Orley Hood: When Saints really were Ain'ts

Oh, the humanity …

OK. The Saints aren’t a zeppelin burning in Lakehurst, N.J. As far as I know, nobody died in the Superdome last Sunday. Technically, anyway. The Saints are 0-3.

We can be forgiven, I guess, for thinking they’d be 3-0 going into the Packers game this week.

Alas … You win a Super Bowl, you figure, hey, this is the way life’s going to be. You go 14-4 before losing at San Francisco in last season’s playoffs. You suffer the weirdest lousiest off-season maybe ever, lose your all-world coach for a year, and a lot more besides, you haven’t tackled anybody the last two seasons, and still …

Washington, Carolina, Kansas City? Oh, please …

Who dat?

We can blame the refs. On the bright side, unlike John Fox and Jack del Rio, we didn’t get fined 25 grand for dissing the bums. On the downside, did you see that travesty?

Anyway, maybe we can figure the Packers got screwed even more egregiously and have spent valuable time this week venting because they got stone cold robbed at Seattle the other night.

Things could be worse. Trust me. I covered the Saints decades ago when J.D. Roberts, second only to owner John Mecum Jr. on the all-time Saints clueless list, coached. After the final game of one particularly awful season, Dave Parks, who had been a fine passing-catching tight end at San Francisco before coming to New Orleans, passed out a press release in the locker room at Tulane Stadium.

I read it, one page. It said he would never play for New Orleans again no matter what.

“You’re firing the organization?”
“I am,” he said.

I laughed.

He smiled.

At least now, the Saints have a chance.

Don’t they?

Orley Hood: Cool air + Friday night = bliss

Kismet or serendipity, take your pick. Autumn and cool weather have arrived in tandem as our high school lads in the larger classifications begin their quest to make the state football tournament tonight.

All across the state questions will be asked, and some answered, as we put away sweet old rivalries — aka, the preseason — and dive into divisional games, many of which are based these days not on the ancient hatreds but on the algorithms of enrollment figures with a necessary but often subtle nod to geography.

Can Brandon be that good? Or are Clinton and Northwest Rankin that bad? What of Madison Central and South Panola, two titans in apparent decline, scarred by staggering early losses?

What of Olive Branch? Are the Conquistadors the colossus of the North now that the sun seems finally to be setting on South Panola?

What of mighty Meridian? Petal?

Oak Grove? Would you bet a Coke and a hotdog against a team whose offensive coordinator is a three-time NFL MVP?

Regardless, fans will park their cars beneath the magnetic glow of stadium lights all across our state tonight, drawn to the light, to hope, to the idea that the opening of division play can be the start of a magical run.

Lather yourselves in bug spray, my friends, and may you go unbeaten, unbowed and unbitten.

 

Roasters aplenty for Carlisle event

Roasters of Jack Carlisle at the first annual Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame Roast Oct. 16 will include many of his players from the many successful stops in his legendary coaching career.

Skipper Jernigan, who played for Carlisle at Murrah before going on to be a standout offensive guard at Ole Miss, will be the master of ceremonies. “That means I get to roast the roasters,” Jernigan said.

Roasters will include Rhesa Barksdale (Murrah), Wallace McMillan (Murrah), Paul Dongeiux (Murrah), George May (Prep), Tim Ellis (Ole Miss) and James Smith (Madison-Ridgeland Academy).

Carlisle, as an offensive assistant coach at Ole Miss in 1977, insisted on inserting Ellis into a game against eventual national champion Notre Dame. With Ellis at the helm, Ole Miss rallied in games waning moments for a 20-13 victory, one of the biggest in school history.

All proceeds from the roast will go to the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, which has operated for more than 16 years without any tax money from any level of government. Carlisle was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2004.

His high school football teams won 262 games and lost 70, a winning percentage of 82 percent. He also served as the head coach at East Tennessee State where he coached current Atlanta Falcons coach Mike Smith.

The event is set for Tuesday, Oct. 16, at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. A reception will begin a 5:30, followed by dinner and the program at 7. For more information on tickets or sponsorhip opportunities, call 601 982-8264 or go to msfame.com.

Click here for Roast Order Form

Orley Hood: Rankings are nice, but ...

‘Tis a heady thing, this Top 25. As Lewis and Clark might have said, it’s a big country. Filled with darkness and dread. Wildcats and Gators. Red Tide and roaring Tigers.

To shove your way into the Top 25, even at this early date, is one small step for State, one giant leap for Bulldog Nation.

So, lads. Take a bow.

But don’t linger, lest the blood rush to your head and blind you to the dangers that await in the sweaty and suffocating SEC jungle.

Three up and three down is sweetness itself, the nectar of the football gods. But before we get carried away — if, indeed, we haven’t already — let us stare reality in the face.

Troy.

First downs: 30. Total yards: 572. It’s enough to make a full-grown middle linebacker weep.

Saturday night was a whisker from disaster, from bursting the air out of the Auburn bubble, from splashing Dear Ol’ State into the soul-sucking morass of the mediocre.

Hood: The Horns are here! Lots of 'em

Longhorn Nation has invaded Oxford and you couldn’t get a restaurant reservation on The Square with a fistful of $100 bills.

Just about every young Ole Miss grad that I know of — a couple who are blood kin — is heading up this afternoon to get a load of the burnt orange on sacred Rebel soil.

There are all kinds of Texas-Mississippi connections through the years, though most involve Mississippi State. Before he became a demigod at Texas, the great Darrell Royal put in a couple of years at State — 1953 and ’54. Royal’s top assistant, Mike Campbell, joined up from Carr Central High School in Vicksburg — I went to first grade at Bowmar Avenue Elementary with the Campbell twins, who became legendary players at Texas. Royal and Campbell won three national championships in Austin.

Later, of course, State hired Emory Bellard, godfather of the Wishbone offense at Texas, as its head coach.

Ole Miss has its own state of Texas connection, the legendary coach John Vaught, a TCU man.

RVs and buses from Texas began arriving on Wednesday and the lovely air around Oxfordtown already has been fouled by the odor of foreign substances — Texas style briskets and beef ribs.

One hopes that if the Rebels can’t prevail in Saturday night’s game, then at least baby back pork ribs and Boston butts will kick some, uh, butt in The Grove. And that Southern Magnolia and Abita Amber will hold their own against Shiner Bock.

Carlisle Roast set for Oct. 16

Hall of Fame coach Jack Carlisle, legendary in Mississippi football circles, will be the subject for the first annual Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum Roast on Oct. 16 at the museum on Lakeland Ave.

Carlisle quite possibly coached more players, at more schools, at more levels than any coach in Mississippi history. He was inducted into the Mississippi Coaches Hall of Fame in 1989 and into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 2004. His coaching career spanned six decades.

He coached championship teams at both Jackson Murrah and then Jackson Prep and later at Madison-Ridgeland Academy. As an assistant coach at Ole Miss, Carlisle inserted Tim Ellis into the game before Ellis led the Rebels to a game-wining drive to defeat eventual national champion Notre Dame in 1977.

He later served as at head coach at East Tennessee State where he coached current Atlanta Falcons coach Mike Smith.

Carlisle's high school teams won 262, lost 70 and played to 17 ties, a winning percentage of nearly 82 percent.

“He took his players to a higher level than they knew they were capable of,” said Mike Dennis, who played for Carlisle at Murrah and later starred at Ole Miss and was first round draft choice of the Buffalo Bills. “He demanded hard work, but nobody worked harder than he did.

“Jack Carlisle prepared me not only for college and professional football, but also for the rest of my life,” Dennis added.

The Oct. 16 program will include a reception at 5: 30 p.m., followed by a dinner at 7. Tickets for the reception, dinner and program are available for $100 each. Varying levels of sponsorships are also available. For more information, call 601 982-8264.

Click Here for Roast Order Form

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Orley Hood: Team Europe looking up

For those of us with the random overseas sporting bent, it has been a summer — really, several years — of interesting developments in Europe.

First, the Spanish:

Alberto Contador, two victories in the Tour de France, although it’s hard to say how many he still has.

Fernando Gonzalez, two World Driving Championships in Formula 1.

Tennis? Fifteen of the world’s top 100 men’s players at one stage, 11 major championships by 2008 Olympic champ Rafael Nadal, including this year’s French.

Jose Maria Olazabal captains Europe’s Ryder Cup team in next week’s competition. And Sergio Garcia has found his game.

Then there’s England and, if you will, Team GB — Great Britain:

Astonishing major championship golf domination from Northern Ireland  — Grame McDowell, Darren Clarke and the remarkable Rory McIlroy, who has won three of his last four starts, including the PGA Championship, going into this week’s Tour Championship in Atlanta.

Essentially half as many medals in the London Games as we rang up, with one-fifth to one-sixth the population.

Cycling world champion Mark Cavendish, the world’s most feared sprinter, and 2012 Tour de France winner and triple 2012 Olympics gold medalist Bradley Wiggins.

Former F1 world champ Lewis Hamilton won the Italian Grand Prix at Monza Sunday.

And now the Scot, Andy Murray, winning the U.S. Open Monday with Sean Connery and Sir Alex Ferguson in the stands cheering.

Not too shabby.

Orley Hood: Peyton, RGIII have folks smiling

This we think we know (or, at least, suspect):

Mike Shanahan’s happier than at any time since he coached John Elway.

John Elway’s pretty darn happy, too.

And Archie.

Bo Wallace put a smile on Ole Miss fans’ faces, but the defense will give them the kind of digestive problems over-the-counter drugs were never meant to address. That halftime score, 21-0, could have been waaaay different.

Best thing about Tyler Russell through two games? How relaxed he seemed to be. Can’t make good decisions when you’re dry-heaving indecision.

Even if you’re not a Gator fan, don’t you kind of miss that Ol’ Ball Coach passing attack, when it seemed as if four all-American receivers were running loose at once? Today’s Gators are about halfway boring.

Brandon High has its best team since ol’ No. 3, Jerious Norwood, ran like a deer for the Bulldogs.

Despite everything Sunday, I have more than a half suspicion that the Saints would have won had Sean Payton been coaching.

The line’s just out. Florida State’s a 120-point favorite over Pisgah on Saturday. Seriously, FSU’s AD ought to be slapped and sent to his room without his supper.

Is RGIII the ticket? Oh, yeah, babe. Box seats. Front row. Full access credentials. That guy is a party.

Over and out for now.  Got to go outpick Rick.

Orley Hood: Breathe it deeply today

This, friends, is what we’ve been waiting for, the best day since spring, blogging away on the patio under perfect blue skies, a refreshing breeze, the Sunday New York Times in hand, warmed by fresh coffee and the glow of Saturday’s victories by Mississippi State and Ole Miss, anxious for the noon kickoff of the Saints’ season.

Can’t get much better than this.

Not to be intellectually provincial, but it’s the kind of day when I feel a bit sorry for those who face their days with no stake in the sporting world, that anticipation you and I get to share, that flurry of butterflies gently flapping their wings in our innards, when the sweet air we breathe connects us to our childhoods, to our sporting heroes, to the games and the people that have meant so much to us.

Novak and Ferrer finish their semi today, but it could be Sampras-Agassi or McEnroe-Borg, Pancho-Kramer, Laver-Newcombe.

Brees will blow fiercely against the Redskins in the Superdome today, but it could be Archie versus the Rams at Tulane Stadium, or Jake against Billy Cannon or …

It’s a feast, today is. Eat it with a spoon. Rory and Tiger. Braves and Mets. Light the grill. Pop a cool one.

For people like you and me, it’s Christmas morning in September.

We get to be kids again.

Orley Hood: On David Coates. . .

 

Northwest Rankin plays at Brandon High tonight, a big deal east of the Pearl River. The stadium will be full. The bands will be loud. The cheerleaders will be pretty. And the players will get after each other like wild hyenas.

It always was one of David Coates’ favorite nights of the year.

Years ago Northwest turned it around on Brandon, which had dominated the series.

Not too many Septembers ago, on a Saturday morning after a Friday night Northwest-Brandon game, David, who could never sleep after a game, win or lose, pulled up in his old red pickup in the parking lot where our boys, his Pat and my Tucker, were playing soccer. It could have been Memphis or New Orleans, Atlanta or Dallas. The routine seldom changed. We did it for years and years.

He plunks his chair down next to mine and hands me the sports section of The Clarion-Ledger.

I see the score, read a bit of the story. My team, Brandon, lost.

“You coach better now than you used to.”

“Couldn’t do it without the players,” he said.

Hull joins elite MSU group

 

Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer Kent Hull will be honored Saturday, becoming the fifth person in Mississippi State history to have his name permanently added to Davis Wade Stadium.

Hull, who died last year at the age of 50, will join Jack Cristil, Jackie Parker, D.D. Lewis and his former teammate Johnie Cooks. Members of Hull's family will take part in the ceremony on the field during State's (11 a.m.) game with Auburn.

A Greenwood native, Hull was a four-year starter at center for the Bulldogs before going on to an 11-year NFL career, including participation in four Super Bowls.

Kent's father, Charlie, played three years (1958-60) for some of State's greatest basketball teams.

Whitney recalls Michael Clarke Duncan

By Rick Cleveland

Executive Director

Michael Clarke Duncan, who earned an Oscar nomination for his memorable performance in The Green Mile, died Monday at the age of 54.

Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame basketball coach Davey Whitney remembers Duncan as a power forward on his 1983-84 Alcorn basketball team that won the SWAC championship and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament, beating Houston Baptist before losing by one point to Kansas.

“He was a good athlete, a good player,” Whitney said. “He made our team and he played, so he had to be a pretty good athlete. We had a helluva team. What I remember is he was a fun, very likeable guy, big and strong with a deep voice.

“He was a smart guy. One thing I remember is that he didn't smoke or drink.”

Duncan played only one season at Alcorn before returning home to help his ailing mother in Chicago, where he literally dug ditches before going to Hollywood.

Yes, Whitney said, he did see The Green Mile, in which Duncan played the role of John Coffey opposite Tom Hanks.

Said Whitney, "I thought he stole the show."