Three Takeaways From Ole Miss' Hard-Fought Win Over Tulane
It wasn't easy, but the No. 20 Ole Miss Rebels willed themselves to a 37-20 win over the No. 24 Tulane Green Wave on Saturday, returning to Oxford without a loss on its record.
Despite a 17-point margin at the end of the game, this contest was not decided until late in the fourth quarter. What are some of the primary takeaways from Saturday's action? Let's dive in below.
1. Jaxson Dart put this offense on his back on Saturday.
The running game wasn't there, thanks in part to some subpar play by the Rebels up front and some strong play by the Green Wave in the same area. Dart was sacked four times on the day, and his team trailed by 10 partway through the first half.
His response? He led the Rebels with a 17-for-27 performance through the air for 267 yards, and two plays in particular solidified his role as QB1 for Ole Miss, in my mind. The first came with a long run that set up a field goal opportunity to give the Rebels a late lead. The second came on a fourth down Houdini act where he found tight end Michael Trigg for a score that essentially sealed the game.
Was he perfect? No, but he did not lose focus when the game seemed to be teetering towards Tulane in the first half, and he is a large reason Ole Miss came out on top on Saturday.
2. The offensive line struggled mightily in the first half.
Ole Miss only put up 89 yards on the ground in Saturday's win, a stat that is shocking for a Lane Kiffin-coached team. Dart was harassed in the backfield, and Quinshon Judkins rarely found clean running lanes. Sure, Tulane definitely showed up to play, but the Ole Miss offensive line will see better front sevens than that of the Green Wave as the season wears on.
Those issues will need to be resolved before facing the likes of the Alabama Crimson Tide in a couple of weeks.
3. Make no mistake: even without Michael Pratt suited up, this is a good win for Ole Miss.
This was always going to be a game that Tulane and its fans were amped up for. An SEC West team coming to town gives your program an opportunity to make a statement, and after a stellar 2022 season, it looked like the Green Wave were poised to make that statement.
Tulane is a solid team and is in the top 25 for a reason. Ole Miss didn't play well through all four quarters, but it did enough to win, and it made the necessary adjustments at halftime to secure that win on the road.
All-in-all, that's a good day for the Rebels that moves them to 2-0 on the year.
