Over the course of the next several weeks, the SoBros Network crew will be going around the landscape of the SEC, team by team, previewing the upcoming American tackle football season. Up next, our 2021 Ole Miss preview!
2021 Ole Miss Preview
It has been proven over and over, in every level of football, that defense wins championships and it is also the reason many times that a team struggles to get to .500. The 2020 version of the Ole Miss Rebels is proof of the latter. The Rebels could go toe to toe offensively with nearly any team in the country last year, but because of the holes in their defense, they finished 5-5 for the season.
There is an influx of transfers and recruits on the defensive side of the ball that has the people of Oxford, MS optimistic that Ole Miss could be a few steps closer than expected to competitively compete in the SEC West. Head Coach Lane Kiffin, in his second year leading the Rebels, saw his defense rank 126th in total defense last year, so any kind of improvement will be welcomed. It honestly can’t get any worse with the talent coming back mixed with new recruits and JUCO transfers.
Defense may indeed win championships, but the offense is what puts butts in seats. The Rebel offense was led by QB Matt Corral, who averaged over 330 yards a game and threw 29 touchdowns. Corral added 506 yards rushing to go along with All-SEC starting tailback Jerrion Ealy’s 745 yards and nine touchdowns. Ealy had off-season shoulder surgery and is expecting to be 100% come Week 1. Ealy along with fellow RB Snoop Connor should be able to take some of the pressure from Corral in the running game, making defenses respect both the running and passing games of Ole Miss.
Ole Miss lost leading WR Elijah Moore and TE Kenny Yeboah last year, but are in a nice position in the receiving game. The Rebels have WRs Dontario Drummond and Jonathan Mingo returning in 2021, but it’s senior receiver Braylon Sanders that is turning heads going into the season. Sanders spent a huge chunk of the 2020 season on the sidelines dealing with injuries but managed an impressive 26.43 yards per catch on his 15 receptions. If Sanders can stay healthy and continue to grow his relationship with Corral, he may find himself waiting for Roger Goodell to call his name during the last weekend in April next year.
There is no question that the Rebels will once again rely on their offense to win games, but if their defense can grow off their Outback Bowl win against No. 7 Indiana (where they dominated most of the game outside of two 80-yard 4th quarter drives by the Hoosiers), then Ole Miss could squeak out a win or two they may not would have a season ago.
2021 Rebels Schedule
Monday, 9/6: vs, Louisville(Atlanta)– Ole Miss kicks off the season against the ACC’s Louisville Cardinals. The Cardinals are coming off a disappointing 4-7 2020, but are expected to bounce back nicely. The two teams were mirror opposites of each other last year. This will be a hard fought battle but I believe Lane Kiffin is great at preparing for a game when given an abundance of time and the Rebels will start the season with a W.
Saturday, 9/11: vs. Austin Peay– Rebels start 2-0. Next.
Saturday, 9/18: vs. Tulane– This game will be closer than most might expect. Tulane has won 20 games in the last 3 years under Head Coach Willie Fritz and topped that with 3 straight bowl appearances. Despite the head waves the Green Wave is making, the Rebels will stay perfect on the year.
Saturday, October 2: @ Alabama– Ole Miss lost 63-48 last year in a game that was not decided until the 4th quarter. The Tide under Nick Saban will know better than to look past the Rebels as Lane Kiffin and company will have an extra week to prepare for Bama. Even with that extra time the Rebels will find themselves on the losing end of a tight fought battle.
Saturday, October 9: vs. Arkansas– This is one of those games where an improved defense can pay dividends. The Rebels lost to the Razorbacks 33-21 and will be looking to make a statement on both sides of the ball. Arkansas scored 24 points off 7 Ole Miss turnovers of which 6 were INTs thrown by QB Matt Corral. The Junior QB will certainly be looking to make amends for his game play. The game is Homecoming for the Rebels and everyone partying out in The Grove will go home happy after the game.
Saturday, October 16: @ Tennessee– The Rocky Top faithful have had this game circled ever since the schedule came out. Lane Kiffin returns to Knoxville for the first time as a head coach since leaving UT for USC in 2010. This is a game that will mean more to Tennessee fans than the players as most of the players were under the age of 10 when the first year coach departed for the West Coast. Ole Miss paints “Hotty Toddy” on the Rock and heads back to Oxford with the win.
Saturday, October 23: vs. LSU– Ole Miss enters with a 5-1 record on the year as LSU comes to Oxford. The Tigers had a disappointing 2020 season where they had to beat the Rebels in the final game of the season to reach .500. The majority of the questions LSU had going into the season have been answered and the Tigers should leave Vaught Hemingway Stadium with the W.
Saturday, October 30: @ Auburn– Auburn paid Gus Malzahn $21.5 million NOT to coach their team anymore and turned to Bryan Harsin of Boise St. to lead the Tigers going forward. The Auburn game marks the end of the toughest stretch of competition the Rebels face in 2021 while the Tigers will be coming off games against LSU, Georgia, and Arkansas. Both teams will certainly be tired at this point and the outcome could come down to which running game has the freshest legs and which defense can keep their hands off their hips the most. The test is a little too much for the Rebels and they fall to the Tigers in a close game ultimately decided by Special Teams.
Saturday, November 6: vs. Liberty– Ole Miss gets back on the winning side of football and becomes bowl eligible.
Saturday, November 13: Texas A&M– The Aggies are bound to be a Top 10 Preseason pick with some publications possibly putting them Top 5. The Rebels will be a hard out for A&M, but the Aggies leave Oxford with a win.
Saturday, November 20: Vanderbilt– Do I even have to? Ole Miss by 24.
Thursday, November 25: Mississippi State– Year 2 under Mike Leach should prove exciting in Starkville but the Bulldogs have too many questions to contend in the SEC. A fairly weak non-conference schedule will help them pad the resume for bowl consideration but Ole Miss will not be the stepping stone for a second tier postseason game for State. Ole Miss wins the Egg Bowl and ends the season 8-4.
Prediction
The Rebels defense can do nothing but improve. The amount of improvement will decide at what level the team as a whole improves. Ole Miss dodges both Florida and Georgia from the East this year. LSU and Auburn are both coming off disappointing seasons and may still have enough questions that allows the Rebels to pass them. Lane Kiffin will have all eyes on him in Oxford now that he has a year under his belt as the head coach in Oxford. DC D.J. Durkin will also have the spotlight on him as the defense is sure to be scrutinized after every play.
If the offense, especially QB Corral, can limit the number of giveaways and not call on the defense to bail them out multiple times a game, the Rebels could be in store for a fun magical season. I feel this team will, at worst, go 8-4.
OTHER SEC 2021 SEASON PREVIEWS
- Arkansas Razorbacks
- Florida Gators
- Kentucky Wildcats
- LSU Tigers
- Mississippi State Bulldogs
- South Carolina Gamecocks
- Texas A&M Aggies
- Vanderbilt Commodores
Steven McCash is the Music Columnist for SoBros Network, and host of the ‘Drinking With…’ podcast. He is the pioneer of New Music Friday, highlighting each week’s new releases in the world of music, in addition to the occasional live show review. Follow on Twitter: @MC_Cash75
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