Been a while but this is worth writing about

I just made a trip to Jacksonville, FL to watch the Bulldogs play in the Gator bowl. If someone asked me if I was optimistic I would say yes about most things, but I did not see the Bulldogs winning 9 games this year. My predicted cap on the win total this year was 7 including a win in the bowl game. I give Tyler Blocker major credit for his prediction on the season. He said 9 wins before anyone and he was spot on.

Three points from the season and for the future.

1. Dan Mullen is one hell of a football coach. I have watched and played a lot of football, but I have never seen a coach change a team, program, and fan base the way Dan Mullen has over the last 24 months. The future of Ms State football looked really bad after the beat down in the Egg Bowl in 2008 under Croom. The AD at the time Greg Byrne made a great hire and after 24 months I can sit here and say I think Ms State can step on the football field with any team in the country and hold their own. I think the only teams they couldn't beat right now are Bama, Auburn, LSU, Oregon, and Arkansas. In 2 seasons I have watched Houston Nutt go through several qbs and every one of them has been worse in the end. I watched Chris Relf Saturday at EverBank Stadium not even be the same person he was 2 years ago. Dan Mullen has arguably done the best coaching job in his career on Chris Relf. The guy has turned into a quality college quarterback.

2. 2011 season for MS State looks like one that could be special IF we can replace Derek Sherrod. Ask the Black Bear fans about losing Michael Oher.. left tackles picked in the first round are special players. Ms State will miss EVERYTHING about Derek Sherrod. I am not forgetting about McPhee, Wright, and White because all three of those guys were great players along with JC Brignone. BUT that's the only 5 players state will lose. They are returning players like Chris Relf, Bumphis(didnt play in bowl game), Ballard, Perkins, fletcher cox, Heavens, Saulsberry, Addison Lawrence, Marcus Green, josh boyd, charles mitchell, etc, etc. The bulldogs have some talented players stepping on the field in 2011.

3. I will tell you one major difference between the fans at Ms State and TSUN that I have noticed this year. The young fans, age 35-40 and under, at Ms State are better fans because they have made a personal commitment. Almost every person I know that goes to Ms State games in my age group makes their own donations, buys their own tickets, has their own tailgates, and they truly love everything about game days in Starkville. Most black bear fans in that age group sit with their parents or use the tickets their parents buy for them, they go to their parents tailgates, stay in their parents condos, etc. The black bear fans may read this and say it doesn't make a difference or that isn't true but it does make a difference and is true. If you commit to something financially it makes you more passionate about it.

The fan base at Ms State is primed to explode. Donations are going to be coming into the Athletic office the next 8 months like nothing anyone has ever seen. Ticket renewals will be almost 100% with many people doubling and tripling their donations to the Bulldog Club. There will start to be a waiting list to get regular tickets. The tailgating will be bigger and better. TSUN BLACK BEARS KNOW THEY ARE IN TROUBLE AS LONG AS DAN MULLEN IS THE COACH AT MS STATE.

Hail State! Wally