How much the Texas Bowl “mattered” is up to you. There’s nothing that tangible attached to it, but I thought going in it was important in a couple different ways, and it would be wrong of me to reverse course after Texas Tech’s 42-25 win over Ole Miss on Wednesday. Here’s why:
Brand matters in recruiting and overall program framework. Had Ole Miss won, it was a win on national television when people are just siting around and watching. It would have been 19 wins in two seasons for only the second time since the 1960s. A record of 9-4 would probably equal a couple better spots in the AP poll going into next season. Now does that matter? Up to you. I’m not even sure what I think, but it’s part of it. Now, in saying that, very few people know that Kansas State beat LSU in last year’s Texas Bowl.
Offseason morale will be considerably worse after the way that game went, right or wrong. Ole Miss lost five of six to end the year including this clunker. Portal and recruiting wins will have more of an impact and you can recruit your way to good morale and excitement, but this is a large part of the equation with the fan base’s mood for the next months. Ole Miss played poorly the final three games of the season and didn’t look well coached. They weren’t fun to watch. Which brings me to…
Lane Kiffin will make close to $9 million next season, and Ole Miss needs to look like it on the field — players, coaches, organization, all of it. That wasn’t the case in the Arkansas, MSU or Texas Tech games. The video-game-like decisions in the first half didn’t give the Rebels their best chance to win It was a miracle Tech’s lead wasn’t larger. Credit the defense for playing fairly well in disadvantageous situations.
I get the Texas Bowl isn’t the national title game, but when you’re paid like this staff is, the product should look competent, well prepared and engaged whether it’s the Dust Bowl or the Sugar Bowl. That was a failure in the first half. Top-10 salaries bring higher expectations, less grading on a curve and an expectation of proficiency in all parts of the program. Kiffin has to uphold his side of that quid pro quo. The product has been unacceptable relative to expectations and that has an impact on fan morale, recruiting, NIL war chest giving and pretty much all areas of the program.
Texas Tech played more physical and more composed. Ole Miss didn’t play well, smart or disciplined. Tech isn’t as talented as Ole Miss, but the Raiders did everything necessary to win. And I like Tyler Shough. He’s a load in the run game and made good decisions after that early interception. On this night, it was obvious which team was better.
Ole Miss was bad on fourth down, and analytics weren’t the reason for going for a couple or few of them. There’s no way the book recommended that. Kiffin seems frustrated and stubborn with some of his fourth-down decisions. And the book isn’t the end-all, be-all anyway. If you’re getting blown up up front, the decision is about more than down and distance.
Ole Miss was simply whipped up front offensively against Texas Tech. It affected the run game immensely and gave the running backs little room. Pressure was in Jaxson Dart’s face all night. It’s been a thud of a final month for the offensive line. No one seems upset Jack Thornton went to Auburn. Ole Miss has to be better.
That missed facemask on Zach Evans was inexcusable and a fairly big play at the time. The new set of downs with a chance to cut it to a one-score game in the third quarter. Awful officiating. The missed pass interference late was big, too. It would have made it a one-possession game with three minutes to go.
Ole Miss averaged more yards per play by far than Texas Tech. The short fields and failed fourth downs were the difference. Tech had eight red zone opportunities. Ole Miss had four.
Considering all the short fields, I thought the defense played fairly well and made enough stops to give Ole Miss a chance in the game. That early fourth-quarter, double-digit-play drive was the backbreaker, but prior to that it was ok. Not great but fine. There were too many missed tackles and too much attention paid to the deep part of the field, leaving numbers absent where Tech operates the overwhelming majority of its offense.
When Ole Miss went down three scores, Quinshon Judkins was averaging 2.4 yards per carry, and Zach Evans was averaging 3.7 yards per carry. A ton of that was on the line, but either way, it’s not a recipe for success. That’s a loss almost every time with the way Ole Miss is built.
Credit to Ole Miss for playing hard in the second half. The Rebels could have mailed it in but really tried to get back into it and played with intensity after intermission.
Malik Heath finished with 137 yards and a hell of a touchdown catch. He had a really nice season and was a quality addition.
Considering his time in the pocket and pressure, I thought Jaxson Dart played well enough on Wednesday. The interceptions were bad — though one was a miscommunication with Jordan Watkins — but Dart wasn’t the issue. He needs to keep improving and he will get better. It wasn’t bad for year one in the system. He can make the great throw and run well when the offense is in a rhythm. Dart’s shoulder was clearly hurt, and he kept pressing and trying and running with the football. He’s a tough kid and a good leader. You can build around that.
Troy Brown and Ladarius Tennison were ejected for targeting. Brown’s absence was huge, and while it was definitely targeting, they need to adjust the rule for players who have started their movement before the QB slides or the ball carrier ducks. I get protecting the players, but the rule is dumb as it’s officiated and interpreted and written.
There were eight combined turnovers. Ole Miss committed five of them. Tech also had the special teams touchdown.
There’s some level of heat on Lane Kiffin this offseason. Not as far as getting fired or anything obviously, but the honeymoon is over. Between the dalliance with Auburn and the finish to the season and the raise in the middle of all that, it’s a pivotal time for the program and Kiffin’s tenure. Some fans are frustrated with him and questioning the salary related to results.
Ole Miss has to continue to hit in the portal and prove this proof of concept. It was hit and miss when you look at portal additions and how it went for the 2022 season. You can’t say failure or that it doesn’t work, but it’s also not a raging success when you go 8-5 and have some obvious misses and not a lot of depth. We’re still seeing in real time the effectiveness or lack thereof. We’ll continue to find out. The wide receiver additions are good starts, and Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste likely has a role. It absolutely may work, but this season wasn't an A or. B plus.
Brand matters in recruiting and overall program framework. Had Ole Miss won, it was a win on national television when people are just siting around and watching. It would have been 19 wins in two seasons for only the second time since the 1960s. A record of 9-4 would probably equal a couple better spots in the AP poll going into next season. Now does that matter? Up to you. I’m not even sure what I think, but it’s part of it. Now, in saying that, very few people know that Kansas State beat LSU in last year’s Texas Bowl.
Offseason morale will be considerably worse after the way that game went, right or wrong. Ole Miss lost five of six to end the year including this clunker. Portal and recruiting wins will have more of an impact and you can recruit your way to good morale and excitement, but this is a large part of the equation with the fan base’s mood for the next months. Ole Miss played poorly the final three games of the season and didn’t look well coached. They weren’t fun to watch. Which brings me to…
Lane Kiffin will make close to $9 million next season, and Ole Miss needs to look like it on the field — players, coaches, organization, all of it. That wasn’t the case in the Arkansas, MSU or Texas Tech games. The video-game-like decisions in the first half didn’t give the Rebels their best chance to win It was a miracle Tech’s lead wasn’t larger. Credit the defense for playing fairly well in disadvantageous situations.
I get the Texas Bowl isn’t the national title game, but when you’re paid like this staff is, the product should look competent, well prepared and engaged whether it’s the Dust Bowl or the Sugar Bowl. That was a failure in the first half. Top-10 salaries bring higher expectations, less grading on a curve and an expectation of proficiency in all parts of the program. Kiffin has to uphold his side of that quid pro quo. The product has been unacceptable relative to expectations and that has an impact on fan morale, recruiting, NIL war chest giving and pretty much all areas of the program.
Texas Tech played more physical and more composed. Ole Miss didn’t play well, smart or disciplined. Tech isn’t as talented as Ole Miss, but the Raiders did everything necessary to win. And I like Tyler Shough. He’s a load in the run game and made good decisions after that early interception. On this night, it was obvious which team was better.
Ole Miss was bad on fourth down, and analytics weren’t the reason for going for a couple or few of them. There’s no way the book recommended that. Kiffin seems frustrated and stubborn with some of his fourth-down decisions. And the book isn’t the end-all, be-all anyway. If you’re getting blown up up front, the decision is about more than down and distance.
Ole Miss was simply whipped up front offensively against Texas Tech. It affected the run game immensely and gave the running backs little room. Pressure was in Jaxson Dart’s face all night. It’s been a thud of a final month for the offensive line. No one seems upset Jack Thornton went to Auburn. Ole Miss has to be better.
That missed facemask on Zach Evans was inexcusable and a fairly big play at the time. The new set of downs with a chance to cut it to a one-score game in the third quarter. Awful officiating. The missed pass interference late was big, too. It would have made it a one-possession game with three minutes to go.
Ole Miss averaged more yards per play by far than Texas Tech. The short fields and failed fourth downs were the difference. Tech had eight red zone opportunities. Ole Miss had four.
Considering all the short fields, I thought the defense played fairly well and made enough stops to give Ole Miss a chance in the game. That early fourth-quarter, double-digit-play drive was the backbreaker, but prior to that it was ok. Not great but fine. There were too many missed tackles and too much attention paid to the deep part of the field, leaving numbers absent where Tech operates the overwhelming majority of its offense.
When Ole Miss went down three scores, Quinshon Judkins was averaging 2.4 yards per carry, and Zach Evans was averaging 3.7 yards per carry. A ton of that was on the line, but either way, it’s not a recipe for success. That’s a loss almost every time with the way Ole Miss is built.
Credit to Ole Miss for playing hard in the second half. The Rebels could have mailed it in but really tried to get back into it and played with intensity after intermission.
Malik Heath finished with 137 yards and a hell of a touchdown catch. He had a really nice season and was a quality addition.
Considering his time in the pocket and pressure, I thought Jaxson Dart played well enough on Wednesday. The interceptions were bad — though one was a miscommunication with Jordan Watkins — but Dart wasn’t the issue. He needs to keep improving and he will get better. It wasn’t bad for year one in the system. He can make the great throw and run well when the offense is in a rhythm. Dart’s shoulder was clearly hurt, and he kept pressing and trying and running with the football. He’s a tough kid and a good leader. You can build around that.
Troy Brown and Ladarius Tennison were ejected for targeting. Brown’s absence was huge, and while it was definitely targeting, they need to adjust the rule for players who have started their movement before the QB slides or the ball carrier ducks. I get protecting the players, but the rule is dumb as it’s officiated and interpreted and written.
There were eight combined turnovers. Ole Miss committed five of them. Tech also had the special teams touchdown.
There’s some level of heat on Lane Kiffin this offseason. Not as far as getting fired or anything obviously, but the honeymoon is over. Between the dalliance with Auburn and the finish to the season and the raise in the middle of all that, it’s a pivotal time for the program and Kiffin’s tenure. Some fans are frustrated with him and questioning the salary related to results.
Ole Miss has to continue to hit in the portal and prove this proof of concept. It was hit and miss when you look at portal additions and how it went for the 2022 season. You can’t say failure or that it doesn’t work, but it’s also not a raging success when you go 8-5 and have some obvious misses and not a lot of depth. We’re still seeing in real time the effectiveness or lack thereof. We’ll continue to find out. The wide receiver additions are good starts, and Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste likely has a role. It absolutely may work, but this season wasn't an A or. B plus.
