Playing Dirty: Mississippi State

Brian Kelly is a little over 24 hours away from his first SEC game as LSU head coach. His opponent is none other than Mississippi State, the school the Tigers have faced more than any other.

With a lot of questions about this Bulldog team, we asked Landon Young of For Whom the Cowbell Tolls for answers. He already did a boring one with Zach, but now I’m here with some REAL hard-hitting questions!

1. For a minute there, State had arguably the SEC’s grumpiest old man coach (Saban doesn’t count because he likes being angry) but then LSU answered ferociously by hiring Brian Kelly. Would you rather be chewed out by Kelly or Mike Leach after a loss?

Personally, I don’t find Mike Leach that scary. I’m sure he’s grumpy every now and then, but he’s also way more funny and goofy. I see Leach as the wild uncle that might make an inappropriate joke at Thanksgiving. Brian Kelly, on the other hand, sort of terrifies me. I sure wouldn’t tell him to start winning games and then we’ll be on time. So, my final answer is Mike Leach.

2. This will be State’s first game back in Tiger Stadium since KJ Costello hung 623 yards on Bo Pelini’s defense. In the 25 games since then, neither he nor Will Rogers have even reached 500 passing yards in a game. Which SEC team would you most like to see give Bo Pelini a chance at redemption? And then which one besides Ole Miss?

Is it wrong for me to say LSU? Of course, I’d love to drop 500+ passing yards on Saban, but that’s not actually possible. Because of the feelings I’m feeling this week, LSU is my final answer.

3. On the subject of the Air Raid, you can be honest now. It’s Year 3. How is it as a fan? Fun? Excruciating? A roller coaster? Be honest, this is a safe space.

I can’t speak for everyone, but personally, I love it. I think the reason I love it so much is Mississippi State has never been a passing team. It’s nice to see 300+ passing yards almost every weekend.

4. In past years Leach has advocated for college football expanding to a 64-team tournament like basketball. Do you think the upcoming expansion to 12 teams is a sign that good progress is being made or an unsatisfactory drop in the bucket that will not appease the 64-team zealots?

Progress is being made with the expansion to 12 teams. I think that 12th team could get really crazy, but I do think it’s a step in the right direction because of how meaningless bowl games have become.

5. I was always a believer that Bully was a gooder boy than Uga, but Uga now has a championship ring. Explain to me why Bully is still the superior good boy.

Bully is the goodest boy due to his immaculate rolls of fat that he has going down the sides of his belly. Some might say UGA has them too, but his are not like Bully’s rolls. Bully takes pride in those rolls. Yes, he works out, but not ever enough to lose the immaculate rolls of fat. Also, UGA always looks grumpy and old. Bully looks happy to be on the sidelines of every game.

Photo by John Korduner/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images