Rippee Writes: Tuesday Scoop
Baseball, golf, a football hire and more
Happy Tuesday to all. We have a podcast out recapping Ole Miss Baseball’s regular season with Collin Brister as well as its postseason outlook and much more. Check that out here or anywhere you get your podcasts. We’re back to our regularly scheduled programming this week after a couple of days off. I was working on a project we dropped yesterday.
There is a TON to dive into today. Let’s roll.
Ole Miss takes series at UGA, heads to Hoover
Ole Miss took two of three from Georgia over the weekend. I won’t spend a ton of time on it, as most of you have already turned the page to the postseason. Doug Nikhazy was magnificent on Thursday, the relentless offense won the Rebels a game on Friday and Ole Miss simply wasn’t good enough on the mound on Saturday to keep pace with the Bulldogs throwing their best arm. It was mission accomplished in Athens for this team. The Rebels now head to Hoover with a top-16 host bid wrapped up. It’s not a debate, so when you lose your mind later this evening in the event of a frustrating loss to Auburn, please do not text me asking if they will still host. The answer is yes. A couple very brief thoughts before we move on to Hoover.
I thought Derek Diamond showed some toughness in his outing on Friday night. He wasn’t spectacular, and yes, you’d like to get a little more out of him, but when pushed to the brink, Diamond didn’t implode. That, to me is a good sign. There were multiple opportunities for the right-hander to surrender 4-6 runs to Georgia in the early innings and he was able to get off the field each time. That’s something that’s plagued him all year. It wasn’t his best stuff. The velocity was down and he looked like he struggled with location, but yet still managed to turn in a productive outing. That’s important.
Tim Elko is your everyday DH in the postseason. I never thought I would type that, but here we are. It is a credit to him and the medical staff that he is able to do this. He hit a huge home run Friday night and looks completely healthy from a swing standpoint, and runs decent enough to survive. What a remarkable story.
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Rebels face off with Auburn Tuesday night
Ole Miss will cap off day one in Hoover with a game against Auburn. The time is TBA because an SEC Tournament that doesn't get behind schedule isn’t a real SEC Tournament. My guess is that it starts around 8 p.m.
Mike Bianco elected to go with Doug Nikhazy on short rest to face the Tigers in this single-elimination game. Many people disagreed with the decision. On the surface, I do not mind it, but from the standpoint of the ripple effect down the road, I think it is a little alarming. I’ll explain why in a second. But first, let’s think about what Ole Miss needs to do in Hoover this week.
Sitting at 18-12 with an RPI at 15, anything less than three wins this week doesn’t help the Rebels a ton. I think it will take 21 total SEC wins for this team to have a real gripe if it is snubbed from a top-eight national seed. If Ole Miss gets by Auburn tonight, it will play Vanderbilt on Wednesday. Given Tim Corbin’s history in Hoover, I do not believe he will start Kumar Rocker in the game, which means Ole Miss will face a bullpen or midweek arm.
If you’re asking me what I would do pitching-wise, I would try to beat Auburn tonight by starting Jackson Kimbrell (or someone else) and hold Nikhazy for Vanderbilt. Assuming the Rebels beat Auburn, you have to feel pretty confident about their chances against a midweek version of Vanderbilt with Nikhazy on the hill. That’s two wins and now you have two shots to win a third game because of the tournament going to double elimination after Tuesday. But, with that said, Auburn is going with ace Jack Owen tonight, so I don’t really have an issue with Nikhazy pitching on Tuesday. I don’t think the short rest thing is a huge deal and he needed to throw before the regional anyway. BUT, there’s a catch to this, in my opinion.
Like I said, on the surface, I have no problem with Nikhazy pitching tonight. But, as an Ole Miss fan, you should be worried about what that says about Bianco’s headspace. Bianco most always starts his best pitcher to open the SEC Tournament because, well, that’s just the way he’s always done things and will do things. You know what else falls into that category? Starting his ace in game one of a regional no matter the opponent.
I won’t mince words here: if Mike Bianco elects to throw Nikhazy against the No. 4 seed in a home regional it will be a completely unforgivable decision that should immediately impact how people in positions of power view his future with the program. Ole Miss has an elite offense. It’s going to demolish any mid or low-major pitching staff. Why on earth, given the injuries this team has faced and its rotation issues behind Nikhazy, would you throw him in a game against an inferior opponent in which you feel almost certain Ole Miss will score at least eight runs? If Derek Diamond or Drew McDaniel can’t beat a No. 4 seed like Southern or Wright State, do you think there’s any shot they’re beating No. 2 or No. 3 seed the next day? Pitching Nikhazy against a No. 4 seed is like opening a $200 bottle of liquor for your redneck cousin who walked into the house party with a case of Busch Light. There’s probably a way better analogy to be had but it’s 6 a.m. as of this writing. You get the point. It’s completely nonsensical and actively decreases your team’s chances of making it through a regional. Ole Miss has to go 2-0 in order to win its regional. It simply does not have the pitching depth to feel good about climbing through the loser’s bracket.
Keep an eye on this storyline as the week progresses. It is the most consequential managerial decision remaining in this season that's seen a pair of bad ones directly cost this team from already being a national seed.
Phil wins PGA at age 50
The final round of Sunday's PGA Championship was as good as you could have possibly hoped for: a legend in the sport trying to fend off the biggest alpha in the game today. I don't really care what the Official World Golf Rankings say, when healthy, Brooks Koepka is the best player on this planet. And Phil outplayed him on the course and in the mental battle as well. Mickelson was almost unnaturally stoic and easygoing throughout the day. He made it a point to give a thumbs up to the fans as often as possible as if he was playing some charity deal with some side action going on simultaneously. I don't believe this was by accident. I think the crowd got to Koepka.
The first six holes were as dramatic of a stretch as you'll see on the highest stage. Huge swings, few pars and punches traded. Mickelson having one par through the first seven holes with a holed out bunker shot was almost too perfect. The back nine wasn't a thing of beauty but he hit enough quality golf shots to hold off the best player in the world and a handful of other worthy challengers. Who would have thought three years ago we'd get another major from both Tiger and Phil. The scene around the 18th green on Sunday was a fitting ending to a historic day as the fans engulfed the players on the walk up to the putting surface-- organized chaos, which can aptly describe Phil's playing style too. Good for Phil. Now go do yourself a favor and parse through his tweet barrage while half drunk on the flight home afterward.
The 16 oz prime strip for $10 deal is still rolling but you can now get a second one for $15 bucks if you want more than one. Also, you get $2 off any fish in the freezer. Thanks for subscribing and enjoy. Go by LBs. They’re the best.
The Ole Miss Women's Golf team makes history
The Rebels are into the match play (final eight teams) at the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. Ole Miss fired 288 (-4) to capture the four seed. They take on Texas today in the quarterfinals.
The Ortega brothers and their unlikely friend
We published a long form story at Rippee Writes yesterday that I'd been working on for a couple weeks. You might remember the Ortega brothers and their improbable fandom with Ole Miss baseball beginning on YouTube and grown when they traveled across the country to watch a game at Swayze Field in 2019. It began a bond with Jim Flanagan, a 69-year-old man from Clinton, who stumbled across the boys unknowingly sitting in his season ticket seats that night. They've kept up through the years and forged quite the bond over Ole Miss baseball. The pandemic took its toll on all of them, but they were reunited for the Vanderbilt series a couple of weeks ago.
I had the pleasure of meeting up with them that weekend. They're great people with a cool story. It was good to reconnect.
The All-SEC Teams were announced on Monday
Here’s where Ole Miss showed up on the lists.
You can check out the full list of teams and who made them, here.
Ole Miss hires offensive line coach
The Rebels made a small ripple in the national news last month when Lane Kiffin parted ways with offensive line coach Randy Clements two days after spring practice ended. As head scratching as the timing may have been, it didn’t appear to be anything more than some in-house personnel strife and Kiffin deciding to go in a different direction. His replacement was announced on on Monday in Rob Thornton, who spent last season as Gardner Webb’s offensive line coach and run game coordinator. Thornton won a national title at Alabama as a graduate assistant in 2017.
On the horizon
Back to a normal newsletter schedule the rest of the week with golf, baseball, hoops and whatever else pops up
At least one more podcast before Collin and I do a selection Monday show, but I am not sure when or who will be on it yet
That’s 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.