Jeff Scott’s 75-yard mad sprint last Thursday night to secure a win of epic proportions is one that no Ole Miss fan will ever forget. Last season, Rebel fans became frustrated with Scott for seemingly running east and west instead of north and south. I vividly remember some of the Vaught-Hemingway Stadium crowd booing Scott during the Vanderbilt game in 2012 for running toward the sidelines three carries in a row in the third quarter.
Scott all but made up for last year’s performance and gave the Ole Miss fan base something they’ve longed for since Dexter McCluster’s monster senior season – long, fast, unbelievable rushing touchdowns in crucial moments of a game.
Freeze and the Rebels have been gaining traction day by day since he took the position in December 2012, but no one day won was bigger than last Thursday in Nashville. The Rebels secured the sloppy yet pivotal SEC road win, and for at least one week, Freeze’s team is alone at the top of the SEC.
But as Rebel fans of all generations know, the first week means nothing when November comes around.
Where does this 2013 team stand compared to last year’s team, and what can we expect for the rest of this season? Let’s take a look.
While it’s impossible to gauge the true talent of a team after one game, it could be useful to compare statistics from last year’s Vanderbilt game to last Thursday’s game to get a sense of where this year’s team stands.
A few stats visibly stick out, but none more important than one.
In last year’s 27-26 Ole Miss loss, all but one stat was extremely close: rushing yards. Vanderbilt gathered 104 yards on the ground to the Rebels’ 55 yards – a 50-yard difference.
Last Thursday, Ole Miss’ rushing yards, padded by the electric 75-yard run by Scott, was the difference maker in the game. As the final horn sounded and the Rebels took the 39-35 victory, Freeze’s team had accumulated 206 total rushing yards – 151 more yards than last year’s game. Vandy managed only 126 yards on the ground.
Add junior quarterback Bo Wallace’s 283 passing yards last Thursday night, and you can see that this team’s approach in the first game of the season was much more balanced.
If the Rebels can keep up their balanced attack, keeping opposing defenses on their heels, this season could be much more successful for Freeze in his second year.
Last season, Ole Miss had 2,260 rushing yards and 3,249 passing yards. If the Rebels can even that gap by a few hundred yards, the wins should be more plentiful. With a strong rushing game, some pressure might even be taken off the shoulder(s) of Wallace, who underwent shoulder surgery during the offseason after playing most of last season on that sore shoulder.
One main factor to consider this year is the depth at the running back position, which was much less developed in Freeze’s first season. Talented sophomore backs I’Tavius Mathers and Jaylen Walton should get more than a few touches in the backfield this season, and highly touted freshman running backs Kailo Moore and Mark Dodson could see action this season as well.
Scott, who has the fifth-highest number of rushing yards in the conference after week one, has proven what Ole Miss fans have known all along: that he has the speed and agility that can be the difference in a win or loss.
Another key factor to consider is the offensive line. If Ole Miss can keep its offensive line healthy and elusive, then look for this running back corps to rack up more than last season’s rushing total and give the Rebels chances to win games they couldn’t last season.
Freeze’s read-option offense focuses on the running game to open up the passing attack. So it’s easy to see everything starts up front. If Ole Miss can continue to be in the positive on rushing-yard margins, the wins will follow.
The program is clearly moving in a forward direction, but the second year for a head coach is more important than the first. Coming off a successful season last year, the expectations for Freeze’s program are high. With a little continued help from Scott and the other running backs, year two should be more successful than year one, and this program should continue its upward trajectory.
