Pete Golding Is Giving Ole Miss a Championship-Caliber Identity

Pete Golding has corrected issues that plagued the Rebels earlier in the season, but can Ole Miss keep up the improved performances?

Mississippi Rebels head coach Pete Golding and quarterback Trinidad Chambliss look back before the game against the Missouri Tigers at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After the No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels' first three games of the season, quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was practically the entire reason for the Rebels being 3-0. He was responsible for nine total touchdowns and nearly 1,000 total yards.

Ole Miss proved they couldn't just rely on Chambliss in Week 4 against Florida when the combination of a slow start, bad defense and running back Kewan Lacy being out with an injury resulted in a humbling 52-28 loss.

Defense has stepped up significantly in the games since, especially yesterday in a 31-3 win over Missouri. Ole Miss' run game was also more productive than in any other game so far this season, but can Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding keep this energy going for the rest of the season for the Rebels?

Are the Improvements Sustainable?

Mississippi Rebels defensive tackle Will Echoles celebrates after a sack during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Prior to the games against Vanderbilt and Missouri, the Rebels' defense had given up at least 140 rushing yards in every game.

Florida was the worst example, with the Gators rushing for more than 300 yards and six touchdowns. In that game, more than 200 of the Gators' rushing yards came after contact, hinting at physicality problems for the Rebels.

Since then, Golding has seemingly corrected the issues with the run defense. Against Vanderbilt, the Rebels held the Commodores to under three yards per carry, and the Rebels held Missouri to just 1.5 yards per carry for under 40 yards.

If Ole Miss can hold Missouri's Jamal Roberts, who has rushed for more than 100 yards in four games this season, including two games with more than 200 yards, to under 40 total yards, there's no reason to believe the Rebels can't replicate the dominant performance against the running backs they'll face the rest of the season.

Another element that Ole Miss had been missing that led to the victory over Missouri was a dominant run game of their own.

Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy has dealt with injury issues all season. The most yards he had rushed for in a game before last Saturday's victory over Missouri was 87 against Charlotte.

Although Lacy still battled injuries against Missouri, he would rush for 122 yards in the win. His backup, Makhi Frazier, also rushed for more than 100 yards. Frazier had rushed for 73 yards against Vanderbilt, but prior to that game, his best rushing performance was against Florida when he rushed for 42 yards.

Whether or not Ole Miss will be able to sustain their rushing game will almost entirely be decided by the health of Kewan Lacy. When Lacy's healthy, he's one of the best running backs in college football, and seemingly, having him around helps other running backs like Frazier.

Next week will provide another major test for a much-improved Ole Miss team. They'll travel to Austin, Texas, to play the No. 19 Texas Longhorns.

With six games left in the regular season, Pete Golding will be looking to keep his Rebels performing at a high level. If they can repeat performances like yesterday's, you're looking at another berth in the College Football Playoff for the Rebels.

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