The Mailbag, pres. by Whitney McNutt/Tommy Morgan Inc Realtors: Edition 124
It's time for The Mailbag, presented by Whitney McNutt of Tommy Morgan Inc. Realtors, Edition 124.
I asked for your questions. You delivered. So here we go...
From Colonel3491: On a scale of 1-10 where do you rank Ole Miss’ fanbase in terms of basketball knowledge? Where do you think it ranks in the SEC in terms of passion and knowledge for the sport?
I have no way to know about the collective fan base's basketball knowledge. That's an impossible thing to know. As for passion, I think Ole Miss fans are like most as it pertains to their passion towards basketball. The more the Rebels win, the more passionate they are. The converse of that is true as well, at least in my opinion.
From RebelCommodore: What out of conference games should Ole Miss Schedule in these categories: P5, G5, and FCS.
You guys would know this better than I.
FSC -- I'd say Jackson State or another SWAC team to keep the money in the state.
G5 -- I'd schedule Tulane and give Ole Miss fans a trip to New Orleans or SMU and give Ole Miss fans a trip to Dallas.
P5 -- If I'm Ole Miss, I'm playing a Big Ten team like Indiana or Illinois. It's about seven hours away, something different, etc.
From nas5108: What is Kermit’s plan at the 4/5 for next year? Seems highly unlikely Romello is back and outside of him they just don’t have much experience on the frontline. It would be foolish to go into next year counting much on Hunter or Robinson.
I expect White will leave. I'm not sure what will happen with Khadim Sy or Sammy Hunter, and, as you said, Shon Robinson hasn't factored yet (and might not). My guess is Ole Miss tries to go the transfer route again. It's a problem.
From nas5108: Go back to your fat guy days- what is the best style of pizza you ever had?
My favorite pizza is Saint Leo in Oxford. My sentimental pizza choice is Johnny's Pizza in Ruston/Monroe. I'm a thin-crust guy. I allow myself pizza about once every two months now. Back in the fat-guy days (not sure I'm not still in them), it was at least weekly. I don't crave many foods, but I crave pizza.
From larryjoe1979: Scenario first, question second.Scenario:Aliens come to earth, and they say "Kneel McCready, we are going to give you time travel. You can go one time there and then come back. Now, to get this chance, you have to kill one person. You get to pick the person. But, we are bored with the standard answers(Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Colonel Sanders,etc). You have to pick a person that is not the run of the mill selection. You don't have to know this person's name, because, no matter who you pick, we will know their name and can get you to where they are before they say or do whatever wants to make you kill them. If you don't do this, we will destroy the world and only save 4 humans(Steve Robertson, Houston Nutt, Hugh Freeze, and Hugh Freeze's favorite Asian massage specialist)."To help with the decision I will give you my answer. I would pick whoever coined the phrase "The customer is always right"Question:So Neel, who do you pick to murder?
I'm so confused. We're going to try this on the Oxford Exxon Podcast. I'm lost and I get more lost every time I read this.
From Landon_RH: If SEC fanbases were Office characters, who would they be?
Kentucky -- Darryl
Florida -- Deangelo Vickers
Georgia -- Andy
Tennessee -- Robert California
Vanderbilt -- Angela
South Carolina -- Ryan
Missouri -- Creed
Alabama -- David Wallace
Auburn -- Gabe
Arkansas -- Kevin
LSU -- Meredith
Ole Miss -- Michael Scott
Mississippi State --- Phyllis
Texas A&M -- Jan
From walnutreb: With NIL likely getting passed that would open the door for players to do appearances for profit correct?Would you guys have any interest if that was the case to have like a 30 min segment with a player a week?If you could who would you pick off of this current team?
Yes, but no, I would never pay a player to appear on the show. I guess I would consider a sponsored appearance by a player each week. I'd want the same player. I suspect I'd want Corral or whoever the quarterback is.
From nas5108: What is your greatest memory from your high school days?
You'll laugh, but at the end of my senior year, I told my theatre teacher I'd be in the school play. We did "Twelve Angry Men," and it was so much fun. The only other thing that comes to mind was running for student body president and winning. That was really cool. Speaking in front of the entire student body, getting the call from Mrs. Whitlock that I won, etc. -- that was neat.
That's what sticks out. I also remember being made fun of my junior year when, on the night of the prom, I took my brothers to the LSU-Louisiana Tech baseball game as I couldn't have gotten a date on a calendar.
Take the good with the bad, I suppose.
From DeuceMccluster22: Do u think there has ever been anyone more happy than to ride the pine and watch his teammates more than Christian Laettner on the 92 Dream Team?
I actually wonder what he really thought of that. In hindsight, that probably should've been Shaquille O'Neal.
From Bidge12: In sports, does a child hitting his peak at an early age benefit him or hurt him in the long run? Some kids seem to be a “late bloomer” while others “peak” much earlier. Recruiting and circuit camps seem to be getting more of evaluating a child earlier and parents insist on exposure as early as possible. With what you have seen in sports recruitment and evaluation of kids over the years just thought this would be a decent topic of conversation.
I'd rather be a late bloomer. The whole recruiting thing is crazy. I can't even think about it. I think making up your mind on a 15-year-old, for example, is a recipe for disaster. Kids develop on different schedules.
From LARebel83: Who are your top ten greatest NFL head coaches of the Super Bowl era (1967-now)?
1. Bill Belichick
2. Bill Walsh
3. Chuck Noll
4. Vince Lombardi
5. Don Shula
6. Tom Landry
7. Dan Reeves
8. Tom Coughlin
9. Bill Parcells
10. Jimmy Johnson
From North Tampa Rebel: For those of not imbedded in the machinations of the athletic department, what is your take on the Lynette Johnson "retirement"? Was she holding us back in some areas? How would you approach that position if your were Keith?
I'm not really sure I'm qualified here. I don't cover women's sports much, and some of the people impacted are friends. For example, I thought firing Steven McRoberts was stupid. It struck me as petty. Her handling of the women's coaching search, per multiple sources, turned off several candidates. I think you'll see coaches say the right things. I doubt there are many broken hearts over the news.
From VibinReb45: I get guys respond to injuries differently but one of the most perplexing what if’s for me has always been Tony Conner’s meniscus injury. I fully believe if he doesn’t get hurt and Tunsil isn’t suspended for half the season in 2015 that Ole Miss is 12-1 and in the CFP. What the hell happened? Did they rush him back out there too fast or did they screw up his surgery?
For the record, I agree with your assertion. Before his injury, he was a dominant defender. After the injury, he was a shell of himself. I can't speak to the surgery. I've always heard they got into the knee and discovered things they didn't anticipate, but I don't know. I have heard he rushed back and played before he was ready.
From DeuceMccluster22: Name a school and a specific season you would have liked to have followed and write a book about that season similar to "season on the brink".I know you've often said you'd like to do that with 2011 football but any thing else come to mind?
Sure, 2012-13 Ole Miss basketball would have been insane. So many characters, so many story lines.
Either one of the years when Brad Stevens took Butler to the title game would have made for a fascinating book.
From WBurns42: Are the 4 greatest tragedies in US history the Civil War, Pearl Harbor, 9/11, and what we’ve done/currently doing to children in lockdown with virtual school?
It's a great question. Slavery was our great national sin. It led, in large part at least, to the Civil War, which is tragic as we did it to ourselves. Pearl Harbor and 9/11 were, as you know, acts of war against our country -- unprovoked tragedies that required our national response. What we've done to our children in the last 12 months is criminal. It's evil. It's unforgivable. We have ruined lives, destroyed development, crushed souls unnecessarily. And the worst part? By mid-summer, we knew it and did it anyway. Is it a tragedy? Yes. But I'd argue it's worse than that. It's a moral failing against the one group of people we're supposed to love and care for the very most.
And politically, it only deepened the divide. My kids suffered, but they'll be fine. They had WiFi and separate bedrooms and loving parents who moved heaven and earth to try to minimize the loss. All kids can't say that. They fell further behind. At some point, it's impossible to catch up.
From TX via TN Rebel: What is the journalistic equivalent of deciding your only hope is to pitch sidearm? Not only do you get to sidearm as a last resort but you also know it's likely doubly bad on your elbow and shoulder than over the top pitching...
It's selling out all journalistic integrity to curry favor with a source, lying for the source, covering for the source, spinning for the source. Those journalists usually get burned -- sort of like pitchers who use unorthodox deliveries almost always get hurt.
From DSU_REB_12: Could the club sandwich be the most overrated sandwich? What would be the most underrated sandwich?
Yes, club sandwiches are horrible. I don't get the appeal.
I love Cuban sandwiches. I love a Reuben (yes, I know dressing has mayo in it, but it's not a glob of gelatinous mayonnaise). But the underrated sandwich is a delicious fried shrimp and oyster po-boy with pickles and some cocktail sauce on fresh French bread. I haven't had one in years, but yeah, that's the jam.
