Propaganda is even believed by our own people.....

[Goat Holder]

Read the thread on 6-pack about Rod Taylor. Just makes you shake your head. It's complete with another ego-maniac HD6 bashing what Mullen is doing, and the typical rebel posters asking 'concerned' questions about what Mullen is doing. And our fanbase just laps this shit up.

I still predict an 8-4 season, but if things do go wrong this year at any point (and they could, the future is not written yet), I fully expect a stadium full of boos as history repeats itself not only with the QB curse, but also with coaches. And it will be a damn shame.

We have met the enemy, and he is us.

[tenureplan]

Read the thread on 6-pack about Rod Taylor. Just makes you shake your head. It's complete with another ego-maniac HD6 bashing what Mullen is doing, and the typical rebel posters asking 'concerned' questions about what Mullen is doing. And our fanbase just laps this shit up.

I still predict an 8-4 season, but if things do go wrong this year at any point (and they could, the future is not written yet), I fully expect a stadium full of boos as history repeats itself not only with the QB curse, but also with coaches. And it will be a damn shame.

We have met the enemy, and he is us.

Are you talking about you or us?

[Esmerelda Villalobos]

What i hate is we have waited 2 decades for a good qb. We have one and an outstanding line. We have zero receivers.

We have prayed for russell and he is here.....however, i think we are better off with prescott this yr. break him in with a great line to give him confidence.

[FlabLoser]

What i hate is we have waited 2 decades for a good qb. We have one and an outstanding line. We have zero receivers.

We have prayed for russell and he is here.....however, i think we are better off with prescott this yr. break him in with a great line to give him confidence.

Those are my thoughts too. For decades we wanted a good QB. For decades we wanted a good QB coach. We have both. But we are short of a few pieces that we normally have had in the past.

[Goat Holder]

I'm talking about everyone in that thread who is 'concerned' about the direction our football program is going. I'm talking about the people who boo our own team in Starkville. I'm talking about the people who truly think Mullen can't recruit. I'm talking about all the beat writers and recruitniks who are more concerned about themselves and making an extra ten cents than they are MSU.

If you fall in any of those groups I'm talking about you. Get it?

[Political Hack]

NO WAY IN HELL we win more games with DP this season than TR. Zero chance. The only shot we have to hang with Bama, Okie State, LSU, A&M, or SC is with TR in the game. DP is great, and he will be able to lead us to W's in the future, but he is not ready yet. Missing spring didnt help either. Until he's ready to stand in the pocket and can throw every route, his legs will mean little to nothing on our offense.

[Goat Holder]

What i hate is we have waited 2 decades for a good qb. We have one and an outstanding line. We have zero receivers.

When have we ever really had receivers? Eric Moulds and a few during the late 90s? Either way, the OL and QB will make the receivers better, I'd much rather have it the way we do than the other way around.

We have prayed for russell and he is here.....however, i think we are better off with prescott this yr. break him in with a great line to give him confidence.

Prescott will get plenty of chances, don't see why anyone thinks he won't. Similar to 2009 (when we seemed to move the ball very well) and obviously the 2006 UF season.

[CadaverDawg]

What i hate is we have waited 2 decades for a good qb. We have one and an outstanding line. We have zero receivers.

We have prayed for russell and he is here.....however, i think we are better off with prescott this yr. break him in with a great line to give him confidence.

I agree, and I have been saying this since last year. Now that he missed the Spring though, I've backed off a little on this stance, but there is no doubt that the timing is not right for Tyler Russell at MSU.

We had years of coaches that wanted to throw but couldn't find a QB....now we have a coach that wants to run, and has a statue with a great arm. It's MSU at its finest really.

Many will disagree, but with an experienced O-Line, inexperienced WR's, experienced RB's, a semi-experienced dual threat QB, and a coach that is best with a dual threat QB....EVERYTHING sets up better for our dual threat QB. I know it would be impossible for Mullen to bench a Senior record setting QB, so I'm not expecting him to, but there is no doubt that we would be better suited to be using our dual threat QB as the starter this season.

This team is almost identical from a O-Line, WR, RB, standpoint as our 9 win team that beat Michigan in the Gator Bowl with....who?....yep....Relf, a running QB at the helm. Dak Prescott is better right now than Relf was in his career overall, so I don't see how anyone could say Prescott couldn't lead us to at least as many victories as Russell, especially if we went back to the offense we SHOULD be running under Mullen.

But this may be a different argument for a different day. I know many are on the other side so I want you to know that I understand why you can't not start Russell....I just hope you can see where Im coming from on Dak.

[HancockCountyDog]

NO WAY IN HELL we win more games with DP this season than TR. Zero chance. The only shot we have to hang with Bama, Okie State, LSU, A&M, or SC is with TR in the game. DP is great, and he will be able to lead us to W's in the future, but he is not ready yet. Missing spring didnt help either. Until he's ready to stand in the pocket and can throw every route, his legs will mean little to nothing on our offense.

Are you saying he is a worse passer than Relf? I doubt it based on the throws I saw last year.

I would we have him standing in the pocket? We don't run an offense that usually requires a pocket.

I really hope all this changing to a power sets and Russell under center is simply for Russell, we certainly wouldn't expect Dak to run that offense. The more I keep hearing or reading about this traditional offense we are planning on running, just scares the shit out of me.

[The Croom Diaries]

I was presented with the idea that Tyler Russell hasn't lived up to the hype on twitter this morning. That just blows my mind. He was a 4-star QB, and if you had said that going into his senior season he would be 10-7 as a starter (plus having saved us from that debacle in Birmingham) and broken every single-season passing record I'm pretty sure we would have all taken it - especially considering that in the previous 8 years prior to his arrival we had only won a whopping 29 games (average record of 3.6 wins - 8.1 losses per year). Too many people are prisoners of the moment and can't get that Gator Bowl performance out of their heads. And they can't get over how Relf beat ole miss 3 times and Russell is 0 for 1. So automatically Russell has underachieved. Well that is stupid. He is a very good QB - the best passing QB we've ever had obviously. Mullen can mold things around him better this year, and in his 5th year on campus it should be his best. I think ultimately the type of leader he is this year will determine how we remember him - and the passing records are a bonus.

[Esmerelda Villalobos]

I dont think that mullen cant necessarily recruit well, I just think starkville is a tough sell. Hell, our best recruiter took a pay cut to leave starkville bc he was frustrated by not being able to reel anyone in.

The town of starkville needs to improve. It is a shithole, like oxford. However, oxford has some really nice areas and the square.

I wish the cotton district would keep developing and the cotton mills would get rolling. They just need to nuke old hwy 12.

Starkville is in the middle of nowhere an there isnt a lot to do. It takes a certain kid to want to come here. They are 17. Most are rural. Starkville probably feels like home to them. But, I see how when they go on these recruiting trips to nicer areas where the girls and bars are popping, how that can influence a 17 year old. It is all about ***** and beer.

[SignalToNoise]

Until he's ready to stand in the pocket and can throw every route, his legs will mean little to nothing on our offense.

I feel like what you are saying is that Prescott will have to pick defenses apart like Peyton Manning before his ability to run will mean anything.

I really hope that's not what you mean, because if so, that's incredibly stupid.

[Coach34]

The propaganda and feelings by portions of our fanbase just sux right now. Whether it's Sixpack, 247, and private boards you have people freaking out about recruiting rankings. A completely subjective ranking that does not take into account work ethic, heart, maturity, physical growth, etc....

Yesterday I posted the Top 150 for the NFL draft entering the season. We had 2 players on it- both were 3 star players. Perkins is also thought to be drafted- another 3-star. Russell is questionable right now as far as the draft is concerned- he can play his way in or certainly guarantee he wont be drafted during this season. Russell is a 4-star player.

We had 2 draft picks last season- both 3-star players.

We have a freak athlete playing MLB who was a Freshman AA last season- guess what? Another 3-star.

[Goat Holder]

Agree with everything here. One thing leaves me optimistic....the OL. For once in our history a QB was brought along EXACTLY as he should be. A little raw, so he redshirted, learned the ropes, played a little his RSo. year, then started and had a productive year his Jr. year. Now, with other pieces in place (namely the OL, again), he has a chance to break the mold.

You are definitely right on about our fans being in the moment. And we have no reason to demand excellence right away....when have we ever won anything to feel that way?

[CadaverDawg]

Are you saying he is a worse passer than Relf? I doubt it based on the throws I saw last year.

I would we have him standing in the pocket? We don't run an offense that usually requires a pocket.

I really hope all this changing to a power sets and Russell under center is simply for Russell, we certainly wouldn't expect Dak to run that offense. The more I keep hearing or reading about this traditional offense we are planning on running, just scares the shit out of me.

This is true, and is the other part of my argument for Dak. Now what happens if Tyler goes down? Does Dak have to learn this offense AND expect to be ready to run a Relf style offense next year? Isn't this going to make the learning curve tougher for every one of our QB's not named Russell? Is our O-Line going to go from a passing blocking scheme back to a run blocking scheme next year and still be as effective?

The overall learning curve for the entire team is now going to be much harder over the next year and why?...All so that we can suit the offense to Tyler for ONE season. It is not worth it, especially when you could probably get the same number of wins or more out of Dak. And heaven forbid we go 5-7 with Russell this year and all of that changing and learning curve trouble was done for NOTHING.

[FISHDAWG]

I understand the love shown to Prescott here BUT - we have only seen him in short situations (goal line & first down) and on a very FEW drives after the game has been put away ...... we haven't seen him under pressure during a critical drive when the game is close ... so I think it's a little bit of a stretch to assume he would out perform Russell ... he may capable but he is still very limited on PT and along with PT comes leadership developement, better decision making,and other benefits.... his time will come, but this is Russell's time ... I think we will see a LOT MORE of him this year as we did with Russell during Ralph's senior year

[Coach34]

I dont think that mullen cant necessarily recruit well, I just think starkville is a tough sell. Hell, our best recruiter took a pay cut to leave starkville bc he was frustrated by not being able to reel anyone in.

The town of starkville needs to improve. It is a shithole, like oxford. However, oxford has some really nice areas and the square.

I wish the cotton district would keep developing and the cotton mills would get rolling. They just need to nuke old hwy 12.

Starkville is in the middle of nowhere an there isnt a lot to do. It takes a certain kid to want to come here. They are 17. Most are rural. Starkville probably feels like home to them. But, I see how when they go on these recruiting trips to nicer areas where the girls and bars are popping, how that can influence a 17 year old. It is all about ***** and beer.

great post. People want to bitch and blame Mullen all the time- the man can only do so much. The coaches are all salesmen- and have to make people want to buy in to their product. By Saban has a Mercedes to sell, Miles has corvettes, Sumlin has Lexus, Freezus has a solid Nissan Maxima he pushes, and Mullen is having to sell these loaded Impalas...and all these sales manager fans are wondering why the hell cant he sell these Impalas as easy as the other guys are selling their cars....

Starkville has to be improved to help Mullen sell State

Think about it- if kids were basing it just off football- we'd be reeling kids in- we have been to 3 straight bowls- 2 of them major. It's more than just football that influences these decisions

[CadaverDawg]

I understand the love shown to Prescott here BUT - we have only seen him in short situations (goal line & first down) and on a very FEW drives after the game has been put away ...... we haven't seen him under pressure during a critical drive when the game is close ... so I think it's a little bit of a stretch to assume he would out perform Russell ... he may capable but he is still very limited on PT and along with PT comes leadership developement, better decision making,and other benefits.... his time will come, but this is Russell's time ... I think we will see a LOT MORE of him this year as we did with Russell during Ralph's senior year

It's not "love for Dak" so that needs to be dismissed. It is a "need for a dual threat QB" that we are talking about. Everyone against the Dak stance tries to make it a Dak vs Tyler argument, but it's not. It's a passing QB vs a dual threat QB argument. The ENTIRE team is set up more to run the ball, and we are a better running team with a dual threat QB...it's not that hard.

And the "it's Russell's time" argument, is dumb. It should be about MSU's best chance to win. We shouldn't have to let someone start just because they are a Senior. Now, at the same time, I can see the problems it would cause Mullen if he benched him, so that's why I can understand both sides. Mullen can't bench a Senior record setter even though it would make more sense for our team this year....I get that. So my argument is not that Tyler should be benched.....but there is no doubt that it would make more sense for our team and the way it is set up.

[Coach34]

I understand the love shown to Prescott here BUT - we have only seen him in short situations (goal line & first down) and on a very FEW drives after the game has been put away ...... we haven't seen him under pressure during a critical drive when the game is close ... so I think it's a little bit of a stretch to assume he would out perform Russell ...

This is actually a poor argument.

Because we have indeed seen Russell vs the Bama's, A&M's, and Ole Miss'- and it was awful

[SilkyJohnson]

While I think the OL will be improved, in no way am I "optimistic" about this group. I like Day and love Jackson, but our OTs are not good. Unfortunately they play a rather important role. Just go look at the game tape of our losses. I understand they will be improved but they have no where to go but up. When your starting point is not good they could improve a lot and still get manhandled by SEC DLs.

To me OL was as big of a disappointment as the DL. We couldn't run block to save our lives. I hope to eat infinite proportions of crow after this year.