ABC Mailbag – 3-05: Starting rotation, breakfast food, MSU movies and more

Each week on The B&B Show (a radio show I co-host on Bulldog Sports Radio) we have a segment we call ABC, which you’ve seen me mention if you follow on Twitter.

It stands for Ask Bob Carskadon and is, basically, a radio mailbag of some serious and many non-serious questions sometimes but not always relating to Mississippi State sports.

Every Tuesday, we ask for questions on Twitter (tweet them to @bobcarskadon) and now, every Wednesday, I’ll pick some good ones to answer here on the HailState Beat. (PSA on those tweets: if a twitter profile is locked, people who don’t follow it can’t see its tweets, even if they are mentioned in the tweet.)

Keep in mind, as always, opinions and views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of MSU, though sometimes they very well may.

James Carskadon @JamesCarskadon:

Pick a type of fry: shoestring, waffle, crinkle, sweet potato, curly or steak.

Bob: This is like picking potato children. I think there’s an easy top three of shoestring, sweet potato and curly, but how does one narrow it down from there? I’ll go sweet potato for texture’s sake.

Nancy McCarley @nancymccarley: Can you describe the pure goodness that is scrapple using four words or less?

Bob: Tasty flavorful breakfast excellence.

Patrick Wiggins @iPat09: What is the difference between batting average and slugging percentage?

Bob: Slugging percentage is the total number of bases divided by the total number of at-bats, meant to be a way of measuring power and those who frequently get extra-base hits.

Feej Writer @fijiwriter: If you were featured in a big-budget action movie, which actor would portray you?

Bob: The trouble with this question is that I don’t exactly fit the mold of an action star, though “Bob Carskadon: American Hero” has a nice ring to it. Realistically, I’m going with the skinniest, nerdiest action star I know: Jospeh Gordon-Levitt.

Don Collins @dhcollins3: As of right now, who do you believe is going to be the Friday night SEC starter?

Bob: John Cohen told us in the preseason not to read too much into the weekend rotation in non-conference play, that it doesn’t necessarily mean that’s what it will be come conference play.

If we throw out the days guys have pitched and look just at their performances, it’s hard not to say Ben Bracewell has been the best pitcher on a very good staff. A fifth year senior and team co-captain, I wouldn’t hesitate to trust him on Friday nights, though Brandon Woodruff and Trevor Fitts certainly make strong cases for themselves.

Musicmanupdog @musicmanupdog: Mexican cornbread or regular cornbread with corn in it only?

Bob: I’m a HUGE cornbread fan, but I’m not big on chunks of soft, real corn mixed in. I’ll take the Mexican style, though there are plenty of other good options. I actually went to a cornbread festival in Tennessee about a year ago and tried a dozen different types, including a delicious dessert cornbread.

Blake Thompson @StateDOG: Would you rather compete on Survivor, The Amazing Race, Big Brother or The Apprentice?

Bob: I don’t like flying and I don’t imagine I’m good at business. Survivor would be cool because you go somewhere tropical, but I don’t know about eating worms. Big Brother seems like the safest bet.

Owen McGuire @pom5: A movie studio is making a major film about MSU and asks you for stories. What three options, sports or other, do you suggest?

Bob: I like this question. 1. The two team captains of the 1941 football team went on to serve in World War II in 1942 when MSU didn’t field a football team because all their players were overseas. That would be a cool story about those two. I have no clue what happened after the last time they left the field the day after Pearl Harbor.

2. The burning of Old Main would make for a cool movie, with some added romance and drama. Credit to Riley the Intern for that one.

3. The most obvious story, I’d think, is the 1963 basketball team and the Game of Change.

Blake Thompson @StateDOG: What do you look forward to the most and what scares you the most about raising children?

Bob: I can’t wait to just hang out with my kids, watch them become people, talk to them and run around with them. But it scares the mess out of me to know my heart is, basically, leaving me every time one of them goes somewhere. I know how torn up I was when my dog got sick and eventually died, so I can only imagine the fear and worry I’d have for someone I love as much as my own child.

Ronnie Zumwalt @rvzmaroon: What is the purpose of the trapezoidal tarp between home plate and pitchers mound during warm ups?

Bob: I’ve gotten this question a few times, actually. My understanding is that it protects the grass between home and the mound, an area which gets run across frequently and can become patchy as a result.

Jan Black @meidawgs: What is Brett Pirtle’s walk up song?

Bob: This is another question I get at least twice a week. It’s called The Rattle by The Bingo Players and you likely recognize it as the song from the once-popular Harlem Shake videos.

Brent Thompson @tccthompson: What was the first question you ever asked in an interview and who was it to?

Bob: The first person I interviewed one-on-one was actually former MSU quarterback Tyson Lee, and I couldn’t have asked for a better person. I was nervous as I could be. I think the first thing I asked him about was competing for the starting position as fall camp began. He did eventually become the starter.

Rob Hataway @vhdawg: Chicken-fried steak. Thumb up or thumb down?

Bob: I like chicken, I like fried things, I like steak. I’m in. Thumb up.

That Guy @thatguy1878: Who is your dark horse football MVP this season?

Bob: Taking away obvious candidates and most of the starters, one guy I wouldn’t be shocked to see have a big year is senior running back Nick Griffin. He’s been an injured pile of potential since arriving on campus, but if he stays healthy, he could end up having a nice farewell campaign.

And at the position he plays, becoming the starter would mean enough touches to warrant MVP consideration, though he enters the spring as the likely No. 2 guy.

That Guy @thatguy1878: If you could own one fictional vehicle, what would it be?

Bob: The Batmobile would be cool, but I have no functional use for it, and the Millenium Falcon is flashy, but what would I do in space without storm troopers or Jedi to hang out with? I think I’d go with a broomstick – Firebolt, specifically – so that I could travel without getting on a plane.

Rob Hataway @vhdawg: Do they still run Pap’s Place ads with the old woman on Starkville TV?

Bob: WE DON’T ROB YOU HUNNY WE JUST FILL UP YO’ BELLY! But no, sadly, the commercials aren’t still running that I know of. Pap’s Place, however, is alive and well as the gluttonous delight it’s always been

That Guy @thatguy1878: Return of The King or of The Jedi?

Bob: Return of the Jedi, my pick is.

Rob Hataway @vhdawg: My three year old daughter wants to know: do you like milkshakes? (She does.)

Bob: I like milkshakes too, Rob’s daughter. Chocolate, vanialla, strawberry, caramel…they’re all good.

Will Gilmer @gilmerdairy: If you made it to Hollywood on American Idol, what your Elton John-night song choice be?

Bob: I love Elton John. Anyone got extra tickets to see him in Tupelo later this month? My all-time favorite Elton tune is ‘Your Song,’ followed by ‘Levon.’

Will Gilmer @gilmerdairy: If you could pick THE all-time face of Mississippi State athletics, who would it be?

Bob: At first thought, this is such a difficult question. How do you pick between Bailey Howell, Will Clark, Johnie Cooks, Rafael Palmeiro or even recent guys like Anthony Dixon or Charles Rhodes?

Then the obvious answer hit me, one which encompasses all: Jack Cristil.

Whit Macknally @WhitMack: Maple syrup or molasses?

Bob: The way I feel about maple syrup is beyond reasonable. I put it on everything. Eggs, hash browns, biscuits, cornbread, bacon, sausage, scrapple and any breakfast bread like French toast. I even had a delicious maple-marinated steak once, followed by a helping of maple bread pudding.

And I don’t mess around with that Aunt Jemima stuff, either. I get the Grade A dark amber, straight from the tree syrup. So good and so worth it. My point being, maple syrup > molasses.

Andy Atkinson @n8chaboy508: Pancakes or waffles? Since Tuesday is (was) National Pancake Day.

Bob: Happy late National Pancake Day! And in that day lies my answer. I love both, as a big breakfast proponent, but warm fluffy pancakes are unbeatable.