I am really proud of this team!

[Maverick91]

You know, I keep thinking about what this team has accomplished. It really is something of note.

-Everyone said we would be last in the west.
-Everyone said we would be a below 500 team.
-A lot of people thought Leach would be on the chopping block this year.
-We have mostly freshman and sophomores playing hard and winning.
-We are extremely young when it comes to experience and we are some special teams mistakes away from being 8-1, that's huge!
-Even with the special teams mistakes we are two HORRIBLE calls away from being 7-2. Like guys that is massive.

I don't know! I am just really proud of this team and this staff, they are in the process of greatly overachieving this year.

I think we play Auburn really well this weekend, giving ourselves a chance to win. Bama killed us, I don't think Auburn is at the level of Bama.

It is just really exciting about where we are and what we can do and how we can finish! Hailstate

[msstate7]

I think LSU finishes last in west, but if they beat ark or aTm, we could still finish last. Need to win egg

[Commercecomet24]

Good post, Mav. We have warts(like just about 95% of all cfb), BUT these kids play hard, they don't quit and they really do leave it on the field each week. We have some things to clean up but I love the direction we're headed in. I said we'd have 6-7 wins and get another bowl and we're right on track for that. Slow,steady progress(while not as appealing to the masses) is generally the type progress that is sustainable.

[Catfish]

You know, I keep thinking about what this team has accomplished. It really is something of note.

-Everyone said we would be last in the west.
-Everyone said we would be a below 500 team.
-A lot of people thought Leach would be on the chopping block this year.
-We have mostly freshman and sophomores playing hard and winning.
-We are extremely young when it comes to experience and we are some special teams mistakes away from being 8-1, that's huge!
-Even with the special teams mistakes we are two HORRIBLE calls away from being 7-2. Like guys that is massive.

I don't know! I am just really proud of this team and this staff, they are in the process of greatly overachieving this year.

I think we play Auburn really well this weekend, giving ourselves a chance to win. Bama killed us, I don't think Auburn is at the level of Bama.

It is just really exciting about where we are and what we can do and how we can finish! Hailstate

I completely agree. Hats off to Will for his maturation at the QB position, and he's a covid freshman. We're going places.

[OLJWales]

I remember several here who said "patience" would be needed with Leach. They were right.

[TrapGame]

Good post Mav.

I'm glad we are winning so some posters go off into the shadows to gnash teeth and rend garments as Leach proves them wrong.

[Lord McBuckethead]

Look, we have massively shot ourselves in the foot in 3 of our losses. I see what this team could be week in and week out. I really think next seasons, these close games are going to flip to us because we are getting better and better each week. Heck, if we had a kicker we would have only lost 1 of these games.

[Lord McBuckethead]

Contrast this team to Moorhead's team? We are a much better team today than we were two years ago.

[Commercecomet24]

Contrast this team to Moorhead's team? We are a much better team today than we were two years ago.

And it's not even close.

[ShotgunDawg]

I'm happy with our progress but we've got to aggressively address the holes on this team that are holding us back this year & the holes that could hold us back next year

[TrapGame]

Contrast this team to Moorhead's team? We are a much better team today than we were two years ago.

That Arkansas team Saturday would have thoroughly humiliated a Moorhead team. It would have looked like the USC/Florida game.

[ShotgunDawg]

Contrast this team to Moorhead's team? We are a much better team today than we were two years ago.

Yes, we're significantly better.

We don't have the difference makers on defense that we had 2 years ago, but offensively & culture wise, we're infinitely better.

We move the ball & score point within the offensive scheme now. Under Joe we moved the ball on broken plays

[msstate7]

Yes, we're significantly better.

We don't have the difference makers on defense that we had 2 years ago, but offensively & culture wise, we're infinitely better.

We move the ball & score point within the offensive scheme now. Under Joe we moved the ball on broken plays

Interestingly enough, I was shocked to see this...

FEI offensive rankings:
2021 (doesn't include ark yet): 47th
2019: 34th

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ncaa/fei/overalloff/2021

[ShotgunDawg]

Interestingly enough, I was shocked to see this...

FEI offensive rankings:
2021 (doesn't include ark yet): 47th
2019: 34th

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ncaa/fei/overalloff/2021

I'd be curious what those numbers would say since the LSU or Texas A&M game. We're clearly better.

Our lack of big plays though, does distort our overall numbers. As Will moves more in the pocket to extend plays, the more big plays we're going to make

[msstate7]

I'd be curious what those numbers would say since the LSU or Texas A&M game. We're clearly better.

Our lack of big plays though, does distort our overall numbers. As Will moves more in the pocket to extend plays, the more big plays we're going to make

I would guess it has skyrocketed. I feel confident it will move up after this next update also.

Looking back at 2019, we were a solid 37th in the country in yds/play. I'll guess, and say this metric likes that stat.

[BrunswickDawg]

Interestingly enough, I was shocked to see this...

FEI offensive rankings:
2021 (doesn't include ark yet): 47th
2019: 34th

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ncaa/fei/overalloff/2021

I think that is skewed right now because of the difference in number of games. Also we've improved from 104th last season to 47th - a huge jump. Meanwhile JoMo was trending down - going from 20th in '18 to 34th in '19.

[msstate7]

Speaking of skyrocketing, Rogers has moved from 10th in both passer rating and QBR to 6th and 5th respectively. There's your offensive improvement

[Dawgology]

Speaking of skyrocketing, Rogers has moved from 10th in both passer rating and QBR to 6th and 5th respectively. There's your offensive improvement

This is key. He's made huge strides and he's really just now entering his "sophomore year". He still has 3 years to grow and get experience. He's going to be right up there with Dak by the time he graduates.

[Commercecomet24]

This is key. He's made huge strides and he's really just now entering his "sophomore year". He still has 3 years to grow and get experience. He's going to be right up there with Dak by the time he graduates.

Will is now proving that he can beat any defense, zone, man, whatever... He still has things to work on(who doesn't), but his progress is on a steady upward trend.

[Cooterpoot]

Still seeing too much bad football. But the plan is to be rolling next year if the OL and DBs work out.
Oh, and K and P.

[ShotgunDawg]

Speaking of skyrocketing, Rogers has moved from 10th in both passer rating and QBR to 6th and 5th respectively. There's your offensive improvement

As he moves in the pocket more, it's forcing these zone defense to commit, which opens big plays

[ShotgunDawg]

Still seeing too much bad football. But the plan is to be rolling next year if the OL and DBs work out.
Oh, and K and P.

Agree. We've got a lot to improve on & have to stop spotting the opposing team 10 points to start every game. We need to start faster & obviously fix the special teams issues

[Walkerhill]

You know, I keep thinking about what this team has accomplished. It really is something of note.

-Everyone said we would be last in the west.
-Everyone said we would be a below 500 team.
-A lot of people thought Leach would be on the chopping block this year.
-We have mostly freshman and sophomores playing hard and winning.
-We are extremely young when it comes to experience and we are some special teams mistakes away from being 8-1, that's huge!
-Even with the special teams mistakes we are two HORRIBLE calls away from being 7-2. Like guys that is massive.

I don't know! I am just really proud of this team and this staff, they are in the process of greatly overachieving this year.

I think we play Auburn really well this weekend, giving ourselves a chance to win. Bama killed us, I don't think Auburn is at the level of Bama.

It is just really exciting about where we are and what we can do and how we can finish! Hailstate

The goal this year was a bowl and to take some steps. Check.

[Walkerhill]

If we can keep Arnett and he can figure out 3rd and long, we have some exciting times ahead.

And get a kicker, obviously.

The offense is going to be a DC nightmare next few years if Rogers stays healthy. I don?t think our fan base has wrapped their mind around the fact Leach and Rogers stroll into hostile away games like A&M and Arkansas with a bunch of underclass men and do business.

[CadaverDawg]

Question is, how are we crooting? Are we doing enough in the trenches to maintain growth? I'm genuinely asking, bc I stopped keeping up with it. Was costing me years watching those turds commit and flip and hat fake and shit. Clowns

[Todd4State]

To me the key as far as needs/personnel are:

1. Kicker. May be prisoner of the moment but they are literally almost the sole difference between 5-4 and 8-1 right now. Leach may not find one between now and the Egg Bowl but I bet he finds one somewhere by next year. Where the kicker comes from could be interesting. I'm not ruling anything out at the moment.

2. Safety. We're simply too slow and we're playing at least two guys that really belong at hybrid LB. We need to start recruiting corners and converting them to safety because the ones we have now lack ball skills, speed, and are not good at tackling. Duncan should be moved to DOG safety next year. If Green stays that will help because I think he will get better. I am curious to see what Corey Ellington, Dylan Lawrence, and Janari Dean can do next year.

3. We need another DE that can rush the passer in addition to Jordan Davis coming back. We have too many DT types and none of them are very good at creating pressure on the passer. They are solid against the run though so they have value but I think they are playing out of position in most cases. DeMonte Russell may be the answer here though. And I really like DonTerry Russell and RJ Moss for the future.

4. Along that same vein- we need some OLB types that can rush the passer. We have too many MLB types. I'd like to see us get a couple of veteran LB's with some length that can rush the passer and move Wheat if he comes back to DE which may help solve some of the issues there as I think he is somewhat playing out of position, move Brule to MLB along with Jett and use Watson as a utility guy that can play all three spots. John Lewis, Ty Cooper, and maybe Khalid Moore could help with this some. So they'll be good in time but we need guys that we know can play now.

5. OL appears to be an issue because we haven't used a ton of guys other then the six we typically have seen. But I don't think it will be as bad as people fear because Dollar Bill, Cole Smith, and Kam Jones all return and all three have played a lot and started. I think we take at least 1-2 JUCO guys but I also think that we have some potential starters in Nick Jones, Reed Buys, Carson Williams, and Albert Reese.

6. CB- We need someone to replace Emerson but I think that Cordarian Richardson can handle it if we whiff on the JUCO/transfer market. Still a need there.

[BayouDawg]

Question is, how are we crooting? Are we doing enough in the trenches to maintain growth? I'm genuinely asking, bc I stopped keeping up with it. Was costing me years watching those turds commit and flip and hat fake and shit. Clowns

Yea I quit keeping up too. Our most talented class ended up being a class rated in the 40s. The class that was close to top 15 in 2015 I think ended up being a real turd of a class. Its a crapshoot between 15 and 30 really.

[sleepy dawg]

You know, I keep thinking about what this team has accomplished. It really is something of note.

-Everyone said we would be last in the west.
-Everyone said we would be a below 500 team.
-A lot of people thought Leach would be on the chopping block this year.
-We have mostly freshman and sophomores playing hard and winning.
-We are extremely young when it comes to experience and we are some special teams mistakes away from being 8-1, that's huge!
-Even with the special teams mistakes we are two HORRIBLE calls away from being 7-2. Like guys that is massive.

I don't know! I am just really proud of this team and this staff, they are in the process of greatly overachieving this year.

I think we play Auburn really well this weekend, giving ourselves a chance to win. Bama killed us, I don't think Auburn is at the level of Bama.

It is just really exciting about where we are and what we can do and how we can finish! Hailstate

Yet again, this is not true. I don't know why this has to keep being brought up wrongly every week. Our starters are mostly juniors with some seniors and sophomores. A couple of freshman get playing time. Age wise, we are about average in the country. You can say we're inexperienced, but please quit saying we're full of freshman and sophomores because that is a lie.

[sleepy dawg]

To me the key as far as needs/personnel are:

1. Kicker. May be prisoner of the moment but they are literally almost the sole difference between 5-4 and 8-1 right now. Leach may not find one between now and the Egg Bowl but I bet he finds one somewhere by next year. Where the kicker comes from could be interesting. I'm not ruling anything out at the moment.

2. Safety. We're simply too slow and we're playing at least two guys that really belong at hybrid LB. We need to start recruiting corners and converting them to safety because the ones we have now lack ball skills, speed, and are not good at tackling. Duncan should be moved to DOG safety next year. If Green stays that will help because I think he will get better. I am curious to see what Corey Ellington, Dylan Lawrence, and Janari Dean can do next year.

3. We need another DE that can rush the passer in addition to Jordan Davis coming back. We have too many DT types and none of them are very good at creating pressure on the passer. They are solid against the run though so they have value but I think they are playing out of position in most cases. DeMonte Russell may be the answer here though. And I really like DonTerry Russell and RJ Moss for the future.

4. Along that same vein- we need some OLB types that can rush the passer. We have too many MLB types. I'd like to see us get a couple of veteran LB's with some length that can rush the passer and move Wheat if he comes back to DE which may help solve some of the issues there as I think he is somewhat playing out of position, move Brule to MLB along with Jett and use Watson as a utility guy that can play all three spots. John Lewis, Ty Cooper, and maybe Khalid Moore could help with this some. So they'll be good in time but we need guys that we know can play now.

5. OL appears to be an issue because we haven't used a ton of guys other then the six we typically have seen. But I don't think it will be as bad as people fear because Dollar Bill, Cole Smith, and Kam Jones all return and all three have played a lot and started. I think we take at least 1-2 JUCO guys but I also think that we have some potential starters in Nick Jones, Reed Buys, Carson Williams, and Albert Reese.

6. CB- We need someone to replace Emerson but I think that Cordarian Richardson can handle it if we whiff on the JUCO/transfer market. Still a need there.

I have no clue what I'm talking about when it comes to recruiting and what we actually need, BUT it seems to me that what we're really lacking is some bigtime playmakers. It seems we have decent to good guys everywhere, and even depth, but we don't really have any superstar game changer type players.

[Maverick91]

Yet again, this is not true. I don't know why this has to keep being brought up wrongly every week. Our starters are mostly juniors with some seniors and sophomores. A couple of freshman get playing time. Age wise, we are about average in the country. You can say we're inexperienced, but please quit saying we're full of freshman and sophomores because that is a lie.

QB=True Sophomore
Both RBs= sophomore
Tulu=sophomore
Wally=sophomore
Rara= sophomore
Polk=sophomore
Ford=R-junior but he was a walk-on I believe this is his first year to letter.
Cross=R-sophomore

the other four linemen are jr and sr.
Malik heath is a Sr

I'll level with you and say that we have a 50/50 split. But, we are not a senior laden offense especially at the skill position.

[TheLostDawg]

QB=True Sophomore
Both RBs= sophomore
Tulu=sophomore
Wally=sophomore
Rara= sophomore
Polk=sophomore
Ford=R-junior but he was a walk-on I believe this is his first year to letter.
Cross=R-sophomore

the other four linemen are jr and sr.
Malik heath is a Sr

I'll level with you and say that we have a 50/50 split. But, we are not a senior laden offense especially at the skill position.

To build off that aren't they technically a year below as above since last year didn't count? I understand the argument is about experience but they were negated a summer and those other teams had guys that got to stay an extra year hence even more experience

[Maverick91]

To build off that aren't they technically a year below as above since last year didn't count? I understand the argument is about experience but they were negated a summer and those other teams had guys that got to stay an extra year hence even more experience

I am counting them as covid wasn't a thing. technically everyone last year got a "redshirt playing year" if you want to call it anything.

[sleepy dawg]

QB=True Sophomore
Both RBs= sophomore
Tulu=sophomore
Wally=sophomore
Rara= sophomore
Polk=sophomore
Ford=R-junior but he was a walk-on I believe this is his first year to letter.
Cross=R-sophomore

the other four linemen are jr and sr.
Malik heath is a Sr

I'll level with you and say that we have a 50/50 split. But, we are not a senior laden offense especially at the skill position.

and where's all these freshmen you were talking about? Also, you never said you were only talking about offense. Even still, we rotate a lot of WRs, so yeah, we've got some sophomores there. Our QB and RBs are sophomores. Thats about it. We have more juniors getting minutes than the rest combined. Seniors and sophomores are probably close to equal, and freshman very little.

I don't really care what our makeup is. I just wish people would quit lying about the how old our team is to try to make some justification. Just call it like it is.

[Maverick91]

and where's all these freshmen you were talking about? Also, you never said you were only talking about offense. Even still, we rotate a lot of WRs, so yeah, we've got some sophomores there. Our QB and RBs are sophomores. Thats about it. We have more juniors getting minutes than the rest combined. Seniors and sophomores are probably close to equal, and freshman very little.

I don't really care what our makeup is. I just wish people would quit lying about the how old our team is to try to make some justification. Just call it like it is.

Nobody is lying. I went through the majority of those that get snaps on offense, most of them are sophomores. Rara is a freshman, my bad. Most people that are getting significant playing time are underclassmen. if you think otherwise, prove me wrong, please. But, don't sit here and say that everyone who brings this up is "lying" because we aren't.

[Dak Holliday]

Yet again, this is not true. I don't know why this has to keep being brought up wrongly every week. Our starters are mostly juniors with some seniors and sophomores. A couple of freshman get playing time. Age wise, we are about average in the country. You can say we're inexperienced, but please quit saying we're full of freshman and sophomores because that is a lie.

👆🏼Easy excuse that makes people feel better as they can?t control that.

[sleepy dawg]

Nobody is lying. I went through the majority of those that get snaps on offense, most of them are sophomores. Rara is a freshman, my bad. Most people that are getting significant playing time are underclassmen. if you think otherwise, prove me wrong, please. But, don't sit here and say that everyone who brings this up is "lying" because we aren't.

So all of your points were about the team, except the one that said we were mostly freshmen and sophomores, which was only referring to offense, or possibly offensive playmakers?

I think otherwise...

Players with 7 or more starts:
senior: 6
junior: 8
sophomore: 6
freshmen: 0

Total juniors and seniors: 14
Total freshmen and sophomores: 6

Players with either at least 5 starts or 7 or more games played:
senior: 12
junior: 16
sophomore: 12
freshmen: 4

Total juniors and seniors: 28
Total freshmen and sophomores: 16

[Maverick91]

So all of your points were about the team, except the one that said we were mostly freshmen and sophomores, which was only referring to offense, or possibly offensive playmakers?

Editing the bold because you posted the above while I was creating this.
You have yet to bring anything other than your opinion to this conversation. because of this I will look at the stats.

everyone with a rushing yard:
marks
Johnson
Lovertich 1 rush
Jernighan
Rogers
3 sophomores 2 juniors (2 juniors are garbage time)

Receiving:
Polk-Sophomore
Walley-sophomore
A. Williams-senior
Marks-sophomore
M. Heath-senior
D. Johnson-sophomore
C. Ford- junior
Rara. Thomas-freshman
J. Calvin-sophomore
L. Griffin-sophomore
JJ. Jernighan-junior
C. Ducking-junior
R. Harvey--freshman
O. Wells-senior
Rogers-sophomore
sophomore-6 freshman - 2 junior - 3 senior - 3

Defense:
Jett- junior
N. Watson-junior
F. Peters-senior
Forbes-sophomore
Emerson-Junior
Brule- junior
C. Young- junior
Wheat-junior
Duncan-junior
Green-senior
Charlton-junior
Preston-junior
Pickering-junior
Crumedy-junior
Odom-senior
Timbs-senior
J. Harris-sophomore
D. Richardson-sophomore
Furdge-junior
D. Russell- sophomore
J. Dean-freshman
C. Ellington-freshman
freshman-2 sophomore-4 junior-12 senior-4

freshman-sophomores = 17 players.
juniors - seniors = 24

offense is more young than old.
defense is more old than young.

This applies to experience as well.

These are the players from ESPN with stats.

I still think this is pretty even, to say that we are a senior laden team is the same "lie" as me saying we are freshman sophomore "team".

[WhiskeyPirate]

Ole Miss should be nervous when facing us. There defense is suspect. I think we are tough against Auburn and beat up on ole miss.


I like our defense and our run game.

[Jarius]

I'm happy with our progress but we've got to aggressively address the holes on this team that are holding us back this year & the holes that could hold us back next year

Getting a kicker is the easiest thing to fix especially with the portal. Jordan Davis will hopefully cure our pass rushing issues but he is coming off major surgery so we will see. The biggest issue will be finding a LT. If we do that we have a chance to be really good next year even with a tough schedule.

[msstate7]

Ole Miss should be nervous when facing us. There defense is suspect. I think we are tough against Auburn and beat up on ole miss.


I like our defense and our run game.

Our run game? Marks avgs 3.56 yds/carry, and Johnson avgs 4.50 yds/carry. For comparison, every one of their primary ball carriers avgs more than our best.

The one area their defense concerns me is sacks. They're tied for #1 nationally in sacks. They're gonna put pressure on us

[sleepy dawg]

Editing the bold because you posted the above while I was creating this.
You have yet to bring anything other than your opinion to this conversation. because of this I will look at the stats.

everyone with a rushing yard:
marks
Johnson
Lovertich 1 rush
Jernighan
Rogers
3 sophomores 2 juniors (2 juniors are garbage time)

Receiving:
Polk-Sophomore
Walley-sophomore
A. Williams-senior
Marks-sophomore
M. Heath-senior
D. Johnson-sophomore
C. Ford- junior
Rara. Thomas-freshman
J. Calvin-sophomore
L. Griffin-sophomore
JJ. Jernighan-junior
C. Ducking-junior
R. Harvey--freshman
O. Wells-senior
Rogers-sophomore
sophomore-6 freshman - 2 junior - 3 senior - 3

Defense:
Jett- junior
N. Watson-junior
F. Peters-senior
Forbes-sophomore
Emerson-Junior
Brule- junior
C. Young- junior
Wheat-junior
Duncan-junior
Green-senior
Charlton-junior
Preston-junior
Pickering-junior
Crumedy-junior
Odom-senior
Timbs-senior
J. Harris-sophomore
D. Richardson-sophomore
Furdge-junior
D. Russell- sophomore
J. Dean-freshman
C. Ellington-freshman
freshman-2 sophomore-4 junior-12 senior-4

freshman-sophomores = 17 players.
juniors - seniors = 24

offense is more young than old.
defense is more old than young.

This applies to experience as well.

These are the players from ESPN with stats.

I still think this is pretty even, to say that we are a senior laden team is the same "lie" as me saying we are freshman sophomore "team".

I definitely never said this. I hope you are not insinuating that I said we are a senior laden team. What I said was "Our starters are mostly juniors with some seniors and sophomores. A couple of freshman get playing time." That was before I looked at the numbers, but I was still very close. I would amend to say we have more juniors than anything else. Seniors and sophomores are about equal. Very few freshman. Overall, we are a mostly upper classmen team.

I used stats from hailstate.com. I believe using players with considerable playing time is more accurate than anyone who's ever touched the ball or stepped foot on the field.

[Jarius]

Our run game? Marks avgs 3.56 yds/carry, and Johnson avgs 4.50 yds/carry. For comparison, every one of their primary ball carriers avgs more than our best.

The one area their defense concerns me is sacks. They're tied for #1 nationally in sacks. They're gonna put pressure on us

Ole Miss will not put pressure on us. To do that they will have to bring pressure which is how they have gotten sacks. They can’t do that against us just like no one else outside of Alabama has been able to do that without getting torched. Teams have to play us completely different than they play anyone else on their schedule.

[Maverick91]

Our run game? Marks avgs 3.56 yds/carry, and Johnson avgs 4.50 yds/carry. For comparison, every one of their primary ball carriers avgs more than our best.

The one area their defense concerns me is sacks. They're tied for #1 nationally in sacks. They're gonna put pressure on us

Yeah, but that was drastically inflated this past weekend. They got like 8 sacks verse Liberty.

[msstate7]

Ole Miss will not put pressure on us. To do that they will have to bring pressure which is how they have gotten sacks. They can’t do that against us just like no one else outside of Alabama has been able to do that without getting torched.

They don't care about giving up big plays bc their offense can score quick too. They attack to try and get big plays. They're 2nd in sec in forced TOs and #1 in TO margin. They give up the most 10+ Yd plays in the sec, and they get the most 10+ yd plays in sec. They're just fine with 38-35 type game... hell, they want it

[msstate7]

Yeah, but that was drastically inflated this past weekend. They got like 8 sacks verse Liberty.

They're #1 in sec in sacks/game in conference games only

[Maverick91]

I definitely never said this. I hope you are not insinuating that I said we are a senior laden team. What I said was "Our starters are mostly juniors with some seniors and sophomores. A couple of freshman get playing time." That was before I looked at the numbers, but I was still very close. I would amend to say we have more juniors than anything else. Seniors and sophomores are about equal. Very few freshman. Overall, we are a mostly upper classmen team.

I used stats from hailstate.com. I believe using players with considerable playing time is more accurate than anyone who's ever touched the ball or stepped foot on the field.

I know you never said that, but you are insinuating that to be the case when you say things that imply anyone thinking we are a younger team is a "lie". The only thing different than that is to say we are a senior laden team.

I will agree with you that we as a whole are a more senior laden team. But, however you slice this cake when it comes to experience and playing time we are a more freshman team. Most people getting snaps this year it is their first or second year with significant playing time.

[msstate7]

I think our keys to beating OM are don't turn the ball over, and force 4th down and stop em on 4th.

Do these 2 things, and we should be fine. They shun a lot of fg attempts and field position plays to go on 4th

[Jarius]

They don't care about giving up big plays bc their offense can score quick too. They attack to try and get big plays. They're 2nd in sec in forced TOs and #1 in TO margin. They give up the most 10+ Yd plays in the sec, and they get the most 10+ yd plays in sec. They're just fine with 38-35 type game... hell, they want it

They had the same DC last year and did not do that against us. I hope like hell they play us the same as they do everyone else because we will beat them by 2 touchdowns. They are not the only team we have played this year that likes to bring pressure but they did not against us because the DC knew that would be stupid. If they go Bo Pelini on us they will get the same result if not worse. If that defense brings pressure all night they won’t give up 35. They will give up 45 or 50.

[Maverick91]

They're #1 in sec in sacks/game in conference games only

That changes things. 16 sacks in conference is pretty good.

[msstate7]

They had the same DC last year and did not do that against us. I hope like hell they play us the same as they do everyone else because we will beat them by 2 touchdowns. They are not the only team we have played this year that likes to bring pressure but they did not against us because the DC knew that would be stupid. If they go Bo Pelini on us they will get the same result if not worse. If that defense brings pressure all night they won’t give up 35. They will give up 45 or 50.

There's a difference in bringing the house, and just bringing guys from different areas

[Jarius]

There's a difference in bringing the house, and just bringing guys from different areas

Will Rogers has developed too much for that. Ole Miss has below average SEC talent on defense. If they bring more than 4 they will get destroyed. Our offense is built to beat pressure and Will has gotten extremely good at recognizing it. OM will play us the same way everyone else does because it gives them the best chance to slow us down. If they get cute on defense they will have to score way more than they normally do to beat us.

[OLJWales]

Will Rogers has developed too much for that. Ole Miss has below average SEC talent on defense. If they bring more than 4 they will get destroyed. Our offense is built to beat pressure and Will has gotten extremely good at recognizing it. OM will play us the same way everyone else does because it gives them the best chance to slow us down. If they get cute on defense they will have to score way more than they normally do to beat us.

This. Don't be like 7. Don't.

[Todd4State]

I have no clue what I'm talking about when it comes to recruiting and what we actually need, BUT it seems to me that what we're really lacking is some bigtime playmakers. It seems we have decent to good guys everywhere, and even depth, but we don't really have any superstar game changer type players.

I would agree in general moreso on the defense than the offense. I just think more than anything a lot of our guys on defense just don't really fit that well in a 3-3-5 at certain spots. I think Leach and Arnett are doing a good job in recruiting as far as identifying players with the skill sets to fit the scheme better in the future though. But it will take a couple of years for those players to develop like any other player. We're reaping what we've sown from Dan recruiting a JUCO heavy class in 2017. Which is why we do not have very many seniors now.

[Todd4State]

I definitely never said this. I hope you are not insinuating that I said we are a senior laden team. What I said was "Our starters are mostly juniors with some seniors and sophomores. A couple of freshman get playing time." That was before I looked at the numbers, but I was still very close. I would amend to say we have more juniors than anything else. Seniors and sophomores are about equal. Very few freshman. Overall, we are a mostly upper classmen team.

I used stats from hailstate.com. I believe using players with considerable playing time is more accurate than anyone who's ever touched the ball or stepped foot on the field.

You need a good percentage of juniors/seniors to win in the SEC. And we don't have a ton of seniors. Your seniors are your team leaders that keep everyone together. If a team doesn't have that they have to rely on players that are not veterans and are learning themselves. Will Rogers is our team leader. And he's only a sophomore. That's tough.

[Maverick91]

You need a good percentage of juniors/seniors to win in the SEC. And we don't have a ton of seniors. Your seniors are your team leaders that keep everyone together. If a team doesn't have that they have to rely on players that are not veterans and are learning themselves. Will Rogers is our team leader. And he's only a sophomore. That's tough.

Perfectly summed up.

[Maverick91]

You need a good percentage of juniors/seniors to win in the SEC. And we don't have a ton of seniors. Your seniors are your team leaders that keep everyone together. If a team doesn't have that they have to rely on players that are not veterans and are learning themselves. Will Rogers is our team leader. And he's only a sophomore. That's tough.

It is hard to lead when you are still figured your own crap out.

[sleepy dawg]

It is hard to lead when you are still figured your own crap out.

Well, ready or not, that year is next year. The majority of our starters and significant playing time folks from this year will be juniors and seniors. Next year is shaping up to be similar to what Daks junior year was. And even though Dak was probably better as a senior, the team wasn't overall. That's what next year is looking like for us. If we don't have a big year next year, it's probably going to be at least a few more years before we have another shot at it.

[Maverick91]

Well, ready or not, that year is next year. The majority of our starters and significant playing time folks from this year will be juniors and seniors. Next year is shaping up to be similar to what Daks junior year was. And even though Dak was probably better as a senior, the team wasn't overall. That's what next year is looking like for us. If we don't have a big year next year, it's probably going to be at least a few more years before we have another shot at it.

I agree, But, if we can close out well with recruiting this year, and return most of our juniors. heck even our seniors if they dont get a great grade from the draft. That would be huge for the experience to return.

[Todd4State]

Well, ready or not, that year is next year. The majority of our starters and significant playing time folks from this year will be juniors and seniors. Next year is shaping up to be similar to what Daks junior year was. And even though Dak was probably better as a senior, the team wasn't overall. That's what next year is looking like for us. If we don't have a big year next year, it's probably going to be at least a few more years before we have another shot at it.

Depends on how consistently we can continue to recruit and manage our roster. As a developmental program we're not going to get a ton of 4-5 stars so we have to rely on player development moreso than others. Dan was really bad at managing our roster and that's why we had holes under him and sometimes enough holes to go 6-6. What we're experiencing now is again because Dan went JUCO heavy trying to get out of here in 2017- at least it yielded a number one defense- and Leach having to kick a lot of players off the team mostly last year.

If Leach can roll out teams of mostly juniors and seniors as our starters we will be consistently good.

[WhiskeyPirate]

In Leachs entire career he has never had a good defense. This is the first time he’s got a pretty good defense.. When his offense really gets cooking, that defense is going to make this program really tough to play against.