Postgame Thoughts | Ole Miss Did Exactly What a Top-10 Team Should: Dominate from Start to Finish
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss defeated The Citadel, 49-0, Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway in Oxford. The Rebels thoroughly dominated the Bulldogs — as they should against an FCS opponent. Frankly, Lane Kiffin’s team put on a clinic on both sides of the ball.
“Really pleased with how the starters played today. 35-5 first downs. The guys really answered the challenge,” Kiffin said postgame.
Here’s our main takeaways:
- Ole Miss did as was expected and pummeled The Citadel
- Trinidad Chambliss performed almost flawlessly
- The defense met every Citadel challenge, shutting them down completely for four quarters
- Ole Miss emerged from the game relatively injury-free (see below for more)
There was no drama in this game. The offense executed with precision and the defense pitched a shutout. Threatening only a couple of times, The Citadel missed both field goal attempts.
As expected, the Rebels totally rolled, amassing 603 yards of total offense in the process to Citadel’s 106 yards.
The Bulldogs only managed five first downs today, while Ole Miss picked up 35. The Citadel was held to 23 yards passing and 83 yards on the ground.
Ole Miss tallied 151 yards rushing and 452 yards passing in a game that saw the Rebels give time to backup quarterbacks Austin Simmons and AJ Maddox.
Ole Miss scored five touchdowns in their first six possessions in the first half.
While the Rebels were expected to do just what they did, it doesn’t always work out that way (remember Washington State?).
Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was outstanding once again, completing 29 of 33 passes for 333 yards and three touchdowns. He bounced back from the South Carolina game, where the Rebels won but the passing offense struggled a bit. As a former D1 starting quarterback, I can say you’d be hard pressed to find another quarterback who catches the snap and gets rid of the ball as quickly and as accurately as Chambliss does.
Austin Simmons completed 7 passes in 12 attempts for 100 yards and had one interception. AJ Maddox notched one completion for 19 yards to round out the quarterbacks’ day.
In the running department, in an obvious attempt to keep Chambliss healthy, the QB carried the ball only twice. Kewan Lacy had 11 carries for 49 yards and scored three touchdowns. The rest of the running game was spread out between seven other players including Damien Taylor who had 8 carries for 39 yards, Logan Diggs with 2 carries for 22 yards and Shekai Mills-Knight with 6 carries for 19 yards.
Four receivers broke 50 yards in receptions with Harrison Wallace III catching 8 passes for 87 yards, Winston Watkins hauled in 5 receptions for 80 yards, Caleb Odom with 6 for 64 yards and Cayden Lee had 2 receptions for 53 yards.
The defense was suffocating barely allowing the Bulldogs to breathe. The Citadel managed just a 2.1 yards-per-play average. Leading the Ole Miss defense were linebacker TJ Dottery and defensive lineman Andrew Maddox, each with 7 total tackles. TJ Banks finished with six.
Suntarine Perkins and Dottery each recorded two tackles for loss.
As for injuries, Dae’Quan Wright was injured at the start of the game, with William Echoles getting hurt right before halftime. In his postgame presser, Lane Kiffin said they were okay. “Dae’Quan Wright could have gone back. Same with Echoles.”
Lane Kiffin wanted his team to execute at a high level against an inferior opponent. They did. They also finish without any major injuries, at least as it stands now from what we are told. That was another key as the Rebels now look ahead to playing Florida Saturday, followed by Mississippi State.
Ole Miss sits at No. 6 in the college football playoff rankings and has everything still on the table.
Next up
Ole Miss hosts Florida next Saturday at the Vaught. Kickoff is set for 6:00 p.m. and the game will be televised on ESPN.
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.
