Jared Ivey says Rebels all still bought in and ready to get back on the field: ‘There is no quit on my brother’
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss edge rusher Jared Ivey took the podium Tuesday to assess the Rebels’ bye-week productivity and the challenges they will face against Oklahoma.
Ivey described the team’s physical and mental state in practice as they look ahead to playing the Sooners.
“I feel like everybody’s fresh, and we’ve got guys with a lot of energy and guys that have been wanting to get back into the pads and get back out there, practice, and hit and get through our stuff. Very excited to get back to our stuff on Tuesday, and I feel like we had a great day.“
– Jared Ivey on how the team feels after the bye
While having time to recover and make adjustments was crucial, this Ole Miss team still holds two losses in SEC play, those coming against Kentucky and LSU. In spite of their struggles, Ivey says the team has remained bought in and focused on bouncing back against Oklahoma.
“I don’t feel like there were any quitters on teams in the past from any losses. I don’t feel like I’ve ever been on teams here with guys like that who would just quit on you mid-season because of a loss. We have been together and doing this thing for seven-eight months now, since spring ball, fall camp and stuff like that. There is no quit on my brother.”
– Ivey on the morale of the team following the LSU loss
Work in the trenches 💪#ProMindset | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/YNm7TVrxVj
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 15, 2024
Analyzing the gameplay of Oklahoma, there’s no question the Sooner offense has encountered a variety of challenges throughout the season. Though they’ve started both quarterbacks, Jackson Arnold and Michael Hawkins Jr., the Sooners announced that Arnold will be the one taking the ball against the Rebel defense on Saturday.
On top of searching for the right quarterback, Oklahoma also fired its offensive coordinator this week, putting Joe Jon Finley in charge of play calling. Ivey thinks it will be difficult for the Sooners to change the entire format of their offense in less than one week.
“Obviously nobody’s going to put in an entire offense in a week. He might have some of his go-to’s that he brings along, but for the most part, it’s going to be fairly similar to what they’ve been living in all year.”
– Ivey on preparing for a new offensive coordinator
For the Ole Miss offense, they’ll be tasked with a fierce Sooner’s defense, overseen by head coach Brent Venables, whose known for his unique scheme and success on the defensive side of the ball. One specific stat worth pointing out is that the Oklahoma defense has failed to stop opposing offenses on fourth down roughly 50 percent of the time.
On fourth-and-short, it could be crucial for the Rebels to put the ball in the hands of defensive lineman JJ Pegues who has scored four touchdowns this far this season. According to Ivey, only two players over the course of spring and fall camp have ever been able to prevent JJ from getting positive yards.
“We get to go against him, and me and TJ (Dottery) were getting into it with him because, through all of spring ball and fall camp, JJ only got stood up a couple of times. Once was TJ and one was me, so we both feel like we got our lick in, so we’re good. He can score as many times as he wants, I know I got one over him.”
– Ivey (smiling) on facing JJ Pegues at running back
BIG MAN TD FOR JJ PEGUES 💪 pic.twitter.com/ETkqhZBRkG
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 5, 2024
Game info
Rebel fans be sure to tune in this Saturday on ESPN as Ole Miss will host Oklahoma at 11 a.m. inside of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Until then, Go Rebs and Hotty Toddy!
