Fast Five: Parker Caracci, late rally lead Rebs to opening win at Texas A&M

Ole Miss scored three runs in the eighth inning to take the lead, and Parker Caracci had his national coming-out party, as the No. 5 Rebels (21-2, 3-1) beat No. 12 Texas A&M, 5-4, in the opening game of the series in College Station.

Game two is set for 6 p.m. Friday on SEC Network. Here are five thoughts from the impressive win.

Ole Miss led by a run in the bottom of the eighth when a lengthy -- and incorrect -- umpire review left the bases loaded and one out for Texas A&M. Redshirt sophomore Parker Caracci came in with 26 strikeouts and only one walk on the season but hadn't been in this type of environment before. It didn't matter.

Caracci struck out Braden Shewmake and Logan Foster, also known as the two best Aggie hitters, back to back to strand the bases loaded. Foster is hitting .483 this season with runners in scoring position, but he couldn't match up with Caracci's 96 MPH fastball.

A quick ninth that included two more strikeouts gave Ole Miss the win. Caracci has been a feel-good story all season, but his dominance against the teeth of the Texas A&M lineup is more than that. It's a sign that things are in good hands should Dallas Woolfolk falter, and it's proof that the Rebels' loaded bullpen is even more dangerous.

Things looked fairly bleak for Ole Miss after seven innings, but this team is developing the cumulative personality of a scrappy bunch that will make late charges. The Rebels didn't have a hit from Nick Fortes' home run in the third inning until the one-out rally in the eighth.

But when Texas A&M took Stephen Kolek out of the game, Ole Miss responded with four straight singles to swipe back the lead and turn it over to the bullpen. The hits came off Nolan Hoffman, who hadn't allowed an earned run in 18.1 innings this season.

Every bit of momentum was in the Texas A&M dugout, and Kolek was completely on his game, but Ole Miss took advantage of the opportunity after he was gone. If the UM bullpen continues to dominate games, opponents will feel pressure to hold on to leads, and it could swing some games in Ole Miss' favor.

But on this night credit to the Rebels for staying in it mentally. I've seen teams check out late in games while facing a deficit, but Ole Miss is the first team to win 21 games for a reason. Part of that reason is avoiding the mental lapses that cause letdowns and easy final innings.

Mike Bianco had described three straight Ryan Rolison starts as "just OK" prior to Thursday, and this one was probably worse than that description. Rolison allowed six hits and three walks with four runs -- three earned -- in four innings. Texas A&M forced him to throw 96 pitches while getting just 12 outs, and 59 of the pitches went for strikes.

Fastball command was the calling card that gave him draft helium in the Cape League last summer, but it hasn't been consistent during most of his starts this season. Rolison hasn't been bad by any measure, but potential first round picks are graded differently, and he hasn't been the dominant force expected at the front end of the Ole Miss rotation.

The good news is he usually keeps the Rebels in games, and his velocity is where it should be. Also, the secondary pitches are normally sharp and usable in any count. No, he shouldn't be moved from the opening spot on the staff, and it's possible he finds the form that made him a projected top 15 selection.

But to do that he has to throw the fastball where he wants to on both sides of the plate. He also needs to control his body a little better once things unravel a bit. He has all the talent in the world, and he's close to being as advertised. He just needs to get back to the basics.

It's warranted that Caracci's late heroics are the story of the game, but Will Ethridge made that possible. The sophomore replaced Rolison with two on and no outs in the fifth inning and while he allowed one of the runs to score, he stranded the other and put up two scoreless frames.

A two-run deficit and a three-run deficit are huge differences mentally, so Ethridge was the catalyst in Ole Miss staying upbeat through the failure of the middle innings. He struck out six without a walk and redeemed himself after Tennessee got to him for two big hits on the opening night of SEC play.

The two hit by pitches are living dangerously, but he has a tremendously live arm and will likely be a starter for Ole Miss next season. The nine-outs appearance was a good one to stretch him out and let him show success over the course of 52 pitches. He can fill any role needed with this team.

Starting shortstop Grae Kessinger had missed two games because of a hamstring injury suffered Saturday against Tennessee, but he was back in his usual leadoff spot and went 2-for-4 with two of the five runs scored.

Kessinger started back innings Ole Miss scored in with one-out singles. In the third, he reached base, singling with two strikes and setting up Nick Fortes' monster tomahawk home run off Kolek on a 3-1 count.

The sophomore's single in the eighth started the four-hit inning, as Ryan Olenek, Fortes and Thomas Dillard followed suit and gave Ole Miss the winning advantage.

Kessinger had an error defensively in his return but is hitting .381 on the season.