SEC Coach Reveals Ole Miss Football Looked 'Very Similar' Despite Lane Kiffin Out

No. 6 Ole Miss (12-1, 7-1 SEC) cruised to a 41-10 win over the Tulane Green Wave in the first-round of the College Football Playoff on Saturday with the stage now set for a rematch against Georgia.

In what will be a Sugar Bowl showdown in New Orleans (La.) on New Year's Day, the Rebels will look to avenge an early-season loss to Kirby Smart's Bulldogs.

This time around, the Ole Miss Rebels will be without Lane Kiffin calling the shots after his departure for the LSU Tigers gig - giving an opportunity for Pete Golding to make a statement with a College Football Playoff berth on the line.

Despite Kiffin out of the picture, it didn't slow down the Ole Miss program in the first round with former Tulane Green Wave head coach - and now Florida Gators decision-maker Jon Sumrall - providing his thoughts on the current state of the Rebels.

“Looked very much the same to me. I didn’t notice anything different,” Sumrall said on Saturday. “The only thing I’ve noticed maybe different is like on third downs when you heard somebody whistle, you knew that was Lane and he might change a play.

“But other than that, I thought the offense looked structurally very similar. The players are the players. They’ve got really good football players. The back is a good football player.

"They’ve got great receivers. The quarterback is obviously big time. I didn’t feel a whole lot of difference in regards to how they played the game offensively. Felt very similar.”

Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. dialed up a masterclass game plan for the Rebels as he makes his final run with the program prior to joining the LSU Tigers after the postseason.

Weis Jr. has accepted the offensive coordinator spot on Kiffin's LSU staff, but has been granted the opportunity to coach into the College Football Playoff with Ole Miss.

Ole Miss Football. — Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

“I had zero concern with [offensive coordinator] Charlie Weis calling this game for this one reason… Charlie Weis could not afford not to call a hell of a game,” Golding said. “All he’s heard his whole life: Lane Kiffin’s offense, Lane Kiffin’s offense, Lane Kiffin’s offense.

“This is his one opportunity for people to realize Charlie, Charlie Weis, calls the offense, just like he’s done all year, and he did a great job of tonight. I had no concern on that, because the last thing Charlie wanted to do was come out here and lay an egg because then whose offense is it?”

Now, all eyes are on Jan. 1 with Ole Miss and Georgia set to square off in New Orleans at the Caesars SuperDome.

More Ole Miss News:

Lane Kiffin Reacts to New Offensive Coordinator Being Hired By Ole Miss Football

Ole Miss Football QB Trinidad Chambliss Wins Major Award Amid Breakout Season

ESPN Predicts Outcome of Ole Miss Football vs. Tulane Green Wave in CFP Showdown

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