Two blowouts, swine flu, season begins

The Rebels started out sluggish again tonight but rolled to a comfortable 53-7 win.  After an odd start to 2009, the Rebels real season begins on Thursday against South Carolina.  This will be a true test of where we are. 
South Carolina used several turnovers in 2008 to barely defeat the Rebels.  The SI jinx.  Many would argue this should be a revenge game for Ole Miss.  I think Nutt should sell it that way.

I am a bit uneasy about the game Thursday night.  First I have no feel for this team.  After the first two games, both huge blowouts,  I can't say if I think we look better than the end of last year.  The Rebels seemed lackluster in both wins.  Was it the flu?  The week off in the early season?  Who knows.  Second, it's an SEC game.  Anything can happen when two SEC teams meet.  Third, South Carolina will be pumped to play a top 5 team.  Finally, South Carolina always packs their stadium and it can get loud. 

SEC Power Poll: Week 1

The Hotty Toddy Blog takes part in the SEC Power Poll hosted by Garnet and Black Attack. Over 20 bloggers rank the SEC teams each week. Here are the rankings for this week: Here is the break down:


1.LSU (13 out of 19 potential first-place votes), 219
2.Florida (3), 209
3.Georgia (2), 188
4.Auburn (1), 152
5.Tennessee, 144
6.Arkansas, 142
7.Alabama, 123
8.South Carolina, 99
9.Kentucky, 81
10.Vanderbilt, 60
11.Ole Miss, 44
12.Mississippi State, 24

Around the Blogosphere

I've made a trip around the blogosphere to see what others are saying about Ole Miss.

First stop: Vanderbilt Sportsline. This blogger predicts Vandy's games this year. Here is his prediction for the Ole Miss game:

"September 15th vs. Ole Miss (TBA)Another test for Vanderbilt’s defensive line, Ole Miss boasts one of the better running attacks in the SEC. Unfortunately for the Oxford faithful, that’s about the only thing the Rebels have going for them. Vanderbilt ran circles over Ole Miss’ defense last season (400 yards, despite 4 fumbles and 1 INT) in Oxford, despite the 17-10 loss. Look for Chris Nickson, Earl Bennett, and the rest of the Vanderbilt have a big game on a beautiful day in September. Result: Commies win 31-10 (3-0)"

He also predicts wins against Alabama & South Carolina. He predicts Vandy will finish 8-4.

Next Stop: Saurian Sagacity, a gator blog. Saurian Sagacity and the Hotty Toddy blog have agreed to do a Blog Swap prior to our game. Here is how he explains the Blog Swap:

"This season we're going to try something different to build camaraderie among college football bloggers; we're going to exchange guest posts with a blog representing our opponent for all of our major games (SEC and FSU). It's a chance for us to speak directly to their audience and for them to speak directly to ours. The guest posts will appear on an agreed-upon date during the week leading up to the game in question.We're sure there will be some good natured ribbing as well as some interesting historical anecdotes. It promises to be fun."

Leftover Hotdog, a gamecock blog, quotes a moose article which says Spurrier might be a good fit at Ole Miss. Here is what "Moose" says:

"Powe to accept Ole Miss Scholarship; eligibility odyssey might be over Aug. 8, 2007 By Dennis Dodd CBS SportsLine.com Senior Writer Tell Dennis your opinion! Celebrated recruit Jerrell Powe is expected to sign scholarship papers with Mississippi on Thursday, bringing closer to an end a sometimes-bitter initial eligibility battle with the NCAA.Advertisement Powe’s attorney Donald Jackson told SportsLine.com on Wednesday night that the player’s admission is conditional based on final certification by the NCAA Clearinghouse. Powe can practice up to 14 days while waiting for the ruling.Powe, a five-star defensive tackle from Waynesboro, Miss., originally signed with Ole Miss in 2005 but did not qualify academically. He then attended prep school at Hargrave Military Academy and signed again with the Rebels in 2006. The NCAA then questioned some correspondence courses the athlete had taken with BYU, saying he couldn’t have completed the work without “significant assistance.”Powe’s case was not helped when his mother was quoted in court papers saying, “Jerrell is a really good child but he just can’t read.”Powe’s family filed suit to get a temporary injunction so that he could be admitted but eventually withdrew the action. The NCAA took the unique step of laying out an academic road map for Powe to gain initial eligibility: Take some high school courses over again or attend junior college.Powe elected to take the high school courses. Part of the process involved taking some courses online and attending a Spanish class in Jackson, Miss. Even after all that, the NCAA required a 27-point list of things it needed to see before ruling on the player. Time became crucial as Ole Miss enters its fifth day of fall drills on Wednesday.Powe faxed his papers to Ole Miss on Wednesday night and could be at practice as early as Thursday, Jackson said. Now 20, Powe is still considered a blue-chip prospect at 6-foot-3, 330 pounds.“He has graduated (from high school) twice,” the Montgomery, Ala.-based attorney said.“I’ve been involved in a number of NCAA cases. This case is different than any case I’ve been involved in.”