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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Look For Continued Improvement During Off-Week
9/15/2003 | Football
Sept. 15, 2003 By Chris Purser
Ole Miss Athletics Media Relations
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss Rebels (2-1) will get some time to heal and practice, as they begin preparing for the Sept. 27 encounter with Texas Tech. The Rebels have this Saturday off, and Ole Miss head coach David Cutcliffe said that, while the Rebels may have an off weekend, the work load will not be any lighter.
"We still have a lot of things to work on," said Cutcliffe. "It's still early in the season. We are going to take the open week and work on Ole Miss. We will also get some work on Texas Tech later this week."
Cutcliffe hopes to use the off weekend to get some of the players rested and healed after three straight weekends of action, including two road games to open the season. The Rebels are also hoping to solidify some positions on both sides of the ball.
"We are going to look at some people and try some things," Cutcliffe said. "We are going to move some people around. It's still early in the season. Whether that works or not, we will see."
One area that appears solid is the quarterback spot. Senior Eli Manning heads into the off weekend with 920 passing yards and eight touchdowns this season. Manning has completed 64.5 percent of his passes and is averaging 306.7 yards per game. Backup quarterback Micheal Spurlock saw his first action of the season against Louisiana-Monroe. The sophomore signal-caller went 3-of-4 passing for 34 yards and his first career touchdown toss, a one-yard score to Lorenzo Townsend in the fourth quarter. Senior wide receiver Chris Collins, Manning's favorite target in the early season, has 21 catches for 265 yards and two TDs. Collins is currently tied for first place in career receptions in the Ole Miss record book with 142, and needs only one catch to place his name alone at the top of the chart.
The Rebels are also hoping to get some people back healthy. Junior tight end Eric Rice has not seen any action this season with an ankle injury. Cutcliffe hopes that the open date will give the Rebels time to get him some action.
Ole Miss will return to action Sept. 27 when they host Texas Tech at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/Hollingsworth Field. The Rebels hold a 2-1 series lead over the Red Raiders, with both Ole Miss victories coming in Independence Bowl meetings in 1986 (20-17 win) and 1998 (35-18 win). Texas Tech won last season's matchup 42-28 in Lubbock. The Red Raiders are 2-0 this season and play at N.C. State this Saturday.
