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A game-by-game look at Bo Wallace and his two alter egos, Dr. Bo and Mr. Pick.
If you think this is going to be a dissection of the last play of the Ole Miss vs LSU game, you are pretty much correct. Just when I was writing the last few weeks about how Mr. Pick looked to be dead and gone, he came back with a vengeance. A vengeance against the Ole Miss dream of a perfect season. No, the loss isn’t entirely on Bo, nor was a FG make guaranteed. But, you cannot throw that ball. Not only was Cody Core covered, he was blanketed, by two defenders. I’ve spent some time trying to think what Wallace saw, and I just can’t come up with a legitimate reasoning. He had a player open, standing on the 25, right next to the out-of-bounds line. I know Bo wanted to connect on that TD throw and run back through the tunnel with his finger to his lips quieting the LSU crowd, instead, Mr. Pick made an egregious decision and in the end, cost his team a chance at overtime.
I have no doubt, literally zero doubt, that Hugh Freeze made it clear before that play that Wallace was either to throw to the sideline or into the stands. That was confirmed when Freeze sort of threw Wallace under the bus when asked about that play later. Whether you like what Freeze said or not, whether or not you think he should have defended his player more, you cannot defend that play.
There was also some questionable coaching down the stretch, but that is not was this post has been geared towards, this is about Bo Wallace. I truly believe that Wallace let Death Valley get under his skin. As a player, you can never interact with fans during the game and think that is going to be okay. It takes you out of the task at hand, which is playing football at a high level.
In recent weeks Wallace had quieted a lot of critics with his razor sharp play, both with the throws, and with the decisions he was making. Both of those things went out the window in this game. Not only was Mr. Pick missing his receivers, he wasn’t making sound decisions. Whether it was engaging with fans (I’ll never understand pointing the the scoreboard in a 7-3 game), or getting the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for head-butting (granted, Jamal Adams is the Flop King), Wallace was not focused. He was not the calm, cool, collected player we had seen in recent weeks. He devolved into what many, including myself, thought we would see more of: a player who possesses a ton of talent who makes poor decisions too often.
The diagnosis is in: Mr. Pick is back in action.
Wallace will have to quickly put this game behind him as Auburn comes to town next week looking to end Ole Miss’ hopes for both a SEC West title and a spot in the CFB playoff. I expect the home crowd will help out, but Wallace will need to reclaim the focus he had exhibited in second halves for the season, outside of the LSU game of course. If he can lead the Rebels to a victory at home, almost all will be forgiven. But another bad performance coupled with a loss will leave a bad taste in many people’s mouths.
Worked for the internet in Los Angeles before being lured back to Florida by SEC football and the promise of a bourbon bar. When he's not internetting or watching football, he's probably out giving himself 4-footers on the golf course.
