Jaxson Dart pleased with Rebels’ offensive explosion but knows ‘our backs are against the wall’
OXFORD, Miss.- Ole Miss took care of business Saturday in Fayetteville, defeating Arkansas 63-31 to move to 7-2 (3-2 SEC) on the year.
Quarterback Jaxson Dart finished his outing by setting the single-game passing record for Ole Miss with 515 yards and six touchdowns. In the effort, he also passed Bo Wallace (10,478 yards) to move to No. 1 in school history with 10,805 yards of total offense for his career. Continuing his assault on the record books, with the win, Dart (25-9) now stands as the winningest starting quarterback of Ole Miss’ modern era since Archie Manning’s first start in 1968.
Jaxson Dart and Missouri’s Drew Lock in 2017 are the only SEC players to ever do this 😲 @OleMissFB | @JaxsonDart pic.twitter.com/GPnDnxNE7Z
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 2, 2024
Wide receiver Jordan Watkins also took a dive into the history books today, recording the most receiving yards (254) and the most touchdowns (5) in a single game in program history.
Got a little déjà vu ⚡️@jordantwatkins | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/V6CprkSTgp
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 2, 2024
Dart credited the team’s impressive week of preparation for the performance.
“I thought we had a great week of practice and honestly had our best Friday yesterday, I knew that we were ready, so that’s what I echoed in the locker room… This is a really tough place to play… I thought from the offensive line setting the tone at the beginning of the game to J-Wat (Jordan Watkins) and all the other playmakers making great plays, to our defense, it was a great team effort.”
– Dart on the performance of the team
On top of Watkins’ record-setting outing, Cayden Lee, Dae’Quan Wright, and Juice Wells did their part, combining for 285 receiving yards. Analyzing the offensive explosion, Jaxson made sure to acknowledge that this Arkansas team had not been far off from being a ranked, one-loss squad. The Razorbacks defeated No. 7 Tennessee and then lost to No. 10 Texas A&M by only four points on the road.
“That’s a really good defense that we played. You saw what they did against Tennessee. Quite honestly, they’re a few plays away from being a one-loss team… I thought that the game plan that the coaches brought to us was awesome. We were able to attack some vulnerabilities on the back end. They have a great defensive line, so just trying to do everything we can to slow that down, and for that all credit goes to the coaches.“
– Dart on the Arkansas defense
In terms of the Rebel defense, the boys up front continued to rack up their sack count, ending the day with eight. As it stands, Ole Miss now leads the country with 41 sacks. Despite picking up momentum on both sides of the ball, Dart says he has a strong understanding that with one more loss, their playoff aspirations will likely be put to bed.
Landshark D is swarming today 🦈@suntarine | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/NBvKfcmNkE
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 2, 2024
“Our backs are against the wall. Each week we know that and we understand the expectations that we have for ourselves, so we play with a chip, and we feel like each and every week we have nothing to lose, so we’re going to go give it our all. I thought we did an amazing job of preparing this week, and it really showed out today.“
– Dart on the mindset of the team
Next, Ole Miss will host No. 2 Georgia in a make-or-break game with everything on the line.
“Walking off the field, we all understand what is to come next week, and we’re excited for the opportunity.”
– Dart on facing Georgia
Moving into next week, be sure to stay tuned to The Rebel Walk for coverage of press conferences, injury updates, and all of your Ole Miss sports news. Hotty Toddy and Go, Rebs!
