Ole Miss vs. Alabama Keys To The Game in Week 4
The No. 15 Ole Miss Rebels kept pace with the No. 13 Alabama Crimson Tide for three quarters last season.
The game was tied 24-all heading into the fourth quarter, and Alabama needed two field goals from kicker Will Reichard to claim the six-point win. Ole Miss was held scoreless in the fourth quarter, but had a chance to drive down, tie and potentially win the game.
It started a drive with 2:23 to go in the fourth quarter and, despite separate Quinshon Judkins runs of 35 and 14 yards moving the ball to the Alabama 14-yard line, the Rebels turned it over on downs four plays later.
Alabama lost twice last season, but Ole Miss very well could have been a third for the Crimson Tide.
Here's what both the Rebels and Tide have to do if they want to emerge victorious in the rematch of last year's classic Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Ole Miss wins if...
... it can throw the ball effectively.
In seven of Alabama's nine losses since 2017, opponents have thrown for at least 224 yards through the air.
Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart threw for 212 yards against the Crimson Tide last season but has added a shiny new weapon in the offseason in Tre Harris.
Harris missed the Georgia Tech game with an injury he sustained against Tulane. He and Dart formed a special connection, linking up on five touchdown passes on just over four quarters of play.
Dart has the sixth-best quarterback rating in the Football Bowl Subdivision, and in Harris' absence, Jordan Watkins and Dayton Wade have stepped up.
Watkins has 15 catches for 290 yards and one score, while Wade has 11 receptions for 215 yards.
Five of Alabama's seven losses since 2019 have been in track-meet style games, losing 32-31 to LSU and 52-49 to Tennessee in 2022, 41-38 to Texas A&M in 2021, 48-45 to Auburn and 46-41 to LSU in 2019.
The Rebels will have to put up points in bunches and in quick-strike fashion if they want to snap their seven-game losing streak.
Alabama wins if...
... it stops the run.
Judkins breathes life into the Ole Miss offense and thrived against the Crimson Tide a season ago, rushing for 142 yards and two touchdowns.
When the Rebels opened last season on their seven-game win streak, they averaged 271.4 rushing yards per game and scored at least three touchdowns in six of the seven contests.
Ole Miss lost five of the last six games of the season, and, though it averaged 239.3 yards per contest, it doesn't exactly tell the whole story.
The Rebels notched two of their top-three rushing totals in that span with 463 yards against Arkansas and 390 yards against Texas A&M. Take those two contests out of the equation and Ole Miss' rushing average drops to 145.8 yards per game, which is still a very respectable per-game quota, but nowhere near the same dominance as the beginning of the 2022 season.
In both of Alabama's losses last season, Tennessee and LSU rushed for nearly identical numbers, as the Volunteers scampered for 182 yards and two touchdowns to the Tigers' 185 yards and two scores.
This will be a game won and lost at the defensive line of scrimmage for Alabama. If it gets the necessary push at the point of attack, linebackers Deontae Lawson, Dallas Turner and Chris Braswell will have a tackle-for-loss field day.
