Dak Prescott May Drive Ole Miss Fans off the Ledge in 2015

The word transcendent by definition means being beyond comprehension or extending or lying beyond the limits of ordinary experience.

The State of Mississippi has seen its fair share of “transcendent” personalities that caused immense buzz and conversation.

From Billy Brewer to Jackie Sherrill, from Tommy Tuberville to Dan Mullen and even players like Eli Manning, Fred Smoot or Deuce McAllister and Dontae Jones.

The Magnolia State has seen its fair share of sports personalities that move the needle, create conversation and cause chaos, but no one has moved the needle like Mississippi State’s Dak Prescott.

Back last summer I did a piece titled, “Forty Five Years Later – Dak Prescott Carries the World on his Shoulders.”

As expected I took a ton of criticism about the article because I compared Prescott to Archie Manning, talked about his ceiling as a player and a person and called him arguably the greatest player this state had seen in almost half a century.

"“IDIOT, moron, Prescott threw only 10-touchdowns and had seven interceptions! Could you be more of a homer?” These were the typical responses I got, calling Prescott a “running back playing quarterback” A three star recruit nobody wanted except Dan Mullet."

4,435-total yards, 42-touchdowns, 10-wins and a year later Prescott has taken the college football world by storm and his announcement earlier this week that he will return for his senior year means he will continue to be a “face man” for college football for another year, he will be the top quarterback in the Southeastern Conference heading into the season and it means he very well could drive Ole Miss fans off the ledge in 2015.

When you think about those personalities that have caused the most buzz in this state over time, there was a reason.  Tuberville, Brewer, Sherrill and Mullen all have brash personalities and didn’t or don’t mind taking shots at the other side which causes controversy.

Deuce McAllister grew up in Morton, MS and it was all but thought he would be a Bulldog, then became a Rebel.  Eli Manning by the name alone created buzz and dirt slinging and Fred Smoot was famous for his interviews and cockiness.

But Dak Prescott has created more buzz and dirt slinging than anyone before him and he’s never said one thing.

The biggest reason is Mississippi State has never had a player like Prescott to identify with, especially at quarterback and Ole Miss Fans feel it’s their God given right for them and them alone to be the ones that have the high profile players.

How dare Mississippi State even think they could have such a player! It’s Starkskanksville, or whatever other made up stupid derogatory word Ole Miss Fans can come up with to bash Mississippi State University.

So after Bo Wallace literally dropped the Egg Bowl trophy in 2013, Ole Miss fans started to try and tear Prescott down beginning last summer, as it only intensified .

Ole Miss fans, who coined the term “ Good Bo, Bad Bo” decided they would nitpick, monitor and dissect every move Prescott made and even started calling him Good Dak, Bad Dak and it became a weekly conversation amongst themselves.

For a fan base that always screams Mississippi State is “little brother” and they are “obsessed”, Ole Miss fans became and are still as about obsessed as anyone could be, with Number -15 in maroon and they want to see him fail and fail miserably.

And why, for what reason?  Dak Prescott has never said anything out of the way, made any gesture towards their fan base or even as much as sent out an underlying tweet.  It’s simply because he wears maroon and this is tied into the deep seeded hatred that comes with some people, in the Egg Bowl rivalry.

If you want more proof that Prescott has driven Ole Miss Fans insane, look no further than the 2014 Egg Bowl.  Sure Ole Miss won, it’s your trophy for now, so enjoy it.  But that wasn’t enough – as a fan base that supposedly prides itself on class, fashion and being better than you, they decided to take a moment from the game, that should have been a penalty and put it on a pedestal, as basically another trophy.

Late in the fourth quarter of the Egg Bowl, Prescott took off up the middle on a run, the whistle was blown and as players are slowing down, realizing it’s a dead play, Ole Miss safety Trae Elston, who’s running full speed, cuts Prescott’s legs out from under him and it was a vicious fall for Prescott.

Elston, who is known for dirty hits and has been thrown out of games before, should have been flagged for this play, but wasn’t.  It was a play that Prescott could have had a leg broken, his neck hurt or more.

It’s the type of play that you say, “I’m glad the player’s ok” or that’s what you should say.  But not Ole Miss fans as they took the play and created Internet meme’s, made jokes and glorified the moment.

It truly was a classless act by a fan base that would burn the internet down if the roles were reversed.

But – again it all revolves around their fan bases obsession with seeing Prescott fail.

It’s one thing to make fun of a fumble, a loss or something to that effect, but of this?

What in the world is funny about that photo?  It would almost be like if someone made fun of an Ole Miss player ….. wait that happened this year and Auburn would have been burned to the ground by Ole Miss if we lived in the 17th century.

Nonetheless, Ole Miss fans continue to think this is funny as almost daily, if you search the internets you find things like this.

or people making comments like this.

And it all stems from the level of fandom that exists in the Egg Bowl rivalry.  It’s simply fandom over objectivity at its best.

And just this week, once Prescott announced he was coming back, as our very own Justin Strawn reported, it didn’t take Ole Miss fans long to start chiming in on how Prescott coming back was a mistake, he should bolt for the NFL as his stock will plummet in 2015. 

I can honestly say in all my years here in this state, nobody has captivated football fans like Dak Prescott.

For Mississippi State, he is the face of the program and he is everything you would ever want in a football player and student athlete.

For Ole Miss fans, he is a threat, he takes the attention away from their team and his return means they have to deal with another year of Number-15 out in front of anything they have to offer.

So they will continue to tear him down and all cost, trying to discredit any and all that he does because he has gotten under their skin that much.  So much that they would celebrate potential injuries, illegal plays and more.

Dak Prescott is a beautiful thing for Mississippi State – but for Ole Miss fans, they better put their seat belts on because he could cause a majority to drive off the ledge in 2015.