Corral, Ole Miss take down No. 7 Indiana in Outback Bowl
TAMPA, Fla. — Even before Mississippi took the field for the Outback Bowl, the Rebels felt good about the direction they’re headed.
Coach Lane Kiffin was rewarded with a new contract despite having only been at the school one season. There also was no guarantee one of the nation’s lowest-ranked defenses would be able to slow down No. 7 Indiana enough to ensure the team’s first non-losing record since 2017.
“It’s really only up from here,“quarterback Matt Corral said Saturday after throwing for 342 yards and two touchdowns to pace a 26-20 victory that ruined the finish to surprising Indiana’s breakout season.
Corral’s 3-yard pass to Dontario Drummond put the Rebels (5-5) ahead for good with 4:12 remaining.
The Ole Miss defense, which allowed 535.7 yards and 40.3 points per game during the regular season, came through with one more stop to clinch the school’s first bowl win since beating Oklahoma State in the 2016 Sugar Bowl.
“We talked about it all week. We’re going to need that,” Kiffin said. “We were not going to go score 60 points. … We knew it was going to be a struggle, and it was great to see the defense play like they did.”
Drummond finished with six catches for 110 yards. Corral completed 30 of 44 passes without an interception, including a 5-yard TD throw to Casey Kelly that put Ole Miss up 13-3 midway through the second quarter.
Jack Tuttle was 26 of 45 for 201 yards in his second start in place Michael Penix Jr. for Indiana (6-2), which lost its star quarterback to a season-ending knee injury in late November.
Stevie Scott III rushed for 99 yards and scored on runs of 3 and 2 yards to help Indiana wipe out a 20-6 deficit in the fourth quarter.
Ole Miss missed the extra point after Drummond’s go-ahead TD catch. leaving Indiana with an opportunity to pull out its first bowl win in nearly 30 years.
The Hoosiers, who don’t have a postseason win since the 1991 Copper Bowl bowl, drove to the Rebels 33 before stalling and turning it over on downs.
“They made enough plays to come up with the win. I’m disappointed for our players,“Indiana coach Tom Allen said. “They have been through so much, sacrificed so much and worked hard. This one is going to hurt for a while.”
GATOR BOWL
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Kentucky’s postgame locker room provided a scene players and coaches might never forget. They celebrated a third consecutive bowl victory while dedicating it to two guys who couldn’t be there.
This one was for late offensive line coach John Schlarman and rehabbing linebacker Chris Oats, who has been battling a significant medical condition since May.
A.J. Rose ran for a careerhigh 148 yards, Chris Rodriguez added 84 yards and two scores and the Wildcats held off No. 24 North Carolina State 23-21 on Saturday in a chippy TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.
“It was extremely emotional, even walking into the locker room we were saying, ‘That was for (Oats), that was for Schlarman,’” said linebacker Jamin Davis, who finished with 13 tackles and an interception.
“It’s definitely something to show to the younger guys that we just keep playing through all the adversity, whatever’s going on around us, all the outside noise,“Davis added. “Just block it out. … We’ve got to keep going regardless.”
Christopher Dunn missed two field goals for the Wolfpack (8-4), who trailed 16-14 late when Bailey Hockman threw his third interception of the game. Rodriguez scored on the ensuing play, going nearly untouched for 26 yards.
NC State got a final chance after Jordan Houston scored with 1:10 remaining. But Allen Dailey recovered Dunn’s onside kick, and the Wildcats (5-6) ran out the clock. Coach Mark Stoops got a Gatorade bath following the team’s second straight win, which ended a tumultuous season that included Schlarman’s death following a two-year battle with cancer.
“John was definitely looking down on us; Coach Schlarman definitely inspired us all,” said Rose, who was named Kentucky’s bowl game MVP. “Offensive line did a great job today. They were moving people all around all day. I give credit to all five of those guys.”
Kentucky finished with 281 yards on the ground, helping offset one of the nation’s worst passing attacks.
A big issue for the Wolfpack was playing without four defensive starters. Safety Tanner Ingle (suspended), defensive tackle Alim McNeil (opt out) and injured linebackers Payton Wilson and Drake Thomas missed the game.
“Those are four really good run defenders against a really good rushing offense,” NC State coach Dave Doeren said. “We were concerned coming into the game about it. Not that we stopped the run; we didn’t. But we did enough and kept them off the scoreboard enough to give ourselves a chance.”
Zonovan Knight, who led the Wolfpack with 52 yards rushing and a touchdown, was named the losing team’s MVP.
Penalties were a problem for both teams. There were 11 unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and several more instances where a flag could have been thrown.
“I got to get them cleaned up and I will. That’s not us; we’re not going to accept that,“said Stoops, who blamed part of it on being unfamiliar with the Big 12 officiating crew. “When you get in these bowl games, you’re not used to certain officials, and I’ve got to do a better job preparing us for that.”