Second Half of Season Begins

BY Jimmie McDowell


When Vanderbilt kayoed Auburn with an impressive come-from-behind victory a week after Ole Miss shocked the University of Florida it was apparent that Southeastern Conference teams could eliminate one another for the national title in 2008.
Florida now will try to hand LSU its first loss. Mississippi State will seek to do the same with Vanderbilt in Starkville. Ole Miss will rest a week to get ready for Alabama which was pushed to the wire by Kentucky. Arkansas continues to lose decisively and maybe it was a blessing for Houston Nutt to get out of Fayetteville.
Ole Miss could be 5-0. They just might give Alabama a surprise in Tuscaloosa in two weeks.
The Rebels can still go bowling even if they lose to the Crimson Tide. Wins over Auburn, Arkansas, US-Monroe and Mississippi State may not be impossible. Playing LSU in Baton Rouge maybe the toughest game after Alabama.
Mal Moore, Bama's outstanding Athletic Director addressed the Jackson Touchdown Club as the Tide enjoyed an Open Date. One question he answered was that the home team gets all of the money in SEC games involved. In the old days you would pay a guarantee to the visiting team. So it is important that teams play seven home games which is easier in today's 12-game schedule.
Moore cited that Alabama enjoys playing at a neutral stadium like Atlanta or Jacksonville and would like to play in Dallas in the Cowboys new stadium in the future. Too bad that Jackson could not get games as they used to do in the good ole days.
The Southern Mississippi-Georgia game drew a standing room only crowd in the 25 ,000 Jackson Memorial Stadium, resulting in a major expansion to over 40,000. Southern guaranteed Georgia $25,000 to come to Jackson. Football Coach Wally Butts, also the Georgia Athletic Director, later said that Georgia 's Athletic Director made a bad decision for Football Coach Wally Butts in agreeing to play Pie Vann's Giant Killers in 1953.
I enjoyed the trip to Oxford for the Vanderbilt game with good ole Bill Lee, Mack Cameron and his bride, Chrissy, Billy Beard and Amy Straus, who was still sorry her Florida Gators lost to the Red and Blue. Also enjoyed the famed Tail Gate which featured Ed Wilburn Hooker, Kent Jr. Lovelace, Dr.l Shed Roberson, Holcome Hector, Warner Alford, and Charlie Flowers. Beaux Ball was not there, vacationing in South America of all places.
The Johnny Vaught statue will be dedicated three hours or so before the Auburn kickoff. Time of game has not as yet been announced as we pen this column. Richard Price and Bouncer Robertson are co-chairman of this fund-raising event for their old coach.
We plan to see the Southern Mississippi-Boise State game in Hattiesburg. The 1958 unbeaten and untied Southern team was saluted at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. They will get together for their 50th reunion this season as will the Giant Killing 1953 Black and Gold eleven.
Bowl scouts will be watching closely as the second half of the campaign begins.
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