Commentary: Big talk from Ole Miss before facing Alabama

See you in the briar patch, Br’er Bo!

By Hunter Ford

Ole Miss quarterback Bo Wallace must have lost his mind when he said Ole Miss has better receivers than Texas A&M. He must have really been far down the rabbit hole when he singled out the Aggies’ power-forward-like star Mike Evans.

Here are some of BoBo’s choice remarks:

“I think we have better receivers than A&M,” the soon to be disappointed Rebel/Black Bear said. “They want to talk about Mike Evans being so good, but we have Donte (Moncrief) and I think Laquon (Treadwell) is going to be that way. We have better players on the outside than A&M does.”

Well, Bojangles, the reason Evans gets talked about is because he is freak of nature who burned Alabama for 279 yards on seven catches. Part of that came from his height advantage, but he has plenty of athleticism, and possibly the best-ever college quarterback throwing to him. Unless the Tide has a BCS rematch with the Aggies, don’t expect to see that sort of thing again this season.

Bo the Black Bear even dissed the Tide secondary.

“I wouldn’t say drop off,” he said, just before explaining why the Tide has had a drop-off in secondary play. “But when you have first-round corners every year, I don’t know if they (this year’s Tide CBs) are first-round corners.”

Nick Saban probably wouldn’t disagree. Saban has nearly had a stroke several times this year trying to get his defensive backs to stay consistent and play with proper technique. Now, Saban can pin up some of Bo Boy’s comments, right next to the “Never Again” sign in the locker room.

To be fair, Wallace didn’t exactly make a Broadway Joe-type prediction to win the game. Bo said it would be a “close game,” and added he thought his team would score on Alabama and can score on “anybody.”

In Saban’s press conference Monday, the Tide coach said solid football has three components—the physical, the mental, and technique. Part of the mental element is not giving your opponent bulletin board material. Contrast what Bo Reb said with AJ McCarron’s recent remarks.

McCarron, when asked about the Ole Miss defense, said this:

“They’re really good. Really good team,” McCarron said, shortly before leaving to polish his championship ring collection. “So, it’s going to be a challenge for us, it really is. We’re going to have to step up, meet the challenge, and get ready to play.”

Remember the old stories about Br’er Rabbit? When Br’er Rabbit got caught by Br’er Fox and Br’er Bear, Br’er Rabbit begged them not to throw him in the briar patch. When they did, Br’er Rabbit got exactly what he wanted. Rabbits are perfectly comfortable hiding in the briar patch. Bears are at a disadvantage. And Bo has just thrown himself and his teammates into a pretty thick one. I’m betting Alabama’s cornerbacks will come out of the briar patch just fine, while Br’er Bo and the rest of the Br’er Bears, end up in a tangled mess.

And guess what? Br’er Bo and friends still have to play Mike Evans and Johnny Football. They have a bulletin board too.