Some highlights for your reading pleasure. I asked coach Sylvester Croom, in a delicate way, if his team had the proper mentality for facing teams like Louisiana Tech and this week’s opponent, Southeastern Louisiana.
His reply: “I don’t think there was anything wrong with their mentality of approaching a non-SEC opponent. We had tremendous respect for Louisiana Tech. We made mistakes. I never worry about the opponent, or the conference, it’s really about us. It wasn’t anything that Louisiana Tech did in the game the other night that denied us the opportunity to win the ballgame.”
• Croom on the running game: “We always plan on running the ball more. It’s really amazing, last year I was asked the question, we ran him (Anthony Dixon) too much, and now the first ballgame we didn’t run him enough.” Croom said his goal is to have 55-60% of the play calls be runs, and he said that goal was reached Saturday. The reason MSU threw it 40 times and ran it 31? “A lot of the passes we had were run/pass checks. The defense took the run away.”
• Croom on the linebackers, minus an injured Jamar Chaney: “The biggest thing is making sure we get the calls correctly and get everybody on the same page. (Jamie Jones) had a lot of work on that, from the spring, and during training camp. We feel like Jamie can step up and get the job done.”
• Maybe OL Anthony Strauder saw bad things coming: “I felt like Thursday we weren’t as sharp as we normally are. I feel like some players were a bit lackadaisical.”
• Understatement of the week goes to WR Brandon McRae: “We left a lot of points on the field.”
• I spoke with Derek Pegues, who returns to action this week after serving his one-game suspension. More on him in coming days. Croom said Pegues will return punts and kickoffs Saturday. “He’s our best football player, I’m putting him on the field.”
• Croom said redshirt freshman RB Robert Elliott will definitely see some action against Southeastern Louisiana.
September 2, 2008 at 3:42 pm |
it’s not as much the fact that dixon did not run the ball enough it is why do you run him east and west, run him up the middle and he rips off near 5 a carry. he is a downhill runner
September 2, 2008 at 3:45 pm |
Sorry, but LA Tech didn’t take the run away, we took the run away. Dixon and Ducre were averaging 5 and 4 yards per carry. They ran the ball only 21 times. That’s 29% of the total plays. Dixon averaged more carries a game last year than he and Ducre had this whole game. We ran the ball 31 times but how many of the QBs 7 carries were designed?
September 2, 2008 at 4:33 pm |
ok everything croom just got quoted on is the biggest crock of $hit ive ever heard!!!….anybody watching that game could tell our mentality was not what it needed to be and that our players just didnt look ready to play after the first quarter or so….especially the defense in the second half but you cant blame them when the rest of the team doesnt help them the entire game…..and how in the world was the goal of getting 55-60% achieved when there was so many more passing plays then running plays!?!?!?…..AND “their defense took the run away”!?!?!?!….how does a player average 5+ yards a carry but they are taking it away???…that is just stupid!!!…did he even watch the game film!?!?….ive been saying and this press conference is pushing me over the edge…..TAKE RESPOSIBILITY FOR YOURSELF CROOM!!!!….2 days ago, he was discrediting derek’s absense now “he’s our best player, im putting him on the field”…..come on!! GROW A PAIR!!!
September 2, 2008 at 4:41 pm |
We can run it. We can throw it. As long as Croom is the coach we will loose. The man can not coach.
September 2, 2008 at 5:00 pm |
ibdawg47 Says:
September 2, 2008 at 4:41 pm
We can run it. We can throw it. As long as Croom is the coach we will loose. The man can not coach.
ibdawg, you must have a short memory, State was a bowl winner last season. To get to that bowl they beat Alabama, Auburn, and my team the Rebels.
Coach Croom is a very good coach, just stand by him with patience.
Just pass off La Tech game as merely a training exercise.
State has an outstanding OL and an all-american RB in Dixon. Just let that OL work and Dixon do his thing.
September 2, 2008 at 5:33 pm |
It seems to take an extraordinary event for Croom to make tough decisions and adjustments. Like an injury or a loss to sub par program. If that loss was enough to make him go to a 1 QB system and play to the strenghts his offense, (like running the power play off tackle that gave people fits last year), then that should benefit this team in games to come. I felt like all along that this team would be more competitve with better athletes all around than last year and COULD lose more games. At the same time, they could find themselves and regroup. History tells us that Mstate teams find a way to win a ballgame that they probably shouldn’t have won and unfortunately lose one or two that should not have been lost. example Lose to Maine, beat Florida in 2004.
September 2, 2008 at 5:35 pm |
The only thing that I agree with that Croom said was, “It wasn’t anything that Louisiana Tech did in the game the other night that denied us the opportunity to win the ballgame.” That was a very true statement, that loss should rest soundly on the shoulders of the man in the crooked hat. His offensive calls did not make sense. Where did they all go in the off-season to evaluate other programs, BYU? Defensive Coordinator is missed from last year, and a change needs to be made in the O. MSU let La Tech run over them to score, MSU let the blitz get to the QB, MSU set up Tech with great field position, MSU let ……… I can understand being out classed by LSU, but not La Tech. You need a score, go to the bread and butter. Line up toe to toe and tell your opponent to stop us. I thought that this may have been a wake up call, but after seeing Croom’s statements this will be a long season. That was a total embarassment. Oh, and BLocke Party, don’t hold back on CC with delicate questions, he should be held accountable. Oh ibdawg47, watch JB, he is trying to brainwash you into wanting to keep Croom around (if I was an Ole Nutt fan I would).
September 2, 2008 at 5:43 pm |
Ok, that is overwith Go Dawgs!!!
September 2, 2008 at 7:45 pm |
This is what everybody asked for more passing. It just didn’t work out. We had over 400 yards of Offense. If they don’t learn from it, correct it, fix it. Then talk of getting rid of CC.
September 2, 2008 at 8:13 pm |
I will take more points on the board than yards in the book. I don’t want CC gone, but there needs to be a change. Maybe they lost more than I realized. I hope they will fix it.
September 2, 2008 at 8:28 pm |
You guys bashing Croom are ridiculous. This board just lost a bunch of class. The funny thing about it is the same ones that are howling now are the same ones that will have their paws out in December looking for bowl tickets. Your statements make you seem like you know nothing about football. Croom didn’t throw those picks, he didn’t fumble those balls. I got news for you, take away those TOs, and it looked like we finally had a college offense.
September 2, 2008 at 8:34 pm |
I’ve been saying the same thing for four years now dc31.
September 2, 2008 at 8:40 pm |
Chris, I know you and Max are some of the pioneers on here, but I’m trying to figure out if some of these guys are secret bloggers for the enemy.
September 2, 2008 at 9:18 pm |
as the buzzard said to the other buzzard in the 1970’s poster, patience my ass I am going to kill something.
If anyone has been keeping up with state for very long, you would know that they play up or down to their opponent. Doesn’t matter who the coach is or who the opponent is. That is why you don’t bet for them or against them.
September 2, 2008 at 9:20 pm |
they will let you down every time. They have been doing that to me since 1977
September 2, 2008 at 9:41 pm |
Dc31 and Chris- yall know I’m rollin’ with yall. If I hear its gonna be a long season one more time, or CC can’t coach I’m gonna barf. I think we should jot yalls names down and then call you out at the end of the season.
I said it earlier, some of yall sound like spoiled Bammer fans
September 2, 2008 at 9:43 pm |
Croom is our guy
September 2, 2008 at 11:12 pm |
[...] Miss. State Offensive Lineman, Anthony Strauder, had an interesting take, “I felt like Thursday we weren’t as sharp as we normally are. I feel like some players were a bit lackadaisical.” [...]
September 3, 2008 at 12:26 am |
Sorry, I thought that someone might want to actually have more than a middle of the road team every so often. I am guilty of expecting too much. I never said I wanted Croom gone. I sure as hell am not a bammer or a UM fan. Am I on here with a bunch of soccer moms? If so, send pics. Someone in my family has attended MSU starting in the early 1900s. I lectured there in grad school and my great uncle was a chem eng professor there. I have taken up for Croom since he was hired, but not Mccorvey. If I want a bowl ticket, I will exercise my allotment. I know that yall haven’t had a good drama thread to jump on in about a week so it makes sense. You “pioneers” want to sit and dog on each other about crap that does not even pertain to MSU. Thought the whole goal was to improve. You want to barf? Watch the replay.
September 3, 2008 at 1:00 am |
It is the eye opening Contract that was finally done by our NEW INEXPERENCED ATHLETIC DIRECTOR that has assured us of many more years of our football experience. But heck, our other sports teams will do better. If not, I am sure our NEW INEXPERENCE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR will fix the contracts to assure us less for more.
September 3, 2008 at 11:10 am |
Has Coach Croom EVER accepted ANY responsibility for a loss? 18 plays may have made a difference but other factors also made the outcome come to fruition.
1. Going to RUSTON on GAME DAY? What the hell kind of program are we running if we can’t send our Division 1 SEC football team down a day early for the 1st football game of the season. I cannot believe they pulled this nickel and dime crap! The players looked like they were playing with a HIGH SCHOOL mindset and NO WONDER.
BRAD: Who made the decision to go to Ruston on GAMEDAY? Was it Croom or the AD? Surely Croom had some say in this. Surely he has more sense than to travel and play a game ON THE SAME FREAKING DAY!
2. The play calling is horrible. When will we wake up and play FOOTBALL. Of all the games I watched this weekend, only RUTGERS comes close to the level of crap calls our offense is running. Run/Pass checks at the line? What the hell kind of excuse is that?
3. The responsibility for getting a team ready to play, no matter who the opponent falls to the HEAD COACH. Fulmer accepted the Tennessee loss as his fault. He comes out looking like a man. Croom comes back talking about 18 plays and the YMCA. He looks like a fool.
September 3, 2008 at 6:43 pm |
Clubfoot, in response to does anyone want more than a mediocre team? Of course, I’m pretty sure during my years at State from 95-99 that more games were won in that period than any other time, not sure about 70s with Felker. I’ve seen it done. I know that we’ve come one player (Freddie Milons) from playing for a Nat’l Champ. So yeah we want to be dominate too. Yeah, this is a bad taste in all of our mouths, but it’s time to circle the wagons and get behind Croom. Even though JWS won all of those games for us, I just don’t feel like I need a shower being a State fan now. Croom’s still on track. The fire Croom stuff is a joke. As for Phillip Fulmer, I use to live in Knoxville and just check out the Sunday morning radio shows to see how UT fans really feel about him. Makes this look like Bible Study