Speaking with the Enemy: Farron Cousins on Ole Miss vs. Auburn

OXFORD, Miss. – Farron Cousins is a political reporter and commentator noted for using humor and good old common sense in his commentaries.

And for our purposes this week, he is also an Auburn fan.

The Gulf Breeze, Fla., native and host of The Ring of Fire will put politics to the side Saturday as he watches his Auburn Tigers take on Ole Miss at 6 p.m. on ESPN and he agreed to be this week’s subject of The Rebel Walk’s “Speaking with the Enemy.”

RW: It has been an up-and-down year for the Tigers. What is the current psyche of an Auburn fan?

Farron Cousins: We’re mentally exhausted. The Malzahn era seems to have broken our brains a bit, and we’re still trying to come out of the fog of those days. There’s optimism, but it comes and goes with every quarter of play. To put it another way – we have absolutely no idea how we feel about anything this season.

RW: Will Bo Nix ever be just plain “Bo” in Auburn or is that reserved for Bo Jackson?

FC: Nix hasn’t earned the right to only go by “Bo” in Auburn. I don’t even know if it is legal to mention the two men in the same sentence in Auburn.

RW: It should be an electric environment at Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday. What makes that place so special to Auburn fans?

FC: There isn’t exactly a lot to do in Auburn (no offense) so the stadium is where the magic happens. Parties, heartbreaks, miracles, marriage proposals, fights, embracing complete strangers due to one common interest – that stadium has it all and we absolutely love it.

RW: Have you ever been to Oxford? If not, do you have a favorite all-time Rebel?

FC: I’ve never been, but I have a surprising amount of friends that came from the area. As for a favorite Rebel, I know most people would default and say one of the Mannings, but I have a permanent grudge against them ever since Peyton beat Cam Newton in Super Bowl 50. But in all seriousness, Evan Engram doesn’t get the respect he deserves in the NFL, even as they heap praise on mediocre running backs every week.

RW: Finally, you are a political reporter, what kind of politician do you think Lane Kiffin would be?

FC: I have nothing but respect for Lane Kiffin, so comparing him to a politician seems unnecessarily mean. But I would imagine him to be the type that actually got things done and wasn’t worried about hogging the spotlight. He wouldn’t be a Matt Gaetz or an AOC, he’d just be the guy actually writing and passing legislation and moving things forward who never gets the attention that they deserve, because I feel like that’s what he’s done with Ole Miss. There’s a handful of college coaches that get all the love, but Kiffin is actually proving that he can do the job, and that’s a rarity in both politics and coaching.

Steve Barnes

Steve Barnes joins The Rebel Walk staff as a senior writer and brings a trifecta of journalistic experience. As a writer, he has covered college sports for Rivals.com, Football.com and SaturdayDownSouth.com as well as served as a beat writer for various traditional newspapers.

He has been a broadcaster for arena football and several national tournament events for the National Junior College Athletic Association as well as hosting various shows on radio.

A former sports information director at Albany (Ga.) State University and an assistant at Troy and West Florida, he has helped host many NCAA conference, regional and national events, including serving five years on the media committee of the NCAA Division II World Series.

Barnes, a native of Pensacola, Fla., attended Ole Miss in 1983-84, where his first journalism teacher was David Kellum. The duo has come a long way since that time.

He will bring a proven journalistic track record, along with a knack for finding the out-of-the-ordinary story angles to The Rebel Walk.

Barnes continues to reside in Pensacola a mere ten minutes from the beach because he does have taste and a brain.