Tom Luginbill: Why is Mississippi State not in the top 25?

[TrapGame]

https://youtu.be/35Rysv-45Ic

Around the 3:30 mark.

We are one of his three surprise teams of the season. Can't understand why BYU is ranked so high but we didn't even crack the top 25. The whole video is really good.

[R2Dawg]

We'll see what happens on defense? They obviously haven't done any homework and basing the optimism only on Leach name and he mentioned returning starters.

Our D is what every story should be leading with, that and Will in year 3.

[Coach34]

Because our fans are scared to have expectations and use our schedule as a crutch to be little ol Missippi Tate

[Schultzy]

Let’s face it we played sloppy last year…

Scoop & score on a botched handoff against Memphis
Terrible downed punt we still bitch about the refs on vs them (sloppy, sorry)
Fumble deep in LSU territory on the opening drive
Missed FG galore and some on the snap/hold fault

Gotta be crisp this year or I see 6-6

You guys talkin 8 or 9 wins…I wish I could see it.

Plus our qb is pass stats inflated and over rated, although if our rb’s can break any tackles this year we might surprise even me.

[CaptainObvious]

Because our fans are scared to have expectations and use our schedule as a crutch to be little ol Missippi Tate

Because history tells us that even our coached up high 3 and low 4 stars in years 3 and 4 have found a way to lose to the elite?s of this conference even when they are trotting out new QBs, new RBs, new WRs, and new LBs. Historically our 1s would struggle against the Elite?s 2s. We may not be The State of Missouri, but most of this fan base has been in a Show Me! First to get me on board state of mind.

And of course there is that little Indian Burial Ground thingy.

[Lord McBuckethead]

Let’s face it we played sloppy last year…

Scoop & score on a botched handoff against Memphis
Terrible downed punt we still bitch about the refs on vs them (sloppy, sorry)
Fumble deep in LSU territory on the opening drive
Missed FG galore and some on the snap/hold fault

Gotta be crisp this year or I see 6-6

You guys talkin 8 or 9 wins…I wish I could see it.

Plus our qb is pass stats inflated and over rated, although if our rb’s can break any tackles this year we might surprise even me.

You can?t be overrated when you are completing damn near 80% passing for the season and over 90% in a few. Sorry. Will is legit.

[99jc]

Because our fans are scared to have expectations and use our schedule as a crutch to be little ol Missippi Tate

That is absolutely truth! We have a pussified fan base no doubt.

[Hambone]

Let’s face it we played sloppy last year…

Scoop & score on a botched handoff against Memphis
Terrible downed punt we still bitch about the refs on vs them (sloppy, sorry)
Fumble deep in LSU territory on the opening drive
Missed FG galore and some on the snap/hold fault

Gotta be crisp this year or I see 6-6

You guys talkin 8 or 9 wins…I wish I could see it.

Plus our qb is pass stats inflated and over rated, although if our rb’s can break any tackles this year we might surprise even me.

I was with you until your Will Rogers dig. Dude is legit and the fact that we still have fans like you saying crap like that is quite astonishing.

[BrunswickDawg]

You can?t be overrated when you are completing damn near 80% passing for the season and over 90% in a few. Sorry. Will is legit.

This is where I get pissed off with some of our fans - downing our guys who are actually good.

Will Rogers currently has the highest career completion percentage of any CFB QB who has thrown more than 400 passes. At 73.9 last season, he bested any Leach system QB by a full 1.6% - as a Sophomore (Tim Couch, Sr - 72.3%)
With 4739 yards last season, that is the 2nd highest yard total of any 2nd year Leach QB, and 6th highest of any QB under Leach. His numbers were almost identical to 5th year SR Gardner Minshew - who many MSU fans hold up as "the guy we should have had in 2018". Appreciate the guy, its not all about the system.

[Activated Alpha]

I'm in a wait and see mode. I can see the excited optimism, but then I can also see the 6-6 viewpoint as well. I've let my emotions get me carried away way too many times regarding preseason state football...

[somebodyshotmypaw]

Because our fans are scared to have expectations and use our schedule as a crutch to be little ol Missippi Tate

But schedule does matter. It always matters. Remember #1 Notre Dame and Manti Te'o getting rolled by Bama? If they played an SEC schedule they would have been 9-3 and playing in the Chick-Fil-A bowl in Atlanta. Instead they were ranked #1 and got to play Bama for the BCS national championship. Do you think Central Florida goes undefeated in Scott Frost's last year if they played in the SEC West? Michigan State and Connor Cook making the CFB playoffs 7-8 years ago? They don't go 12-1 and make the playoffs if they played in the SEC West.

[TrapGame]

But schedule does matter. It always matters. Remember #1 Notre Dame and Manti Te'o getting rolled by Bama? If they played an SEC schedule they would have been 9-3 and playing in the Chick-Fil-A bowl in Atlanta. Instead they were ranked #1 and got to play Bama for the BCS national championship. Do you think Central Florida goes undefeated in Scott Frost's last year if they played in the SEC West? Michigan State and Connor Cook making the CFB playoffs 7-8 years ago? They don't go 12-1 and make the playoffs if they played in the SEC West.

We play with the Big Boys. We have to nut up every Saturday. We have a really good season off this schedule and Leach proves he's taking us places.

[BrunswickDawg]

But schedule does matter. It always matters. Remember #1 Notre Dame and Manti Te'o getting rolled by Bama? If they played an SEC schedule they would have been 9-3 and playing in the Chick-Fil-A bowl in Atlanta. Instead they were ranked #1 and got to play Bama for the BCS national championship. Do you think Central Florida goes undefeated in Scott Frost's last year if they played in the SEC West? Michigan State and Connor Cook making the CFB playoffs 7-8 years ago? They don't go 12-1 and make the playoffs if they played in the SEC West.

Schedule does matter, but we play in the SEC. We've played almost the exact same schedule for the past decade - 3 scrubs, a decent G5 or low P5, OM, A&M, Bama, Auburn, LSU, Arky, UK, and a rotating SECE opponent. Our record has ranged from 10-2 to 5-7 (not counting the COVID '20 all SEC schedule). In that time we have seen that it IS possible for us to have a great season - yet many people do cry "oh, we have such a tough schedule". Well, no shit, we have that same schedule EVERY year. I rarely agree with C34 - but he is right about this. With out vets and a year 3 QB1 - we should expect more. In the past decade when we had a JR QB1 with a vet team we went 10-2 and 8-4 - and it took an intentional hit on a QB to not be 9-3. And guess what - we played essentially the same schedule. You can argue '17 was tougher than this year will be with @UGA and BYU vs. home UGA and @ AZ.

[RiverCityDawg]

Because our fans are scared to have expectations and use our schedule as a crutch to be little ol Missippi Tate

We're not in the Top 25 because our fans are scared of expectations? Yeah, okay.

[Dawg-gone-dawgs]

We're not in the Top 25 because our fans are scared of expectations? Yeah, okay.

Yea that makes ZERO sense at all. Hahaha It's the fan's fault.

[somebodyshotmypaw]

Schedule does matter, but we play in the SEC. We've played almost the exact same schedule for the past decade - 3 scrubs, a decent G5 or low P5, OM, A&M, Bama, Auburn, LSU, Arky, UK, and a rotating SECE opponent. Our record has ranged from 10-2 to 5-7 (not counting the COVID '20 all SEC schedule). In that time we have seen that it IS possible for us to have a great season - yet many people do cry "oh, we have such a tough schedule". Well, no shit, we have that same schedule EVERY year. I rarely agree with C34 - but he is right about this. With out vets and a year 3 QB1 - we should expect more. In the past decade when we had a JR QB1 with a vet team we went 10-2 and 8-4 - and it took an intentional hit on a QB to not be 9-3. And guess what - we played essentially the same schedule. You can argue '17 was tougher than this year will be with @UGA and BYU vs. home UGA and @ AZ.

I agree about the schedule being tough every year. But usually some SEC team finishes 7-5 and isn't ranked in the top 25. Yet there will be a 9-3 team from some bullcrap conference that is ranked #22. And it's simply because that team has a better record. It's not because they are a better team. The voters just can't rank a 7-5 SEC team at #22 while leaving a 9-3 team out of the rankings.

Go look at the Southern Miss schedule and see what our record could be. We would have a higher ranking with the USM schedule and a 11-1 record than we would playing our schedule and finishing 7-5. This would be despite us being the exact same team. It's why a kid that rushes for 1500 yards in 6A high school football gets a longer look by scouts than a guy that rushes for 1800 yards in 1A high school football. You have to factor in the level of competition.

[thf24]

Terrible downed punt we still bitch about the refs on vs them (sloppy, sorry)


The thing that still gets me on the punt is even if you give the refs full benefit of the doubt and say the ball wasn't downed, Memphis still had duplicate numbers on the field. Easy procedural penalty they never caught despite multiple chances and a ton of time to do so. We were definitely sloppy for most of last year, but it just wasn't in the cards for us on that play no matter what we did.