| 1996 | Oct | Nov | Dec | |||||||||
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| 1997 | Jan | Feb | March | April | May | June | July | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 1998 | Jan | Feb | March | April | May | June | July |
08/31/98 - I had a great time at the Moss Point - South Panola game Saturday night. Without a doubt, Kevin Fant (Moss Point senior QB) is an outstanding player with the determination and heart to go along with it.
Here are several pictures from the game:
Part of the 10,000+ crowd.
Moss Point QB Kevin Fant during pre-game practice.
South Panola play-by-play announcer Bob Norris and his assistant George C. Carlson.
MP QB Kevin Fant throwing a perfect 40-yard spiral in pre-game
A picture of the outstanding South Panola scoreboard.
South Panola scoring a touchdown.
Moss Point's outstanding linebacker Jesse Mitchell.
Kevin Fant and his dad.
Pre-game and halftime interviews:
As usual, I had a great time talking with South Panola play-by-play announcer Bob Norris during halftime. I consider Bob a good friend. Batesville and the county of Panola is lucky to have him. He truly loves and is proud of the city, the school and the athletics.
I had a great time talking with Lex Ward and Pete Cordeli on their WHBQ sports talk show Saturday afternoon. I was a little nervous prior to the interview but they put me completely at ease. They have a great show and I highly recommend tuning them in each day on 560 AM.
08/31/98 - According to someone who talked to his coach, Miss State is still in the running for Rome, Georgia's Chris Hewitt, who, over the summer, has become a national recruit.
08/31/98 - Here is more info on a player Miss State is looking at:
Marshall Blanks - Long Beach (MS) HS, 6-5, 235, 4.88 40-yard dash, 26.5' vertical leap, 8' broad jump, excellent student with a high GPA, high 20's ACT, 3-year letterman in football, MSU, Ole Miss, USM, Arkansas, Memphis, Stanford as well as others showing interest.
Tomorrow, I will have more recruiting info as well as the latest on Recruit Walk 1998. Your presence is very important to make Recruit Walk the success it needs to be. Make plans to greet the prospective recruits this Saturday.
08/30/98 - This will be short but sweet because I got home at 3:15 a.m. Sunday morning (more later today). Moss Point quarterback Kevin Fant (MSU is recruiting him) showed me why he is considered one of the top quarterbacks in the South and possibly in the country. After going out for one play with what looked like a sprained knee, he came back into the football game and led Moss Point to a thrilling 38-35 victory over an outstanding South Panola team. Kevin ran and passed like a man possessed and all this on a leg he could only limp around on. This youngster showed me he has one of the biggest hearts and absolutely no quit in him.
South Panola running back, senior Kamario Hentz showed me last night that he is one of the quickest players in Mississippi. BTW, according to a Moss Point source, Kamario temporarily lost the feeling in his legs on a big-time hit but got it back before going to the hospital. He was still taken to the hospital for precautionary measures. More on the game later today. I took some outstanding pictures of the game, including closeups of Kevin Fant. Later on today, I'll tell you how my interviews with WHBQ's Lex Ward and Pete Cordeli and South Panola play-by-play announcer Bob Norris went. I will say this, I had a ball.
08/29/98 - I'll be in Batesville, Mississippi most of today for the Moss Point/ South Panola game. I have been invited to speak at halftime with South Panola HS play-by-play radio announcer Bob Norris as well as be interviewed by Lex Ward and Pete Cordeli of WHBQ 560 out of Memphis sometime during their 4-7 p.m. pre-game show. I am very disappointed that I will miss MSU Fan Day, but the halftime interview with Bob was arranged earlier this summer and I wouldn't have felt right cancelling it after telling him I would do it.
08/29/98 - Since Dontae Walker is a prime MSU recruit, I decided to post these reports from two of you on this page:
Report 1) - Just got back from Clinton/Forest Hill game. Here's my take: Dontae Walker was suspended for the first quarter. He did however play rush end on punts. Second quarter he only ran the ball 8 times (by my count) for 85 yards and one TD. Third quarter, opening play of the second half, he took it 56 yards for a TD. He did not touch the ball again. So, unofficially he had 9 carries for 141 yards.
I was not able to find out exactly what he did to get into trouble --- the official word was suspended for disciplinary reasons.
I saw Dontae play last year and nothing has changed --- he's got it all. He has pure speed, power, quickness and toughness to go along with great instincts. He is simply a great, great RB and so, so smooth.
Guess who was the lead blocker for the Clinton RBs? None other than Brett Hazelwood, Brian's "little" (6-1 240) brother . And let me tell you, he is good! Not only a great blocker, but a pretty darn good runner with speed. Don't know his totals but he did run a 40-yard TD. Oh, he's only a junior.
Report 2) - Dontae Walker only rushed 9 times tonight, but for 141 yards and 3 TD's! He only had 1 carry in the second half and it was a 56- yard TD run on the 1st play of the half. He also blocked a punt on special teams.
One more thing, Gene, Dontae has just got such great strength and a low center of gravity that he runs over people coming and going.
08/29/98 - On Tuesday, August 25th, the Annual MSU Alumni Chapter Meeting for the Southeast Chapter (Forrest, Lamar, Perry, and Marion counties) was held at the Front Porch restaurant. Larry Templeton and Dr. Portera were the speakers. Last year was the largest crowd that we had had in years and Tuesday evening's meeting topped last year's attendance. We had over 165 alumni and friends to attend. The food at the Front Porch restaurant was excellent. The spirit and support was excellent, too. Larry Templeton gave a great talk on athletics at State.
08/29/98 - I'm not sure who is looking at this youngster, but when you consider he is 6-3, 280 with 4.85 speed in the forty, you would think the likes of Miss State, Ole Miss and Southern Miss would definitely be interested in Picayune High School (PHS) lineman Chris Robbins. Kris could possibly be the most athletic player on the PHS football team this season. According to my source, he is a great kid and student as well. Look for him to play 100% of the time on offense and about 50% on defense.
08/29/98 - If you need incentive to start a MSU booster club or alumni chapter in your area, please read this letter written by a true Bulldog fan:
Dear Gene,
I read on your page about the Jackson, MS bulldog club chapter that recently started. I enjoyed reading it and it made me even more proud of what we have done here in West Tenn. I would appreciate any publicity and help you could give us.
My name is David Cozart and I am a general surgeon in Jackson, TN. I graduated from MSU in 1986. I have been a staunch Bulldog supporter all my life. Prior to coming here, I was training in Little Rock, AR. I felt like I was on the other side of the globe from Starkville. However, there was a Central Arkansas Bulldog Club that I was elated to find and quickly became a part of.
I was somewhat shocked when I moved "home" to West Tenn. and found that I was not going to be able to hear MSU games on the radio, that I was not going to be able to read or hear much about MSU through the local media, that bulldog supporters here were almost scared or embarrassed to show there support in "Big Orange" country, and that there was no organization to enjoy the Bulldogs as a group and show MSU of the backing in this area. All this and we were far closer to Starkville than we were to Knoxville.
Last year, several of my family members, several known Bulldog supporters, and I got together to discuss the possibility of organizing a club. It had been tried in the past in this area and had failed. There was pessimism but we persevered. Now we're in our second year and business is booming! At our first major meeting, Larry Templeton, Andy Jackson, Wesley Reed, and Straton Karatassos were nice enough to come and speak to us. You could tell there was hesitation and reluctance on their part secondary to the lack of previous organization and support from this area. I think they were impressed though. We had approximately 85 folks at that meeting. We had developed a list of some 500 alumni and friends here that were not interested in going to Memphis or Nashville for their gatherings and clubs. We had 4 "get togethers" last year with good turnouts at all of them.
The MSU Bulldog Club was impressed enough to send Coach Sherrill, his two sons, Coach Fanning, Coach Charlie Anderson, and Straton back to our big meeting this year to enjoy a full day of golf and fun at the Jackson Country Club! We had a great time. Coach Sherrill was impressed with our golf course which is listed as one of the best in Tenn. Justin and Braxton Sherrill were impressed more with the beverage girls than anything else! At the meeting, we had over 100 Bulldogs and everybody was appreciative of the coaches and representatives of MSU coming to share some time with us. We laughed, we ate, we drank, we celebrated Mississippi State, and we raised some serious money both for our Bulldogs as well as for our local Bulldog Club. We have Coach Sherrill to thank for helping us become financially sound. Along those lines, I cannot say enough good things about Coach Sherrill. He is one of the greatest coaches of our time. No one can argue with that. I also came to find that he is an extremely genuine, good person who is put in a position with a tremendous amount of stress. My hat is off to him. I never hope for another coach at MSU until he is ready to retire. My hope is that he retires at a time when he can sit back and enjoy the fruits of his labor without the stress. And if he retires at MSU, we should treat him like the great Coach and gentleman that he is.
Prior to the most recent meeting, we were basically operating on what little dues we could get and donations from within. People are a tad worried about paying for something like this until it is a functional product. I am sure that the folks in Jackson, MS, had a little trouble with that as well. Now we have an active membership of over 100 good Bulldogs from West Tenn. We even have a couple from Missouri!
Finally, I want to tell you about our next outing. We ordered 52 tickets to the Mississippi State vs. Memphis football game. Since it is the same day as the Southern Heritage Classic in Memphis, parking, hotel rooms, restaurants, and tailgating will be impossible if you have ever seen Memphis when the Classic is in town. We have chartered a bus to carry 55 of us to the Liberty Bowl gates and pick us up there when it is over. We will do our tailgating and have our own little pep rally on the bus. I am sorry we can't take more than that but we have run out of room. This is a good problem to have, but if we do it again, we will probably need to get 2 buses!
I had talked on the phone with you earlier, Gene. But I have not really had time to tell you about us. I hope this wasn't too long and boring but I can never seem to stop talking about our Bulldogs. I will try to keep you updated when we do anything else. Talk to you soon. As always, GO DAWGS!
08/28/98 - According to several practice "insiders," the three young running backs, Pig Prather, Justin Griffith and Dicenzo Miller are as good as advertised. Prather is showing outstanding speed during practice. Miller has shown that he has great hands. And Griffith is proving in practice that he is a very powerful runner.
08/27/98 - MSU folks had a great meeting in Clarksdale Tuesday night. Over 150 MSU fans were in attendance. The ribs, which my source said were outstanding, were catered by The Ranch. MSU continues to draw record crowds at every stop this year.
BTW, Clarksdale is home to three of the best players in Mississippi this year: running back Tarnaka Counslor, wide receiver Mandrell McGregory and lineman Damien Williams. Williams, 6-4, 275, is one of the top sleepers in the state this year. My sources say MSU is interested in all three of these youngsters and the feeling is mutual.
08/27/98 - Another player MSU has shown interest in is 6-5, 235-lb tight end Marshall Blanks of Long Beach (MS) HS. Marshall has both Ole Miss and Miss State parental connections. Marshall is an Ole Miss fan, as is his mother, but his dad is a MSU fan. As of now, Marshall is interested in both schools, as well a few others, with no leader at this point. Marshall is one of those kids who, with a good senior season, could see his stock shoot up.
08/26/98 - For Immediate Release:
08/26/98 - Two former Bulldogs were cut by NFL teams. Punter Andy Russ by the Oilers and fullback Fred McCrary by the Saints.
08/25/98 - Clarification: MSU freshman signee Nathan Jackson will be attending State as a part-time student, not full-time, this semester.
08/25/98 - Late but good Saturday scrimmage info:
08/25/98 - A Bulldog Club (BC) chapter which is really on the ball is the Washington, D.C. chapter. They have more than tripled their number in less than two years. Due to a lot of hard work and dedication, they have gone from 8 members to 29 with more members being added monthly. If you live in the D.C. area or are moving there in the very near future, contact Bulldog Club members Wayne Weidie at (202) 225-5772 or Cindy Stevens at (202) 775-3866. They will be more than happy to sign you up. Plus, it sure will make it easier for any of you new to the Washington, D.C. area to make new friends and learn the ins and outs of Washington, D.C. with follow Bulldogs helping you out.
08/24/98 - Go here to view The Clarion-Ledger's 1998 Dandy Dozen. Miss State is mentioned by 10 of 10 players who have not committed. As a comparison, Ole Miss is mentioned by 6 and Southern Miss by 2.
08/24/98 - Just thought you guys would like to know that the Head Majorette at Miss State is a former student of Mary Ann's. Go here to view a picture of Leanne Chandler (daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Allen Chandler of Vernon, Alabama) and Bully.
08/23/98 - I checked on defensive back Ashley Cooper's surgery and the rumor about freshman signee Justin Griffith being injured. Here is what I was told:
I also have an update on freshman signee Nathan Jackson's knee injury rebab. I was told he is very upbeat and indicated that he had been told that he was two months ahead of schedule in his rehab. He will begin classes on Monday, majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
08/23/98 - Don't forget, today is the day The Clarion-Ledger puts out their annual 68-page special football section. It is always an outstanding section and one I never miss.
08/23/98 - If you haven't checked out my Maroon Pages today, now is the time. Go here to view them. I now have 38 Maroon Pages ads. Is your business the next to become a member?
08/23/98 - Mike Mihalovich has a great site I believe a lot of you will be interested in. Go here to view it.
08/22/98 - Update on Robbie Stillwell:
Robbie sustained a concussion due to a devastating hit by new defensive cornerback Robert Bean during Wednesday's scrimmage. He was kept in the hospital for a couple of days primarily for observation. He is now out of the hospital and on his way to a complete and speedy recovery.
I am checking to see what I can find out about Ashley Cooper's surgery. I will post the latest on my page.
08/22/98 - According to The Natchez Democrat, Natchez's outstanding wide receiver Greg Carter was quoted as saying he has narrowed his list to three: Miss State, LSU and Florida. Greg ran a 4.25-4.3 during Miss State's camp this summer.
08/21/98 - He may not be the biggest player you will ever see, but the newest Bulldog cornerback Robert Bean can flat out knock you out of a ballgame. Wide receiver Robbie Stillwell was taken to the hospital after taking a devastating hit from Bean during Wednesday's scrimmage.
08/21/98 - For the best pizza in Jackson, visit CiCi's Pizza at 2895 McDowell Road. Tell MSU grad and fan Ray Downey you found out about his restaurant on Gene's Page.
08/20/98 - Scrimmage Notes:
08/19/98 - Highly touted freshman defensive end Conner Stephens sat out both of Miss State's practice sessions Tuesday with a sprained knee. Stephens' status was listed as day-to-day. MSU officials said Stephens injured the knee during practice late Monday.
08/19/98 - It has been confirmed from a very solid source that Miss State commitment Dorsett Davis is definitely on track to graduate in December. The word is Ole Miss is very much interested in Davis and would love to see him sign with them. Davis, however, according to my source, is very committed to MSU. It was also confirmed that his teammate Toby Golliday, also a defensive lineman, is being recruited by Miss State. I earlier was told MSU was in the lead. The word I get from my source is he is not, at this time, leaning to any particular school. My source also said he is a very impressive player.
08/19/98 - Vidalia HS (LA) safety/running back Burl Burns has committed to Tulane. Burns, who is LSU football player Jeremy Lawrence's brother, also was looked at by Miss State and LSU. Source: The Natchez Democrat.
08/19/98 - If you haven't recently checked it out, check my events page by going here. Upcoming events include the August 20th Yazoo County Chapter Alumni Association meeting in Benton, August 25th Southeast Chapter Alumni Association meeting in Hattiesburg, August 25th Coahoma County Chapter Alumni Association meeting in Clarksdale, August 29th South Texas Chapter Alumni Association picnic in Austin, August 30th Greater Jackson Bulldog Boosters meeting in Jackson. Show your support by attending one of these meetings if it is in your area.
08/19/98 - Check out Bulldog fan Jim Chism's website. Jim's company, Tradewind Industries, manufactures high quality, hand crafted acrylic whirlpool baths, acrylic drop-in sinks and lavatories, acrylic shower bases and the innovative RainDancer Electronic Shower System. Tradewind Industries has distributors located throughout the United States. If you are in need of any of these products, give one of Jim's distributors a call.
08/18/98 - Since I was at work yesterday, I wasn't able to go to practice. Someone who was allowed in sent me a few things he noticed:
Sorry, that's it today. I'll continue trying to obtain as much info as I possibly can from the few people who are allowed into practice.
08/18/98 - Here are a few pictures from Saturday's practice:
08/17/98 - Correction: Former non-scholarship tight end John Hatcher is on scholarship. I was informed of this last night.
08/17/98 - Yesterday, I received this email from a long-time fan of Miss State. I found it very interesting and thought you would to.
"I meant to tell you after (Friday's) practice that of my 30-plus years of following MSU football, I have never seen such an athletic looking group of players. Conner Stephens and Alvin McKinley are potential All-American. Conner........is awesome."
08/17/98 - Just thought you guys would like to know I have been invited by Memphis's WHBQ 56 AM radio sports talk show host Lex Ward to be on his and Pete Cordeli's pre-game show prior to the Moss Point/South Panola HS football game, which is August 29th. I will also be on South Panola play-by-play announcer Bob Norris' halftime show during that game. Because of this commitment (I promised Bob earlier this summer), I will have to miss Miss State's Fan Day. I hate to miss it, but this is a great opportunity to spread the good news about Miss State to a large area of the Mid-South.
I have also been invited to speak at the Starkville Quarterback Club (SQC) later in the college football season. The Starkville Quarterback Club donates money to the athletic departments of area high schools and Miss State University. If you live in the Triangle Area (Starkville, West Point or Columbus), this is a great club to join. Go here to visit their website. It has information about SQC and a membership form (The membership fee is $45 per football season).
08/16/98 - Practice skuttle-butt:
08/16/98 - This has nothing to do with the Bulldog Club meeting or football practice, but I called The Clarion-Ledger's new Miss State beat writer Sekou Smith to congratulate him on his new job. I came away very, very impressed. After talking to him, I came away with the impression that he is going to make a very strong commitment to cover Miss State very thoroughly. If you don't buy or subscribe to The Clarion-Ledger, I suggest you start doing it because Sekou is going to give you your money's worth, in my opinion.
08/16/98 - Things heard at the annual Bulldog Club meeting Friday.
Coach Sherrill, Coach McMahon and Athletic Director Larry Templeton spoke:
Coach Sherrill's comments:
Coach McMahon's comments:
AD Larry Templeton's comments:
Other Bulldog Club skuttle-butt:
08/14/98 - Here is the official word about Miss State football practices:
All practices are closed unless otherwise noted. Special requests have to go through Coach David Wilson.
There is one way, if you are a Bulldog Club member, you can watch a football practice: Go to this afternoon's annual Bulldog Club business meeting, which is at the Bryan Building at 3:00 p.m. Remember, you have to be a Bulldog Club member to attend the meeting.
08/14/98 - I read this MSU football info in the Columbus, MS. newspaper, The Commercial Dispatch. I think you will find it interesting. The articles were written by Assistant Sports Editor and Miss State beat writer Danny P. Smith.
BTW, The Commercial Dispatch's 1998 High School Football Preview will be published, Thursday, August 20th and the College Preview will be published August 27th. If you are in an area about 30 to 45 miles from Columbus, Mississippi, you should be able to find one at a newspaper stand near you. Sports Editor Henry Matuszak and his staff always do an outstanding job.
08/14/98 Here are a few quotes from Rick Cleveland's column in Thursday's Clarion-Ledger::
08/14/98 - I know you will enjoy reading these facts about junior college defensive line signee Alvin McKinley (source The Clarion-Ledger):
08/14/98 - If you would like to buy an outstanding air purifier, look no farther than Mountain Air Products' website to find one that, I believe, you will be very pleased with. Mary Ann and I purchased one and are very satisfied with it. Go here to visit their website.
08/13/98 - In case you missed it, go here to see SuperPrep's National Top 100 football players.
08/13/98 - MSU Football Media Day comments overheard by one of you:
08/13/98 - MSU football tidbits:
08/13/98 - If you are interested Phipps's SEC Football Magazine, you can now find copies at all BARNES & NOBLE and WALDENBOOKS locations in Mississippi. I have one myself and highly recommend it. And don't forget to purchase your Big Book Of Mississippi Football for only $3.95 each. Go here to visit their website.
08/12/98 - Just got my SuperPrep 1998 Pre-Season Magazine. It goes without saying that SuperPrep's Allen Wallace did another outstanding job. If you don't subscribe to SuperPrep, you are missing out on one of the absolutely best national recruiting publications around. If you are interested in subscribing, go here and you can visit their site on the internet. Now, to give you a taste of what you would have read if you were a subscriber to SuperPrep, read this:
08/11/98 - Go here to read a great article about our very own Jack Cristil.
08/11/98 - The rumor is MSU commitment Dorsett Davis is working toward graduating in December so that he can enroll at State in January and go through spring practice.
08/11/98 - Look for Leflore County HS's outstanding twin brothers, Derrick and Eric Thompson to chose between Miss State and Nebraska. The word is MSU has the lead.
08/11/98 - Huntsville radio station WTKI, 1450 AM will broadcast it's sports show from 5-7 p.m. live via remote from the Huntsville Chapter of the MSU Alumni Association event at the Valley Hill Country Club on September 3rd. The hope is Dr. Portera, Rick Stansbury, Sharon Fanning and Bailey Howell will be there in time to go on live. Bulldog fan Jim Ward will go on the sports show August 19th, at 6:00 p.m. to promote the event.
First, the Memphis event had radio and television there, then the Jackson event had Conference Call there, now Huntsville will have a radio sports talk show at their event. You guys are doing a great job getting the word out about Miss State. You can and are making a difference.
08/10/98 - More pics from Saturday's two practices:
1) Go here to see the Tremendous Trio of 27-Dicenzo Miller, 31-Justin Griffith and 29-Pig Prather. Look at the arms on these three great young running backs.
2) Go here to see the Fab 5 of 35-Mario Hall, 83-C.J. Sirmones, 82-Darius Tubbs, 87-James White and 85-Harold Lindsey. There is tremendous athletic ability among this group of outstanding young receivers.
3) Go here to see a photo of Strongman (offensive lineman) Kevin Sijansky (bench pressed 225 pounds 25 times).
4) Go here to see a great pic of 62-Jerry Bolton, 56-Bobby Pressley and 97-Alvin McKinley on the practice field.
5) Go here to see a picture of Mountain Man (offensive lineman) 75-Kyle Wallace.
6) Go here to see a photo of 94-Ivan Billie, 90-Conner Stephens and 56-Bobby Pressley coming off the practice field.
7) Go here to see a photo of potential all-star offensive lineman Carl Hutchins. The potential oozes out of this 6-6.5, 285-lb. young man.
8) Go here to see a close-up photo of 38-Emmitt Smith, 31-Justin Griffith and 91-Kenny Sears.
9) Go here to see the Dynamic Duo of 54-Nick Floyd and 62-Jerry Bolton.
10) Go here to see a photo of Hinds CC All-American Kicker 3-Scott Westerfield.
11) Go here to see a photo of 98-Mario Haggan, the defensive star of the MS/AL All-Star football game, and super non-scholarship linebacker 67-Glenn Thompson.
12) Go here to see a great photo of Coach John Hendrick, 91-Kenny Sears, 16-Shawn Byrdsong and 93-Darius Brown standing on the sidelines.
13) Go here to see a photo of non-scholarship wide receiver 43-David Crawley.
14) Go here to see a close-up of super athlete 90-Conner Stephens. I think even our coaches were surprised at how truly athletic Conner is.
15) Go here to see a photo of 8-Kelvin Love and 18-Brandon Butler working out on the practice field.
16) Go here to see a photo of non-scholarship defensive back Josh Morgan (yes, he's MSU quarterback Rob Morgan's little brother).
17) Go here to view a photo of non-scholarship player 38-Emmitt Smith, a very athletic defensive back.
18) Go here to view a photo of four men who do an outstanding job working behind the scenes in the Miss State athletic department: Phil Silva, Equipment Manager; David Wilson, Administrative Assistant to Coach Sherrill; Mike Nemeth, Assistant AD/Media & Public Relations; Mike Grant, Strength Coach.
08/09/98 - Yours truly was at the first two practices for the newest Bulldogs. To say I was impressed with them would be an understatement. Here are a few tidbits from the two practices yesterday:
1) The first part of the morning practice had a rain storm for about thirty minutes but that didn't stop the players and coaches. Go here to see the offensive lineman working out in the rain.
2) Offensive lineman Carl Hutchins, from Georgia, is 6-6.5, 285 pounds with almost no fat. He is extremely athletic looking. Go here to see an excellent picture of him which shows how athletic this youngster looks. Look at this picture to see how he compares in size to present veteran offensive lineman Randy Thomas.
3) Go here to see an excellent practice field picture of freshman Ivan Billie.
4) Miss State has new terminology for walk on players: Non-scholarship players. From now on, call them non-scholarship players ( I like the phrase Potential Scholarship Players (PSP) myself).
5) Of the 31 players who are new to the program, 17 have a vertical jump of 30 inches or more. Ivan Billie jumps 36.5, Harold Lindsey 35 inches and Conner Stephens 32.5 inches. Conner was also the best at the broad jump. To see how athletic this young man looks, go here.
6) Non-scholarship player DB Emmitt Smith plays with a lot of effort and has very good speed. He looks to be a steal for Miss State.
7) Bobby Pressley looks bigger than I expected him to be. Very, very athletic looking.
8) Alvin McKinley made great strides strength wise this summer. By the end of the summer, he was benching 225 pounds 18 times, second best on the team.
9) During the rain storm, running back Dicenzo Miller didn't drop a pass.
10) Brandon Butler and Kelvin Love both looked very good. Both have strong arms. One person told me Butler looked very similar to former quarterback Greg Plump.
11) Harold Lindsey is very athletic with great moves.
I took almost 100 pictures at the two practices yesterday. I will post more of them tomorrow.
08/08/98 - According to a couple of you, MSU commitment Dorsett Davis, the 6-6, 300+, defensive lineman from Mississippi Delta CC, unofficially visited Miss State this past Wednesday. The rumor is, according to these two sources, he had a great visit.
08/08/98 - Here is an email I received from one of the participants of the Washington County Chapter of the MSU Alumni Association meeting, which took place Thursday night. I believe you will find it interesting and uplifting:
"The Washington County Alumni Chapter had a very successful meeting last night in Greenville. Approximately 400 attended to hear Dr. Malcolm Portera and Larry Templeton, who both gave very positive and motivational messages to the faithful. Those who haven't heard Dr. Portera speak, should make it a point to go and hear him. I think this was my fourth time and I'm still being uplifted each time. My thanks to you for helping us promote this meeting. I tell you, right now, this morning, we're feeling pretty darn good about how our meeting went and we appreciate the people who helped us in any small or large way as this is the largest MSU meeting in this area of the state."
08/07/98 - The Columbus (MS) Kiwanis had MSU's David Wilson as their guest speaker yesterday. Here are his answers to questions he was asked:
08/07/98 - If you live in the Jackson area, don't forget, when you need to have your eyes examined or need new contacts or glasses, you have a fellow Bulldog in your neighborhood who would love to have you as his patient. Contact Dr. Boyce Craig at his website which you can locate by going here.
08/06/98 - Here are the latest MSU football signees to clear the NCAA National Clearinghouse:
Butler's teammate, James White, should be cleared in a day or two. That leaves the Griffiths (Justin and Julius), Marco Minor, who is Co-Lin CC bound, and Robert Bean, who should be fine academically and should report in a week or thereabouts.
08/06/98 - Rumors: The latest rumor is Hattiesburg high school's outstanding wide receiver Keshan Fudge really likes MSU. I was also told the same is true with Natchez high school all-everything player Greg Carter (4.25 forty at MSU camp).
If there are any of you that has concrete information on these two players, please email it to me.
08/05/98 - There was a very good article about MSU signee Conner Stephens by staff writer Sekou Smith in The Clarion-Ledger yesterday. Here are excerpts from it:
Conner - "I've got some butterflies thinking about moving on to that next level. I've been working out all summer, running and with the weights, getting myself prepared. I'm ready to go."
Conner - "I know it's a whole new ball game now. You have to prove yourself all over again. But I'm looking forward to it. It feels good knowing Thursday is so close."
MSU defensive coordinator Joe Lee Dunn says players have to report with thick skins and already in reasonably good shape. Dunn said, "they need to be in good enough shape to let us get them in shape. They're gonna have to have something inside to keep them going."
Dunn talking about Stephens - "I didn't see him, but I understand Conner had been up here working out a good bit. Most of the time these kids don't know exactly what they're getting into. But it's fun to get these guys in here and put some pads on them and see what they've got."
Stephens - He has heard rumors about Dunn's two-a-days being as tough as it gets. But Stephens says he's not worried. He said "some of the older guys were telling me if you aren't throwing up you probably aren't doing it right. I've heard all the horror stories. But that kind of stuff doesn't make me nervous."
08/05/98 - MSU signee Justin Griffith has retaken his ACT test. He should find out his score in about two weeks. No matter what his score is, he is already a partial qualifier and will be able to report Thursday and participate in the practices.
08/05/98 - Well, it's that time of year again. Coming Monday, the second annual Q&A with SEC Football Referee Don Shanks begins. Don starts it off with a bang with the latest rules changes. Look for his Q&A section to be added to the skuttle-butt section. Get your thinking caps on because Don is ready to answer all of your questions.
08/05/98 - If you are thinking about buying a new vehicle to go to the football games this year, look no further than Colbert Auto World. Go here to visit their website.
08/04/98 - The MSU football signees and walkons report this Thursday between 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. They check in, then go to dinner. After dinner, they have academic meetings.
On Friday, they have their physicals and go to various meetings.
Saturday, Sunday and Monday they practice in shorts.
On Tuesday, the veterans report.
More info later.
08/04/98 - Here is the latest info on Moss Point HS quarterback Kevin Fant, a player MSU would love to sign. I have been told by a source of mine that Kevin is indeed 6-2, has a very strong arm, has great touch on his passes, is a great young man, and is a strong leader. Did you know he has started two years and both years he has help lead his team to a State Championship? Look for great things from this young man once again. I plan on going to watch him play on the 29th of this month.
08/03/98 - I noticed in The Clarion-Ledger Sunday that, according to Rick Cleveland, MSU quarterback signee Brandon Butler was 13-for-25 with 119 yards in the Louisiana All-Star game. He also had one touchdown pass dropped. Thought all of you MSU fans would be interested in reading this.
08/03/98 - Don't forget to check out the Miss State Upcoming Booster Club and Alumni Events Page. If there is an event in your area, show your support by attending it.
08/02/98 - As you may have read in The Clarion-Ledger Friday morning, Maben HS TE Donald Lee, one of the top 15 players in Mississippi and 10 best TE's in the Southeast, committed to Miss State. The other schools that had expressed an interest in Donald were Ole Miss and Auburn. The reason Donald decided to commit to MSU was due to how close it was to Maben and because he felt it was better for him academically.
Donald can now work on his academics and prepare for his ACT test.
08/02/98 - Nick Dimino, place kicker from West Point, Miss. who MSU is looking at, has received letters from many schools including Tennessee who told him that they are extremely impressed with his kicking ability.
08/01/98 - I made an incorrect statement last week. I posted that Miss State bought ad space on billboards for $3,000 per billboard. It was actually $3,000 for ALL (not each) the billboards ads purchased for the Jackson area. My apologies to the company who has the ads on their billboards in the Jackson.
08/01/98 - A very reliable source from Pascagoula told me Casey Gilbert, who plays for Pascagoula HS, has been picked as one of The Clarion-Ledger's Dandy Dozen. Casey is very highly thought of by Miss State.
08/01/98 - Just wanted you guys to know MSU signee C.J. Sirmones was the starting wide receiver for Tennessee in the Tennessee/Kentucky All-Star football game. My sources told me C.J. had a good game. Considering his outstanding size and speed combination, you would have to think he has a good chance to be a great receiver.
08/01/98 - Just thought you guys would like to read an email I received last night:
"I talked with a friend of mine who is close to the Warren Central football staff. He says that Josh Morgan (Miss State walk on) is a very good player who will play in the defensive backfield at State. He says Josh makes plays. If Warren Central needed a big stop on defense, he would make the tackle, tip the pass, etc. If they needed a big first down on offense, he would make the play. (If it was 3rd and 11, Josh would go back to pass and take off running when everyone was covered. He would get hit hard after 2 yards, but spin off and make a first down."
