wants State to just win

Ole Miss’ defense wants to be noticed this fall. Whose doesn’t? And Mississippi State’s team attitude is reportedly more upbeat now than in recent times.

What this all means is that in-camp chants border on a &8220;dangerous&8221; attitude, unless it brings about a stronger hustle element. And, of course, that’s what all this pre-season hullabaloo is all about, or &8220;we’re gonna have to think positive or get blown away,&8221; this fall.

In the Mississippi State camp this time around the team attitude is reportedly upbeat all the way. Players are using last year’s &8220;attitude problems&8221; to make certain that kind of thinking doesn’t make it into camp this season.

The reason for concern? Mississippi State didn’t win a single SEC game last year! The attitude now in camp is that the players won’t be caught going around making excuses for last year.

It has been kicked around that &8220;mental carelessness and stupid mistakes&8221; like jumping offsides and stuff like personal fouls put the Bulldogs in holes last season that they just couldn’t dig out of. &8220;Seems like we’d get down last year and a lot of people would give up,&8221; linebacker T.J. Mawhinney said recently.

It happens on the best of teams, of course, and coaching staffs burn the midnight oil trying to figure out why bad things start happening all of a sudden, and an explanation is impossible to find. That’s team sports for you.

At any rate, Mawhinney of State is an announced part of a move to bring about a fresh attitude at MSU. That’s what the papers are saying, and of course they’re quoting a young athlete whose credentials are commendable. But Mawhinney and other Bulldogs are indeed upbeat at this stage of getting ready for the fall campaign.

Mawhinney has voiced a strong sentiment for the new coaches in camp at State. &8220;I love our new coaches. I love the way they handled themselves when they came. They gave everyone a fair shot at earning the spot.&8221;

And listen to this from the big and talented Bulldog linebacker: &8220;It’s the little things, there’s a time to play and there’s a time not to play; you sit up in your chair when somebody with authority is speaking to you,&8221; and on and on. His words had to motivate his teammates.

And Mawhinney has even further words of advice to fall back on &045; his grandfather’s. He said: &8220;Shut your mouth, play hard and don’t worry about anything else.&8221; His grandfather, Charles Ferguson, played quarterback at Clemson about a half century ago. Bulldog skipper Jackie Sherrill’s got himself a team leader in Mawhinney!

SEC stuff: Tommy Tuberville and Auburn; is it a winning combo or not? Well, Tuberville’s been there and done that as regards moving around in the SEC, the league that most folks talk about in these parts. Tuberville, who once coached Ole Miss, is on the hot seat at Auburn, I’m talkin’ about.

Four years coaching Ole Miss in the past helped Ole Miss, but it doesn’t help Tuberville when he’s under the gun before sportswriters, who have predicted that his team Auburn will win the SEC. If I was him, I wouldn’t complain, just get with it.

Glenvall Estes is a longtime columnist for The Natchez Democrat.