The Mailbag, presented by The Westin Jackson, Edition 4

Welcome to Edition 4 of The Mailbag, presented by The Westin Jackson.

I asked for questions on RebelGrove.com and on Twitter for this week's mailbag, and I got plenty. I'll attack as many as I can before I just lose my mind. I'll also attempt to avoid repetition, for, as you might imagine, one particular topic was dominant.

So, away we go...

Neal Brown? Oh, that would have been interesting.

Oh, you mean me? If I were the head coach, I think I'd have to make a move very soon unless things turn around. Recruits would have to know this is unacceptable and that I was doing everything I could to fix it.

No, I don't think it was bad strategy, Kids got to see the town/campus/Grove packed and excited. They got to see the stadium full (at the beginning) and they felt what it can be like when Ole Miss has it going. Further, with the possibility of recruiting visit limitations looming, Ole Miss has to get visits when it can. Personally, I don't think one game in September impacts recruiting.

1. Yes. I would downgrade to 5-7, maybe 6-6, depending on how you view Vanderbilt.I thought the defense would be bad. I thought it would be worse than last year, but I didn't think it would be this inept.

2. Obviously, the great Apollo Creed is in a class of his own, may he rest in peace and may his son have vengeance on his father's death. After that, Mason Dixon was a strong fighter, but was he Ivan Drago or Clubber Lang? Those were dangerous men. Thunderlips was The Ultimate Male, and we're all jealous of that, if we're honest. How Rocky's people let that happen is befuddling. Tommy Gunn was a loser. Period.

Sure. There or UTEP or Rutgers would be my guesses.

I love to sit at the bar with my wife, Laura, and start with an old fashioned or a Sazerac. I usually then just have a bourbon on the rocks and then I'll switch to a red wine of some sort. As for my go-to meal, I love the farinata as an appetizer. I also love the white beans, the garlic-rubbed grilled bread and the gulf shrimp with spinach. Right now, my go-to pasta is the fettuccine Bolognese, but I recently had the stuffed pork chop and I'd be hard-pressed not to order it again.

Laura loves the house-marinated olives. She used to get the prosciutto, arugula and mozzarella pizza, so I'd get some of that, but since she's basically gone on the keto diet, she gets one of the salads. The chopped salad is good but I prefer the Tuscan kale salad. She also loves Joe's dirty martini (insert joke here).

It's not on the menu now, but I love the steak there. Fantastic.

Now I'm hungry and distracted. Thanks.

I've never had Fill-Up with Billups, so I can't comment. Sorry.

I don't know, and I hate to speculate. Everything I hear about Jon Sumrall is very, very positive.

1. There's an interim chancellor. No idea who.

2. Ross Bjork

3. Matt Luke

Next Saturday night in Baton Rouge. Why not?

1. Hal Baird, Auburn baseball -- A consummate gentleman.

2. Andy Kennedy, Ole Miss basketball -- Hilarious, witty, fair, a great quote.

3. Noel Mazzone, Auburn football assistant -- Taught me a lot about football without belittling my (admitted) lack of football IQ.

4. Matt Luke, Ole Miss -- It's early, but I thought he handled last season gracefully and he's been wonderful to deal with so far.

5. Mike Price, Alabama football -- I got paid to get lap dances.

Nutt left Freeze a handful of solid defensive players.

It'll be 2020 at the earliest, and that would be a phenomenal job. As for Luke, as I've said with consistently, he has an uphill climb but I'll tell you this: People in the coaching fraternity are high on Matt. They think he's got the perfect temperament. He's genuine and kids see that and believe in him. It's going to come down to his ability to sell his vision to kids, to get kids to buy in before they have tangible results. We'll see. Some are already writing him off; I think that's a mistake.

No, not really. I like the Peloton a lot. It's perfect for me.

Do I think it could? Yes. That's why they're working so hard to repair that relationship now. Do I think it will? I think Ross Bjork and his staff are doing a better job than they're getting credit for insofar as how it relates to attempting to appease the fans.

Yes. It's a tale as old as time.

Definitely. Powder blue jerseys would have made Ole Miss' linebackers faster and bigger. Personally, I think a bright red helmet would help the Rebels' defense immensely.

No, nor should it be. If a verdict is going to be delivered on Luke after one season (and yes, it's one season), a lot of questions should be asked on levels that go far beyond Luke. Again, I think he's going to put his stamp on the program this offseason and do things in a way Ole Miss people will be proud of. Again, can he recruit the talent necessary to win in a division that includes Alabama, Auburn, Texas A&M and LSU? We'll see. That's the litmus test, not this season, no matter how it goes.

Ryan is my brother. He's a good brother. Ryne is the greatest second baseman in history and an American icon.

No, not ridiculous at all. Millions more should do it.

We are taping the Soft Verbal Podcast presented by Billie's Pecans this morning.

No, but it loves a good Happy Hour.

Yes. Let's see how Luke handles the offseason as it pertains to his coaching staff. Then let's see how this recruiting class stacks up. In the whole scheme of things, this season isn't all that important. This offseason, however, feels critical. From speaking to people who are at least a little dialed in to his thinking, he knows it. Give the guy some credit; he has a plan.

Football -- LSU.

Basketball -- South Carolina

Baseball -- Vanderbilt

I don't know that he does. I think he made a promise and kept it. To some, that's admirable. To others, it's ridiculous. I know this: He told his team all season that they were family and all they definitely had was each other. Firing some of those coaches might not have been the best way of proving to his players that he was a man of his word, and after some of the events of the last few years, that's important inside the Ole Miss program.

I also suspect some contracts may have been an issue, but no one has ever told me that. That was/is Freeze's staff. In late November/early December, Luke has to make sure the one he takes into 2019 is his. I'll be literally stunned if that doesn't happen.

Yes, it can. It's going to take years (at least 2-3), and it gets done by recruiting. It's a simple answer. It's a very difficult task.

Look, one can win at Ole Miss, but it's very difficult. So when the program takes a dramatic downturn, the road back is steep.

He wants to go to a World Cup game. He also wants to go to Europe and see PSG or an English Premier League game. He really likes Kylian Mbappe for Paris St. Germain. I don't know I have the wherewithal to pull that off. If the Cubs and Braves play in the NLCS, I'm going to try to get tickets to one of those games. That would be cool.

If you're referring to The Westin Jackson, why, yes, I have, and you're right; it's fabulous.

In my lifetime? I'm 48, in reasonable health. So say I make it to 80 (I doubt I do, but for the sake of this question...) That's 32 years. If you told me it's a completely different game in 32 years, I'd believe it. I think the physicality is being stripped from the game, and I don't see that trend reversing itself.

I spoke to a prominent college athletics official recently who told me multiple leagues are studying men's soccer as a scholarship sport. If you told me that begins to happen around 2026, when the World Cup comes to the U.S., I'd buy it.

I don't believe that to be the case. Look, I don't want to get into all the conspiracies here. It's my very educated opinion Matt Luke wasn't Ole Miss' coach until he was, if that makes sense. I don't think Bjork intended to hire Luke until Jeffrey Vitter, after hearing from boosters and politicians, mandated that he do so. Now, will people involved deny that? Yes. Respectfully, I'll stick with my reporting, even if it ruffles feathers.

That said, I think Luke has done a good job in incredibly difficult circumstances and deserves time to put his stamp on the program. I also think Bjork and his staff have a ton of respect for Luke. As I've said earlier, this is a critical offseason facing Luke, and he has to hit a home run. To carry the metaphor to its conclusion, I expect he'll be swinging for the fences.

I don't know enough about that to truly answer that question. There's a lot of apathy right now. There's a lot of distrust. However, most people (I'm making fun of myself here) love their alma maters and have an almost irrational loyalty. People say they're leaving and never coming back, but that's typically emotion. They almost always come back.

Winning grows a fan base. Enrollment is down. I have opinions regarding that, but mine doesn't matter. Winning causes excitement, which results in people jumping on the bandwagon and bigger crowds and more excitement. It's been a hard couple of years for Ole Miss. The people I know in that building care deeply about Ole Miss and will work tirelessly to see it succeed.

Asking fans to be patient is hard. No one wants to be patient. In this case, however, patience is going to be required. It's a valley. It's my opinion Ole Miss will eventually climb out of it and be all the stronger for the experience.

As for what I would do, I'm not in charge. The thought alone is terrifying. I'd be honest. I'd be transparent. I'd tell people it's going to be a rough road and I'd listen to their concerns. I'd continue to market toward a younger demographic. I'd try to find ways to make game day more fun. I'd try to start a concert series for Friday nights or game days. I'd probably try to cash in on The Grove by selling slots. I'd go with a fluffier shark. I'd order powder blue jerseys.

I'd order a giant throne like the one in the Bud Light commercials and I'd demand my people address me as "Your Highness" when they passed me on their way to athletic functions. I'd wear a crown bedazzled with diamonds and sapphires and emeralds and I'd carry a scepter. I'd install a tank full of sharks that would make the Georgia Aquarium blush. I'd own a pet elephant named Zobrist or Lester or Schwarber and I would demand Chase do the podcast wearing Rebel The Bear's smelly head.

I'd tell Vitter he'd used the damn jet enough. I'd kick him and his transition lenses off the plane and then I'd take that bad boy to Napa myself, sipping the finest champagnes and pinot noirs the entire flight. Then I'd fly to Chicago and New York and Montana and Dubuque. I'd hire a personal trainer and get super ripped and go to my high school reunion and say, "Look at this, girls. See my elephant (the pet; get your mind out of the gutter)? Look at my fancy jet. Look at what you missed out on when you forced me to go date-less."

That's what I would do if I were in charge.

You're probably better off with Bjork.

He's been invited repeatedly. At times, it looked like he was going to do the show. He has politely declined to this point. The invitation is open and will continue to be re-extended.

In my opinion, very, very close. Had Ole Miss lost the Egg Bowl, it's my educated opinion it would have been Doeren, and not Luke, who was introduced on that Monday press conference in Oxford.

Recruiting will ultimately determine Luke's fate. I suspect he knows that. They're working at it. It's a long, difficult road.

This is a recording.

Things can always get worse. Every day, I look in the mirror and think, "This is as bad as it gets." The next day, I look in the mirror and think, "Surely, this is as bad as it gets."

When you think you've hit rock bottom, be careful; there's another fall just around the corner. That's my life philosophy. It likely potentially applies to Ole Miss' defense.

I was there at the end. It really happened. Sorry.

Yes.

Long story short: As a little boy, I liked the uniforms, the colors, etc. Then WGN came into my television and for a boy from Ruston, Chicago seemed like such a magical, far-off place. I'm a contrarian of sorts, too. My friends cheered for the Astros or the Braves, so I found my own team. I think it was just sort of meant to be. They were underdogs, lovable losers, all that. I related to that. I don't know. It's all kind of deep, like most fan stories. It's now, obviously, bigger than baseball.

Of the bourbons I've had, I loved Jefferson's Ocean, even at the high price point. I love Henry McKenna single barrel bottled-in-bond. I can't find Blanton's, but I find that I really enjoy it when I can get my hands on it. I like Elijah Craig small batch. As I've developed more of a taste, I have fallen in love with Booker's. I like cask strength Bulleit. Jonathan Howard turned me on to High West double rye whiskey. It tastes like a campfire, if that makes sense. I've never dropped more than $100 on a bottle and I doubt I ever do, so before the snobs come in to make fun, you know my philosophy on things like this: Drink what you like.

Oh, young Ben, how could you ask something like this?

Of course he's real. PBS says so, and no one is accusing them of #FakeNews.

Now, continue to be a good little boy. Keep holding football camps, giving back to those less privileged than you, taking care of a certain Denver quarterback, sponsoring a certain podcast, eating your vegetables and just generally being kind and nice to everyone and Santa Claus will be back in your chimney on Christmas Eve, filling your stocking with all the toys you've always dreamed of. He might even give you biceps like mine.