OXFORD — Following a shocking loss at home to Kentucky, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin was keen on not being reactionary. One game in 12-game regular-season slate doesn’t have to tell the entire story.
The then-No. 6 Rebels (4-1, 0-1 SEC) began their SEC opener about as well as they could have Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, driving 83 yards in just over two minutes on their opening drive against the Wildcats to jump out to an early lead. After four games versus overmatched competition, it looked like Ole Miss was going to blow things open against Kentucky the way it had for most of the season’s first month.
But that didn’t end up being the case.
The Rebels struggled to find much of an offensive groove the remainder of Saturday and were held to a season-low 353 yards, not scoring another touchdown until late in the third on a catch-and-run on fourth down from senior wide receiver Tre Harris. Kentucky’s offense kept keeping drives alive, whether it was via clutch plays from quarterback Brock Vandagriff or mistakes from the Rebels’ defense. Vandagriff made the play of the day with about four minutes left in the game deep in his own territory, hitting Barion Brown down the sideline for a 63-yard gain on fourth-and-7. The Wildcats scored a touchdown later on the drive on a fumble recovery from Josh Kattus into the end zone.
Ole Miss senior quarterback Jaxson Dart tried his best to save the day, completing a 42-yard strike to senior tight end Caden Prieskorn on fourth-and-11 to keep the Rebel’s hopes alive. Senior kicker Caden Davis’ 48-yard game-tying attempt swung wide, though, and the Wildcats notched a 20-17 victory, the program’s first in Oxford since 1978.
The Rebels will try to get back to their winning ways next Saturday at South Carolina at 2:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
“All of a sudden, our program is terrible when they miss a field goal or don’t get a two-point conversion at the end of the game,” Kiffin said. “I wouldn’t tell you that we have all the answers. We have seen a lot of these where we have won them and all kinds of things can happen there. If they do a go route on fourth-and-7 or we have a great kicker and he misses, or if our defense gives up a touchdown. It could have gone either way, so I’m not going to sit up here and say if it goes the other way, then all of the sudden we got it all figured out. I would have said the same thing about third downs or penalties. I’m not going to overreact in a loss like I don’t overreact in a tight win or a tight loss.”
Ole Miss lost two games in 2023 — its SEC opener at No. 13 Alabama and a November matchup at No. 1 Georgia. The Rebels rallied and responded following both defeats, winning five in a row following the game with the Crimson Tide and their final three after falling to the Bulldogs. In their first game following their defeat in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the Rebels outdueled Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels and LSU in a 55-49 thriller. After falling in Athens, Georgia, Ole Miss defeated Louisiana-Monroe, Mississippi State and Penn State in the Peach Bowl.
“You can’t blink. We have a lot more opportunities,” Dart said. “One game is not going to define the year, but at the same time you better make the most of the rest of your opportunities.”
