It was his most efficient game of the season Saturday.
In his final season as the starter for Ole Miss, senior quarterback Bo Wallace didn’t even play the whole game. He was taken out in the third quarter and replaced by redshirt freshman Ryan Buchanan.
Saturday was the second-straight game where the senior threw for over 300 yards, completing 23 of 30 passes for 320 yards in only two-and-a-half quarters of action.
Wallace is very familiar with the Nashville area. His hometown of Pulaski, Tennessee, is just over an hour from the Nashville area. Playing in Nashville was a great moment for Wallace.
“I love playing here. It’s fun for me to come up here. At the same time, it’s just a game,” Wallace said. “More people I know get to see me play in person, but I don’t think there’s any more pressure.”
Wallace was in complete control of the offense Saturday and appeared to be the quarterback that head coach Hugh Freeze envisioned him to be this season.
Is Bo Wallace playing the best football of his career? That remains to be seen.
“I’m just relaxing and playing ball,” Wallace said. “I don’t think it’s the best I’ve ever played or anything like that. I’m just trying to put points up and trying to win games.”
The quickness, depth and athleticism of the defense this season is something that the Rebels haven’t had since Wallace began his tenure in Oxford. The Rebel defense is something other Southeastern Conference powers have; the ability to plug guys in when starters go down and have the same productivity the player above them on the depth chart had.
The defense has given up 16 points in their first two games to start the 2014 campaign. Since Wallace has been the starting quarterback for Ole Miss, the offense was put in tight spots to score a staggering amount of points to win games. With the level the defense is playing at now, there is no pressure for the offense to score a lot of points.
“We don’t really need to think about it. We know we have a great defense. They keep getting us possession,” Wallace said. “At the same time, our goal is to put it in the end zone every time we touch it. We don’t worry about what they’re doing or if they have a shutout. We’re trying to put it in the end zone every time we touch it.”
Wallace was a popular pick to be one of the top quarterbacks in the conference at SEC Media Days in July. Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall and Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott were the other popular picks.
Wallace had a lot of competition at the quarterback position, something Freeze knew in the offseason.
“Not surprised at all with how well they’ve done,” Freeze said. “If you go back to SEC Media Days that was the buzz around there, and I kept saying these coaches aren’t sitting around and not recruiting other quarterbacks. There will be many quarterbacks that given the chance will do very well. I’m not surprised.”
This will be the last home opener for Wallace as he is excited for his freshman teammates to get the opportunity to play in Vaught-Hemingway for the first time.
“We’re always excited about being at home,” Wallace said. “I know the freshmen are excited. The guys that are coming in, this is their first experience with the Walk of Champions and things. I’m excited for those guys to get to experience that. Hopefully we come out and put a good show on for our crowd.”
