TRANSCRIPT: Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin talks Saturday scrimmage, who is standing out in fall camp

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin met with media Monday after practice as the Rebels begin their third week of fall camp. He talked about Saturday’s scrimmage, who stood out, and areas that need to be worked on.

Here’s everything Coach Kiffin had to say:

Lane Kiffin’s opening statement

All right. So, exciting scrimmage, competitive Saturday. I thought there was a lot of really good stuff in there for us to teach off of, for our players to learn some situational stuff as well. And the First Defense did a really good job, forced a number of turnovers, and it was great to see them playing together at a high speed with so many new pieces there. And obviously whenever you have a scrimmage, if one side does well in an area, the other side isn’t, so it will give you some good stuff to work on and some good learning lessons offensively.

Question: Just speaking kind of of the defense, what have you seen as far as just the coming together on the back end in the secondary, just trying some things out there, especially at corner?

Lane Kiffin: Yeah. I think, a number of guys were hurt early on and missing time back there. That limited us, some coming back now. For instance, Dante Core had a really good Saturday and did some good things coming back from an injury. So, it will be good to continue to get people back. We’re not all the way back, but, a lot of moving pieces there and a lot of confidence in our coaches that like we have in the years before, they’ll get them put together in the right spots.

Question: He’s one of a couple of freshmen, not just Dante, but Ladarian Clardy is a good example of this. Devin Harper and Connor Howes up front. Who are some freshmen that have kind of done that, made a good impression so far early on?

Lane Kiffin: Well, you kind of answered the question, there.  Very, very southern of you. So those would be it. The two linemen, like you said have done a really good job coming in and playing early. So, that’s been good. And the class as a whole has a lot of talent. And, we’re just trying to get them in the right places, especially special teams, as we get closer to a game.

Question: You mentioned the defense playing well was the offense, was it mistakes or was it the defense playing well that kind of led to the offense maybe with the turnovers and whatnot?

Lane Kiffin: Yeah. Combination of that. I thought the defense came out with really good energy, especially after the first drive, and did some really good things and made some really good plays. Good pass rush that created some turnovers, good plays in the secondary. And, you know, quarterbacks like in most scrimmages, you know, some that they wish they could have back and some things to learn from in those.

Question: Kind of a non scrimmage question. But also Saturday, Jaxson got his first taste. When you got done with that did you watch any highlights or kind of thoughts on how he did.

Lane Kiffin: Yeah we pulled those up when we got done and I talked to him last night and so that was awesome to see. He’s doing really well and played well and he’s really enjoying it. And he talked about his relationships with the other quarterbacks there. I shared that actually with our quarterbacks today about how a united room helping each other can be so beneficial, and it’s great to see him play well. You know, I say when we’re in things here, you know, I just really try to point them out that I hope that we’re appreciative around here when we’re in them. And that reminds me you know the quarterback play here has been at a really high level. And you know those guys getting picked in the first and third rounds. So, what ’71 since Archie went, over 50 years there’s been three quarterbacks selected in the first three rounds. Obviously Eli, and then our fans have got to see the other two over the last five years. So, just hope we continue to have things like that, that we’re in those type of runs here that we can all appreciate when we’re in them.

Question: I guess to that Austin specifically, how did you feel he came out of that first scrimmage Saturday?

Lane Kiffin: Yeah, he made some critical errors and rebounded and played well later on. So that was..I look in big picture. That’s good for it to happen because he really hadn’t had many critical errors the entire camp. And so sometimes, you know, it’s a lot better to have them in the scrimmage than the game. So it’s good to learn from.

Question: Just based on the past years in your experience is when scrimmages happen, the first scrimmage is the defense or the offense, does one usually win? Is one usually ahead of the other at this time?

Lane Kiffin: I think here lately the offense has usually been a little bit because defense, I think Pete does a phenomenal job of looking at the big picture, the end result, not trying to win the drill. And that means moving guys in different spots, trying different things, so that we get the best unit out there by the time we get to the opening game. So, I think a lot of times over time here, it’s been the offense. So that was good to see the defense. You know, it’d be great to obviously play defense like we did last year. I think somebody said that’s the lowest or one of the lowest average per carry given up in the last five years in the entire country. So again, something that was pretty cool to watch, to be able to dominate in games defensively up front, the way that we did a year ago, especially coming from where we were just a few years before that, especially when we got here.

Question: You guys lost a lot of, you know, people in the running back room. What have you seen out of them in fall camp so far that you’ve liked?

Lane Kiffin: Well, Kewan coming in has been electric, done some really good things. And I think it’s a very competitive group, a group that can run and catch and pass protect. And Logan Diggs has done a good job. So, and the newcomers filtering in there has made it really competitive and a lot to look at.

Question: What were your thoughts on the on the O-line on Saturday?

Lane Kiffin: A little bit up and down. You know, we didn’t have a starting offensive lineman and really when it was done, maybe two starting offensive linemen weren’t there. So, it’s always good for other guys to work around and see how they do. But, you know, our first defensive line is really good and presents a lot of problems with the scheme that we play. So it’s always a test for them.

Question: How has Princewill looked? I’m curious, especially compared to Princely… But how are they? Are they different at all? Or is it truly, you know, just screaming around the edge like princely?

Lane Kiffin: They’re a little bit different. He’s had a really good camp. He’s actually the defensive player of the game Saturday, so that’s been great to see — against not just the past, but against the run too. And playing physical. So we’re really excited about them.

Question: You know plenty of you know, preseason hype around Suntarine Perkins. What can you say about maybe the job that he’s done stepping up as another big player in this defense. But even more this year with so many of those big, you know, big stars leaving, you know, what can you say about the job that he’s done going into another camp here?

Lane Kiffin: Yeah. He’s had a great camp coming back from injury. Love the way that he practices, prepares. Great for our young players to see. Actually had a pick six for a touchdown, interception return for a touchdown to start a two minute drill Saturday. And he’s just really a great piece to be able to work with because he’s so unique.