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Run, Rebels, Run! Ole Miss Racks Up Nearly 500 Rushing Yards in 48-34 win over Auburn

Posted by | Oct 15, 2022 |

Run, Rebels, Run! Ole Miss Racks Up Nearly 500 Rushing Yards in 48-34 win over Auburn

Oxford, Miss. – Ole Miss vs. Auburn kept to its reputation as an anything-goes football game, but Ole Miss ended a six-game losing streak to the Tigers, winning 48-34 to improve to 7-0 on the season and 3-0 in conference play. The victory marks the Rebels’ 14th consecutive home win.

Defense, Miscues Win Early

Ole Miss won the toss and elected to receive, and had a promising drive going as they moved the ball quickly down to the Auburn 35-yard line. Jaxson Dart was successful on a quarterback sneak on an early third down for the Rebels, but Ole Miss tried to run the same play again on fourth down and Auburn stuffed Dart at the line of scrimmage.

The Tigers would take over and get a quick first down run from Tank Bigsby, but on third and three Auburn quarterback Robby Ashford would try to scramble but, instead, ran right into Tavius Robinson for a huge sack that forced a punt. The resulting punt would pin the Rebels at their own five-yard line.

On the first play of the Rebels’ second drive, Dayton Wade got a huge hole and burst through the gap all the way to the 40-yard line, starting the drive off on a high note. But an errant snap on third down, something that has plagued Ole Miss all season, cost the Rebels the drive and they were forced to punt.

Defense Leads To Offense

Ole Miss fans have become very familiar with safety AJ Finley. Finley is the leader of the Rebels’ defense and has made his presence felt in every game. After Auburn was able to get a couple of first down runs from Tank Bigsby, Robby Ashford attempted a screen pass that was tipped and intercepted by Finley on a fantastic play.

Dayton Wade would then add to his early fireworks, getting past the defense for a wide-open 35-yard touchdown catch on a beautiful throw from Dart. The Rebels would strike first for the early 7-0 lead.

Fake It Till You Make It

After the Rebels’ defense forced another Auburn punt, Ole Miss would get down the field quickly to the Tigers’ 23-yard line. Jaxson Dart would then run one of the most beautiful play fakes you’ll ever see and find Zach Evans on a wheel route off the option to put the Rebels in front by two touchdowns.

Land Sharks Eatin’

Auburn would make a quarterback change prior to their third drive, bringing in TJ Finley who had missed two weeks with an injury. The Rebels would show no mercy.

Tavius Robinson, who had already sacked Ashford earlier in the game, got to Finley on third down and stripped him of the football on the way down.

Jared Ivey, who forced the game-winning fumble against Kentucky two weeks ago, was on the receiving end of the fumble this time, picking up the football to give Ole Miss the ball at the Auburn 22. It was the Rebels second takeaway of the game.

The Rebels would end the first quarter at the Auburn six yard line, and Zack Evans would quickly capitalize a few moments later to start the second quarter, pushing it in from two yards out to give Ole Miss a 21-0 lead.

Auburn Shows Some Life

Auburn would bring Robby Ashford back in for the Tigers’ next drive. Ole Miss forced Auburn into two third-and-long situations, but Ashford created two great plays to push Auburn all the way down to the Ole Miss two yard line. Ashford would then scamper into the end zone himself to bring the Tigers to within 21-7.

After the Ole Miss offense couldn’t get anything on the next drive, Auburn would convert yet another long third down to get inside the Rebels’ five yard line. Tank Bigsby would then score and Ole Miss saw their lead shrink to just seven, 21-14.

Rebels Ease The Bleeding

After being dominated for two consecutive drives, Ole Miss moved the ball down field and had a fourth down in Auburn territory. Dart attempted to find Casey Kelly near the end zone but the pass was broken up. However, Ole Miss caught a break when the Tigers were called for pass interference, giving the Rebels a first and goal.

After a near disaster on a trick play attempt from the five yard line, Quinshon Judkins would come through in the clutch, extending the Rebels lead back to two scores at 28-14.

First Half Mistakes Strike Again

The Ole Miss defense would do its job, pressuring Robby Ashford, causing him to lose his footing and fall down for a huge loss of yards, forcing a punt.

But on the ensuing drive, Dart attempted to find Jonathan Mingo in a tight window, but Mingo couldn’t handle the throw. The ball bounced off of several players and ended up being intercepted by the Tigers. The Rebels would hold them to a field goal, but the lead was just 28-17 with Auburn set to receive the second half kick.

Pressure On

After falling behind 21-0, Auburn ended the first half by outscoring Ole Miss 17-7 to get within 28-17. Tank Bigsby then opened the second half with a 50-yard touchdown run, assisted by multiple missed tackles — and suddenly Auburn was within 28-24.

Ole Miss would drive all the way to the Auburn five yard line on the Rebels’ next drive, but they would stall out and be forced to settle for a field goal to make it 31-24.

Surprise!

Ole Miss would catch everyone off guard on the ensuing kickoff, as transfer kicker Jonathan Cruz would surprise the Tigers with an unexpected onside kick. Brandon Buckhaulter would show some incredible patience to make sure the ball went the necessary ten yards and then recover it, stealing the possession for Ole Miss.

Quinshon Judkins would get the job done on the drive, punching it again to push the Ole Miss lead back to two possessions.

Not Going Quietly

Auburn wasted little time answering right back. The Ole Miss defense continued to struggle on third down, and Robby Ashford capped off the drive with a touchdown run to get it back to a 38-31 game.

The Rebels would then have a methodical drive down to the Auburn 22, but would be forced to settle for a field goal. Jonathan Cruz would put it through to make it 41-31, Rebels, with 12:28 to play in the game.

Auburn would quickly get down inside the Ole Miss ten yard line on the strength of a 50 yard run from Tank Bigsby, but the Rebels defense would hold the Tigers to a field goal of their own to make it 41-34.

Quinshon “Clutch-kins”

True freshman phenom Quinshon Judkins has been one of the biggest surprises of the season so far, and he continued his emphatic introduction to the college football world against Auburn. With Ole Miss needing a big score, Judkins delivered yet again in the clutch.

Following the touchdown, the game would be paused for lightning in the area.

Finishing Them Off

After the delay, the Tigers would get the ball back but Deantre Prince would ice the Ole Miss victory with an interception to send the Rebels to 7-0 on the season and 3-0 in conference play.

The victory is the 14th consecutive home win, going back to 2020.

 

“Really good team win. Unusual with the delay. We had a long time to sit in there and I really talked to our players about finishing people off… I was very pleased that we finished on offense and defense. We got the pick to shut down the series and didn’t give them the ball back again by getting the two first downs at the end of the game.” 

-Lane Kiffin

Ground And Pound

The Rebels finished with 448 rushing yards and had three different players reach the 100-yard rushing mark. Judkins tallied 139, Zach Evans notched 136, and Jaxson Dart added 115 of his own. Quinshon Judkins now has 718 rushing yards on the season and 10 touchdowns.

“We’ve got a lot for everybody. We’re almost the complete team we’re trying to be. Three 100 yard rushers speaks for itself. The o-line did great today. Watching them put it together through practice and put it with the game plan, couldn’t be much sweeter.” 

-Zach Evans on the rushing game

Up Next

Ole Miss won’t have long to rest on its laurels. The Rebels travel to Baton Rouge for a matchup with the LSU Tigers next week. That game will kick at 2:30 p.m. on CBS as the Rebels begin a two-game road trip that will end in College Station, Texas in two weeks at Texas A&M. With the win and Alabama’s loss to Tennessee, Ole Miss currently sits in sole possession of first place in the SEC West and remains the only undefeated team remaining in the west.

(Feature image credit: Josh McCoy, Ole Miss)
Austin Eldridge

Austin has more than ten years in sports media, including sports talk radio, play-by-play broadcasting and journalism. He has followed Ole Miss athletics for his entire life and has covered the Rebels and the rest of the SEC while working in the Memphis media market. Outside of sports media, Austin is a musician and outdoorsman. Before a serious accident forced him to be medically discharged, he was a multi-media journalist with the Mississippi National Guard.

About The Author

Austin Eldridge

Austin has more than ten years in sports media, including sports talk radio, play-by-play broadcasting and journalism. He has followed Ole Miss athletics for his entire life and has covered the Rebels and the rest of the SEC while working in the Memphis media market. Outside of sports media, Austin is a musician and outdoorsman. Before a serious accident forced him to be medically discharged, he was a multi-media journalist with the Mississippi National Guard.

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