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| Ole Miss fans want this back in Oxford. |
SEC Media Days will really kick off the football lust when they begin July 14 in Hoover. This year's event promises to be bigger than ever as the SEC and ESPN usher in the new SEC Network. I notice that the SEC's website received a face lift over the last few days, that includes a new ESPN-oriented domain - secsports.go.com.
Interestingly, Dan Mullen and Hugh Freeze are scheduled to appear on opposite ends of the four-day football media extravaganza. Mullen will field questions from sports journalists on Monday the 14th, while Freeze won't get his turn until the final Thursday the 17th.
Opposite corners.
That's exactly where the instate rivals should be. Just like fighters in a ring, one head coach will eventually knock out the other. Freeze bested Mullen in year one. Mullen completely saved his program from a downward spiral with an Egg Bowl triumph over the Rebels last year, and reversed a once-sad course into a bowl win and positive recruiting momentum headed into 2015.
Ole Miss saved Mullen with a disappointing performance in Starkville last November. The Bulldogs, who struggled mightily for their first five wins, beat the Rebels with a 3rd string quarterback and a defense that completely stifled the Rebels. Simply put, Ole Miss didn't look ready to play. Soon after, Freeze learned that Ole Miss fans do not take losing to Mississippi State kindly.
If there's a story to watch in 2014 it's the Egg Bowl rivalry. Thanks in large part to the positive energy gained from beating Ole Miss, Mississippi State suddenly feels like it's got a Heisman contender quarterback in Dak Prescott and a chance to have its best season yet under Mullen (which would have to include beating an SEC team with a winning record not named Ole Miss).
Meanwhile, Ole Miss fans will be disappointed by anything less than 8 or 9 wins. For either program to meet those lofty expectations it'll have to beat the other on that last Saturday of the regular season in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
The winner will leave triumphant into a nice bowl game with hopes of a record recruiting haul. The loser will walk off the field with lost traction, dashed hopes and questions. Lots of questions.
Fighters in a ring. That's what Freeze and Mullen are. Freeze may not acknowledge it. Mullen does. He knows which game butters his bread. Egg Bowl wins have secured Mullen's future at Mississippi State for years to come. Freeze still needs to get a few in the bank.
That's why I think the Egg Bowl rivalry will be one of the most important dramas to watch this season.
I wrote much, much more about the Ole Miss football season to come in Reb & Blue Magazine's Football Preview issue now available at RebBlue.com. Please stop by and get yourself a copy.