and replace Closing with winning. This is what Greg Byrne should have played Croom as he fired him.


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4PE2hSqVnk&feature=youtu.be

We got rid of Shelley Levine and got Ricky Roma.

[BrunswickDawg]

Bryne: "Put. that coffee. down. Coffee is for winners only."

[5 Star]

So Win-Loss records and number of points scored are insignificant statistics?
In my opinion, they do. Obviously they factor in on some scale, but they are not to be the sole judgment criteria, especially when none of the teams are the same. 2007 was no doubt the better season, I just think 2011 was the better team.


I honestly think its 50/50. I think they'd probably split 10 games against each other. Neither team was very good, but they were comparable in terms of overall results against similar competition with maybe a slight edge to the 2007 team. Thats all I was saying. You can't say that just because we had a better coach and were running a better offensive system in 2011 that the team was better as a whole.
We can disagree, it's all good. I am judging by the coach, the talent, the offense, the actual teams we played, and who I think would win on a neutral field.

Top 2007 opponents: #1 LSU (0-45), #6 West Virginia (13-38), #12 Tennessee (21-33), #15 Auburn (19-14)
Top 2011 opponents: #1 Alabama (7-24), #2 LSU (6-19), #5 Arkansas (17-44), #9 South Carolina (12-14)

That is 4 teams in the final Top Ten in 2011, plus another SEC heavyweight in Georgia. I also look at how we played them, when we played them, and the schedule factor. That 2011 schedule was just brutal in the way it broke. We played more average SEC teams in 2007, thus the better record. We were using all our 'up' games in 2011 against elite teams we probably weren't going to beat anyway, thus were flat against Georgia, Louisiana Tech and other somewhat average teams (Georgia was hardly average, they won the East). That is the intangible SEC grind that no talking head or sidewalk football fan ever really understands. Schedule is HUGE.

Our defense was good in 2007, no doubt about that. I am not sure you can chalk all those flukes up to luck, but when it happens vs. Auburn, UAB, Alabama AND Ole Miss.....you are just having a lucky year. We beat Gardner-Webb 31-15. We caught Kentucky in a let-down week. We caught Alabama after LSU. Essentially, we won small and lost big.

[sandwolf]

He wasn't as bad a coach as people say he was.....

Oh yes he was. He was truly awful. I'm sure he is a solid guy and he is a good assistant coach, but he was absolutely horrid as a head coach.


He's certainly got the schmooze factor mastered, unlike Croom.

What? Croom was 10 times more likable that Mullen's yankee, abrasive ass. Mullen has gotten better, but he is still no politician.

[5 Star]

Don't forget burning Ralph's redshirt in a 45-0 game last game of season.
Relf redshirted in 2007.

[maroonmania]

There are many things we Mississippi State fans can argue about but I am shocked that we are arguing whether or not Sylvester Croom was a good head coach.
As I said before, if he was such a good head coach how come the only jobs he's had since our job is as an NFL position coach?
He was not a good head coach and I think deep down inside he felt that the Mississippi State job was beneath him.

Exactly, I like Croom the person but Croom the college HC was clueless.

[Coach34]

Croom fell asleep on a recruit's couch. He was ****ing awful

[SheltonChoked]

I was thinking more.

Byrne: First place is a trophy. Second place is a set of steak knives. Third place is your fired.

[BrunswickDawg]

Byrne: "Get. Out. Of that golf cart. Golf carts are for winners only."

[Dawgtini]

Relf redshirted in 2007.
He is thinking of the secret weapon. A. Clark

[scottycameron]

The first time I saw the Geico ad with Flo where she consoles the little loser in an old 70's type reel to reel film and offers to buy him ice cream and he says "with sprinkles?" I immediately thought of Crooms. Wish I knew how to post a pic or video of it. I've always felt that there is an MSU grad at work behind the scenes in that ad development.

[Dawgcentral]

Croom was simply tired. And stubborn.

He stuck by McCorvey like the guy had incriminating photos. He took a great RB, Jerious Norwood, and wore him down. He expected his offensive line to knock 7 guys off the ball with pure will and strength.

No way Croom had the drive and energy to put in the hours it takes to build a winner in Starkville. No freaking' way. You could give him 10 year and he might get 2 seven win seasons. That offense was simply pitiful.

[Vinsanity]

The first time I saw the Geico ad with Flo where she consoles the little loser in an old 70's type reel to reel film and offers to buy him ice cream and he says "with sprinkles?" I immediately thought of Crooms. Wish I knew how to post a pic or video of it. I've always felt that there is an MSU grad at work behind the scenes in that ad development.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAw2TXsgBbY
This one?

[Billy Ray Valentine]

Croom never had an offense ranked better than 100. For five straight years we had to watch shitty offense. He lost to Maine. MAINE

He lost me at Maine. Remember the Maine!

[Goldendawg]

He lost me at Maine. Remember the Maine!
"Well, I didn't see that one coming". Croom after 45-0 Egg Bowl loss at Ole Miss when he had lost the team and supposedly didn't know it though making $1 mil to be a "Head Football Coach" in the SEC and don't even mention our Alabama Lite unis from Russell Athletic.

[Goldendawg]

BTW, why can't we put the interlocking MSU back on our helmets? I've always liked that helmet design as in Coach 34's avatar. Does Nike have the copyright? I even heard tha Montana State has the rights to it. I also got tired of Croom blaming Jackie and throwing him under the bus when he had discipline issues on his own teams as many teams unfortunately have.

[Coach34]

Nike owns it- but for the life of me cant understand why we dont just design another interlocking MSU

[FlabLoser]

I dig our current logo.

[Dawg61]

Nike owns it- but for the life of me cant understand why we dont just design another interlocking MSU

Same reason they refuse to put just MSU on the front of the jersey's instead of the hideous legal banner Mississippi State.

[scottycameron]

Nike owns it- but for the life of me cant understand why we dont just design another interlocking MSU

key statement is "for the life of me I can't understand". Complete BS. Nike doesn't own it and could care less. Why would they? Are they making tons of $ off it, LOL. Quit buying that line. We could use it if we wanted to and for some reason (haha) we don't want to. Nothing pizzes me off more than this.
Do all you guys really believe Nike keeps us from using an interlocking MSU? Really?

[TheRef]

key statement is "for the life of me I can't understand". Complete BS. Nike doesn't own it and could care less. Why would they? Are they making tons of $ off it, LOL. Quit buying that line. We could use it if we wanted to and for some reason (haha) we don't want to. Nothing pizzes me off more than this.
Do all you guys really believe Nike keeps us from using an interlocking MSU? Really?

Yes...Nike owns that. It's their copyright/trademark. And the way that we and Nike left, was not the best of terms to leave.

[FlabLoser]

FACT: Nike owns it. That doesn't mean we couldn't use it if we wanted to.

FACT: No school in MS has the word "Mississippi" in their brand.

FACT: Stricklin claims ownership of the state as part of our branding strategy.

Remember "This is our State"? That wasn't smack talk. It was branding.

FACT: Strick wants "Mississippi" written out on the front of our jerseys because no other school is branding themselves with our state.

Some of you folks just want to bitch about logos. Some of you just can't accept facts. Some of you have short memories or weren't paying attention when Strick explains all this stuff early in the Mullen era. It's not rocket science.

[Goldendawg]

I have also thought that Ole Miss using the "M" and us using the "M" with the State banner across it has helped many in the nation continue to get the two schools mixed up. I guess I am getting fixed in my ways as I grow older, but the interlocking MSU was not as apt to be mixed up with their "M". I have never cared for the M State, it is no doubt here to stay.

[FlabLoser]

U of M's insistence on calling themselves a slave's nickname for the wife of a plantation owner is a big reason there is national confusion between the two schools.

Could you imagine a national quiz like this: Which school is Ole Miss: a) Mississippi State University or b) The University Of Mississippi? You'd probably get a 50-50 split.

[Hail State]

I tell you I know most hate Croom as a coach but he is a great man and truly cared for his players. I will always support all our former coaches (aslong as they don't coach against us that is)

Croom was an asshole and so are you.

[Dawgtini]

Same reason they refuse to put just MSU on the front of the jersey's instead of the hideous legal banner Mississippi State.

I love that "legal banner". That is my fav followed by the dog on M and the cowbell