question to the board

[EngDawg]

Some comments in the peer presure thread got me thinking. Would you endure a decade of Croom years for one national title. I don't think I could handle 10 years of utterly uncompetitive football even if a natty was guaranteed, but what does the board say?

[Leroy Jenkins]

No. I think when it comes to perception, consistency matters. 10 Years ago Texas won the natty, the last 3 years they are 19-19. UT didn't make a bowl last year and that NC seems a long time ago.


Then again, it could be generational. Millennials live in a microwave society that is very in the now. A decade is half-a-lifetime ago for some.

[Chip]

horns down

[Uncivilengineer]

I would have to say yes, just to get the Natty. But, by god, I don't know if I could stomach a decade of that crooked hat and winning 3 to 5 games a year.

[Todd4State]

Essentially that is almost what Ole Miss is doing. They are trading two New Year’s Day Bowls for 10 years of sucking.

And I know you said National Championship which is very different than having a season where you lose to Memphis and two other SEC teams. Let’s be honest Dan and Jackie have had seasons like that or better without ruining the program.

But anyway- I think I would have to say no based on the fact that the most likely logical way for us to win a NC and then have 10 terrible years would be for us to cheat like Ole Miss except actually come through against all of our OOC teams and then clean up the SEC.

Of course no way that MSU would put up with Croom for 10 years anyway. We didn’t even do that despite lower standards and the fact that he was one year removed from a Liberty Bowl win. The National media would wonder why we would put up with that after having won a NC unless of course Croom won the NC and that’s even more unrealistic unless he inherited an absolutely loaded team that even he couldn’t screw it up. Of course that rarely happens in college football.

Now- I’ll say this. I’d probably tolerate a six year run where we win 5 SEC Championships and 5 National Titles including going undefeated four years in a row adding up to 5 NC total followed up by 10 years of sucking. I’d also add at least one appearance in that time span to each of the six major BCS bowl sites in the playoffs at least once in that span- Sugar, Rose, Orange, Cotton, Peach, and Fiesta. After that the next 10 years probably wouldn’t matter as much to me although I would wonder what the hell happened. Knowing us that would be like a Ron Polk situation where we had a coach win 5 National Titles and then just mailed it in for 10 years and we couldn’t get rid of him.

[Schultzy]

I could dine for a decade off one natty.

[Reason2succeed]

Heck no. Give me consistency. Call me selfish but I'd rather be able to hold my head up in public than hide like all the OM fans will be doing for the next decade.

It's basically whether you would be okay being a fan of some of these team?
BYU has won a NC. They get no respect now.
Pittsburgh. Heck no. They will never sniff another NC again. Eternal dumpster fire.
Colorado. No one respects them.
SMU. They're terrible. They're not even being mentioned with getting in the Big 12.
Nebraska, Georgia Tech, Tennessee, and USC are all miserable because they can't get back to where they were before.

[msbulldog]

5 Croom-like years and this board would die after 3 years, cause nobody would give a sh*t.

[BrunswickDawg]

Heck no. Give me consistency. Call me selfish but I'd rather be able to hold my head up in public than hide like all the OM fans will be doing for the next decade.

It's basically whether you would be okay being a fan of some of these team?
BYU has won a NC. They get no respect now.
Pittsburgh. Heck no. They will never sniff another NC again. Eternal dumpster fire.
Colorado. No one respects them.
SMU. They're terrible. They're not even being mentioned with getting in the Big 12.
Nebraska, Georgia Tech, Tennessee, and USC are all miserable because they can't get back to where they were before.

That holds true for even the non-dumpster fire programs like UGA. Their fans are insufferable because of a NC and 3 SEC Titles that happened 33-36 years ago. They all think they are Bama because of it - and they are all desperate to get back. Hell, they spent the last 5 years trying to run off one of the best coaches in the country (and if you don't believe that, just watch what he does with Miami) and will chew up Kirby Smart when he hasn't won one in the next 5 years.

I never, ever, want to experience another period like the end of Jackie/Croom. Ever. It was shear torture.

[Jack Lambert]

I like what we got now. We will always have a chance with Mullen. Think about it, Ole Miss bought the best team they have ever had and could not get to Atlanta and now are looking at a very good possibility of being nobody for years to come. We are limited to what we can do unless we start to cheat like ole miss and it is not worth it.

[Liverpooldawg]

Some comments in the peer presure thread got me thinking. Would you endure a decade of Croom years for one national title. I don't think I could handle 10 years of utterly uncompetitive football even if a natty was guaranteed, but what does the board say?

No. The title would be glorious but 10 years of losing like that would not be worth it.

[BB30]

Eh yea that is tough. I would probably stick with consistency and some outside shots at an SEC/National championship however far that is. As for Georgia, not trying to derail the thread, but that whole situation does not make sense. I do not understand how Georgia has not been able to break through and win a couple of nattys in recent times. They have literally everything you need to be extremely successful. I liked Mark Richt but it is kind of surprising that they did not win the East the last two years. They had a chance to take control of that side of the conference and couldn't do it. Time will tell if that was a bad decision getting rid of Richt.

[DeviousDawg]

10 years is a long time to suffer.

[BrunswickDawg]

Eh yea that is tough. I would probably stick with consistency and some outside shots at an SEC/National championship however far that is. As for Georgia, not trying to derail the thread, but that whole situation does not make sense. I do not understand how Georgia has not been able to break through and win a couple of nattys in recent times. They have literally everything you need to be extremely successful. I liked Mark Richt but it is kind of surprising that they did not win the East the last two years. They had a chance to take control of that side of the conference and couldn't do it. Time will tell if that was a bad decision getting rid of Richt.

QB kept them out of it the past 2 years. After Murray graduated, Richt had no one waiting in the wings - although Hutson Mason was serviceable. I think that high quality QB's had stayed away because the writing was on the wall that it was only a matter of time before the lunatic fringe fans forced the hand of the AD. You don't go from having such a strong string of high quality QB's - Greene, Shockley, Stafford, Murray - to needing a Graduate Transfer to save your season without impacting the program. I also think that had an impact on the psyche of the team the past 2 seasons. They felt like 1 loss meant the end of their coach.

[tireddawg]

YES! Some of y'all are answering as if the NC wouldn't be guaranteed. He said it would be. And another thing to consider is those 10 years would be done & over because if we won a NC our program would change & the possibility of winning another would be greater, if in fact, the 10 years come before the NC & we could put them behind us.

[HSVDawg]

Some comments in the peer presure thread got me thinking. Would you endure a decade of Croom years for one national title. I don't think I could handle 10 years of utterly uncompetitive football even if a natty was guaranteed, but what does the board say?

I absolutely would. I'm currently of the opinion that MSU isn't ever going to win the natty in football, barring a major demographic shift over the next several hundred years that somehow makes Mississippi's population quadruple compared to the rest of the SEC footprint. I'm 99.9% certain it isn't going to happen in my lifetime. So for us to be guaranteed to do it in my lifetime, I'd easily sacrifice a decade of futility, which could easily happen again in my lifetime anyways even without a natty.

[AusTexDawg]

I absolutely would. I'm currently of the opinion that MSU isn't ever going to win the natty in football, barring a major demographic shift over the next several hundred years that somehow makes Mississippi's population quadruple compared to the rest of the SEC footprint. I'm 99.9% certain it isn't going to happen in my lifetime. So for us to be guaranteed to do it in my lifetime, I'd easily sacrifice a decade of futility, which could easily happen again in my lifetime anyways even without a natty.

^I'm with you, although with the playoff instead of the polls and the BCS, I might be a little more hopeful about MSU's chances.

I'd have two caveats - we would need to have won the SEC championship, too (which we almost certainly would have to do to play in the NCG ) and my dad would have to still be alive to see it (it's still reasonable in the 11-year scenario presented although nothing is a given). For as much bad MSU football as I've had to watch, he's had to endure so much more. It's a shame that he has been eligible for Social Security for several years, and MSU still doesn't have an SEC championship, much less the national championship, in his lifetime. It would mean a lot to me for him to be able to witness that.

[Gutter Cobreh]

Could we negotiate the terms of this proposal?

I simply want A national championship in one of the major three sports.

Football - NC but suck for 10 years.
Basketball - NC but suck for 8 years.
Baseball - NC but suck for 6 years.

I'll answer "yes" to any one of those scenarios because it means that we can focus on the other two while we wait out the terms to end and it secures that we don't win our first national championship in something like Women's Cross Country (no offense to them).

[lastmajordog]

A friend of mine and I still contend that win in the Liberty Bowl was the WORST game I ever saw, even though Dogs won. As far as your statement......it feels like we DID ENDURE 10 years of Croom......

[HSVDawg]

A friend of mine and I still contend that win in the Liberty Bowl was the WORST game I ever saw, even though Dogs won. As far as your statement......it feels like we DID ENDURE 10 years of Croom......

There is no way the '07 Liberty Bowl was worse than the '08 3-2 game. That was the worst game ever played in college football history.

[Taog Redloh]

For a natty? Yes. For an SEC ship? Probably not, maybe 5 years.

I'm big on consistency but a natty puts you on the map for 20 years or so. We'd get over the losses. Plus, Croom would probably deliver us 2-3 6-7 win seasons when he got lucky.

[HSVDawg]

I'm big on consistency but a natty puts you on the map for 20 years or so.

Or 60 years if you ask any OM fan.

[M.Fillmore]

Or 60 years if you ask any OM fan.

Does Dunkel Index or Likenhous Poll count?

[DeviousDawg]

I'll tell you who could answer this question, The University of Colorado. After their natty in 1990 they have pretty much been irrelevant. I bet if you asked them if they would trade their natty for being relevant again, you would get answers from both sides.

On a side note, if Ole Miss recruits so well because of their "beautiful campus and nightlife on the square", then Colorado should have the #1 recruiting class every year.

One of the most beautiful campuses in the country, nessled on the line of the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains.
A beautiful downtown with a nightlife that puts Oxford to shame.
A National Championship in the 90s that proves that they can succeed at the highest level.
Marijuana is LEGAL, this should be their #1 recruiting tool.
Countless Ski Resorts within pissing distance of campus.
A 30 minute drive south through the Rockies to Denver.
Beautiful women for an area outside of the Southeast US.

https://s11.postimg.org/65uyolqfz/colorado_1.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/65uyolqfz/)
https://s15.postimg.org/68a5mikvb/colorado_2.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/68a5mikvb/)
https://s14.postimg.org/i48xl7tq5/colorado_girl_3.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/i48xl7tq5/)
https://s9.postimg.org/5dpmy36gr/colorado_girl_4.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/5dpmy36gr/)
https://s13.postimg.org/n8xgms1kz/IMG_3398.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/n8xgms1kz/)

Not sure what I'm missing here with Colorado. Why do they suck?

[Taog Redloh]

Good example, as is Georgia Tech and Washington. They, to me, were always considered pretty good programs and had their stamp because of that national title. Now they've faded and may as well be Mississippi State or Kansas State. Clemson was another one, they were nothing until last year, just another program that had a good run. Tennessee and Nebraska are the most recent examples - they are starting to fade from peoples memory and aren't really considered 'have' programs anymore, and we are about 20 years after their last titles.

[HSVDawg]

Good example, as is Georgia Tech and Washington. They, to me, were always considered pretty good programs and had their stamp because of that national title. Now they've faded and may as well be Mississippi State or Kansas State. Clemson was another one, they were nothing until last year, just another program that had a good run. Tennessee and Nebraska are the most recent examples - they are starting to fade from peoples memory and aren't really considered 'have' programs anymore, and we are about 20 years after their last titles.

It's worth noting that out of Washington, Georgia Tech, and Colorado, none of those teams has a unanimous national title. Colorado and Georgia Tech shared the title in 1990, and Washington had to share their title with Miami in 1991. That was an odd 3 or 4 year period in the late 80's and early 90's in which there was kind of a power void in the college football world that took place between the demise of the first Miami dynasty in the early to mid 80's and decline of Notre Dame and the eventual resurgence or Alabama, Nebraska, and Florida State in the early to mid 90's. Clemson's title was further back, but at least it was a unanimous national championship as they were the only undefeated team that year.

[BrunswickDawg]

Good example, as is Georgia Tech and Washington. They, to me, were always considered pretty good programs and had their stamp because of that national title. Now they've faded and may as well be Mississippi State or Kansas State. Clemson was another one, they were nothing until last year, just another program that had a good run. Tennessee and Nebraska are the most recent examples - they are starting to fade from peoples memory and aren't really considered 'have' programs anymore, and we are about 20 years after their last titles.

If you had told me 20 years ago that Tennessee and Nebraska would be irrelevant, I would have questioned your sanity. In both cases, it shows what happens when you fire a coach for the wrong reason and make wrong hires. Kiffin/Dooley and Callahan about destroyed those programs. Nebraska still didn't learn and repeated that history in firing Pellini and bringing in Mike Riley.

[Political Hack]

If it can be done in reverse order, absolutely. 10 years of suckitude and then a natty.

[Taog Redloh]

If you had told me 20 years ago that Tennessee and Nebraska would be irrelevant, I would have questioned your sanity. In both cases, it shows what happens when you fire a coach for the wrong reason and make wrong hires. Kiffin/Dooley and Callahan about destroyed those programs. Nebraska still didn't learn and repeated that history in firing Pellini and bringing in Mike Riley.

I don't know what Tennessee's problem is. They haven't found a 'fit' since Fulmer. Even if Butch wins this year, I don't think he's the long-term fit who will win national titles. Nebraska....yeah, they messed up by #1 going to the B1G and #2 firing Pelini. They sound like Arkansas fans during Petrino....they act like it was their program that elevated them, rather than one of the best coaches in the game.

[DeviousDawg]

I don't know what Tennessee's problem is. They haven't found a 'fit' since Fulmer. Even if Butch wins this year, I don't think he's the long-term fit who will win national titles. Nebraska....yeah, they messed up by #1 going to the B1G and #2 firing Pelini. They sound like Arkansas fans during Petrino....they act like it was their program that elevated them, rather than one of the best coaches in the game.

On Tennessee, I think it has to do with their geographic location. Tennessee has arguably less talent than Mississippi year in year out in the high school ranks. Outside of Memphis, which feeds to multiple SEC schools now, there just isn't much talent in Tennessee, or I should say not as much talent as you would think. They aren't stealing recruits from MS, AL or Georgia anymore, so they are forced to recruit nationally, and their name doesn't carry the weight it used to so they struggle going head to head against other national powers. They should be recruiting similar to us, program building 3 stars with 4 stars sprinkled in, but they are too stubborn and prideful to do that. So they go out and pick up the highly ranked national guys that none of the other national powers want because of character issues. That's just not the kind of guys to build a program around and I think that is what has knocked them down a level since the 90s.

[BrunswickDawg]

If it can be done in reverse order, absolutely. 10 years of suckitude and then a natty.

Can we count it back? 2001-2009 & 2011 gives us 10.

[DeviousDawg]

Can we count it back? 2001-2009 & 2011 gives us 10.

Croom counts as a 2x multiplier. So by my count 2001-2009 was 14 years.