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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Nutt Weekly Press Conference
11/17/2008 | Football
Walker Agnew, ASB Chief of Staff
Last Christmas, our student government got together with LSU's student government and realized that this was a great rivalry. We wanted to make sure to keep it going and help promote it. Last March, there was a campaign to name the rivalry through text messaging and on-line submission. We received all kinds of serious suggestions with a couple of funny ones in there. We had a huge list that we narrowed down to 45 names by about early April. We narrowed down those 45 to 15 suggestions. We took those 15 suggestions to a vote in both school's student body senates. We got those 15 down to five names: The Battle for the Golden Magnolia, The Dual for the Delta, The Dual Under the Oaks, The Magnolia Bowl and The Magnolia Classic. From those five names, we had voting on each campus from late-April to early-May. From the voting that we did at both schools, we determined that The Magnolia Bowl would be the official name.
Graham Purcell, ASB Director of Student Services
This is something the students are really excited about. We've worked hand and hand with Tim Walsh over in the Ole Miss Alumni Association. We've discussed this with Pete Boone and the UMAA foundation. I think the main purpose of this is to enhance the rivalry between Ole Miss and LSU.
Some people questioned why we came up with magnolia. Interestingly enough, both of our state flowers are magnolias, so it made sense. The trophy is made of magnolia wood. The logo appears on a plaque on the front. The scores are going to be listed on the trophy as well.
About 3,000 students voted at both schools. They had a massive text-messaging campaign, where we had a bigger on-line based voting campaign.
Houston Nutt
Opening Statement
I'm looking forward to this week. This is a very good football team. This will be my 11th time, as a head coach, going against LSU. They always look the same to me good in a uniform. Whether it is their defensive line, offensive line, wide receivers, backs, whatever position, they fill out their uniforms. They've got some awfully good football players. We've got to be physical in a game like this and everybody has to have their best week of practice.
Q: How did your team come out of the ULM game health-wise?
A: Pretty good. The first group didn't play that much, actually, so I expect everybody to be ready to go. There are a few bumps and bruises but nothing real serious.
Q: Do you see similarities between your team and LSU?
A: We do have a lot of the same traits. These guys are defending National Champions. There are times when they just look very good. They don't give up very much at all. There have been a couple of games, the Florida and Georgia game, where the other teams were just hot. They're so athletic they can run, they're big and they're physical. Their offensive line does an excellent job, they come off the line with a great pad level. Their backs are tough, very strong.
Q: What did you think about LSU's comeback against Troy?
A: They got down. It starts with their defense. They get turnovers and set their offense up with good field position. They physically wore Troy down and did a good job of running the football. They hit a couple of good play-action passes. As far as what their mindset is, I don't know. I just know what to expect. I've been going against them a long time. I know they type of atmosphere that is going to be there. We've just got to get ready for a physical ball game. It's always tough. We've just got to get ready to go.
Q: Is trying to improve your bowl standing motivation for your team?
A: It needs to be, that's what we talked about Sunday. We got off to a very good start on Sunday. I was proud of the way they played last week, but you jump right back in into the SEC. We've got to be very hungry and buckle both chin straps and get ready to go.
Q: What do you take from your win with Arkansas over LSU last year?
A: That seems like such a long time ago. You understand what you're facing and the type of athletes they have. They're big, strong and fast. Their special teams will scare you to death with (Trindon) Holliday back there. You've got to do an excellent job of covering or it could get out of hand at anytime because they are so athletic. I'm more concerned about our guys and how we approach things and the way you practice. The last three weeks our guys have done a good job of that. I'm very anxious and hopeful that they will continue to do that and that our seniors will continue to lead this team.
Q: Did your players put the ULM win behind them?
A: Absolutely. That's the way we're supposed to play out of conference. That's the way you're supposed to go attack somebody and play a complete ball game. It's nothing to be cocky about; it's just the way it should be. That's the habit you want to form. Now that we go back into conference play, we're playing a team that has the championship trophy and has been in the SEC title game numerous times. We're facing a team with a lot of tradition.
Q: What do you look for on your kickoff coverage team?
A: I think the biggest thing is the attitude that, Put me in coach, I'll go cover the kick.' You've got be very fast and physical. You have to be a good tackler. Everyone has a job to do, starting with the kicker. Everybody does their job, if not, things can get out of hand because that real estate is so valuable. It's going to be very important this week because they have one of the best return men in the SEC in Holliday.
Q: Any aspect of the ULM game that surprised you?
A: I knew that we were going to play well because of how we practiced, but I was still surprised how early we jumped on them and how the scoring went, especially in the first half.
Q: Can one game translate to the other?
A: What you are hoping to take from last week is the consistency of few penalties, no turnovers, good fundamentals and playing fast with good intensity. You have to be able to take those traits into a hostile environment or it is going to be a long day.
Q: Talk about the preseason meeting when you told the underclassmen to promise the seniors a bowl game.
A: The very first meeting I asked our players how many had experienced a bowl game, and not one guy could raise their hand. So I said that our first goal was to take these seniors to a bowl game, and I asked these underclassmen to help them to reach that goal. They have had some tough times without much success, so I wanted them to follow these seniors. I wanted to have the seniors take hold of this team and take ownership. I wanted everybody on this team to give their all and dedicate this season to the seniors to help them get to a bowl because if they did that, that means that they would be going with them.
Q: How important is it to increase your team's bowl standing and win two more games?
A: We talked about that. We felt like Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Wake Forestthose are a few games that we gift wrapped. We gave away some charitable gifts. When we don't turnover, we have a chance to win the ballgame. We talked about November is when they remember, so we have to be hungry and excited to play in one of the best environments in college football. We are very excited about it.
Q: LSU is 7-3, and everyone is mad. Do you know what it feels like to have a winning team and the fans are mad?
A: Yes, I do. When you have high expectations and everybody expects you to win big, especially since LSU won the national title, they just assume that they are going right back to Atlanta. This is the toughest league in America. Each and every Saturday, I don't care if it is Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Ole Miss or South Carolina, you have to buckle up and play your best football. I know that feeling that they are going through. Again, we have so much to worry about here, and you have to have a great concentration this week and get better.
Q: What did you think of Jevan Snead's game on Saturday?
A: I thought that he threw the deep ball. We hadn't hit a fade in a long time, so I was really proud of that ball. We practiced that for a long time. I thought he stepped up under pressure and threw a bullet to Andrew Harris over the middle. We didn't throw the ball that much since we didn't have to, but the fullback in the flat, he had missed that in the previous weeks and it was there. There were some improvements, and there are still some balls, like Shay Hodge wide open in the post, that Jevan wanted to hit. He tried to guide that in there, and he was so wide open that he couldn't believe it. We can all get better. That's the thing about this game, our players feel that they can get better. That's a good thing, especially when you win with that margin.
Q: Is Shay Hodge OK? What is Jason Cook's status?
A: Yes. He's OK. He had a heel bruise and had a couple of things bother him, but he looked real good Sunday. Jason Cook was at full speed from a concussion, and I'm excited to have him back. Andy Hartmann did a good job stepping in for him, but we will have Jason ready to fill in for him.
