Croom Feeling the Heat at Mississippi State

As Mississippi State prepares for No. 5 LSU, coach Sylvester Croom says one word has described the Bulldogs season so far: Frustration.
"Our players are frustrated, our coaches are, I am frustrated, and I think our fans are — matter of fact I have no doubt that our fans are frustrated and I understand that," Croom said.
MSU is putting forth the effort, playing Auburn to a 3-2 joust two weeks ago before stepping out of the SEC last week against Georgia Tech. "We all expected to be in a better situation than we are in right now. The only thing that I can say is that we had some awfully good things happen to us last year. We got some breaks last year. We are having some things go against us right now.
Still he is not about to throw in the towel with LSU on the horizon.
"Maybe this is what we need. I think the guys have got pride and I think they'll respond to the challenge."

P.S. LSU leads the SEC in both offense and defense.

LSU Starts at No. 6

The same week rapper Snoop Dogg declared his love for LSU, the USA Today Coaches poll placed them firmly in the mix for a second consecutive national title.
National champions LSU Tigers started the preseason in the top 10 for the second year in a row, with the nation's coaches predicting that only 5 times are better than they are. Time will tell if the coaches know what they are talking about, or if they are on the wacky tobaccky. Speaking of which, Snoop snuck in on a news conference by Miles and had a few words of encouragement. “I just wanted to give my love and support to coach Miles. I met him last night," he said. Miles, who stopped by Snoop Dogg's hotel the night after returning from a quick trip to Shreveport, said he’s become a fan of the Long Beach, Calif. native through his son, Ben.
“Ben Miles is all over Snoop’s stuff,” Miles said.
“I found every guy around him is a former coach or player, and he runs a league of youth football and provides opportunities for young people.
“I defend his music, and am much more a fan of the person.”
Of course, Snoop, a huge USC fan, will still be routing for the Trojans should the Tigers and USC meet on the road to the title. But the title is a long way off, let's just enjoy the preseason speculation.
The top 25 reads like an SEC and Big Ten gamebook.
Rank/Team/Total votes

1. Georgia 1,438

2. Southern California 1,430

3. Ohio State 1,392

4. Oklahoma 1,329

5. Florida 1,293

6. LSU 1,163

7. Missouri 1,143

8. West Virginia 1,008

9. Clemson 999

10. Texas 979

11. Auburn 888

12. Wisconsin 747

13. Kansas 714

14. Texas Tech 644

15. Virginia Tech 568

16. Arizona State 560

17. Brigham Young 547

18. Tennessee 506

19. Illinois 422

20. Oregon 399

21. South Florida 350

22. Penn State 313

23. Wake Forest 203

24. Michigan 112

25. Fresno State 91