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A game this big for Ole Miss? Think back 20 years ago to LSU and Eli Manning

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On Nov. 22, 2003, eventual national champion LSU defeated Ole Miss and Eli Manning (10) 17-14. Credit: Ole Miss athletics

And so, the question is asked: When was the last time Ole Miss played a football game as important and meaningful as the one the Rebels will play Saturday at Georgia?

Good question. So glad you asked.

The last time was Nov. 22, 2003 — 20 years ago — before many of these current Rebels were born. Jaxson Dart was seven months old. Quinshon Judkins had been around for three weeks. Suntarine Perkins was safe and warm in his mama’s tummy.

Do you remember? If you were there, you could not have forgotten.

Rick Cleveland

LSU, 9-1 and ranked No. 3 in the nation, was the visiting opponent. Ole Miss, led by senior Heisman Trophy candidate Eli Manning, had won six straight games including consecutive victories over Alabama, Arkansas, South Carolina and Auburn and was ranked No. 15. The winner was headed to Atlanta and the SEC Championship.

As I wrote in a page 1A column for the Clarion-Ledger the morning of the game, the question wasn’t so much whether the Rebels could hang with the mighty Tigers as it was: Could Oxford’s plumbing handle the party? Or, could Oxford’s infrastructure handle the crowd?

An estimated 80,000 people descended on Oxford that day. Yes, only 62,000 or so could get through the stadium gates, but thousands more came hoping to score a ticket or to just enjoy the party in The Grove.

Scalpers were getting $1,500 for a single ticket. Private jets had to schedule arrival times 24 hours in advance. “We’ve got a good water and sewer system, so I think the plumbing will be OK,” then-Oxford mayor Richard Howorth said. “Now, as for the roads, the traffic and the intoxication level, your guess is as good as mine.”

Just as now, there were stories written that week about when was the last time Ole Miss had played a game so huge. The consensus was that you had to go back to when Eli’s dad, Archie, played.

Again, if you were there that day, you have not forgotten. The leaves had turned brilliantly red, yellow and orange. The weather was postcard perfect. The scene was, well, absolutely wild.

So often when the build-up to an event is so extraordinary, what follows falls flat in comparison. That wasn’t the case on Nov. 22, 2003, at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The game more than lived up to the pregame hype. 

LSU, coached then by Nick Saban, was remarkably talented, especially on defense. The Tigers, who would go on to trounce Georgia in the SEC Championship Game and then knock off Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl for the national championship, were an amazing blend of speed, ability and strength, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. 

The deciding factor: Ole Miss could not run the ball at all. The Rebels gained just 27 yards on the ground, allowing the Tigers to come at Eli Manning from all angles with an assortment of Saban-special blitz packages.

Still, Ole Miss battled to the final horn, missing a 36-yard field goal to tie the game with just over four minutes remaining. Ole Miss was good — really good. LSU was just a tad better.

Twenty years later, the current Rebels face a similarly difficult task, and this time they will be on the road, between the famed hedges at Athens. Two decades ago, the Rebels faced the eventual national champion. This time, they face the two-time defending national champions. No. 1 ranked Georgia is an 11-point favorite. The Bulldogs have won 35 consecutive regular season games and haven’t loss since Dec. 4, 2021, to Alabama in the SEC Championship game. (The ‘Dogs returned the favor, winning by 15 in the CFP Championship Game.)

Georgia is the current gold standard in college football. Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs have been ranked No. 1 for 21 consecutive college football polls. Smart is 90-15 at Georgia. The ‘Dogs won their final four games of the 2020 season and are 38-1 since then. In other words, Georgia has won 42 of its last 43 games. They haven’t lost a game in 1,094 days.

That said, this Georgia team seems more vulnerable than the last two. The Bulldogs trailed by 11 at halftime to South Carolina. They had to score late to win at Auburn 27-20. They were tied at halftime last week with Missouri. Tight end Brock Bowers is out with an injury.

Can Ole Miss win? Certainly. Bigger upsets happen every week. Is the 11-point point spread out of line? I think so.

On the other hand, how do you pick against 42-1?

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.biloxinewsevents.com/?p=302979

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Mississippi Today

UMMC holds free cancer screenings

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April 30, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @EricJShelton – 2025-04-30 12:00:00

by Eric J. Shelton, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

  • Resident physician Claire Babin, right, performs an oral cancer screening on Ella Holmes during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Physicians prepare for oral, head and neck cancer screenings during a free screening event at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Resident physician Brooks Lampkin, center, screens Diane Carter for oral cancer as medical students Mason Nodurft, left, and Eva Kiparizoska observe during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Educational giveaways advocating against smoking are available during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Sharon Terry, senior tobacco treatment specialist, waits for patients during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Skylar Robinson, medical office assistant, left, and Kiandria Bruce, registered nurse, review materials at the patient sign-in table during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Head and neck cancer literature is available during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Dr. Alex Brooks and registered nurse Angela Noble talk during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Nina Brown, clinical manager, helps Ned Bostic with paperwork during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Resident physician Brooks Lampkin performs an oral cancer screening on Ned Bostic at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Ned Bostic receives a neck cancer screening during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
  • Resident physician Brooks Lampkin, center, and medical student Hanna Watson examine Ned Bostic during a free oral, head and neck cancer screening at the Jackson Medical Mall on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.

The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery hosted a free oral, head, and neck cancer screening Wednesday at the Jackson Medical Mall as part of Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week.

The event featured quick, noninvasive screenings aimed at catching cancer early — when treatment is most effective. Onyx Care provided free HPV vaccinations, while the ACT Center for Tobacco Treatment, Education, and Research offered resources on smoking cessation and free services.

“These screenings take about 10 minutes and can save lives,” said Dr. Gina Jefferson, head and neck surgical oncologist at UMMC. “The earlier a cancer is diagnosed, the better chance we have of curing it.”

Tobacco and alcohol use remain major risk factors for these cancers. However, physicians say an increasing number of cases are linked to HPV, especially among younger adults with no history of smoking or drinking. Dentists are often the first to spot early signs, which can include persistent sores, lumps in the neck, or difficulty swallowing.

Oral, head and neck cancers are among the most common globally. When found early, survival rates can exceed 80 percent.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article presents factual information about a free cancer screening event without showing a clear ideological stance. It primarily focuses on the health benefits of early cancer detection and the availability of free resources, such as HPV vaccinations and smoking cessation support. The language used is neutral and the content is centered around public health education rather than promoting a political viewpoint. The inclusion of factual statistics, such as survival rates and risk factors, adds to its informative and objective tone. There are no signs of bias or advocacy for a particular political agenda, making this a centrist piece.

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Crooked Letter Sports Podcast

Podcast: What next for Mississippi State baseball?

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April 30, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @rick_cleveland – 2025-04-30 10:46:00

by Rick Cleveland and Tyler Cleveland, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Mississippi State didn’t even wait until the end of the season to fire Chris Lemonis, who brought the national championship to Starkville not quite four years ago. Where do the Bulldogs go from here. Robbie Faulk who covers the Bulldogs more closely than anyone else joins the podcast to discuss the situation.

Stream all episodes here.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Podcast: What next for Mississippi State baseball? appeared first on mississippitoday.org

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Mississippi Today

Mobile sports betting users: We want to hear from you

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April 30, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – @MSTODAYnews – 2025-04-30 10:21:00

by Mississippi Today, Mississippi Today
April 30, 2025

Mississippi Today is looking to speak with current and former mobile sports betting users. We’d like to speak with people who spend considerable amounts of time and money betting on sports through online gambling sites.

We’re interested in hearing the experience of people who have suffered from gambling addiction or problems, or friends and family members of people who have. We also would like to talk with people who believe legalizing mobile sports betting would benefit Mississippi and its residents.

We want to hear from you. Please take the survey below or contact Political Reporter Michael Goldberg by email at mgoldberg@mississippitoday.org

TAKE THE SURVEY:

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This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Mobile sports betting users: We want to hear from you appeared first on mississippitoday.org


Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article from Mississippi Today appears to present a neutral stance, focusing on gathering input from various groups of mobile sports betting users, including those who may have experienced addiction issues. The content does not advocate for or against the legalization of mobile sports betting but instead seeks to gather diverse perspectives, including those of individuals who may support or oppose it. The language used is objective and does not suggest a particular ideological perspective, allowing for a balanced exploration of the issue at hand.

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