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1. It was a show of force.
Despite a wet field and a one-hour, 45-minute delay, Ole Miss rolled up 40 first-half points and more than 700 yards of total offense in a 61-21 win over Tulane Saturday night.
All last week, Lane Kiffin preached about how dangerous Tulane was. Much was made of the Green Wave’s five-point loss at Oklahoma, one that saw Michael Pratt come up just short on a fourth down in the game’s final minute.
Kiffin’s team clearly listened. Ole Miss was focused from the very start, despite repeated delays regarding a start time, and scored touchdowns on six of its first seven possessions. The Rebels’ defense, meanwhile, was physical and active, frustrating Pratt for much of the night.
“That was a good team that we played,” Kiffin said. “All you have to do is watch the Oklahoma film and I think they’ll play really well for the rest of the year, so for our guys to handle some adversity about starting warmups and stopping and all that and then to come out and play so well in the first half. Six touchdowns in seven drives and then the last one we ran out of time.
“Really proud of our defense to only give up 1-of-11 on third down since they have good players and they’re really well schematically coached. I was worried about that because they give you a lot of conflict plays, so I was happy with the way our defense played. You’re going to win a ton of games running 94 plays and having 707 yards of offense versus 56 plays for 305 and I think someone said a school record of 41 first downs. I’m not sure I’ve been around first downs in the 40’s and I think 25 of those were in the first half. I’m not just throwing those out because those are stats, I’m throwing them out because they were really deserved stats.”
Ole Miss is now 3-0 headed into an early open date. An October gauntlet awaits, starting Oct. 2 at No. 1 Alabama. Kiffin was asked if his team was where he thought it would be at this point.
“I think if you look at the scores collectively and you look at it from that standpoint then yeah I would definitely take it,” Kiffin said. “We’ve shown improvement on defense while staying explosive and balanced on offense. Everyone thinks we’re a throwing team but we ran the ball 61 times for 372 yards, so it’s good to be balanced. We do a lot of different things when you’re running and passing for over 300 yards.”
Kiffin admitted he would like to play again this Saturday. When you’re hot, you don’t want a break. Ideally, a break would come sometime in October, but it’s not as if there’s not a lot to be excited about it in Oxford.
“Obviously if you’re making your own schedule, you would never out one this early because you’re just not banged up enough,” Kiffin said. “So we obviously didn’t want it here but it is what it is and we’ll use it to get players better who haven’t been playing as much. We’re not really injured we’ve been really fortunate to be really healthy there. Springer’s obviously a guy there. We can’t change it so it is what it is. We talk all the time about controlling what you can control. We certainly can’t change this date. Who do we play after this date? I haven’t looked either.”
2. Matt Corral vaulted himself to the top of the very early Heisman Trophy race Saturday, just obliterating Tulane through the air and on the ground.
I've been waiting to see a defensive coordinator grow frustrated with Corral's patience. Tulane's Chris Hampton finally accommodated my wishes.
Corral picked apart the Green Wave early, taking the short stuff and using his feet to out-number Tulane. In the second quarter, Hampton got aggressive and Corral made him pay, adding the deep ball to his arsenal of weapons.
In the end, Corral was 22-of-31 passing, good for 335 yards and three touchdowns. Corral didn't play in the fourth quarter. He added 68 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. In short, he was terrific, and he's put himself in position to wow voters on the national stage.
Corral met with the media following Saturday's game.
3. Corral spoke of Jonathan Mingo's growing confidence this season. The Ole Miss wide receiver had six catches for 136 yards and a touchdown against Tulane, and he's become part of a three-headed receiver corps (along with Braylon Sanders and Dontario Drummond) that should frighten opposing defenses.
Mingo spoke with the media following Saturday's game.
4. The media focus, understandably, is on Ole Miss' offense.
However, what makes this team potentially special is what's happening on the defensive end. Ole Miss safety A.J. Finley said afterwards Tulane scored too many points, and one busted run assignment was bothering several defenders. However, Ole Miss held Tulane to 305 total yards of offense.
"I'm honestly not happy with the way we played on defense," Finley said.
The tasks are about to get more difficult and everyone knows it, but Ole Miss' defense is drastically improved, and that's about to be seen on the national scene. Finley talked about all of that and more after Saturday's game.
5. Up next: No. 1 Alabama.
The Crimson Tide won at Florida Saturday, 31-29, but afterwards, Alabama coach Nick Saban was concerned about his defense. Alabama plays Southern Mississippi on Saturday while Ole Miss enjoys an open date, but you can bet Saban and defensive coordinator Pete Golding are already thinking about the Rebels, even if they'd never admit it.
From ESPN.com:
The Gators racked up 258 rushing yards against the top-ranked Crimson Tide and converted on five third downs. It was just the fifth time an Alabama defense under Saban gave up three rushing touchdowns in a game.
"What concerned me most is we could not maintain our intensity, especially on defense," Saban said. "We had a lot of mental errors."
Saban said it appeared as if players got tired and were reeling as the game wore on. He wondered whether more players would need to play in the future to provide fresh legs.
Alabama outside linebacker Will Anderson Jr. appeared to hobble off the field when the game ended, but Saban said it was more a matter of fatigue than his knee, which he injured the previous game against Mercer.
Saban credited Florida for having a good plan offensively, which necessitated Alabama defenders to play disciplined football. In that respect, he said, they didn't succeed. Florida averaged 6.0 yards per carry.
"All in all it was just our execution on defense and the fact that we didn't get off the field on third down," Saban said.
Still, Saban said he was proud of the way his team didn't quit. Alabama jumped out to a 21-3 first-quarter lead only for Florida to come storming back and make it a one-score game in the fourth quarter.
The Crimson Tide offense went three-and-out on three straight drives, but Saban said quarterback Bryce Young did a good job overall and credited his composure. Young, a sophomore making his first start on the road, completed 22 of 35 passes for 233 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions.
Saban called it an "outstanding win" and "a tough environment to play."
"Our players showed a lot of resiliency in the game," he said.
When I want a perspective on Alabama, I turn to The Tuscaloosa News' Cecil Hurt. He's been around the program since forever, and no one is more tied in. Alabama is excellent, and everyone knows it, but Hurt wrote Sunday morning that he wonders if this team is as prepared for the gauntlet as previous Tide clubs.
From Hurt:
The question this year, unlike in 2020, is whether sterner tests await.
A 21-3 lead in the first quarter seemed comfortable enough, the usual case of Alabama going through its paces. Instead, it wasn’t nearly enough.
The total offense for Alabama in the second quarter could have been measured in millimeters if the United States hadn’t taken Florida from Spain back in 1819, or roughly the last time, so it seemed, that the Crimson Tide had played here. The same sort of slowdown happened against Miami in the opener, but the Hurricanes were already looking for the white flag before halftime. Florida was very much alive.
As in any transition, things change. The harsh fact, which Nick Saban has been preaching all year long, is that this team isn’t last year’s team. No one feels sorry for Alabama’s well-stocked roster, but that neither means that there have been four NFL first-round draft choices standing around on the sidelines or that young talent plays the same way as experienced talent.
You can read the whole thing here, and frankly, you should, but I've consumed Hurt's work long enough to know when he thinks there might be a sliver of weakness. Don't get me wrong; Alabama is good enough to kick anyone's ass, Ole Miss' included. Bryce Young showed he has "it" in spades Saturday once The Swamp got rowdy, but the numbers are what the numbers are, and Florida had the Tide on the ropes.
Alabama survived, and it's the king until it's not, but Ole Miss has a real shot on Oct. 2, and everyone involved knows it.
6. Here's my weekly ranking of the Southeastern Conference:
* Note: Last week, I thought there was a big drop after Nos. 1 and 2. I no longer think that. Instead, I think the SEC is more wide open than it's been in a long time.
1. Alabama -- The king looks a little vulnerable, but it survived Gainesville and still very much possesses the crown.
2. Georgia -- The Bulldogs' defense is dominant. I mean, it's a steel wall.
3. Ole Miss -- The Rebels' offense is electric. Their defense is much improved. Depth is a worry.
4. Florida -- Sounds crazy, sure, but the Gators went toe-to-toe with the defending champions. It's a testament to Dan Mullen's program-building skills. Florida is insane not to give him what he wants.
5. Texas A&M -- The Aggies have a big-time defense, but a major test is coming at Jerry World Saturday afternoon.
6. Arkansas -- Speaking of, the Razorbacks aren't a complete team, but they've got a real identity. They'll punch you square in the mouth, and they're relentless. That running game is multi-faceted, and the defense is solid. Arlington figures to be quite interesting.
7. Auburn -- I know the Tigers lost at Penn State, but they were right there in a hostile environment. Auburn is capable of winning a lot of games. Bo Nix is much improved, Tank Bigsby is a bad man and the defense will hit you.
8. Kentucky -- Yes, the Wildcats won. Yes, they're unbeaten. But this is twice now that Kentucky has played with its food. Starting Oct. 2, Mark Stoops' team gets Florida, LSU and Georgia on consecutive weeks. It would be advised to find some focus.
9. LSU -- As much as I enjoy making fun of LSU and all of its' color-coded recruiting talent, they looked pretty damn solid in whipping Central Michigan Saturday. Their gauntlet starts this week, as LSU faces Mississippi State, Auburn, Kentucky, Florida and Ole Miss on successive weeks.
Here's the drop.
10. Mississippi State -- Yes, the Bulldogs got screwed in Memphis, but they just don't have the weapons to run away from decent teams. Life's about to get real, as LSU, Texas A&M and Alabama await over the next four weeks.
11. Missouri -- The Tigers just look average, but the scheduler was favorable. They get Boston College, Tennessee and North Texas over the next three weeks, so there's time to sharpen things.
12. Tennessee -- The Vols get Florida Saturday in Gainesville. I suspect we'll see Josh Heupel and Co. get exposed, which is not exactly an appealing thing.
13. South Carolina -- If the Gamecocks can just survive Kentucky Saturday, they get a reprieve in the middle of the schedule with Troy, Tennessee and Vanderbilt.
14. Vanderbilt -- Clark Lea's team just isn't good. There's no point in wasting much more time on it than that.
7. Here are some leftover notes, quotes and thoughts from around the SEC West, courtesy of the Rivals network:
At Alabama, despite playing with a brace on his injured right knee, Will Anderson Jr. was his usual disruptive self against Florida, recording seven tackles, including two stops for a loss in the Crimson Tide’s 31-29 victory over the Gators.
Anderson, who left Alabama’s game against Mercer after taking a blow to his knee, missed a day of practice last week and was listed as questionable for the matchup against Florida. However, the sophomore started for the Tide and never appeared to miss a beat, breaking through double teams to make his way into the backfield all afternoon.
Anderson’s biggest play came on a fourth-and-3 during the second quarter as his pressure on Emory Jones caused the Florida quarterback to force a pass that was batted down by defensive back Brian Branch.
Following his strong performance, cameras caught Anderson walking off the field under the arm of an Alabama staffer, prompting concern that he had once again suffered an injury. Although, when asked for an update on the outside linebacker after the game, Nick Saban said his star defender was just tired after playing four quarters in the sticky Florida heat.
“He was fine,” Saban said. “He played more plays probably and got tired in the game. That was probably his biggest issue. I talked to him in the locker room after the game and asked him if he had any issues, he said no. He said he did get tired in the game, though. It was humid out there.”
At Arkansas, a pair of offensive linemen went down with injuries in Arkansas’ win over Georgia Southern.
Right tackle Dalton Wagner and center Ricky Stromberg each had to leave the game and neither returned to Saturday’s 45-10 blowout. As a result, coach Sam Pittman had to shuffle his offensive line for the first time this season.
Although he lost his starting job to Beaux Limmer, super senior Ty Clary ended up having a major role. Not only did he rotate with Limmer at right guard, but he filled in for Wagner at right tackle after his injury early in the game and then moved to center when Stromberg got hurt in the second half.
“If this thing happens, we're ready, we're not going to panic,” Pittman said. “I want to know this is what we're going to do. We stayed by the book with Ty because we knew he'd be successful. He's smart and has played a lot of ball."
Coming out of halftime, Arkansas moved Brady Latham from left guard to right tackle, allowing Luke Jones to make his season debut at left guard. That move was further necessitated when Stromberg got rolled up on the second play of the half.
He is the seventh different lineman to play significant snaps through the first three weeks of the season.
“The D-line right now is playing eight or nine guys,” Pittman said. “We need to get the O-line to where we can get to eight and play them on a regular basis. I was really, really happy to see (Jones) in there. I love the kid. Great kid and works hard.”
Despite the constant shuffle, the Razorbacks had their way against Georgia Southern. They racked up 633 total yards, averaged 5.6 yards per carry and didn’t give up a sack.
Pittman did not provide any updates or specifics regarding either of the players who left the game, but Wagner was spotted leaving the injury tent and walking gingerly to the bench as if his back was hurting. Stromberg suffered a lower-body injury, as he got rolled up and limped off the field.
At Auburn, there’s a lot of talk Sunday about one play in Saturday’s loss at Penn State. It was 4th-and-goal at the 2-yard line with Auburn trailing by eight and only 3:12 left in the game. Bryan Harsin called a timeout.
The Tigers needed a touchdown and a two-point conversion and Harsin knew this was going to be his best chance to push Penn State into overtime.
“We talked about it; everybody kind of gives their input,” explained Harsin. “Those plays are pre-planned and scripted in those areas, so, you know, those are things you work on.”
Unfortunately for Auburn, the execution didn’t match the preparation. The Tigers went with a four-wide set and Tank Bigsby in the backfield. Bo Nix took a shotgun snap and lofted the ball toward the back of the end zone hoping to connect with Kobe Hudson on what appeared to be a fade.
But Hudson couldn’t escape the press coverage from Penn State All-American safety Jaquan Brisker and didn’t get within eight yards of the ball, which bounced out of the back of the end zone.
“I just saw, you know, kind of the first of the play and the ball went up and (Kobe) was out of phase with where the throw was,” Harsin said.
Harsin said that Nix actually had five separate options on the play although he didn’t detail each one.
“Before I make any comment on, you know, was that the right decision, I've got to go back and watch and see where the progression starts,” said Harsin. “And that's really the one thing with the quarterback position: sometimes those plays don't work out, and the main question is, 'Well, he made the wrong read.' Not necessarily; sometimes either it's a route, it's the defense doing a good job in their coverage.
“And so, we'll access that tonight as we watch the film on the plane. We'll work at it and make corrections tomorrow. But ultimately, you know, you want to give yourself a better chance in that situation right there. I don't know if that was a decision -- we've run that thing quite a few times and we've had some really good plays on it. So, I trust that what he saw out there, we'll look at it, we'll learn from it and we'll go from there.”
At LSU, On a night of firsts, LSU looked for the first time this season more like the team coach Ed Orgeron and company hoped and expected to be.
The Tigers (2-1) continued building their defensive momentum in an aggressive and sound showing in their final non-conference test before opening SEC play on the road next week.
And Max Johnson and a speedier, more confident offense — highlighted by an explosion of freshman playmakers — hung a sudden season-high scoring onslaught in a 49-21 of Central Michigan (1-2).
"We saw improvement," Orgeron said. "Like I told our team, 'This wasn't nowhere about Central Michigan. This was about us, our identity, who are we gonna be and what are the things that we are going to do well as a football team?' And you saw some of them tonight."
Johnson immediately let a 65-yard march down the field, capped by a 28-yard touchdown to Deion Smith, to start setting the tone.
The leaping haul of a jump-ball over a defender was the first of Smith's career, but wouldn't be the last of his debut start.
Or, for that matter, the last ridiculous highlight-reel score by a freshman pass-catcher.
"It was fun to see 'em do it in Tiger Stadium," Orgeron said. "I see 'em do it all the time in practice, and they finally got their chance."
The Tigers reached the end zone on five of their first seven true drives — not including a one-play kneel-down before the half.
Johnson completed 26 of his 35 passes (74.3%) for 372 yards, five scores and one interception.
At Mississippi State, Calvin Austin scored three second-half touchdowns including a questionable 94-yard punt return in the fourth quarter as Memphis rallied for a 31-29 victory over the Bulldogs on Saturday.
The victory and Austin’s punt return were part of a wild final six minutes that included onside kicks, penalties, reviews, and other questions such as whether Austin could return the punt on which he scored or if the ball was dead.
The Southeastern Conference issued a tweet after the game, arguing the punt return should have been reviewed after the back judge, part of an SEC officiating crew, had signaled to stop the clock after the punted ball stopped moving. The signal apparently went unseen.
Told some thought an official ruled the play dead, Mississippi State coach Mike Leach responded: “Did they call the play dead? So, he did call the play dead? We’ll have to look at that on film, and maybe some others will too.”
In the end, Memphis (3-0) escaped with the victory thanks to a 51-yard field goal from Tigers kicker Joe Doyle with 2:02 left. A two-play drive from Mississippi State (2-1) after the field goal was capped by a 36-yard touchdown from quarterback Will Rogers to Makai Polk. But Rogers run for the two-point conversion failed, preserving the Memphis victory.
The postgame, however, was focused on the punt.
As the ball was lying on the turf, Austin picked up the ball and headed down the right sideline, the speedster outrunning the surprised Bulldog defenders. That gave Memphis a 28-17 lead.
“I mean, the ball’s live,” Bulldog coach Mike Leach said. “Just because you touch it, they usually whistle it. You know. We’ve got to pick it up and hand it to the ref.”
Leach, after being told about the back judge apparently whistling the play dead, said the game film would be reviewed.
For Austin’s part, he was well aware of the situation, saying he and his father talk about such situations and Memphis coaches have emphasized it also.
“As soon as I saw the dude try to catch it and he dropped it and I was looking and waiting to see if someone was going to hand it to the officials,” Austin said, adding “They touched it and let it be. As soon as I saw that, I sprinted to the ball and then I could just get it and run with it.”
At Texas A&M, the Aggies’ defense was terrific in a shutout of New Mexico. The offense, however, continued to sputter, as laid out by AggieYell’s Mark Passwaters.
“You put up 34 points and gained 429 yards of total offense with a whole lot of backups across the board,” Passwaters wrote. “The bad news: you should have put up 50 at least and your offensive line was horrible.
“The Aggies gave up a total of 3 sacks in the 2020 regular season. They gave up 5 today. Two of those you can argue were on Zach Calzada for holding onto the ball too long (one is indisputable), but this was easily the worst performance we've seen in a couple of years.
“A positive is we won't see this grouping again next week. Layden Robinson was held out for precautionary measures, so Kenyon Green moved to right guard and Blake Trainor moved into the starting lineup at right tackle. It was not a good combination. Trainor was completely overmatched, getting beaten repeatedly by speed rushers or simply blowing assignments. He whiffed totally several times, allowing for unimpeded runs at Calzada. By the third quarter, Jimbo Fisher had seen enough and Deuce Fatheree replaced him. Green looked lost as well. It makes you wonder if he played there at all this week, because it looked like he hadn't been there in two years.
“Bryce Foster was ok. Aki Ogunbiyi had a bad day as well, and looked like he wasn't sure what to do when he was the leader blocker on counters. He essentially ran himself out of the play by going out too wide, instead of hitting the gap to lead the back. Jahmir Johnson was solid and steady, and it was a huge relief when he came back in the game.
“Max Wright, the blocking tight end, had a horrific game, missing badly on a bunch of blocks that also left Calzada vulnerable. …That performance would get you whipped in the SEC.”
8. I could never be an Associated Press voter, not with my veritable plethora of biases, but if I were, my ballot would look like this today:
1. Alabama
2. Georgia
3. Oregon
4. Iowa
5. Oklahoma
6. Cincinnati
7. Penn State
8. Ole Miss
9. Notre Dame
10. Florida
11. Ohio State
12. Texas A&M
13. Iowa State
14. Clemson
15. BYU
16. Michigan State
17. Arkansas
18. Michigan
19. Auburn
20. Coastal Carolina
21. Oklahoma State
22. Kentucky
23. Wisconsin
24. Maryland
25. North Carolina
9. It's time to eat. Here is our resident Parisian chef, Burton Webb, with Taste of the Place, Lesson 104 —Pasta Come All’ Universita.
So this is now your next best pasta salad recipe that you go for. It’s different all the way through because it doesn’t use the “spiral” pasta that everyone knows. Now for your next tailgate star.
Tidbit #1: You can serve this pasta salad cold or warm. Also, you can incorporate mayo in this as well if you would like. The quantity will be below.
Tidbit #2: This pasta salad is also different because you cook everything together and then let it sit to cool down. After you have let it cool down, you can add the mayo as stated above.
Things you will need:
6 People
Floral white wine
Preparation time - 10 minutes
Cook time - 15 minutes
Utensils needed:
Worksurface and chef’s knife
Stovetop
Large saute pan
Medium sauce pot
Measuring cups
Tongs
Large mixing bowl
Ingredients needed:
Linguini pasta (2 handfuls)
2 Packages tuna
3 Vines grape tomatoes
1 Red onion, small dice
1 cup white wine
1 Tbsp capers
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Jar black olives, sliced in half
2 Bunches of fresh parsley, chopped
1.5 cups mayo
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Mise en Place
Step 1: Boil your pasta in salted water for 6 minutes. After, continue the cooking in the saute pan with the other ingredients for 2 minutes more.
Step 1.2: In your saute pan over medium heat, add in 1 tbsp of olive oil followed by the red onion, capers, and tomatoes. Cook for 4 minutes. After, add in the garlic and olives. Continue to cook for 1 minute. Then add in the white wine and let the wine reduce in the pan to almost half.
Step 2: At this moment, add the tuna to the pan along with the pasta. Mix everything and cook for those other 2 minutes. Turn off the heat. Drizzle over 2 tbsp of olive oil and let the mixture sit until room temperature.
Step 3: Add your mayo and parsley to the mixing bowl followed by the pasta in the saute pan that has cooled. Salt and pepper and mix everything until combined. Place in the fridge until you are ready to serve. Enjoy and have a great Bama week, BEAT BAMA!!! 4-0
From the Mississippian in Paris, Bon Appétit!
10. We'll have coverage of Ole Miss football, football recruiting and whatever else may pop up this week on RebelGrove.com. Until then, here are some links of interest to me -- and hopefully, to you -- for your reading interest:
‘There is no wrong.’ TCU’s Patterson delivers NIL message to local business leaders
Corral now odds-on leader in Heisman race
Toppmeyer: Alabama shows vulnerabilities in narrow escape at Florida
Is time running out on Alabama football after it escapes The Swamp with win over Florida?
College football class signing limits nearing NCAA expansion - Sports Illustrated
Inside SMU's 'Big Ben' Hail Mary play that led to magical finish: 'It just worked perfectly'
Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes on Andy Reid teaching him to change diapers
Why Blake Griffin, Russell Westbrook and other NBA stars are fighting to save Julius Jones
Rockets, John Wall agree he won’t play as sides work together on trade: Sources - The Athletic
Padres' Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr. get into dugout argument in loss to Cardinals
The Phillies' stretch run is a race not to waste Bryce Harper's historic season
How the Cubs can use pieces of what they already have to build a deep, versatile lineup
As craft beer booms around the country, why isn't it thriving at the ballpark?
Natural immunity to covid is powerful. Policymakers seem afraid to say so. - The Washington Post
Covid hospitalization numbers can be misleading
Menstrual changes after covid-19 vaccination | The BMJ
AOC’s ‘Tax the Rich’ dress designer Aurora James is a tax deadbeat
Apple quietly hires ex-Cuomo PR chief
Hero farm animals rescue chicken pal from hawk in wild video
