Front Porch FootballOle Miss: Good Things Are Hard to Find
by Julia Funderburk
Ole Miss has found it difficult to make a name for themselves in recent years. A mix of their tough position in the SEC West, recruiting sanctions from Hugh Freeze’s scandal that finally ended last winter, and the lack of talent on both sides of the football…especially on defense. Their last decent season was in 2015, when the Rebels went 10-3. With three losses, the Rebels finished the season ranked tenth in the AP Poll, nowhere near good enough for a chance at the title. They finished second in the SEC West behind the Alabama Crimson Tide, and were awarded a bowl game against Oklahoma State where they dominated by 28 points. Chad Kelly won the MVP and things looked up for the Rebels until they went 5-7 the next season, 6-6 in 2017, and are struggling again this season at 5-6 with one game left to play.
Offense vs Defense
Talent on the offensive side of the football has improved with the development of the upperclassmen including quarterback Jordan Ta’amu, running back Scottie Phillips, and wide receiver A.J. Brown. The Ole Miss offense played near perfect during their 2018 season opener against Texas Tech with running back Scottie Phillips notching over 200 of the team’s 546 offensive yards. However, their defense allowed 27 points from the Texas Raiders, a mediocre showing against a mediocre team. This trend stayed with the Rebels through their next game where they accounted for 76 against Southern Illinois. During this game, quarterback Jordan Ta’amu threw for close to 450 yards and five touchdowns, and his running backs scored four more. The problem that emerged from this win, though, was the defense yet again. At the end of the game, the scoreboard looked like an outcome of a college basketball game: 76 to 41, Rebels. All season, the Rebels’ talented offense has been stunted by their lackluster defense.
Zedrick Woods has had to play a couple of positions due to injuries. Image from Ole Miss Athletics.
In eleven games so far, Mississippi’s opponents have scored, on average, 36.27 points. A blowout loss to Alabama in Week 3, where the Rebels suffocated against all facets of Nick Saban’s monstrous team, was the first real test all season for Ole Miss and they did not perform. In this game, Jordan Ta’amu threw only 133 yards and 2 interceptions. Scottie Phillips, who had ran for over 200 yards two weeks before, had a mere 44 this time. Same story for A.J. Brown, who usually exceeds 100 receiving yards; he had 34. It’s unfair to say that Ole Miss had a real shot at beating the most commanding team in college football, but the game could have been closer with a decent defense. Against Alabama’s defense, the Rebels wouldn’t put up anything phenomenal like a 50-point game, but the 55-point difference at the end spoke volumes about Mississippi’s defensive efforts. They couldn’t stop Alabama from scoring and when the offense looked like they could make a promising drive deep into the Tide’s territory, Alabama’s defense stepped up and held them to seven points.
Mississippi doesn’t stand a chance when their offense isn’t on the field.
Ole Miss vs. LSU was another game this season that showed lack of depth and resources in the defense. They allowed 31 points from the Tigers, half of what Alabama scored, but the struggles resurfaced and Mississippi was beaten down again. Ta’amu threw the second least amount of yards all season, 178, zero touchdowns, and an interception. Scottie Phillips scored the lone touchdown for the Rebels but still didn’t reach 100 yards. Mississippi doesn’t stand a chance when their offense isn’t on the field. LSU won the time-of-possession battle and dominated offensively and defensively. Compared to Alabama, this matchup was better suited for the Rebels, but the defense didn’t give their offense even a chance to keep it close.
LSU shredded this defense. Image from The Advocate.
The Rebels have lost to six teams in the SEC this season, and sit only above Arkansas 2-9 (0-7) in the West. The SEC West (Alabama, LSU, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Auburn, Ole Miss) is stacked. Currently, three of those teams are in the College Football Playoff Top 25: Alabama (1), LSU (7), and Mississippi State (21). Ole Miss has lost to two of these three teams, and with a tough game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs over rivalry weekend, the Rebels could go 0-3 against them. The Rebels also lost two games to Texas A&M and Auburn, putting them at 1-4, maybe 1-5 in the division if they lose to the Bulldogs.
Ole Miss barely beat Arkansas by 4 points in the middle of October but they haven’t won since. In this close win, the Rebels and Ta’amu looked like a different team from the one they were when they faced the Tide and the Tigers. Ta’amu threw for close to 400 yards and ran for 140 more. It should not have been a comeback win that started in the fourth quarter, though, as it was against an Arkansas team that is struggling even more than the Rebels are, with two weak wins all season. Of course, it’s easy to look like a better team when playing against teams that aren’t Alabama. A win against rival Mississippi State would mark the end of a turbulent season for the Rebels, but they have next-to-nothing to gain from winning. They won’t make a bowl appearance until next year, which is a big maybe, and the team needs time to focus on developing their new players, as most of the bright spots on the offense and defense are going to test the NFL waters.
AJ Brown will be playing in the NFL this time next year. Image from USA Today.
No one likes to talk about the Ole Miss from a few years ago, second only to Alabama. And no one likes to talk about the Ole Miss now, a struggling team in a packed conference. The future is foggy for the Rebels. This year, they have had one of their best offenses, but managed to do so little with it. Ta’amu’s eligibility ends and quarterback Matt Corral will have to take over; transitions this large are always hard. If the Rebels want to improve and have a shot at a bowl game next season, or a chance at beating a top team like LSU, the defense needs to be developed and the offensive production needs to be replaced to replicate what they had this year. If not, things might be even worse in 2019.
