Game Recap: Ole Miss downs Boise State in season opener

We’re not saying it was pretty, but it was a win.

Recap

ATLANTA, GA – The Ole Miss Rebels and the Boise State Broncos came into last night’s game looking to start the 2014 season with an edge. Ole Miss brought in a preseason ranking of No. 18 in the country and a lot of hype building around talent. Boise State was trying to recover off of a downfall previous season that ended with a Hawaii Bowl loss to Oregon State.

In the first half, Ole Miss looked all but convincing of their preseason ranking. Bo Wallace would throw three interceptions and the offensive line stayed unsteady for much of the half with six false starts. If you’re counting, that is thirty yards in penalties. The Rebels would get on the board first after junior wide receiver Cody Core caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Bo Wallace with just less than a minute left in the first quarter. Andrew Fletcher would add on the extra point to make it 7-0. Aug 28, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Bo Wallace (14) warms up prior to facing the Boise State Broncos in the 2014 Chick-fil-a Kickoff Game at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Near mid-way through the second quarter, Boise State took advantage of a interception by Wallace. In a six play drive, the Broncos were able to capitalize with a 25-yard field goal by Dan Goodale. This enclosed the Rebel lead to four.

That would be sum of scoring in the first half of play. By this point, there were a lot of questions of the Ole Miss offense, and they were not good ones. The Rebels had been held to less than 40 yards in rushing, Wallace had thrown three interceptions, and the offensive linemen looked unsteady at the line. It was the Ole Miss defense who would rescue the team after the first half of play. Bo Wallace was not the only one having bad aim in the first half. Boise State’s senior quarterback Grant Hedrick threw three interceptions to Senquez Golson, C.J. Johnson, and Cody Prewitt.

Boise State would complete the game’s next scoring drive. After getting the ball into Ole Miss territory, the Broncos once again had to settle for a field goal by Goodale. The Rebels were now clinging to a one point lead heading into the final quarter.

Aug 28, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Mississippi Rebels defensive back Tony Conner (12) intercepts a pass intended for Boise State Broncos wide receiver Matt Miller (2) in the fourth quarter of the 2014 Chick-fil-a Kickoff Game at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Paul Abell-USA TODAY Sports

It wasn’t until the fourth quarter when we saw Bo Wallace be Bo Wallace. The third year senior, who is on track to make Ole Miss history this season, pulled together a thrilling late game performance. Wallace threw three consecutive touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The first came from Laquon Treadwell, who scrabbled to the goal line with a backwards dive into the end zone for the score. Quincy Adeboyejo came next with a 31-yard touchdown catch from a pass by Wallace. Cody Core finished it with a thrilling 76 yarder, which solidified the Rebel win. Sophomore running back Mark Dodson, added a 19-yard touchdown run with less than three minutes left in the game. Sadly, this was our most impressive run of the game. The Rebels won by a final score of 35-13.

By The Numbers

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Post Game Quotes

Coach Hugh Freeze on overall performance:

"“It was awful hard to watch for 2 1/2 quarters. Then we got in a decent rhythm the last part of the game, found a way to score enough points to win.”"

Coach Hugh Freeze on Bo Wallace’s performance:

"“I don’t know if he was pressing too hard. He wants to do so well and have a great year. … Obviously, he didn’t play his best. But he settled down in the second half and played pretty good.”"

Key Takeaways From The Game

As expected, the defense looked solid. I don’t see how we would have won without them. Cody Prewitt, D.T. Shackelford, Tony Conner, C.J. Johnson, Senquez Golson, and Robert Nkemdiche all had good nights.
Bo Wallace needs to find his rhythm. Even though he threw four touchdown passes and 387 passing yards, the three interceptions left a bad taste in the mouth.
I am so proud of Cody Core. He had a stellar night and deserved every minute of it.
Cody Prewitt seems to be eyeing down another All-American selection. He had a big night.
Laquon Treadwell picked up right where Donte Moncrief left off.
I am sorry, but there should be no shame in admitting that offensive line was awful. Major improvement is needed here.

With the win, the Rebels improve to 1-0 to start the season. This makes three straight seasons the Rebels have started 1-0, all being under Freeze. Next Saturday, Ole Miss will head to LP Field in Nashville to take on the Vanderbilt Commodores. Vanderbilt looks to be heading down a rough road, as they lost to Temple (37-7) in their season opener last night.

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