The Ole Miss Football defense has been extremely spotty this season. The Rebels have shown moments of promise, but have also raised questions regarding their abilities. Ultimately, it seems the Ole Miss defense is lacking a dominant playmaker.
The defense came into this season with several returners, including edge Suntarine Perkins and defensive lineman Will Echoles, and added star transfers like linebackers Luke Ferrelli and Keaton Thomas and defensive end Blake Purchase. The Rebel defense was praised throughout the offseason and was even in talks of being at the same level as the legendary 2024 Ole Miss defense.
So far, that seems to be in question. Through two games, this defense has struggled mightily. Broken coverages and missed tackles have been excessive. On plays when the Rebels had opportunities to make big plays, they failed to produce.
In the opener against then-No. 24 Louisville, the Rebels allowed 469 total offensive yards. They had eight tackles for loss, three sacks and no interceptions.
The defensive performance against Louisville was a tale of two halves. The Rebels came out strong on defense in the first half, only allowing two field goals. In the second half, however, they lagged and allowed 32 points.
Against Louisville, the biggest struggles were in the secondary. Starting cornerback Antonio Kite left the game early, and fall camp standout safety Sharif Denson did not play.
Cornerback Jaylon Braxton allowed multiple big gains due to poor pursuit angles. He also failed to break up a 2-point conversion late in the third quarter.
Safety Anthony Robinson III allowed a major touchdown in the third quarter that tied the game at 24. In the fourth quarter, Robinson gave up another touchdown which put the Cardinals within one score of the Rebels, 38-31.
“I feel like we made (improvements) from last week,” safety Nick Cull said in the postgame press conference following the Charlotte game. “I feel like we still have a ton of work to go over, a lot of film to watch, and (we) really (need to) buckle down this week.”
Cull said that head coach Pete Golding challenged his defense throughout last week’s practices to improve from their performance in Week 1, especially in the secondary.
“(Golding) was challenging us to have no free runners at all,” Cull said. “(We focused on) communication and us all being on the same page. Even on the wrong call, if we’re all on the same call, it can’t be the wrong call.”
Against Charlotte, the Rebels totaled six tackles for loss, one sack and one interception. While the 49ers have a relatively productive offense, the Rebels should have had much more success, especially coming off a game against a ranked opponent.
One of the biggest plays against Charlotte came right before halftime when defensive end Kam Franklin blocked a field goal attempt, then Braxton recovered the ball. Despite being a special teams play, this was the most exciting defensive event in the game. This sealed the deal for the Rebels to hold the 49ers scoreless in the first half.
However, between a facemask penalty by edge Landon Barnes and a pass interference penalty on safety Edwin Joseph, several penalties set the Rebels back, and Golding noted in the postgame press conference why the Rebels can not afford to make these mistakes.
“There were also some critical penalties that extended drives, and right now, we aren’t good enough on defense to do that,” Golding said. “There was some eye-control stuff we focused on a lot this week, and we have to clean it up before the next game.”
Despite all of the flashiness, the Rebels just need someone to step up and make plays. All of the star players on this defense get mentioned once or twice a game, and that is not enough.
Perkins had one quarterback hit against Charlotte, and Echoles had half a tackle for loss. These players have the potential to take over games, but they have yet to do so.
The notorious landshark defense is known for lurking in the water. Any player should be able to step up and make a difference. Right now, that does not seem to be the case, and Ole Miss must find ways to make stops and create big plays in order to be successful down the road.
