Know Your Enemy: Ole Miss Rebels
The Vols will have to contain Ole Miss quarterback Bo Wallace if they hope to pull of the major upset Saturday. They also will need to worry about protecting their own QB. PHOTO: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Who: Ole Miss Rebels — Oxford, MS
Distance From Knoxville: 405 miles
Head coach: Hugh Freeze (3rd season with Ole Miss, 21-11, 9-10 SEC)
Conference: SEC
2014 Record: 6-0 (3-0)
Ranking: No. 3 AP/No. 3 Coaches
All time series: Tennessee leads 44-19-1
Last meeting: The Vols won in Knoxville in 2010, 52-14
Leading Passer: Bo Wallace — 1,700 yards, 15 TDs, 6 INTs
Leading Rusher: Jaylen Walton — 49 carries, 287 yards, 3 TDs
Leading Receiver: Laquon Treadwell — 30 catches, 415 yards, 4 TDs
Four years ago when the Vols and Rebels last met, both teams were in the midst of seasons that would end with losing records. The Vols won 52-14 and wound up 6-6 on the season and lost in the Music City Bowl to finish 6-7. Ole Miss finished 4-8, earning only one SEC victory that season. The Vols were just beginning their foray into the Derek Dooley era, and the Rebels were in the depths of the failing Houston Nutt experiment.
Four years later, and the two programs aren’t nearly as similar any longer. Thanks to Dooley’s many shortcomings, the Vols are still stuck in rebuilding mode and clawing their way to their first bowl bid since that 2010 season. The Rebels, meanwhile, are already bowl eligible halfway through the 2014 season. Not only that, but they’re undefeated at 6-0 and are ranked 3rd in the country.
How have the Rebels achieved this success? They did so in much the same way the Vols are attempting to rebuild: Recruiting at an elite level and developing talent at a rapid rate.
Mississippi’s 2012 recruiting class finished 47th in the country, but once Hugh Freeze had a whole season to recruit, things took off in rebel country. In 2013, the Rebels hauled in the nation’s No. 8 recruiting class, which includes many players who hold significant roles on the team this season. Defensive end Robert Nkemdiche, wide receiver Laquon Treadwell, and offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil are all major contributors to the Rebels as sophomores, and they headlined the 2013 class.
Hugh Freeze and his staff brought in the 15th best class in 2014, and these two consecutive solid recruiting classes have given the Rebels a fast track to SEC prominence. The Vols are hoping Ole Miss in 2014 provides a glimpse into what they can be in 2015.
For now, however, the Rebels are the powerhouse and the Vols are the underdogs.
Ole Miss boasts a rare combination of a powerful offense and a solid defense, and it’s because of that combination they have soared to 6-0, including victories over Alabama and Texas A&M.
Both the Vols and Rebels have remarkably similar defenses in terms of statistics. Both are in the top 4 in the SEC in passing defense and total defense, and both defenses have an extremely similar number of sacks and tackles for loss (Ole Miss with 11 sacks and 41 TFLs compared to Tennessee’s 12 sacks and 48 TFLs).
The two areas on defense that separate the two teams are rushing defense and scoring defense. Ole Miss is drastically better in both departments, ranking 3rd in the SEC in rushing defense (113.3 yards per game) and 1st in points allowed (11.8). The Vols offense is last in the SEC in rushing yards per game (109.7) and 13th in scoring (28 points per game).
Where the two teams differ the most is on offense. Neither team runs the ball particularly effectively, as the Rebels rank 12th in the SEC with 146.5 yards per game on the ground an average only 3.9 yards per carry, but Ole Miss can toss the ball around better than most teams.
Ole Miss is 2nd in the SEC and 26th in the nation in passing offense, throwing an average of 295.2 yards per game. Senior QB Bo Wallace leads the potent passing attack, tossing for exactly 1,700 yards and 15 touchdowns. He’s also a competent runner, accumulating 89 total rushing yards and 2 scores.
Wallace has been turnover prone at times in his career, and he’s thrown 6 interceptions already this year, including 3 in the season opener against Boise State. He hasn’t thrown one in his last two games, however, and getting him to revert to his old tendencies would be an effective way for the Vols to stay competitive on Saturday.
Ole Miss will likely be the most complete team the Vols have faced all season. They’ll have the most balanced attack in terms of having an effective offense and defense, and the crowd at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium will be rocking.
The Vols will need their offense to play like they did against Georgia and not like they have against Florida and Chattanooga in order to have a shot at pulling off one of the biggest upsets in program history. They also must protect QB Justin Worley better, but that may be impossible against a stellar Ole Miss pass rush.
Of Note: The state of Tennessee, while not a national hotbed for recruiting, is highly contested by both the Vols and Rebels. Ole Miss gives Tennessee the best run for its money in recruiting the state, especially in the Memphis area. There are 14 players on Ole Miss’s roster who hail from Tennessee, and 6 of those play significant roles for the Rebels. Those 6 include QB Bo Wallace, center Ben Still, and all four of the Rebels’ top running backs on the depth chart.
All recruiting info via 247Spots and all stats via cfbstats.com