Ole Miss Football: Grove Grinder, Is Ole Miss Football Respected?
With the release of so many sub-par predictions and projections directed towards Ole Miss football it makes me question the level of respect.
Is Ole Miss football respected? It’s a very fair question when you consider the lack of positive feedback from the college football pundits. Of course, when we say respect we aren’t talking about TSBU, their fans and beat writers. We are talking about on national level where it really seems to matter the most.
OHT contributor Brien Straw recently had two articles which each touched on an obvious lack of respect for the Rebels. Brien points out in both the obvious disdain some national writers have for the Rebels. You can check out his second article here. Of course, the Ole Miss football program is in much better shape now than just under a year ago. So why does everybody disrespect us?
We Have To Ask Why
Ole Miss Rebels Football
It’s no big secret Ole Miss football is despised the way it is by national writers. The smear we get from the ‘so called’ pundits are in large part the result of two things. The five-year long NCAA investigation and subsequent NCAA sanctions have created a cloud over the Ole Miss program.
It really didn’t help matters having a rogue TSBU writer stirring the pot. The end result was a number of phone calls which led to the untimely departure of former head coach Hugh Freeze. None of that paints a very pretty picture when outsiders or haters see it.
Of course, all of that led up to former offensive line coach Matt Luke being named interim head coach for 2017. Nobody gave the Rebels a shot at a decent season but behind Matt Luke and his staff they finished the season strong. The program has been going nowhere but up since Luke became permanent head coach.
We Should Be Feared
After all Ole Miss has been thru to get where we are now, the Rebels should be not just respected but feared. Matt Luke and his staff did an excellent job in securing a good No.31 ranked 2018 recruiting class. The 2019 Ole Miss football recruiting class is currently ranked 16th in the nation. Of course, with the weapons Ole Miss has and the talent level of new players coming in there is a reason for Rebels haters to be worried.
In the 2017 season we watched a team play their hearts out and get better as the season progressed. Now in 2018 this is a team which can afford to play with a chip on its shoulder all season and I believe they will. OHT already predicted the Rebels will go 9-3. Will that make us get more national respect? I doubt it but I bet it puts the fear back into the Ole Miss haters. However, we have to wait and see. Hotty Toddy!