Everybody has an opinion on Monday mornings these days.
And I do mean everybody. From nice little ladies at the grocery store to people I’m reasonably certain have no clue if the ball is blown up or stuffed.
And, yes, I’m buying the “plain vanilla” argument Chad Morris made at his press conference Monday. I said that in the first quarter Saturday because it was obvious, especially on defense.
Why would he not?
Arguments have been attempted at me about “generating enthusiasm” among the Lunatic Fringe, which is not something I particularly agree is correct. My main argument is it would have made no difference and the bi-polar student section would have left around halftime anyway.
That’s the trend just about everywhere in college football these days. Shoot, Nick Saban has even taken to the microphone in Tuscaloosa to chastise Alabama students for leaving … or not even showing up.
Every single game is on television these days and why a lot of the modern-day needs of comfort make it difficult to sit on a narrow piece of metal facing the afternoon sun, squeezed in like sardines in a can.
Remember, the lower half of the east and west stands are basically the same thing that seated 42,000 and was increased to 46,000 by making the space a little more narrow.
A lot of us old-timers remember when you could pack the stadium with a winning team … or even an exciting losing one. Those times are long gone and most of it has to do with the availability to watch the game at home.
Besides, it was the first game and when you’re coming off 2-10, have over 50 freshmen on the roster and more questions than answers, all you want to do is make sure everybody can do the basic stuff at least semi-correctly.
It appeared everybody was more interesting in not making a mistake than making a play, which does make a little sense when you’re coming off last year.
You just wanted a win for a group of guys that basically had never played a game together.
Still, some folks want to project an entire season off one game.
It’s a fool’s errand.
Besides, I can’t think of very many teams that had much going on if they play their best in the first game of the year. Last year’s win over Eastern Illinois is a prime example.
And in the paranoid world that surrounds college football coaching these days, I can almost guarantee you it’s very valid when Morris said he didn’t want to show Ole Miss much.
My guess is the Hogs showed about 10 percent of the playbook on offense and maybe half that on defense.
As one coach told me a few years ago, “we don’t even practice most of our stuff when we bring in officials because they have the biggest mouths of all.”
That means, simply, they don’t trust anybody.
Now you can jump up and down all you want about that not being fair to the fans or Morris should have wanted to make a statement to unite everybody, but it doesn’t matter.
Morris has a bigger problem than how badly he beat Portland State in game one, namely can he get his first SEC win in game two … on the road.
Many of the Hog fans have gone ahead and jumped off the bandwagon … after the first week of the season. Mainly because, of course, they know the ball is blown up, not stuffed, and that makes them an expert.
We’ll have a better idea in about a month.
