The University of Alabama chose Mike Shula over fellow Tide alumnus Sylvester Croom in May 2003. In the latter throws of that year, Croom traded in his crimson for not only a deeper shade of red but of appreciation.
The two coaches will meet Saturday with very different goals in mind: Shula to remain undefeated and to hope for a chance to play for a national title; Croom to earn a win for his young program to build on, one similar to last year’s upset over Florida.
“This is an exciting challenge for us,” Croom said. “They are an excellent football team, and our players are looking forward to see how we measure up.”
Croom’s resume, which includes 10 years experience in the collegiate ranks along with 13 years experience in the National Football League, was considered by most to be the most extensive of all the candidates Alabama interviewed for the position.
However, in a state known for its turbulent racial history, the school snubbed Croom, 49 at the time, and went with the younger Shula. Shula had been a coordinator at the NFL level, like Croom but at only 37-years-old lacked the resume to best Croom in a credentials contest.
“I know Mike Shula, but Mike Shula’s resume shouldn’t even be in the same room with Sylvester Croom’s,” John Mitchell, a former Tide player, said.
Croom handled the disappointment with poise, however, and found a coaching home a short drive from Tuscaloosa in Starkville.
Though Mississippi’s racial history has been at least as turbulent as Alabama’s, university officials expressed a color-blind view to returning MSU football to the level of success it had reaching in the late 1990’s under former Bulldog head coach Jackie Sherrill.
“We went after the best football coach, and we’re confident we found that individual in Sylvester Croom,” athletic director Larry Templeton said when Croom was hired.
Croom has been mired in the tough struggle of rebuilding, going 3-8 in his opening campaign and having registered only two victories in eight games so far this season. NCAA sanctions passed along to Croom from the previous coaching staff have cut scholarships and made the process more difficult.
Saturday’s meeting will be the second between Croom and Shula, their first in Starkville. ‘Bama won last year’s meeting 30-14 in Tuscaloosa.
“We’ve got a lot a motivation going into this game,” senior center Chris McNeil said. “At the beginning of the year we set aside goals‹¨win the SEC Championship, go to a bowl game, beat Alabama and beat Ole Miss. So we’ve still got a chance to accomplish two of those.”
McNeil’s chances for realizing those goals will fall squarely in the hands of redshirt freshman quarterback Mike Henig, who is slated for his first start of his collegiate career on Saturday versus the third-ranked defense in the nation. Henig has come into four games this in relief of two-year starter Omarr Conner, including an extended stint of duty in last weekend’s loss to Kentucky when Croom benched Conner in the first quarter.
“(Starting) is something I’ve dreamed about all my life,” Henig said, “especially playing Alabama.”
Henig is a Montgomery, Ala., native in his second year with Croom and the Bulldog staff in Starkville. However, his disdain for the Tide started much, much earlier, he said, with a childhood love of the Auburn Tigers, his father’s alma mater.
“In Alabama you’re either for Alabama or Auburn. I used to bleed orange and blue (for Auburn), but now I’m straight maroon. I have no love (for the Tide),” Henig said. “I just hope I can show my family and the Mississippi State fans what I can do.”
The game will be the last chance for some seniors like McNeil and all-SEC running back Jerious Norwood to prove themselves in front of a national audience. The game will be televised on CBS at 2:30 p.m.
“It’s all about personal pride,” McNeil said. “You’re always going to want to win this one for coach (Croom), but I’d kind of like to win this one for myself.”
Publicly, Croom has downplayed the personal importance this game holds for him.
However, according to Henig, Croom has employed some interesting motivational techniques, including naming all players from Alabama as captains.
“He has no love there, so he’s kind of built it up for everybody,” Henig said. “It’s personal, and it’s going to be a rivalry game. It’s Alabama.”
The contest will be just days after the 25th anniversary of the Bulldogs’ 6-3 victory over top-ranked Alabama at Memorial Stadium in Jackson. The Dawgs were 20-point underdogs then. They are 17-point underdogs this week.
“I remember two really good teams playing a really physical, hard-fought game,” said Croom, who was an Alabama assistant under Bear Bryant during State’s legendary 6-3 win. “Several players on that defense State had ended up being outstanding NFL players. The physicalness of that game on both sides was outstanding. But (that game) doesn’t have an effect on the game we’re playing this week.”
With all the subplots, rivalry reveille and personal motivations that are encircling this contest, it is important to remember that it will be decided on the field in a hard fought contest.
“This is going to be a battle,” McNeil said. “You’re going to have to fight your butt off every play. It’s going to be a bloodfest.”