The Rebel Walk QB Film Room: Cal 28, Ole Miss 20

Before we look at the Ole Miss quarterback play against Cal in this edition of The Rebel Walk QB Film Room, I must say I was impressed with the competitive spirit this team showed, particularly in the final five minutes of the game. Although the score didn’t show a victory, there was a tremendous effort made by your Rebels.

This game was winnable, for sure, but there were many opportunities lost, both early and late. The good news is that everything is correctable, and for such a young outfit, I see a very bright future. There’s a lot of talent out there. Enjoy their development!

QB Film Room – Cal game

Video 1

We’re seeing more and more of the run-pass option on the corners, and here the strategy is executed brilliantly by Matt Corral. Watch Jonathan Mingo up top showing run and then slipping behind the defensive back for the catch.

Video 2

Here we have a running play designed to get the quarterback out on the corner behind the blocking of the right side of the offensive line. A good fake sends the linebacker backside and play-side run support is nowhere to be found.

Video 3

You’ve got to love the design of this play out of the two-back set. Your left halfback Jerrion Ealy will jet to the opposite flat while Corral is faking a handoff to your other back. All eyes are off Ealy until it’s too late and the ball is delivered.

Video 4

This is the type of big play you’re looking for out of the run-pass option on the corner. Notice the defensive end going all in on the dive back, leaving the corner area wide open for QB decision making. It’s a great job here by the QB in hitting Braylon Sanders and then an excellent run by the receiver after the catch.

Video 5

Here’s a 4th and 6 play that is executed to perfection. All 5 eligible receivers are wide with trips to the short side of the field. Cal is bringing six defenders, meaning they’re 5-on-5 in the secondary. Corral finds his man in Elijah Moore but the freshman comes up a yard short; a foreshadowing of what was to come.

Video 6

This play is important because it’s the play that knocked starting quarterback out of the game. It was a clean hit back in the pocket as Corral releases the ball.

Video 7

True freshman QB John Rhys Plumlee enters the game and an excellent running play ensues. The RB goes into motion backside just before the ball is snapped, and Plumlee will read the block of his right tackle on the defensive end. After that, it’s off to the races.

Video 8

Here’s an excellent read on the handoff by Plumlee and fellow true freshman Jerrion Ealy finds the crease.

Video 9

Here’s an excellent job of pass protection for Plumlee, who’s seeing the first action of his career, and an outstanding job of catching the football by Demarcus Gregory.

Video 10

Here are the two plays that have been pored over and reviewed thousands of times — but not when it was absolutely necessary. Plumlee sprints left and delivers a strike to Moore. The receiver believes he’s still in the end zone and cradles the ball as he hits the ground. If he keeps his feet, of course, there is no debate and it’s potentially a tie game after a 2-point conversion.

On the QB sneak, one has to wonder just how often in simulated-game situations that Plumlee has had a chance to practice this play at Ole Miss. A reach over the top with the ball might get the TD call, but who knows for sure. Valiant effort by the Rebels that came up just inches short.

David Walker

David is the consummate true-freshman quarterback, first pioneering the position only a year after college freshmen were given varsity eligibility by the NCAA in 1972. In 1973, the left-handed all-state gunslinger from Sulphur, Louisiana started for the Texas A&M Aggies and earned the All-Southwest Conference Freshman of the Year award as selected by the league’s coaches. David is the first college quarterback ever awarded Freshman of the Year in the NCAA. He was only 17, and still holds the NCAA record as the youngest starting quarterback in college football history. He wore No. 8 at A&M in honor of one of his football heroes, Archie Manning.

In becoming the winningest quarterback ever at A&M, David was converted from a dual-threat QB to a triple option trailblazer. The two-time team captain led three record-breaking offenses that changed the direction of football at A&M forever, establishing once and for all the winning tradition that the Aggies had so-long desired.

As a high school head coach in Houston in the late ‘80s, David stationed his quarterback in the shotgun formation, having him reading defenses and throwing hot routes at a time when such offensive schemes were frowned upon by traditional fans and coaches. One of his quarterbacks tossed 57 passes in a single game, which stood as the all-time Greater Houston Area record for many years.

As you can tell from his bona fides, David is extremely qualified as our expert on all things Quarterback at Ole Miss. Enjoy his exclusive analysis only here at The Rebel Walk!