2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 1
2 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
REBEL
GAMEDAY
SOPHOMORE REBELETTE
MATTI SCARDINO Pass Christian, MS Photo by Greg Pevey 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 1
REBEL
GAMEDAY
EGGCELLENT PERFORMANCE >>> Bo Wallace threw for 294 yards and five touchdowns -- including three to Donte Moncrief -- as the Rebels used a huge second half to beat Mississippi State 41-24 on November 24. Moncrief caught seven passes for 173 yards and tied a school record with three receiving touchdowns. The 6-foot3, 216-pound sophomore used his wide body and sure hands to dominate Mississippi State’s secondary, which 2 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
simply couldn’t stop the Wallace-to-Moncrief connection. Moncrief caught touchdown passes of 77, 21 and 16 yards. Jeff Scott added 111 rushing yards on 28 carries. Ole Miss finished with 527 total yards. “This game was personal,” Moncrief said. “I’ve been hearing through Twitter and other media that we were soft and a lot of noise. I knew I could make plays and that’s what I did.” - Photo by Greg Pevey 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 3
REBEL
GAMEDAY
SALUTE >>> Ole Miss won their fifth straight bowl game with a 38-17 victory against Pittsburgh in the BBVA Compass Bowl on January 5th. Hugh Freeze’s no-huddle, up-tempo offense produced 38 first downs and 387 yards. Pitt was held to 266 yards, its second-lowest total of the season. I’Tavius Mathers led the Rebels with 96 yards rushing and one touchdown on only six carries and Jaylen Walton had 10 carries for 56 yards. 4 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
A strong turnout by Ole Miss fans within driving range of Birmingham pushed attendance to 59,135, easily a bowl record. The previous high was 42,610 for the 2010 game between South Carolina and Connecticut. Bo Wallace, chosen the game’s MVP, completed 22 of 32 passes for 151 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Photo by Greg Pevey 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 5
COMMENTARY 12 12 JAKE ADAMS Volume 1, Issue 1 2013 FOOTBALL ISSUE July/August 2013
Published by Pevey Publishing, LLC
Publishers Greg Pevey, Publisher Mendy Pevey, CFO Featured Columnists Jake Adams, Steven Godfrey Contributing Writers Jake Adams, John Davis, Steven Godfrey, Chuck Stinson, Mark Stowers Contributing Photographers Kevin Bain, Perian Conerly, Alex Kroke, Angie Ledbetter, Bobby McDuffie, Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum, Ole Miss Communications, Greg Pevey, and members of Rebel Nation
Welcome to RebelNation Magazine
64 STEVEN GODFREY Patience is a Virtue
ALSO INSIDE... 13 FINS UP 101
The “Official” FinsUpTM decal protocol every Rebel Nation member should follow
14 FEEDING TIME
From “Rebelz” (Feed Moncrief) to “TSUN’s of Guns,” Rebel students Blake Pruett and Pat Haadsma are making popular anthems for Ole Miss athletics
24 INSIDE “THE SEASON”
No other school does video like Micah Ginn and his production team
Advertising Sales Greg Pevey greg@omrebelnation.com Jake Adams jake@omrebelnation.com
Rebel Nation Magazine™ is published bi-monthly by Pevey Publishing, LLC to promote the athletic programs, fans and businesses affiliated with the University of Mississippi in an informative and entertaining manner. Contributions of articles and photos are welcome. All submissions are subject to editing and availability of space. Rebel Nation Magazine™ is not responsible for the return or loss of, or for any damage or any other injury to, unsolicited manuscripts unsolicited artwork or any other unsolicited materials. Photographs, comments, questions, subscription requests and ad placement inquiries are invited! Return envelopes and postage must accompany all labeled materials submitted if a return is requested. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without written permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in Rebel Nation Magazine™ are those of the authors or columnists and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, nor do they constitute an endorsement of products or services herein. We reserve the right to refuse any advertisement. Pevey Publishing, LLC is not affiliated with any institution, college, university, or other academic or athletic organization. Subscriptions are $24 (1 year, 6 issues) or $40 (2 years - 12 issues). Make checks payable to Rebel Nation Magazine™ and mail to: 405 Knights Cove West, Brandon, MS 39047 or subscribe online at www.omrebelnation.com.
Pevey Publishing, LLC RebelNation™ Magazine 405 Knights Cove West • Brandon, MS 39047 Phone: 601-503-7205 • Fax: 601-992-2885 email: greg@rebelnationmagazine.com www.rebelnationmagazine.com
6 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW
Rebel Nation Magazine™
28 FOOTBALL PREVIEW
Ole Miss’ high expectations are set to collide with a brutal SEC schedule
38 BO IS BACK
With shoulder surgery now behind him, Bo Wallace looks to improve his play and his numbers in 2013
40 POINT MADE
Cody Prewitt has what it takes in the rugged SEC
42 BUILDING BLOCKS Talking defense with DC Dave Wommack
46 THE BROTHERS NKEMDICHE
Robert and Denzel Nkemdiche prepare to take on the SEC together
48 2013 SCHEDULE PREDICTIONS
We go game by game to tell you how it all plays out
50 SEC SCHEDULES
Cassius Ware
18
Shepard Smith
20
51 2012 SEC TEAM STATS
Perian Conerly
52
David Kellum
56
To Contact REBEL NATION MAGAZINE™ > LETTERS, STORY IDEAS AND PHOTO SUBMISSIONS • Email Rebel Nation Magazine™ at greg@rebelnationmagazine.com or mail to RebelNation™ Magazine, 405 Knights Cove West, Brandon, Mississippi 39047. Letters should include writer’s full name, address and telephone number and may be edited for clarity and space.
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 7
#REBELNATION
TO SUBMIT PHOTOS: Rebel fans, this page is for you! Submit your “FinsUp” photos to be published in each issue of RebelNation™ Magazine. Put your photos on our Facebook page (facebook.com/omrebelnation) or email them directly to greg@omrebelnation.com. Please include the names of those featured in the photo, location taken and hometown.
From Pike’s Peak, Colorado From Dexter McCluster From former Rebel pitcher Matt Tracy (right) with Nick Saban
From Jerrell Powe 8 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
#REBELNATION
From the baseball team in The Swamp
From the delivery room
From Linden,TN Middle School From South Dakota From The Grove
From football manager Carey Joe Davis 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 9
#REBELNATION
Memphis The Rebel Road Trip hit Memphis on April 26. Photos by Angie Ledbetter, The Panolian
Coach Freeze & Crew traveled in style. Coach Hugh Freeze
Egg Bowl Trophy 10 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
SEC Basketball Tournament Trophy
#REBELNATION
A packed house in Memphis
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 11
JAKE’S TAKE
>>>>>
Follow Jake Adams on Twitter® @omrebelnation
Welcome to RebelNation Magazine
™
W
hen I was a kid one of the highlights of my summer was walking down the magazine aisle at the grocery store and seeing the shiny cover pages of the SEC Preview issue from Lindy’s or Athlon with an Ole Miss player on the cover. They were the first sign of the football season to come, and when my anxious anticipation of autumn would officially begin. I would lift those magazines from the rack like a starving man picking fruit from a tree flipping straight to the Top
25 and SEC predictions, hoping for optimistic outlooks on my favorite team, and proceed to devour the
JAKE ADAMS
Co-Publisher Editor-In-Chief
pages right there in the grocery store. My mom would just walk away to continue her shopping knowing full well that I’d be in that same spot when she was ready to leave. This was before the internet. My childhood lined up pretty squarely with Billy Brewer’s career. Those were some up and down years as a Rebel fan, and as I grew older I developed a hypothesis that Ole Miss would do the exact opposite of whatever was predicted in those magazines as long as Brewer was the coach. If the Rebels were selected to finish at or toward the SEC cellar the odds were favorable for a bowl game. In those rare seasons when Ole Miss was a preseason top 25 or top half of the SEC selection, I bolstered myself for the worst. I didn’t blame it on the magazine. Brewer was just better as an underdog. Those summer preview issues were usually the first published words on the approaching season, and they would remain the only information available until players reported for practice in August. So, whether I agreed with the predictions or not, I always took the magazine home to study (it’s just about the only studying I did as a kid), and those glossy pages would be my primary reading for the months of June and July. I combed through them day after day, again and again dreaming about my favorite players, the season to come, talking to my friends about which opponents the Rebels could beat and learning everything I possibly could before the opening weekend. I did it every year. I still do it. Reading those magazines is as much a part of my yearly traditions as presents at Christmas or fireworks on the 4th of July, and I’m sure the same could be said for many college football fans – especially those of us in the football-loving south. Maybe even you. You hold in your hand right now the very first issue of RebelNation™ Magazine, and fittingly it’s our football preview issue, but unlike those I read as a kid, this one is 100 percent dedicated to Ole Miss. It’s a school with thousands of stories to tell and new ones starting every day, all framed by one of the most beautiful, picturesque settings in the country. Ole Miss is a place that’s worthy of a two-page full-color spread like no other. A school this gorgeous and this rich in football history, tradition and passion deserves its own magazine. Though this is the debut issue, it’s my dream that RebelNation™ Magazine will become as much a part of your yearly traditions as those college previews are of mine. If you’re like I was as a kid, and still am, and can never get enough information about Ole Miss then you are reading the right book. When Greg Pevey, our publisher, and I first discussed putting this magazine together we talked about how we wanted RebelNation™ to be something Ole Miss fans could be proud of. We wanted it to be worthy of our name. It’s the name that identifies the body of people all around the world who love Ole Miss. Rebel Nation. This magazine is by us, but its for you. It’s my hope you’ll enjoy every word. - Hotty Toddy Jake Adams
12 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
#REBELNATION
FINSUP
TM
101
The “Official” FinsUpTM decal protocol every Rebel Nation member should follow.
2. ACKNOWLEDGE. Likewise, after being passed by someone with the decal it’s appropriate for you to acknowledge the FinsUp even if the faster vehicle is already in front of you. The Fin is easy to see in the rear view mirror, so don’t panic if you aren’t fast enough to raise your Fin when initially passed. In most cases you’ll still get your chance unless the passing vehicle is on its way to Oxford on an autumn Saturday morning in which case it will most likely be traveling at a high rate of speed as all traffic rules tend to fall to the wayside on game days. Even so it’s still appropriate to raise your Fin just in case. To not return the Fin would be awkward for all involved. Don’t be that Rebel. 3. PROMPT. If you give the Fin to a car with the decal and the driver of said vehicle does not return the Fin it’s appropriate to give a light tap of the horn to get that person’s attention. It’s entirely possible they do not see you as over the next few months many of my readers will be daydreaming about football season while mindlessly driving down the road. Once they snap out of it they’ll probably happily give you the return Fin. If not please do not lay on your horn as this could be misinterpreted as anger or aggression and you might get a hand signal that’s not the Fin in return. That, too, would be awkward. 4. SPEAK. Occasionally you’ll be outside your car and see someone else with the decal. It’s appropriate to give the Fin instead of waving. This lets the other driver know you also have the sticker. Most frequently this will occur in grocery store and mall parking lots. If the person is within earshot it’s appropriate to say “Hotty Toddy” or “Fins Up.” Say whatever feels the most natural in the moment. You’ll know. 5. RESTRAINT. Never raise your Fin for a vehicle that doesn’t have the sticker. They won’t understand, and you’ll be rewarding ignorance.
S
o many of y’all have purchased the decal from our RebelNation™ Store over the last couple months that it won’t be long until you start to see it around town wherever you are across the state and beyond. We’ve sold them in far away places like California, Wisconsin and even New York, so it’s possible you’ll even see one of our fine red and blue decals in your travels, but your odds are much higher across the Magnolia State. There’s at least one sticker in every county by now I suspect and great clusters of them in Jackson, Hattiesburg, Tupelo, Oxford and down on the Coast. The bigger the town the greater your chances of seeing the sticker. Now that the decal is out there I thought it would be a good idea to discuss FinsUp™ decal protocol. 10 Basic Rules of FinsUp™ Decal Protocol and Etiquette: 1. GREETING. When passing a car with the decal greet your fellow Rebel by carefully raising your Fin to your forehead using proper Jerrell Powe technique with fingers together and the base of your thumb to the middle of your upper forehead while being careful to keep one hand on the steering wheel and not taking your eyes off the road. Saying hello to people with the decal is important. It shows both courtesy and respect, and it signifies Rebel unity. Remember, we’re a team – even on the highway.
6. HELP. If you’re passing a vehicle that’s stranded on the side of the road that has the sticker don’t give the FinsUp and speed on by. Stop and help. This should be common sense, but it seemed necessary to include. 7. LAW ENFORCEMENT EXCEPTION. Don’t give the Fin after being stopped by a Highway Patrol Officer. Sudden movements can be interpreted as hostility by law enforcement officers. Nobody needs to get shot over a sticker. 8. DON’T TAUNT. Don’t give the Fin to someone with the sticker who has been stopped by a Highway Patrolman. It’s mean, and they aren’t in the mood, and plus they can’t respond (See Rule No. 7). If a State fan has been stopped by a Highway Patrolman this rule does not apply. Taunt away. 9. NO PARKING. The FinsUp decal is not a parking pass. You can still get a ticket on campus or anywhere else. I already tested this one. Trust me. It won’t work. 10. DON’T TEXT. Don’t text and raise your Fin. It’s impossible. Again trust me on this one.
Don’t have your FinsUp™ sticker yet? Visit the RebelNation™ Store at www.omrebelnation.com. 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 13
ONCAMPUS
>>>>>
“FEEDING TIME” WITH KING KOBRAZ
From “Rebelz” (Feed Moncrief) to “TSUN’s of Guns,” Rebel students Blake Pruett and Patrick Haadsma are making viral anthems for Ole Miss athletics BY JOHN DAVIS Contributing Writer
O
Photos by Greg Pevey
le Miss’ football program has never been as hip and engaged with the younger members of its fan base than it is currently. A big reason for that is due to the success of the King Kobraz. The rap duo of Patrick Haadsma and Blake Pruett, two Ole Miss students from Tupelo, made a splash with fans last fall with their “Rebelz” video that featured the now famous catchphrase “Feed Moncrief ” in the lyrics. What started out as a fun video originally released on YouTube became an anthem, for Moncrief and the rest of the Rebels. The song, recorded just before the Rebels played at LSU and less than a week before last year’s Egg Bowl, later turned into a video shoot at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium sponsored by Ole Miss. It featured the Rebelettes, players and a number of students who wanted to join in the re-creation. “We wanted it to be free for the Rebels right before the Egg Bowl,” Pruett said in an interview with the Oxford Eagle on Dec. 6, 2012 about why the duo came up with the song. “We shot (the original video) the week right before LSU and we were thinking we were going to have to release it LSU night because Donte had an awesome game that night, but we lost so we figured that wasn’t really the 14 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Pat Haadsma and Blake Pruett of King Kobraz
“One of my favorite MSU tweets post Egg Bowl was something like “Not only did we lose but I can’t get that stupid song out of my head,” Haadsma said. “That made it worth it.” time to put that out there.” In the same interview with the Eagle, Haadsma had this to say about the scene gathered for the shoot. “That’s the only word to really use, surreal,” said Haadsma, a junior studying English and Political Science. Of course Moncrief catching three touchdown passes made the song go over that much
better. “I got wind in The Grove that it was going to get played before the game. That’s all I thought was going to happen,” Pruett said last December. “They didn’t tell us Donte was going to catch three touchdown passes. He really hooked us up for sure.” Since the song got played at the stadium during the game and the subsequent video
(Above) Ole Miss Sports Marketing got into the act with the Kobraz as they produced a music video for their second hit “TSUN’s of Guns” a song dedicated to the Rebel basketball team. (Left) The buzz took off during Donte Moncrief’s 3-touchdown performance against Miss. State in the 2012 Egg Bowl as “Rebelz (Feed Moncrief)” was played over the PA system after each score.
was shot, the duo has found themselves signing autographs and posing for pictures with Ole Miss fans. “It’s been crazy,” Pruett said. “It just doesn’t seem like we deserve that kind of attention. I wonder if recruits feel the same.” Haadsma said nothing has really changed for him although performing at the famous Shark Tank party prior to the BBVA Compass Bowl was a thrill. The negative, the duo said, was not being able to regulate who made money off the song. “It’s been cool. In a sense nothing’s really
changed, I’m still taking class and working minimum wage jobs. But the connections we’ve made from the video have been pretty fantastic,” Haadsma said. “The coolest thing was probably playing all the shows we got to do because of the success of the song.” Ole Miss went on to defeat Mississippi State in the annual Egg Bowl of course and the two heard about it from the Bulldog faithful, to a degree. “There hasn’t been much contact from other schools apart from some folks I already knew. They said they liked it, though they could just be polite people. One of my favorite MSU tweets post Egg Bowl was something like
“Not only did we lose but I can’t get that stupid song out of my head,” Haadsma said. “That made it worth it. But I think most negative feedback has been from Ole Miss fans who’ve gotten tired of us. There was a guy I happened to see tweeting about how he was annoyed by us basically and then the next day asked for an interview. I did the whole thing and at the very end wrote something along the lines of “I saw that tweet, maybe we’re not that horrible after all.” He felt awful, we started talking about music and now he records with us sometimes. He’s one of my really good friends now. Strange how things work.” Pruett said he hasn’t heard much from fans from other schools about the music. “I know if I was from another school I’d hate it though,” Pruett said. “But the friends I have at other schools have been really positive about it.” The duo definitely get noticed more now when they go out in Oxford, although being modest about their musical talents, they said that evolved more because of their respective hair styles. “I have red curly hair so I’m pretty noticeable, so now people say something,” Pruett said. “We get noticed more. It’s pretty cool I guess, but I never really know what to say,” Haadsma added. “Like Blake said we’re pretty weird looking so we’re easy to pick out. I have a nasty mullet and he has red hair.” Rapping about Ole Miss didn’t just happen as a lark, the two have backgrounds in music even if it’s not their major. Haadsma said he grew up playing the guitar and dabbled with the piano, while Pruett played the piano for a year and a half in eighth and ninth grade and did some singing in a choir. “I was always freestyling with my friends or in the lunchroom or wherever,” Haadsma said. “Obviously I’d love to just make songs and play shows forever but that’s a bit of a long shot. We’ll see what happens. I want to stay in the entertainment industry regardless though.” So what’s next for Kobraz as we get closer to football season? It depends on who you ask. Pruett’s answer to the question was vague. Haadsma offered a little more without getting too specific when it came to sports songs for Ole Miss. “We’re coming out with a mixtape where there’s a music video for each song,” Haadsma said. “It’ll come out at the beginning of the school year. As far as sports songs go, we’ll have to see.” The players — both in football and basketball — have been at the center of the Kobraz’s raps which has led to some collaboration. We talked to Murphy (Holloway) before TSUNs of Gunz,” Haadsma said. “If Denzel (Nkemdiche) or Robert (Nkemdiche) wanted a song called like ‘Nkarate’, or ‘Nkoala Bears’, or ‘Nkeg Stands” then we’d do it.” - RN 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 15
SING ALONG WITH THE KING KOBRAZ Lyrics Rebelz (Feed Moncrief)
Written by Blake Pruett and Patrick Haadsma
Start Wallace
We’re back like LeBron’s hairline
Yell Mackey
And you know we’re gonna do it
Like Walton
(Roll Call)
Love Hugh Freeze
Sawyer, Ward, Elston, Prewitt
Hit Collins (Moore)
CJ Johnson, Jason Jones lock that
Nkemdiche
gate and pick a fight
Yeah, And don’t forget
FEED MONCRIEF x3
FEED MONCRIEF x 3 Nom nom nom on the intercom People say the team is small
Bo Wallace drop back and throw
but what’s that really matter for?
the bomb
Jeff Scott’s always dodging bull
What I miss, I had to piss!
so I call that man The Matador
FIRST DOWN OLE MISS!
Ever seen a shark attack?
Redzone Rebs, we looking good
Bodies washed up on the surf
Bowl full of eggs but what’s
It’s like when the landsharks eat
for food?
Corpses strewn across the turf
Fins up landsharks smelling blood
Sanders snagging all day To Logan it’s all child’s play Korvic loves to lock the gate The Egg Bowl is his holiday
Photo by Greg Pevey
TSUNami gonna cause a flood FEED MONCRIEF X 3 ooo oo ooo
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Photo courtesy the Tennessee Titans
16 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
JULY/AUGUST 2013
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DRESSCODE Here are your official game day colors for the 2013 Rebel Football season. Make sure to get your RebelNation™ FinsUp™ Red and Blue game day t-shirts at www.omrebelnation.com.
AUGUST 29 AT VANDERBILT WEAR RED
SEPT. 7 SE MISSOURI WEAR RED
SEPT. 14 AT TEXAS WEAR RED
SEPT. 28 AT ALABAMA WEAR BLUE
OCTOBER 5 AT AUBURN WEAR RED
OCTOBER 12 TEXAS A&M WEAR BLUE
OCTOBER 19 LSU WEAR RED
OCTOBER 26 IDAHO WEAR BLUE
NOVEMBER 9 ARKANSAS WEAR BLUE
NOVEMBER 16 TROY WEAR BLUE
NOVEMBER 23 MISSOURI WEAR RED
NOVEMBER 28 AT MISS. STATE WEAR BLUE 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 17
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Ware has always been known as one of Ole Miss’ all-time hardest hitters. He once hit Georgia QB Eric Zeier so hard that it knocked two of the Bulldog QB’s teeth out.
CASSIUS WARE BY JOHN DAVIS Contributing Writer
Photos courtesy Ole Miss Sports Information and Cassius Ware
B
atesville native and former Ole Miss linebacker Cassius Ware may live almost 2,000 miles away in Las Vegas, but his heart is still in Mississippi. Ware, who played for the Rebels in 1992 and 1993, has been living and working in Las Vegas since the late 1990s but he still keeps up with his beloved Rebels as much as possible. Currently employed in the fitness industry, Ware said he moved to Las Vegas for a change of pace some six years after completing his eligibility at Ole Miss. “My grandmother who raised me, she 18 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
passed away and then in the same year my mom passed away. I just wanted to get away for a while. I was living in Memphis at the time and I had a couple of friends that lived out in Las Vegas so I decided to try something new,” Ware said in a recent phone interview. “My main thing over the years has been fitness. I do some personal training and did some strength and conditioning coaching at UNLV for a year. It was an opportunity to be around sports and football and the camaraderie of the players. I like it out here because there is always something to do, the lights are always on, but the older I’ve gotten, the more I want to be back in Mississippi.” Ware, who lives in Vegas with his 10-yearold daughter, said some of the best times of his life were playing football, at South Pa-
nola, Northwest Mississippi Community College and at Ole Miss under the direction of Billy Brewer and defensive coordinator Joe Lee Dunn. Staying close to home, so that his grandparents and extended family could watch him play, always factored in to Ware’s school choices. “The big thing about it is I’ve always been a positive guy and proud to be from Mississippi and every school I’ve played for has been 20 minutes from my home of Batesville. Playing at South Panola gave me the opportunity to go further. We had potential, but at the same time, we didn’t have the powerhouse like they do now. To really get out there, I had to focus and I had to want it and I had to want it really bad,” Ware said. “When I got the opportunity to go to Northwest, I wasn’t going to let anything hold me back from going somewhere and playing college football. My first couple of years at Northwest, it was really a great experience.” “In high school, our fundamentals were OK. We were natural athletes and our coach let us play and have fun. He taught us the basics, the things you need to know about football but when I got to Northwest with Coach (Bobby) Franklin, he taught us how to win. He said no matter what was going on, when it was time to play, it was time to win,” Ware added. “That taught me about preparing, from meetings to practice to become a better player and to know the fundamentals to get me to the next level. I played with some of the best players in the country. We went to the junior college national championship two years in a row. We played on one of the highest levels you could play on.” Because the Rangers were so good — they went 11-1-1 in Ware’s sophomore season — playing at Ole Miss was made a little easier, with the exception of how much attention playing for the Rebels garnered. “When we got to Ole Miss, the platform, the stage was huge playing on TV every Saturday. That was just like the icing on the cake. Coach Dunn
“...one of the most memorable moments was my first game when we played against Auburn. I was late being cleared by the clearinghouse. They cleared me about five days before the game and I got excited and nervous all at the same time. I caught a fumble in the air and ran it back 92 yards for a touchdown. I had eight to 10 tackles that game and won the SEC Defensive Player of the Week. That was kind of like ‘welcome to the SEC’. “I never had a bad day after that.” put us in a great position to be able to play natural and play hard and beat up on some guys. Ole Miss, that was a great experience,” Ware said. “At Northwest, we weren’t on TV or doing a lot of interviews but when we got to Ole Miss, it was showtime. For me it was kind of like I was able to show everything I learned on every level and help my team win.” Ole Miss was Ware’s top choice, again, due to his family as well as playing alongside De-
wayne Dotson, who was one of four team captains in 1993. “The number one reason I chose Ole Miss was my grandparents. They raised me so they were 20 minutes down the road. It gave them the opportunity to see me play. All my friends and family that I grew up with, that support right there was amazing. There was no way I was going to California when there is nobody I know and play any kind of sports,” Ware
said. “The next thing that got me to Ole Miss was Dewayne Dotson. He was already there and when I came on the visit he said ‘man, I need some help.’ He looked at me right in the face. That was it. I didn’t even hesitate. We clicked real good. His birthday is on the 8th of June and mine is on the 11th. We were roommates when I got to Ole Miss and we never had any problems. He was like a mentor, a big brother to me. It’s always a good thing.” There were several memorable moments for Ware during his two years in Oxford. The first was a 45-21 win over Auburn, while some others included the 17-10 win over Mississippi State, which was made famous by “The Stand” as well as the 13-0 shutout of Air Force in the Liberty Bowl. Ware had 10 tackles, including two sacks, to earn Liberty Bowl MVP and Defensive Player of the Game honors. “I look back and think about it all the time but one of the most memorable moments was my first game when we played against Auburn. I was late being cleared by the clearinghouse. They cleared me about five days before the game and I got excited and nervous all at the same time. I caught a fumble in the air and ran it back 92 yards for a touchdown. I had eight to 10 tackles that game and won the SEC Defensive Player of the Week. That was kind of like welcome to the SEC. I never had a bad day after that,” Ware said. “We played a lot of good games. I can remember the Alabama game over there and they went on to win the national championship. I can remember some good plays.” “We tackled them and hit them in the mouth really good and let them know that we there to play. My first year we also played in the Liberty Bowl and I just came off a bowl the year before at Northwest.” “Plus I was born in Memphis and I had about 50 to 60 tickets. It was the coldest day of my life playing. That was a big moment my first year.” “The win over Mississippi State, that’s when we really understood the meaning of the Egg Bowl and why it means so much to the school and the players and the fans. We showed that nobody was going to beat us that day.” Ware said he didn’t come back to an Ole Miss football game this past year but he gets back to Mississippi as often as he can. He is very aware of what head coach Hugh Freeze has accomplished and how special he thinks he is to the program. “I love coach Freeze, he’s a good coach and a great motivator. I think that was one good thing that we needed and I like how he thinks,” Ware said. “He’s a great recruiter. He’s doing a great job and I think he’s going to go far. I think he has a lot of passion and if this is his true passion, he should be at Ole Miss forever. I can easily see a national championship in the next five years.” - RN 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 19
#REBELNATION
Are You Ready?
Ole Miss Alum, Holly Springs native and Fox News anchor Shepard Smith is not afraid to show his love for Ole Miss and Mississippi over the airwaves around the globe. BY STEVEN GODFREY Contributing Writer
P
op quiz: Name the alma mater of America’s top broadcast news personalities. Any of them: Brian Williams. Katie Couric. Lou Dobbs. Sean Hannity. Hands off your Google toolbar. Times up. Did you end up 0-for-4? Then try this one: Shepard Smith. Whether you’re a lifelong resident of the Magnolia State, a housewife in North Dakota or a Capitol Hill power player, if you’ve seen “The Fox Report with Shepard Smith” on cable news goliath Fox News there’s little deduction necessary to discover that its well-coifed steward of ratings success is a proud son of Holly Springs and an Ole Miss Rebel through and through. Most Mississippi viewers assume Smith must have either asked permission or begged forgiveness of Fox News brass to so brazenly hawk for the red and blue on national television. “Honestly, they’ve never really mentioned it,” Smith said. “Our boss [Fox News President] Rogers Ailes went to a state university, Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, and in general this company is a big supporter of state education. We’re not really filled up with a bunch of Ivy Leaguers and we know our audience is largely in the middle of the country. We don’t play to New York and L.A., and our audience respects us for that.” The bi-coastal crowd surely got a distinctly Southern jolt of Smith’s brand of sports journalism on August 12, 2008, when Sports Illustrated writer Andy Staples appeared on “The Fox Report” to preview the upcoming college football season. Sports Illustrated had just selected the Rebels to grace one of four regional covers for their annual preview edition. Sure enough, Smith had the Rebel version on screen and Staples never had a shot. Whereas most minute-long previews on a national broadcast would focus almost entirely on incumbent champion Florida, powerhouses Texas and Oklahoma and the seemingly le-
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Shep bragged live on Fox News after the Rebels upset Florida in Gainsville in 2008.
ONE PROUD REBEL Shepard Smith
Photograph by Alex Kroke, Fox News 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 21
gally-required mention of Southern Cal, Shep went totally red and blue, talking Ole Miss and only Ole Miss before jumping to a break. “I just didn’t feel the need to talk about USC. They’re great, they reload every year and they’re an absolute machine. But that season (2008) I felt like I was in an alternate universe just being able to mention the Rebels in the same category, and that’s definitely news,” Smith said. “If you look at the entire landscape of college football, you can’t find a tougher division than the SEC West. That’s a national story every year. You have Ole Miss, Alabama and LSU who could go 1-2-3 in any combination, and three other teams right behind them. Don’t discount Arkansas, MSU and Auburn either,” Smith said. If Smith sounds like your average SEC football fanatic, that’s because he is. He’s got all the passionate opinions and encyclopedic knowledge of the game that is required for the distinction. On gameday attire: “I absolutely do not own a pair of red ‘Grove pants.’ ” But unlike your fishing buddies or your Methodist men’s group, Smith routinely flies in his New York media pals to Oxford for football, basketball and baseball games, and – oh yeah – he’s got one of the most watched news programs in the entire country. Far from an overnight rise, Smith left Ole Miss in 1985 to make the perilous climb up the broadcast circuit ladder starting in Panama City Beach, Florida and eventually bouncing around to Miami and Orlando. After reporting for the syndicated news magazine “A Current Affair” in Los Angeles, Smith joined FNC at its inception in 1996. Smith’s two programs, “Studio B with Shepard Smith” and “The Fox Report with Shepard Smith,” took off in viewership and helped the upstart news net trounce industry standard CNN in the late 1990s. FNC went on to establish itself as the number one most-watched 24-hour cable news outlet, and the product of Marshall Academy became a household name, broadcasting from the streets of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina as well as anchoring wall-to-wall coverage of the death of pop music icon Michael Jackson. Now commanding the kind of attention and salaries of his broadcast brethren, Smith has returned home as much as possible, establishing a second residence in Oxford for home football games and impromptu trips. “I drag a new group of Yankees down there every weekend, and some of them, by the end of the weekend, are looking at buying a condo. So I guess I’m partially to blame for the reason that our wonderful little town continues to grow,” Smith said. Outside of just Oxford, Smith has become a patron of the entire state, and found himself 22 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Shepard enjoying a game in Oxford with his Dad. - Photo courtesy Shepard Smith
quietly justified about the changing perception of Mississippi following the 2008 Presidential Debate in Oxford. “The word is already being spread [among the rest of the nation]. Six months before the debate, I told my colleagues what they were in store for when they came to Oxford. I kept telling them, ‘This is going to be different than what you think about Mississippi, just wait. You’ll come away with a different feeling than what you expected.’ I know this crowd [of journalists]; I’ve been working with most of them for over 20 years, and I have to tell you, most of them were blown away,” Smith said. As for the bevy of hot-button topics, issues and imagery surrounding the culture of Ole Miss, Smith is very clear on his opinions on the school’s distinct place in history. “I loved what the Colonel Rebel was as a mascot, but I celebrate the fact that he’s in a museum now. We waste so much time arguing about a mascot or some stupid flag, but why not take a visitor to Ole Miss on a two-minute
walk around campus. Go to the Lyceum, show them the bullet holes, walk them to the statue of James Meredith, explain why we thank God he did make his way though those doors,” Smith said. It’s unlikely you’ll see Williams cheering on Catholic University during his nightly NBC broadcasts. And could Couric even pick University of Virginia head football coach Al Groh out of a police lineup? But Smith’s torchbearing for Ole Miss and the Magnolia State is unlikely to die down anytime soon. “The bottom line is that, yes, negative stories about Mississippi are going to be written. If Hugh and his guys, God willing, make it to a national title game in the near future, those negative stories will still come. It’s a fact of life, it’s our history. [Mississippians’] lives and livelihoods were a lot more complicated than most other people in our nation’s history. We can’t change anything that happened but I really feel like the right message is there. When the message meets reality, we’re golden.” - RN
Q&A: shep’s take ON 2013 RN: What do you think about the 2013 signing class Hugh Freeze and his staff put together back in February? SS: Wow! What a miracle that class was. The attention Ole Miss received on signing day was more valuable to the program than any commercial spot we could have paid for. It’s a great feeling knowing that those kids and their families are going to be joining the Ole Miss family. The staff and administration have come so far in such a short time and it’s great to know we’re going to have talent to compete with anyone at any level. The SEC West has definitely been put on notice by what Coach Freeze has done. Forever people have looked at our schedule and said we have to play LSU and Alabama. It’s time for LSU and Alabama to look at their schedule and see that they have to play Ole Miss. I’m looking forward to that. It’s exciting. RN: What’s your take on Coach Freeze in general? SS: I don’t keep up with Hugh on a regular basis. We do talk in passing. I’m not one of those who’s looking for a lot of attention. But it’s good to see what they do on the field and celebrate it with them. It’s good to see how excited he is to be here and how much his family loves Ole Miss. He’s one of us. It’s good to have him back home. I just hope no one puts too much pressure on him that everyone thinks we’re about to win a national championship. Last year was spectacular. I’m not going to be disappointed if we don’t win 10 games next year. It takes time. Our fan base has to give these folks a chance. This is as good as it has been in my lifetime. We’ve got a baseball team ranked in the Top 25, a basketball team that just won the SEC tournament and made the NCAA tournament, a football team that the whole country is talking about. Our name is mentioned in magazine after magazine. All glowing positive. This is our time! We just have to be patient. Don’t pressure them. RN: I know you have a busy schedule. How often do you get to come down for games? SS: I got to come down for 23 games last season. Basketball and a bunch of football games. I don’t stay in New York much on the weekends, so I try to come down as much as I can. I love it there. RN: The basketball team made a great run in the SEC and won a game in the NCAA Tournament. Marshall Henderson was a big
RN: What do think of Andy Kennedy and his contract extension? SS: I was glad to see that. I hope he’s happy. That’s the main thing. You’re making a lot of money and Oxford is not the most expensive place to live. We need to treat the people who are doing us right, right. We’ve not always done that here. If you’re playing by the rules, being successful and graduating your kids, we want to keep you. And if you’re not, we don’t. That’s how you run a successful athletic department. We have no limitations if we’re running the place right. RN: What do you think of the job Ross Bjork has done in his first year as A.D.?
Photo courtesy Shepard Smith
“BELIEVE! We have to pack Vaught-Hemingway every week. More than anything, they need to know we believe in them.” factor in that. What’s your take on Coach Kennedy, Marshall and the basketball program as a whole? SS: Oh man! I’m just so glad he’s (Henderson) ours. If he was playing for someone else I’m sure I’d hate him. I loved it. What I see is a young man out there who’s having a good time and celebrating and firing people up and bringing fans into Tad Smith Coliseum. I’m so thankful he came along. I love his spirit and his attitude. I think in a lot of ways he reminds me of a young Andy Kennedy. We were the talk of the conference this year. We had some slumps and injuries, but when it came down to it we beat Missouri, Vanderbilt and a tough Florida team to win the SEC tournament. That was a great run! That was a lot of fun. I hope people will back Andy and this team and get that new arena built and move us forward. Basketball is the one sport we have not paid as much attention to facilities and we as fans have not been as supportive as we need to be. We need to get behind this program because we need to be winners the whole year around. That’s how you keep your university in the forefront. That’s how you get new students to come there. And that’s how you keep your athletic programs prosperous.
SS: I felt like the toughest job for whoever took that position was going to be to make all of us believe that we can fix this. I talked with Archie during the hiring process and when he said it was going to be Ross Bjork I said ‘Alright. Yes sir.’ I looked Ross up at Western Kentucky and learned what he had done, he came in and I met him, and thought, that’s a guy who I can go have a beer with. He seems to have adapted to our culture so well. The major, major problems we had in the athletic department seem to be pretty well fixed. It seems to run like a business. Every single time you go to an event I’m proud of what I’m seeing. I’m very thankful that he came along, and I hope he loves this place as much as he says he does. Ross Bjork is the kind of guy I want leading my business, leading our children and he’s really good for our state. Every meeting I’ve ever been involved in with him just says ‘top notch professionalism.’ Ross is one of the best Rebels I know and I hope he stays there forever. RN: What message do you want to tell the fans as we get ready for the 2013 season? SS: BELIEVE! We have to pack VaughtHemingway every week. More than anything, they need to know we believe in them. When things don’t go our way we’re not always the best fans. We need to be supportive. We need to be in that stadium early and late. People need to stay at their seats and stand up and yell and don’t head over to the Grove at halftime! I do my part, the students came a long way later in the season. That’s what winning will do. We don’t need fans just against Alabama and LSU. We need a home field advantage every week. The 12th Man at Texas A&M is a good example for us. We need to be the 12th man. We’re getting there. I can feel it. - RN
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#REBELNATION
THE MAN BEHIND
THE SEASON The Ole Miss Sports Marketing Department is second to none. Micah Ginn is a BIG reason why. BY MARK STOWERS
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ocumentary films are what he dreamed of, but now his film passions are displayed on Jumbotrons and Youtube instead of theatre screens. His name is Micah Ginn, and he is the mastermind behind the weekly reality drama “The Season” and the much-loved motivational videos churned out to promote Ole Miss Athletics. Ginn was born in Alabama, the youngest son of a high school teacher and basketball coach who graduated from Mississippi State of all places. His family did some time in Louisiana and eventually made its way to Virginia where Ginn spent the bulk of his childhood and formative years. “This was the 80’s and ESPN wasn’t what it is today and it was basketball country,” Ginn said. “Coverage of Mississippi schools wasn’t as pervasive so there wasn’t any way for me to be influenced by State on TV or Ole Miss on TV.” By kind providence, Ginn’s older brothers found their way to Ole Miss – and the youngest Ginn dutifully followed in their footsteps after a short detour through Northeast Junior College. Once he finally made his way to Oxford, Ginn knew he was home. “When I first stepped on campus, I fell in love with the school and the people associated with the school and just the spirit about this place that I really enjoy,” the 1996 graduate said.
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Contributing Writer
Ginn’s major was Broadcast Journalism with a strong interest in filmmaking – a lifelong ambition. So with his degree in hand, he took to the West Coast to pursue his dream and landed in California as a waiter/handyman. But it was the handyman route that got him closer to his dream. “People I worked for were fascinated that I could use a hammer, cut wood and paint and just things you forget when you grow up in a city environment. I was just doing a lot of basic things,” Ginn said. “I finally got in with a production company by God’s good grace.” The handyman was soon in the middle of an “on the job film school education” where he was breaking down scripts and “all of the things that are valuable to know and experience as it relates to production.” “I got this incredible film school education – in my mind – in the real world. I got to experience all of that stuff and get paid for doing it,” he said. “I spent five years out there and all the time while living there I wanted to move
back here (to Oxford) – not later in life but earlier in life.” So the preacher’s son found his way home to Oxford and put his “real world film school skills” to work making a documentary about the University Grays – The Civil War fighting unit comprised of Ole Miss students. He was home and doing what he loved so Ginn decided to stick around and make more independent films. But he had a plan in the back of his mind. He wanted to be a full-time Rebel. “I moved back to Oxford with the intent of helping at Ole Miss too,” Ginn said. “I was a big fan of my alma mater and wanted to contribute.” In 2004, Ginn filmed a documentary on the late Chucky Mullins and his journey into the Ole Miss athletic department began. He started working for Dr. Andy Harper who runs the Ole Miss Media and Documentary Project Center. “He gave me a heck of an opportunity to dive in to production here at Ole Miss and to use my experience to enhance projects. And he really helped me learn a lot about production as it relates to this university,” Ginn said. Without the production tools that would be available in a place like LA or Chicago, Ginn learned to improvise and create the tools he needed while making the same high quality films. After five years under Harper, Ginn got the opportunity to move into the athletic department in 2011. He hit the field running and hasn’t looked back.
Ginn preparing to shoot the 2013 Grove Bowl. Photo by Greg Pevey
“I moved back to Oxford with the intent of helping at Ole Miss too,” Ginn said. “I was a big fan of my alma mater and wanted to contribute.” “It’s hard to keep up with the time, the years, the months in athletics because we’re always in season – there’s always something happening over here,” he said. Michael Thompson, the assistant athletic director for marketing and communications, had the vision to expand the creative team. That vision included Ginn as the Creative Director of Ole Miss Sports Productions. “We had great folks in place but he wanted to have that sort of top down schematic management, the content management, the continuity. That is what my mission was - to come in and help the team and it’s a small team and
still is,” Ginn said. “There is so much going on and we want all of our sports to have a consistent message and it’s hard to do with a top down management.” As the Creative Director, Ginn works with a team of editors, graphic designers and others overseeing 14 sports. Ginn along with graphic designer Dan Pellegrino, creative services manager Shane Sanford and videographer/editor Darrias Thomas strive to create the videos that promote and market games and teams throughout the year. “We’re not a big team but we like being an efficient small team,” Ginn said. “But we have
weeks where there are upwards of nine or ten events in a week and it’s challenging to make sure everything happens like it is supposed to. Gathering the kind of footage we use for marketing use, for promotions use. It can be quite a challenge.” One of the challenges was to make sure the content was fresh and impactful. Coaches’ shows over the years had become a tired format of highlights and coach-speak, and with the football team coming off a miserable 2-10 campaign, a fresh change couldn’t come soon enough – both on the field and on TV. The coaches show format was scrapped. Game highlights were already sculpted down to a minute highlight package on local and national TV. So Ginn and his staff set out to repackage, recreate and build anew. “Before I came along the staff had wanted to move away from the coaches show model,” he said. “You don’t get to see the true character or characters of the team.” That’s where Ginn and the staff wanted to go - behind the locker room doors. They wanted to personalize the coaches and the student athletes. “A show like ‘The Season’ allows us to do that,” he said. “It hits on all the points of what we like to stress and focus on here in marketing and communications – the people, the kids, the young men and women representing Ole Miss and doing it with heart and character.” The weekly TV show put cameras in the locker room, in coaches meetings, at events and anywhere Rebel football could be found. And it became a hit with its up close and personal view of the team, riding around with Bo Wallace, participating in meetings with Coach Hugh Freeze and generally giving fans a view never seen before. And even though football has a national TV contract, Ginn gives all the other Ole Miss sports just as much “love” through the same type of videos and broadcasting them on YouTube.com each week. “As our team grows we want to expand those opportunities into all of our sports. It’s inspiring and endless the supply of quality athletes and students we have here at Ole Miss and the more we can share those stories with fans and alumni the better. We strive to tell more than we’re doing now,” he said. Behind the Scenes To put together the weekly episode of “The Season” there are hours of digital media to shoot – a majority of that is shot from Friday through Sunday and more than 30 hours each week of editing is put into the 22 minute episode that debuts each Wednesday. “I’d rather have a more potent product that comes out a few days removed from the game than have a less engaging product that comes out immediately after the game,” Ginn said. 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 25
Photo by Greg Pevey
“I’ve always found that sports offer an awesome opportunity to grow as a person and I want to be able to take that growth and turn it into something people can watch on TV.” The staff is working on expanding their student athlete stories. “We want to enhance some of the production elements. We’d like to have more cameras and more audio and we’d like to expand the stories we tell that relate to our players,” he said. “We’d like to expand that coverage and make it even better and more detailed. We’ve got some new, high-speed camera gear to use this year.” A big fan of NFL Films, Ginn would like to make Ole Miss Sports Productions mirror the excellence of the legendary Sabol creations. “The great thing about them is that you don’t have to like football to like their films. Even Steven Spielberg can appreciate the gorgeous storytelling and incredible visual presentation that NFL Films has been consistently delivering for more than 50 years,” he said. “To me there’s no production entity that been as consistent and impactful as NFL 26 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Films. They capture what I love about sports – that every sporting event is its own little self-contained movie, it’s own little play – no matter if it’s a junior high gym or the Super Bowl. There’s always an incredible story there no matter the outcome. And I’ve always found that sports offer an awesome opportunity to grow as a person and I want to be able to take that growth and turn it into something people can watch on TV.” Ginn and his staff are not at want for historical and present day content. He just needs a few more staff members, a few more dollars in the budget and a few more hours in the day. Look for this season to build on its first much like the Rebels 2012 campaign. And look for the youngest son of the preacher to be ingrained in it all, behind the scenes, bringing Ole Miss athletics in focus, from all angles, up close and personal. - RN
Photo by Greg Pevey
Micah directing a member of his crew during the Grove Bowl. - Photo by Greg Pevey, RebelNation™ Magazine
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2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 27
REBELNATION...
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Photo by Greg Pevey 28 - REBEL NATION MAGAZINE
OLE MISS FOOTBALL 2013
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 29
season preview
QUICK FACTS
2012 RECORD: 7-6 CONFERENCE: 3-5 SEC WEST BBVA COMPASS BOWL CHAMPIONS OLE MISS 38 - PITT 17 COACH
Hugh Freeze: (2nd Year) Record: 7-6 (Ole Miss) Career Record: 37-13 Stadium: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium Field: Hollingsworth Field Capacity: 60,580 / Field Turf Tickets: 888-732-8587 Official Website: www.olemisssports.com
SCHEDULE Aug. 29................. at Vanderbilt Sept. 7....................SE Missouri Sept. 14........................ at Texas Sept. 21.............................OPEN Sept. 28...................at Alabama Oct. 5......................... at Auburn Oct. 12.................. TEXAS A&M Oct. 19..................................LSU Oct. 26.............................IDAHO Nov. 2................................OPEN Nov. 9.....................ARKANSAS Nov. 16.............................. TROY Nov. 23.....................MISSOURI Nov. 28............... at Miss. State
PAST 5 YEARS ‘08
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How will Bo Wallace respond after undergoing shoulder surgery during the off-season?
Photo by Greg Pevey
BY JAKE ADAMS RebelNation™ Magazine
M
y how things have changed. A year ago Ole Miss was preparing to enter the season with a new, unproven head coach and a squad full of young, untested players, many of which were deemed “not SEC material.” The Rebels were in the midst of a 14-game SEC losing streak that didn’t look to end any time soon and young coach Hugh Freeze was
trying to rally a beaten down fan base with promises of just fighting hard for 60 minutes. Ole Miss was a popular pick to finish last in the conference. So many people were saying the Rebels didn’t have a chance that in a brief moment of optimism, wondering if the Rebels’ season could really be as bleak as the picture being painted, I called up a beat writer friend who shall remain unnamed and just asked, “Is Ole Miss really going to be that bad?” “Yes,” he replied without hesitating. “Yeah, I know,” I said, “but is it possible that maybe there’s more talent on this team than we realize, and that with new coaches and a
DE C.J. Johnson is primed for a stellar junior season after recording 6.5 sacks as a sophomore.
Photo by Greg Pevey 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 31
Photo by Greg Pevey
FEEDING TIME... DONTE MONCRIEF Ja-Mes Logan and Jeff Scott return to help lead Ole Miss’ dynamic offensive attack in 2013. Photo by Greg Pevey
little inspiration maybe they could win six or seven games?” “They’ve got NOTHING,” the writer said. “It’s going to be bad.” I did not argue, convinced he was right. But of course, you know how the story turned out. Ole Miss won six regular season games, and should’ve won at least two more, losing in the final minutes to heavy weights like Texas A&M and LSU and just letting pesky Vanderbilt get away. But the Rebels ended the SEC losing streak against Auburn, took down Arkansas and finally shook the Dan Mullen hex bringing the Golden Egg home to Oxford before capping a surprising first season under Freeze with a convincing win over Pitt in the BBVA Compass Bowl. The excitement for the future was palpable on that drizzly January afternoon in Birmingham, and if it wasn’t already getting out of hand, the anticipation of fall grew even more when Freeze and his staff landed a historical Top 5 recruiting class on National Signing Day that included the country’s top recruit defensive end Robert Nkemdiche - and several others considered the best at their position, including receiver Laquon Treadwell and offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil. Add the celebrated signing class to the fact that the Rebels return 19 of 22 starters, including newfound stars like wide receiver 32 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Donte Moncrief and fiery linebacker Denzel Nkemdiche, and optimism in Oxford is as high as it’s been since 2009 when Ole Miss was a popular preseason Top 10 selection. In one short year head coach Hugh Freeze has changed the mindset of Rebel Nation from one that thought making a bowl game would be a minor miracle to one expecting a bowl game in 2013. The excitement level is so high that Freeze spent Rebel Road Trip 2013 trying to apply the brakes to the high expectations whereas just a year before the coach had traveled the same circuit trying to win back fans by promising to field a team that would just play hard. “It’s a journey,” Freeze said at one such stop. “That’s one of our messages as we travel around. Everyone is very excited. We are glad they have great expectations, but we’ve got to keep them reasonable. It is a journey. It won’t happen over night. We’ve got to continue to build.” “It feels like we’re on the right track,” Freeze said. “We just laid the foundation and we’re starting the journey. I do believe with the energy and passion our fans have and the work our kids are putting in and the work the coaches are putting in, I think we’re on the right track. We’ve got to add quality depth and continue to strive to win each game and be ready for next fall. I’m pleased with where we are right now.” Depth issues raised their heads during
At 6’4”, 220 pounds, Donte has become one of the SEC’s top playmakers by finishing 2012 with 66 catches for 979 yards and 10 TD’s. He capped off last year with a 7-catch, 173-yard and 3-TD performance in the Rebels’ blowout win over MSU. With the emergence of Vincent Sanders, Ja-Mes Logan and the addition of newcomer Laquon Treadwell, defenses will not be able to double up on Moncrief in 2013 which could allow him to put up big-time numbers. spring practice that serve as a stark reminder that the Rebels do need another year or two of solid recruiting classes to achieve the two- and three-deep status of the Alabama’s, Florida’s and LSU’s of the world. The offense was so full of holes during the annual spring Grove Bowl that the scrimmage was downgraded to a practice. Among the injured were starting quarterback Bo Wallace, still recovering from off-season shoulder surgery, Moncrief, Vince Sanders, offensive lineman Aaron Morris and others. All are expected to be ready to play in time for August practice, but the Grove Bowl showed just how much this team could be affected if one or two players were to get hurt. “We have to be realists,” Freeze said in the spring. “We’re still a ways away from having good depth in this league. We were so fortunate last year. We played three receivers pretty much the whole year, five offensive linemen pretty much the whole year. That’s rare when that happens, and we’re seeing it now that when you get a few injuries it changes your team.”
LB’s Denzel Nkemdiche and Mike Marry will play big roles on defense this season.
Photo by Greg Pevey
SCHEDULE At the root of Freeze’s concern is the fact that his team faces an extraordinarily tough first half of its 12-game schedule. Of course, as a member of the SEC, the Rebels play a difficult schedule every year, but this season is different than most in that Ole Miss will play four of its first five games on the road – a Thursday opener against a Vanderbilt team that’s beaten the Rebels three straight and been to two consecutive bowl games; Big 12 favorite Texas; two-time defending BCS Champion Alabama; and Auburn. All this before finally returning home to face Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel and popular Top 5 pick Texas A&M followed a week later by always tough LSU. Ole Miss will likely be an underdog in six of those first seven games. No matter how improved the Rebels may be, that’s a tough way to start the season, so it’s easy to understand Freeze’s caution to fans. OFFENSE Depth and schedule issues aside, there are plenty of reasons to be excited about Ole
KEY GAME: August 29 at Vanderbilt
Photo by Greg Pevey
Trae Elston became known as one of the SEC’s hardest hitters early in 2012. Just ask UTEP receiver Jordan Leslie.
Coming off a huge victory over Pitt in the BBVA Compass Bowl, expectations are beginning to rise in Oxford. The Rebels play a huge game right off the bat as they open the season, and conference play, on the road on a Thursday night ESPN showdown against Vandy. Ole Miss has struggled against the Dores who have beaten the Rebs three years in a row and five of the last six meetings. Ole Miss fans will get an early look to see if Bo Wallace is back to his regular form after undergoing shoulder surgery in the Spring. Vandy kicks off 2013 trying to replace star QB Jordan Rodgers and RB Zac Stacy. If the Rebs can break the Vandy hex with a win, it could mean good things to come the rest of the season for Rebel Nation.
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 33
Miss’ chances, starting with the return of 9 of 11 starters on an offense that accumulated 423 yards per game (5th in SEC). The Rebels should improve on that in year two. Most of those hopes rest on the recovering shoulder of starting quarterback Bo Wallace. After winning the starting job as a transfer from East Mississippi Community College in the first game of the season, Wallace, a junior, accounted for 3,384 yards (2nd most in school history) last year, including 2,994 passing (3rd most in school history) and 22 touchdowns (4th in school history). He also had eight rushing TD’s. And he did most of it playing through the pain of an injured shoulder, which he hurt in September against Tulane. Despite that injury Wallace established himself as the best quarterback Ole Miss has had since Eli Manning. But Wallace brings something to the table that not even Eli had - the willingness to tuck the ball and run up field. He may not have jack-rabbit speed, but Wallace has a unique ability to read when the defense is giving him the run and he’s not afraid to take it. As for his speed, well, it’s good enough. A 58yard touchdown run against LSU established that. Wallace’s achilles heel was his decision making. He threw 17 interceptions, and a couple of those probably cost Ole Miss a win. That decision-making was the key area Freeze had hoped to work with Wallace on during spring practice, but thanks to shoulder surgery that wasn’t to be. Wallace watched spring practice from the sideline and took mental reps while back-ups Barry Brunetti and Maikhail Miller battled for the No. 2 job. Freeze can only hope a year of experience and a spring of mental reps will help Wallace limit interceptions in 2013. “If he can cut down on the turnovers he can be one of the better quarterbacks in our league,” Freeze said. Wallace will have a trio of experienced receivers vying for the ball, including Moncrief, Sanders (39 receptions, 504 yards, 4 TD) and Ja-Mes Logan (43 receptions, 490 yards). Moncrief led the way in 2012 with 66 catches for 979 yards and 10 touchdowns and ended the season on one of the highest notes in Ole Miss history with a 7-catch, 173-yard, 3-touchdown performance against Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl that will live on in Rebel lore for years to come thanks in part to the “Feed Moncrief ” song played by the music group King Kobraz. Along with Sanders and Logan this group has seven years worth of collective game experience meaning Wallace should have more than one good receiver option on every snap. Supplementing those three will be Laquon Treadwell, considered the nation’s No. 1 wide receiver by some recruiting services. Expect Treadwell to see the field early and often. The backfield has a lot more experience this 34 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
year, too. Incumbent Jeff Scott, now a senior, was just one first-game suspension away from having 1,000 yards rushing in 2012, running for 846 yards and six touchdowns in 11 starts. At 5’ 7”, 170 pounds, Scott is on the small side, but he still proved tough enough to be the primary back. Scott is agile, versatile (23 catches for 177 yards) and has breakaway speed. Look for him to have a similar performance in 2013. He’ll be spelled by seasoned sophomores I’Tavius Mathers and Jaylen Walton. Mathers (5’ 11”, 196 pounds), who had a 62-yard touchdown run in the BBVA Compass Bowl, is the biggest of the three and Freeze may try to use him more in short yardage situations along with true freshman Mark Dodson (5’ 10”, 193 pounds) who enrolled in the spring and showed promise in spring practice. The skill position with the biggest ques-
right guard position. While line coach Matt Luke played most of the season with five linemen last year, he should have more pieces to plug into the puzzle now. Incoming freshman Laremy Tunsil, considered the nation’s No. 1 tackle coming out of high school, will compete for a spot along with freshman Austin Golson. The Rebels also have depth with veterans Justin Bell and Jared Duke. That depth is important because of the speed at which Freeze’s offense goes. He calls it “tempo,” which has been defined by co-offensive coordinator Dan Werner as “snapping the ball just as fast as the referee will put the ball down.” In year one Ole Miss couldn’t always achieve that speed, but it was apparent throughout the season that Wallace was more comfortable and the offense was the most successful when it was in “tempo.” With exPhoto by Greg Pevey
Team leader D.T. Shackelford is eager to return to action after missing the past two seasons due to a torn ACL. Shack saw his last game action in 2010.
tion mark is tight end. Ferbia Allen and Jamal Mosley are out of eligibility. The most experienced player available is senior walk-on Jack Nuismer, who played in three games in 2011, but none before or since. The Rebels will most likely be relying on true freshmen Christian Morgan (6’ 4”, 255 pounds), a 4-star who enrolled early and participated in much of spring drills before suffering an injury, and A.J. Jackson, a 6’, 6”, 240-pounder who looks the part. Both are big and both can catch, but whether either can cut the mustard as blockers in the SEC is unknown. Don’t be surprised if Ole Miss plays to its strengths using more four and five-wide receiver sets and stays away from tight end. All of the skill positions should be bolstered by an experienced offensive line that returns four of five starters including Emmanuel McCray and Pierce Burton at the tackles, Aaron Morris at left guard and Evan Swindall at center. Patrick Junen will probably get the open
perienced players at the skill positions, a little more depth on the offensive line and a quarterback familiar with the system, expect more tempo and more yards in 2013. DEFENSE Nowhere were depth and youth more apparent last year than in those late 4th quarter losses to Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and LSU, when the tired Ole Miss defense couldn’t get crucial stops to put games away. Defensive coordinator Dave Wommack spent the off-season looking for more players to help the defense finish off opponents in 2013. As Freeze cautioned, it’s still a work in progress. “I don’t think we’re all the way to having a two-deep like we wanted to have,” Wommack said at the conclusion of spring. “One of our goals is to finish 4th quarters. Time will tell on that, but I think our guys are getting better.” The Rebels return nearly every starter on
2012 results DATE.... OPPONENT ......................SCORE S.1.......... CNTRL. ARKANSAS......W 49-27 S.8.......... UTEP................................W 28-10 S.15........ TEXAS...............................L 31-66 S.22........ @ TULANE........................W 39-0 S.29........ @ ALABAMA....................L 14-33 O.6.......... TEXAS A&M.....................L 27-30 O.13........ AUBURN.........................W 41-20 O.27........ @ ARKANSAS................W 30-27 N.3......... @ GEORGIA......................L 10-37 N.10....... VANDERBILT....................L 26-27 N.17....... @ LSU................................L 35-41 N.24....... MISS. STATE..................W 41-24 J.5.......... PITT.................................W 38-17
38
2011 was not a great year for the Rebel defense as it only ammassed 13 sacks on the season finishing dead last in the SEC. What a difference a year makes as Ole Miss ended the ‘12 season with 38 sacks and finished second in the SEC behind South Carolina’s 43. Will the upward trend continue in ‘13?
defense. All those freshmen playing above their heads in 2012 return as seasoned sophomores. And Ole Miss certainly has an identity on defense now, whereas a year ago at this time the same could not be said. At the heart of that identity is Freshman All-American Denzel Nkemdiche. A year ago he was Robert’s older brother fighting for a job as an undersized linebacker, but once the season began he quickly arose both on the field and in the locker room as a team leader. Nkemdiche displayed an uncanny ability to find the football, leading the team with 82 tackles 13 tackles for loss, and four forced fumbles, earning himself the nickname “Tasmanian Denzel” as more than once coaches remarked his style of play reminded them of the Tasmanian Devil cartoon character. There’s no doubt who the team leader will be this season. But Nkemdiche won’t carry that load alone. Senior linebacker Mike Marry earned the distinguished recognition of the Chucky Mullins Courage Award from his teammates and will wear the No. 38. Marry had his best performance of the season with seven tackles and four tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble in the BBVA Compass Bowl and appears primed to make his mark as a force in the middle in his senior season. Add to the mix D.T. Shackelford and Serderius Bryant and its easy to see why Wommack considers linebacker to be the strength
Photo by Greg Pevey
of his defense. Marry attributed his dominant Compass Bowl performance to the guys up front who were occupying all the blockers. That should continue to be the case this season as freshman All-American Issac Gross returns at tackle along with top juco recruit Lavon Hooks. Woodrow Hamilton, Byron Bennett and true freshman Herbert Moore should also be in the rotation. There is experience in the middle and players for line coach Chris Kiffin to rotate. While there’s experience in the middle, on the edges the Rebels have options at defensive end, the most famous of them being Robert Nkemdiche, the nation’s No. 1 recruit. Nkemdiche will certainly get his chances to play, but Ole Miss also has C.J. Johnson and Channing Ward returning as legitimate threats to any quarterback foolish enough to linger in the pocket. Johnson led the team with 6.5 sacks as
a sophomore and shouldn’t be slowed by the broken leg he suffered in spring ball once the season rolls around. Ward was the Rebels’ top recruit in 2012, but wasn’t able to catch up in time to make an impact during the season after late qualification by the NCAA. After a full spring and fall camp, look for Ward’s imposing frame to be a factor for the Rebels. Carlos Thompson, who redshirted in 2012, is also expected to be in the defensive end rotation. The Rebels gave up a lot of big plays through the air in 2012, and corner remains Wommack’s biggest concern through the summer. Charles Sawyer and Senquez Golson are expected to start. Some of Wommack’s concern could be eased if Nick Brassell, who played for Ole Miss as a true freshman and was forced to transfer to community college last year, is able to become eligible. That won’t be known until closer to August. In the meantime Wommack will rely on Sawyer, a senior, and Golson, a ju2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 35
2012 team statistics
The kicking game is always a huge factor in the success of a season. Can Andrew Ritter (86) or Andy Pappanastos (19) be a consistent threat with field goals and extra points? Photo by Greg Pevey
nior, to take the two outside spots. Golson quit baseball so he could focus on football in the spring, and that should be a benefit. There’s experience in the secondary. Junior Cody Prewitt, who Wommack relies on as an on-field leader and to run the defense, will play free safety. Chief Brown, who coaches said made great strides in the spring, will also see lots of action in Wommack’s 4-25. Sophomore Trae Elston established himself as a ferocious hitter in his freshman season, and he’ll be back at the rover position. Mike Hilton has the edge at corner, a position that has also been played by Dehendret Collins. All of those players have seen game action, which is something that couldn’t have been said a year ago. SPECIAL TEAMS Special teams was a weak spot for Ole Miss in 2012 as the Rebels struggled punting and 36 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
on returns. This year should see improvement with veteran punter Tyler Campbell returning after an odd senior-year redshirt which Freeze did to Campbell and place kicker Andrew Ritter, with their consent, in order to save scholarships for 2013. The unknown will be on returns. Korvic Neat struggled with fumbles. The Rebels have plenty of speedy options to return kicks, including Neat, Scott, and even Brassell if need be. That’ll be a position to watch on into the opening week. Don’t be surprised if Ritter ends up battling with freshman Andy Pappanastos for starting place kicker duties. Pappanastos was the more consistent of the two in the Grove Bowl. All in all, there’s more experience, a team identity, purpose and a brighter outlook for Ole Miss in 2013. How that’ll translate against the always tough SEC season remains to be determined. - RN
............................UM.........OPP SCORING............................ 409................ 359 Points Per Game...............31.5...............27.6 FIRST DOWNS................... 291................ 251 Rushing............................ 138................. 97 Passing............................. 134................ 138 Penalty.............................. 19.................. 16 RUSHING YARDAGE......... 2260.............. 1681 Yards gained rushing...... 2644.............. 2149 Yards lost rushing............ 384................ 468 Rushing Attempts............ 551................ 483 Average Per Rush..............4.1.................3.5 Average Per Game..........173.8.............129.3 TDs Rushing...................... 25.................. 17 PASSING YARDAGE.......... 3249.............. 3205 Comp-Att-Int..............261-411-18....268-427-15 Average Per Pass..............7.9.................7.5 Average Per Catch............12.4...............12.0 Average Per Game..........249.9.............246.5 TDs Passing....................... 24.................. 22 TOTAL OFFENSE................ 5509.............. 4886 Total Plays........................ 962................ 910 Average Per Play...............5.7.................5.4 Average Per Game..........423.8.............375.8 KICK RETURNS: #-Yrds... 43-861......... 42-1030 PUNT RETURNS: #-Yrds.. 24-134.......... 24-189 INT RETURNS: #-Yrds..... 15-199.......... 18-135 KICK RETURN AVG.............20.0...............24.5 PUNT RETURN AVG............5.6.................7.9 INT RETURN AVG...............13.3................7.5 FUMBLES-LOST................ 22-11............ 20-13 PENALTIES-Yards............ 62-480.......... 69-543 Average Per Game.............36.9..............41.8 PUNTS-Yards....................58-2350....... 70-2970 Average Per Punt..............40.5...............42.4 Net punt average.............36.6...............39.1 KICKOFFS-Yards.................80-5007...... 72-4403 Average Per Kick..............62.6...............61.2 Net kick average..............49.3...............39.8 TIME OF POSS./Game........28:04.............31:56 3RD-DOWN Conv............89/201.......... 76/199 3rd-Down Pct.................. 44%.............. 38% 4TH-DOWN Conv............. 13/18............. 8/20 4th-Down Pct.................. 72%.............. 40% SACKS BY-Yards............. 38-268.......... 34-222 MISC YARDS........................ 0.................... 0 TOUCHDOWNS SCORED.... 51.................. 44 FIELD GOALS-ATTEMPTS.18-28............ 17-22 ON-SIDE KICKS.................. 0-0................ 1-1 RED-ZONE SCORES..... (41-45) 91%.. (36-46) 78% RED-ZONE TD.............. (30-45) 67%.. (23-46) 50% PAT-ATTEMPTS........... (49-49) 100%.(40-42) 95% ATTENDANCE.................. 458597.......... 371730 Games/Avg Per Game.. 8/57325........ 5/74346 SCORING......1st....2nd....3rd....4th... Total Ole Miss........ 116.... 105.....96.....92...... 409 Opponents...... 64..... 129.....67.....99...... 359
2013 ROSTER *As of press time. NO NAME................................... POS.......HT/WT..... YR-EXP...........................HOMETOWN/HIGH SCHOOL/LAST COLLEGE 1 Dehendret Collins...................DB.......5-10/185.......SR-1L.......................Meadville, Miss./Franklin County/Copiah-Lincoln CC 2 Quintavius Burdette................DB.......5-11/189...... SO-1L..............................................................Senatobia, Miss./Senatobia 3 Jeff Scott................................RB.........5-7/170........SR-3L..........................................................Miami, Fla./Archbishop Carroll 3 Charles Sawyer.......................DB.......5-11/181.......SR-3L.......................................................................Miami, Fla./Coral Reef 4 Nicholas Parker.......................RB.........6-0/225........JR-1L..........................................................Batesville, Miss./South Panola 4 Denzel Nkemdiche.................. LB........5-11/203...... SO-1L.....................................................................Loganville, Ga./Grayson 5 Nick Brassell..........................ATH........6-1/180....... JR-JC..............................Batesville, Miss./South Panola/Ole Miss/EMCC 5 I’Tavius Mathers......................RB........5-11/196...... SO-1L......................................................... Murfreesboro, Tenn./Blackman 6 Quadarias Mireles.................ATH.......5-11/185...... JR-JC................................................Delray Beach, Fla./Atlantic/Hinds CC 6 Jaylen Walton.........................RB.........5-8/167....... SO-1L................................................................ Memphis, Tenn./Ridgeway 7 Mark Dodson...........................RB........5-10/193...... FR-HS............................................................ Memphis, Tenn./Whitehaven 7 Jordan Holder........................ WR.......5-11/177.......SR-2L............................................Bay Springs, Miss./Sylva Bay Academy 7 Trae Elston...............................DB........6-0/190....... SO-1L............................................................................Oxford, Ala./Oxford 8 Terrell Grant........................... WR........6-3/208........SR-3L...............................................................Cleveland, Miss./Cleveland 8 Chief Brown............................DB........6-1/202....... SO-1L......................................................................Winona, Miss./Winona 9 D.T. Shackelford...................... LB.........6-1/250........SR-2L...........................................................................Decatur, Ala./Austin 9 Maikhail Miller.......................QB........6-2/240....... SO-1L.................................................Fulton, Miss./Itawamba Agricultural 10 C.J. Johnson...........................DE.........6-3/233........JR-2L.......................................................Philadelphia, Miss./Philadelphia 10 Vince Sanders........................ WR........6-1/190........JR-2L.........................................................Macon, Miss./Noxubee County 11 Channing Ward.......................DE.........6-4/256....... SO-1L................................................................Aberdeen, Miss./Aberdeen 11 Barry Brunetti..........................QB........6-0/212........SR-2L.......................... Memphis, Tenn./Memphis University School/WVa 12 Cliff Coleman..........................DB.......5-10/181.......JR-2L...........................................Lauderale Lakes, Fla./Boyd H. Anderson 12 Donte Moncrief...................... WR........6-3/216........JR-2L.......................................................................Raleigh, Miss./Raleigh 13 Robert Ratliff...........................QB........6-2/217.......SR-Sq.....................................Fort Worth, Texas/Nolan Catholic/Sewanee 13 Brishen Mathews....................DB........6-0/200........SR-2L...............................................................Monticello, Ark./Monticello 14 Bo Wallace..............................QB........6-4/204........JR-1L..........................Pulaski, Tenn./Giles County/Arkansas State/EMCC 14 Serderius Bryant..................... LB.........5-9/223........JR-2L...................................................................... Sanford, Fla./Seminole 15 Christian Morgan.................... TE.........6-4/255....... FR-HS................................. Plano, Texas/Prestonwood Christian Academy 16 Anthony Alford........................DB........6-0/210.......SO-TR..................................................... Petal, Miss./Petal/Southern Miss 16 Collins Moore......................... WR........6-1/196........JR-2L.................................................................. Madison, Ala./Bob Jones 19 Louis Covington.......................DB........5-9/162........SR-1L......................................Baton Rouge, La./Central/Fullerton College 19 Justin Watts.............................K.........5-11/185......SO-Sq.........................................................Suwanee, Ga./Peachtree Ridge 19 Andy Pappanastos...................K.........5-11/180...... FR-HS..............................................Montgomery, Ala./Trinity Presbyterian 20 Jeremy Reed.......................... WR........5-6/150....... JR-RS...........................Southaven, Miss./Southaven/East Mississippi CC 21 Senquez Golson......................DB........5-9/188........JR-2L..........................................................Pascagoula, Miss./Pascagoula 22 Philander Moore.................... WR........5-9/188........SR-2L...........................................................Austin, Texas/Bowie/Blinn CC 22 Tyriek Gracia............................DB........6-2/206.......JR-Sq...................................................................... Hialeah, Fla./American 23 Anthony Standifer...................DB........6-0/182....... SO-1L......................................................................Crete, Ill./Crete-Monee 24 Keith Lewis............................. LB.........6-1/235........JR-2L..........................................................................Tampa, Fla./Freedom 25 Cody Prewitt............................DB........6-2/214........JR-2L............................................Bay Springs, Miss./Sylva Bay Academy 25 Darryan Ragsdale....................RB........5-10/183......SO-TR.........................................Pelahatchie, Miss./Pelahatchie/Hinds CC 26 Andrew Fletcher.......................K..........5-9/167....... JR-TR................... Nashville, Tenn./Montgomery Bell Academy/Louisville 26 Jimmy Potepa.........................RB.........5-8/204.......SO-Sq...................................................Monrovia, Liberia/Campus Magnet 26 Will Martin.............................. LB.........6-1/210........SR-1L.............................Madison, Miss./Madison Central/Southern Miss 27 Josh Richardson......................DB.......5-10/180...... JR-RS...............Moss Point. Miss./Moss Point/Mississippi Gulf Coast CC 28 Mike Hilton.............................DB........5-8/182....... SO-1L............................................................Fayetteville, Ga./Sandy Creek 28 LaKedrick King........................DB........5-8/181.......JR-Sq.........................................................Duncanville, Texas/Duncanville 28 Korvic Neat............................ WR........5-9/164........SR-3L............................................................... Hallandale, Fla./Hallandale 29 Abdul Bangura........................DB.......5-10/176...... SO-1L................................................Takoma Park, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt 32 Temario Strong........................ LB.........6-0/240....... FR-RS..........................................................Batesville, Miss./South Panola 34 Carlos Davis............................RB.........5-9/163....... SO-1L................................................................Birmingham, Ala./Huffman 35 Ontario Berry...........................DB.......5-10/196.......JR-1L.................................... Mendenhall. Miss./Mendenhall/SW MS CC 36 Kameron Wood.......................DE.........6-3/258....... FR-RS.......................................................... Birmingham, Ala./John Carroll 40 Josh Gregory...........................DB........6-2/208.......SO-TR.....................Alpharetta, Ga./Chattahoochee/S. Alabama/Alabama 41 Billy Busch...............................RB........5-11/235......JR-Sq...................................................St. Louis, Mo./Priory School/Butler 44 Charlie Scott...........................RB........5-11/200...... SO-1L.............................................Jackson, Miss./St. Andrew’s Episcopal 45 Lavon Hooks............................DL.........6-4/290....... JR-JC.....................Atlanta, Ga./Meadowcreek/Northeast Mississippi CC 46 Colton Walls............................ LB........5-11/207......SO-TR...........................................Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Latin/Clemson 47 John Youngblood.................... TE.........6-3/237....... FR-RS.......................................................Trussville, Ala./Hewitt-Trussville 48 Justin Bigham.........................RB.........6-1/232........SR-2L.................................................................West Helena, Ark./DeWitt 50 Ethan Hutson...........................OL.........6-4/306....... SO-1L..................................................................Destrehan, La./Destrehan 51 Walker Sturgeon.....................DE.........6-2/254.......JR-Sq......................................................Horn Lake, Miss./DeSoto Central 52 Mike Marry............................. LB.........6-3/256........SR-3L........................................................................Clearwater, Fla./Largo 52 Will Few.................................. LS.........6-3/245....... FR-RS........................................................................Augusta, Ga./Aquinas 53 Tyler Gray................................DL.........6-3/245....... FR-RS.........................................Pelahatchie, Miss./East Rankin Academy 54 Carlos Thompson....................DE.........6-4/243........JR-2L...............................................................Hollandale, Miss./Simmons 54 Austin Douglas........................OL.........6-2/320....... JR-JC..................................... Batesville, Miss./South Panola/NW MS CC
55 56 56 59 60 61 64 65 68 70 71 72 73 74 75 77 78 80 82 84 85 86 87 88 88 89 91 92 94 94 95 96 97
Cameron Whigham.................DE.........6-3/255........SR-3L......................................................................... Snellville, Ga./Shiloh Evan Swindall..........................C..........6-4/295........SR-3L...................................................................LaFayette, Ga./LaFayette Woodrow Hamilton.................DT.........6-3/292....... SO-1L.......................................................................Raleigh, Miss./Raleigh Will Denny.............................. LS........5-11/230.......JR-2L.....................................................Jackson, Miss./Jackson Academy Derrick Wilson........................OL.........6-2/326........SR-1L.............................Greenville, Miss./Horn Lake/East Mississippi CC Ben Still...................................OL.........6-2/280....... SO-1L....................................Memphis, Tenn./Memphis University School Tyler Mt. Joy...........................OL.........6-1/261.......SO-TR..............The Woodlands, Texas/The Woodlands/Allan Hancock CC Chase Hughes.........................OL.........6-3/292........JR-2L...............................................................Springville, Ala./Springville Justin Bell...............................OL.........6-3/335....... SO-1L...................................................................Jackson, Miss./Callaway Emmanuel McCray..................OL.........6-5/316........SR-2L................................................................. Jackson, Miss./Forest Hill Pierce Burton...........................OL.........6-6/289........SR-1L.........................Sacramento, Calif./Rio Americano/San Jose State/ ....................................................................................................................................................... City College of San Francisco Aaron Morris...........................OL.........6-5/330........JR-2L...................................................................Jackson, Miss./Callaway Darone Bailey..........................OL.........6-5/316....... JR-RS..........................................Cleveland, Miss./East Side/Coahoma CC Jared Duke..............................OL.........6-7/354........SR-3L.........................................................Cleveland, Tenn./Walker Valley Park Stevens...........................OL.........6-6/351.......SO-TR...................................Columbus, Miss./New Hope/East Central CC Patrick Junen..........................OL.........6-3/314........SR-3L.................................................................Huntsville, Ala./Huntsville Robert Conyers........................OL.........6-3/277....... FR-RS.........................................................................Miami, Fla./Braddock Josh Pinkston......................... WR........6-1/195.......JR-Sq...........................................................................Forest, Miss./Forest Dylan Dyer............................... TE.........6-6/240.......SR-Sq.........................................Flora, Miss./Madison Central/Holmes CC Jack Nuismer.......................... TE.........6-3/237........SR-1L.................................................................Nashville, Tenn./Ensworth Ja-Mes Logan........................ WR........6-3/195........SR-3L..................................................................Houston, Texas/Westfield Jordan Gallegos..................... WR........5-9/164....... FR-RS..........................New Albany, Ohio/New Albany/Bridgton Academy Matt Brown............................. TE.........6-3/226....... FR-RS..................................................... Cordova, Tenn./Harding Academy Cody Core............................... WR........6-3/191....... SO-1L..........................................................................Auburn, Ala./Auburn John Ratliff............................ WR........6-0/181.......SO-Sq......................................................Fort Worth, Texas/Nolan Catholic Taz Zettergren......................... TE.........6-4/225....... FR-RS......................................Senatobia, Miss./Magnolia Heights School Nathan Noble...........................K..........6-4/211....... SO-1L...............................................Greenville, Miss./Washington School Carlton Martin.........................DT.........6-2/288........JR-2L......................................................Madison, Miss./Madison Central Issac Gross..............................DL.........6-1/254....... SO-1L..........................................................Batesville, Miss./South Panola Chris Conley............................. P..........5-8/197........SR-2L...................................................................Bradenton, Fla./Manatee Bryon Bennett.........................DT.........6-2/294........JR-2L......................................................Madison, Miss./Madison Central Andrew Ritter......................... K/P........6-3/220........SR-3L.....................................................Jackson, Miss./Jackson Academy Tyler Campbell.......................... P..........6-2/235........SR-3L................................................................... Little Rock, Ark./Catholic
2013 signeEs NAME..............................POS.....HT/WT....................................................HOMETOWN/SCHOOL Quincy Adeboyejo............. WR......6-3/180........................................Cedar Hill HS | Cedar Hill, Texas Trey Bledsoe......................ATH......6-2/90..............................................Grenada HS | Grenada, Miss. Daronte Bouldin................. OL.......6-6/310................................................. Canton HS | Canton, Miss. Nick Brassell.....................ATH.....6-1/180..............................East Mississippi CC | Batesville, Miss. Eugene Brazley...................RB......5-10/180...................................G.W. Carver HS | New Orleans, La. Ryan Buchanan..................QB......6-4/205........................................... Jackson Prep | Jackson, Miss. Tony Conner......................... S........6-2/205...................................South Panola HS | Batesville, Miss. Mark Dodson......................RB......5-10/193.................................... Whitehaven HS | Memphis, Tenn. Evan Engram...................... TE.......6-3/210....................................Hillgrove HS | Powder Springs, Ga. Austin Golson..................... OL.......6-6/290..............................................Prattville HS | Prattville, Ala. Bobby Hill...........................DB......6-0/165.....................................Colquitt County HS | Moultrie, Ga. Lavon Hooks.......................DT.......6-4/290............................ Northeast Mississippi CC | Atlanta, Ga. A.J. Jackson....................... TE.......6-6/240.................................................Lovejoy HS | Hampton, Ga. Davion Johnson................. OL ......6-4/315................................................ Byhalia HS | Byhalia, Miss. Derrick Jones.................... WR......6-2/185..................................................Eupora HS | Eupora, Miss. David Kamara.....................CB......5-10/185.............................................Grayson HS | Loganville, Ga. Devante Kincade................QB......6-1/185..................................................Skyline HS | Dallas, Texas Quadarias Mireles............ATH....5-11/185............................................Hinds CC | Delray Beach, Fla. Herbert Moore...................DT.......6-2/330........................................Memphis East | Memphis, Tenn. Kailo Moore.......................RB......5-10/190................................... West Bolivar HS | Rosedale, Miss. Christian Morgan............... TE.......6-4/255................Prestonwood Christian Academy | Plano, Texas Robert Nkemdiche.............DE ......6-5/270..............................................Grayson HS | Loganville, Ga. Andy Pappanastos.............. K.......5-11/180............................Trinity Presbyterian | Montgomery, Ala. Marcus Robinson................ B........6-4/210..................................Memphis East HS | Memphis, Tenn. Ray Ray Smith.................... LB.......6-3/210............................................... Florence HS | Florence, Ala. Laquon Treadwell.............. WR......6-3/198...............................................Crete-Monee HS | Crete, Ill. Laremy Tunsil..................... OL.......6-6/320..............................................Columbia HS | Lake City, Fla. Jordan Wilkins...................RB.......6-1/210............... St. Benedict at Auburndale HS | Cordova, Tenn. 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 37
OFFENSIVE SPOTLIGHT
BO IS BACK With a successful shoulder surgery now behind him, Bo Wallace looks to improve his play and his numbers in 2013 BY JOHN DAVIS Contributing Writer
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le Miss quarterback Bo Wallace doesn’t think that just because he won the annual Conerly Trophy as a sophomore he has nothing left to improve upon. That thinking doesn’t even enter his head, especially after missing the entire spring to rehab from offseason shoulder surgery. Heading into the 2013 campaign, Wallace is focused on 1) winning more games for the Rebels and 2) throwing fewer interceptions which in turn should hopefully lead to more wins for the Rebels. “It’s all about wins but you do have individual goals too. I’ve always set individual goals on touchdowns and yards and things like that. Going in to this season, my goal is to throw less than seven interceptions. I’m going to throw less than seven because during a game all kinds of things happen like tipped balls or receivers running the wrong route and the ball gets tipped,” Wallace said. “You’re going to throw interceptions in a season but if I can keep it down to six we’ll win a lot of football games and our numbers are going to look OK. I’m not worried about the passing yards. I’m worried about one number and that’s the interception number. Everything is going to come along with it.” Last year Wallace threw for 2,994 yards, a mark that ranked third most in a single season at Ole Miss, and 22 touchdowns, the fourth most in a single season. Wallace also accounted for an additional 390 yards rushing and eight scores. All of the numbers came in his first season at Ole Miss and mostly when he was injured. (Wallace suffered an AC joint injury against Tulane the fourth game of the
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Bo Wallace was named MVP of the 2013 BBVA Compas Bowl - Photo by Greg Pevey
season and played the entire rest of the year in pain). “I think by the end of the year the game slowed down. It wasn’t near the speed as it was when I played against Texas and Alabama compared to what it was against LSU and Vandy and teams like that. I was seeing blitzes before they happened and against Alabama I was a deer in headlights there,” Wallace said. “It was my first experience and I think that first year experience gives me an advantage going into this year and knowing what it’s like playing in a hostile environment and things like that.” Being healthy again also helps Wallace,
who said the pain was always unbearable in class and always worse in the second half of games. “I feel 100 percent better. I think I was in pain every game. My shoulder would be swollen out to here (Wallace extended his hand two inches off his shoulder). The Vandy game, that was the worst pain I dealt with after a game,” Wallace said. “Usually I could control the pain during the game. The first half I would be OK. I had no pain at all just from them numbing me. After that, right at the start of the third quarter when I was warming up, I would start to feel it. In the fourth quarter, I was really feeling it.”
“Denzel’s crazy, he’s literally crazy, in a good way. He’s probably the most passionate person I’ve played with or played against. He loves to play with a chip on his shoulder. He wants to be the best and I think that’s why he plays the way that he does.”
Despite injuring his shoulder in Game 4 versus Tulane, Wallace ended the 2012 season with 2,994 yards passing (third most in a single season at Ole Miss) and 22 TDs (fourth most in a single season at Ole Miss). - Photo by Greg Pevey
BO WALLACE: BY THE NUMBERS PASSING CMP 235
ATT PCT 368 63.9
YDS 2994
AVG 8.1
TD 22
LNG 77
INT 17
RAT 142.7
RUSHING ATT 143
YDS 390
AVG 2.7
LNG 58
TD 8
YDS 25
AVG 25
LNG 25
TD 1
RECEIVING REC 1
Some of the 17 interceptions can be directly attributed to Wallace’s AC joint sprain, even if he still believes that he should make every throw, healthy or not. “The way I looked at it, if I’m out there, I should make every throw. Even if I’m injured. I should make every attempt. Looking back on it, just like in the LSU game, Barry (Brunetti) is put in because I can’t throw it far enough,” Wallace said. “I think you see a couple of interceptions during the year happen because I can’t throw it as far as I can. I don’t think it’s because I can’t throw it that far, I think it’s because I couldn’t. Three interceptions are because I can’t get it far enough down the field.” The surgery, which was very similar to the
one Sam Bradford underwent at Oklahoma, was performed less than a week after the Rebels defeated Pittsburgh in the BBVA Compass Bowl. For the next two months, in the cold of January and February, Wallace got up early to rehab, even if it meant just barely moving his arm for 15 minutes. “I was very frustrated the whole time. It’s hard when you have that surgery and you have to go to class and sit in that class and it hurt throughout that entire class. It was really uncomfortable having to sit through a 50-minute class or an hour and 15 minute class and have to really concentrate on what the teacher is saying. That’s the last place you want to be is in class,” Wallace said. “Not be-
ing with the team was tough as well. The first couple of months I wasn’t around them. I would see them but it wouldn’t be like usual when I was with them in the weight room or out on the practice field or watching tape with them. I would see them only when I was walking in and out the training room. I would get up in the mornings and come up here at 6:30. Usually I would be going to work out but now I was in the training room for 15 minutes barely doing little movements with my shoulder. It got real frustrating.” Two months of rehab eventually led to better things for Wallace, who was at least able to put on pads during the spring and take mental reps. Since the spring ended, Wallace has been cleared to start throwing and since he was so far behind from a strength standpoint, he didn’t travel back to his Pulaski, Tenn., home. “I think we’re as talented as anybody in the conference skill position wise. Now it’s on me,” Wallace said. “I’m staying here in May not taking classes and spending time in the weight room to get back that time that I missed. All I really have to do is get it to those guys and they can make things happen after the catch.” Wallace’s two best friends on the team are his roommates, linebacker Denzel Nkemdiche and safety Chief Brown. He added if you see one, you’re almost certain to see the others. “They’re my two best friends on the team. Denzel was the first guy to take me in when I got here. I didn’t know anybody. When I got here spring semester (of 2012), he was the first guy that really talked to me and asked me to come hang out. We just hit it off. He and Chief are best friends so I started hanging out with Chief and now it’s gotten to the point if you see one of us, you’re probably going to see all three of us,” said Wallace, who added he loved Nkemdiche’s personality and zeal. “Denzel’s crazy, he’s literally crazy, in a good way. He’s probably the most passionate person I’ve played with or played against. He loves to play with a chip on his shoulder. He wants to be the best and I think that’s why he plays the way that he does.” - RN 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 39
DEFENSIVE SPOTLIGHT
POINT MADE
Photo by Greg Pevey
Coming from a small high school in Bay Springs, MS, Cody Prewitt has proven he can play in the rugged SEC BY JOHN DAVIS Contributing Writer
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le Miss junior Cody Prewitt doesn’t give in very easily. He’s a competitor, everything matters to him, and he is not about to give an inch. The first sign of Prewitt’s inner leadership traits came in the spring of 2012, when Prewitt was first introduced to defensive coordinator Dave Wommack. First impressions are key in life as well as football and Prewitt knew if he wanted to stay in the secondary, rather than move to linebacker, he had to get better. “Last spring I hurt my ankle, I twisted it pretty bad so they got a bad look at me. Coach Wommack really didn’t feel like I could run like he wanted his safeties to run but I knew better than that,” Prewitt said. “I asked coach to let me go through fall (drills) first and if you really want me to move to linebacker we can do that.” Prewitt was afforded the opportunity to stay at free safety and the overall defense is better now for it because of the way he performed as a sophomore, a year in which he racked up 80 tackles, second best on the team. “My freshman year didn’t go the way I wanted it to. I didn’t think I was as productive as I could be so I really made an effort to get better that offseason and try to develop off the field as a leader,” said Prewitt, who was named College Football News Sophomore All-America honorable mention last year. “Once I started really playing and people saw I wasn’t just talking out of my rear end, they saw my actions really back up what I was trying to do. They let me become a leader slowly.” Remaining at free safety also helped Prewitt’s mental frame of mind. “I’m comfortable playing this position. I really like it. In high school I was more of an offensive player so I kind of wanted to play offense when I first got here but now after two years playing free safety I’ve really grown comfortable in this position,” Prewitt said. “My biggest assignment is getting everybody lined up and making sure they know what we’re doing. If everyone communicates and everybody is on the same page, nine times out of 10 we’re going to have a positive play, execution. I guess you could say I’m the QB of the defense.” If Prewitt had made the move to linebacker, it wouldn’t have been the first time he dealt with adjustments. After being born in Covington, La., Prewitt grew up in Purvis, near Hattiesburg, before leaving that home for one in Ellisville because of damage suffered from Hurricane Katrina.
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In 2012 Prewitt was named a College Football News Sophomore All-American Honorable Mention - Photo by Greg Pevey
His move from Lamar County to Jones County ultimately led the 6-foot-2, 215-pound Prewitt to Sylva Bay Academy in Bay Springs where he dominated on both sides of the ball. (His senior year, he accounted for over 3,200 all-purpose yards and had 121 tackles and eight interceptions on defense). “I went to Oak Grove up until sixth grade when Katrina hit. It basically put a tree through our house so we had to move to Ellisville,” Prewitt said. “I went to South Jones for a year and a half, two years maybe and then went to Sylva Bay. Me and the coaches at South Jones kind of butted heads and I didn’t really like where the program was going. I had a friend that was going to Sylva Bay so I went with him everyday.” The move from a Class 5A school to an academy actually paid off for Prewitt, who went on to be named a PrepStar All-America selection and rated as one of the top players in the state for the 2011 signing class. “I think at South Jones, I wouldn’t have been able to develop the way I wanted to. I wouldn’t have the exposure due to just not winning as many games,” Prewitt said. “When I came to Sylva Bay, their football team was already good and I added what I could. Winning all these games got my stats and video out there. “I had good stats my sophomore and junior year but I really didn’t see myself having a chance to go D-I until my senior year. Then I said I should really be focusing on getting a scholarship.” The summer before his senior year, Prewitt turned heads at Ole Miss’ football camp when he ran 4.41 seconds in the 40-yard dash and former head coach Houston Nutt offered on the spot. “I really wanted to play in the SEC and Ole Miss has been the team for me from the start,” said Prewitt, adding there were a lot of Mississippi State fans in Bay Springs. “I would never go to State.”
Photo by Greg Pevey
CODY PREWITT: BY THE NUMBERS Photo by Greg Pevey
2011 G 12
SOLO 18
ASST. TOTAL 14 32
SACKS/YDS 0
TFL/YARDS 0.5/1
FF 0
FR 1
INT/YDS 1/1
ASST. TOTAL 36 80
SACKS/YDS 1.5/13
TFL/YARDS 5.5/20
FF 2
FR 3
INT/YDS 3/24
ASST. TOTAL 50 112
SACKS/YDS 1.5/13
TFL/YARDS 5.5/20
FF 2
FR 3
INT/YDS 3/24
2012 G 13
SOLO 44
TOTAL G 25
SOLO 62
Nutt and his assistants coached Prewitt his freshman year, one in which his fellow teammates felt the pressure of losing and mentally lost their fire to compete when they saw Nutt hanging his head.
“I would say halfway through the season you could kind of tell that he was losing his spark a little bit. All the coaches really were and that definitely affected us. It made us kind of go through the motions for the rest of
the season. I was definitely sad to see him go because that’s got to be hard on him and his family. The players were all discouraged a little bit,” Prewitt said about the 2011 season. “At the same time, I really feel like Coach Freeze came in here at the right time. He’s going to take this program back to where it needs to be. It wasn’t anything against Coach Nutt, we just needed a change.” “Coach Freeze demands for us to be great. He doesn’t let us settle for mediocrity. He instilled that in us this spring and his first fall camp. He’s not going to accept mediocrity,” Prewitt added. “If you want to play mediocre, then you won’t play and that caused everybody to want to play even more and really find out the people that should be on the field.” This past season the gridiron had a much different feel for Prewitt, who really loved playing at Alabama as much as any game. “That game got me really juiced up. Being around that kind of crowd...they were so loud. I think that was the game that everybody saw that Ole Miss isn’t going to roll over anymore. We’re making a run for it, we’re not going to let you beat us,” Prewitt said. “In my mind, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt and even LSU, they didn’t beat us, we beat ourselves. We had blown coverages, we had too many big plays that we gave up and in my mind, those games are on us, we beat ourselves. I’m not taking any credit away from them but I know what we’re capable of and we’re capable of a lot more than what we did. Those were just mistakes...we were still learning the defense at that point. This next fall we’re going to be knowing the defense for a year and a half and those mistakes aren’t going to be there anymore.” An offseason goal for Prewitt is to gain an additional 10 pounds, without losing any speed. “You got to get better every day, every year. I’m definitely going to be smarter. I will have been in this defense for a year and a half by the time the fall comes around and then offseason, I’m going to have to get stronger and faster,” Prewitt said, adding his goal was to play in the NFL one day. “It’s definitely a goal. It would be a dream to play in the NFL. Every football player wants to play in the NFL but that’s the stuff I try to not think about so I can stay focused on the task I have at hand. Every football player I know has grown up watching the NFL. To play in the NFL, you have to love the game. To play D-I football, you have to love the game. It’s not one of those things where you can go into practice or a game and say ‘I wish I wasn’t here right now or I really don’t feel like doing this.’ You have to love it.” So far Prewitt’s love for the game hasn’t just benefited him, it’s benefited the Rebels in the process. - RN
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 41
COACHES CORNER
Building B O K L C S Coach Dave Wommack tells us what it took to turn around the Ole Miss defense in 2012, and what he’s doing to make it even better in 2013 BY MARK STOWERS Contributing Writer
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or the past 30 years, Coach Dave Wommack has been building successful defenses across Division I football conferences – 29 of those were winning seasons. From the University of Arkansas, to Missouri and Missouri State, UNLV, South Carolina, USM, Georgia Tech, Arkansas State and now Ole Miss. He’s pretty much the Zig Ziglar of defense – successful. In his coaching tenure he’s used what players he’s been given to work with and didn’t try a “one size fits all” defense. And out of that he created the 4-2-5 scheme that Wommack believes fits teams better than a 3-4 or even a 4-3. “Most of the time, things come out of necessity and this really evolved from a 4-3 defense,” Wommack said. “But there’s been a number of people involved in it besides myself.” The need to create such a defense arose when Wommack was trying to keep up with Atlantic Coast Conference offenses as the Defensive Coordinator at Georgia Tech. “We got a lot of it from studying the Virginia Techs and the TCU’s and those types of people,” he said. “It just kind of evolved on a need basis and it fit the multiple types of offenses we saw week in and week out.” The 4-2-5 basically is just that. “It explains itself – it’s four down defensive 42 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Photo by Kevin Bain, Ole Miss Communications
lineman with two linebackers and five defensive backs,” Wommack said. “That’s the 4-2-5 and it’s able to adjust when you have two running backs and one tight end and two wide receivers but also you can adjust it to a ‘wideopen’ no backs in the game and three wide receivers on one side and two on the other. It’s just flexible enough to do that without getting into too much detail.” Flashback to 2011 – Head Coach Hugh Freeze inherited a 2-10 team that was 0-8 in the conference, gave up more than 32 points and 420 yards per game. The Rebels defense
was last in the SEC and 90th nationally. Being dead last, Wommack had seven starters left over from the Houston Nutt era and the team couldn’t get any worse. Could it? So with nothing to lose, literally, Wommack took the bits and pieces and molded them into a high flying hybrid that delivered a significant turnaround. “One of our goals is to get a lot more speed on the field than what they had the year before and to get them to play hard every single snap,” he said. “And we accomplished some of those things with the 4-2-5 but the kids were
Relentless pursuit of the ball. - Photo by Greg Pevey
“The real reward comes from football – this game teaches you so much. It teaches you responsibility, accountability and discipline and team effort. I’m proud of the guys that get to go on and play (in the NFL) and very few guys get that opportunity. And I’m proud for those guys who go on and make successful lives off the field.” hungry and they were embarrassed of how they played the year before.” In 12 regular season games, the Rebel defense allowed only 29 points per game, 385 yards and picked off 15 passes. But it’s quite a ways from league leading and National Champion Alabama who gave up only 11 points and 246 yards per game. Wommack admits he’s still in need of pieces as depth is the Rebels’ biggest issue. But with Freeze putting such a commitment into recruiting and every coach getting behind the mandate, talent is beating down the door in Oxford. Chris Kiffin inked enough high quality players that Scout.com honored him as the Recruiter of the Year in 2013. “It’s a process. We still don’t have the depth that we’d like and we’re not as strong at other
positions and it really just takes time to get your whole system in and the players you want in it,” Wommack said. “The work ethic in these kids is pretty impressive. They are hungry to get better. You want these kids to be able to buy into the program.” Help is on the way. “We had six true freshmen that started for us at one time or another and I’m sure this year we’ll have some guys – we signed the number one player in the nation so obviously he’s going to get some playing time. We signed seven, maybe eight total on defense last year and they’re all very good players and we’re very excited about them.” And there’s plenty more to come. Each coach has recruiting responsibilities. Wommack covers Arkansas and North Louisiana
– and that includes the Duck Dynasty hometown of West Monroe. “We kind of community recruit – everybody’s involved with every phase of it,” he said. “That’s one of Coach Freeze’s things that’s non negotiable. Those boys (Duck Dynasty) are in my area and I’d really like to get to know some of those boys.” Though he’ll have to wait until August to plug them into his 4-2-5, Wommack expects the freshmen to get plugged in quickly. He’ll be watching them in summer school and in their conditioning drills waiting for that first day of practice in August. After this past spring’s practice, Wommack is seeing his players get a better grasp of Freeze’s plans and his defense. “We talk to them about finishing strong every practice and every game,” he said. “Each and every play is important play and as it gets to you, you don’t panic. You play as hard as you can play and do the best that you can do and finish.” Working and playing in the SEC, Wommack knows his players still have a long ways to go to consistently compete in the ultracompetitive conference. “This is the best league in the country and we play some of the best offenses and defenses in the country. We still have a lot of work to do to get to where we need to be. Teams have recruited more years than we have so it’s an 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 43
ongoing process,” he said. Looking back at the 4-2-5, Wommack breaks it down for us a bit. “Three of the five are really safeties and two are corners,” he said. “And a couple of those safeties really have to have a lot of coverage skills more than you’d normally ask of a safety in a 4-3 defense. And that gives us the flexibility to adjust versus formations that are wide open without adjusting personnel. In this day and time with the tempo of offenses and the schemes offenses are running and the variety of offenses you see – you’re not having to change personnel every down like you used to.” And Wommack has an advantage over other SEC foes – he gets to face Hugh Freeze’s offense on a daily basis. Facing an offense that averaged 32 points, 174 yards on the ground and 250 through the air from multiple formations in the 2012 season helped Wommack sharpen his 4-2-5 for most anything opponents would throw at them. “It’s really a benefit for us to go against our offense because we see multiple formations – and I mean multiple shifts and different tempo speeds – for a defensive coordinator it’s a great opportunity. When I was at Georgia Tech we’d go against a triple option and we might see two formations and that puts you behind from a defensive standpoint. Whereas here, we get to see it all.” When Freeze took the Ole Miss position, Wommack knew exactly where he wanted to go. But he had to wait a bit and there were other offers for the defensive mastermind. “There was a little bit of time in there. I had to make a decision but I knew I wanted to be with Coach Freeze at Ole Miss,” he said. “It’s not just about football with him. He’s into
Wommack’s 4-2-5 defense sacked MSU QB Tyler Russell three times and limited Miss. State to just 115 total yards in the 2nd half of the 2012 Egg Bowl.
building men and I don’t think there are very many places that do that. I think a lot of people sell that but he’s sincere about that.” Wommack has enjoyed his football career and he’s not planning on slowing down any time soon. There’s plenty more to do at Ole Miss – with building men and football players. “The real reward comes from football – this game teaches you so much. It teaches you responsibility, accountability and discipline and team effort. I’m proud of the guys that get to go on and play (in the NFL) and very few guys get that opportunity. And I’m proud for those guys who go on and make successful lives off
the field.” And now that’s he’s at The University of Mississippi, in what little free time he gets away from the field and recruiting, Wommack likes to wander into his backyard – with a fishing pole. “I love the fishing lake that’s out by the house,” he said. “I grew up on a lake in Missouri and I’ve always loved anything to with the water and water sports. I don’t have as much time for skiing and swimming as I used to. Really, with my time, I’m not a golfer so it’s fishing for me. And my wife likes the quaintness of Oxford.” - RN
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2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 45
REBEL FAVORITES
The bond between two brothers is hard to break Brothers Denzel and Robert Nkemdiche look to become a terrorizing duo on the Landshark defense BY JAKE ADAMS RebelNation™ Magazine
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ovember 19, 2010, was one of the last times Denzel and Robert Nkemdiche walked off the field together as teammates. They had just led Grayson to a win in the hugely competitive 5A Georgia state high school playoffs against unbeaten and nationally ranked North Gwinnett. The brothers combined for several touchdowns at running back (just the thought of 285-pound defensive end Robert Nkemdiche at running back is simultaneously spectacular and terrifying), and dominated defensively in the shocking upset. It’s Denzel’s favorite memory of playing with his “little” brother. The moment he remembers fondest of all, though, was after the game as the brothers were surrounded by local reporters. “Robert told them that no matter what happens, he and I were going to play college ball together one day,” Denzel said. “That’s when the journey started.” Robert’s words to reporters on that night at Grayson two years ago explain the confidence Denzel had that he would be reunited with his brother throughout Robert’s high profile recruitment. Even as Robert committed to Clemson and visited other suitors Denzel was outwardly at peace that things would work out. Denzel never forgot their heroic perfor46 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
After the 2012 season, Denzel was named a First-Team Freshman All-American by the FWAA, College Football News, Scout. com and Phil Steele Magazine - Photo by Greg Pevey
DENZEL NKEMDICHE: BY THE NUMBERS 2012 G 12
SOLO 37
ASST. TOTAL 45 82
SACKS/YDS 3/22
TFL/YARDS 13/40
FF 4
FR 1
INT/YDS 3/48
mance at Grayson and Robert’s prediction they would play together again one day. Nearly three years later the Nkemdiche brothers’ journey will resume with Denzel and Robert playing on the same defense as teammates at Ole Miss, and they hope to have similar moments and make even better memories under the lights of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. And though their paths are finally set to converge on the Walk of Champions each brother’s journey to this point was remarkably different, making their reunion all the more special. Denzel, a sophomore, is 5-foot-11, 203 pounds and could be confused for a mere mortal in terms of size. He entered Ole Miss as a lightly-recruited outside linebacker and endured a redshirt season during Houston Nutt’s catastrophic final year. During that time Denzel had the odd distinction of be-
Nkemdiche recorded 11 tackles, three for a loss and ripped away two fumbles. Ole Miss lost the game, but won back the respect of its fans by its ferocious, unrelenting effort against the eventual BCS champs. It was on that night that Denzel made his own name. He was no longer the older brother of the nation’s top recruit. Instead he became Tasmanian Denzel and the emotional leader for the team both on the field and off. While Denzel’s ascension to that role might have been a surprise to some, if you go back to Grayson, where the journey started, it becomes readily apparent that Denzel was a born leader. He did the same thing back then, becoming a central figure for Grayson as a senior, playing primarily outside linebacker, but the way he inspired his teammates and made plays caused Grayson coach Mickey Conn to realize he needed Denzel on the field all the time.
Robert Nkemdiche - Photo courtesy Rivals.com
ing famous for sharing the same last name as his highly recruited younger brother. Denzel spent his first spring and August under head coach Hugh Freeze scrapping for playing time while fighting the stigma of being too small to be an SEC linebacker. But Nkemdiche ascended the ranks quickly and won the starting job, impressing coaches with a motor that defensive coordinator Dave Wommack says never quits and a style of play that reminded the coaches of the Looney Toons version of the Tasmanian Devil - that wide-eyed, snarling, growling cartoon monster that whirled its way through walls, trees and any other obstacle in its path with reckless abandon. It’s the same way Denzel treated would-be blockers. Against Alabama, a team the Rebels had been embarrassed by 52-7 a year before,
“We moved Denzel to offense, and he’s added emotion and energy and a will to win,” Conn told the Gwinnett Daily Post during Grayson’s 2010 playoff run. “He had a touchdown run against North Forsyth in which... he just threw (defenders) off. From that point, the energy of our team has gone up.” Denzel had a similar impact on the Ole Miss defense in 2012, leading a unit which had been one of the worst units in the SEC to one that led the conference in tackles for loss and ranked 2nd in sacks. The fiery linebacker led Ole Miss in tackles (82), 13 of which were for loss, forced four fumbles and snagged three interceptions. By season’s end what Denzel lacked in high school accolades and recruiting ratings he had more than made up for as a Rebel earning Freshman All-American and All-SEC honors. ESPN recognized him as the
No. 6 newcomer in the SEC. And while his play was impossible to ignore, Denzel’s charisma, outgoing personality, and fondness of Twitter elevated his popularity even more. Denzel is a fan favorite. “I just knew that if I got a shot I had to take advantage of it,” Denzel said. Mission accomplished. Though he may have started his career at Ole Miss as “Robert’s older brother” Denzel set the bar mighty high for Robert, but that’s the way they liked it in high school, and Denzel expects it will be the same way in Oxford. “We held each other more accountable more so than other teammates,” he said, “and we just expected the most out of each other and we couldn’t halfway do anything. We had to give it our all and we couldn’t get lazy, we needed each other to win the game.” The bar is high, but if there’s anybody with the potential to match or surpass the standard set by Denzel, it’s Robert. At 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, Robert arrives in Oxford having achieved stardom as the nation’s No. 1 recruit before his senior year in high school even began, and he is without a doubt the most highly sought-after player ever to set foot on campus at Ole Miss. Unlike his older brother, Robert won’t be able to disappear in a crowd. Though Denzel fought through a redshirt year and a position battle before finally earning the starting role Robert is expected to play immediately and he hasn’t even put on the practice uniform for the first time. And while Denzel got a taste of the spotlight this year playing for Ole Miss it was Robert who had the podium and the ESPN cameras all to himself on National Signing Day, as the college football nation set their alarm clocks early just to watch Robert’s Grayson High School letter jacket give way to a navy blue bow tie and Ole Miss suspenders beneath a bright red Ole Miss cap. The mere signing of the player some analysts have already tabbed as a future NFL player captured the attention of the ESPNwatching universe and will live on as one of the highlights in Ole Miss football history. Although expected to play as a true freshman, Robert will compete for time against C.J. Johnson, Channing Ward and Carlos Thompson. He’ll have an adjustment to make, and an older brother to show him the ropes. “We have the same exact goals,” Denzel said. “and by the grace of God everything worked out right that he ended up with me here. I’m looking forward to helping him mature and grow as a player and make the adjustment to college.” It’s been a long, winding road since that night at Grayson when the brothers proudly wore the same colored jerseys, but the wait is almost over. Soon the Brothers Nkemdiche will be teammates once more. - RN 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 47
SCHEDULEBREAKDOWN
A
s high as expectations are for Hugh Freeze’s Rebels in 2013, there’s still the reality in which Ole Miss finds itself - a member of the best division of the best conference in all of college football - the SEC where there are no gimme’s and no off weeks. Sure, there are plenty of good reasons for optimism not least of which is the return of 19 of 22 starters. Those returnees include nearly every skill position from an offense looking to improve on an impressive debut season running Hugh Freeze’s spread “tempo” system. There’s also an experienced defense with leadership like Mike Marry, Denzel Nkemdiche and Cody Prewitt along with young reinforcements in Robert Nkemdiche, Lavon Hooks and possibly even Nick Brassell ready to take Dave Wommack’s defense up another notch. All are reason enough to expect improvement from last year’s 7-6 (3-5 SEC) finish. But then there’s that schedule. Ole Miss must play four out of the first five games on the road in some of college football’s toughest venues. When the Rebels finally return home it’s to play the likes of Texas A&M and LSU. As Hugh Freeze has said time and again this off-season, the Rebels could be an improved football team, but finish with the same or similar record. Here’s the way this writer thinks it’ll all go down:
say about this game other than Ole Miss had better find a way to win. Otherwise the rest of the year loses a whole lot of meaning. Prediction: Ole Miss wins big.
August 29 at Vanderbilt 2012 record: 9-4, 5-3 SEC Returning starters: Offense: 7; Defense: 7 This Thursday night ESPN opener may be the Rebels’ most critical game of the season as a loss in Nashville would set a bad tone for a stretch that will include four Top 10 teams over first half of the season, and like all Vanderbilt games do when Ole Miss is playing, it has trouble written all over it. The Commodores are at the peak of their football existence. They have the SEC’s longest winning streak at seven, two straight winning seasons and two consecutive bowl games under brash young head coach James Franklin. Not only that, but Vanderbilt owns a three-year winning streak against Ole Miss. The word “Vandy”now sends a shudder down the spine of almost every Ole Miss fan. Early sports books list the Commodores as a 6.5-point favorite. BUT...the Commodores lost starting quarterback Jordan Rodgers and running back Zac Stacy to graduation, and an Ole Miss defense that finished 2nd in the SEC in sacks in 2012 should be good enough to cause problems for a new quarterback. The key to this game will be Ole Miss quarterback Bo Wallace. Will he be ready mentally and physically after missing an entire spring with an injured shoulder? I think he will. Prediction: Ole Miss by 1.
September 28 at Alabama 2012 record: 13-1, 7-1 SEC Returning Starters: Offense: 5; Defense 6 They’re the two-time defending BCS Champs and everybody’s favorite to make it three in a row. The Ole Miss defense will face yet another tough test against the likes of A.J. McCarron, T.J. Yeldon and Amari Cooper. The Rebels will be under attack from every angle just like last year when the Rebels ganged up on the run only to watch as McCarron hit Cooper for two big touchdown strikes. Expect Nick Saban’s offense to employ the same strategy in this one, putting a lot of pressure on corners Senquez Golson and Charles Sawyer. The play of those two corners and Nick Brassell’s eligibility will play a huge role in the outcome of this game. Last year Ole Miss quarterback Bo Wallace threw two interceptions against Alabama. If the Rebels hope to pull the giant upset they’ll have to beat Saban at his own game - playing mistake free football. Thanks to some SEC schedule re-arranging Ole Miss is playing the Tide in Tuscaloosa for a 2nd straight year, which doesn’t make the task any easier. Prediction: Alabama by 8.
September 7 Southeast Missouri 2012 record: 3-8, 2-6 Ohio Valley Conference Returning starters: Offense 6; Defense 3 Southeast Missouri is a scheduled win, but so was Jacksonville State, so good Rebels know better than to overlook an FCS opponent. And though it’s not the most attractive game on the slate for 2013 Ole Miss fans would do well to attend this one, because you won’t get another chance to set up a Grove tent until October 12 when Ole Miss hosts Texas A&M. The Redhawks won just three games in 2012, including wins against Mars Hill College, Tennessee Tech and Austin Peay. There’s just not much to 48 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
September 14 at Texas 2012 record: 9-4, 5-4 Big 12 Returning Starters: Offense: 10; Defense 9 Most members of the Ole Miss defense would probably be the first to tell you they wanted a doover after last year’s 66-31 thumping. The Rebels were inexperienced, young and just not ready for Mack Brown’s fast and powerful Texas Longhorns. The Texas game was a lesson that made defensive coordinator Dave Wommack’s defense grow up in a hurry, and probably inspired the Rebels to play much better against Alabama two weeks later. Ole Miss gets that 2nd chance against the Longhorns in Austin. There the Rebels will find quarterback David Ash, who threw for 326 yards and 4 touchdowns against a defense that just wasn’t equipped to defend the long ball, and running back Malcolm Brown, who rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns. Wommack said after last year’s thumping that his young group often didn’t have their eyes in the right place. We’ll know just how much the Ole Miss defense has improved since last year after this one. Prediction: Rebels lose a heartbreaker.
October 5 at Auburn 2012 record: 3-9, 0-8 SEC Returning starters: Offense: 9; Defense: 9 The Rebels return to the state of Alabama for the 2nd time in a week to play Gus Malzahn’s Auburn Tigers. The Tigers were lost on offense in their one year away from Malzahn, who left his role as Auburn’s offensive coordinator to replace Hugh Freeze at Arkansas State. As a result it was out with BCS Champion winner Gene Chizik and back in with Malzahn, who Auburn fans hope can rekindle the magic he had three years ago with Cam Newton. But there’s only one Newton and without him under center a magic show is not likely. However, the Tigers will be much more competent and energized under Malzahn. This is one of the games the Rebels have to win if they want to equal
or surpass last year’s 7-6 mark. Prediction: The Rebels will get it done, winning by 6. October 12 Texas A&M 2012 record: 11-2, 6-2 SEC Returning starters: Offense 6; Defense 6 Of the ones that got away in 2012 this one probably hurt the most. The Rebels had Texas A&M and their future Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Johnny Manziel right where they wanted them - down by 10 late in the 4th quarter. But that’s when Manziel orchestrated two touchdown drives, one a 99-yarder, and furthered the legend that led to his Heisman. The Aggies went on to beat Alabama and abuse Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl, and now, with Manziel back leading the way, Texas A&M is a popular preseason Top 5 selection. Thanks to the same schedule formatting that caused a repeat trip to Tuscaloosa, Ole Miss gets A&M at home for the 2nd straight year. Replacing nearly half of its offense and its defense the Aggies may be a little over-rated. Plus, Heisman Trophy winners often struggle in their 2nd years. It’s just a hunch. The same defense that nearly corralled Manziel a year ago will have enough depth and experience to get the job done this time, giving Hugh Freeze his first major upset as head coach at Ole Miss. Prediction: Ole Miss by 1. October 19 LSU 2012 record: 10-3, 6-2 SEC Returning starters: Offense 9; Defense 3 If Texas A&M hurt Ole Miss the most in 2012 then LSU was a close 2nd. Ole Miss gave the Tigers everything they wanted and more, but the Rebel defense just didn’t quite have enough in the tank at the end to stop the Tigers when it counted. With the return of quarterback Zack Mettenberger and the always stocked stable of running backs and wide receivers at LSU’s disposal the Tigers should have an improved offense under new offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. Should. But I can’t help but wonder if Les Miles will somehow muck it up. You’re probably wondering the same thing. Despite Miles, Ole Miss will have its hands full. And although I think the Rebels will be an improved football team I can’t see them upsetting both A&M and the Tigers in the same season. I already picked the Rebels to upset the Aggies. That’s the only reason why... Prediction: LSU by 3. October 26 Idaho 2012 record: 1-11, 1-5 WAC Returning starters: Offense 7; Defense 4 Last year’s record speaks for itself, and most of those losses weren’t even close. The Vandals, members of the WAC, may have the same colors as Vanderbilt, but they won’t be near as tough. Idaho finished second-to-last in the FBS last fall in scoring offense (15.8 points per game) and third-to-last in scoring defense (42.4 points per game), which means the Vandals were very bad. This is Idaho’s first year under head coach Paul Petrino (younger brother of Bobby). Petrino stayed on as offensive coordinator of Arkansas in Bobby’s forced absence and is familiar with Ole Miss. It won’t matter. Prediction: Ole Miss by 35. November 9 Arkansas 2012 record: 4-8, 6-2 SEC Returning starters: Offense 5; Defense 8 Don’t let the fact that new Arkansas head coach Brett Bielema is from the Big 10 lull you into thinking he can’t cut it in the SEC. LSU once hired a Big 10 coach,
and it worked out pretty well for them. Nick Saban made his way to Baton Rouge by way of Michigan State. If Bielema is the next Saban we probably won’t find out this year. Bielema will have his hands full with some rebuilding for the next year or so. The Razorbacks must replace six starters on offense, including departed NFL quarterback Tyler Wilson. That and the comfort of home should be enough to give Ole Miss an edge. Prediction: Ole Miss by 3. November 17 Troy 2012 record: 5-7, 3-5 Sun Belt Returning starters: Offense 4; Defense 3. The Trojans return just 7 of 22 offensive and defensive starters. Ole Miss should have the advantage, but look out because Troy has a way of getting up for big games. Last year the Trojans knocked off Navy and gave good scares to Tennessee and Mississippi State. Freeze won’t let his team overlook Troy, as Ole Miss should be fighting for better bowl positioning by this point. Prediction: Ole Miss by 14. November 23 Missouri 2012 record: 5-7, 2-6 SEC Returning starters: Offense 8; Defense 6. While Texas A&M entered the SEC with a bang, Missouri’s first year in its new conference was more akin to running face first into a brick wall. With an experienced quarterback returning in James Franklin and more familiarity with the conference look for Missouri to be an improved team in 2013. Franklin could cause problems for the Ole Miss defense, but VaughtHemingway Stadium will carry the Rebels through. It’ll still be close. Prediction: Ole Miss by 2. November 28 at Mississippi State 2012 record: 8-5, 4-4 SEC Returning starters: Offense 6; Defense 5. The Egg Bowl returns to its once familiar spot on Thanksgiving night for ESPN, but Dan Mullen’s Bulldogs are in the unfamiliar position of being the team seeking revenge after losing to the Rebels 41-24 in 2012 for the first time since Mullen took the helm in Starkville. State won’t get payback this year. The Bulldogs have been trending down since losing to Alabama last October, losing five of their last six. The Egg Bowl loss and a hapless performance in a 34-20 loss to Northwestern in the Gator Bowl took the air out of the Maroon and White sails. Mullen will forever be known as the coach who brought out the best in Tim Tebow, but like his ex-quarterback Mullen seems to have lost his mojo. I’m not convinced he’ll get it back. Prediction: Ole Miss by 10. Ole Miss finishes the season 9-3, earns a trip to the Gator Bowl and instantly becomes a popular Top 10 pick for 2014 with the core of Bo Wallace, Donte Moncrief and the Nkemdiche brothers set to return for another season. But you’ll have to wait until next July for those predictions! - RN RebelNation™ Staff Prediction: 9-3 (Overall) 6-2 SEC Bowl Game: Gator
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 49
2013SECSCHEDULES ALABAMA
ARKANSAS
AUBURN
FLORIDA
GEORGIA
Aug. 31............Virginia Tech#
Aug. 31.............. LA-Lafayette
Aug. 31..... Washington State
Aug. 31......................... Toledo
Aug. 31.................. @Clemson
Sep. 7.............................OPEN
Sep. 7........................Samford
Sep. 7............Arkansas State
Sep. 7...............@Miami (Fla.)
Sep. 7.............South Carolina
Sep. 14.............@Texas A&M
Sep. 14...........Southern Miss
Sep. 14.................Miss. State
Sep. 14...........................OPEN
Sep. 14...........................OPEN
Sep. 21.......... Colorado State
Sep. 21....................@Rutgers
Sep. 21.......................... @LSU
Sep. 21..................Tennessee
Sep. 21..... North Texas State
Sep. 28..................... Ole Miss
Sep. 28................ Texas A&M
Sep. 28...........................OPEN
Sep. 28.................@Kentucky
Sep. 28..............................LSU
Oct. 5............... Georgia State
Oct. 5........................ @Florida
Oct. 5........................ Ole Miss
Oct. 5....................... Arkansas
Oct. 5................. @Tennessee
Oct. 12.......Western Carolina
Oct. 12........................... @LSU
Oct. 12...................... Missouri
Oct. 19...................@Alabama
Oct. 19..............@Texas A&M
Oct. 19...................@Missouri
Oct. 19................ @Vanderbilt
Oct. 26............................OPEN
Oct. 26...........Florida Atlantic
Oct. 26............................OPEN
Oct. 26............................OPEN
Nov. 2.......................Georgia#
Nov. 2.........................Florida*
Nov. 9.....................Vanderbilt
Nov. 9......Appalachian State
Nov. 16....... @South Carolina
Nov. 16.................... @Auburn
Nov. 23..... Georgia Southern
Nov. 23.................... Kentucky
Nov. 30.............. Florida State
Nov. 30..........@Georgia Tech
#Jacksonville, Fla.
#Jacksonville, Fla.
Oct. 12..................@Kentucky Oct. 19..................... Arkansas Oct. 26...................Tennessee Nov. 2.............................OPEN Nov. 9................................LSU Nov. 16............. @Miss. State Nov. 12.............. Chattanooga Nov. 30.................... @Auburn #Georgia Dome
Oct. 12............South Carolina
Nov. 2..........................Auburn
Nov. 2...................@Arkansas
Nov. 9....................@Ole Miss
Nov. 9................ @Tennessee
Nov. 16...........................OPEN
Nov. 16.......................Georgia
Nov. 23.................Miss. State
Nov. 23...........................OPEN
Nov. 30.......................... @LSU
Nov. 30..................... Alabama
KENTUCKY
LOUISIANA ST.
MISS. STATE
MISSOURI
OLE MISS
Aug. 31.... Western Kentucky
Aug. 31............................TCU#
Aug. 31.......Oklahoma State#
Aug. 31............. Murray State
Aug. 29.............. at Vanderbilt
Sep. 7...................Miami (OH)
Sep. 7...............................UAB
Sep. 7.................Alcorn State
Sep. 7........................... Toledo
Sep. 7..................SE Missouri
Sep. 14.................... Louisville
Sep. 14.................. Kent State
Sep. 14.................... @Auburn
Sep. 14...........................OPEN
Sep. 14...................... at Texas
Sep. 21...........................OPEN
Sep. 21........................Auburn
Sep. 21..............................Troy
Sep. 21.................... @Indiana
Sep. 21...........................OPEN
Sep. 28................... @Georgia
Sep. 28...........................OPEN
Sep. 28..........Arkansas State
Sep. 28.................at Alabama
Oct. 5................ @Miss. State
Oct. 5.................................LSU
Oct. 5.................. @Vanderbilt
Oct. 12..........................Florida
Oct. 12........... Bowling Green
Oct. 5...................... at Auburn
Oct. 19...................@Ole Miss
Oct. 19............................OPEN
Oct. 12.................... @Georgia
Oct. 12................. Texas A&M
Oct. 26.........................Furman
Oct. 24..................... Kentucky
Oct. 19..........................Florida
Oct. 19...............................LSU
Nov. 2.............................OPEN
Nov. 2......... @South Carolina
Oct. 26............South Carolina
Oct. 26............................Idaho
Nov. 9....................@Alabama
Nov. 9...............@Texas A&M
Nov. 2....................Tennessee
Nov. 2.............................OPEN
Nov. 16...........................OPEN
Nov. 16..................... Alabama
Nov. 9...................@Kentucky
Nov. 9...................... Arkansas
Nov. 23................ Texas A&M
Nov. 23.................@Arkansas
Nov. 16...........................OPEN
Nov. 16..............................Troy
Nov. 30.................... Arkansas
Nov. 28..................... Ole Miss
Nov. 23..................@Ole Miss
Nov. 23..................... Missouri
#Cowboys Stadium, Arlington, TX
#Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Nov. 30................ Texas A&M
Nov. 28............ at Miss. State
Sep. 28.........................Florida Oct. 5.......... @South Carolina Oct. 12...................... Alabama Oct. 19............................OPEN Oct. 24.............. @Miss. State Nov. 2.............Alabama State Nov. 9....................... Missouri Nov. 16............... @Vanderbilt Nov. 23................... @Georgia Nov. 30..................Tennessee
S. CAROLINA
TENNESSEE
TEXAS A&M
VANDY
Aug. 29...........North Carolina
Aug. 31................Austin Peay
Aug. 31............................. Rice
Aug. 29..................... Ole Miss
Sep. 7..................... @Georgia
Sep. 7...... Western Kentucky
Sep. 7.....Sam Houston State
Sep. 7................Ausstin Peay
Sep. 14...................Vanderbilt
Sep. 14.................... @Oregon
Sep. 14..................... Alabama
Sep. 14....... @South Carolina
Sep. 21...........................OPEN
Sep. 21..................... @Florida
Sep. 21............................ SMU
Sep. 21................... @UMASS
Sep. 28....... @Central Florida
Sep. 28..........South Alabama
Oct. 5....................... Kentucky
Oct. 5..........................Georgia
Oct. 12..................@Arkansas
Oct. 12............................OPEN
Oct. 19............... @Tennessee
Oct. 19............South Carolina
Oct. 26...................@Missouri
Oct. 26...................@Alabama
Nov. 2...................Miss. State
Nov. 2....................@Missouri
Sep. 28.................@Arkansas Oct. 5..............................OPEN Oct. 12...................@Ole Miss Oct. 19.........................Auburn Oct. 26....................Vanderbilt
Sep. 28.............................UAB Oct. 5........................ Missouri Oct. 12............................OPEN Oct. 19........................Georgia Oct. 26..............@Texas A&M Nov. 2.............................OPEN
Nov. 9.............................OPEN
Nov. 9..........................Auburn
Nov. 9...................Miss. State
Nov. 16.........................Florida
Nov. 16...........................OPEN
Nov. 16...........................OPEN
Nov. 16.................... Kentucky
Nov. 23........Coastal Carolina
Nov. 23...................Vanderbilt
Nov. 23.......................... @LSU
Nov. 23.............. @Tennessee
Nov. 30......................Clemson
Nov. 30.................@Kentucky
Nov. 30..................@Missouri
Nov. 30...............Wake Forest
50 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Nov. 9....................... @Florida
2012SECTEAMSTATS SCORING OFFENSE.........G TD XP 2XP DXP FG Saf Pts Avg 1. Texas A&M................... 13 78 69 0 1 13 0 578 44.5 2. Alabama....................... 14 71 69 1 0 15 0 542 38.7 3. Georgia......................... 14 72 63 3 0 8 2 529 37.8 4. Tennessee.................... 12 56 49 1 0 15 1 434 36.2 5. South Carolina............. 13 54 51 0 1 11 0 410 31.5 6. Ole Miss............... 13 51 49 0 0 18 0 409 31.5 7. Vanderbilt..................... 13 47 46 0 0 20 1 390 30.0 8. LSU................................ 13 46 44 1 0 21 1 387 29.8 9. Mississippi State......... 13 49 47 0 0 14 0 383 29.5 10.Florida.......................... 13 39 36 1 0 24 0 344 26.5 11.Missouri....................... 12 39 33 0 0 14 0 309 25.8 12.Arkansas..................... 12 35 33 0 0 13 0 282 23.5 13.Auburn......................... 12 27 27 0 0 11 1 224 18.7 14.Kentucky...................... 12 27 27 0 0 8 1 215 17.9
PASS OFFENSE.................G 1. Texas A&M................... 13 2. Tennessee.................... 12 3. Arkansas...................... 12 4. Georgia......................... 14 5. Ole Miss....................... 13 6. South Carolina............. 13 7. Mississippi State......... 13 8. Alabama....................... 14 9. Missouri........................ 12 10.Vanderbilt.................... 13 11.LSU............................... 13 12.Kentucky...................... 12 13.Auburn......................... 12 14.Florida.......................... 13
RUSHING OFFENSE.........G 1. Texas A&M................... 13 2. Alabama....................... 14 3. Florida........................... 13 4. Georgia......................... 14 5. Ole Miss....................... 13 6. LSU................................ 13 7. Vanderbilt..................... 13 8. Tennessee.................... 12 9. Auburn.......................... 12 10.Mississippi State........ 13 11.Kentucky...................... 12 12.Missouri....................... 12 13.South Carolina............ 13 14.Arkansas..................... 12
TOTAL OFFENSE................G Rush Pass Plays Yards Avg/P TD Yds/G 1. Texas A&M.................... 13 3147 4114 1025 7261 7.1 74 558.5 2. Tennessee..................... 12 1924 3787 890 5711 6.4 53 475.9 3. Georgia.......................... 14 2556 3991 924 6547 7.1 69 467.6 4. Alabama........................ 14 3185 3052 898 6237 6.9 68 445.5 5. Ole Miss........................ 13 2260 3249 962 5509 5.7 49 423.8 6. Arkansas....................... 12 1424 3618 826 5042 6.1 35 420.2 7. Mississippi State.......... 13 1874 3091 848 4965 5.9 46 381.9 8. Vanderbilt...................... 13 2162 2774 874 4936 5.6 42 379.7 9. South Carolina.............. 13 1800 3095 856 4895 5.7 48 376.5 10.LSU................................ 13 2258 2607 883 4865 5.5 41 374.2 11.Missouri........................ 12 1662 2615 867 4277 4.9 31 356.4 12.Florida........................... 13 2440 1902 827 4342 5.3 35 334.0 13.Kentucky....................... 12 1665 2115 790 3780 4.8 26 315.0 14.Auburn.......................... 12 1781 1879 695 3660 5.3 24 305.0
Att 533 570 539 525 551 527 524 413 438 424 403 453 491 367
Yds 3147 3185 2440 2556 2260 2258 2162 1924 1781 1874 1665 1662 1800 1424
Avg TD Yds/G 5.9 46 242.1 5.6 37 227.5 4.5 22 187.7 4.9 32 182.6 4.1 25 173.8 4.3 29 173.7 4.1 25 166.3 4.7 18 160.3 4.1 16 148.4 4.4 18 144.2 4.1 13 138.8 3.7 16 138.5 3.7 19 138.5 3.9 12 118.7
Att Cmp Int Pct. Yds Avg 492 329 10 66.9 4114 8.4 477 285 14 59.7 3787 7.9 459 272 16 59.3 3618 7.9 399 254 11 63.7 3991 10.0 411 261 18 63.5 3249 7.9 365 225 9 61.6 3095 8.5 424 249 10 58.7 3091 7.3 328 219 3 66.8 3052 9.3 414 228 14 55.1 2615 6.3 350 207 5 59.1 2774 7.9 356 208 7 58.4 2607 7.3 387 220 10 56.8 2115 5.5 257 147 15 57.2 1879 7.3 288 183 5 63.5 1902 6.6
TD Yds/G 28 316.5 35 315.6 23 301.5 37 285.1 24 249.9 29 238.1 28 237.8 31 218.0 15 217.9 17 213.4 12 200.5 13 176.2 8 156.6 13 146.3
SCORING DEFENSE.........G TD XP 2XP DXP FG Saf Pts Avg 1. Alabama....................... 14 20 18 0 0 5 0 153 10.9 2. Florida........................... 13 21 18 0 1 14 0 188 14.5 3. LSU................................ 13 29 24 0 0 10 0 228 17.5 4. South Carolina............. 13 27 24 0 0 17 0 237 18.2 5. Vanderbilt..................... 13 27 23 2 0 18 0 243 18.7 6. Georgia......................... 14 34 30 1 0 13 0 275 19.6 7. Texas A&M................... 13 36 29 1 0 12 0 283 21.8 8. Mississippi State......... 13 37 36 0 0 15 0 303 23.3 9. Ole Miss....................... 13 44 40 1 0 17 1 359 27.6 10.Auburn......................... 12 44 44 0 0 10 1 340 28.3 11.Missouri....................... 12 45 40 1 0 9 1 341 28.4 12.Arkansas..................... 12 47 44 0 0 13 0 365 30.4 13.Kentucky...................... 12 48 41 2 0 13 0 372 31.0 14.Tennessee................... 12 53 46 2 0 20 0 428 35.7
PASS DEFENSE................G Att Cmp Int Pct. Yds Avg 1. Alabama....................... 14 397 217 18 54.7 2431 6.1 2. Georgia......................... 14 351 200 13 57.0 2459 7.0 3. Vanderbilt..................... 13 432 232 11 53.7 2493 5.8 4. Florida........................... 13 444 231 20 52.0 2498 5.6 5. South Carolina............. 13 379 213 15 56.2 2533 6.7 6. LSU................................ 13 457 254 18 55.6 2678 5.9 7. Mississippi State......... 13 414 265 19 64.0 2883 7.0 8. Auburn.......................... 12 358 235 2 65.6 2675 7.5 9. Kentucky....................... 12 367 247 5 67.3 2757 7.5 10.Missouri....................... 12 401 261 7 65.1 2897 7.2 11.Ole Miss...................... 13 427 268 15 62.8 3205 7.5 12.Texas A&M.................. 13 485 281 12 57.9 3259 6.7 13.Tennessee................... 12 446 272 12 61.0 3390 7.6 14.Arkansas..................... 12 419 262 6 62.5 3430 8.2
TD Yds/G 8 173.6 13 175.6 7 191.8 7 192.2 18 194.8 15 206.0 17 221.8 20 222.9 21 229.8 19 241.4 22 246.5 17 250.7 26 282.5 24 285.8
RUSHING DEFENSE.........G Rushes Yards 1. Alabama....................... 14 440 1069 2. Florida........................... 13 413 1229 3. LSU................................ 13 440 1321 4. South Carolina............. 13 504 1569 5. Arkansas...................... 12 440 1489 6. Ole Miss....................... 13 483 1681 7. Texas A&M................... 13 487 1814 8. Vanderbilt..................... 13 482 1848 9. Missouri........................ 12 451 1791 10.Kentucky...................... 12 481 1935 11.Mississippi State........ 13 504 2153 12.Georgia........................ 14 616 2550 13.Tennessee .................. 12 477 2266 14.Auburn......................... 12 484 2371
TOTAL DEFENSE...............G Rush Pass Plys Yards Avg 1. Alabama....................... 14 1069 2431 837 3500 4.2 2. Florida........................... 13 1229 2498 857 3727 4.3 3. LSU................................ 13 1321 2678 897 3999 4.5 4. South Carolina............. 13 1569 2533 883 4102 4.6 5. Vanderbilt..................... 13 1848 2493 914 4341 4.7 6. Georgia......................... 14 2550 2459 967 5009 5.2 7. Ole Miss....................... 13 1681 3205 910 4886 5.4 8. Mississippi State......... 13 2153 2883 918 5036 5.5 9. Texas A&M................... 13 1814 3259 972 5073 5.2 10.Missouri....................... 12 1791 2897 852 4688 5.5 11.Kentucky...................... 12 1935 2757 848 4692 5.5 12.Arkansas..................... 12 1489 3430 859 4919 5.7 13.Auburn......................... 12 2371 2675 842 5046 6.0 14.Tennessee................... 12 2266 3390 923 5656 6.1
TD Yds/G 18 250.0 19 286.7 29 307.6 27 315.5 24 333.9 30 357.8 39 375.8 33 387.4 35 390.2 45 390.7 46 391.0 45 409.9 43 420.5 51 471.3
Avg. 2.4 3.0 3.0 3.1 3.4 3.5 3.7 3.8 4.0 4.0 4.3 4.1 4.8 4.9
TD Yds/G 10 76.4 12 94.5 14 101.6 9 120.7 21 124.1 17 129.3 18 139.5 17 142.2 26 149.2 25 161.2 16 165.6 17 182.1 25 188.8 23 197.6
2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 51
REBELLEGENDS
The ‘First Lady’ of Ole Miss Sports Perian Conerly is known for more than just being the wife of football legend Charlie Conerly, she was also a nationally syndicated sports columnist and author BY CHUCK STINSON Contributing Writer
Photos Courtesy of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum
A
ll you have to know about Perian Conerly is that when she was contacted about doing the interview for this piece, she was just settling in to watch Ole Miss and Mississippi State play a basketball game on television and wanted to wait until after the game to talk. The Delta native and widow of Charlie Conerly loves her sports. She has always loved the games and the competition. “I’ve always been an outdoor person. I was always roller skating on the sidewalk, playing football and softball with the boys. I’ve always liked to play games and been interested in sports.” If Mississippi (and Ole Miss) were to ever name a first lady of sports, Perian would have to be at or near the top of the list. Raised in Clarksdale she claims the title of tomboy to this day. For a woman born in 1926, Conerly still plays golf on a regular basis and just gave up tennis a few years ago. “I play with all the old men like I am. In fact, three of them are older than me. One of them is 93 and he is the only one that can see the golf balls”, she says with a laugh. “It takes us less time to play when he is in the group. We spend half our time looking for the balls in the rough but we have a good time.” Her love of football came prior to meeting the love of her life, Charlie. Her dad was the one who helped spark her interest in the game that would eventually help to shape a major portion of her life. “We used to go to the high school games and I would just run around in the stands playing. One day my dad sat down and got some cardboard and drew off a field and showed me the principles of football. He
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explained the game to me early so I would appreciate seeing it.” She has appreciated football ever since. She still tunes into NFL broadcast every Sunday via the NFL ticket. She also attends two to three New York Giants games a year as well as Ole Miss home games and watches the Rebels away games and the rest of the SEC on TV. “I’m an SEC fan. I don’t care about Yale and Connecticut or whatever.” Aside from an occasional mystery, sports make up the majority of her viewing habits. “I just enjoy watching them. It’s my favorite thing on TV. I just enjoy sports.” If Perian’s love of sports, and football in particular, was nurtured by her father it blossomed with a romance. Charlie Conerly was a star athlete at Clarksdale and at Ole Miss. “(Charlie) was five years older than me. I didn’t know him in high school. I knew who he was because he was the big hometown football hero. I was a lifeguard at the city pool and a
friend introduced us and we started going out. We got engaged but I had another year at the “W” and he played his first year with the Giants in 1948 while I finished school and we were married right after I graduated.” Drafted in 1945 by the Washington Redskins, Charlie Conerly served a stint in the Marines before getting his NFL career started with the Giants in 1948. He was an instant success with the Giants being named the NFL Rookie of the Year. Perian could have won an award for rookie of the year during her first year in New York as well if they gave one to wives. Her outgoing personality and southern charm made her a team and city favorite. So much so that a little hometown column she was doing for the Clarksdale Press Register turned into a syndicated column that ran nationally. “People (in Mississippi) would ask me questions when we were up there in New York, ‘Do you really like New York?’ So I thought they
don’t really know anything. I started writing a little weekly column. It was about sports and about New York and about what we did and the celebrities we met and the Jackson Daily News picked it up.” The syndication of her work came after she had showed an editor some of the insight she could offer after he originally had decided that was not what they were looking for in her writing. “He said this was very nice but not what we had in mind. Then I whipped out one that we had done about men impersonating players. Getting a free meal or bumming some money or something illegal like that. He said this is what we wanted and to have one a week. So it was syndicated and the New York Times picked it up which you know they rarely, at least in those times, picked up syndicated material and it went all over the country.” Her columns also found their way into Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News. Asked what Charlie thought about her musings she offered this, “He was kind of amused. First I would let Pat Sumrall read over each column then I’d let Charlie read them over to prevent any silly mistakes. I think he thought it was cute maybe. I really did enjoy it.” She was so well respected that she became the first woman to be a member of the Football Writers Association of America. “We knew all of the sportswriters and we would see them and we would mingle with them. One of them said that I needed to be in the Football Writer’s Association of America. I said, ‘Well yes, that would be good.’ So he said since my name is spelled the way it is they would just slip it in. I said, ‘Do they let women in?’ and he said, “I don’t know but they will never know’. He got me in and I had a little press card that I carried for years.” Even though her husband had guided the Giants to an NFL title in 1956, won an MVP in 1959 and was the (original) Marlboro Man in a high profile ad campaign, Perian was almost as big a star in New York as Charlie. She was featured on the hit TV show “What’s My Line” and was approached by two publishers to do a book, eventually penning Backseat Quarterback, a book about her life with Charlie and the Giants, that was printed in 1963 and reprinted in 2003. Her sports writing ended when Charlie’s career closed after 14 years with the Giants. A career that has not been recognized as one worthy of Hall of Fame status by the Professional Football Writers and one she isn’t sure ever will be deemed worthy of enshrinement now. “He missed his chance. He should have gotten in way back and now people don’t remember. The statistics just don’t add up. I think they had so many from the Giants that after a little bit they just decided….I don’t know. I don’t know why he is not in. He should be.” Charlie Conerly was well known for being humble but even he, in a non boastful man2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 53
ner, was a little surprised at his absence from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. “He never did talk about that”, said Perian. “But one time he told me he thought he would be in the Pro Hall of Fame but not the College Hall of Fame because Ole Miss lost all the films of him playing. So he thought they wouldn’t put him in with not having any films of his games.” His ability didn’t need any verification on film apparently, Conerly was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1966. Perian’s charm and outspokenness were a perfect fit for Charlie’s shyness. “I think he knew how good he was. He never let on that he knew. He was very soft spoken and quiet. Frank Gifford would say to the sportswriters who would interview him from time to time, ‘You’d better have his wife there or you’re not going to have much of an interview.’ I would prompt him when the guy would ask a question and Charlie would say, ‘Oh I don’t know’ then I would pipe up and blow his horn for him.” Life after football did not change the love of football or sports for the Conerlys. “We played a little tennis together and of course enjoyed football even after he quit we enjoyed it on television. We would play golf almost every day in the afternoon after my Bridge game.” 54 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
(Above) Perian and Charlie at home in New York with his 1959 NFL MVP trophy. (Bottom) Perian at a New York Giants game with Frank Gifford and Y.A. Tittle.
Prior to Charlie’s death in 1996 the two would marvel at the way the game has changed over the years from the big bucks to the big egos. “They get paid a lot, which is good for them. They act so silly in the end zone and he hated that. The ‘showboating in the end zone’. The ‘look at me, look at me.’ He didn’t begrudge them the money but he thinks they could behave a little better. I think the same thing. When Charlie would score he would just hand the referee the ball instead of all the gyrating and stuff.” The most Charlie made playing with the Giants was $30,000 which at the time was good money but obviously nothing compared to the millions the players are making these days. Perian lamented the fact that the players don’t know what to do with all that money and recounted a story about how that was the case even during the days Charlie was playing. “The Giants owners would hold out a week’s pay and give it to them at the end because some of the guys would have to borrow money to get home. They (the Giants) would divide the players checks up by 13 instead of 12.” (The NFL played 12 games during the regular season at that time.) Despite how big the games, stadiums, players and salaries have become Perian will continue to watch. It’s in her blood. Football is and always will be a way of life for this self professed tomboy from Clarksdale who was married to the man they named the trophy after that is given to the best college football player in Mississippi every year since 1996. A trophy that could as easily be named the Conerly’s Trophy. - RN
Perian at the 2009 Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
BE EARLY. BE LOUD. lock the vaught! 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 55
REBELPROFILE
TOUCHDOWN OLE MISS!
Whether it’s Ole Miss football, basketball or baseball you love, you’ve likely heard the voice of David Kellum - Voice of the Ole Miss Rebels. BY JOHN DAVIS Contributing Writer
Photo courtesy Ole Miss Media Relations
F
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or Lafayette County native David Kellum, radio, and calling the action for the Ole Miss Rebels, has been a passion for over 30 years. Kellum’s style is quintessentially his own and from the description of the action before, during and after the game, his allegiance to the Rebels never falters. There doesn’t seem to be a point in Kellum’s life where he wasn’t on the radio. From the time he was a senior at Lafayette County High School, Kellum has been doing play-by-play for some team, somewhere. In his early days, he called high school football games and football for Northwest Mississippi Community College. Since 1989, he’s called the action for all three major sports at Ole Miss, and loved every minute doing it. His love for sports goes back to his childhood and high school days when he was a four-sport athlete himself. It was the understanding of sports, and wanting to remain in the sports world, that ultimately led him into his current occupation. “I enjoy this now as much as I did day one. When I was in high school, I played football, basketball, baseball, tennis and ran track for a little while. I was too slow for track so they basically kicked me off the track team. But I played four sports
and I love them all,” Kellum said. “Back then you really didn’t emphasize just one sport. I was pretty good in all of them, an average high school player, not a great high school player. I actually got an offer to play football at Northwest. I went to one of their games and saw how bad I would get killed and decided that wasn’t for me.” “I always had this desire to do radio even at a young age. I thought that I could be on the radio, be a radio announcer. I don’t know if I had enough insight to know I wasn’t going to be in the Major Leagues or a college athlete,” Kellum added. “I thought it would be cool to be in radio. At Lafayette, we started a gifted program called “Gateway” and Ricky (Mize) and Jim Smith did a weekly radio show my senior year for the school and out of that we all ended up in radio.” Kellum’s first big break in radio happened thanks to his mother working at Ole Miss in the theater department. When he was visiting her on campus, he happened to overhear a man asking about somebody who could broadcast the Southeastern Conference baseball tournament that was being held at the old Swayze Field. Kellum jumped at the opportunity, and his career in radio started. “My goal from the beginning was to try and get into sports broadcasting. I wanted to be the voice of the Rebels some day. I didn’t know if I could actually do that because I really appreciate how hard it is to get one of these jobs. There are only 14 people in the world that are doing Southeastern Conference lead announcing jobs. I’m one of 14. It used to be just 10. Then you throw basketball in there and doing all three major sports, there are only like four or five of us doing that,” Kellum said. “My senior year at high school, I was out at my mother’s office. She was in theater and radio and TV were under her office at that time. It was the first SEC Tournament in ‘77 and the campus wanted to broadcast it. I don’t know why. It would have been on campus only so that three teachers could even hear it.”
Photo courtesy Ole Miss Sports Information
Ole Miss. He started from the ground level, hosting the pregame show for football, and doing the sideline reports. He continued to broadcast the Ole Miss baseball home games in 1978 and in the meantime, he also did women’s basketball. Then in 1989, he added the two other major sports to his resume. Kellum said he will never forget the call he got from radio owner Steve Davenport telling me I would be the new “Voice of the Rebels” before the 1989 season.
ing to be the ‘Voice of the Rebels.’ That was awesome for me to hear because I grew up wanting to do it and admiring the people that were doing it.” Davenport gave Kellum some advice on how to call the games, but he really remembers the advice he received from former Ole Miss Athletics Director Warner Alford shortly after he was hired. “Warner called me and asked me to come by his office. Knowing Warner in those days,
“If you call me a homer, you’re right. If you don’t like it, too bad. If you picked me up and put me at another school or on the Major League level, could I do those games and not be a homer? Absolutely. It wouldn’t be a problem at all.” “They didn’t have anyone that could do it and I heard this guy talking about it walking through the hall and I said ‘I can do it.’ I wasn’t even an Ole Miss student. He didn’t know that and I wasn’t going to tell him. I did the SEC Tournament for the campus radio station my senior year in high school.” At that point in Kellum’s life, getting on the radio, anywhere, was all he cared about. Luckily for him, his experience broadcasting the SEC Tournament parlayed into a future with
“I had been doing women’s basketball and baseball for 10 years, so it’s not that they didn’t know who I was. When the job opened up, when Tom Stocker was here, I was hoping to have an opportunity. I put in my resume and all of that. I did follow through and sent some audio for them to listen to,” Kellum said. “They looked at a lot of professional people, they really did, and then they called me. Steve called me and said look, I’m about to make your day. I said what’s that? He said you’re go-
you didn’t want to go by his office. I went by and he told me about this broadcast you’re going to do,” Kellum said. “He told me that there were two things he wanted me to remember. He said you have got to give the score a lot. I pretty much knew that already, but I was about to do the big sport and he wanted me to take care of business. The second thing he said he always wanted me to remember was that the coaches and the players are the stars, not you.” 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 57
“I took that to heart, I really did. There was no reason for me to try and become some personality or some celebrity. It has happened, I am because I feel that from fans on a regular basis. But I had no intentions of ever doing that. I wanted to put the coaches first and the players first.” Kellum has become a celebrity, whether he likes it or not, because of what he does and the way he executes his job. He said he studied several people in the business along the way, including Mississippi State’s legendary Jack Cristil and former Ole Miss announcer Stan Torgeson, and then added his own mark to calling the action. “Even at Ole Miss, we didn’t have a play-byplay school. A lot of the radio guys, you’ve got to do so much more than just a television guy. You’re having to give a lot of details that someone can visually see on television. I learned that at an early age. But I listened to everybody. People will give you advice and Jack did. Jack Cristil, back when I became the ‘Voice of the Rebels,’ back in ‘89, he called me and congratulated me. You would think that Ole Miss and State is always hate, hate, hate, but he was wonderful to me. He told me he looked forward to working with me,” Kellum said. “Jack Cristil, even to this day, is still one of the best technicians in broadcasting. He was extremely efficient about down and distance. He would say that the fans didn’t have any eyes so to make sure that they always knew what was going on. What the time on the clock was, give the score until you’re sick of doing it.” “I worked with Stan. I would say that my style is as close to Stan as anybody else. The unique thing about being a graduate of the school and doing the play-by-play, I almost have a license to be a homer which is cool,” Kellum continued. “If you call me a homer, you’re right. If you don’t like it, too bad. If you picked me up and put me at another school or on the Major League level, could I do those games and not be a homer? Absolutely. It wouldn’t be a problem at all.” The right to be a homer may upset those that are not Rebel fans, but there are many who love Ole Miss that can’t wait to hear what Kellum has to say each broadcast. “I have always, from day one, rooted for Ole Miss. It’s just more natural for me to be this way than the other. If I had tried to be more neutral, I think people would have said ‘He’s an Ole Miss grad, why doesn’t he get excited when we score?’ I think we as Ole Miss fans had grown accustomed to Stan Torgeson for a while. Stan was that way. You could tell he was disappointed if things didn’t go well for the Rebels,” Kellum said. “I was raised on that and thought this was the way to do this. I think a lot of the fans appreciate that I’m one of them. I’ve always considered myself an extension of the fans. That’s what I am. I’m a pretty humble guy. The people that run in to me in 58 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
Photo courtesy Ole Miss Sports Information
“I have always, from day one, rooted for Ole Miss. It’s just more natural for me to be this way than the other. If I had tried to be more neutral, I think people would have said ‘He’s an Ole Miss grad, why doesn’t he get excited when we score?’” town don’t think of me as anything special. They just say that’s David. The best compliment you can get from somebody is ‘I listened to you and I felt like I was right there at the game.’ When you get that type of compliment, you know that you’re doing good.” There have been many memorable games since the start of the 1989 season, and Kellum said there are few that always stick out. “The Hit in football in Little Rock when Chris Mitchell made that great play. The irony of that was Shawn Cobb, who was the leading tackler on the team, missed (Ron Dickerson) on the sidelines. If he would have not missed him, he would have gotten out of bounds and they would have gotten another play. He misses him, Chauncey Godwin slowed him and then Creek Mitchell finished him off, dropped him short of the goal line and the clock ran out,” Kellum said. “Probably the most amaz-
ing thing for me in football was The Stand against Mississippi State (in 1992). It was just unbelievable. If you had no connection with either school and you watched that, to realize that there were 11 plays from the 8-yard line in and the team couldn’t score to win the game. I don’t think I’ll see that again. It wasn’t just supposed to be that way. It happened. It just wasn’t supposed to be that.” “Outside of the unusual, I don’t really have a favorite game. It’s all about the relationships with the coaches that have come through and the players,” Kellum said. “You try to be a part of it and to me it’s always been an extension of playing when I was in high school. I get to hang around these guys, I get to be around the sport and I get to be around guys that can do it much better than me but still have some reference as to how hard it is to do some of the things they do.” - RN
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Take your issue of RebelNation™ to “Meet the Rebels Day” and have your heroes make your issue an instant collectible.
DENZEL NKEMDICHE
Photo by Greg Pevey
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BO WALLACE Photo by Greg Pevey 2013 FOOTBALL PREVIEW - 61
REBEL
FLASHBACK
BOMBS AWAY >>> A season of revival that already included an upset of then No. 4 Florida at the Swamp culminated the 2008 season with a 47-34 victory over No. 7 Texas Tech in the 2009 Cotton Bowl, sending the No. 25 Rebels into the offseason with a six-game winning streak. Jevan Snead threw for a career-high 292 yards and three TDs in the highest-scoring Cotton Bowl ever. WR Mike Wallace had four catches for 80 yards including this 41-yard 62 - REBELNATION MAGAZINE
touchdown bomb from Snead early in the 2nd quarter tieing the game at 14-14. The game was Ole Miss’ first bowl appearance since Eli Manning led the Rebels to a 31-28 win over Oklahoma St. in the 2003 Cotton Bowl - Photo by Greg Pevey
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VIEW FROM THE GROVE
>>>>>
Patience is a virtue STEVEN
R
GODFREY
emember this date: Labor Day Weekend, 2014. It’s not often that journalists not only agree with but also adopt the talking points of a SEC football coach’s alumnicircuit speeches. After all, the early summer ra-ra rallies and goodwill tours are usually filled with baseless fluff to inspire, maintain or revive interest in a program. But Hugh Freeze has one thing absolutely right, and he was right to make it the less-than-sexy centerpiece of his speeches after National Signing Day and before the start of fall practice for this 2013 season: Patience is necessary, because the job is far from done. Freeze could’ve foolishly whipped up Rebel crowds across the state and the Southeast with the shiny surprise of a 7-6 season strapped to the rocket boosters of a Top 5 signing class in February. Just over a year past one of its lowest points in program history, Ole Miss football is a hot commodity again. Sound familiar? It should, because the sinister lands of unbridled promise often plays host to the Rebels, while true consistency remains a mirage around a series of bad turns in the road. After all, weren’t the Rebels at a “new level” following Eli Manning’s senior season? Didn’t Sports Illustrated pick Ole Miss as a Top 5 team in the nation entering 2009? You’ve been here before, but the good news is that Freeze has not. For all his relative inexperience as a head coach and program manager at the SEC level, Freeze has deftly handled expectations in 2013 by pointing to a lot of cold, hard realities: the Rebels are still thin at many positions. They’re still lacking the kind of depth that conference heavyweights like LSU, Alabama and Georgia seem to simply regenerate. I’ll add one more – the Rebels got lucky often in 2012, and that’s one turn of events that’s extremely short-lived in the SEC. Bobby Petrino took an ill-fated motorcycle ride that imploded a BCS contender overnight, while Gene Chizik’s lack of discipline and excess of hubris mirrored the rise and fall of one Houston Nutt, Rebels head coach. Both Arkansas and Auburn had historically bad years and let Ole Miss back in the game in the hyper-competitive SEC West. In case you forgot, this is the same Ole Miss team that was down at halftime to FCS member Central Arkansas, allowed Texas to put up video game level scoring thanks to botched assignments and huge turnovers, gave away a home win over Texas A&M with a consecutive sequence of blown coverages (including a 3rd and long inside the A&M 3-yard-line) and let Vandy hit a wide-open, walk-it-in touchdown pass to win their 5th game in seven seasons against the Rebels. Now here’s the good news: This is also the same Ole Miss team that was a play (maybe two) from upsetting LSU in Baton Rogue. You might not be in the business of rewatching old losses, but there are
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plays against the Tigers that show the promise of what could be to come, and keep in mind how banged-up Bo Wallace’s shoulder was. Ole Miss was also the team who, with no business doing so, hung at Alabama for the better part of three quarters. That sounds like moral victory tripe, but don’t doubt for a second what kind of positive mental impact Dave Wommack’s successful scheming against the Tide offense did for the psyche of his players. If anything, there was a large stretch of that first half where fans and media alike could actually believe that Ole Miss was capable of competing with the best, pending their ability to get equitable talent. And hey, those six regular season wins count. Most were ugly and most came at the expense of inferior or hapless opponents, but that win total did include a momentum-crashing, river-running-backwards shift of morale and swagger against in-state rival Mississippi State. So what’s to make of these Rebels? Sure, they’re about to inherit some mighty fine pieces of talent, but they’re freshmen. They were bowl eligible last season, but scored only one regular season victory over a winning FBS club. Are they about to break out as a national darkhorse or simply break down from all the hype? Either is possible, which is why Freeze’s emphasis on process over partying is the right one. 2013 is certainly a year to enjoy Ole Miss football (remember the dread surrounding the 2011 kickoff?), but it’s a part of a journey to what myself and other media members feel like could be a true coming-out party in 2014. Hence my mention of next Labor Day: After some scheduling finagling, the Rebels will meet Boise State in the Georgia Dome as part of the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Classic. Whatever you think a home game against Texas meant in terms of exposure, forget about it – the season opener in 2014 stands to potentially be the biggest chance to “arrive” on a national platform that Ole Miss has ever had in the modern era of college football. If the concept of a major opponent, national timeslot and a dome venue in a huge recruiting market doesn’t entice you, think about the 2014 Rebels: You’re (potentially) looking at a veteran QB in Bo Wallace, a receiving corps led by sophomore Laquon Treadwell, senior Vincent Sanders, senior Donte Moncrief, a upperclassmen-laden defense (C.J. Johnson, Lavon Hooks, Issac Gross, Trae Elston) led by the Nkemdiche brothers and another year of Freeze’s so-far impeccable recruiting. When pundits and fans first discussed the task ahead of Freeze when he took the job, 8-4 seemed like a realizable goal for 2015. Having upped the bar early, 2014 now looks like a logical break-out point for the program, wherein all the expectations and false hope of seasons past could actually come true. I’m not telling you to wait until next year outright, but I am saying that the 2013 Rebels are closer to the 2012 iteration than the 2014 and ’15 versions to come. That means a potentially rough start (Did one of you key Mike Slive’s car to get that kind of schedule?) and the need for a few lucky bounces and inordinately durable offensive linemen to make it to a lower-tier bowl. While merely two barely-.500 winning seasons wouldn’t register for most in this conference, it would (and certainly should) mean the world to a Rebel program that’s seen its ups and down. Remember the joke around Oxford last November: If Hugh Freeze gets this no-depth, low-talent squad to a bowl, we should build him a statue! Consider it a wise investment to seek out a sculptor if you’re partying on December 30 in Nashville or New Year’s Eve in Memphis. Then, get ready for next year. - RN
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