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College Football
Rebels run game still needs work, especially between the tackles
By Pat Donohue
Published:
Coming off a 43-point performance against Alabama in Tuscaloosa last week, the Ole Miss offense is flying high right now.
The key for any offense to sustain success is to have balance running and passing the ball. But against the Crimson Tide, the Rebels showed that the first part of that equation could be an area that needs improvement.
A quick glance at the rushing numbers for Ole Miss so far this season wouldn’t necessarily raise any red flags.
Through three games, the Rebels are averaging 215 yards per game on the ground while picking up 6.3 yards per carry with 11 rushing touchdowns.
However, most of the Rebels’ production running the ball has come against the two inferior non-conference opponents they faced to start their schedule. In the season-opener against Tennessee-Martin, Ole Miss averaged a whopping 9.3 yards per carry on its way to 338 rushing yards. And in its Week 2 meeting with Fresno State, the Rebels continued that trend by gaining 215 yards on the ground at a 6.1-yard clip.
Now of course, those numbers were expected to take a hit against a stout Crimson Tide defensive front. But Ole Miss was very ineffective running the ball against Alabama, especially between the tackles.
In their Week 3 meeting with the Crimson Tide, the Rebels rushed for just 2.9 yards per carry for a total of 92 yards. Granted, Ole Miss did start two freshman on the offensive line against Alabama — Javon Patterson at left guard and Sean Rawlings at right tackle — because of injuries to other blockers and the ongoing NCAA investigation surrounding Laremy Tunsil. But the Rebels were continuously stuffed on power runs in short-yardage situations in that game, including one time that could have cost them the game.
On fourth-and-1 during Ole Miss’ final drive against Alabama, Rebels tight end Jeremy Liggins was brought in as a power back to pick up the first down but was stuffed at the line for no gain, which ultimately gave the Crimson Tide one last chance to win the game. Fortunately for Ole Miss fans, the defense held strong and the Rebels came away with the victory.
But earlier in the game, the same troubles arose for Ole Miss, which might not have found its rhythm on offense if it hadn’t scored the first touchdown of the game midway through the second quarter.
On that scoring drive, the Rebels couldn’t punch it in on three rushing attempts up the middle from the 1-yard line, including a carry by 6-foot-4, 296-pound defensive lineman Robert Nkemdiche. It took a jet sweep on fourth down by running back Jordan Wilkins to finally get the ball in the end zone for Ole Miss.
These struggles for Ole Miss running the ball inside and on short-yardage situations against Alabama are actually in line with what we’ve seen from the Rebels all season long.
Ole Miss has been particularly bad on third-and-short scenarios this season. The Rebels’ 1.4 yards per carry when facing third-and-3 or less ranks 112th in the FBS and 12th in the SEC.
The Rebels will host Vanderbilt in Week 4 with a good chance to improve upon these numbers. But that will take better blocking on the interior by Ole Miss and a commitment by coach Hugh Freeze to pounding the rock with his stable of running backs.
Pat Donohue is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Ole Miss and Mississippi State. Follow him on Twitter @SportsDownPat.
