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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Football Looks to Build on Strong Start to 2018
9/6/2018 | Football
Rebels Look Ahead to Home Opener Against Southern Illinois
OXFORD, Miss. - After a smashing success in the season opener against Texas Tech, Ole Miss returns this weekend to the friendly confines of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
After a stroll through The Grove, the Rebels will take their home field for the first time in 2018, where they'll be joined by visitor Southern Illinois. After opening up on the road, head coach Matt Luke is eager to lead his team down the Walk of Champions for the first time this season.
"That's something that's really special," Luke said. "Some of these kids are freshmen, and it'll be the first time for them walking through The Grove and having an opportunity to play in front of our home fans. I'm really excited to get back in Vaught-Hemingway and play in front of our fans."
Ole Miss looked good in its season opener, dropping 47 points on Texas Tech in a game that saw a little bit of everything for the Rebels—more than 300 yards passing by Jordan Ta'amu, a 200-yard rushing day by Scottie Phillips, a special teams touchdown and some timely defensive stops to close out the decisive victory.
Now, a different challenge awaits. After facing the pass-heavy spread attack put forth by the Red Raiders, they'll take on a Southern Illinois squad that wants to put the ball on the ground and run downhill. Additionally, they'll face a ball-hawking defense that will look to force turnovers in bunches.
"They had six turnovers in the last game—three for touchdowns," Luke said. "Offensively, they do a good job of mixing personnel. They're a smash-mouth team, and then they'll take their deep shots. They have a big senior quarterback. They have a scat back, kind of reminds me a little bit of Tylan (Knight). They did a nice job in the one game they had on tape."
After handling the Red Raiders in Week 1, Luke sees a new code to crack in Week 2—but it's one that will help the Rebels as they go forward into SEC play.
"I think it'll be a challenge," Luke said. "It's totally different going from spread to seeing some three-tight-end sets," Luke said. "We're going to play a lot of teams who get in big personnel and try to run it at us. It'll be a challenge for us to stop the run, and they're really good at mixing in deep shots off of that."
With a win over a Big 12 Conference opponent in the bag, and a meeting with No. 1 Alabama in Oxford next weekend, Luke is ensuring that his Rebels aren't overlooking the Salukis on Saturday.
"What we really focus on is us getting better and having a standard," Luke said. "We didn't play our best football Week 1. If we can find a way to get better at all the little things—third downs, red zone—there are plenty of things we can get better at, and that's what our focus is on."
Ole Miss and Southern Illinois are set for a 3 p.m. CT kickoff Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The Rebels' home opener will be broadcast on SEC Alternate.
To purchase tickets for the 2018 season, visit OleMissTix.com or call 888-REB-TKTS. Follow Ole Miss Football on Twitter (@OleMissFB), Facebook and Instagram.
After a stroll through The Grove, the Rebels will take their home field for the first time in 2018, where they'll be joined by visitor Southern Illinois. After opening up on the road, head coach Matt Luke is eager to lead his team down the Walk of Champions for the first time this season.
"That's something that's really special," Luke said. "Some of these kids are freshmen, and it'll be the first time for them walking through The Grove and having an opportunity to play in front of our home fans. I'm really excited to get back in Vaught-Hemingway and play in front of our fans."
Ole Miss looked good in its season opener, dropping 47 points on Texas Tech in a game that saw a little bit of everything for the Rebels—more than 300 yards passing by Jordan Ta'amu, a 200-yard rushing day by Scottie Phillips, a special teams touchdown and some timely defensive stops to close out the decisive victory.
Now, a different challenge awaits. After facing the pass-heavy spread attack put forth by the Red Raiders, they'll take on a Southern Illinois squad that wants to put the ball on the ground and run downhill. Additionally, they'll face a ball-hawking defense that will look to force turnovers in bunches.
"They had six turnovers in the last game—three for touchdowns," Luke said. "Offensively, they do a good job of mixing personnel. They're a smash-mouth team, and then they'll take their deep shots. They have a big senior quarterback. They have a scat back, kind of reminds me a little bit of Tylan (Knight). They did a nice job in the one game they had on tape."
After handling the Red Raiders in Week 1, Luke sees a new code to crack in Week 2—but it's one that will help the Rebels as they go forward into SEC play.
"I think it'll be a challenge," Luke said. "It's totally different going from spread to seeing some three-tight-end sets," Luke said. "We're going to play a lot of teams who get in big personnel and try to run it at us. It'll be a challenge for us to stop the run, and they're really good at mixing in deep shots off of that."
With a win over a Big 12 Conference opponent in the bag, and a meeting with No. 1 Alabama in Oxford next weekend, Luke is ensuring that his Rebels aren't overlooking the Salukis on Saturday.
"What we really focus on is us getting better and having a standard," Luke said. "We didn't play our best football Week 1. If we can find a way to get better at all the little things—third downs, red zone—there are plenty of things we can get better at, and that's what our focus is on."
Ole Miss and Southern Illinois are set for a 3 p.m. CT kickoff Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The Rebels' home opener will be broadcast on SEC Alternate.
To purchase tickets for the 2018 season, visit OleMissTix.com or call 888-REB-TKTS. Follow Ole Miss Football on Twitter (@OleMissFB), Facebook and Instagram.
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