The No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels took down the No. 13 Missouri Tigers, 31-3, on Oct. 17 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The Rebel defense had its best showing of the year, a notable improvement for a unit that has struggled with consistency throughout the beginning of the season.
The Rebels’ second AP Top 15 win this season was highlighted by a stellar performance from the landshark defense. They started the season extremely shaky, despite being compared to the legendary 2024 Ole Miss defense in preseason conversation.
Linebacker Luke Ferelli had 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack and two solo tackles. Safety Sharif Denson added a tackle-for-loss and six solo tackles. Defensive back Jalyn Crawford, linebacker Tah’j Butler and edge rusher Suntarine Perkins each added a half tackle for loss.
The unit had six broken up passes, and the run defense had an incredible showing, only giving up 38 yards on 20 attempts. Running back Jamal Roberts was held to just 21 yards, averaging 138 yards per game.
Roberts has emerged as one of the top backs in the country, and posed a major threat to the Rebel defense who had been known earlier this season for giving up large yard gains against the run.
In his postgame press conference, head coach Pete Golding noted the run defense’s commendable performance.
“I thought we stopped the run on first down and second and long, and then we got a penalty on the other one on third and long. We got into some advantageous situations where we had pressure,” Golding said. “When you can stop the run, you can have fun. You can design things in coverages and pressures.”
The Missouri Tigers averaged just five yards per play and only converted on five of 14 third downs. The Tigers were only given two opportunities to kick a field goal.
Tiger quarterback Austin Simmons had an average 64.5% completion percentage coming into Week 7, but he made just 55% of his throws against the Rebels.
This is the Tigers’ first game without a touchdown this season, as well as their lowest-scoring game. Their second lowest scoring game came in their first loss to Mississippi State, 31-24.
Defensive tackle Will Echoles, who had a sack of his own, spoke about how stopping the run affects the defensive schemes in the post game press conference.
“It’s a lot of fun for (Golding). It’s a lot more fun how you (get to) play on third and 10, than third and 2,” Echoles said. “You know we stop the run when you get (to) rest and you have more energy so I mean that’s a big part of it.
Safety Nick Cull broke up a pass to Cayden Lee in the endzone on Missouri’s last drive and final chance to score a touchdown.
On 4th and four with a little over a minute remaining, Simmons’ final pass was intercepted by freshman defensive end Landon Barnes.
The Rebel defense has seen increasing consistency since the Florida game, but the group needed a dominant performance like this to prove what they are capable of producing.
