In anticipation of tomorrow's matchup against Mississippi State, we asked Rasputin, our staff soothsayer and a seemingly ageless Russian immigrant, to offer his prediction. Ol' Raz particularly enjoys Little Rock games because they allow him to renew the special "friendship" with Sweet Connie Hamzy that dates back to his stint as a roadie for Black Oak Arkansas in the late 70s. At any rate, although this week he's mainly been preoccupied with stashing bottles of vodka all over the War Memorial golf course for maximum tailgating efficiency, the following prognostication arrived at our offices via homing pigeon right on time this morning:
Little Rock!
Capital city and home to many Markham miracles,
Thoughts of Jones-to-Birmingham and Dick-to-Crawford never fail to make me wax lyrical.
How I love communing with fellow fans on your public golf course,
And the charms of your native daughter Connie...well, there is no more powerful force.
But aside from the fun there is a game to be won
and if the Hogs overlook the Dogs then all progress is undone.
Can Bobby's boys focus on the task at hand?
Or are they dreaming of battling Tigers in that strange foreign land?
I have gazed into the future and this I behold:
A sluggish start will have fans fearing a lapse back to the days of old.
But eventually our heroes in red will seize control
And a long TD catch by Cobi Hamilton will kickstart this roll.
When the moment arises our defense will bend but not break,
In the 2nd quarter Dennis Johnson will suddenly wake,
And in the 4th Brandon Mitchell will enjoy a piece of the cake,
So boldly this prediction will I make:
Petrino's battle-tested gladiators: 41
The road-weary men of Mullen: 21
Final thought: if you see the man pictured above headed toward your tailgate festivities tomorrow we suggest immediately running in the opposite direction with all due haste - he is erratic, brilliant and often dangerous. With that in mind, please share your own thoughts and predictions in the comments section.