Ole Miss overtakes M-State as worst team in SEC

The last time Mississippi State won the Egg Bowl, I was still an aspiring young lad at Oxford High School, busy leading the Charger newspaper and getting ready for my final baseball season for the Chargers. That was four years ago and seems like forever. State has not had a winning record since 2000 and has owned the Western Division cellar since then — but not anymore. Ole Miss now holds the title to that claim, getting humiliated in the Egg Bowl on Saturday by three touchdowns. It could have been even worse.

So after a second straight losing season for the Rebels, where does the program go from here? Well, first-year coach Ed Orgeron has already fired offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone and who knows who is yet to be canned (or who will get out before it's too late). The whole Mazzone situation has been interesting from day one, with Orgeron forcing Mazzone to run the West Coast offense, something he's never done before, because it worked at USC (nevermind guys named Palmer, Leinart and Bush with some serious hardware). The Rebel players aren't much further back on the learning curve than Mazzone.

Rumor has it that QB Ethan Flatt will not return for his final season of eligibility after receiving his degree in May. And junior Patrick Willis could bolt for the NFL in April. Who would blame him? He led the SEC in tackles despite injuries to every limb on his body and it's not like things will get better in Hotty Toddy Land next season. Looking at the senior poster on my wall here next to my computer, the entire front four linemen on defense are gone, as are the top three receivers, Spurlock, and two offensive linemen, as well as a couple other starters here and there.

Hey, Pete, at least baseball season is less than three months away...