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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Football Game Notes
9/30/2001 | Football
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Sept. 30, 2001
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
DATE: Saturday, October 6, 2001
TIME: 6 p.m. CDT
SITE: Indian Stadium (33,410)
TV: Saturday's game will be available on a Pay-Per-View basis though TeleSouth Communications. Contact your local cable company for availability.
RADIO: Saturday's game and all Ole Miss games can be heard on stations along the Ole Miss Football Radio Network (David Kellum, play-by-play, Pete Cordelli, color analyst, Stan Sandroni, sideline reporter, Gary Darby, pregame show host). The radio broadcast can also be heard on the official Ole Miss athletic website at www.Ole MissSports.com.
IN THE POLLS: Ole Miss and Arkansas State were both unranked in this week's ESPN/USA Today Coaches and Associated Press Top 25 polls.
SERIES INFO: Saturday's game will be the 20th all-time between Ole Miss and Arkansas State dating back to 1914. The Rebels lead the series 16-1-2, and have won eight straight meetings versus the Indians dating back to a 10-10 tie in 1986. Arkansas State's lone win the series came in 1915, 10-0 in Oxford. Saturday's contest will be the first-ever played in Jonesboro. During the Rebels' current eight-game win streak against ASU, Ole Miss' average margin of victory has been 18.9 points, outscoring the Indians 289-138.
OLE MISS HEAD COACH DAVID CUTCLIFFE: David Cutcliffe is in his third full season as head coach at Ole Miss Rebels. He is 18-10 with the Rebels since taking over the program on Dec. 6, 1998, less than a month prior to leading Ole Miss to a 35-18 win in his head coaching debut against Texas Tech in the Sanford Independence Bowl. This is Cutcilffe's first head coaching position. Prior to coming to Ole Miss, he spent 17 seasons as an assistant on both Johnny Majors' and Phillip Fulmer's staffs at Tennessee. Cutcliffe is 2-0 against Arkansas State and Indian Head Coach Joe Hollis.
ARKANSAS STATE HEAD COACH JOE HOLLIS: Joe Hollis is in his fifth season as head coach at Arkansas State. He is 11-37 with the Indians. Overall, Hollis is in his sixth season as a collegiate head coach and has a career record of 15-42-1. He guided Jacksonville State to a 4-5-1 mark in 1984. Prior to taking the head coaching position at Arkansas State in 1997, Hollis spent six years, from 1991-1996, as the offensive coordinator at Ohio State where he coached the 1995 Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George. Hollis is 0-3 against Ole Miss and 0-2 versus Rebel Head Coach David Cutcliffe.
ARKANSAS STATE SCOUTING REPORT: The Indians will bring an 0-3 mark into Saturday's game with Ole Miss. Arkansas State has been outscored 100-48 in losses to Georgia (45-17), Baylor (24-3) and Jacksonville State (31-28). Offensively, the Indians are averaging 276.0 yards per game. Senior RB Jonathan Adams has rushed for a team-high 142 yards on 39 carries. Freshman QB Josh Driscoll has completed 27-of-62 passes for 310 yards, with 3 TDs and 3 INTs. Freshman QB Elliott Jacobs has also seen action in all three ASU games this season, connecting on 13-of-26 passes for 167 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. Senior FL Alvin Powell is the team's leading receiver with 13 catches for 182 yards and 2 TDs. Defensively, the Indians are allowing 470.7 yards per game, including 236.7 yards rushing. Sophomore Chris Jones has picked off two passes.
2001 ARKANSAS STATE SCHEDULE/RESULTS (0-3, 0-0 SUN BELT)Sept. 1 at Georgia L, 17-45Sept. 8 at Baylor L, 3-24SEPT. 15 NICHOLLS STATE PPDSEPT. 22 JACKSONVILLE ST. L, 28-31OCT. 6 OLE MISS 6 P.M.OCT. 13 UL-LAFAYETTE* 2 P.M.Oct. 20 at North Texas* 3:05 p.m.OCT. 27 IDAHO* 2 P.M.Nov. 3 at Middle Tennessee* 2 p.m.Nov. 10 at New Mexico State* 4 p.m.NOV. 17 UL-MONROE* 2 P.M.
* - Sun Belt Conference GameAll Times Central
REBEL GAME NOTES
REBEL NOTEBOOK
* Ole Miss is seeking its sixth straight 3-1 start, and its ninth since 1990.
* Saturday's 42-31 victory over Kentucky gave Ole Miss its sixth straight winning record in September, and secured its 14th consecutive non-losing September. The last time the Rebels had a losing record during the month of September, was in 1988 when they went 1-2.
* Ole Miss enters the week as the SEC's least penalized team, having been flagged 14 times in three games this season. The Rebels' average of 42.7 penalty yards per game is second in the SEC (see Rebels in the SEC/NCAA Statistics on page 5).
* Saturday's win over Kentucky improved Ole Miss to 8-2 following a loss under Head Coach David Cutcliffe.
* Saturday's game at Kentucky marked the end of a 20-day layoff for Ole Miss. The 20-day break was tied for the longest in the school's modern era (since 1947). The Rebels also had a 20-day break between games in 1964 when Ole Miss played at Tennessee on Nov. 14 and then didn't play again until hosting Mississippi State on Dec. 5. Prior to this past Saturday's game at Kentucky, Ole Miss hadn't played since Sept. 8 at Auburn.
* The Rebels are 124-97-5 (.560 winning percentage) in the month of October since the school's modern-era began in 1947. Under Head Coach David Cutcliffe, Ole Miss is 5-2 in October.
REBELS TO PLAY THIRD STRAIGHT ROAD GAME SATURDAY: The Rebels will be playing their third consecutive road game for the first time since closing the 1995 season with trips to Memphis, LSU and Mississippi State. Ole Miss was scheduled to play at home against Vanderbilt on Sept. 15, but that game was postponed to Dec. 1 when all NCAA Division I-A schools postponed games that weekend following the events of Sept. 11. Ole Miss went 2-1 in that three-game road stretch in 1995, defeating Memphis 34-3, losing to LSU 38-9 and then beating Mississippi State 13-10. The Rebels are 1-1 in their current three-game road swing, losing to Auburn 27-21 on Sept 8, and defeating Kentucky 42-31 last Saturday.
OLE MISS VS. THE SUN BELT CONFERENCE: Ole Miss is 22-1-2 (.900 winning percentage) all-time against schools that are competing in the inaugural football season of the Sun Belt Conference, including a 16-1-2 record against Arkansas State. The Rebels also own a 4-0 mark against North Texas and a 2-0 record against UL-Lafayette.
OLE MISS LOOKS TO EXTEND REGULAR SEASON NON-CONFERENCE WIN STREAK: Ole Miss will put its 20-game, regular-season, non-conference win streak on the line at Arkansas State Saturday. The Rebels last loss a regular season non-conference game on Nov. 5, 1994, falling 17-16 to Memphis in Oxford. During the 20-game streak, Ole Miss has outscored the opposition 688-313, winning by an average margin of 18.7 points. Under Head Coach David Cutcliffe, the Rebels are 7-0 versus non-conference opponents during the regular season.
Including bowl games, Ole Miss has won 23 of its last 24 games against non-SEC teams. West Virginia snapped a 22-game overall non-conferenece win streak for the Rebels in last December's Music City Bowl, handing Ole Miss a 49-38 defeat. The following chart shows Ole Miss' 20-game non-conference win streak during the regular season:
Date Opponent Score9-1-2001 Murray State W, 49-1410-28-2000 UNLV (OT) W, 43-4010-7-2000 Arkansas State W, 35-109-2-2000 Tulane W, 49-209-9-99 Tulane W, 20-139-11-99 Arkansas State W, 38-149-4-99 at Memphis W, 3-010-24-98 Arkansas State W, 30-179-26-98 at SMU (OT) W, 48-419-5-98 Memphis W, 30-1011-15-97 at Tulane W, 41-249-6-97 SMU W, 23-158-30-97 Central Florida (OT) W, 24-2310-26-96 Arkansas State W, 38-219-7-96 VMI W, 31-78-31-96 Idaho State W, 38-1411-4-95 Memphis W, 34-310-7-95 Tulane W, 20-179-9-95 Indiana State W, 56-1011-12-94 Tulane W, 38-0
ARKANSAS STATE CONNECTIONS: A former Chucky Mullins Courage Award winner will be on the opposite sideline Saturday when Ole Miss travels to Arkansas State. Jeff Carter, the 1991 award winner, is in his third year as the secondary coach on Joe Hollis' staff at ASU. After playing at Ole Miss from 1988-1991, Carter served as a graduate assistant coach at Ole Miss under Billy Brewer in 1993. He then spent the 1994 season coaching the defensive line and linebackers at Northwestern (La.) State before coaching at Tupelo High School and Northwest (Miss.) Community College.
ALL SEPT. 15 SEC GAMES RESCHEDULED: All games involving Southeastern Conference teams that were scheduled for Sept. 15 have been rescheduled, including the Vanderbilt-Ole Miss contest. The Rebels will now host the Commodores on Dec. 1. As of now, kickoff is set for 1 p.m, however game time could change due to TV. Jefferson Pilot was scheduled to carry the game on Sept. 15. To date, no decision on TV has been made. The following is a list of the rescheduled games:
Southern Miss at Alabama (Birmingham), Nov. 29, 6 p.m., ESPN 2*Weber State at Arkansas, Oct. 6, 6 p.m.Auburn at LSU, Dec. 1, TBATennessee at Florida, Dec. 1, 3:30 p.m., CBSHouston at Georgia, Dec. 1, 12 p.m.Kentucky at Indiana, Dec. 1, 12 p.m.Vanderbilt at Ole Miss, 1 p.m.BYU at Mississippi State, Dec. 1, TBA**Wofford at South Carolina, Nov. 3, 12 p.m.REBELS STILL LAST TO BEAT OKLAHOMA: Ole Miss still holds the distinction of being the last team to defeat defending national champion Oklahoma as the Sooners extended their winning streak to 17 with a 38-37 win over Kansas State this past Saturday in Norman, Okla. The Rebels handed the Sooners their last loss, 27-25 in the 1999 Sanford Independence Bowl when Les Binkley booted a 39-yard game-winning field goal as time expired.
*- Arkansas was scheduled to play North Texas**- South Carolina was slated to play Bowling Green
OFFENSIVE NOTES:
* Ole Miss has scored 40 or more points in two of its three games this season. The Rebels scored 49 in their win over Murray State in the season opener on Sept. 1, and tallied 42 in the win over Kentucky this past Saturday. Ole Miss ranks second in the SEC and 14th nationally in scoring offense, averaging 37.3 points per game.
* Senior WR Omar Rayford (Holly Springs, Miss.) extend his consecutive games with a reception streak to 13, with four catches for 28 yards and a TD at Kentucky this past Saturday.
* Senior FB Charles Stackhouse (West Memphis, Ark.) rushed for a career-high 43 yards on a career-high 10 attempts against Kentucky. Stackhouse rushed six times for 22 yards while lining up in the tailback spot on Ole Miss' last possession of the game as the Rebels ran out the clock. Stackhouse also had a career-high three receptions against the Wildcats for 35 yards.
* Junior FB Toward Sanford (Batesville, Miss.) scored a TD on three of his five rushing attempts against Kentucky. All three of Sanford's TDs were from one-yard out as he became the first player since Deuce McAllister, last year against Mississippi State, to rush for three scores in a game. Sanford's first rushing score Saturday was his first TD rushing since his redshirt freshman year in 1999 against Arkansas State, when he scored from one-yard out on his first career carry.
COLLINS DOES IT ALL AGAINST KENTUCKY: Sophomore WR Chris Collins (Liberty, Miss.) recorded a career-high 229 all-purpose yards on 11 touches against Kentucky this past Saturday. Collins also set career highs for receptions and receiving yards, catching seven passes for 119 yards and one TD. The 119 yards receiving was his second 100-yard receiving game of the season, and the second of his career, as he had six receptions for 100 yards and a school record three TDs in the season opener against Murray State on Sept. 1.
Collins also rushed once for a 38-yard TD on an end around in the third quarter, and returned three kickoffs for 72 yards. The 229 all-purpose yards ties Deuce McAllister for the seventh-highest single-game total in school history.
COLLINS PULLS OFF A RARE FEAT AGAINST WILDCATS: With a 26-yard TD reception in the first quarter and a 38-yard TD run in the third quarter against Kentucky, Chris Collins became the first Ole Miss receiver to score a TD rushing and receiving in a game, according to records dating back to the 1970 season.
REBEL RECEIVERS RECORD THIRD STRAIGHT 100-YARD RECEIVING GAME: Sophomore WR Chris Collins' 119 yards receiving this past Saturday against Kentucky, marked the third straight game in which the Rebels have had a receiver top the century mark. It is the first time in school history that Ole Miss has had a receiver top 100 yards in a game in three consecutive contests. Collins hit 100 yards receiving exactly in the season opener against Murray State on Sept. 1, and senior Jamie Armstrong (Plantersville, Miss.) recorded 108 yards in game two at Auburn on Sept. 8.
GUNN RECORDS NINTH CAREER 100-YARD RUSHING GAME: Senior RB Joe Gunn (Amory, Miss.) rushed 13 times for 113 yards at Kentucky to record his first 100-yard rushing game of the season, and the ninth of his career. The nine career 100-yard rushing games ties him with John Avery and Kayo Dottley for third place on the Ole Miss career list. Deuce McAllister holds the career record with 14, 100-yard rushing games from 1997-2000.
100-YARD COMBOS: This past Saturday's game at Kentucky marked the third time on record that Ole Miss has had a 100-yard rusher and a 100-yard receiver in the same game. Senior RB Joe Gunn rushed for 113 yards and sophomore WR Chris Collins tallied 119 yards receiving against the Wildcats. The last time Ole Miss had a 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver in the same game was on Sept. 2, 1995, at Auburn when Dou Innocent rushed for 138 yards and Ta'Boris Fisher recorded 101 yards receiving. The other was on Oct. 4, 1969 against Alabama in Birmingham as Archie Manning ran for 104 yards and Floyd Franks caught 13 passes for 191 yards.
GUNN TOPS 2,000 CAREER RUSHING YARDS: With his 113 yards rushing at Kentucky, senior RB Joe Gunn became the fifth player in school history to break the 2,000-yard career rushing mark. Gunn now has 2,075 career rushing yards, ranking fifth on the Ole Miss career list. He needs 60 yards to tie Leon Perry (1976-79) for fourth-place on the career rushing list. The following chart shows the five, 2,000-yard career rushers in Ole Miss history:
Player, Pos., Years Yards1. Deuce McAllister, RB, 1997-2000 3,0602. Kayo Dottley, FB, 1947-50 2,6543. Dou Innocent, RB, 1991-92, 1994-95 2,3224. Leon Perry, FB, 1976-79 2,1355. Joe Gunn, RB, 1998-present 2,075MANNING LOOKS TO BECOME FASTEST TO PASS FOR 1,000 YARDS IN A SEASON: Sophomore QB Eli Manning (New Orleans, La.) needs 196 yards passing against Arkansas State Saturday to become the fastest quarterback in school history to reach 1,000 yards passing in a season. Saturday's game against the Indians will be the Rebels' fourth of the season. The current mark of the fastest passer to reach 1,000 yards in a season is five games, set five times previously by Archie Manning in 1970, Josh Nelson in 1994 and 1995, Stewart Patridge in 1997, and most recently, Romaro Miller in 1998.
MANNING RECORDS A COUPLE MORE FIRSTS: With 268 yards passing against Kentucky this past Saturday, sophomore QB Eli Manning became the first Ole Miss signal-caller to record at least 250 yards passing in his first three career starts. The 268-yard passing performance against the Wildcats also makes Manning the first Rebel quarterback ever to record three straight 250-yard passing games. The chart on the following page shows Manning's performances in the first three games of 2001:
Opponent (Date) Att-Cmp-Int Yds TDMurray State (9/1) 23-20-0 271 5at Auburn (9/8) 39-24-1 265 1at Kentucky (9/29) 36-19-0 268 2Totals 98-63-1 804 8METCALF ON LOMBARDI AWARD AND OUTLAND TROPHY "WATCH LISTS": Senior OT Terrence Metcalf (Clarksdale, Miss.) has been named to both the Lombardi and Outland Trophy "watch lists." Metcalf is one 52 preliminary candidates for the 32nd annual Rotary Lombardi Award, presented to the nation's top lineman (offense or defense). The winner will be selected from a list of 12 semifinalists on Dec. 5 in Houston.
The Outland Trophy is awarded to the nation's top interior offensive or defensive lineman. Metcalf is one of 26 players to be named to the award's watch list. The 2001 Outland Trophy winner will be named Dec. 6 on the ESPN College Football Awards Show from Orlando, Fla.
METCALF RATED BY THE SPORTING NEWS AS TOP OFFENSIVE GUARD FOR THE 2002 NFL DRAFT: Senior OT Terrence Metcalf was rated by The Sporting News as the nation's top prospect at offensive guard for the 2002 NFL Draft, in its 2002 NFL Draft Preview. Metcalf has played both guard and tackle during his career at Ole Miss, and started at left tackle last Saturday against Murray State. In its preview, The Sporting News said Metcalf could go as high as some of the top offensive tackles.
STRONG NAMED TO BUTKUS AWARD "WATCH LIST:" Junior LB Eddie Strong (Batesville, Miss.) is one of 69 players to be named to the "watch list" for the 2001 Butkus Award, given annually to the nation's top linebacker. The list will be pared to 10 semi-finalists on Oct. 18 and then to three finalists on Nov. 8. The winner will be announced Fri., Dec. 7 at the Butkus Award Gala in Orlando, Fla. 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.
Strong was unofficially credited with five tackles (four solo) and had one pass deflection against Kentucky this past Saturday (official defensive statistics will be available Tuesday). In three games this season, Strong has registered 21 stops, including 12 solo. He also has two tackles-for-loss. The following chart shows Strong's game-by-game statistics in 2001:
TFL- Sacks-Opponent (Date) UT-AT TT Yds Yds PDMurray State (9/1) 2-3 5 0-0 0-0 0at Auburn (9/8) 6-5 11 2-2 0-0 0at Kentucky (9/29) 4-1 5 0-0 0-0 1Totals 12-9 21 2-2 0-0 1TAYLOR NAMED TO JIM THORPE AWARD "WATCH LIST": Senior DB Syniker Taylor was one of 38 players across the country named to the 2001 preseason "watch list" for the Jim Thorpe Award, which is presented to the nation's top defensive back. A screening committee will narrow the field to 10 semifinalists, which will be announced the first week in November. That list will be submitted to a national selection committee consisting of coaches, journalists and former players from around the nation. Three finalists will then be announced the Monday before Thanksgiving and be invited to ESPN's College Football Awards Show at Disney World in Orlando, Fla., where the winner will be announced Dec. 6.
Taylor unofficially had two solo tackles in this past Saturday's game at Kentucky, and had one pass deflection (official defensive statistics will be available Tuesday). Taylor also helped anchor a secondary that held the Wildcats to 104 yards on 12-of-33 passing with one interception. For the season, Taylor has 13 tackles (11 solo) with one TFL for two yards and has intercepted a team-high two passes. The following chart shows Taylor's game-by-game statistics in 2001:
TFL-Opponent (Date) UT-AT TT Yds INT PDMurray State (9/1) 4-2 6 0-0 1 0at Auburn (9/8) 5-0 5 1-2 1 0at Kentucky (9/29) 2-0 2 0-0 0 1Totals 11-2 13 1-2 2 1DEFENSIVE NOTES
* Sophomore DE Charlie Anderson (Jackson, Miss.) unofficially tallied a career-high seven tackles (four solo) at Kentucky, including one QB sack for four yards (official defensive statistics will be available Tuesday). Anderson's previous high was four at Auburn on Sept. 8.
* Sophomore DB Marcus Woodson (Moss Point, Miss.) intercepted his first career pass when he picked off Kentucky QB Shane Boyd in the second quarter this past Saturday.
* The 104 yards by Kentucky was the fewest Ole Miss has allowed since holding UNLV to 93 last year on Oct. 28.
* Kentucky's 36.4 completion percentage on 12-of-33 passing was the lowest Ole Miss has held an opponent since UNLV completed 28.0 percent of its passes (7x25) against the Rebels last year.
REBELS SECOND IN THE NATION IN PASS DEFENSE: Ole Miss enters the week ranked first in the SEC and second nationally in pass defense, allowing an average of 124.0 yards per game. The Rebels have allowed opponents to complete 50.0 percent (41x82) of their passes, the third best in the SEC. This past weekend, Ole Miss held Kentucky to 104 yards on 12-of-33 passing with one interception. Ole Miss is also first in the SEC and fourth in NCAA Division I-A in pass efficiency defense with a rating of 78.4 (see Rebels in the SEC/NCAA Statistics on page 5).
THOMAS WEARING CHUCKY MULLINS' NO. 38: Senior LB Kevin Thomas (Courtland, Miss.) received the 2001 Chucky Mullins Courage Award this spring, and as a result, is wearing the late Mullins' No. 38 this season. Thomas appeared in all 12 games last season, drawing 11 starts. This season, Thomas has registered 13 tackles, including nine solo, and has one TFL.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES:
* Ole Miss has not attempted a field goal in three games this season.
* Redshirt freshman PK Jonathan Nichols(Greenwood, Miss.) has converted on all 16 extra-point attempts this season.
* Redshirt freshman P Cody Ridgeway (Jackson, Tenn.) averaged a season best 41.2 yards per punt on five attempts at Kentucky this past Saturday, and kicked a season-long 47-yarder.
* Ole Miss has returned a kickoff for a touchdown three straight years. JUCO transfer Jason Armstead (Moss Point, Miss.) returned a kickoff 93 yards for a score in the season opener against Murray State.
REBELS AIM FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT WINNING SEASON: Ole Miss is in search of its fifth straight winning season after finishing with a 7-5 mark last season. The Rebels' current run of four straight winning campaigns is their longest such streak since stringing together seven straight from 1965--1971.
Ole Miss has won at least seven games in each of the past four years, going 8-4, 7-5, 8-4 and 7-5. It is the first time the Rebels have registered four straight seven-win campaigns since doing so from 1968-1971. A fifth-straight, seven-win campaign in 2001 would mark the first time the Rebels have done so since legendary coach John Vaught's teams reeled off 12 consecutive seven-win seasons from 1952-1963.
