The Rebels Return
Just weeks ago, the Ole Miss Rebels were coming off of an Earth shaking victory over the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa. In the eyes of the college football world, especially the Ole Miss fans, that night now seems like ages ago. What followed were a seemingly innumerable amount of injuries, all to key players, along the offensive line and in defensive secondary. This resulted in noticeable gaps in performance from the team. Couple that with some questionable coaching calls and some uninspired play, and the Rebels very quickly found themselves free falling from their perch in the college football rankings. Now in a very bleak situation as far as preseason goals, Ole Miss had accumulated two embarrassing road losses at the hands of the Florida Gators and the Memphis Tigers. The Ole Miss team that started the season out as the nation's top scoring offense and dominating defense was all but gone. With a home game against the high flying and highly ranked Texas A&M Aggies approaching, as well as match-ups with an unpredictably talented Auburn team on the Plains, a gritty Arkansas team at home, unbeaten LSU and Heisman Trophy front runner Leonard Fournette coming to Oxford, and the always hospitable trip to Starkville and Mississippi State looming, there was a span of time where even the most optimistic of Rebel fans would have a hard time not writing this team off. But then, something changed. This past Saturday inside the walls of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, donning their Red jersey and Gray pants, the Rebels returned.
Josh McCoy/@OleMissPix
What ensued was a complete beatdown of the Aggies. In front of a raucous Ole Miss home crowd, the defense thrived as the crowd roared. It was a night and day difference from the previous four weeks. The offense was clicking on all cylinders, running and throwing the rock at will.
Josh McCoy/@OleMissPix
The Landshark Defense was once again living up to it's name, seeming to feed off of the crowd's energy. Play after play, possession after possession, the defense gave A&M nothing. There was a stretch in the middle of the game where Aggie quarterback Kyle Allen went twenty-two straight throws without even gaining a positive yard.
Josh McCoy/@OleMissPix
All of this was done in spite of star defensive tackle, and future number one overall pick, Robert Nkemdiche's absence due to a concussion he had sustained against Memphis in the previous week. From the opening kickoff, until the final whistle blew, it was total domination.
Josh McCoy/@OleMissPix
Josh McCoy/@OleMissPix
Offensively, the return of Laremy Tunsil had an immediate impact on the entire unit. Ole Miss could finally run the football, pounding away at Texas A&M for 230 yards. This was huge, because in the games against Memphis and Florida, the ground game only averaged about 95 yards, total. Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly sure appreciated the help, too. Having Tunsil back at left tackle allowed the makeshift offensive line that had plagued offensive production in the the past weeks to move players back into their more natural positions. This newfound cohesiveness allowed Kelly to have more time in the pocket to find a target, and less time lying on his back.
Josh McCoy/@OleMissPix
The results were astounding, as Kelly started the game completing his first twelve pass attempts, then finishing up with 241 yards and two touchdowns (He had his third called back on a questionable penalty).
With the domination of Texas A&M safely in the record books, it is safe to say that Ole Miss is starting to get their groove back. There are plenty of good reasons why their return should be something every Rebel fan, every college football fan, should get behind. First and foremost, Ole Miss travels to Auburn this weekend for a rematch in which the prequel almost cost one Rebel his career, and cost his teammates their season. Wide receiver Laquon Treadwell remembers that night all too well. It was late in the fourth quarter of a back and forth game, a game that was essentially a playoff play-in between two one-loss SEC West rivals who were currently clinging to numbers three and four in the College Football Playoff committee's rankings. Treadwell had been essential to the Rebels comeback drive up until that moment, and looked pretty much unstoppable as he took a screen pass into the middle of the field and turned toward the end zone. What followed was a heartbreaking and gut-wrenching injury that haunts Rebel Nation even today. As Laquon seemingly scored the game winning touchdown for the Rebels, he was dragged down from behind by a Tiger defender, causing the ball to fall out of his outstretched hand as he crossed the goal line.
Upon further review, and injured and crying Laquon, as well as the entirety of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, had to listen to the referee explain how he had simultaneously dropped the football when injuring his leg, but prior to breaking the plane of the end zone, therefore the result of the play was a fumble, recovered by Auburn. The star receiver, the game, and the season, all lost in an instant.
Fast forward to present day, and Laquon has come back better than ever. He has been tearing up opposing defenses, and will likely be the number one wide receiver taken in the 2016 NFL Draft. He leads the Southeastern Conference in receiving yards, receiving yards per game, receptions, and receptions per game. Basically, he leads the best conference in the sport in most of the statistical categories a possible to a wide receiver. I think it is safe to say that Laquon has been looking forward to this week for a long time. All of the physical therapy, training, and work it took to get him back to this point, all of that motivation, will accumulate inside the friendly confines of Jordan-Hare Stadium. When asked for a comment on the upcoming game, Treadwell was short and to the point, saying simply, “They're going to feel my pain.”
If that is not enough reason to jump back on the Rebel bandwagon, perhaps the fact that in spite of picking up their second loss in Memphis two weeks ago, Ole Miss still controls the SEC West, and in theory, their own destiny in the College Football Playoff. With their early season win over the Crimson Tide, if the Rebels run the table, they will make it to Atlanta for the SEC Championship game, making it the first trip in Ole Miss football history. If they were to win that game, it would be hard to imagine a scenario where an 11-2 SEC Champion, owning wins over Alabama and LSU, would not make the four team field. Sure, two losses is not flashy, but there is no way to have a so called “true champion” come out of a bracket that did not include the best team from the best league in the sport. The Playoff Committee would have an interesting time sorting that one out, and I for one would love nothing more.
As for this weekends matchup against Auburn, we already know Laquon Treadwell's plans for the Tiger defense. It's impossible to predict which Auburn team will show up, but Guz Malzahn's offense is always dangerous, and the Tigers have a talented team. That being said, I like to think that if the Ole Miss defense shows up to play like they did against Texas A&M, it is going to be a long, rough day for Auburn's rookie quarterback Sean White. They got a big new scoreboard that they are obsessed with, which is cool I guess. Must be an inferiority complex thing, cause State's kinda got that goin' on too.
It's a wear Red game, so if you're heading out to Lee County, don't forget it. Like I said last week for the A&M game, I try to predict the uniforms, but Hugh Freeze reads my blog and chooses accordingly (opposite of what I pick, that is). Common sense says that because Auburn will have Navy on, the Rebs are going to have to wear a white jersey, but accent wise you would think they will go with something Red (like the crowd). But, last time the Rebs went to Auburn, it looked like this:
Awful, IMO. So I'm thinking:
OR.
White jersey, Red numbers, Gray pants OR white pants. That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it. As long as it brings a win.
Like it or not, Ole Miss may have finally worked through it's mid-season woes. Key players are returning from injuries, and the coaching staff may have finally found a formula to get this team clicking again. Whatever they did in the Texas A&M game sure looked good. If the Rebels come out and play to their potential for the next four games, there is not a game on the schedule that they can't win. If Ole Miss can keep Chad Kelly upright and give him time to find a target, the Rebels can do whatever they want against any team in the country through the air. Kelly has that kind of arm talent, and the receivers are that good. Supplement that with a serviceable running game, and a defense that, when they come to play, can shut down even the best of offenses, and there is a recipe for something big. Auburn and the Hogs, the Bayou Bengals and the Dawgs all better get ready. The Rebels have returned, and Atlanta and the possibility of a playoff berth are still firmly within reach.
Where at?: Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, AL
Playing surface: Natural Grass
Gametime: 11 am CT on ESPN
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