For the first time, Ole Miss Football will play in the College Football Playoff Semifinal thanks to a 39-34 victory over No. 3 Georgia in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day. These are three takeaways from the win.
Let our quarterback throw
Quite simply, the offense is at its best when Rebel quarterback Trinidad Chambliss is making downfield plays with his arm.
One of the most impressive stretches of this game came in the first drive of the fourth quarter. On three straight plays, Chambliss scrambled out of the pocket. On the first, he flicked the ball to running back Kewan Lacy for a short gain; on the next, he looped in a wide circle around the backfield and found Lacy for a first down; and on the last, he lobbed a corner route to wide receiver Harrison Wallace III and hit his target in stride.
All season, the offense has gotten into trouble when it relies on a stretch of conservative, short-yardage plays — and this game was no different.
Chambliss made several dangerous throws into the flats throughout the game, the last of which was nearly picked off by Georgia cornerback Daylen Everette only a play after wide receiver De’Zhaun Stripling hauled in a deep ball to set up the Rebels for a game-winning field goal. Georgia defensive linemen batted down multiple Chambliss throws in short-yardage situations.
In the fourth quarter, after the Bulldogs cut the Rebel lead to just three, the offensive script was all too familiar: a Lacy run, another Lacy run and a short incompletion by Chambliss. This three-play, five-yard drive resulted in a punt — exactly what the Rebels did not want to happen — and the Bulldogs tied the game at 34.
Obviously, the Rebels were just trying to bleed the clock and hold onto their 34-31 lead, and playing too aggressively would have been reckless. But it seems that whenever the offense has its sights set on maintaining possession rather than trying to score, it stalls almost instantly.
Maybe the reason why the Rebels were finally able to convert on fourth-and-three in the middle of the third quarter — a conversion that gave way to the Rebels’ first points since the 10-minute mark of the second quarter and shifted the energy of the game — is because Chambliss was finally able to throw a deep pass rather than just try to get the first down.
Chambliss connected with Stribling on three long balls in the game. The duo’s 40-yard pitch-and-catch on third-and-five at the end of the fourth quarter effectively won the game for Ole Miss; and, had that pass fallen incomplete, Georgia would have taken over with three timeouts and nearly a minute to get into field goal range.
Stribling finished with seven receptions for 122 yards. Wallace finished with nine receptions for 156 yards and a touchdown, as well as a two-point conversion that put the Rebels ahead by three. Chambliss himself completed 30 passes for 362 yards and two scores. When he is given the freedom to air the ball out, this team is in its fullest form.
This is not to say that the Rebels need to abandon the run or try to connect on home-run balls every play. But the offense rolls most smoothly when Chambliss goes through his progressions. He is more than capable of delivering perfect throws all over the field.
The defense can be an anchor
When Everette returned Lacy’s fumble for a touchdown to put the Bulldogs up 21-12 — and then when the Rebels went three-and-out on the next drive, giving Georgia another chance to score before the half with the
Bulldogs slated to receive the second-half kickoff — silence swept through the formerly rowdy Ole Miss crowd in Caesars Superdome.
Perhaps they all felt the same dread as they did during the last game against Georgia, when the Ole Miss offense, which had scored touchdowns on its first five possessions, managed only 13 yards in the fourth quarter. Once again, the Bulldogs were pulling away — much earlier than last time. And yet, that is not what happened.
On what turned out to be Georgia’s last drive of the half, Rebel defensive tackle Will Echoles, who finished with two tackles for loss and two passes defensed, laid a fierce hit on Bulldog quarterback Gunner Stockton for a two-yard loss on first down. The Bulldogs could not get anything going and went three-and-out — and the Rebel offense took over with 35 seconds left.
Due to poor clock management, the offense did not even attempt a field goal. But the defense, still unfazed, forced another three-and-out after halftime.
The offense went four-and-out after the Georgia front stuffed Lacy on fourth-and-one in Rebel territory. Yet, once again, the defense stood tall; Georgia’s offense stalled after six plays, and the Bulldogs missed the kick.
The defense’s ability to continually win the ball back for the offense, even when the game began to look out of reach, was what finally helped the Rebels lift their scoring drought. On the next drive, Lacy’s touchdown run put the Rebels back within two.
Chambliss might have made the flashy plays, but without the patience, resilience and endurance of this defense, the comeback would never have been possible. The unit bends, not breaks; there was still some sloppy tackling, and Bulldog wide receiver Zechariah Branch got loose more than he should have. But overall, the defense kept the team alive until the offense finally worked out its woes — which is the mark of any good defense.
This team has what it takes to win the championship
Whether fans care to admit it, many suspected that Ole Miss belonged to a lower tier of teams — especially in comparison to Ohio State and Georgia.
Part of the reason why this win is so exciting is because it proves that the Rebels are not a few players, coaches or seasons away from being able to compete with the perennial superpowers of college football — they are already there.
No. 2 Ohio State lost to No. 10 Miami. No. 1 Indiana blew out No. 9 Alabama. And now, No. 6 Ole Miss has overthrown No. 3 Georgia, too.
None of the four remaining teams are mainstays in the playoffs; none have won even a single national championship in the playoff era. All four are competitive, but none are year-in, year-out dynasties.
The Ole Miss offense has the explosiveness to score at a moment’s notice. When it struggles, the defense forces punts and keeps the game within reach. Additionally, Lucas Carneiro is one of the best place kickers in the nation.
Ole Miss has all the pieces. Now all they have to do is continue to execute for two more games.
