Five years ago, this month....

[Rick Cleveland]

It really happened: https://mississippitoday.org/2019/10/04/hard-to-believe-it-was-just-five-years-ago-when-mississippi-ruled-college-football-roost/

[Tbonewannabe]

Great writing as usual. 2014 was a great ride until it came unraveled at the end.

[sleepy dawg]

Great writing as usual. 2014 was a great ride until it came unraveled at the end.

It was still a great ride despite the unraveling... It was the best football season of my life and even though we lost the bowl game too, I made a hell of a vacation out of it.

[StarkVegasSteve]

That entire season was just awesome, even with the crappy ending. Made it to every game that year including the bowl game. From LSU week through Auburn week was the craziest ride I've ever been on. Starkville was constantly full. I'm still quite certain no one actually left between A&M and Auburn. To be on campus during that stretch is one of the things I'll remember for the rest of my life. I'm also quite certain I can count on one hand the amount of times I went to class for that 3 week stretch. Starkville was just a constant party.

[Fader21]

That Alabama game almost ended my marriage on the way back from Tuscaloosa.

[Tbonewannabe]

It was still a great ride despite the unraveling... It was the best football season of my life and even though we lost the bowl game too, I made a hell of a vacation out of it.

Yes, it was fantastic even if there was some disappointment at the end. I had a good time in Miami even if the bowl game didn't go our way. Who would have ever guessed we would be #1 for 5 weeks? One of the most enjoyable seasons I have ever witnessed. It is up there with 98, 99, and 2010. 2010 gets a mention just from the sheer joy of getting back to a bowl after a decade of shitty football excluding the single blip of 2007.

[Tbonewannabe]

That entire season was just awesome, even with the crappy ending. Made it to every game that year including the bowl game. From LSU week through Auburn week was the craziest ride I've ever been on. Starkville was constantly full. I'm still quite certain no one actually left between A&M and Auburn. To be on campus during that stretch is one of the things I'll remember for the rest of my life. I'm also quite certain I can count on one hand the amount of times I went to class for that 3 week stretch. Starkville was just a constant party.

1998 - 2000 was like that in Starkville. I still don't understand how 2001 happened. That was a damn good team on paper that completely imploded.

[R2Dawg]

1998 - 2000 was like that in Starkville. I still don't understand how 2001 happened. That was a damn good team on paper that completely imploded.

I agree, that year never made sense. All but center returned on O and all of a sudden we were terrible after an explosive year in 2000.

911 happened right before our home game with USC that we lost. That game was a heartbreaking loss that we never recovered from; then we traveled to UF and Spurrier got his revenge.

[Tbonewannabe]

I agree, that year never made sense. All but center returned on O and all of a sudden we were terrible after an explosive year in 2000.

911 happened right before our home game with USC that we lost. That game was a heartbreaking loss that we never recovered from; then we traveled to UF and Spurrier got his revenge.

I went to that game. That is the worst game that I have ever sat through which includes several Bama blow outs in the last decade. I also sat through a damn tornado to see us lose to Troy. We seemed on the cusp of something then but UM sent private eyes and the NCAA to harass Jackie. I think all of the off the field stuff just compounded the problems on the field.

97 - 7-4
98 - 8-5 SEC West championship and Cotton bowl game
99- 10-2 final record with a Peach Bowl win
2000 - 8-4 with an Independence Bowl win
2001 - returning almost everyone and Preseason rank around #13. Then the wheels fell off.

[Todd4State]

1998 - 2000 was like that in Starkville. I still don't understand how 2001 happened. That was a damn good team on paper that completely imploded.

1998-1999 was better than 2014 IMO too.

[Bothrops]

I think some of the 2001 debacle was because of 9/11. People were mentally and emotionally checked out of football at the time.

[R2Dawg]

I went to that game. That is the worst game that I have ever sat through which includes several Bama blow outs in the last decade. I also sat through a damn tornado to see us lose to Troy. We seemed on the cusp of something then but UM sent private eyes and the NCAA to harass Jackie. I think all of the off the field stuff just compounded the problems on the field.

97 - 7-4
98 - 8-5 SEC West championship and Cotton bowl game
99- 10-2 final record with a Peach Bowl win
2000 - 8-4 with an Independence Bowl win
2001 - returning almost everyone and Preseason rank around #13. Then the wheels fell off.

It was miserable watching on TV; that was the game that I knew we were in for a long year. That is why many react the way they do after Aub game; they remember games like that years ago.

I was at the USC game at home after 911. First national sporting event after 911. It was an incredible atmosphere for our nation on ESPN too. Game OK till we lost.

[R2Dawg]

1998-1999 was better than 2014 IMO too.

For those that were around then, 97-2000, may be best 4 years of Bulldog football. 2014 was great but I'm not sure a 4 years around that can match the JWS late 90s years. MSU football had some serious respect then.

[Ursus_americanus]

Memo to Rick...you do recall how the bear sharks achieved their ranking? Oh that’s right, beautiful campus.

[Tbonewannabe]

It was miserable watching on TV; that was the game that I knew we were in for a long year. That is why many react the way they do after Aub game; they remember games like that years ago.

I was at the USC game at home after 911. First national sporting event after 911. It was an incredible atmosphere for our nation on ESPN too. Game OK till we lost.

It was a close game but JLD never compensated for the QB draw if I remember correctly. I think they went down a scored the game winning TD and it was almost nothing but QB draws all the way down the field.

People want to complain about the AU game but that UF game was night and day different. UF completely dominated us from getting off the bus until we left Gainesville. The crazy thing is that we had a lot of talent on the field and they still did that to us.

[Tbonewannabe]

For those that were around then, 97-2000, may be best 4 years of Bulldog football. 2014 was great but I'm not sure a 4 years around that can match the JWS late 90s years. MSU football had some serious respect then.

The Dawg Pound Rock and having the best record in the SEC West over that 4 years. There was nothing like the whole stadium doing the Dawg Pound Rock. To quote Lee Corso, the Dawg Pound Rock was the best thing in College Football. I hate that younger fans never got to experience that.

[DownwardDawg]

The Dawg Pound Rock and having the best record in the SEC West over that 4 years. There was nothing like the whole stadium doing the Dawg Pound Rock. To quote Lee Corso, the Dawg Pound Rock was the best thing in College Football. I hate that younger fans never got to experience that.

Absolutely great times. It’s why JWS will always be much greater than Mullen to me. He had us EXPECTING to win every game. Not hoping.

[Coursesuper]

It was a surreal time and it seems like 20 years ago right now.

[was21]

Always thought that Mullen gave me more expectations to win a game than Sherrill ever did..jmho..and I've been around a helluva long time

[Bdawg]

Delete

[Matt3467]

Let's not forget the SEC in the 90's wasn't the gauntlet it is today.

[Todd4State]

Let's not forget the SEC in the 90's wasn't the gauntlet it is today.

More accurately- the SEC West wasn't the gauntlet it is today. But the SEC East was with Peyton Manning/Tee Martin led Tennessee, Spurrier at Florida in his heyday, Georgia being pretty good, and even Kentucky being respectable with Mumme and Leach. It's not like the SEC was bad then either. Really- honestly probably about the same as today relatively speaking but different teams were the marquee names then. Ole Miss, Alabama, Auburn, LSU, and Arkansas were all usually pretty decent if not good during that era despite most of those teams also having some down years as well on occasion.

For some levity here's what we accompliched from 1996-2000.

1996- We beat SEC West Champ Alabama. That team probably goes to a bowl in today's era with a sixth win over a FCS team.
1997- Beat SEC West Champ Auburn on the road.
1998- We won the SEC West. Us going on a run where we beat Alabama, Arkansas, and Ole Miss in a row is one of the better runs in MSU history and is underrated.
1999- Went 10-2. Only thing that would have made it perfect would have been beating Alabama.
2000- Beat both SEC East and SEC West Champs Auburn and Florida. How often has that happened from ANY team in the SEC?

To me, those five seasons had probably the biggest stretch of memorable wins in MSU history. Dan really only had two seasons that were of that caliber IMO- 2010 and 2014 and obviously those would be ahead of all but 1998 and 1999. Point is we've never really had a sustained stretch like that in school history. Most of Dan's 6-6 seasons were essentially us beating teams we were supposed to and the Egg Bowl with an occasional 8 win season where we beat who we were supposed to and a 2010 or 2014 season mixed in.

[Maroonthirteen]

The way the 2014 season ended was very comparable to the 99 and 00 ending. We got close and ran out of gas.

99 was a real disappointing ending. I went To the Bama game in Tuscaloosa that year. What an atmosphere and game. We had a real chance to win that and didn’t. Then the Arkansas let down. But Arkansas had that game circled and had revenge on their mind for 98.

00 was a good team. If you can change one play at usc and LSU that would have been a great season.

[bobtail bob]

Dear Cleveland
Pretty sure you sat on your hands while the NCAA sponsored by Ole Misery railroaded our coach and basically us as alumni and supporters.
You probably knew what was going on behind the scenes with the dirt too. You?ve got some balls coming here and mining me for clicks.
Do a write up on Jackie?s case and rebel bear involvement, then come ask. Till then you don?t exist as a journalist to me