Coach Kiffin wraps up Ole Miss win over Georgia Tech, looks ahead to Alabama
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin and the No. 15 Rebels have now turned the page to the SEC portion of the schedule, which starts this Saturday in Tuscaloosa against the No. 13 Crimson Tide.
In a rare Sunday conference call, Coach Kiffin talked with media to wrap up the 48-23 win over Georgia Tech and assess the Rebs’ performance after watching game film.
“I thought the guys finished really well, especially offensively,” Kiffin said. “Kind of opposite of last week’s game, Tulane game. Kind of sitting after the game thinking the same thing — good win, good finish. But weren’t pleased with how we executed on offense a week ago. We weren’t pleased how we played defensively,” he added. “Give them credit,” Kiffin continued.
“Georgia Tech’s offense played really hard and had some really good schemed stuff. Their coaches did a really good job. We’ve got a lot to work on. We didn’t tackle well, didn’t play really physical. Surprising, ‘cause that had not been an issue for the most part the first two games.”
Lane Kiffin on Ole Miss defense
Ole Miss amassed 550 yards against the Yellow Jackets while missing some of the group’s key playmakers.
“Obviously played shorthanded on offense without Tre (Harris), without (Caden) Prieskorn and a limited Q (Quinshon Judkins). I thought Jaxson really stepped up and then the running game stepped up and then, late, the two receivers (Dayton Wade and Jordan Watkins) with the big plays.“
Lane Kiffin
Coach Kiffin was asked about the different offensive line combinations the offense has worked with, specifically on the left side.
“Well we’ve always tried to play some more linemen. Just the way the game has gotten with the speed of it (and) now that people substitute defensive lineman,” Kiffin explained. “That’s kind of been some of our fourth quarter issues the last two years offensively…we’re just trying to rotate guys in and keep competition going. We’re lucky to have Victor (Curne) that can play all four spots, but center,” he added.
Coach Kiffin was also asked about former five-star recruit and true freshman linebacker Suntarine Perkins, who is hard to miss when he’s on the field.
“He’s doing a great job,” Kiffin said.
“I continue to look to play him more and more. He’s a big-time difference maker. Shoot, you see him going in there sometimes and it feels like the first play he goes in, he makes a significant play. (Against Georgia Tech) he played 35 snaps on defense, 11 on special teams. But we gotta continue to find ways to get him out there.”
Lane Kiffin on Suntarine Perkins
It Just Means More…
With Alabama already having one loss and some of the other SEC teams not looking perhaps as dominant as they have in the past, Coach Kiffin was asked about the state of the league three weeks into the season.
He made it clear he doesn’t think anyone should jump to any conclusions, especially this early.
“Like everything nowadays, every week is like the end of the world or everyone’s great or bad based on the last game. I think there’s too much to that, probably. I think people have portal people and teams take a little more time to come together sometimes. You’ve got some new staff. I would wait to make big evaluations on that,” Kiffin explained.
“I would think, like always, the SEC will end up rising to the top.”
Lane Kiffin
Ole Miss will look to remain undefeated as the Rebels face Alabama Saturday in what begins a gauntlet of seven consecutive SEC games.
Coach Kiffin knows the task ahead is tough.
“Huge challenge coming up this week. Going to play in probably the hardest place in the country, against the best program over the last 10, 15 years on the planet. This will be very challenging for us. We’ve got a lot of work to do, because we’ve got a long ways to go.”
Lane Kiffin on playing Alabama
Who will be calling the defensive plays for Alabama? While Kevin Steele is the successor to Pete Golding at defensive coordinator for the Tide, Coach Kiffin isn’t so sure he will be the one making the calls. He believes cornerbacks coach Travaris Robinson could be the one running the defense.
“Well, we’ve been against Kevin (Steele) a number of times,” Kiffin said. “Worked with him at Alabama and against him at Auburn and LSU. There seems like there’s been a change there. I don’t know what happened after the Texas game, but just our guys watching the TV copy (and) schematically in this last game, certainly seems like T-Rob’s (Robinson) now calling the defense. We played him before at South Carolina, so we’re preparing accordingly,” Kiffin said.
Game info
Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT and the game will be broadcast on CBS.
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn’s love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
