The University of Mississippi Athletics
Late Mistake Spoils Chad Kelly's Historic Performance
10/29/2016 | Football, Blog
For most of the game on Saturday, Auburn's defense had no answer for Ole Miss' signal caller. Even his incompletions were on target. He threw for a school-record 465 yards while adding 40 yards on the ground to eclipse 500 total yards.Â
This wasn't against a run-of-the-mill defense, either. Auburn was one of the best defenses in the nation, especially against the pass. The Tigers averaged fewer than 200 yards through the air. Clemson's Heisman candidate Deshaun Watson only managed 248 yards.Â
"His performance (ranks) way up there, against that defense," Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze said. "They'd given up seven touchdowns all year and caused real problems for quarterbacks. Chad played really well. He battled and fought."
Ole Miss' offense places a large degree of responsibility on the quarterback. On Saturday, Kelly accounted for 89 percent of Ole Miss' yards on the night. Without Kelly playing at the level he was, Ole Miss would have struggled to stay in the shootout.
Ole Miss struggled to get much going with the rushing attack, which meant Auburn's defensive line had the advantage of pinning their ears back. Nearly every time he dropped back to throw, despite the pressure, he put the ball where it needed to be.Â
"We were moving it almost at will against one of the better defenses in the country," offensive coordinator Dan Werner said. "Nobody else has put up those kinds of yards or points against them."
Kelly's one real mistake came in the fourth quarter when Joshua Holsey jumped in front of a third-down pass. The play before, Ole Miss had what looked to be a touchdown, but Evan Engram was unable to haul it in.
"We work hard everyday," Kelly said. "Evan makes those catches in his sleep. On the turnover, I can't turn the ball over. Once again, it led to points. We just have to keep fighting."
It was a game where if only a couple plays go differently, Kelly's performance would be one of those that Ole Miss fans remember fondly for years. Really, it still should be. Archie's total yards record was also in a loss against Alabama. Maybe, it will be appreciated down the road. Right now though, it's a game where Ole Miss couldn't take advantage of their best player's best game.
"I hate losing more than anything," Kelly said. "I just want to win. That's all those guys wan to do is just win, too. We don't care about anything else, just winning."
