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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Football Preseason Media Day Notes
8/8/2001 | Football
Aug. 8, 2001
HEAD COACH DAVID CUTCLIFFE: David Cutcliffe (Alabama, 1976) enters his third full season as head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels with a 16-9 (.640 winning percentage) record. He took the reins of the Ole Miss program three weeks prior to the Rebels' 1998 Independence Bowl game with Texas Tech, and directed Ole Miss to a 35-18 upset win over the heavily-favored Texas Tech Red Raiders. Prior to coming to Oxford, Cutcliffe served 17 seasons as an assistant at Tennessee.
NEW STAFF ADDITIONS: Ole Miss' coaching staff will have a slightly new look in 2001. During this past offseason, Head Coach David Cutcliffe hired veteran defensive coordinator Don Lindsey as the Rebels' new defensive architect. Lindsey has coached previously at Alabama, Montana State, Washington State, Arkansas, Southern California, Georgia Tech, Missouri, and Hawaii, including serving two seperate stints with the Razorbacks, Trojans and Crimson Tide. He has been a part of 18 bowl teams, including four that went on to claim the national championship. On the professional level, Lindsey coached with the Memphis Mad Dogs and British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League.
Cutcliffe also added T.D. Woods, who will work with the wide receivers, and Ruben Mendoza, who will be the Rebels' Coordinator of Strength and Conditioning, to the Ole Miss staff. Woods was a former receiver at Tennessee when Cutcliffe was an assistant with the Volunteers. Mike MacIntyre, who spent the last two seasons as the wide receivers coach, will direct the secondary this season.
REBELS PICKED FOR SIXTH IN SEC WEST: Ole Miss will be out to prove the preseason prognosticators wrong in 2001. After losing 11 starters combined on offense and defense -- including career-leading rusher Deuce McAllister and career passing-leader Romaro Miller -- and with only 12 scholarship seniors on this year's squad, the Rebels were picked sixth in the SEC Western Division by a panel of 84 media members at the conference's annual media days.
LSU was selected to win the Western Division, followed by Mississippi State, Alabama, Auburn and Arkansas. In the East, Florida is the preseason favorite, followed by Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Vanderbilt and Kentucky.
The Gators were also the preseason favorites to win the overall SEC championship, receiving 66 of the 84 votes. The Rebels did receive one vote to win the overall SEC title.
OLE MISS COMING OFF FOURTH STRAIGHT WINNING SEASON: The Rebels' 7-5 record last year marked their fourth straight winning season, their longest such streak since stringing together seven straight winning campaigns between 1965-1971. Ole Miss has finished 8-4, 7-5, 8-4 and 7-5 in the past four years, respectively.
REBELS LOOK TO CONTINUE BOWL STREAK: Ole Miss enters the 2001 campaign aiming for its fifth consecutive bowl invitation, having made appearances in the 1997 Ford Motor City Bowl, the 1998 and 1999 Sanford Independence Bowls, and the 2000 Music City Bowl the past four seasons. The Rebels are the only SEC Western Division team to have appeared in a bowl game in each of the past four years. Ole Miss' four straight bowl appearances is also its longest streak since setting a then national-record with 15 consecutive bowl berths between 1957-1972. Ole Miss is 3-1 in bowl games during its current four-year streak, defeating Marshall (34-31) in the Ford Motor City Bowl, Texas Tech (35-18) in the 1998 Independence Bowl, and Oklahoma (27-25) in the 1999 Independence Bowl, and falling to West Virginia (49-38) in last year's Music City Bowl.
PARDON OUR DUST: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/Hollingsworth Field will lose about 5,000 seats this season, dropping capacity to 45,577, as the south end zone is undergoing construction. The south end zone is being "bowled" in, which will raise the facility's seating to approximately 60,000. Construction is scheduled to be completed in time for the Rebels' 2002 home opener.
"QUICK OUTS" (OFFENSIVE NOTES): Senior FB Charles Stackhouse (West Memphis, Ark.) was named as the SEC's best blocking back by The Birmingham News entering the 2001 season ... Ole Miss scored 314 points in 11 regular-season games last season, the fourth-highest total in school history. The 1959 team scored the most points in a season in school history with 329 ... The Rebels' 19 TD passes last season (18 by Romaro Miller and 1 by Deuce McAllister) tied the Ole Miss single- season record held by the 1947, 1961 and 1970 teams ... Ole Miss finished tied for third in the nation last season with Iowa State and Ohio University for the fewest sacks allowed with seven. Toledo allowed the fewest with five, followed by Boston College with six ... The Rebels were second in the SEC last season in red zone scoring, converting on 28-of-32 (87.5 percent) trips inside the opponents' 20-yard line (19 TDs, 9 FGs).
METCALF INCLUDED ON 2001 LOMBARDI AWARD "WATCH LIST": Senior OT Terrence Metcalf (Clarksdale, Miss.) enters the 2001 season as one of 52 preliminary candidates for the 32nd annual Rotary Lombardi Award, given to the nation's top lineman (offensive or defensive). The winner will be selected from a list of 12 semifinalists Dec. 5 in Houston.
METCALF EARNS FIRST TEAM PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA HONORS: Senior OT Terrence Metcalf has been named a consensus preseason All-American by the major preseason publications. He was tabbed a first-team preseason All-America by Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook, Football Action, Football News, Lindy's, Playboy, and Street & Smith. Lindy's also tabbed Metcalf as the nation's third best tackle heading into the 2001 campaign. Athlon and Preview Sports named Metcalf a second team preseason All-America.
METCALF TOPS PRESEASON ALL-SEC TEAMS: In addition to his numerous preseason All-America honors, senior OT Terrence Metcalf highlighted many of the same publications' preseason All-SEC teams and earned first team honors from: Athlon, The Birmingham News, Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook, Lindy's, Phipps & Regions Banks, Preview Sports, Southeastern Post, and Street & Smith. Metcalf was also selected as a first team preseason All-SEC performer at SEC Media Days.
ELI'S THE MAN(NING): Sophomore Eli Manning (New Orleans, La.) will take over the reins of the Ole Miss offense in 2001, after spending the last two years waiting in the wings. After redshirting in 1999, Manning appeared in six regular season games last season as the backup to veteran starter Romaro Miller, completing 16-of-33 passes for 170 yards with one interception. In last December's Music City Bowl, Manning came off the bench in the fourth quarter to engineer three Rebel scoring drives in a 49-38 loss to West Virginia. He completed 12-of-20 passes for 167 with one interception and tied a school bowl game record with three TD passes. Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook named Manning a 2001 first team preseason All-SEC selection.
CLAXTON RATED NATION'S SEVENTH-BEST CENTER: Junior C Ben Claxton (Dublin, Ga.) was rated by Lindy's as the nation's seventh best center heading into the 2001 season. Claxton, who appeared in just eight games and started two last year after suffering a fractured left ankle in the season opener against Tulane, also earned first team preseason All-SEC honors from Lindy's and Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook. He was also a first team preseason All-SEC selection at SEC Media Days.
GUNN CLOSING IN ON 2,000-YARD RUSHING MARK: Senior RB Joe Gunn (Amory, Miss.) needs 121 yards to become the fifth player in school history to reach the 2,000-yard rushing mark. Gunn enters the season fifth on the Ole Miss career rushing list with 1,879 yards. He is 1,181 yards shy of tying Deuce McAllister's career rushing record of 3,060 yards. Gunn can catch Leon Perry (1976-1979) in fourth-place at 2,135 yards with 256 more yards rushing.
"BLITZ PACKAGE" (DEFENSIVE NOTES): First-year defensive coordinator Don Lindsey inherits five returning starters from last year's unit, and in addition, junior LB Eddie Strong (Batesville, Miss.) is scheduled to return after missing all of last season with a stress fracture in his left foot ... Ole Miss finished first in the SEC and ninth nationally in pass efficiency defense with a rating of 96.2 ... In passing yards allowed, the Rebels were second in the SEC and 20th in the nation a year ago, allowing an average of 187.6 yards per game -- 60.9 yards less than in 1999 ... Opponents completed just 47.1 percent of its passes last season against the Rebels -- the lowest in the SEC -- connecting on only 160-of-340 passing attempts. In 1999, opponents hit on 55.8 percent of its passing attempts against the Rebels, completing 218-of-391 passes.
STRONG RETURNS: Junior LB Eddie Strong is hoping to return to the form that, two years ago, made him one of the top linebackers in the SEC. Strong missed all of last season with a stress fracture in his left foot. Strong was a second team All-SEC selection by the conference's Coaches in 1999 after tallying a team-high 72 stops, including 49 solo. He also recorded seven TFLs for 37 yards and 3.5 sacks for 26 yards. For his career, Strong has registered 138 tackles (90 solo), including 12 TFLs for 70 yards and six QB sacks for 47 yards. He has also intercepted two passes.
STRONG LISTED AS ONE OF NATION'S TOP LINEBACKERS: Despite missing all of last season with a stress fracture, junior Eddie Strong was ranked by Lindy's as the nation's fifth best outside linebacker heading into 2001. Lindy's also tabbed Strong as a first team preseason All-SEC selection, and he earned second team preseason All-SEC honors from The Birmingham News and at SEC Media Days.
TAYLOR EARNS PRESEASON ALL-SEC HONORS: Senior defensive back Syniker Taylor (Gulfport, Miss.) was named to The Birmingham News' first team preseason All-SEC team, and he earned second team honors from Lindy's and the Southeastern Post, and at the SEC Media Days. Lindy's also ranked Taylor as the nation's 18th best safety coming into the 2001 season. Taylor was a second team All-SEC selection by The Associated Press in 2000 after registering 67 tackles (43 solo), 19 passes defensed and three interceptions.
THOMAS TO WEAR CHUCKY MULLINS' NO. 38: Senior LB Kevin Thomas (Courtland, Miss.) received the 2001 Chucky Mullins Courage Award this past spring, and as a result, will wear the late Mullins' No. 38 this season. Thomas appeared in all 12 games last season, including the Music City Bowl, and started 11 contests. He registered 59 tackles, including 35 solo. In 33 career regular-season games, Thomas has tallied 78 tackles (43 solo), with three TFLs for 14 yards and one QB sack for seven yards.
"SPECIALTY TIDBITS" (SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES): Last year, Ole Miss returned both a punt and a kickoff for a TD in the same season for the first time since 1996. Deuce McAllister returned a punt 87 yards for a score against Auburn on Sept. 9, while current junior Robert Williams (Gadsden, Ala.) took a kickoff back 97 yards for a TD at Arkansas on Nov. 4 ... Sophomore Lee Rogers (Meridian, Miss.) recorded touchbacks in 8-of-51 kickoffs last season ... PK Les Binkley finished his two-year career having converted 23-of-29 FG attempts and 73-of-75 PATs. He hit on his first 45 career extra-point attempts, which ranks as the third longest streak in school history. Binkley's career-long field goal was 49 yards against Mississippi State in 1999 ... P Reagan King finished his four-year career with an average of 39.2 yards per punt on 190 attempts. His career-long was a 57-yard kick against Memphis on Sept. 5, 1998. He had 14 punts of 50 or more yards and placed 43 career kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line. Last season, King averaged 40.1 yards per punt on 56 attempts, with a long of 51 yards.
