Hugh Freeze took over as the head coach of the Ole Miss football program on December 5, 2011.
The program he took over had lost 14 consecutive SEC games. The program he took over had discipline issues. The program he took over had effort issues. The program he took over was Ole Miss, and it was left for dead by Houston Nutt.
He walked into his introductory press conference serenaded by chants of “Hugh.” He talked about his vision. He talked about Mississippi being his home.
“I’ve taken (My family) all around the nation to get back to one place,” Freeze said as he choked up. “And that is the University of Mississippi.”
Ole Miss had a talent gap that day. They went 0-8 in the SEC in 2011. They were outscored, on average, 37 to 12 in SEC play. They lost to Louisiana Tech. By 20. At home. On homecoming.
Ole Miss had to recruit if they were going to get more talented. That’s how it works. The Rebels’ recruiting from previous seasons was ranked well. The problem was, half of the recruiting classes didn’t make it to campus.
Freeze had a different approach.
“Recruiting will simply be this: to develop dynamic relationships with every student athlete that we’re recruiting and everyone that is involved in that decision making process,” Freeze said. “We have to win the state of Mississippi in recruiting, and it will start with great coaches understanding the families and making it happen here.”
Freeze’s goal on that cold, rainy December day was simple. His goal was to get Ole Miss to the SEC Championship game.
Ole Miss was not supposed to be competitive in 2012. Steve Spurrier quipped that he would rather play Ole Miss than travel to Baton Rouge.
The Rebels opened the Hugh Freeze era on a muggy September night against Central Arkansas University in Oxford. Bo Wallace started at quarterback. Though they were losing 20-14 at halftime, they came back to win 49-27.
Texas came to Oxford two weeks later in a game that would prove whether or not Ole Miss was ready to compete at a high level in the SEC. The answer came in the form of a 66-31 defeat.
They played Alabama close and lost. They hosted Texas A&M the next week. The Rebels blew a 14-point fourth quarter lead for another SEC West loss.
A 41-20 victory over Auburn on October 13 would snap the Rebels’ 16-game SEC losing streak.
“Obviously, words really cannot describe the feeling in that locker room and in the stadium. For the
better part of two and a half years, the Rebel fans and students and players and administration have had to put up with some disappointing times,” Freeze said. “We’re not there yet, nor do we think we are, but today we were. We were good enough in four quarters to win an SEC game.”
Ole Miss’ season would continue to be tumultuous. They won at Arkansas the next week, followed by three consecutive SEC losses. With one game left in the season, the Rebels needed a win to be bowl eligible.
The Rebels were in on high profile recruits. They were in on the unanimous No. 1 player in the country, Robert Nkemdiche. They were in on a five-star receiver from Crete-Monee High School, Laquon Treadwell. They had a shot at the best offensive tackle in the country, Laremy Tunsil. They were trying to fend off Alabama to get hometown safety Tony Conner.
Five-star recruits don’t often go to programs that have losing records. There was one opportunity to avoid their third losing season in as many years and keep their postseason hopes alive: beat Mississippi State for the first time since 2008. They carried the Egg Bowl trophy out of Vaught-Hemingway that night, and the win changed the program’s perception, likely, forever.
“We’re going to have some fun times together. Those kids have had some difficult times, and now they can hear the good side of it, so I’m thrilled,” Freeze said. “To send them out to a bowl game somewhere will be really nice.”
Ole Miss beat Pittsburgh 38-17 at the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Alabama.
That victory paled in comparison to what the Rebels accomplished in the next few weeks.
Laquon Treadwell committed to Ole Miss.
“I wanted to be a part of something special. The program is on the rise with the new coaching staff,” Treadwell said. “Coach Freeze stresses love and is a very positive man. I want to be a part of returning Rebel nation to glory.”
The Rebels had their first chip in the game. The next few weeks were like Christmas for the Ole Miss football program. The hope of what might be coming, but the anxiety that it might not come.
It was early on Feb. 3 when Robert Nkemdiche announced where he would play football. Most people were asleep at 6 a.m., but many Rebel fans woke up to see where the No. 1 player in the country would commit. They weren’t disappointed; Nkemdiche showed off his red suspenders and Ole Miss cap.
“I feel like it’s the right place for me,” Nkemdiche said after his announcement. “I feel like they can do special things, and they’re on the rise.”
Two hours later, Laremy Tunsil was slated to make his college decision in Lake City, Florida. Tunsil had plenty of suitors, including high-profile programs Georgia and Alabama. As we all know, he chose Ole Miss.
The last domino to fall was right up the road in Batesville. Tony Conner had been considering Alabama. Did he want to play for the home school or did he want to go to the already-elite program across the Mississippi border?
Conner threw up Ole Miss’ Landshark. Conner stayed at home.
They could have played football anywhere else in the country, but they chose Ole Miss.
Expectations were high. They were still true freshmen. The Rebels went 7-5 their true freshmen season. They beat LSU for the first time in four years. They lost the Egg Bowl in Starkville. Bo Wallace fumbled. They faced Georgia Tech in the Music City Bowl in Nashville. They won. Everyone in the Rebel faithful was willing to wait. The heralded 2013 recruiting class was 18 and 19 years old.
The 2014 season was the season in which the rise needed to take place. Reality tells us that most five-star prospects get drafted after their junior year. That left some of the 2013 recruiting class with only two seasons left on campus.
The Rebels 2014 season started off historic. They won their first four games.
They hosted Alabama next. College GameDay came to campus. Katy Perry ate a corn dog.
The Rebels were down 14-3 at halftime. They were the victim to the referees, who blew a face mask call that resulted in a touchdown for Alabama.
Ole Miss dominated the second half. Laquon Treadwell scored a touchdown to cut the Crimson Tide lead to 14-10 in the third quarter. Laremy Tunsil protected senior quarterback Bo Wallace’s blindside the whole game. Robert Nkemdiche and Tony Conner made play after play to keep the Alabama offense in check.
When Senquez Golson picked off Blake Sims in the end zone to end the game, Ole Miss had done something that hadn’t happened since a man named Eli was taking snaps for the Rebels. For the first time in Freeze’s tenure at Ole Miss, Ole Miss was relevant not only in the SEC West, but nationally.
“We believed we could do this,” Nkemdiche said. “We believed we could beat these guys man, and we did.”
Ole Miss would win its next two games before losing three consecutive SEC games. Laquon Treadwell broke his leg in the game against Auburn. The momentum was slowing.
Ole Miss was looking to regain the Egg Bowl after losing it the previous year in Starkville. Some questioned the effort that the team would put forth since they had no chance to win the SEC West, not to mention an injured quarterback and star receiver.
The Egg Bowl trophy would return to Oxford after a 31-17 Rebels win.
“It’s a great feeling to reclaim the pride of our program and win the Egg Bowl. It’s a priority we have every year,” Freeze said after the game.
The Rebels had beaten their second top-five opponent in the 2014 season. They had gotten themselves into an access bowl. They were ranked No. 9 at the end of the regular season. In three years, Hugh Freeze and his staff had made the Ole Miss football program relevant nationally.
The 2015 season would likely be the last for some of the program-changing 2013 class. The 2015 season would need to be the year the Rebels at least made a run at the SEC Western Division Championship.
On Sept.19, 2015, Ole Miss looked more positioned than ever to compete for not only the SEC championship but the national championship. Ole Miss knocked off Alabama, the gold standard of the SEC, in Tuscaloosa for the second time in the history of their program.
“I think there’s a lot of growing up that happened tonight with some kids,” Freeze said. “The maturity in some showed. Hopefully, we’ll take all the positives from it and be excited about the win, but look at everything that we didn’t do properly and get better for next week.”
“This team is stuck in the moment,” Nkemdiche said. “Because the moment’s real beautiful.”
The Rebels lost two of their next three games. They lost at the Liberty Bowl. They were dominated. Suddenly, the season that was, wasn’t.
“I hurt for our kids, for our coaches, our fans and our administration,” Freeze said. “It is very difficult and gut wrenching. It will test everything about you.”
At that point, the Rebels had a decision to make. They were still in play for the Sugar Bowl, somewhere, the Rebels hadn’t gone since 1969. They had two rivalry opponents left in LSU and Mississippi State.
They dominated LSU. They won 38-17. It wasn’t that close.
“Those guys had a choice to make after those disappointments. It’s all about how you respond and how you react,” Freeze said. “In this day and time, it is very difficult to maintain your focus, sometimes. Putting your team first can be hard. Those guys have continuously bounced back from disappointment after disappointment.”
The Egg Bowl was likely the last time this group would play together. Treadwell, Nkemdiche, and Tusnil are all projected to be first round picks in this year’s NFL draft.
“I approach it the same way,” Treadwell said. “Have fun with my teammates and make sure our energy is high. Keep loving on them and we’ll play together and look to get a W.”
Ole Miss jumped to 21-0 and never looked back. The Rebels had beaten Mississippi State for the third time in four years. The Rebels program was changed, something that likely wouldn’t have happened without a win over Mississippi State three years ago.
“I think in time we will certainly be able to know, but I want to say that I think that this group has made us nationally relevant. I don’t think we have a losing record against anybody in the SEC West,” Freeze said. “To come from where we did four years ago, I think this group made us relevant and it is hard for anyone to argue that.”
