Rippee Writes: Louisville scout, Corral is game ready and a Magnolia State golf update
A new member of the Rippee Writes team, some UL nuggets, Corral off social media and a Mississippian on the cusp of realizing a dream.
Hope everyone is having a good Thursday . We have a new podcasts out
Wrapping up our opponent preview series. Chris Lee of the Vanderbilt Rivals site joined to discuss Clark Lea’s first year, the shift in the Vanderbilt administration’s attitude toward football after James Franklin left, quarterback Ken Seals and more. And then my old radio pal Brian Hadad hopped on to preview Mississippi State in year two under Mike Leach. Check that out here or anywhere you get podcasts.
This morning we dropped a fantastic Louisville preview that featured Michael Felder, a college football analyst at Stadium breaking down Louisville quarterback Malik Cunningham, what makes him dangerous in the running game and his strengths and weaknesses as a passer. Cardinals beat writer for the Louisville Courier-Journal Cameron Teague followed that up with a general preview of the 2021 team as a whole. I guarantee it will make you smarter heading into Monday’s game. Check that out here or anywhere you get podcasts
A lot of football and some golf to get to today. Consider this a two-for-one newsletter today as yesterday’s never quite got finished, mainly because I thought it would be a good idea to move apartments during the first week of football season. In fact, I recorded part of the second podcast sitting on a laundry basket while balancing my microphone in a suitcase in an empty room. Oh well. Live and learn.
SkyBox Butlers joins Rippee Writes team:
A housekeeping note to start: We are thrilled to announce that SkyBox Butlers is now a partner with Rippee Writes. SkyBox Butlers is a locker and cooler stocking service that aims to make your gameday experience better. If you sit in the luxury seating of The Vaught, the Pavilion or Swayze Field and don’t want to stress about making the allotted time to fill your locker with beverages (wink, wink), let the professionals handle it for you. It’s simple: go to SkyBoxButlers.com, type in what you want and they’ll go buy it and stock it for you. You can sign up for season-long service, single game service as well as various other packages.
They’ll also stock your Grove cooler. Plus, a new service this year: condo concierge. It’s a turn-key delivery service that will drop groceries off at your condo and even turn down your thermostat (looking at all the anal and grump dads out there on that last part)
Visit their site or give them a call at 601-850-8932 and sign up today. Rob and West are two Ole Miss grads who I have known for a long time. They have a great concept and will take care of you. You can also find them on social media — Twitter and Instagram: @Skyboxbutlers. Use the promo code “rippee” for 10 percent off your first purchase.
Kiffin holds first in-season Monday presser
Game week kicked off with Lane Kiffin’s Monday press conference on Tuesday. One could argue the highlight of it was Kiffin making a 69 joke when asked how his team’s Sunday scrimmage went, to which he retorted “ We won, 69-0.” But since you took the time to sign up for this newsletter and read, I will add more notes.
Kiffin expects to see a lot of three-man fronts defensively, which makes sense considering Louisville defensive coordinator (and Ole Miss alum) Bryan Brown runs a 3-4 scheme. It is a little different than a traditional 3-4 system, predominantly with how Brown generates a pass rush. He cares more about angles than he does gaps and is creative in disguising blitzes and coverages.
Luke Altmyer is still limited, according to Kiffin. It’s a question the coaching staff hopes not to have to answer, but in the event Matt Corral has to come out of the game for any reason, it will be interesting to see whether Kiffin and Lebby turn to Kinkead Dent or make do with John Rhys Plumlee in a tight spot.
Kiffin compared Jerrion Ealy to Kenyan Drake, citing the two are similar in how well they are able to integrate themselves in the passing game out of the backfield.
Ealy also spoke to the media
It appears he has kept up his tradition of asking to be called by a different name every time he speaks to the media. Tuesday’s was ‘Sylvester.’ Those MAIS kids always keep things lively.
He what his expectations were for himself this year, to which he replied: “to be unbelievable,” and saying he knows what everyone else expects.
Ealy missed the entire baseball season due to a shoulder surgery he underwent last winter. He said it’s the longest period of time he hasn’t played a sport since spring of his ninth grade year.
“I was miserable then and I was miserable now too. I cannot wait to get back on the field, play a game and have fans in the stadium. It is going to be unreal an I am going to put on a good show,” Ealy said.
Ealy was also asked if he felt faster this year because he looked it during camp. “Why does everyone keep saying that?” he exclaimed with a grin. Ealy credited it to learning how to move more efficiently and said it takes him fewer steps and less movement to get to a desired spot. This comes after John Rhys Plumlee mentioned last week that he has drawn inspiration from how Ealy moves in the open field.
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Ole Miss released its first depth chart
The first depth chart of the season was made public on Tuesday.
A couple of thoughts:
Ole Miss better stay healthy at both tackles spots. Woof.
Snoop Conner being listed as the fourth running back speaks to the depth Ole Miss has formulated at the position in a very short period of time. I think he, Henry Parrish and Kentrell Bullock will comprise a diverse backfield that will pose a variety of challenges to opposing defenses. I also wonder how creative they’ll get with how they line up in short-yardage situations.
Casey Kelly, who showed some promise toward the end of last season, is not on the two deep at tight end. He’d been injured in camp, so maybe that speaks to the severity of the injury? I’m just guessing. It is hard to tell with Kiffin’s tight-lipped policy on injuries.
True freshman Caden Costa won the kicking job. Most figured this would be happen but I am not going to pretend to tell you I know what goes into a kicking competition and nothing would have surprised me.
Get to know Louisville:
In Tuesday’s newsletter, we talked about Cunningham and the danger he poses as a dynamic dual-threat quarterback for the Cardinals. Today, we will turn our attention to the defensive side of the football in the secondary. Louisville saw ten members of the 2020 secondary depart the program and its safeties coach. I presumed — and maybe it’s good that I waited to publish this until talking with a Louisville beat writer — this would be an issue for the Cardinals going up against Matt Corral in the opener, particularly considering they’re relying on a pair of portal products at safety in Georgia Southern transfer Kenderick Duncan and and Alcorn State transfer Qwynnterrio Cole.
Teague disagreed, citing that Kei’Trel Clark is an All-ACC corner and that the incoming safeties have adjusted well. Teague knows the team better than I do and I have no reason to doubt him, I just found this surprising. Clark finished eighth nationally and tied for the conference lead with 10 pass break-ups last year. Teague went as far as to say he thinks the secondary could be the strength of the team if they stay healthy, but that depth could be a concern. This will be a fascinating match up. I wonder how Ole Miss will spread the field and force Louisville to play some of their nickel and slot corners that do not have as much experience. I think Corral and the offense end up picking on this group, but I am often wrong.
Note No 2:
Since I didn’t get to a Wednesday note, let’s drop two today. The other area I would like to highlight is Louisville’s receiving corps. Cunningham lost his top two targets, (and damn good ones at that ) from last year in Tutu Atwell and Dez Fitzpatrick. Those two accounted for 60 percent of the team’s receptions in 2020. Louisville has guys on the roster with experience, but none that remotely compares to production Atwell and Fitzpatrick generated. The most obvious candidate to emerge as a No. 1 option would be Braden Smith, who had 27 catches last year. Smith is a Northwest Rankin High School and Northwest Community College product who began his career at Mississippi State.
(here is the film study that led to me reaching out to Michael Felder for the pod. Great stuff here)
Beyond that, I’d guess it’s Justin Marshall and Shai Werts. Werts is an interesting story. He’s a former quarterback at Georgia Southern and was a four-year starter who totaled over 3,000 yards rushing and 3,000 yards passing. I have no clue what he will be as a receiver, but it makes for an interesting story to follow.
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Corral shuts off social media
Matt Corral spoke to local media on Wednesday evening and channeled his inner LeBron James by deleting all of his social media accounts. I am not usually who reads much into gestures like this. I doubt Corral’s play will be impacted by what JunctionDawg69 says on Twitter, but it’s also definitely not a bad thing that Corral is taking any measure possible to increase his focus.
Listening to Corral speak now, it’s both impressive and refreshing to see how much he’s grown as a person over the last three years. He’s dealt with a lot of shit both on and off the field, and endured his fair share of football-related dysfunction. Instead of wilting and seeking a fresh start elsewhere, he’s come out on the other side better and stronger for it. In this day-and-age of college football and the transfer portal, it really is wild to think that he’s still at Ole Miss, and even crazier to think he’s a legitimate Heisman candidate operating one of the most dynamic offenses in the sport. I have to wonder if he ever envisioned this scenario while witnessing Rich Rodriguez melt down like a toddler with a dirty diaper at the slightest mishap.
As far as Louisville, Corral knows what to expect. He knows teams watched him struggled in Fayetteville last October and it’s pretty obvious that opponents view that as their best shot to stifle him.
“I expect to see a lot of drop-8,” Corral said. “Basically what Arkansas did.. If they go four-down, then it’s about expecting the unexpected.”
By college football standards, Ole Miss has a grownup at quarterback, a grownup calling plays and a grownup running the program. That’s a hell of a place to start an ascent.
Magnolia State golf update
It’s a huge week for Mississippi golf. The last Korn Ferry Tour Finals event began today with one Mississippian on the cusp of a PGA Tour card and another representing the United States at the game’s highest level.
The Korn Ferry Tour is in Indiana this week for the Korn Ferry Tour Championship. This is the last of three Finals events. If you’re new here, in addition to the 25 PGA Tour cards awarded to the men who finish in the top 25 in the tour’s regular season standings, an additional 25 cards are given through The Finals — a three-week stretch of events in which all non-regular season graduates start at zero points and fight for 25 spots to realize their dream. Your entire life can change with one good week. Seriously.
The catch here is that the 25 regular season graduates also play in The Finals events. They have no bearing on the fate of any non-graduates, but they can improve their regular season standing thru earning points in The Finals. This is important because this idea of a PGA Tour Card is misleading. All 25 cards are not created equal, and 2-25 have some version of the most basic full-time status you can have on the PGA Tour. You’re likely only getting in 15-20 events at best. However, the guy who finishes No. 1 in the regular season standings is fully exempt from the reshuffle and gets in pretty much any event he choses that are not majors or World Golf Championships. That’s a MASSIVE advantage to have as a rookie, where the name of the game is making the most of limited opportunity.
The rest of the standings for both The Finals and regular season goes in descending order in terms of priority ranking to get into tournaments. For example, the fourth place regular season finisher (and finals) will have better PGA Tour status than the 5th place finisher and so on, if that makes sense.
Anyway, all that complicated jargon aside, let’s get to the good stuff. All times are CT.
Tupelo native and Mizzou alum Hayden Buckley teed off at 12:36 today and goes off at 7:26 tomorrow. Buckley is so close to a PGA Tour card he can taste it. He sits 12th in The Finals standings thanks to a T-7 finish two weeks ago in Boise. He missed the cut last week. I can’t figure out the exact math, but essentially, a made cut would virtually guarantee he gets a PGA Tour card. As of this writing, he sits 5-under thru 13 holes and one back of the early lead. That’s a hell of start for what we all hope is a life-changing week. Buckley is a fantastic story. This time a year ago, he didn’t even have full Korn Ferry status. A win in Tampa in February — after getting in as an alternate the morning of as the last man in the field — changed all of that. He nearly earned his card in the regular season ( held a Sunday lead finished T-2 at the penultimate event in Utah in which a win would’ve locked it up) but finished 32nd in the points. Three days from now, he could go from walk-on at Missouri that both in-state schools rejected to a PGA Tour rookie. Just awesome stuff.
Fulton native and Mississippi State alum Chad Ramey shot an opening round 75 and tees off at 14:48 tomorrow. The 75 is Ramey’s worst round in over a calendar year. Already a graduate by way of finishing third on the points list in the regular season via a win, 37 of 40 made cuts and 10 top 10 finishes, this man is an absolute machine. He’s made 25 made cuts in a row. It’s been over a calendar year since he entered a professional golf tournament and did not see the weekend. The guy will make waves on the PGA Tour next year.
Olive Branch native and Ole Miss alum Braden Thornberry shot an opening round 73 and tees off at 1:36 tomorrow. Thornberry sits in 72nd place as of this writing. He basically needs a top-five finish this week or he’s going back to the Korn Ferry Tour next year. He finished 57th in the regular season standings. While it may seem frustrating, this isn’t the worst place in the world to be. He’s young and has full Korn Ferry status next season because he qualified for The Finals. Professional golf is hard. It takes time to break through. He will be just fine.
Hattiesburg native and Alabama alum Davis Riley appears to have taken the week off. I don’t blame him. There isn’t much he could do other than cash a check. Riley won twice in 2020 before the shutdown and the wraparound season and has basically been a certainty to be PGA Tour bound for 18 months now. He finished 7th in the regular season standings and has had a remarkably quick ascent in professional golf. Riley is a star in the making. Remember his name.
Brandon native and Ole Miss alum Jonathan Randolph finished outside the top 75 in the Korn Ferry Tour standings and did not qualify for The Finals. It is presumably back to one of the stages (I am guessing second or final stage) of Korn Ferry Tour qualifying school. To be frank, this is a tough place to be in professional golf. A handful of days this fall will determine if he has any major professional status at all.
Ally Ewing represents U.S. in the Solheim Cup.
Fulton native Ally Ewing is representing the United States playing in her second Solheim Cup, the equivalent of the Ryder Cup. Ewing is a winner on the LPGA Tour this year and is the 22nd-ranked player in the world. Pretty neat stuff. The action kicks off on Friday.
On the horizon:
We are curbing Mailbag Friday for the week to do a massive Ole Miss/SEC preview tomorrow. Greg and I will make picks as well.
Football newsletter tomorrow
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That is all from me today. Thanks for being a loyal subscriber. Send to your friends and tell them to join in on the fun. Back with more tomorrow.