It didn’t go as scripted, but Ole Miss improved to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the Southeastern Conference on Saturday night with a win over Vanderbilt. The Rebels remained No. 3 in the Associated Press Top 25, a sign of the respect the media has for Ole Miss’ win at Alabama a week ago and of the general chaos that is college football. My thoughts on the Rebels, Florida, the SEC in general, Tom Brady and more follow here, thanks to Oxford-based RE/MAX agent Harry Alexander.
1. I’ll admit it: As a lifelong Chicago Cubs fan, the baseball season has occupied the time that in the past I would have spent watching football. I’ve covered Ole Miss, written about the Rebels’ opponents and done my job, but I haven’t watched much college football that didn’t include Hugh Freeze’s team on the field.
I’ve caught myself looking at scores and being surprised. Ohio State struggled with Northern Illinois and, to some degree, Western Michigan. Oregon has lost twice. So has Arizona State. TCU needed drama to win Saturday night against Texas Tech. The list goes on and on.
So between pitches, if you will, I’ve asked colleagues who watch significantly more college football than me one basic question: “Is anybody good?”
The answer, essentially: “No one’s great. It’s about which teams are flawed less than others.”
I can buy that. Four teams _ Ohio State, Michigan State, Ole Miss and Utah _ received first-place votes in Sunday’s Associated Press Top 25. TCU, Baylor, Notre Dame, UCLA, Georgia and LSU are ranked between the Rebels and the Utes in the Nos. 4-9 slots. In short, it’ll be October when the next weekend of games kickoff, and no one really knows who the contenders are yet.
If you love parity, college football is making you happy. If you love drama _ and from the marketing of the race to the College Football Playoff a year ago, both the NCAA and its consumers do _ this season is going to be a veritable joyride.
I’ve been watching every pitch the Cubs, Cardinals and Pirates throw, wondering if the Cubs are better off facing St. Louis or Pittsburgh in a one-game playoff, and there simply hasn’t been time to keep up with the rest of the college football landscape. At times, that’s led to confusion on my part.
Turns out, that has allowed me to fit right in. For so far, with two-third of the season remaining on the docket, it’s basically chaos caused by a lack of great teams and a glut of good-but-flawed ones.
2. Speaking of, No. 3 Ole Miss had its troubles Saturday night in Oxford with Vanderbilt before finally putting the Commodores away in the fourth quarter en route to a 27-16 win. The Rebels, seven days removed from a dramatic, emotional win at Alabama, never got into a rhythm on offense and couldn’t create the defensive turnover that would have put Derek Mason’s team away.
Was it a hangover from Tuscaloosa? Freeze wanted none of that as an explanation, pointing instead to a subpar week of preparation. Interestingly, Ole Miss linebacker Denzel Nkemdiche told me Saturday night defensive coordinator Dave Wommack had complimented his group late in the week on a strong week of preparation for the Commodores’ offense.
“We don’t have an open date until after 10 games,” Freeze said. “We’re in for a grind. We’ve got to prepare better even if games take a lot of you.”
“We didn’t prepare at our best and it showed,” Ole Miss wide receiver Damore’ea Stringfellow said. “We didn’t play at our best. That’s what we have to continue to do – prepare for the game so we can play our best. …I honestly couldn’t tell you what it was. We knew it wasn’t right. Now we just have to fix it.
“We need to make sure our focus is better and make sure we’re focused on the right things. One of our big themes this week was trust. We have to trust that the person next to us is going to get the job done.”
Ole Miss linebacker C.J. Johnson said the Rebels’ focus was fine. He gave credit to a Vanderbilt team that came to Oxford determined to pull off an upset.
“They’re a good football team and they played like it,” Johnson said. “They came in and they wanted to win the game and we had to fight to win it.”
3. Ole Miss’ offense rolled up 472 yards on Saturday against Vanderbilt, but all in all, it felt like a 60-minute struggle against the Commodores. The Rebels were just 3-for-13 on third down (1-for-1 on fourth down), and their trips inside the red zone were adventurous, to say the least.
“We knew we were going to get our runs,” Ole Miss tight end Evan Engram said. “We knew we were going to get our drives going. We were getting into the red zone but they were playing really good red zone defense. We couldn’t get in to save our lives.”
“We struggled with their two-man twist that gave us pressure,” Freeze said. “They went two man a lot and we either didn’t have a good call for it or we didn’t win in the areas that we needed to win in. The whole thing needs to be evaluated. Dan does a great job planning for those and I’ve got to help him if need be. You have those nights. They had a really good plan and we had some bad calls on third down that really had very little chance at times.”
Ole Miss rolled up 30 first downs and was remarkably balanced. The Rebels had 84 offensive plays and split them perfectly evenly – 42 on the ground and 42 in the air. Chad Kelly was off a bit, often throwing behind receivers en route to a 24-for-42 performance.
“They were blitzing a lot,” Engram said. “They were bringing a lot of different looks on our O-line. Chad was getting a lot of pressure. They were throwing a lot of different stunts and I thought for some of our young guys up front, it was something they’d never seen before. It’s something we have to look at on film and fix. Vandy, they brought it (Saturday) on defense. Hats off to them.
“We knew they were going to bring a lot of pressure. We prepared for a lot of Cover One stuff this week. This did a lot of Cover Two stuff. They were playing good man coverage in the slots and outside and they were getting good pressure.”
If the Rebels could solve third down _ on either side of the ball, really _ their championship aspirations would become far more attainable.
“That’s our goal as an offense – to be really efficient on third downs,” Engram said. “With all the defenses in this conference, it’s crucial we do that and we weren’t successful in that (against Vanderbilt) at all. It’s definitely a little frustrating, but it’s a leadership thing, making sure guys stay positive and keep the energy up on offense.”
4. Other notes from Ole Miss 27, Vanderbilt 16:
A. Stringfellow caught four passes for 71 yards Saturday, proving to be a perfect complement to Laquon Treadwell, who caught six for 135 yards. Markell Pack, by the way, had six quiet catches for 52 yards. The weapons are there. “I feel like I played pretty good,” Stringfellow said. “I could’ve played a lot better. It was good to get that little breakout. That was good.” …“I think String is one of those unheralded guys who is really good,” Freeze added. “He got banged up there at the end and I hope he’s OK. We really need him. He’s a big threat for us and we’ve all known that, so it’s good to see it start happening on the game field. He’s a very talented kid.”
B. Walk-on wide receiver Cale Luke, the son of former Ole Miss quarterback/football operations staffer Tom Luke, blocked a punt in the third quarter, setting up Robert Nkemdiche’s 1-yard touchdown run. “I never expected it to come that way,” Luke said. “I’ve been working on it since fall camp this year and it just happened at the right time. I thank God for putting me in that position. …We were trying to attack the punter and we were trying to get there. We knew that if we just kept giving 100 percent we’d eventually catch a break. It just happened at a good time and we took advantage of an opportunity. …They’d been blocking me out all night. Finally I saw them just kind of crash down. I ran as fast as I could and I happened to get to the ball. I just tried to dive and make sure I covered it up and do whatever I could to make sure I hit it.”
C. It’s a statement of the obvious, I know, but Ole Miss really missed Tony Conner and Laremy Tunsil on Saturday night. With Conner out of the lineup, Vanderbilt’s short passing game was very effective. “We struggled some,” Freeze said, referring to the Rebels’ play at Conner’s huskie position. “We had a few underneath routes that I thought they’ve got to be setting there. It should’ve been five-yard gains. I’m not saying they should have been incomplete passes, but instead, they’re 12-yard gains. I need to watch the film and see but there were a few times we could’ve played our technique better at that spot.” On Tunsil, Freeze said he had hoped to hear something definitive last week. That didn’t happen. “I assume that it’s obviously still ongoing,” Freeze said. “Hopefully we get an answer soon.”
5. Before I left home for Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Saturday afternoon, I watched the Cubs, fresh off a 4-0 loss to Pittsburgh, celebrate their clinching of a playoff berth in the clubhouse and on the playing surface of Wrigley Field. The Cubs clinched a wildcard spot late Friday when the Oakland A’s defeated the San Francisco Giants, so the team partied after the loss to Pittsburgh, infuriating some on social media.
Hours later, after Ole Miss held off Vanderbilt, Freeze made sure his team knew to enjoy its win, despite its imperfections.
“You celebrate the wins in life,” Freeze said. “Life moves too fast and you better enjoy the ones that you get and celebrate it and learn from the things we did not do well. If we really want to be elite then we have to prepare like we’re an elite football team.”
6. Up next for Ole Miss: Unbeaten Florida, which entered the Associated Press Top 25 Sunday at No. 25.
Florida rallied from 13 points down in the fourth quarter to beat Tennessee, 28-27. Will Grier passed for 283 yards and two touchdowns.
“I feel so good for these guys because they have really invested in the team,” Florida coach Jim McElwain said. “We’ve played four games. I don’t think we’ve lost yet. Now we get the chance to go test ourselves against an opponent that probably should come in here and beat the heck out of us. It’ll be fun.”
“Next week, we have to come up with something else.”
7. My still too-early version of SEC rankings:
1. Ole Miss – I almost went with Georgia, but Chris Lee, who covers Vanderbilt for Rivals.com and has now seen both the Rebels and the Bulldogs in person, said Ole Miss is better. I haven’t watched enough football to comment, so I’ll take his word for it.
2. Georgia – Greyson Lambert has been very good. He’ll be tested Saturday against Alabama.
3. LSU – Leonard Fournette is oh so special. The Tigers’ quarterback play, however, appears to be far from that.
4. Alabama – The Tide is immensely talented, especially on defense. They’ll be tested against Lambert, Nick Chubb and Co. in Athens Saturday.
5. Texas A&M – The Aggies survived against Arkansas. I’m not sold on them, but they’re unbeaten.
6. Mississippi State – Dak Prescott has been solid in the last two weeks, and the Bulldogs were impressive in their win at Auburn.
7. Florida – The Gators are 4-0 after their dramatic comeback against Tennessee.
8. Kentucky – I don’t know. Throw them in a hat at this point. The top of the league is pretty good. The rest of it is a jumbled mass of mediocrity. The Wildcats picked up a nice win over Missouri, so there’s that.
9. Tennessee – I love making Vols jokes, but they could easily be unbeaten at this point. The collapses against Oklahoma and Florida have Vols fans wondering if Butch Jones can get it done.
10. Arkansas – The Hogs forced overtime in Arlington, so perhaps that’s something to build on.
11. Auburn – The Tigers are 0-2 in league play, have no answer at quarterback and there are rumors of significant internal issues. Still, it’s a talented team at spots.
12. Missouri – The Tigers had flirted with disaster for weeks. They finally kissed it square on the lips in Lexington.
13. Vanderbilt – The Commodores will win a league game or two. Remember I told you.
14. South Carolina. – I wonder if Steve Spurrier is back in 2016. Would Justin Fuente take the Gamecocks’ gig? Will Muschamp? Lane Kiffin?
8. My third installment this year of way too early bowl predictions:
Capital One Orange Bowl (College Football Playoffs semifinals) – Ole Miss
Allstate Sugar Bowl – Georgia
Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl – LSU
Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl – Alabama
Outback Bowl – Texas A&M
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl – Mississippi State
Taxslayer Bowl – Florida
Autozone Liberty Bowl –Tennessee
Advocare V100 Texas Bowl – Missouri
Belk Bowl – Kentucky
Birmingham Bowl – Auburn
Independence Bowl – Arkansas
9. It gets lost a bit in the Deflategate saga that ensnared him for months during the offseason, but New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is still very much in the meat of a career that should place him among the all-time greats.
On Sunday, Brady threw his 400th career touchdown pass during the Patriots’ 51-17 rout of the Jacksonville Jaguars. New England is now 3-0 and looking every bit the part of a Super Bowl contender. Brady is just the fourth quarterback in NFL history to reach that milestone, joining Peyton Manning, Brett Favre and Dan Marino. Brady also has 53 postseason touchdown passes.
http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story...and-patriots-becomes-4th-nfl-qb-400-td-passes
10. Hall of Famer Yogi Berra passed away this week, leaving an amazing legacy in his wake. He and a younger Yankee legend forged a friendship that spanned decades.
http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...rra-derek-jeter-forged-friendship-generations
Texas lost again Saturday, this time falling at home to Oklahoma State. Not surprisingly, the Longhorns are losing their recruiting grip in-state.
https://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1805561
Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon thinks of his late mother during every game.
http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/mlb/miami-marlins/article36046272.html
Sandy Koufax’s decision not to pitch in a World Series out of respect to Yom Kippur still resonates today.
http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...-1965-world-series-yom-kippur-resonates-today
Could blood flow restriction training help injured athletes recover faster?
http://www.campusrush.com/blood-flo...athletes-injury-1362062119.html?xid=si_social
A deadline looms for a fascinating decision facing the Oklahoma City Thunder.
http://m.newsok.com/article/5448611...m_medium=Social&utm_campaign=ShareBar-Twitter
Here’s a tremendous story about the day a young Bill Russell toured Alcatraz and got rock star treatment from the inmates on The Rock.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/...rs-alcatraz/dYNqedPwyfFXNYHvGM84oN/story.html
The Patrick Kane situation took another dark turn this week.
http://grantland.com/the-triangle/t...-a-dark-turn-in-buffalo/?ex_cid=story-twitter
A paralysis scare like the one Buffalo’s Aaron Williams had recently has a lasting impact on teammates and family alike.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/1...-experienced-impacts-family-friends-teammates
Kevin Durant’s new partnership with Players’ Tribune a peek into how he’ll handle his free agency.
http://m.newsok.com/okc-thunder-kev...reat-free-agency-buzz/article/5449179/?page=2
Cam Newton did a really good thing.
http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015...halloween-party-boy-battling-cancer-charlotte
Have a great week.
