› Ole Miss must regroup quickly, SEC players of the week,
Alabama, Georgia on the horizon
The Ole Miss Rebels missed out on a chance to place themselves among the elite teams in college football.
Now they must make sure that Monday night’s 45-34 loss to Florida State in Orlando — a game they led 28-6 late in the second quarter — doesn’t have a lingering effect with dates later this month against Alabama and Georgia.
“We’ve just got to come back focused and ready to work,” Rebels senior quarterback Chad Kelly told reporters early Tuesday morning. “The season isn’t over. It’s just one game.”
A game that Ole Miss, which slipped from 11th to 19th in the latest Associated Press poll, might not be able to forget any time soon.
The Rebels stunned the FSU-heavy crowd with a touchdown in the first 74 seconds, and when Akeem Judd rambled in from 11 yards out with 3:04 before halftime, Ole Miss had its stunning 22-point lead. The advantage was erased faster than it was established, however.
After compiling an eye-popping 312 total yards through the first 30 minutes, Ole Miss had its 10 third-quarter plays result in minus-7 yards. Two of the 10 plays were turnovers, which enabled Florida State to continue a staggering run of 33 consecutive points.
“It was definitely a nightmarish second half,” Rebels coach Hugh Freeze said in his news conference afterward. “You have to give credit to Florida State, but I really thought things started to turn around for them with the last drive in the first half. We blew technique on a coverage and gave them a score.
“They definitely came out of the locker room with a lot more life, and we turned the ball over twice to really shift the momentum.”
Ole Miss entered the finale of college football’s blockbuster opening weekend as an underdog but had the edge at quarterback, with Kelly a year ago having become the first in school history to guide the Rebels to wins over Alabama, Auburn and LSU in the same season. He capped last year by earning Sugar Bowl MVP honors and created some buzz in the offseason by claiming he wanted to be remembered as the best quarterback ever to play the game.
Kelly completed 21 of 39 passes for 313 yards and four touchdowns against the Seminoles, but he also suffered three interceptions.
“I was pressing sometimes, but you’ve just got to take care of the football,” Kelly said. “You hit the checkdowns if they’re open and take what the defense gives you. We’ve just got to finish. That’s what it comes down to.
“Four turnovers is not going to win you many ballgames, that’s for sure, against a good team like that.”
While Kelly was experiencing his highs and lows, Florida State redshirt freshman counterpart Deondre Francois was orchestrating an epic debut. The 6-foot-2, 205-pounder from Orlando was forced to play catch-up and did just that, rallying the Seminoles on 33-of-52 passing for 419 yards with two touchdowns.
Francois directed an offense that was turnover-free and racked up 42 minutes and 39 seconds of possession time.
“We could not get off the field on third down,” Freeze said. “Credit their quarterback. He made a lot of plays. They’re not sitting around recruiting poor talent, and that was obvious tonight.”
What’s obvious for the Rebels is that they must regroup in time to defeat Wofford this weekend at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, which precedes the visits from Alabama and Georgia. Ole Miss showed plenty of cause for excitement, most notably the continued chemistry between Kelly and senior tight end Evan Engram, but the loss was magnified by potential season-ending injuries to junior cornerback Ken Webster and redshirt freshman Eric Swinney.
Hopes for a first trip to the Southeastern Conference championship game were not affected by Monday’s outcome, but it won’t be forgotten soon.
“It is what it is,” Kelly said. “We were still winning after the first turnover of the second half, but three happened, and the next thing you know, we’re behind the 8-ball.”
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.
“You have to give credit to Florida State, but I really thought things started to turn around for them with the last drive in the first half. We blew technique on a coverage and gave them a score.”
– REBELS COACH HUGH FREEZE