Ole Miss Rebels lick wounds, await bowl fate

The Ole Miss Rebels’ defense hadn’t seen a lot of option attacks this season.
You could certainly tell as much in their 41-27 loss to Mississippi State on Saturday. The Rebels spent a lot of time watching Chris Relf, State’s backup quarterback, slice them to pieces on the keeper. And when the Bulldogs felt like bringing the anvil, 235-pound Anthony Dixon was always handy.
It all added up to Ole Miss surrendering 24 first downs and 317 yards on the ground.
The Rebels (8-4, 4-4 in the SEC) now wait to learn of their bowl destination. Two of their eight victories came against FCS competition, Southeastern Louisiana and Northern Arizona, which could hurt them in the SEC’s bowl pecking order.
“We missed some tackles,” Ole Miss defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix said, “and evidently, some guys didn’t play their responsibilities on their assignments. (State) competed hard and they made some plays.”
A lot of them after halftime, when the Bulldogs trailed 13-10. Ole Miss also had four turnovers, three of them interceptions by Jevan Snead.
“Myself, personally, I made some bad decisions,” Snead said, “and there are some plays I’d like to have back.”
State held the ball for more than 37 minutes, which wore down the Rebels’ defense down the stretch. The home team has won the last six Egg Bowls, with Ole Miss breaking through for the last road victory in 2003, when Eli Manning was a senior leading the Rebs to the Cotton Bowl.
“We gave them an old-fashioned whipping last year (winning 45-0), and then they got us this year,” Ole Miss defensive tackle Jerrell Powe said. “They had our number. They came out, executed well and had a nice game plan.”
The Rebels’ Shay Hodge, who had a sensational 20-yard TD catch late in the first half, said his team will regroup for its bowl game.
“We’re going to be motivated and ready to bounce back,” Hodge said.
Ole Miss will officially learn of its bowl destination on Dec. 6, but should have a better idea of where it stands in two or three days.

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