Rebels’ defense weathers late lapse
Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008
FAYETTEVILLE — Ole Miss’ defense put in a solid 52 minutes of work against Arkansas.
The Rebels held Arkansas down until midway through the fourth quarter then held off a late flurry to escape with a 23-21 victory Saturday at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Arkansas had gained just 218 yards of offense when it took possession with 8 minutes remaining on its 3-yardline, trailing 20-7.
Touchdown drives of 97 and 71 yards pulled Arkansas to within 23-21 and a successful onside kick gave the Razorbacks one last gasp from their 47 with 1: 03 left. The Rebels, aided by an offensive pass interference called against London Crawford, survived when Casey Dick threw four consecutive incompletions.
“Overall, we played well,” Rebels defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix said. “It was disappointing the last six or seven minutes. We could have put the team away and didn’t.”
Fifty-two minutes of sound defense followed by eight minutes of teeth grinding had Nix worried.
“It was Jeykll and Hyde. You didn’t know if we were going to make a play,” Nix said. “You have to play a complete game.”
The Razorbacks found success early in the running game behind healthy tailback Michael Smith. Smith had left last week’s Kentucky game late with a concussion and then missed the first days of practice this week.
Smith showed so signs of rust or tentativness in carrying 19 times for 129 yards for 1 touchdown. The Rebels said they never expected not to see Smith carrying the load for the Razorbacks.
“He’s their best player,” cornerback Marshay Green said. “He had a nice game.”
What the Rebels didn’t expect was to see Smith catching option pitches from Dick. The Razorbacks had success running the option in the first half, including Smith’s 13-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1 in the second quarter.
“They’re a good defensive front,” Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino said. “I never felt like we got in a position where we could sustain the run and were knocking them off the ball. We were battling and we were popping some runs through there, and we did an nice job with our speed option game and made some plays with that.”
Nix said he wasn’t surprised Arkansas threw in a new wrinkle. He was defensive coordinator at Southern Miss when Arkansas offensive coordinator Paul Petrino was quarterbacks coach.
“They didn’t show [the option ] before,” Nix said. “They gave us a ballgame like we expected they would.”
Even with Smith running well, the Razorbacks managed only seven points because their passing game was ineffective other than on short passes. Dick finished the game 20 of 38 for 282 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, but 136 of those yards and both touchdowns came in the last furious eight minutes.
The late breakdowns by the Rebels’ defense were assuaged by the last stop in the final minute.
“We have one of the best defenses in the SEC,” Green said. “The coaches did a great job scheming. We did a great job finishing.”
Ole Miss had done a good job pressuring Dick, sacking him three times and hurrying him four times. Defensive tackle Peria Jerry had two sacks and two hurries as the Rebels’ pass rush effectively prevented any long passes until late in the game.
“They’ve got a defensive line that is for real,” Dick said. “They brought some pressure.”
Nix said the Rebels’ defenders were in position in the fourth quarter but were outjumped for several catches, including two catches by 6-4 Greg Childs.
“It looked like pee-wee ball, when you first start playing catch with your kids,” Nix said of his players awkwardly mistiming their jumps.
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
