Ole Miss turning the page on emotional LSU win, looking toward Arkansas
Oct. 2—OXFORD — Putting away Saturday's classic at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium is likely easier said than done. But Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin doesn't think his team is going to have trouble descending from Cloud Nine given the task at hand this weekend.
Ole Miss trailed by nine points in the fourth quarter against LSU last week and took the lead with 39 seconds to play. It was a roller-coaster game from start to finish that ended with Ole Miss fans rushing the field in jubilation.
There are no breaks in the SEC, however, as Arkansas comes to town Saturday. The Razorbacks (2-3, 0-2) have lost three-straight games overall but have been a thorn in Ole Miss' side. Arkansas has won two of the three meetings with Kiffin at the helm, with the Rebels' victory coming in the only other home meeting in 2022. The Rebels won a 52-51 thriller that year but fell in Fayetteville, Arkansas last season 42-27.
Coming off a crucial win — seemingly the "signature" one of the Kiffin Era — and with the bye week looming, the matchup with the Razorbacks seems like a classic trap game with hangover potential. But Kiffin doesn't think his team is going to be resting on its recent laurels, especially with how recent games between the teams have gone and the team's imperfect performance against LSU.
Ole Miss took down the Tigers 55-49 in a game where the final score does both teams' defensive deficiencies justice. The Rebels surrendered 637 yards of offense in the win, including 414 yards and four touchdowns to quarterback Jayden Daniels. Ole Miss also committed 11 penalties.
"I'm sure for two days they heard how great they were outside of here," Kiffin said. "So, we made sure they saw we made a lot of mistakes in that game in all three phases. Way too many penalties, poor decisions, selfish decisions on some penalties, because players are frustrated. And that can't happen. So, we have a lot to work on."
Arkansas is led by Sardis, Mississippi, native K.J. Jefferson. Jefferson threw three touchdowns in last year's game and added 58 yards on the ground and had 421 total yards and six total touchdowns in the 2021 classic.
Arkansas led last season's matchup 42-6 after three quarters before the Rebels scored a trio of touchdowns in the fourth. Running back Raheim Sanders, who missed three games earlier this season but returned last week against Texas A&M, ran for 232 yards and three touchdowns in the 2022 meeting between the teams.
The Razorbacks most recently played Texas A&M, a 34-22 Aggies win at AT&T Stadium. Arkansas had just 174 yards of offense in the game, including just 42 yards on the ground on 1.1 yards per carry. But none of that matters when this weekend's game kicks off.
"(They) have given us a lot of problems," Kiffin said. " ... This is a really big challenge for us to play really well and contain these guys. You saw what they did to us last year, what they did to us three years ago. So, excited for this challenge before we get into the bye week."
Dart named SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week
Ole Miss junior quarterback has been named the SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week following the Rebels' win over then-No. 13 LSU. Dart had 439 total yards of offense and five total touchdowns — including the game-winning passing touchdown to senior Tre Harris with less than a minute to play — to lead Ole Miss to the upset victory. It is Dart's first Player of the Week honor at Ole Miss.
