SDS Mailbag: An All-SEC QB baseball team, best SEC cities to live in, Super Regional predictions, and more
I’m heading to a wedding in Park City, Utah, in a couple of weeks, and it’s supposed to take place outside at one of the many mountain resorts in the area. However, when I checked my friend’s Instagram story the other day, it was snowing. In June.
Don’t get me wrong, I love snow. I lived in Park City for 4 years and took full advantage of all the skiing opportunities. But snow in June is ridiculous. The resorts usually close in late April or early May, so there’s nothing you can really do with June snow.
If it is still snowing the week of the wedding, I think I’m fully justified in skipping the ceremony and only going to the indoor reception afterward.
Anyway, we’ll see if it ends up being nice in Park City in a couple of weeks or if I need to pack the old ski jacket. Here are your questions for this week’s Mailbag:
@ChazPhillipsIV:
Create a baseball lineup with a starter and a closer using only SEC quarterbacks.
The SEC has some great athletes at the quarterback position, and honestly, it would be pretty interesting to see how a team of them fared on the baseball diamond. Here’s how I’d fill out the lineup card:
- C: Joe Burrow, LSU — Someone needs to catch, and Burrow is a tough guy who will do whatever it takes to help his team win.
- 1B: Jarrett Guarantano, Tennessee — He’s tall and athletic (No. 1 dual-threat QB in his class, remember). A good fit at first.
- 2B: Jake Bentley, South Carolina — I’d plug Bentley in here and not have to worry about this spot at all.
- SS: Kelly Bryant, Mizzou — He’s quick and has the arm to get the ball across the diamond in a hurry.
- 3B: Bo Nix, Auburn — The incoming freshman played baseball in high school. I’ll trust him to handle the hot corner.
- LF: Kellen Mond, Texas A&M — Just look at this outfield I put together. No one is running on these guys and not many balls are going to fall in for hits, either.
- CF: Terry Wilson, Kentucky — The fastest SEC quarterback will cover a lot of ground in center.
- RF: Feleipe Franks, Florida — The perfect combo of athleticism and arm strength to handle long throws to third base and home plate. Franks’ arm is so strong the Boston Red Sox actually drafted him this week — as a pitcher.
- SP: Jake Fromm, Georgia — He’s accurate. Might not have the strongest arm, but I see him as a Greg Maddux type.
- CL: Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama — He came in during the second half of the 2018 CFP title game and closed it out for the Tide. I trust him to do the same for this squad.
I’m not sure how well any of these guys can hit, but I definitely trust this defense and pitching to at least be competitive.
@Topper_Fan:
Will the SEC get 5 teams to Omaha for the College World Series?
The SEC has a record 6 teams in the Super Regional round of the NCAA Baseball Tournament, but since Arkansas and Ole Miss are playing in Fayetteville this weekend, only 5 SEC squads have a chance to advance to Omaha.
Other than Ole Miss, only Auburn doesn’t have the pleasure of hosting its regional. Instead, the Tigers will head to Chapel Hill to take on North Carolina. However, they went into Atlanta and knocked off No. 3 overall seed Georgia Tech, so they won’t be intimidated by UNC — the No. 14 overall seed.
I’m going to say no, the SEC will not get 5 teams into the College World Series. But I think they can get 4. I’ll pick Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi State and LSU — the 4 hosts — to advance to Omaha.
Once they get to the CWS, all bets are off, as home-field advantage won’t be in play. Whatever happens this weekend, it should be a lot of fun to watch!
@SChinni12:
What are the 5 SEC cities you’d most want to live in?
Wow, you’re really trying to get me in trouble with this one, but here we go …
- Nashville — It’s a big city, has pro sports teams, country music, hot chicken and great bars. Enough said.
- Columbia, Missouri — I lived here for 4 years in college, and it was awesome. Very underrated SEC city.
- Athens — Close to Atlanta, but has a smaller city vibe. Seems like a great place to live.
- Knoxville — Close to the mountains. I’ve been a couple of times and always enjoyed it.
- Oxford — Seems like a beautiful smaller town and it’s close to Memphis.
So there you have it. I can’t wait to get blasted in the comments for these rankings from the 9 SEC cities that missed the cut.
@Dobbe8:
After listening to the SDS Podcast create a signature cocktail for each SEC stadium, what would be your ideal football-watching mixed drink?
To be fair, I usually prefer beer on game days, but in the spirit of the question, I’ll go with a cocktail. It was my signature cocktail at my wedding reception, so I clearly really enjoy it.
It’s a bourbon smash, and here’s how you make it:
- Muddle lemon wedges (3 or 4), a few mint leaves and ¾ of an ounce of simple syrup in a cocktail shaker.
- Add 2 ounces of bourbon and fill the shaker with ice.
- Stir thoroughly.
- Fill a rocks glass with ice.
- Strain the drink into the glass.
- Garnish with a mint sprig.
- Enjoy.
A nice bourbon smash is a cool, refreshing drink and always goes down smooth on a hot summer day.
Have a question for next week’s Mailbag? Tweet at us using #SDSMailbag or email me at ASpencer@SaturdayDownSouth.com.
As a UT fan you are crazy if you think CoMo is better than Athens.If you want to have any journalistic integrity you should stop being so biased towards a crap school/town like Mizzou and CoMo.
Hmmm, almost sounds like you have some bias, too. Crazy how that works, right? It’s almost like different people have different opinions about things.
TrashCanGuy=OscarTheGrouch
He could have said it nicer but your bias shows almost every article. You mention Mizzu or one of their players on almost every article. Your responses usually show your level of fandom. How can you claim any objectivity when you respond, “Let me know when your program is relevant again”. That being said. This is an opinion piece so you shouldn’t be trashed for your opinion. I thought Franks should be at 1st but your reasoning was solid for RF.
All bias isn’t equal.
For one, it’s generally more appropriate in the comments than in an article (the question was a personal one, but I’m assuming its inclusion and the approach to answering it was up to the author’s discretion).
Also, VolTrashCanGuy (presumably) has bias against both of the towns, while you have a bias towards one and (presumably) against the other. So those are not equivalent biases. All else being equal, I’d trust the ranking of someone biased against both options over the ranking of someone with a strong bias towards one of them.
But it’s pretty clear that those types of reactions were anticipated and desired, so congrats.
VolTrashCanGuy might want to look up the Association of American Universities and what they represent. Then, see if the Univerdity of Tennessee and the University of Georgia are members; I’ll save you some time, they’re not…but Mizzouu and Washington University in St. Louis both are.
So is UF. But I believe the question is which city or town is he better place to live, not which school is better. Those are 2 different questions.
Don’t give trashcan any homework, he didn’t do too well at school
Mike, so is UF but I believe the question is which city or town is the better place to live, not which school is better. Those are 2 different questions.
Don’t give trashcan any homework, he didn’t do too well at school
Sorry for the duplicate
So….you didn’t do well with homework either…..or operating a computer.
Mike-Are you trying to say that Mizzou is a better school academically than UT or UGA? Because according to the rankings they aren’t. Also not sure what the Association of American Universities proves. It certainly doesn’t prove that the schools in the association are better than those that aren’t. No one would argue that Mizzou or UF are better academically than Notre Dame or Georgetown (two more schools not in the AAU)
One of these years Tennessee will beat Missouri again. Then you can relax a little more. I hope.
One of these decades Georgia will beat Alabama again. Then you can relax a little more. I hope.
I can understand why you don’t like coming to CoMo. In three games between UT and Mizzou in Columbia, it’s Missouri 89, UT 39. I can see how that might sour you on the whole place.
So that means MO has won two games and Tennessee has won one game. Yep, quite a difference.
I will never understand the disparity between UT fans in real life and on the internet. I work closely with UT, and the people I know are great.
But online, there’s this insane superiority complex in regards to your school, team, and town that is unmatched even by fans of places like Alabama and Clemson. It’s surreal. What happens to you all when you connect to wi-fi? It’s honestly confusing.
muttigerbball one fan from UT posts a stupid comment about your town and that makes all UT fans who post insane with a superiority complex. If that’s the case then you can say the same thing about all mizzou posters and every other teams posters. And no you haven’t seen a lot of UT fans writing posts like that on a lot of other articles either. I comment on a lot and read most and that just is not true. All teams fans have some knucklehead posters, just look at the UGA posters, they have waaayy more than any other team. I have never been to Columbia so have no idea if it is a sh!thole or a nice place. So I cant say and wont. So far trash can is the only UT fan to even post an opinion on the article. So lighten up.
Trashcan is very similar to the legion of Georgia knuckleheads, you are absolutely correct. All these idiots do is give the rest of the fanbase a bad reputation
Are you lost? What’s up with a reasonable and well articulated post. 10% of every fan base is embarrassing and a higher % seem to find the chat boards. Some come here to spout their nonsense (Urban Liar, Voltrash) while others come to read and interact with other fans and their viewpoints (Boxter & you). I think though that you are wrong about the Mizzu superiority complex. If the posters on this site are any indication than it would be an inferiority complex.
CO Jones – funny you say that as you and Joe Marks are the Florida idiots on here.
I didn’t even mention Knoxville being better or UT, so not sure where you got your “insane superiority complex” comment from. I said that Athens, GA (which I hate more than Mizzou) is a better town than CoMo. Don’t get your panties in a wad.
On a list of 5 towns, Adam lists 3 cities in Tennessee….and a Tennessee fan still b i t c h e s about it. (Memphis was listed as a pro for living in Oxford). Get a grip, TrashCan.
Im Sure Athens, GA is a really great town, and this list is subjective and entirely Adam’s opinion. (Maybe re-read the question that he was asked!)
Athens is really nice.
Probably nicer than CoMo, but it’s very subjective as you say.
Except Nashville is #1. That’s really the only inarguable point here.
That crap town usually comes in as top 25 top top places to live in a lot of business magazines. Cast of living, health care and a lot of top educational places besides Mizzou and one of the lowest crime rates in the country.and no I dont live there
Its a fly over state. Nothing more.
This is actually a Bama fan who comments a lot on Facebook too. I don’t want to say his name to protect his privacy but he works with my wife and is absolutely insane. He has been written up for writing comments on here before while at work but appears to still be at it. Crazy.
Hey Adam if you’re using a cocktail shaker then do as James Bond would: shaken not stirred. If you insist on stirring then build your drink in the glass and go at it.
BTW, Gainesville is a very nice college town as well
I said to use the shaker because most have a top you can put on it that serves as a strainer. That’s why it’s not a shaken drink.
Cool, so you just stirr inside the shaker and then strain into the glass. But you know you can still shake it with that strainer top right?
Right, but it’s not a shaken cocktail. Shaking it makes the first round of ice too much a part of the drink. It’s supposed to be stirred. I shouldn’t have called the thing a “shaker.” Maybe “mixer” would have been better.
To Adam: save a step and muddle your ice and all the ingredients together. There is no reason to throw out the lemons and the alcohol brings out the citrus flavor in your drink. The crushed ice keeps the drink colder also. Make your simple syrup with less water to counteract the water produced in muddling.
Darth never muddle with ice, just look up any cocktail recipe or talk to any bartender. The ice comes in after you muddle
The shaker was used to strain the muddled lemons.
The shaker is used to strain out the mint leaves, not the lemons. It was the signature drink at my wedding, maybe just trust that I know how to make it?
Adam, thanks for confirming my take on the fastest starting QB in the SEC. I saw a video of Wilson sprinting during a practice last year… he is really, really fast for a QB. I usually don’t bet… but I would probably take one on him being the fastest sprinter.
Love the journalistic concept of making a baseball team from SEC quarterbacks. Great group of athletes from top to bottom. A lot of football talent in this entire group. Can’t wait for football season to begin.
You’re welcome
The University of Florida’s official drink is also the official drink of the state of Florida. Simply put it’s the Florida lemonade. Real easy drink too. Cut a lemon in half, throw half away and squeeze the other half into your container of choice. Fill up the remaining volume in the container with white rum. Straw, fruit, or umbrella is all optional but honestly will only make refilling take more time.
From mid-October, or whenever it starts getting chilly and the leaves start changing, I generally go with rum mixed with apple cider (if I’m going for any sort of a mixed drink, and not beer). I’m still working on the exact right combination and adding a few things in, but it gets the job done and feels seasonally appropriate.
Early season, always just beer. But I’m more likely to get fancier with my tailgates, even with coffee liqueur (especially for early kicks) and such things as the season starts to progress into November. If I’m going to a game where it’s going to be 24 degrees at kickoff, I’m tailgating the right way, at least.
Use a spiced rum like Captains. Heat the cider with a cinnamon stick and serve. Excellent hot toddy that is quick and easy.
You understand Connor Noland is an actual starting pitcher in the SEC right? How is that not the obvious choice?
I’m sorry, but I think I missed the part where he won the starting job. I must have just dreamed the part where Chad Morris brought in not one, but two graduate transfer quarterbacks. No, the question didn’t specify starting quarterbacks, but based on the fact that every quarterback on the list was a starter, I think it’s pretty clear that’s the direction I went with it.
You might want to retract all that and reread his comment. Noland is a decent freshman pitcher, and pitched some where around 80 innings, 3.56 era, around seventy strikeouts. Last I looked Chad Morris doesn’t make decisions for ark pitching.
No where does it say starter but if you want to go there Connor has started more games than anyone on the current roster and wasn’t with the team in the spring to say otherwise. Just admit that your lazy and didn’t do your homework and move on.
Adam-
I generally enjoy reading your articles, but comments like these (to your readers) come across as too petty and immature. Just leave out the first two sentences of fake sincerity and get to your rebuttal.