Crooked Letter Sports

Mississippi annually has a presence in the Super Bowl, but never before quite like this Super Bowl Sunday when the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles play for the NFL Championship. Eight native-born Mississippians dot the rosters of the Chiefs and Eagles. That's more than any other state including much more populous Texas, Georgia and Ohio, which tie for second with seven. Tony Woolfolk, F...

In his 48th year of coaching high school basketball, Indianola native Richard Duease has more state championships than he can count on his fingers and toes. Duease discusses why he became a coach, his coaching philosophy and how he almost went into college coaching way back in 1982.

Local golf magnate and friend of the pod Randy Watkins joins the Cleveland boys to talk about the NFL playoffs, the Mississippi Golf Association Hall of Fame and the sudden rise of Tupelo native Hayden Buckley in the PGA Tour.

The Dallas Cowboys and Dak Prescott made short work of Tampa Bay and Tom Brady Monday night and made Brady look like an old man in the process. Will Brady hang up his spikes? The Cleveland boys discuss Brady's future, the NFL playoffs (and Prescott's excellence), college football coaching changes, with some high school and college basketball added in.

The Georgia Bulldogs steamrolled TCU in the College Football National Championship game with the help of a couple of players and coaches with Mississippi ties. The Cleveland boys discuss the game, its meaning in the larger scheme of college football and where the two-time defending champs go from here. Plus, Rick wraps up a rough week in which we lost three important sports figures.

So many entertaining bowl games over the weekend, but then came Monday Night Football and the devastating injury to Buffalo Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin. For the Clevelands, the injury brought back memories of Chucky Mullins and was a stark reminder of the inherent dangers in the sport of football. With that as an unsettling backdrop, the Ole Miss and Mississippi State bowl games, the college...

The Cleveland boys put a bow on another incredible year of Mississippi Sports by counting down the top 10 Mississippi sports stories of 2022. From Frank Gore Jr. to Mike Leach to Deion Sanders, it was a wild one.

After going 1-17 in Conference USA last season, Southern Miss coach Jay Ladner overhauled his staff and his roster, and has the Golden Eagles off to an 11-1 start this season. Rick and Tyler catch up with coach Ladner, talk about his team and the pressure of coaching the program he grew up rooting for.

Mississippi State – and, really, the football world lost a legend when Mike Leach died overnight. The Clevelands discuss Leach, his authenticity and his legacy. Sports Illustrated's Ross Dellenger joins the podcast again to join the discussion.

Deion Sanders has left the building, the Mississippi High School Football Championships are in the books and the holiday bowl schedule is set. The Cleveland boys recap the wild ride that was championship weekend and take a look at where Mississippi's college teams are headed for bowl season.

It's high school football championship in Mississippi. The Rock in Hattiesburg will be the site of six championship games, including Saturday night's 6A showdown of Brandon against Starkville. Starkville head coach Chris Jones, the former Jackson State standout and state championship coach at Kemper County, talks about the state championship, as well as his alma mater in the SWAC Championship, and...

Blake Pennock was the offensive coordinator at Clinton when Cam Akers played there. He is now the head coach at Ocean Springs with Bray Hubbard as his quarterback. This Friday, Pennock, Hubbard and the Greyhounds take on Brandon for the South State 6A championship. Pennock discusses Akers, Hubbard and the task at hand. The Clevelands also talk Egg Bowl, Lane Kiffin's future, Southern Miss bowl cha...

The high school football playoffs are in full swing as we head into the second round for most of classifications. The Cleveland boys discuss this week's biggest matchups, and toss around ideas on the 10 Conerly Trophy nominees. Plus, for some reason, they keep bringing up the Saints.

The Alabama-Ole Miss betting line opened with 7-2 Bama a 14-point pick over 8-1 Ole Miss at Oxford. The betting line moved to 12 points, meaning most bettors were putting their money on the Rebels. The lopsided point spread caught the Clevelands off guard. This week's podcast includes that discussion, plus much, much more football talk on the college, professional and high school levels.

College Gameday went off without a hitch in Jackson, but the big news in the Magnolia State over the weekend was Mississippi State Athletic Director John Cohen leaving for Auburn. The Cleveland boys discuss that move, recap last week's action and look at what lies ahead for Jackson State, Ole Miss and Delta State, which are now a combined 24-1.

Younger Jackson State fans won't remember it but there was a time when the Jackson State Tigers dominated the SWAC every bit as much as Deion Sanders' Tigers are dominating now. Lewis Tillman, a hard-running halfback from Halehurst, was a huge part of that era, breaking many of Walter Payton's JSU records. Last week, Tillman was front and center as the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame announced its...

Ole Miss is 7-0 going into its annual game with LSU for the first time in, well, a long, long time. Ole Miss-LSU is important any year but there's much more than usual at stake for the Rebels this time. Ole Miss has gone from favorite to underdog since oddsmakers posted the opening line. The Clevelands discuss this year's game as well as the storied history of the rivalry known as the Magnolia Bow...

The Atlanta Braves are one of baseball's biggest success stories and radio play-by-play announcer Ben Ingram is a huge success story in his own right. Ingram, a Madison Central and Mississippi College grad, is like many of the current Braves in that he trained for his current job at Trustmark in Pearl and at ballparks around the Southern League. Ingram talks about this remarkable Braves season and...

The Sanderson Farms Championship is in the books, the Braves are on the rise and the Saints are sinking, but the Magnolia State's "Big Four" college football teams are all on the rise. The Cleveland boys touch on all of it, and discuss Deion Sanders' future at Jackson State in a grab-bag conversation about Mississippi sports.

The Sanderson Farms Championship will be played this week at the Country Club of Jackson, and who better to discuss the field and the tournament than Randy Watkins, who once finished fifth in the tournament and then helped save it when it was being played at Annandale and was sponsorless. Sam Burns is the clear favorite but there are several Mississippians in the field who could win it. We also di...

Undefeated Jackson State made short work of Grambling at The Vet, and Shedeur Sanders made a believer out of the elder Cleveland. The kid can play. The Cleveland boys also discuss Title IX and football at all levels – from high schools to the NFL with a lot of college football in between.

On a Saturday full of upsets, Sun Belt teams took down two Top-10 teams and took home a boat-load of cash in the process. Is this a new trend, or an anomaly? Also, the Cleveland boys talk about big games upcoming this weekend, whether or not the Braves should make a change at closer and the Saints' come-from-behind win over the Falcons.

Las Vegas oddsmakers have the over and under on Saints wins at 8.5. Deuce, a former Saints Pro Bowler and current radio analyst, believes eight or nine victoires is the floor for the Saints and that the ceiling is much, much higher, despite a difficult late-season schedule. Deuce says a fast start is essential for these Saints.

Ralph spent five years at the turn of the century as Mississippi's AP sports writer, so he knows the lay of the land. He covered the Eli Manning years at Ole Miss and the hiring of Sylvester Croom at State. And he likes Mississippi State's chances to surprise this season.

As if Robbie Faulk doesn't have enough to do as sports editor of the Starkville Daily News and Mississippi State beat writer for 247 Sports, he is also the Mississippi voter in the weekly Associated Press college football reporter. As we learn, that AP poll takes a lot of time if you're going to do it right.