Rebels Must Stay Sharp Against Dangerous Gamecocks
OXFORD — After 2024, the Ole Miss fan base will never again look at two-touchdown underdogs as easy pickings.
The Rebs’ most devastating losses in the Kiffin era both came last season against two-touchdown underdogs — Kentucky at home and Florida in Gainesville. Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss teams had won all five such games prior to last year.
Now, South Carolina comes to Oxford as a 12.5-point underdog in the first SEC night game this season at Vaught-Hemingway. Playing this one under the lights is an all-important factor. For me, it helps take the cautiously optimistic edge off of going up against an extremely dangerous two-touchdown underdog — but only a tad.
Night games, as Coach Kiffin has profusely pointed out several times, are a huge advantage for the home team in the SEC. The more in Oxford, the better. The home crowd’s adrenaline ignites and fuels the players to an entirely different performance level. It has a way of swaying the results in the home team’s favor — a tremendous advantage.
Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s yet another one-score game as we head into the fourth quarter. As Coach Kiffin, himself, has pointed out many a time, this league is dangerous, even when playing the lower-tier teams. We’ve learned the hard way that nothing comes easy in SEC play, as Alabama found out against these same Gamecocks last week.
Coach Kiffin began his weekly press conference Monday with thoughts on South Carolina and what they do to give opponents trouble.
“This is a really challenging week against a very, very talented and dangerous team that we’re playing and one that had Alabama beat all the way till the end of the game,” Kiffin explained.
“So any time that you have really talented players and you have an elite quarterback, size speed ratio is off the charts and he gives people a lot of problems. This guy, I think has had more missed sacks against him than any quarterback in the country. Tackles or sacks combined because he’s really hard to bring down and does a great job. And these guys on defense are very explosive. Got one of the best players in the country rushing you every snap. So we’re going to have to have a really good preparation week.“
Lane Kiffin on facing South Carolina
Ole Miss players have learned not to let their guard down, regardless of the record of their opponents. Wide receiver Harrison Wallace III knows the Gamecocks will play them tough.
“They’re a great team, even though they’re not having the season they intended to have. They’re a great team. They do a lot of great things on offense and defense. And they’re going to come in hungry.“
Wallace on facing South Carolina
Scoring margins sit around 10 points league-wide. There just aren’t many blowouts to be had and you never know where “analytics” will take you in the course of an Ole Miss football game.
The Rebels brought home a huge win in Norman last weekend in a victory marked by complete play from all three facets of the game. Ole Miss will need to play at that same championship level from here on out, with no more anomalies or slip ups as the Rebels look to make their first college football playoff.
To make it to Atlanta, the Rebels need either A&M or Alabama to lose two games down the stretch, but it’s best now just to focus on taking out South Carolina. The Tide film and recent history tell you all you need to know about this one. The Gamecocks read the press clippings, too.
College football’s spoilers, unfortunately, still have more spoiling to do, and with so much at stake, Ole Miss is a definite target. The proving ground lies ahead.
Better buckle up!
David Walker
David Walker was named Louisiana’s High School Player of the Year at just 16 years old and, at 17, became college football’s first quarterback to earn Freshman of the Year honors. He remains the NCAA’s youngest-ever starting quarterback, a distinction that has stood for decades.
Transitioning from a wide-open high school offense to Emory Bellard’s renowned wishbone triple option, Walker excelled as a dual-threat quarterback. He graduated as Texas A&M’s all-time winningest quarterback and served as a two-time team captain, helping to transform a program that had endured 15 losing seasons in the previous 16 years.
After his playing career, Walker coached and taught algebra at six Texas high schools before moving into private business. In 2011, he published his memoir, “I’ll Tell You When You’re Good,” a title inspired by the coaching philosophy of Shannon Suarez, the Sulphur High and Louisiana High School Hall of Fame coach who was a significant influence on Walker’s life and career.
Walker’s compelling storytelling in his autobiography reflects the breadth of his experiences in high school and college football, and it is an undeniable fact that he saw more action than any athlete in the history of the NCAA. Since 2013, he has contributed to The Rebel Walk, sharing his insights and expertise with readers.
