Mississippi players and head coach Hugh Freeze prepare to take the field before an NCAA college football game against Louisiana-Lafayette in Oxford, Miss., Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014. (DM Photo | Cady Herring)
The Rebels head into the first open week of the season with high expectations after the 56-15 win over Louisiana-Lafayette that propelled them into the AP top 10 for the first time since 2009.
Just three years ago, the Rebels finished the 2011 season winless in Southeastern Conference play with a 2-10 overall record. The turnaround head coach Hugh Freeze has evolved within the program has shocked many.
Being ranked in the top 10 is something Rebel nation has been waiting on for a while, and Freeze showed excitement with his team Monday.
“It’s obviously exciting for everyone, to our kids, to our people here, but really to me, every day has a life of its own,” Freeze said. “Every play in a game has a life of its own, today is a life, tomorrow too.”
Freeze also addressed concerns with the ranking his team achieved.
“All you ever worry about is the rankings or the scoreboard and what it says,” Freeze said. “You lose sight of the process and it’s just result-oriented, and that’s certainly not what we are about in this program. We hope those things go our way and we hope those things stay our way.”
The bye week comes at a good time for the Rebels, as injuries start to build up. Junior running back I’Tavius Mathers has a toe injury and fellow freshman running back Jordan Wilkins has an ankle injury. Linebacker D.T. Shackelford suffered an ankle injury during the game. All three will be limited in practice this week. Freeze mentioned that it may take the next two weeks of free time to get these players healthy and ready to go for Memphis.
The momentum the Rebels have built has come at the right time, but the open week also gives the team a chance to game plan more and get rest for injured players. Freeze is happy the bye week comes now and has a plan he uses every year.
“I wish we were playing this week really, but having a bye week is never a bad thing,” Freeze said. “We do the same thing every off week. We’ll study ourselves and the next opponent or the next two opponents if we can, and we’ll recruit. That’s what we do in the off week Tuesday to Thursday.”
It’s no secret that in less than three weeks, Alabama comes to Oxford in the first home SEC contest for the Rebels. Keeping the team focused in the bye week and against Memphis in two weeks before Alabama is a tall task, but it must be done.
“I don’t know if it’s totally possible,” Freeze said about his team looking ahead to Alabama. “Certainly the process is what I’ll reiterate to them. It’s about today and not what didn’t go right yesterday. It’s about what we do today to make sure we’re prepared for the next step in this journey which is September 27. We’ll constantly remind them of that.”
Starting quarterback Bo Wallace said his team is focused.
“We have a mature group that knows. We know what’s at stake,” Wallace said. “We know what’s coming up, but no one is satisfied with the way we are playing. You don’t see us celebrating after beating these teams. We’re taking a business-like approach to these games and trying to play our best game.”
At the same time last season, the Rebels were 3-0, but last season the Rebels had their bye week before heading into their matchup in Tuscaloosa against Alabama, where they lost 25-0. This week provides a new task, but Wallace doesn’t see any similarities between the 3-0 team last season and this season.
“I don’t think we lost focus or anything like that (last season), but we have to pay attention to details this time around,” Wallace said. “I don’t think we paid attention to little things as much last year, but I love this team being mature and taking things one thing at a time. That’s not just us saying that. That’s really how we are as a team.”
