Ole Miss football: Penalties, red zone woes cost Rebels yet again

The Ole Miss Rebels (5-6 overall, 1-6 SEC) suffered a crushing loss at Vanderbilt on Saturday night, 36-29 in overtime in Nashville.

It was a wild, up-and-down game featuring plenty of both beautiful and ugly plays. Ultimately, the same problems that have plagued the Rebels all season – penalties, inability to score touchdowns in the red zone and turnovers – were again deciding factors in the Rebels’ sixth loss of the season.

Here are 5 things I liked and 3 things I didn’t like for Mississippi.

What I liked

5. Defense showed a lot of fight – The Rebels defense played arguably its best game this season, allowing a season low 387 yards (191 passing and 196 on the ground). They also came up with a huge interception late in the second half when the Commodores were close to scoring before halftime. More important, after Jordan Ta’amu threw a costly interception with 3 minutes remaining, the defense had to make a big stop. Ole Miss responded with a three and out. Giving up 36 points is hardly good but the defense showed a lot of fight.

4. Linebackers continue to improve – At the start of the season, the linebacking corps was the clear-cut weak link of the team. They featured an unhealthy combination of both raw and undeveloped younger guys and veterans who likely shouldn’t be playing in the SEC. And for much of the season, the unit played as poorly as expected (if not worse). But give linebackers coach Jon Sumrall credit, he has done a fantastic job of developing both Mohamed Sanogo and Willie Hibbler, and in turn the unit has really improved as the season has progressed. Both Sanogo and Hibbler had solid nights against Vandy and played a big role in the Rebels strong defensive performance.

3. Third down defense – The Rebels defense has generally been awful all season on third downs, consistently failing to get off the field. Compound this with a razor-thin depth chart and an offense that has more often than not been boom-or-bust, and it’s easy to see why the Rebels defense is on the field for so many plays every game. Against Vandy, however, the Rebels defense was solid on third downs, allowing just 3 of 13 attempts (23 percent).

2. Isaiah Woullard’s big night – With star tailback Scottie Phillips again out injured, the Rebels needed a big night from their freshman backup and Woullard delivered with 107 yards on 16 carries, averaging 6.7 yards per carry. He’s not as gifted of a runner as Phillips, nor does he possess the same kind of balance and power, but for a young player who was out of football entirely last season, he was impressive on a night when the offense asked a lot of him.

1. A.J. Brown is special – Every week the immensely talented Brown continues to amaze by making plays after the catch, and he put up another monster night in Nashville, catching nine passes for 212 yards and a touchdown (and should’ve had another in OT, but more on that in a bit). On the season, Brown has 81 receptions for 1,259 yards, two receptions away from a single-season school record. Brown also has broken his own school record for single-season receiving yards (1,252 yards). In the past four games he has caught 31 passes for 609 yards and three touchdowns. Simply amazing.

What I didn’t like

3. Penalties – I write about this every week, and for some reason I always think it’ll somehow change. Ole Miss has been remarkably undisciplined and against Vandy the Rebels committed 10 penalties for 89 yards. What makes it so frustrating, however, is the type of penalties. Accidentally running into the kicker or an accidental facemask is one thing – that happens in football. But throwing punches and shoving after the whistle is entirely unacceptable. That’s exactly the kind of thing a team can control, and that deliberately gives yards and extra opportunities to the opponent. How this continues to be such a profound issue for Ole Miss is mind boggling.

2. Red zone woes – This also has been an issue all year and it again cost Ole Miss a win. The Rebels offense drove within the Vanderbilt 33-yard (or closer) eight times on Saturday night. The result? One touchdown, two interceptions and five field goals. Had the Rebels converted just one field goal into a touchdown (perhaps the overturned DaMarkus Lodge touchdown), the Rebels would’ve won in regulation. The Rebels offense simply doesn’t adapt or adjust when facing a short field, and Ta’amu is prone to making mistakes in the red zone, especially when pressured. It has been a bad combination that Mississippi has failed to remedy.

1. Bad night for officials – The officials had a bad night, making numerous bad or questionable calls, especially two egregious calls that directly impacted the outcome. The first was early in the second quarter when Lodge, after making a catch, leaped along the sideline with the ball to cross into the end zone for a touchdown. Upon review, the officials said he stepped out on the 1-yard line, though the replay camera clearly showed his heel wasn’t on the ground, thus making him inbounds. Instead of seven points, the Rebels came away with three.

The other call that directly impacted the outcome was in overtime, when Brown caught the tying touchdown. The replay showed he clearly caught the ball and had possession, but officials overturned it, saying he didn’t have possession and it was an incomplete pass. No single call won or lost the game for the Rebels, and ultimately, they only have themselves to blame for failing to come away with a victory, but the referees certainly gave Vandy some help.

Rick Stavig

Rick Stavig, who played at Ole Miss and Shippensburg University, is the owner of SE Scouting. A veteran scout, he specializes in the NFL Draft and recruiting coverage.