Top to Bottom: Running back Jaylen Walton scores a touchdown during the first half of Saturday’s game. Running back I’Tavius Mathers tries to avoid Idaho safety Trey Williams during the first half of Saturday’s game.
Photo by Alex Edwards I The Daily Mississippian
Ole Miss won in a landslide on Saturday, defeating the Idaho Vandals 59-14, but it was the Rebels’ rushing attack that was the story of the game, as it accounted for 292 of the 572 yards for the Ole Miss offense.
The Rebels utilized a wide array of running backs to obtain this success in the run game, splitting the carries between sophomores I’Tavius Mathers and Jaylen Walton and true freshmen Mark Dodson and Kailo Moore. The backs’ success didn’t stop with the run game, however, as Dodson and Moore both made nice contributions in the passing game.
Mathers was the team’s leading rusher, gaining 138 yards on 9.9 yards a carry and scoring a touchdown, while Walton gained 86 yards on 7.8 yards a carry and two touchdowns, which now gives him the most rushing touchdowns on the team with five on the season.
As for the freshmen backs, Dodson made the most of seven carries by picking up 57 yards and also had a 30-yard receiving touchdown. Moore struggled to find room on the ground but did a great job utilizing his speed in the passing game, getting 22 yards on three catches.
“The first guy that jumps out at me would be Dodson,” Freeze said. “I thought he showed some explosion, some physical runs, although he’s gotta take care of the ball better. I thought Kailo showed some good burst on some of our swing routes and things. We think both of those guys are really good players. We just have some good players at that spot, and I’d have to say Dodson showed some flashes that he wants to compete.”
The emergence of these backup running backs in the absence of senior starter Jeff Scott has made for quite a crowded backfield.
“I’m gonna let them compete, and we’ll sort it out,” Freeze said. “But we’ll try to have some packages and keep them fresh for all the guys that are healthy. Those two guys (Mathers and Walton) along with Dodson and Kailo tonight, all four had some good things. I’Tavius and Jaylen certainly looked solid.”
Offensive coordinator Dan Werner shared Freeze’s enthusiasm in the freshman backs’ performance.
“They all ran hard. I was really impressed with those guys,” Werner said. “Those guys get a chance to get in there. They want to play obviously, and they get their chance, and they proved to us that they will run hard.”
Werner also is still determining the best way to split carries between the backs, especially for Mathers and Walton.
“We’ve gotta sit down and talk about it because those guys have done a really good job,” Werner said. “I was really pleased, and I know Coach Freeze is too, so we just have to see. But they will play. They will definitely get some snaps.”
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