Getting the Hell out of Oxford

The situation at Ole Miss gets more and more interesting. First the Rebels fire the very successful David Cutcliffe after one poor year. Cutcliffe was the only coach in the history of the school to win seven games in his first 5 years. Then the administration goes on some fantasy coach tour dropping names that Ole Miss couldn’t get in sniffing distance of hiring. The Rebels then settle on a COLLEGE POSITION COACH. He has never even been a coordinator and he is now expected to run the entire football program. Are you kidding me??? This smacks of desperation.

Now SEVEN new recruits have left the team for various reasons including players quitting, failing to qualify academically and guys getting booted off the team for disciplinary reasons. Orgeron stated that his late hire at Ole Miss forced him to take chances on a number of players, but losing this many guys within a few weeks raises a number of red flags. I thought firing Cutcliffe was a terrible decision and the hiring of Orgeron compounded the mistake. Everyone talks about his “enthusiasm and intensity,” but I expect Ole Miss to wallow at the bottom of the SEC West for the next few years.

Long Live Chief Osceola

Doesn’t the NCAA have anything better to do? Instead of dropping the hammer on a VERY dirty Ohio State football program (more on that another time), the NCAA bans Native American mascots for its Championship Tournaments. This sort of half handed and sloppy “feel-good” legislation has created an issue where one didn’t exist. Let’s get this straight, we are not talking about money or property or personal liberty. Essentially a select group of individuals at the NCAA have decided that Indian nicknames are offensive and must go.

The fundamental problem is that you CAN NOT legislate “feelings” or "emotions." The NCAA has banned all mascots that are “offensive, hostile or abusive.” Ok, so who decides this? What one man finds offensive, another man will eagerly embrace. Why are the Florida State Seminoles banned, while the San Diego State Aztecs given a free pass? Why is Chief Osceola banned when the Seminole tribes of Florida and Oklahoma endorse the University’s use of the mascot? Shouldn’t the Seminoles decide if they are being demeaned or offended?

The elite liberals in this country KNOW they are smarter than the rest of us and feel very comfortable telling us how WE should live. They are comfortable dictating to the uneducated and crude “lower classes” on issues such as religion, gender and in this case, offensive mascots.

I happen to think Chief Osceola is a fantastic mascot and getting to Doak Campbell Stadium to see him throw his spear down at the 50 is on my list of things to do before I die. One of the bigger problems I see is the gradual elimination of all candid thoughts and comments in the media and in public for fear of offending some person, group or entity. Here the NCAA seeks to dictate to a select number of universities its own morality. In their quest to become more enlightened, all they do is become more oppressive and dare I say communistic? Where does this lead? Getting rid of the Fighting Irish? Do we get rid of all mascots because some folks way out on the left (yes you PETA) are offended because we chain up animals and use them as a novelty act?

At this point you are saying, “Well, that is just going to far. That is ridiculous. There is a difference between a race of people and animals.” And evidently there is also a difference between races in the NCAA’s mind. I guess the Aztecs are made of heartier stuff than these Seminoles whose land we took so long ago. (Don’t forget about the Spartans and Trojans. But I guess since they are all dead now it’s OK to use them as mascots.)

I’ll handle my morality myself thank you. If I am offended by something I see I will change the channel, turn the page or draft my own blog. I don’t need the NCAA, the federal or state government or anyone else for that matter telling me how I should feel.

Off Season Random Musings

• "I chuck it down there, just to let people know we'll throw deep. If you don't throw it deep, they'll never back up." - Steve Spurrier
• I for one am glad to see Darth Visor back in the SEC.
• I like Purdue to win the Big 11. 21 starters return and the schedule excludes Ohio State and Michigan.
• Since the inception of the BCS, one of the two top teams in the initial Coaches Poll has been in the Championship Game. So USC and Texas would seem to have a leg up, if you believe in streaks.
• I’m going to go a little crazy with my Championship Game prediction. USC vs. Purdue. I think USC will lose one game but won’t fall from one of the top two spots. I just like Purdue and their schedule. No Michigan or OSU. They play at Minnesota, at Wisconsin and at Penn State with their toughest game at home versus Iowa. The Boilermaker’s 2004 season reminds me of the 2002 LSU team. Similar record (7-5 vs 8-5 for LSU), strong start a with mid season swoon and lost their bowl game. I know it is a reach, but picking USC vs. LSU is just too much pressure for me to handle.
• Michigan State will make a Bowl Game, Penn State will not.
• I am sick of T.O. Go blow out a knee or something and let ESPN move on.
• The number of games on TV is staggering. I’ll have four going at once and it still won’t be enough.
• Upon learning of Spurrier’s return to the SEC, Phil Fulmer’s first thought was, “Aw Crap.”
• There is no way to be fully prepared to have a child.