Dawg83

Lebby is safe barring something shocking. Stoops might be too, it depends on if UK gets spooked by how many openings there are this year. Auburn and Oklahoma are the two big ones that could still open up, IMO. And possibly Florida State as well. Wisconsin is another.

Aaaand the LSU job is officially open. Welp. This is going to be an insane carousel cycle. And we may not be done with high profile firings yet.

If you’ve watched a lot of State games and a lot of Georgia games this year, they are really similar, except Georgia wins them late and State loses them late.

I think part of it is that 2023 and 2024 were so hopeless and State didn’t really even come close to winning any of the games they lost. State last year was a 2-10 team that didn’t come close to going 3-9. This year they are still losing but in a way that draws people in and feels hopeful, at least for a time. And then it has come crashing down late in these games. That messes with your emotions in a different way. And the thing is, I think anyone assuming that State is just going to fold and get blown out the rest of the year are probably mistaken…. There is a very distinct possibly that State is in 3-4 more of these close games that come down to the wire. It has not been a season for the faint of heart. The hope is that at some point the script flips in your favor like it did against Arizona State and you can find a couple more wins to get to bowl eligibility. Nobody wants to hear it but State absolutely has multiple winnable games remaining on their schedule. Nothing that happened against Texas or Florida changed that, in my option. I mean if anything, Arkansas and Missouri seem more winnnable than they did previously given yesterday’s results in their two games. Mizzou is a QB injury issue, Arkansas is a “gave up 33 points and lost to Hugh Freeze at home” issue.

Not exactly apples to apples, but this State team reminds me of watching many of the Ben Howland basketball teams at State as he was rebuilding from the Rick Ray years.. I think it’s pretty clear they are much improved and do various things well…. But man do they struggle at the little things and in crunch time. Something’s gotta give sooner or later. I think it’s fair to characterize Arkansas as a must win game after the way the last two weeks ended. You simply have to give your fans something tangible in terms of progress. They are being absolutely tortured with the way State is losing these games. Many said going into the year that progress may not necessarily equate to wins… I think you’re at the point now where you can’t show anymore progress until you win a game or two. It’s as simple as that. I think State fans have reached their limit in terms of accepting these “play hard but lose close in the final moments” kind of games.

Very much a possibility too. OM has done a great job of hanging on to him to this point and KC is a very good AD. But he will be pursued regardless.

Look I have no Idea if Lane Kiffin is leaving Ole Miss or not. But I have been wondering for a week or two if all the discussion about “would he go to Florida” is maybe the wrong job to be worrying about. Because whatever you think about Florida may be a moot point if LSU is about to cut in front of them in the line to talk to Kiffin.

Struggling to find words to describe that one. I thought State played really well for 50 minutes and then didn’t do the little things well in the last 10 and it all unraveled for them. A lot of folks are going to be REALLY down on Lebby after the last two weeks and that’s not an unfair way to view things. It is unbelievably frustrating to have those two games in that position and not be able to close either one of them. I mean those are two all time painful losses back to back if you’re a State fan. But dang it if you aren’t really freaking close and still have winnable games to be had on the schedule. Arkansas is still absolutely a winnable game next week, and Mizzou lost their starting QB for the season (after already losing their backup for the season) so who knows what kind of Mizzou team you’ll be seeing in 3 weeks. I understand it is hard to be hopeful if you’re a State fan right now and it’s hard for anyone to ask State fans to not bail on this team. I am just saying that even with the painful losses, this group has shown a lot of qualities and resiliency to where it’s entirely possible there’s a light or two at the end of the tunnel before the year is over. And if they go 4-8, we’ll have all offseason to talk about what Lebby needs to do in 2026 to not get fired after Year 3.

State up by 10 at the half, played an excellent second quarter. Arch and the Texas OL have not looked good so far. Meanwhile Shapen is playing maybe his best game as a Bulldog to this point.

Good win for Ole Miss after they started to let it slip away in the 3rd. I thought they were clearly the better team. OU’s defense is quality but you have to be able to score consistently to beat OM, and OU’s offense simply was not good enough.

Ole Miss came into this with the far better offensive plan of the two teams. And the OM defense playing with a pulse this week helps, too. OM looks like the better team here, and it may not be close.

Case in point, running an outsize zone running play out of your own end zone. WTF.

I may have not given enough respect to the mismatch at head coach that Kiffin vs Venables appears to be

Seems obvious to me Vitello and O’Sullivan both were just scared of O’Connor coming into the league***

It is entirely possible that the Egg Bowl is 9-2 vs. 5-6 with OM needing a win to make the playoff and State needing a win for bowl eligibility.

I think either of the next two games are winnable for State. Don’t see Georgia as winnable. Mizzou is at best a maybe but I probably wouldn’t expect State to win that on the road.

Tennessee was one of the bottom 2 or 3 jobs in the league before Vitello. He has probably raised their floor to the point where the next guy won’t have them at the bottom of the heap. But it’s going to be almost impossible for their next coach to match his success based off historical precedent. Programs almost always regress some after they lose their most successful coach,

Been rumored for a few days but official now. Huge move in college baseball. Saban to the Dolphins kind of move. I don’t know if it works out for him in the pro’s or not. He’s been a great coach obviously, but his style ain’t for everybody and an MLB clubhouse is different from a college locker room. We shall see. If this does go the way of Saban and the Dolphins…. He will have his pick of college jobs in a few years,

Ole Miss at Oklahoma -4.5: the big question for me is does OM let Georgia beat them twice? That was a game OM spent a lot of focus on and also kinda got pushed around at the LOS. Immediately playing another Top 15 team on the road seven days later is a tough follow up. That said, I don’t just love this Oklahoma team. I think their defense is good but hasn’t really seen an offense on the level of OM’s. I think Mateer is dynamic but inconsistent. I am going to take the Sooners just because they’re at home and I have some hangover effect concerns with OM. I think the difference ends up being Mateer’s legs, as mobile QB’s have been a problem so far for OM. But it should be close and OM can absolutely win. Sooners 30, Rebs 24. Texas -6.5 at State: if it weren’t for Penn State and Clemson, the Horns would be maybe the biggest disappointment of the season so far. Just have not looked good offensively at all. Even in their win against OU, it came with one offensive touchdown. So State has a real opportunity here to beat a beatable team, especially in Starkville. I do think Texas’s defense probably gives State issues and this is likely a low-ish scoring game. I think I’m at the point with State where I think there’s a decent chance they break the SEC losing streak before the year is over, but I don’t have a good feel for where it happens, and I trust UT’s ability to find a way to win more than I trust State right now. I have State covering but Texas winning 20-16. Mizzou at Vandy -2.5: what a world we live in where this is a Top 15 matchup with College Gameday in town. I am riding with Diego and the Dores. I trust them a little bit more right now than Mizzou, especially at home. If anyone remembers this game from early last year, Vandy had it won in CoMo then couldn’t finish it. I think they finish it this time. Texas A&M -2.5 at LSU: nothing about these two teams so far says I should pick LSU…. But I’m picking LSU. Chalk it up to Tiger Stadium at night and this being about the time in the season historically that A&M starts to unravel a bit. Auburn at Arkansas -2.5: The Dysfunctional Bowl/The “Our Coach is Sleazy” Bowl. Both of these teams have done an amazing job of finding ways to lose games and now a winner must be declared! I think Hugh is done and Arkansas has been playing better recently. Hogs win at home. And our next big coach firing happens Sunday. Bama -12.5 at SC: Bama wins easily. SC is another team that’s been a big disappointment. Look at their remaining schedule too, this likely ends up being a 4-8 or 5-7 team. Tennessee -7.5 at Kentucky: Vols win and cover. There is a little big of a boogey man thing with them and Kentucky. Good UT teams just typically don’t lose to UK, and good UK teams have struggled to beat bad UT teams. I’m definitely taking a good UT team against a bad UK team.

Croom was nothing if not reliable against coaches about to get the axe. The last five years have not been the same story.

Sun Belt Billy officially out, continuing the tradition of State losing to coaches on the verge of being fired. Gus Ed O Jimbo Billy

And now we wait and see if the coaching carousel spins again tomorrow. Napier and Freeze both feel inevitable at some point.

Texas and Kentucky tied in the 4th. As frustrating as the loss today was, how can you not think that’s a game that should be close in Starkville next weekend? I kinda assume State will find a way to lose it, but that’s not really the point. The media was way off on Texas in the preseason. They’re not very good.

For OM, nothing to feel bad about. Played great football for 3 quarters, I just felt like UGA’s advantage in the trenches and the homefield effect really kicked in during the 4th. That game in Norman is enormous for OM, arguably even bigger than today was. Extremely fascinating game. I have no freaking clue what to expect from State-Texas other than a lot of empty seats combined with burnt orange in the stands.

Kiffin doesn’t deserve to be in the same sentence as Lebby today. That was Les Miles and Mario Cristobal levels of situational stupidity.