Lane Kiffin looks ahead to Middle Tennessee State: ‘They’re Very Well-Coached…Really Sound in What They Do’
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin met with the media on Monday for his weekly press conference as the team prepares to take on Middle Tennessee State on Saturday.
In the win over Furman, quarterback Jaxson Dart had impressive first-half, going 22-for-27 for 418 yards and five touchdowns with another touchdown on the ground.
“It’s just a half of football,” Kiffin said.
“I reminded these guys, although it’s a different team, different season, you have to prepare every week. Last year, he had a really big game, we had a really big game on offense in the opener. Week two, we went to Tulane and didn’t play very well. You have to play every week. What you did before has nothing to do with the next week. He needs to prepare really well, and we have to play really well around him.”
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin
Middle Tennessee State rolls into Oxford coming off a 32-25 win over Tennessee Tech to open the season. Head coach Derek Mason’s Blue Raiders needed to score in the final seconds of the game to secure the victory.
Mason spent seven years as the head coach of Vanderbilt, as well as also having served as a defensive coordinator for Auburn, Stanford and Oklahoma State.
“We know Middle Tennessee came back and won the other night,” Coach Kiffin said.
“Last year, they had Missouri down to the wire. These guys have been in these type situations. They’re very well-coached. An SEC head coach and NFL defensive coordinator. They’re really sound in what they do. We need to prepare well this week and play really good at home. We look forward to the challenge.“
Lane Kiffin on Middle Tennessee State
Although his Rebels won, 76-0, Coach Kiffin touched on what Ole Miss needs to work on from last Saturday.
“I think we missed a few things in protection. Communication line and backs. I thought we had some coverage issues where we left some people run open, wasn’t about getting beat in man-to-man, it was about screwing up assignments. Those are things that will hurt us a lot down the road, giving up explosive pass plays and sacks.”
Lane Kiffin
Up Next
Ole Miss and Middle Tennessee State will face off on Saturday inside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Kickoff is at 3:15 p.m. and can be seen on SEC Network.
Adam Brown
Adam Brown joins The Rebel Walk as the Managing Editor after being on the Ole Miss beat as a Sports Editor for over 11 years. He is a lifelong Oxford resident. Brown graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Prior to The Rebel Walk, Brown was the sports editor of HottyToddy.com covering every Ole Miss sport and local high school sports in the community.
