Merry Christmas from the Virginia Slims

[Maroonthirteen]

Rumor has it.. The Slims were in the giving mood this Christmas. Envelopes stuffed full of subway coupons filled mail boxes throughout the southeast.

You can't beat those subway bogo coupons. Beats a chia pet. I'm assuming others heard the same?

[bulldawg28]

Nope. I haven't heard or seen anything

[Coach34]

Free car wash coupons were in there I know. We have a new car wash hook up

[Count Istvan Teleky]

Rumor has it.. The Slims were in the giving mood this Christmas. Envelopes stuffed full of subway coupons filled mail boxes throughout the southeast.

You can't beat those subway bogo coupons. Beats a chia pet. I'm assuming others heard the same?

At least it seems veiled.

[Maroonthirteen]

Poor attempt at humor. Stems from the thread the other day in which there was a mention that we can't afford to cheat with the big boys. Which is probably true.

We hand out free car washes. OM and Bama gives them the car to have washed.

[Coach34]

Poor attempt at humor. Stems from the thread the other day in which there was a mention that we can't afford to cheat with the big boys. Which is probably true..

What we lack is organization- not money. The BearSharks are organized all the way down to the foot soldier- we are not.

For example- on Gamedays, Adolf Freezus has the escorts for the recruits take them on a "tent run". The people at each tent will give the recruit a $100 handshake (or whatever denomination). A recruit will visit 20-30 tents on Gameday and come away with 3-4-5K on his visit. It's institutionalized with them. Their everyday fan comes away feeling a part of the recruiting process like they have done something big for Ole Miss. Happens at The Library too in the offseason- we make fun of them for grown people going to Oxford for recruiting weekends- but that is why they do it. They get the fanbase involved- and those little handshakes cant be traced.

They take pride in recruiting from top to bottom. We dont. Our fans give a recruit a plate of food and think they have done something big....

Their organization and the way they do it is outstanding.

We dont come close.

[AROB44]

I, for one, don't want to adopt their tactics. Been there before. Now, I am sure if any of you would like to step in with $$$$, have at it. But, of course, it is easier to spend other people's money.

[maroonmania]

I, for one, don't want to adopt their tactics. Been there before. Now, I am sure if any of you would like to step in with $$$$, have at it. But, of course, it is easier to spend other people's money.

Its obvious our staff, administration and Brother Bracky don't want these tactics either. You could easily get boosters and fans to give out 100 dollar handshakes in the Junction and other places if it was being encouraged. No doubt its institutionalized from the top down on the Plantation.

[Blackout]

Exactly my point, we have people who have no idea yet are so full of themselves they think they are doing some big inside power play wanting to be an important big boy when it really is a joke compared to everyone else.

Everyone just wants to have that insider connection and then they run and tell all their friends like 7th grade girls about the big deal they are. Hell you see it on here with "inside scoops" on recruiting. Everyone rushes here with any inside info about "oh don't worry about so and so, I KNOW he's a lock". Look at how cool and inside I am!1!!111!!!!!

[Coach34]

Its obvious our staff, administration and Brother Bracky don't want these tactics either. You could easily get boosters and fans to give out 100 dollar handshakes in the Junction and other places if it was being encouraged. No doubt its institutionalized from the top down on the Plantation.

We need to decide if we want to get better at recruiting or not

[Blackout]

We need to decide if we want to get better at recruiting or not

I say get our guys to record their illegalities. But that would require some actual thought and cunning. Something our soft and weak leaders don't possess.

Chris Jones and Leo Lewis could have worn some undercover shit. Set up cameras in their houses for Bear visits and catch the "offer" on tape. Get a handful of videos and leak them to ESPN one by one like the Planned Parenthood videos this year.

But no, we will bend over and say "please sir may I have another"

[Maroonthirteen]

I, for one, don't want to adopt their tactics. Been there before. Now, I am sure if any of you would like to step in with $$$$, have at it. But, of course, it is easier to spend other people's money.

Same here. I wish the NCAA could just do their job and recruiting was much cleaner. But....that's a fantasy that will never happen.

I do wish we had more passionate fans. Talk up Starkville, speak positively about the school to athletes. But I would never buy a kid a car or etc etc. I'm sure the people that buys cars and deal in large sums of money, do it through a business but regardless.... I would be sick if my little business bought a kid a $30k Charger. Then the kid was never more than a 2nd stringer and transfers to Murray State. Or worse...the rumor I always heard, Dotson took Lotts.money and promised to sign with OM. Then signed with State and laughed in Lotts face. Sooo, yeah, I don't blame people for not getting involved.

[Coach34]

I say get our guys to record their illegalities. But that would require some actual thought and cunning. Something our soft and weak leaders don't possess.

Chris Jones and Leo Lewis could have worn some undercover shit. Set up cameras in their houses for Bear visits and catch the "offer" on tape. Get a handful of videos and leak them to ESPN one by one like the Planned Parenthood videos this year.

But no, we will bend over and say "please sir may I have another"

These kids have no real affiliation with us before signing and not gonna do all that shit. Plus- why in the hell would they turn down free money???? You can't let your fandom cloud things. They aren't going to get caught for babyshit like that- ever. Neither will Auburn, Bama, and all the other schools that do it.

[GreenheadDawg]

Exactly my point, we have people who have no idea yet are so full of themselves they think they are doing some big inside power play wanting to be an important big boy when it really is a joke compared to everyone else.

Everyone just wants to have that insider connection and then they run and tell all their friends like 7th grade girls about the big deal they are. Hell you see it on here with "inside scoops" on recruiting. Everyone rushes here with any inside info about "oh don't worry about so and so, I KNOW he's a lock". Look at how cool and inside I am!1!!111!!!!!

You sound bitter because you don't have any inside info

[Coach34]

Or worse...the rumor I always heard, Dotson took Lotts.money and promised to sign with OM. Then signed with State and laughed in Lotts face.

We've had at least 2 guys in the last 5 years do that to them

[Coach34]

And another response to Will James-Blackout's post on kids setting them up:

Why do you think kids insist on taking visits?
Why by do think kids want to make sure and go thru the recruiting process???

For the Spoils of Recruiting. It's not that these kids want to see sunny Tuscaloosa or Auburn, Ala. They want to get in on the spoils of recruiting.

[Todd4State]

Our overall recruiting has not been bad at every position group except for offensive line. The Virginia Slims can't fix the evaluation and coaching of Hevesy and they're paranoid because if he is forced out rumor is Dan will leave causing their worst nightmare- a Cutcliffe situation. They're scared of making a bad decision and thus scared to make a good decision as well.

I do agree with everything Coach said. We do not put enough emphasis on recruiting as a fan base.

[starkvegasdawg]

I'm probably wrong but if they admitted to taking gifts from one school doesn't that make them ineligible to every school?

[Coach34]

I'm probably wrong but if they admitted to taking gifts from one school doesn't that make them ineligible to every school?

exactly

[Coach34]

I do agree with everything Coach said. We do not put enough emphasis on recruiting as a fan base.

I'm just amazed by #The Network

They have taken a shit town in North Mississippi- just a shithole of a town- and completely changed the narrative. In Nazi-like style- they trumpet what a great place it is- when its not any different than Grenada, Calhoun City, Vardaman, etc- it's just the shithole town that has a University in it. Making it the lucky shithole town.

Their fanbase is all about a bunch of blowhards trying to act like they are more than they are. So what do they do? They funnel money to recruits any way possible to get them to that shithole town to play for them. But they all get in line together to make it happen. Thats what you have to admire. The way they come together to push shithole school and town. All In

[maroonmania]

Our overall recruiting has not been bad at every position group except for offensive line. The Virginia Slims can't fix the evaluation and coaching of Hevesy and they're paranoid because if he is forced out rumor is Dan will leave causing their worst nightmare- a Cutcliffe situation. They're scared of making a bad decision and thus scared to make a good decision as well.

I do agree with everything Coach said. We do not put enough emphasis on recruiting as a fan base.

I would not be in favor of FORCING Mullen to get rid of any of his assistants. That never seems to work well. I would just hope at some point Mullen has enough sense to realize the OL position is holding us back substantially. Telling a coach how to do his job never really works out well.

[Jacksondevildog]

Hard to believe that we can recruit nationally now in hoops and baseball, but struggle in football. It's like our boosters are all in in basketball, but are like poor little me in football recruiting. If there was a 5 star shooting guard from West Point, his ass would have already been locked up. Especially if his uncle was Darryl Wilson. Unacceptable.

[Blackout]

I'm probably wrong but if they admitted to taking gifts from one school doesn't that make them ineligible to every school?

They don't take it on the video. Just get the offer recorded and then a good show of emphatically rejecting the Bear offer. This doesn't have to be every damn recruit just a couple Dawgs wanting to play along and expose them.

Make the Bears paranoid going into every house. Hell we could let em expose the Bears and still pay them ourselves. If it brings the Network down then good and we can all play on the same Bracky level

[Alldawg]

I say get our guys to record their illegalities. But that would require some actual thought and cunning. Something our soft and weak leaders don't possess.

Chris Jones and Leo Lewis could have worn some undercover shit. Set up cameras in their houses for Bear visits and catch the "offer" on tape. Get a handful of videos and leak them to ESPN one by one like the Planned Parenthood videos this year.

But no, we will bend over and say "please sir may I have another"

Do you think any recruit wants to be labeled a rat? This won't happen. C34 is right, it is all about getting the boosters, fans, and others on the same page. Every school in the SEC, not named Vandy, does it, but some do it better.

[Blackout]

Do you think any recruit wants to be labeled a rat? This won't happen.

They would be a hero forever at their alma mater.

[ScoobaDawg]

I say get our guys to record their illegalities. But that would require some actual thought and cunning. Something our soft and weak leaders don't possess.

Chris Jones and Leo Lewis could have worn some undercover shit. Set up cameras in their houses for Bear visits and catch the "offer" on tape. Get a handful of videos and leak them to ESPN one by one like the Planned Parenthood videos this year.

But no, we will bend over and say "please sir may I have another"

You really think a recruit is going to record and go against another university and make himself ineligible or is he going to just take the free money and move along....
Think about how stupid that sounds. A recruit isn't going to turn against free money and hurt themselves...

[CadaverDawg]

I'm just amazed by #The Network

They have taken a shit town in North Mississippi- just a shithole of a town- and completely changed the narrative. In Nazi-like style- they trumpet what a great place it is- when its not any different than Grenada, Calhoun City, Vardaman, etc- it's just the shithole town that has a University in it. Making it the lucky shithole town.

Their fanbase is all about a bunch of blowhards trying to act like they are more than they are. So what do they do? They funnel money to recruits any way possible to get them to that shithole town to play for them. But they all get in line together to make it happen. Thats what you have to admire. The way they come together to push shithole school and town. All In

Yep. Great post

[ckDOG]

I'm less worried about what great things other programs are doing and wonder why the hell we get nailed for mustang discounts, clothing, or some low value bullshit. I can't imagine how much trouble our foot soldiers would get us in if they tried to up their ante...

Why do we suck at the crootin we actually do?

[IMissJack]

I'm just amazed by #The Network

They have taken a shit town in North Mississippi- just a shithole of a town- and completely changed the narrative. In Nazi-like style- they trumpet what a great place it is- when its not any different than Grenada, Calhoun City, Vardaman, etc- it's just the shithole town that has a University in it. Making it the lucky shithole town.

Their fanbase is all about a bunch of blowhards trying to act like they are more than they are. So what do they do? They funnel money to recruits any way possible to get them to that shithole town to play for them. But they all get in line together to make it happen. Thats what you have to admire. The way they come together to push shithole school and town. All In

Coach the biggest thing they have going for them is the media. They have little rebel preachers in communication jobs that feed that narrative to people all over the country, that do not know any better. I hear it here in TX on sports radio. They have people believing the are some academic wonder, athletic power, and nirvana when we all know they are a public school in the poorest state in America, just like us. And, they have the same pitiful entrance requirements that we do, by law (thanks to Ayers case).

I've said this before, the reason the name Ole Miss is so important to them is that their narrative does not fit if they had to go by the name Mississippi. I can guarantee you that out of state recruiting for students would be more difficult. That is why they hated Jackie for reminding them, when he called them Mississippi. Is any other school offended by their actual name? I doubt it. The whole thing is built of straw.

[Blackout]

We won't ever be able to out-network them, Auburn, Alabama, etc. If we are currently offering 40,000 and up it to 150,000 they will still be able to throw down 200,000 and win. Gotta think outside the box.

Wires, secret videos, blackmail, etc. Hell we get some proof and hold it over the Bears heads and we control the state of MS.

Our problems won't be solved playing the same game as everyone else worse.

[War Machine Dawg]

We won't ever be able to out-network them, Auburn, Alabama, etc. If we are currently offering 40,000 and up it to 150,000 they will still be able to throw down 200,000 and win. Gotta think outside the box.

Wires, secret videos, blackmail, etc. Hell we get some proof and hold it over the Bears heads and we control the state of MS.

Our problems won't be solved playing the same game as everyone else worse.

You have lost your ****ing mind. We have to learn to be "All In" the way everyone else is. Do you realize the Pandora's Box that would be opened if anyone attempted the shit you're talking about? There is no way ANYONE is going to do that, diehard Dawg or not. We either adapt to the realities of crootin or we learn to accept a ceiling of 8 wins, maybe 10 if all the stars align in one particular season.

[Blackout]

You have lost your ****ing mind. We have to learn to be "All In" the way everyone else is. Do you realize the Pandora's Box that would be opened if anyone attempted the shit you're talking about? There is no way ANYONE is going to do that, diehard Dawg or not. We either adapt to the realities of crootin or we learn to accept a ceiling of 8 wins, maybe 10 if all the stars align in one particular season.

If you're getting beat by 50 or 20 you're still getting beat.

What realistic path will get our current administration, coaching staff, and Virginia Slims anywhere near on par with our competition?

[BossDawg]

They don't take it on the video. Just get the offer recorded and then a good show of emphatically rejecting the Bear offer. This doesn't have to be every damn recruit just a couple Dawgs wanting to play along and expose them.

Make the Bears paranoid going into every house. Hell we could let em expose the Bears and still pay them ourselves. If it brings the Network down then good and we can all play on the same Bracky level

I'm kinda like you. I think there's ways to slow down and terrorize their network, so to speak. How, exactly? Not sure, but some good brainstorming with people who know how their "Network" works could birth some good ideas I'm sure. Either way, I agree that our bunch could most certainly start stepping up their game with a little coordination, too.

[Todd4State]

I would not be in favor of FORCING Mullen to get rid of any of his assistants. That never seems to work well. I would just hope at some point Mullen has enough sense to realize the OL position is holding us back substantially. Telling a coach how to do his job never really works out well.

Sometimes coaches need a kick in the ass to remind them who is paying them.

[Coach34]

We won't ever be able to out-network them, Auburn, Alabama, etc. If we are currently offering 40,000 and up it to 150,000 they will still be able to throw down 200,000 and win. Gotta think outside the box.

Wires, secret videos, blackmail, etc. Hell we get some proof and hold it over the Bears heads and we control the state of MS.

Our problems won't be solved playing the same game as everyone else worse.

cant be done that way. Hell, the entire SEC would turn its back on us. Got to do it undercover- much like Devinner was paid behind the scenes to squeal on Redmond. We have skeletons too- it's not like OM is the only one. They just have bigger and a higher number number of them.

[Blackout]

I'm kinda like you. I think there's ways to slow down and terrorize their network, so to speak. How, exactly? Not sure.

Exactly; we can't match them using their tactics we will get beat/outbid every time. We are in a guerrilla war and must think as such.

[Coach34]

Exactly; we can't match them using their tactics we will get beat/outbid every time. We are in a guerrilla war and must think as such.

Plus- you have to realize the SEC office angle. The SEC is a half billion dollar industry now. They dont want anybody on probation. Slive and crew sat on the Cam evidence we turned in and then turned around and made us look bad on it later on. There's so much money at play now- the SEC is protecting their business interests- even if they are fed up with #The Network's shenanigans.

[War Machine Dawg]

Plus- you have to realize the SEC office angle. The SEC is a half billion dollar industry now. They dont want anybody on probation. Slive and crew sat on the Cam evidence we turned in and then turned around and made us look bad on it later on. There's so much money at play now- the SEC is protecting their business interests- even if they are fed up with #The Network's shenanigans.

Yep. The SEC will do whatever it takes to keep the money train rolling and a big part of that is keeping everyone off probation. Unfortunately, you're arguing with a willfully ignorant nutjob. He's never going to understand because he doesn't want to understand or even want to attempt to understand.

[Political Hack]

They have to cheat. They have no choice. They have rebels on everything, the KKK regulatory graces their campus, they shout "the south will rise again" at football games, the band plays Dixie, the rioted when Obama was elected, it took the national guard to get a black man into school there, and their very moniker "Ole Miss" is a reference to the slave days on the plantation. They can't win football games in any meaningful way without cheating. They know this. If they want to win, they have to be all in.

[JDog13]

What we lack is organization- not money. The BearSharks are organized all the way down to the foot soldier- we are not.

For example- on Gamedays, Adolf Freezus has the escorts for the recruits take them on a "tent run". The people at each tent will give the recruit a $100 handshake (or whatever denomination). A recruit will visit 20-30 tents on Gameday and come away with 3-4-5K on his visit. It's institutionalized with them. Their everyday fan comes away feeling a part of the recruiting process like they have done something big for Ole Miss. Happens at The Library too in the offseason- we make fun of them for grown people going to Oxford for recruiting weekends- but that is why they do it. They get the fanbase involved- and those little handshakes cant be traced.

They take pride in recruiting from top to bottom. We dont. Our fans give a recruit a plate of food and think they have done something big....

Their organization and the way they do it is outstanding.

We dont come close.

[JDog13]

Sorry Coach, that was so good I had to repost it in hopes I get the credit on Twitter

[PassInterference]

We all need to quit bitching and just pull the ****ing rope.

Everybody has a role in this. Boosters, pay up. Whoever you are reading this, just do whatever helps. Fanboys, quit putting down your own program. Junctions boys, smile, shake hands, pass the Franklin. Guys with contacts, make the calls. If you are an organizer, organize shit. All of you know what you can do no matter how big or how small.

Do your ****ing part. Stop bitching about this assistant, that assistant, a coach interviewing somewhere else, or whatever staff member isn't polishing your knob.

Do you think whatever coach you are disappointed in is worse of a coach than what Ole Miss has? BZZZT! WRONG ANSWER!!! The correct answer is "I'll do my part".

Do your ****ing job and let's get back to kicking ass!!!

[OurState]

You have lost your ****ing mind. We have to learn to be "All In" the way everyone else is. Do you realize the Pandora's Box that would be opened if anyone attempted the shit you're talking about? There is no way ANYONE is going to do that, diehard Dawg or not. We either adapt to the realities of crootin or we learn to accept a ceiling of 8 wins, maybe 10 if all the stars align in one particular season.

This.

In football, if some one does something to you in a pile do you run tell a ref of do you get him back?

The desire to make ourself the MSU Narc's is mystifying.

Saying TSUN cheats makes us look poor or stupid. We live in the golden age of cheating, let's get with the program. We already cheat (EVERYONE does), let's do it smarter, bigger and better.

TSUN is speeding by us on the highway, and now they are beating us on the field. Instead of reacting we come back to our little message boards and convince ourselves they will get put on probation. Call me crazy but I think it's more fun to win a game than lose it then get a victory years later when the NCAA makes them vacate it.

[Blackout]

We live in the golden age of cheating, let's get with the program. We already cheat (EVERYONE does), let's do it smarter, bigger and better.

Yeah because that's realistic..

The cards have been dealt and we got the Slims. 2-7 off-suit if I've ever seen one.

No, what we are good at is tattle-telling (see: Brett, Bracky). Let him have a field day! We get tapes and have all the leverage over the SEC office threatening to release. Negotiate from a position of strength. Hell they already treat us as the bottom of the barrel anyway. Maybe Bama gets called for holding if we have that bomb ready to drop.

Choose 2-3 superstars and give them 300,000 each to record Bama, OM, Auburn offers and then BAM we hold all the power.

[OurState]

So explain to me how our staff should appropriate the limited time they have with top guys such that instead of recruiting them, talking about how they would excel as Bulldogs or enjoy life in Starkville they are teaching them the basics of surveillance, putting on a wire, etc?

Recruiting is a sales process, the ask is that they sign with us. Do you really think we should focus our efforts on getting a 5 star player to do our dirty work?

You must be kidding.

[state66]

What I dont understand is why our administration was ok with it under standsbury. A follow up to that question is are they ok with howland doing it. I have witnessed ravern johnson talking with a guy after a game and shaking his hand and quickly stuffing whatever was given to him inside his pocket. I know the network was alove and well 5-6 years ago in basketball.

[War Machine Dawg]

What I dont understand is why our administration was ok with it under standsbury. A follow up to that question is are they ok with howland doing it. I have witnessed ravern johnson talking with a guy after a game and shaking his hand and quickly stuffing whatever was given to him inside his pocket. I know the network was alove and well 5-6 years ago in basketball.

Because they have literally no input when it comes to basketball crootin. It's a completely different animal done through the AAU leagues and full of middlemen. And now you're seeing shoe companies like Adidas and Nike playing a role in it. Plus our Virginia Slims have always been more organized and proactive when it comes to having a hoops crootin #Network. Hoops crootin is easily the most dirty of all the major sports and it really isn't close.

It's a different story for football because while there may be some middlemen, there aren't the AAU type leagues and much of it is still done through high schools, families, and the players themselves. You just can't compare the two. Although these 7-on-7 teams are quietly becoming an AAU situation right under the nose of the NCAA. I keep waiting for them to crack down on it before football crootin becomes like basketball crootin where there's pretty much nothing that can be done to get it back under control. There's still a window to get football crootin under control, but it's closing faster than most people would realize.

[Coach34]

What I dont understand is why our administration was ok with it under standsbury. A follow up to that question is are they ok with howland doing it. I have witnessed ravern johnson talking with a guy after a game and shaking his hand and quickly stuffing whatever was given to him inside his pocket. I know the network was alove and well 5-6 years ago in basketball.

Stands group was a small, tight group- and STANDS worked close with them. FREEZUS works very close with his. THAT my friends is the difference

[maroonmania]

This.

In football, if some one does something to you in a pile do you run tell a ref of do you get him back?



True, but I've noticed in football it always seems to be the one retaliating that gets the penalty flag. If we are going to start upping our game in recruiting we better do it in a way where deputy Bracky doesn't aid the NCAA in nailing us if questions get asked.

[32 Dive]

Stands group was a small, tight group- and STANDS worked close with them. FREEZUS works very close with his. THAT my friends is the difference

In the category of great fiction:

Whenever Stands would have one of those unexplainable, early losses, I would play make-believe that it was a point shaving job, to get his network some player financing cash. At least then, I could potentially understand the loss.. :-)

[Mutt the Hoople]

Personally, I don't think olemiss boosters are bright enough to pull off this massive "Network Program".

That said, Texas A&M has gotten to be a top player because they now got some high-powered, well-paid Aggie alum, errr, "former student" lawyers that do work for them. For example, when Johnny Manziel was QB there, he rarely went to class (taking most classes on-line) and didn't spend too much time on campus during the off-season. However, when other schools (like Baylor, Texas, and some other Aggie rivals) threatened to turn them in, Aggie lawyers quietly let them know they had dirt on THEIR program and would unleash hell.

Texas A&M bought Texas Wesleyan's Law School, and made it their own. Perhaps we need to buy MC's law school and do the same thing.

[Blackout]

However, when other schools (like Baylor, Texas, and some other Aggie rivals) threatened to turn them in, Aggie lawyers quietly let them know they had dirt on THEIR program and would unleash hell.

EXACTLY

We let Devinner happen with NO response. The Slims = The Bitches.

[Dawg61]

Next season on The Wire Will James has recruits wearing wiretaps and hidden cameras!! James Bond is out of a job currently. Maybe we should hire him too? We could get Miss Moneypenny to be Dan's secretary as well. If you say Virginia Slim one more ****ing time it might be funny. Bet you say it 500 more times before Cohen Buntingball starts back up again.