PHOTO BY: THOMAS GRANING Ole Miss fans celebrate after bringing down the goal post after Saturday’s 23-17 win over Alabama.
The atmosphere couldn’t have been bigger for Saturday’s game between the Ole Miss Rebels and the Alabama Crimson Tide. Fans packed the Grove early in the morning to see ESPN’s College GameDay on its first ever trip to Oxford, which would certainly prove to be a memorable one.
Playing for a sellout crowd of 61,826, which included celebrities such as Katy Perry, Woody Harrelson, Liam Hemsworth, Octavia Spencer and several members of the Memphis Grizzlies basketball team, Ole Miss had a historic win, beating Alabama for the first time since 2003 by a score of 23-17. The win also marked only the tenth time in program history that the Rebels have upended the Crimson Tide.
As a result from upset Saturday, both Ole Miss and Mississippi State are tied for third in the AP poll. It is the first time ever that both Mississippi teams are ranked in the top five at the same time.
The game came down to the last minute of the fourth quarter with both teams battling until the Rebels finally came away with a victory, throwing the crowd into such a frenzy that they stormed the field and tore down the goal posts, which were seen later that night on the Square and on campus.
“I’m just so proud of our young men,” head coach Hugh Freeze said. “You can’t lose a game in 30 or 45 minutes. You have to play for 60 minutes, and that is something we’ve preached since we’ve been here.”
Both defenses started off very strong, something Freeze had emphasized would have to happen for them to win the game.
“I felt like we had defensive depth,” Freeze said. “When you play good defense, you have a chance.”
Senior defensive back Senquez Golson talked about the team’s defensive performance as well.
“We knew Alabama wasn’t going to beat us running the ball the whole game. Eventually, they were going to have to throw, which I don’t think they really wanted to do,” Golson said. “We played an incredible game.”
Despite the Rebel defense only allowing one touchdown in the game, it looked like Alabama might run away with the game near the end of the first half. Alabama junior defensive back Cyrus Jones forced a fumble by junior running back I’Tavius Mathers, which he then returned 13 yards for the score. At the end of the first half, the Rebels were down 14-3 and would kickoff to Alabama to begin the second half.
“To be very candid, I felt like my heart got ripped out right before the half on the fumble for points there,” Freeze said. “I felt very confident all week. That was the only time I started to waiver a bit.”
Ole Miss was able to get back into the game on the shoulders of one of the most scrutinized players on the team, senior quarterback Bo Wallace. Wallace was able to ignore the pressure and come up with a huge game for the Rebels, finishing the day by completing 18-31 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns.
“Sometimes, these kids take on way more criticism than they deserve. I don’t know that they get the equal treatment on the other side of it. He managed the game very nicely,” Freeze said of Wallace’s performance. “Who knows what the next week holds, but tonight, Bo led his team to defeat the No. 3 team in the country. He deserves credit for being a big part of that.”
Sophomore tight end Evan Engram felt Wallace received unfair criticism as well and was also impressed with Wallace’s performance, specifically his poise.
“Bo takes a lot of criticism, but sometimes, it’s us, the wide receivers, who might be wrong on a route or be in the wrong spot, but it kind of falls back on Bo,” Engram said. “He’s already a great leader. It’s so easy to get in these situations and fall under all this pressure and the atmosphere, but he didn’t blink. There was no fear in his eyes. It was an amazing performance by him, a smart performance, and he came out and answered a lot of questions and shook the haters up a little bit.”
Wallace was instrumental for the Rebels’ success on offense, especially in the second half. Wallace found sophomore wide receiver Laquon Treadwell for a touchdown in the third quarter and then threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Vince Sanders to tie the game.
Alabama would’ve had a chance to take the lead again if it were not for special teams standout, junior defensive end Channing Ward. Reigning SEC Special Teams Player of the Year, senior wide receiver Christion Jones, returned the kick 20 yards for the Crimson Tide before Ward stripped the ball, which the Rebels recovered at the 31-yard line. The Rebels moved the ball quickly down the field before Wallace connected on a 10-yard touchdown pass to junior running back Jaylen Walton for the go-ahead score.
“In the second half, he made some big time plays. He just played so solid,” Freeze said. “On that last touchdown that ball was right where it needed to be for us.”
Treadwell spoke about how he reacted when Walton hauled in the pass to give them the lead so late in the game.
“I actually ran and tackled him when he fell down. It was just crazy,” Treadwell said. “We knew we had a great defense, and that was going to give us a chance to win the game.”
The Rebels’ special teams put the defense in an even tougher position when they allowed Alabama to block senior kicker Andrew Fletcher’s point-after attempt, making the score 23-17. This meant Alabama could win the game with just a touchdown and normal point-after. And with 2:54 left in the game, they certainly had a good chance.
Alabama’s senior quarterback Blake Sims moved them down the field with several sharp throws, including a 30-yard completion to star junior wide out Amari Cooper. However, when Sims tried to find his tight end in the end zone, he was picked off by Golson.
“It was a great play,” Golson said. “Earlier in the game, I had blown that coverage. We were in cover three, and they hit the tight end up the middle, which was my fault. They ran the exact same play again. I just did my job, was in the right spot and made a good play.”
Players and coaches felt the win could have huge implications for the team.
“It got us over the hump. Now, we’re relevant,” Treadwell said. “I think everyone sees it now, and everyone is going to bring their A-game when they play us.”
Golson said the game was very special to him as a senior.
“This is my last time playing Bama, and to go out the way I did, I’m gonna live with it for a very long time,” Golson said.
“It’s a huge win for our program and our fans, “ Freeze said. “It’s been a tremendous day.”
