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The University of Mississippi Athletics
FRIDAY FLASHBACK: Ole Miss - Memphis 1982
10/16/2015 | Football
FRIDAY FLASHBACK rewinds to some of the memorable Ole Miss games from this week's all-time series. This week features the Rebels' 27-10 win over the Memphis State Tigers in the 1982 season opener.
Rebels gain new admirers with victory
By Rick Cleveland, Clarion-Ledger
September 4, 1982
OXFORD - Memphis State coach Rex Dockery said he wasn't discouraged with his Tigers. He was, however, surprised by the Ole Miss Rebels.
Dockery, who has now won one of 12 football games as head coach at Memphis State, sat on an equipment trunk just outside the visitors' locker room at Hemingway Stadium, shaking his head. The day's result was all to familiar - Ole Miss 27, Memphis State 10.
"You know," he said. "I was really impressed with Ole Miss. They are a much better football team than they were last year.
"I gotta admit, they surprised us. We were more worried about their passing game. We went out on the field looking for them to pass and they came out and ran right over us. There wasn't much passing at all. A running arsenal was what it looked like to me."
So it was and Ole Miss' main weapon was tailback Hammerhead Thomas who raced up and down Hemingway's Astroturf for 167 of the Rebels' 246 yards total offense.
Usually, the Ole Miss offensive line provided huge holes for Thomas to run through. And, on the few occasions when the holes weren't there, Thomas made his own. That's probably what surprised Dockery the most.
"Most of the time, they simply whipped us up front," Dockery said. "Their offensive line executed very well. Several times when we were in position to make the tackle, their backs just ran over us. They blocked tough and ran tough. I was impressed."
The game began pleasingly enough for Dockery and the Tigers. They lost the coin toss but wound up receiving the ball with the wind behind them because of an error by the Ole Miss captains.
The problem was, that was about the last mistake Ole Miss made.
"Ole Miss didn't make many mistakes especially considering this was a first ballgame," Dockery said. "They had no kicking errors, no turnovers and very few penalties. They were excellent, considering this was the first game of the season."
Mike Dion, the Tigers' tough, little (5-foot-6, 183-pound) fullback, likewise was impressed by the Rebels.
"Their defense really impressed me," said Dion, who rushed for 36 yards on eight carries. "It's a lot different than last year with the eight-man front. I know our offense is a lot better than last year and they stopped us good enough to win. Their whole defense played well. I definitely think they're better."
