VOD Not Available
This video is not available.
Ole Miss Rebels Spring Practice: Three Things We Learned
Mental focus and discipline will be tantamount to a turnaround at Ole Miss this season. The Rebels are coming off a dismal 5-7 campaign, learning new systems on both sides of the ball and dealing with the protracted NCAA investigation. Oh, and any hope of returning to the postseason ended when the school self-imposed a one-year bowl ban on Feb. 22.
April 13, 2017
With the Ole Miss spring practice in the books, here’s what we know and what we learned about the Rebels.
Mental focus and discipline will be tantamount to a turnaround at Ole Miss this season. The Rebels are coming off a dismal 5-7 campaign, learning new systems on both sides of the ball and dealing with the protracted NCAA investigation. Oh, and any hope of returning to the postseason ended when the school self-imposed a one-year bowl ban on Feb. 22.
Ole Miss Spring Game Redux
1. Shea Patterson Settling In As Face of the Program
Patterson plus first-year offensive coordinator Phil Longo ought to equal plenty of fireworks in Oxford this fall.
Rebel fans received an unexpected sneak peek of Patterson, a ballyhooed quarterback prospect, in 2016 after Chad Kelly suffered a season-ending injury. Patterson is now teaming up with Longo, whose fast-paced Air Raid is aimed at maximizing the full array of his dual-threat sophomore’s abilities. Patterson is noticeably more confident and vocal in Year 2, gradually developing chemistry with the receivers and digesting all of the nuances of the new attack. He threw for 341 yards and two scores in the team’s Grove Bowl, a likely harbinger of things to come later this season.
2. Staff Likes Front Four, Worries About Back Seven
If Ole Miss is going to better last year’s putrid defensive results, it must improve up the middle, from linebacker to safety.
Hugh Freeze is optimistic about his D-line, spearheaded by DE Marquis Haynes and tackles Benito Jones and Breeland Speaks. The back seven, though, could cause him tense moments between now and the Sept. 2 visit from South Alabama. The Rebels are light on sure things, and few returning players stepped to the forefront this spring. Ole Miss was gashed for 5.4 yards per carry a year ago, while ranking last in SEC run defense. If the linebackers, like former JUCO transfer Detric Bing-Dukes, and safeties can’t rise up in August, it could be more of the same problems for new coordinator Wesley McGriff.
3. Patterson’s Supporting Cast Has High Ceiling
Patterson may be the focal point of the offense, but he will hardly be expected to do all the heavy lifting.
On one hand, Longo stepped into a difficult situation, with the NCAA investigation and a boss on the hot seat. On the other, though, he inherited enough talent to showcase his potential as one of the game’s up-and-coming offensive masterminds. The line returns four starters, RB Jordan Wilkins is eager to carry the load after an academic snafu sidelined him in 2016 and the receivers are uniquely qualified to rebound from the loss of three of last year’s top four pass-catchers. TE Evan Engram is impossible to replace adequately, but A.J. Brown, D.K. Metcalf, Van Jefferson and Markell Pack have the size and skill to create mismatches as Patterson’s targets.
