Currently at the Gillom Sports Center for Ole Miss volleyball’s first full scrimmage of the fall I figured it would be a good time to get y’all up to date on some news and notes from around the area.First off, high school football is finally underway and all three area teams did not disappoint in their respective season openers: Water Valley defeated Bruce 13-7 in overtime, Lafayette rolled Cleveland 48-12 on the road and Oxford cruised past Grenada at home 41-12.
Also, be sure to check out our 2010 Football Tab. Click the picture on the right to open the pdf version of what appeared in Friday’s EAGLE. In the tab are plenty of features regarding WVHS, LHS, OHS and the Ole Miss football team. Former Water Valley head coach Gary Drewrey also has a column in the tab.
TIG IS BACK, SORT OF: Former Mr. Mississippi and blue chip football recruit Darius ‘Tig’ Barksdale is expected to be playing at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Sept. 4. The only tweak, however, is that he’ll be on the Jacksonville State sideline instead of Ole Miss’. According to the school’s website, Barksdale has enrolled in the university and has begun practicing. Barksdale was dismissed from Ole Miss’ team prior to the season.
MOTT ERA BEGINS WITH WIN: First-year head coach Matthew Mott got his tenure as Ole Miss coach off to a good start Friday night with a 1-0 victory over Middle Tennessee State University at home. Dylan Jordan’s header at the 70:59-mark of the match proved to be the difference for Ole Miss. Goalkeeper Alley Ronaldi made four saves to secure her 11th career shutout.
RANKING THE REBELS: In the first edition of the Associated Press Top 25 College Football Poll, Ole Miss received exactly one vote. Wade Denniston of the Logan (Utah) Herald-Journal voted the Rebels the No. 20 team in the nation, ahead of West Virginia, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Central Michigan and Oklahoma. The Sooners’ 25th-place vote was their lowest. (In case you were curious, Oklahoma opens the season ranked No. 7 in the AP Poll…).
MINGLING WITH REBELS: Speaking of the Rebels, Ole Miss will hold its annual Meet the Rebels in The Grove today beginning at noon. The
squad’s second full scrimmage of the fall is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., with the team taking the field to begin warmups at 5:20 p.m. According to Weather.com, the high in Oxford today will be 92 with a 40-percent chance of precipitation beginning at approximately 5 p.m. (August 21, 2010)
