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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Relish Respect In The Polls
1/11/2009 | Football
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) Houston Nutt said two things immediately come to mind as he savors Ole Miss' No. 14 national ranking and a season-ending bowl victory the accomplishments of his players and the satisfaction of a job well done.
"We really have been proud of them," Nutt said of his players in a telephone interview only hours after voters in the AP Top 25 moved the Rebels up six notches in the final poll.
Nutt said the season was one of the "funnest years of coaching for us" because of a victory over eventual national champion Florida and last week's impressive 47-34 win over thenNo. 8 Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl
Ole Miss finished the season at 9-4, with each of its losses to Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, Alabama and South Carolina coming by a touchdown or less and a total of 19 points. Ole Miss reeled off six straight victories to finish the season, including a 45-0 thumping of archrival Mississippi State in the regular-season finale.
The No. 14 ranking, highest among teams in the Top 25 with at least four losses, is especially sweet for the Rebels, who turned to Nutt after winning just nine games in the previous three seasons. Ole Miss won three games and finished winless in the Southeastern Conference for the first time in 25 years. But under Nutt, the Rebels finished second in the SEC West.
"These guys didn't win a conference game last year and hadn't had any success that last few years," said Nutt, who moved over from Arkansas this past season. "To finish the way they did ... what an experience. To beat one of the finest teams in the country, you couldn't ask for more."
Nutt said the credit goes to a great team, and his dozen or so seniors will "remember this for a lifetime."
There's another big bonus that comes with a No. 14 ranking and putting away Florida, LSU and Texas Tech a really, really big selling point when it comes to recruiting.
"There's no question about that," he said. "This will really help us ... and we're already feeling the benefits of that game."
