It's time for The Mailbag, presented by Whitney McNutt of Tommy Morgan Inc. Realtors: Edition 204.

I asked for your questions. You delivered. So here we go…

I got there a little after noon on Thursday. I ordered a chicken sandwich without mayonnaise and tomatoes, even though I typically don't eat anything before 4 p.m. We got to South Alabama and had all sorts of audio and video struggles before finally getting the show rolling around 2:20 or so. It was 4 p.m. by the time I actually opened the bag and took out my sandwich. They had put lots of mayo on it and seemed to double up on the tomato as well. I didn't have a bite of it. I took it as a sign that I'm not supposed to eat lunch.

The game lasted 3.5 hours, so by the time we got out, it was 10 p.m. There wasn't much open, so we just went to Buffalo Wild Wings. It was close by and it was open until 11. I got a Stella and dry-rub wings, half Buffalo and half lemon pepper. I also ordered some fries. I hadn't had anything all day, so the hunger won. In terms of food discipline, it was a total disaster.

I had at one point intended to go find one of my favorite places for lunch on Friday, but given that I ate so incredibly poorly on Thursday, I elected to punish myself instead. After a six-mile run, I had a lemon cake One bar for lunch and another for dinner on Friday in Baton Rouge, spending most of the day deciphering Marvin Burks' drama. I went to bed hungry but with the lesson learned.

And yes, I know that sounds insane, but I have just found over the years that I have to treat food as a bit of an enemy -- at least the majority of the time. I hate being fat. I simply hate it. I don't really judge others based on their appearance but I judge the ever-living hell out of myself based on weight.

Honestly, no. There's no Sam Williams walking through the door. Ole Miss desperately needs to get Cedric Johnson healthy. It really needs a healthy Troy Brown, but he has one of those injuries that can be problematic for weeks. It can't afford to go without AJ Finley. The poor run fits and poor tackling has been an issue for a few weeks now. LSU went after the cornerbacks on Saturday and had some success as well. There's just a lot there, and after Texas A&M, Ole Miss has to face three pretty good offenses, two of which are pretty damn physical.

Letting a generational talent such as Bryce Harper leave your franchise is unforgivable. That said, the decision the Cubs made regarding Schwarber was a terrible move by ownership. The Cubs got pretty woke during the whole Covid theatre times, and it cost the franchise a lot of money. That led to some penny-pinching, which led to the Cubs opting not to tender a contract to Schwarber. It was a terrible decision, one that couldn't be justified then or now.

That seems inevitable. Look at who's playing -- Jonathan Mingo (a Luke recruit), Malik Heath (transfer from Mississippi State), Jordan Watkins (transfer from Louisville) and Dayton Wade (transfer walk-on from Western Kentucky). Jaylon Robinson, a transfer from UCF, can't stay healthy. JJ Henry, whom the Kiffin staff signed, played one snap at LSU. It feels odd to criticize a team that is 7-1 and likely 8-1 going into the open date, but this critique feels valid.

I played the "compare schedules mental exercise" with a lot of people over the last few weeks. People would say, "What do you think about Ole Miss?" I'd say, "I don't know." Why? Ole Miss' schedule had been so soft. People would say, "Well, Ole Miss is better than LSU/Arkansas/Mississippi State/etc.," and I'd say, "How do you know?" If all they had was the records, I'd play the compare-the-schedules game. What would Ole Miss' record be had it played LSU's schedule? Mississippi State's? Arkansas'?

That's not Ole Miss' fault, but there were some signs, as Lane Kiffin said Saturday and again Monday, that trouble was on the horizon.

Saturday is really big for Ole Miss. There's no denying that. A win entering the open date could allow a reset heading into a pretty rough stretch of three games in 13 days. A loss, especially one in which weaknesses are further exposed, could be a sign of real trouble.

As for music, I can't honestly say I turn to music when I'm feeling down. I usually go for a walk and/or a run and do some mental health exercises at my disposal. In fact, I typically opt for silence when I'm up in my feelings.

And while I know you're just joking, this feels like an appropriate spot to note that none of this stuff really matters. It's just a game.

For the championship, I'm assuming? The contenders, I suppose, are Ohio State and Georgia. They look like the best teams, the most complete teams, out there. Tennessee will have a say, but the Vols' defense is going to cost them eventually. Alabama is very good, but there's something "off" about the Tide. I can't quite articulate it, but it just feels "off." We might be sleeping on Michigan. Maybe they shock me in Columbus next month. That game will be must-watch television. The rest of the Big Ten is down this year, so it's just difficult to know what you're seeing. It's what makes college football so weird and so fun -- the unpredictability of some of it.

That's kind of unfair. It was just one game. I've been doing this a long time. I've seen good teams go to Tiger Stadium and get whacked. I've covered Ole Miss since 2008. The Rebels won there that year and haven't won since. I covered Auburn for six years as a beat writer and I think they won down there one time in that span, if I recall correctly.

Ole Miss fans were getting excited about the ranking, I think. They'd convinced themselves that they were going to get this magical November shot at Alabama with an unbeaten ranking and a shot at Atlanta and with ESPN College Gameday in town and all of that.

I feel a little guilty. I'd catch myself on radio shows being fairly critical of this team, saying that it had to improve to keep winning. Yet, I didn't feel comfortable saying a lot of that here. Why? Well, like Chase said early Sunday during my drive back, what if I was wrong? What if Ole Miss had played four quarters like the first quarter Saturday and won by 10 in Baton Rouge? I would have been criticized for being negative.

Also, I don't like calling out college players, even in the NIL era. Yes, they're getting paid but they're college kids. However, people whisper things about certain players and sometimes, you see some of those whispers maybe come to fruition and it just makes you wonder if there's a limit on how good this team can be.

I know that sounds veiled but I'm just not comfortable calling out college players. All teams have internal issues, and this Ole Miss team does as well.

But is Ole Miss a "big boy" in the modern NIL era? Yes and no. It can do more than most can, but it likely can't ever compete dollar for dollar with the top of the SEC. So, in some ways, it's same as it ever was.

I will add this: A 12-team playoff is coming very soon. If it were in place this year, Ole Miss would very much be in the playoff picture, even with the blowout loss at LSU. Ole Miss likely would've made the tournament last season. And if you make the tournament, you're a big boy, at least for that year.

I don't think it will matter. On some seasons, like this one, it will benefit you. Ole Miss doesn't have to play Tennessee or Georgia this season. In other seasons, like next year, it will hurt. Ole Miss has to play in Athens, Tuscaloosa and Auburn next year. That's not exactly a gift from the football gods.

Sankey believes the current scheduling model has a major flaw, one that means teams from the West, for example, can go 12 years between visits to certain Eastern Division campuses. I agree with him. The new model will eliminate that, and that's a good thing.

I'd be so happy that I likely wouldn't care how it was styled, but I'd likely go pretty conservative, something along the lines of how Henry Cavill wears his. I'd just be so happy to have it.

Yes, Ole Miss is recruiting better. Not to pour cold water on that, for it's not my intention, but it's important to note that the rest of the league is also recruiting quite well. I'm not sure where Ole Miss ranks in basketball NIL. Only two programs are all-in on hoops NIL -- Kentucky and Arkansas. Others appear to be trying to figure out just how invested they want to be in a sport that is only truly relevant for 2-3 months per year (at the very most).

I've not heard anything along those lines. He had quite a brace/wrap/sleeve on it Saturday. There are a lot of whispers out there that it's an MCL issue.

I'm kind of glad I got this question.

Someone told me the other day he was asked why I hated Ole Miss. I always wonder what keeps that narrative alive.

For the record, for the gazillionth time, I don't hate Ole Miss. I cover it. I try to do so professionally. My family and I enjoy Oxford. It's been a great place to raise our children. My children will also have a special place in their hearts for Oxford. It will always be "home" to them.

Now, to your question. Ole Miss does not owe me an apology. There are likely a few individuals who might, but the school itself does not. I actually have what I consider to be a very good professional relationship with Ole Miss, at least its athletics department, which is all that matters given what I do for a living. The people in athletics treat me professionally and are congenial. I'd like to think that they would say the same about my treatment of them. I like to think I'm fair to Ole Miss, and I believe the people in athletics have reciprocated that fairness. Frankly, that's all that matters.

My personal relationship with the institution doesn't exist and honestly, I think it's best that way. I don't have any interaction with the UM outside of my job. My oldest two children chose not to go there, and my son likely won't go there either. The day will come, I suspect, when Laura and I move elsewhere and that will be that. Even if we don't ever leave Oxford, we won't have any real ties to the UM, but that's not some harsh thing. Sometimes, things just happen organically over time.

There are no absolutely no hard feelings. I knew when I took the job there were risks. I'd been advised by people I respect to never cover your alma mater. I had that conversation with a mentor when I was deciding whether or not to accept Rivals' offer. Ultimately, obviously, I decided to do it.

It's kind of crazy how it's all unfolded. I figured we'd be here a couple of years and then I'd return to mainstream journalism. Instead, I have basically thrived professionally. I thought the other part would die off pretty quickly. It didn't. So I was wrong across the board.

I know what happened and how it happened. In hindsight, it was predictable. A narrative was established very early on and it stuck. I figured it would wither away, and frankly, I think it finally has, but the damage was done. Again, I don't view it as that big of a deal. If anything, it's something I kind of joke about with the handful of people who know me really well.

Twenty years from now, my relationship -- or lack thereof -- with Ole Miss won't be something I think about. Ever.

And finally, I've done nothing in my career to deserve an award. I'm an average journalist and average "broadcaster" who works hard and does the best he can do. Big whoop. If someone were to reach out to give me an award, I'd politely but firmly decline. The notion of some sort of award is, frankly, laughable. It's just downright silly. I wouldn't accept an award. I don't deserve one and I'd be embarrassed beyond words to pretend that I did. I've done absolutely nothing that is worthy of an award.

1. For some reason, I hadn't watched it until I got this question. It looks a bit forced. Maybe it will turn out great, but that trailer didn't get me all that excited. Carson (my son) wants to go see it, so if he wants me to go with him, I'll go, as opportunities to do things together aren't as common these days. But I thought the last Creed movie did a really good job of tying things in a neat bow. Maybe they don't want a neat bow. Maybe life isn't a neat bow, and the people steering the Rocky/Creed ship want to reflect that. Now, I'm just getting too deep.

No, I figured he was done. I knew how bad that 2010 and 2011 seasons truly were. I knew inside stuff, and if I knew it, others knew it as well. He wrecked that program, left it in absolute shambles. The job Hugh Freeze and his staff did in 2012-2015 or so was simply incredible.

I just think recruiting has really changed. Ole Miss is getting some good commitments, but this looks like another portal-heavy year. The problem for Ole Miss is the impactful defensive linemen it needs are really expensive. I could likely give a lot of educated opinions about recruiting and whatnot, and I'd likely be right, at least to a degree, but for most of the potentially impactful kids, it's about money.

His point is a good one. The Grove Collective is desperately trying to sign up new members. The minimum enrollment, to my understanding, is roughly $250 per year. His point was if there aren't 1,000 members, even if they're paying $1,000 a year on average, Ole Miss isn't going to be able to buy many great players.

Who can? I don't know.

Does it correct itself? Yes, I think so, at least to some degree. How long does that take? That, I don't know. For now, the market is ridiculous.