Ole Miss Rebels Offense Isn't Perfect, But It's Been Strong Enough to Win
Lane Kiffin wasn't happy at the end of the first half, and he wasn't elated at the end of the second on Saturday night.
The offense of the No. 12 Ole Miss Rebels seemed to stall out again late in the second quarter, and it did not push any points across in the third frame as its lead shrank against the Vanderbilt Commodores to 26-7. That's still a dominating performance, but Kiffin is an offensive mind, and a 33-7 final score with some missed opportunities will bother him.
That goes to show what his goals are in Oxford. It's not simply win; it's become a championship program.
"Just frustrated with how we finished our last two series on offense with a three-and-out and throw a pick," Kiffin said at halftime on the SEC Network broadcast. "That's not what great teams do; that's what good teams do, and you're up 26-0 instead of having another touchdown."
Oct 28, 2023; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) signals prior to the snap during the first half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
© Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
So far this season, the Ole Miss offense has looked extremely crisp in stretches of certain games, but it has seemed to go silent in others. Maybe part of that is play-calling or, perhaps the fact on Saturday, looking past an inferior opponent to more difficult tasks on the schedule.
Whatever it is, it's been noticeable that the offense hasn't been as efficient as it could be at times this season. Is that a cause for concern?
On one hand, yes. You always want to play your best brand of football, and one could argue that outside of a couple of games this season, the Rebels offense has yet to do that in 2023.
On the other hand, not really. We're talking about negatives in the offensive performance in a 33-7 SEC win, even if it was against Vanderbilt. Ole Miss is 7-1 overall and 4-1 within the league, and it has everything still on the table for its season with a home date coming next week against the Texas A&M Aggies.
Oh, and there's that road date in Athens coming up in two weeks.
So, yes, this team isn't perfect, and it hasn't played perfectly. That's been noted, but what it has done is win a lot of football games so far. At the end of the day, that's all you can ask, and the offense has done enough to make that happen, lulls included.
Maybe those silent periods will come back to bite at some point, but for now, if you're a Rebel fan, you should be happy with where your team is at this point in the season.
