Gamer: Ole Miss Cruises to 33-7 Homecoming Win over Vanderbilt
OXFORD, Miss. – Homecoming weekend in Oxford played host to a sea of powder blue and the last annual matchup of the ‘Khaki Bowl’ as the Ole Miss Rebels notched a convincing 33-7 victory of the Vanderbilt Commodores.
The SEC’s greatest annual rivalry comes to a close 😓 pic.twitter.com/w4JmfbWz55
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Offense
The Rebel offense went straight to work after electing to receive the opening kick, as usual. Jaxson Dart eluded pressure, staying calm and finding Dayton Wade down the sideline to get the Rebels into Vandy territory quickly. Quinshon Judkins did the rest, making a couple of Commodores miss on his way to the endzone for an 18-yard scamper to make it 7-0 Ole Miss in a hurry.
Moonwalkin’ 🌕@qaj4_ | ESPN pic.twitter.com/gVPxvG0Mf4
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 28, 2023
Set up nicely by the defense after an interception, Ole Miss went right back to work on offense. However, the Commodore defense stood tall, forcing the Rebels to kick a field goal that would extend the lead to 10-0 with 10 and half minutes left in the first quarter.
Judkins and the Ole Miss offense went right back to work with 5 minutes to go in the first. The Rebels’ star running back rumbled his way past midfield, allowing Dart to find Tre Harris to set the Rebels up in the red zone. However, a false start and fumble by Dart forced the Rebels to settle for another field goal, a 48-yarder from Caden Davis that extended the Ole Miss lead to 13-0.
Good from 48! @_cadendavis stretches the Rebel lead with the long FG. pic.twitter.com/ouXpaGqQRt
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Wade already has made some impressive catches so far this year, and Dart gifted him another one. A long throw down the sideline allowed Wade to haul in a spectacular grab to set Ole Miss up in the red zone again. This time, the Rebels capitalized, as Dart eventually punched it in from the 1-yard line to make it 20-0 Rebels four minutes into the second quarter.
DAYTON WADE ARE YOU SERIOUS pic.twitter.com/sec5122QZQ
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Patience ➡️ Paydirt@JaxsonDart | @SECNetwork pic.twitter.com/VswAJ6ibGT
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Dart commented on Wade’s ‘incredible’ catch postgame.
“I mean he was absolutely rolling. He’s got burners on him so I know I can put it out there a little bit farther, but incredible catch by him. He’s just a huge spark for our team, he can do so many different things. He’s like a slot receiver that has outside receiver capabilities, he’s very talented at what he does and he’s a huge part of our offense.”
Dart on Dayton Wade
Wade finished his career day with 8 catches for 120 yards and a touchdown.
With great field position once again, the Rebels capitalized on the short field with a couple of Judkins’ runs that led to Dart tossing a 6-yard touchdown pass to Wade. Ole Miss then failed on the 2-point attempt, which made it 26-0 Rebels.
Those hands tho 😮💨@JaxsonDart ➡️ @__vierr pic.twitter.com/Lv3qzWLuvG
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Behind the arm of Dart, the Rebel offense was driving once again, looking to score as the first half began to wind down. Unfortunately, that was halted by the Vandy defense as they picked off Dart for his just his fourth of the season.
Coming out of the half, the Rebel offense looked a little flat. However, Dart pushed Ole Miss into Vandy territory again, only to make it back-to-back drives with turnovers after turning it over on downs.
After a slow third quarter for the Rebel offense, running backs Judkins and Ulysses Bentley IV decided it was best to put an end to the scoring drought. A couple of scampers from Bentley eventually allowed Judkins to find the endzone for the second time tonight as Ole Miss extended the lead to 33-7 with 9 minutes remaining.
Threw that man to the ground 😳@qaj4_ | @SECNetwork pic.twitter.com/nmO4gPbxnu
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Coach Kiffin talked about Judkins’ continued increase in production.
“I think it’s a lot of things. I think he’s doing better, he’s running harder. I think the (offensive) line is playing better and I think (Caden) Prieskorn makes a big difference. We kind of had specialty tight ends in his place, trying to run some different things, he gives you a big physical tight end.”
Kiffin on Judkins momentum
Despite stalling out for most of the second half and only coming away with one more score, the Rebel offense racked up 431 total yards as Judkins’ and Wade’s 100-yard performances led the way.
Defense
It seemed like Pete Golding’s group had been hitting their stride in recent weeks and tonight was another chance to show their improvements.
Right out of the gate, the Rebel defensive line wreaked havoc as Jared Ivey sacked Vandy QB Ken Seals to set up a long third down. Then, a broken up pass by Zamari Walton ended up in the air and in the hands of safety Trey Washington, setting Ole Miss up inside the Vanderbilt 20 yard line.
🚨 Tip Drill 🚨@ht_trey1 | @SECNetwork pic.twitter.com/u1gnUV571B
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 28, 2023
Washington is the team’s leading tackler, finding his way into the interception category after tonight. The Rebel safety spoke postgame on keeping the Vandy wideouts at bay.
“Execution and being on the same page. We have always felt like this year we are all on the same page (the secondary), communicating well within our defense and we’re gonna be a top defense. We proved that tonight and now it’s time to prove it again moving forward.”
Washington on the defensive success as of late
The Ole Miss D-Line continued to be ‘disrupters’ early in this one. Cedric Johnson came roaring into the backfield to get in on the action, recording his first sack of the game to force another punt from Vanderbilt.
Forcing what looked to be another Vandy punt, the Ole Miss punt coverage team forced a turnover on downs after tackling the Commodore punter short of the sticks on the attempted fake, giving Ole Miss the ball to start their drive in Vandy territory once again.
At the half, the Rebel defense held Vandy to just 82 total yards of offense and only allowed 4 first downs. The Ole Miss secondary seemed to be the largest part of that stat, only allowing 11 yards of passing and adding the interception to that.
Just when Vandy looked to have some momentum on offense to open the second half, Washington came away with his second interception of the night to keep the shutout alive.
Trey x 2@ht_trey1 | @SECNetwork pic.twitter.com/WP0AyxmPE6
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Despite the relentless play from Golding’s defense up to that point, Vandy Quarterback Walter Taylor, who replaced Seals, put together a long drive of QB runs that eventually wore the Rebel defense down. The Commodores found the endzone for the first time in the game, making it 26-7 with just two minutes left in the third quarter.
On fourth down, the Rebel defense line continued to disrupt. ‘Hometown Hero’ JJ Pegues came up with his first sack of the game in the fourth quarter, once again giving the offense the ball back around midfield.
The Ole Miss defense allowed only 60 yards of passing on the night, their fewest allowed all season. Along with that, the Rebels added two interceptions, a couple of turnovers on downs, 5 sacks and 7 tackles for loss.
Five sacks, seven TFLs on the night for the Landshark D 🦈 pic.twitter.com/uFzDxzS2HO
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 29, 2023
Kiffin spoke postgame on the Rebel secondary preventing the Vandy passing attack from getting anything going.
“I think that’s great. I mean, you guys have been here like me and you’ve seen times where, just like last year, guys were able to come in and throw the ball around on us and we struggled in the secondary. So I think it started by how we played up front with the rushers.”
Kiffin on the defensive performance
Defensive end Cedric Johnson led the way with 7 total tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. Washington took both the interceptions for himself, adding 3 tackles to his night as well.
Up Next
Next Saturday, the Rebels will be back on the Vaught for the first 11 am kickoff of the season as the Texas A&M Aggies come to town. The game will be televised on ESPN.
Kameron Wicker
Kam is an undergraduate at Ole Miss, currently pursuing a degree in Journalism. Even though he’s from Delhi, Louisiana, that didn’t stop Kam from growing up a diehard Ole Miss fan. He’s a sports guru who watches and follows all sports at all times. He lettered four years in football and baseball in high school and is an avid Saints, Pelicans, and Astros fan. In his free time, you can find him watching sports or at the rec participating in them.
