AUSTIN MCAFEE| The Daily Mississippian
Troy quarterback Corey Robinson (6) is sacked by Mississippi defensive end Robert Nkemdiche (5) during the second quarter of the
football game on Saturday , Nov. 16, 2013.
Midway through the second quarter, with Ole Miss already out in front of Troy 20-7, freshman defensive lineman Robert Nkemdiche finally got his first career sack. He dragged down Trojan quarterback Corey Robinson for a 12-yard loss that ultimately caused another Troy drive to stall.
That wasn’t the only time Nkemdiche made an impact in the game, as he posted four tackles, all solo, one more for a loss and a quarterback hurry. He tied his season highs from the Southeast Missouri game with four solo tackles and two tackles for loss. It was also his second career quarterback hurry. Simply, it was the freshman’s biggest impact game of the season.
And he was recognized for his impact play, as he was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week.
The first career sack was a long time coming for the No. 1 overall recruit in last year’s class. Nkemdiche hasn’t feasted on offensive linemen like so many predicted he would. In fact, he hasn’t put up stats anywhere near dominant.
He is 12th on the team, third among defensive linemen, with 23 tackles on the season. He hasn’t played a part in any turnovers this year, as he has no forced fumbles or fumble recoveries. The defensive line has totaled four of the 11 Ole Miss forced fumbles and two of the seven recovered fumbles, but Nkemdiche hasn’t been involved in any of them — he missed two games against LSU and Idaho due to an injury.
He is second on the team with seven tackles for loss, but only two came in SEC games; he’s averaging four tackles per game in nonconference games, but just 2.2 per game in conference play.
Nkemdiche hasn’t been the constant impact player this season that many expected him to be. But that indicated that expectations, on a true freshman playing in the SEC, were too high. Given his size – 6-foot-5, 294 pounds – his recruiting ranking and the way he dominated high school football, it was expected he would roll right through offensive linemen and disrupt offenses constantly. But no one should be expected to come into the best conference in college football, during its greatest stretch, and dominate.
But all of this doesn’t mean he hasn’t played well for Ole Miss. Coaches have been pleased with his play, and he has made the defensive line even better with his versatility. He started the Troy game at defensive tackle, his third career start on the inside of the defensive line to go along with five starts at defensive end.
That positional diversity has allowed Ole Miss to better handle its injury and depth issues on the defensive line. But it also has taken a toll on Nkemdiche’s ability to rack up stats. Many defenses aren’t asking their defensive tackles to accumulate tackles. Rather, they are supposed to fill gaps and take up extra blockers, allowing other players to make the tackle.
Also, Ole Miss has lined up against multiple teams that like to spread their offensive formations and find space all over the field. This negates some of the opportunities that defensive linemen have to get tackles, although it can create more one-on-one matchups for defensive linemen when rushing the passer, which could lead to more sacks.
Ole Miss has not tallied many sacks at all this season. The Rebels have just 14, which is tied for 12th in the SEC. They are getting just 1.4 sacks per game, and no player has more than 2.5 sacks. Last year, Ole Miss had six players with at least 2.5 sacks and averaged 2.9 sacks per game as a team. They amassed 38 sacks last year, the second-highest total in the SEC and ninth best in Division I. This year they rank 103rd in sacks.
With C.J. Johnson, who led Ole Miss in sacks last year, out for the season, someone on the defensive line needs to step up and get in the backfield constantly. Maybe Nkemdiche’s performance against Troy is the start to a dominant finish to the season by the freshman.
For continuing coverage of Ole Miss football, follow @Tyler_RSR and @thedm_sports on Twitter.
-Tyler Bischoff
tfbischo@go.olemiss.edu
