With hopes of pulling off an upset and a shot at the college football playoffs, Ole Miss travelled to Athens. Rather, the Rebels were left with a 17-52 defeat, an injured Jaxson Dart, and crushed dreams of making the playoffs. Still, there are a few important lessons to be learned from Ole Miss’s worst defeat of the season.
The Defense was Found Out
The Rebels’ consistent progress on the defensive end of the ball has garnered a lot of attention this year. The group has made important plays on multiple occasions, displaying moments of brilliance and cohesiveness. The Bulldogs game appeared to have completely undone that progress.
This was by far the worst effort from the defence in recent memory, giving up almost 50 points, 600 yards, and only one fortunate turnover. The defence’s poor performance had the Rebel offence work extra hard to keep up with the Bulldogs’ relentless offensive assault.
It is never a sure thing to put the Ole Miss offence up against a talented defensive front like Georgia and expect them to equal anything the Bulldogs offensive can offer, especially when the Rebel Defense played as bad as it did tonight. The Rebels must not allow the score to rise as high as it did in this game if they hope to demonstrate in the future that they can compete with the best SEC clubs.
It’s important to know when to admit defeat
There wasn’t much time left in the third quarter, and the score was 14–38. Jaxson Dart clashed with two Georgia defenders during a scramble attempt in a valiant attempt to extend the play and ignite the Ole Miss attack. He had to be carried into the medical tent after he descended and remained there for some time. This was many minutes later.
What makes Dart so adored in Oxford is the love and devotion he gives to the football team the Rebels. He gives his all, even in the final end of a blowout loss in the biggest game of the season. However, on this occasion, he would have been better off slipping out of bounds and battling to live another day.
Rebel supporters can only hope that he is healthy enough to play the remainder of the season, even though he bears no responsibility for his injury since the bowl and Egg bowl games are quickly approaching. No matter what, he is the most important individual to this team on any given Saturday in Oxford.
The insurgents are not yet a threat
The game was this one. Ole Miss appeared prepared to show the world that they were ready to be among the top college football contenders following a season full of exceeding expectations. That story was put on hold by this game, but only temporarily.
It is impossible to ignore the incredible progress the Rebels have made this season. The team this year continues to be extremely unique as they overcome hardships and exhibit guts and willpower in order to succeed. It is a dramatic contrast to the squads of the past.
However, tonight showed that while Ole Miss football has made amazing progress as a program, it still has a bit further to go before it can challenge for a berth in the college football playoffs. Rebel supporters may look forward to a bright future with this team, despite the fact that this year did not go as planned.