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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Arkansas
Game Primer: Ole Miss vs. Arkansas
10/6/2021 | Football
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#17 OLE MISS (3-1, 0-1) vs. #13 ARKANSAS (4-1, 1-1) Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021 • 11 a.m. CT • Oxford, Miss. Vaught-Hemingway Stadium  |
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Watch • Listen • Live Stats
Ole Miss Game Notes (PDF) • Arkansas Game Notes (PDF) • SEC Notes (PDF)Tickets • Gameday Info |
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WHAT TO WATCH FOR
• Ole Miss and Arkansas will be meeting on the field for the 68th time in a series that dates back to 1908.
• The Razorbacks hold a 36-28-1 series lead ... The original series record is 36-30-1 with Ole Miss' wins in 2012 & 2013 being vacated due to NCAA ruling.
• Arkansas' records indicate a 37-27-1 advantage for the Razorbacks ... Arkansas claims a forfeit victory in a 1914 game that Ole Miss won 13-7.
• Ole Miss is 65-167-2 all-time versus ranked opponents ... Ole Miss' last win over a ranked opponent was a 26-20 win over No. 7 Indiana last season in the Outback Bowl.
• The Rebels check in at No. 17 in both the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll.
• Ole Miss is third in the FBS in total offense (549.2 ypg) and fifth in scoring offense (44.8 ppg).
• The Rebels are one of only five teams nationally to have not thrown an interception this season.
• Fifteen Rebels have earned their degrees and are eligible for the 2021 season.
• Matt Corral has thrown a touchdown pass in 16 straight games, tied for second-longest streak in school history.
• Corral ranks top 10 nationally in total offense (342.8 ypg), passing efficiency (177.3), points responsible for (96) and yards per pass attempt (9.68).
• WR Dontario Drummond is third in the SEC with four receiving touchdowns.
• Chance Campbell (7.2), Otis Reese (6.8) and Keidron Smith (6.2) all average six or more tackles per game.
• RB Snoop Conner currently sits at 17 career rushing touchdowns, just one shy of breaking into the top 10.
OLE MISS HEAD COACH LANE KIFFIN
Lane Kiffin (Fresno State, 1998) is in his second season at Ole Miss and helped lead the Rebels to four win in their final five games in 2020, including a 26-20 victory over No. 7 Indiana in the Outback Bowl. Kiffin quickly turned the Rebels into an offensive machine last season. Ole Miss ranked top-20 in the FBS in nine different offensive categories, including having the No. 3 team in the country in total offense, shattering the school record with 555.5 yards per game. Kiffin is in his 10th year at the NCAA level and has posted an all-time record of 69-40. In December 2016, Kiffin took over an FAU program that had won a total of nine combined games over the previous three seasons. Kiffin proceeded to take the Owls to new heights over the last three years, including two conference titles and two 10-win seasons. In his head coaching stops at USC, Tennessee and FAU, Kiffin has shown a propensity in helping turn programs around. Kiffin graduated from Fresno State in 1998 after playing quarterback for three seasons (1994-96) for the Bulldogs. He began his coaching career as a student assistant at Fresno State under Pat Hill in 1997 and 1998. He moved on to Colorado State in 1999 as a graduate assistant.
ARKANSAS HEAD COACH SAM PITTMAN
Sam Pittman (Pittsburgh State, 1986) is in his second season as head coach at Arkansas. He owns a 7-8 career record with the Razorbacks, including an impressive 4-1 start to the 2021-22 campaign. Last season, Arkansas compiled a 3-7 record against an ultra-challenging SEC-only schedule. In week two, the Razorbacks defeated No. 16 Mississippi State on the road, 21-14, snapping a 20-game SEC losing streak and claiming their first win against a ranked team since November 2016. The Oklahoma native has coached at seven different Power 5 schools during his 32 years of coaching, including Georgia, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, North Carolina and Tennessee. He has coached 15 players that have been selected in the NFL Draft since 2013, including first round picks Andrew Thomas (4th in 2020), Isaiah Wilson (29th in 2020), Frank Ragnow (20th in 2018), Isaiah Wynn (23rd overall in 2018), Ja'Wuan James (19th overall in 2014) and Jonathan Cooper (7th overall in 2013). Overall, Pittman has coached seven offensive linemen that were selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, including Stockar McDougle (20th overall in 2000). Travis Swanson also became the highest drafted Razorback center in school history when he was picked 76th overall in 2014.
RAZORBACK SCOUTING REPORT
The Arkansas Razorbacks head into the matchup with the Rebels 4-1 after being shut out against No. 2 Georgia on Saturday. They opened up the season with four straight victories for the first time since 2003. Arkansas is also one of three teams in the country with multiple wins against top-15 ranked opponents. Redshirt sophomore quarterback KJ Jefferson leads the offense, completing almost 60 percent of his passes for 909 yards and six touchdowns. Treylon Burks has been his go-to target with 22 catches for 383 yards and two TDs. Trelon Smith and Jefferson lead the ground game with 302 and 235 yards, respectively. On the defensive side of the ball, the Razorbacks are allowing 282.8 yards per game, the ninth best mark in the nation. Linebacker Bumper Pool leads the team with 49 tackles, while DB Jalen Catalon roams the secondary with two interceptions on the year.
OLE MISS-ARKANSAS SERIES HISTORY
• Ole Miss and Arkansas will be meeting on the field for the 68th time in a series that dates back to 1908.
• The Razorbacks hold a 36-28-1 series lead ... The original series record is 36-30-1 with Ole Miss' wins in 2012 & 2013 being vacated due to NCAA ruling.
• Arkansas' records indicate a 37-27-1 advantage for the Razorbacks ... Arkansas claims a forfeit victory in a 1914 game that Ole Miss won 13-7.
• Ole Miss leads the series 7-6 in games played in Oxford ... Original record is 8-6 in favor of the Rebels.
• Arkansas holds a 17-10 edge since it joined the SEC in 1992.
• Four of the last six games between Ole Miss and Arkansas have been decided by four or less points.
HOMECOMING AT OLE MISS
• This is the 94th Homecoming game at Ole Miss since 1924.
• The Rebels are 70-16-2 (.807 winning pct.) in Homecoming games (after vacated wins).
• Ole Miss has won 21 of their last 24 Homecoming matchups on the field.
• The last Homecoming loss was a 27-7 defeat to Louisiana Tech in 2011.
REBELS TO PARTICIPATE IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK
Ole Miss is partnering with the Hilinski's Hope Foundation (H3H) to support the second annual College Football Mental Health Awareness Week, which will culminate with World Mental Health Day on Saturday, Oct 9. Rebel players and coaches will wear wristbands to honor former Washington State QB Tyler Hilinski and remember those lost and those suffering in silence.
GETTING OFFENSIVE
The Rebels rank top 20 in the country in five separate offensive categories: total offense (549.2), passing offense (305.8), rushing offense (243.5), scoring offense (44.8), team passing efficiency (169.7). The 549.2 yards per game rank fifth nationally, while 44.8 points per game is fifth. Ole Miss has gained 600+ yards six times in 14 games under Lane Kiffin. Before Kiffin, the Rebels had 16 such games in the program's 1,209 games.
BIG PLAY POTENTIAL
The Rebels continue to be on of the best teams in the country in explosive plays. Ole Miss has tallied 90 total plays of 10 or more yards over the first four games of the 2021 season and rank second in the SEC and No. 13 nationally in that category. The Rebels average 22.5 such plays per game which leads the country.
NEW MAN IN THE MIDDLE
Even when Lane Kiffin isn't fishing, he's still landing big fish. One of Kiffin's biggest catches came when the Rebels snagged Utah transfer Orlando Umana. Umana, joined the Rebels after spending four years at Utah where he appeared in 40 career games, including 26 starts. Twenty-two of those starts came at center for the Utes. Battling injury, Umana appeared in just one game for Utah during a shortened 2020 season. As a junior, he earned Pac-12 All-Conference honorable mention honors in 2019 after starting 12 games at center. Umana played in all 14 games on the offensive line as a sophomore in 2018, starting four at left guard and the last nine at center for Utah. The Sacramento, California, native allowed just one sack in 472 pass blocks in 2018.
REBELS IN THE RANKINGS
At 3-1, Ole Miss checks in at No. 17 in both the Coaches Poll and AP Top 25. The Rebels were ranked as high as No. 12 last week, the best ranking for a Rebel squad since week seven of the 2016 season when Ole Miss was also ranked No. 12 prior to falling to Arkansas 34-30 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
FOURTH AND GOING FOR IT
Ole Miss leads the country in both fourth down attempts (19) and conversions (14). The Rebels rank No. 20 in the FBS, converting fourth downs at a 73.7 percent clip. Lane Kiffin and the Rebels have gone for it on fourth down at least three times every game. The Rebels were perfect on fourth down attempts against both Louisville (3-for-3) and Tulane (5-for-5).
WALK-ON ADJUSTING TO NEW ROLE
LB Mark Robinson transferred to Ole Miss as a walk-on running back from Southeast Missouri, but the Leesburg, Georgia, native made the switch to the defensive side of the ball at the end of fall camp last season. Robinson, who sat out last year due to NCAA transfer rules, used the 2020 campaign to sharpen his defensive skills. Robinson has played in all four games this season at linebacker, including a start in the season opener vs. Louisville. He currently ranks seventh in total tackles (17) and turned in a career-best performance with eight tackles against Alabama.
A SPECIAL WEAPON
Punter Mac Brown is no stranger on Rebel special teams. The senior from Eden Prairie, Minnesota, has appeared in 42 career games for Ole Miss and continues to be a special weapon for the Rebels. Brown is averaging 49.1 yards per punt on nine punts this season. Four of his 10 punts have traveled more than 50 yards. Ole Miss ranks No. 9 in the FBS in net punting (43.89).
O CANADA
Ole Miss has an SEC-most three Canadian players on its roster (Jaden Dicks, Deane Leonard, and Tavius Robinson). Leonard has started two games this season at cornerback and has tallied five total tackles on the season. Robinson, who missed the first two contests of the 2021 season due to injury, appeared in all 10 games last year for the Rebels with five starts. Dicks, a redshirt freshman, transferred from the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario, and arrived on campus right before the start of fall camp.
KEIDRON SMITH TO WEAR CHUCKY MULLINS PATCH
Ole Miss senior defensive back Keidron Smith was named the winner of the 2021 Chucky Mullins Courage Award earlier in the fall. The award, sponsored by Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, honors the late Chucky Mullins, who had his Ole Miss career come to an end during the 1989 Homecoming game against Vanderbilt when he was paralyzed after making a tackle. After returning to his studies at Ole Miss, Mullins passed away May 6, 1991. Smith is the 31st recipient in the 32-year history of the award, which is presented annually to an Ole Miss upperclassman defensive player that embodies the spirit of Mullins. Smith wears a 38 patch on his No. 20 jersey rather than switch numbers.
MAC BROWN RAISES OVER 125K FOR ALS RESEARCH
When he was in seventh grade, Ole Miss punter Mac Brown had a modest goal of raising $500 for a childhood friend's dad who had been diagnosed with ALS. Along with a group of neighborhood friends, Brown started a lemonade stand, Awesome Lemonade Stand, in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, to help his friend's family. Ten years later, that $500 goal has ballooned to over $125,000 raised by Brown and his friends for ALS research. The Awesome Lemonade Stand is held on a late day in June, and this year's fundraiser raised nearly $25,000 alone. Brown was recently one of 22 collegiate football players named to the 2021 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
OFFENSIVE NOTES
• The Rebels rank top 20 in the country in five separate offensive categories: total offense (549.2), passing offense (305.8), rushing offense (243.5), scoring offense (44.8), team passing efficiency (169.7).
• Ole Miss is third in the FBS in total offense (549.2 ypg) and fifth in scoring offense (44.8 ppg).
• Ole Miss has gained 600+ yards six times in 14 games under Lane Kiffin ... Before Kiffin, the Rebels had 16 such games in the program's 1,209 games.
• Ole Miss has tallied 90 total plays of 10 or more yards over the first four games of the 2021 season and rank second in the SEC and No. 13 nationally in that category ... The Rebels average 22.5 such plays per game which leads the country.
• The Rebels are one of only five teams nationally to have not thrown an interception this season.
• Ole Miss leads the country in both fourth down attempts (19) and conversions (14).
• Matt Corral has thrown a touchdown pass in 16 straight games, tied for the second-longest streak in school history ... He trails only Chad Kelly (22).
• Corral ranks in the nation's top 10 in total offense (342.8 ypg), passing efficiency (177.3), points responsible for (96) and yards per pass attempt (9.68) ... In total, Corral ranks top-15 nationally in seven different offensive categories.
• Corral ranks fourth on Ole Miss' career charts in passing TDs (47) and sixth in passing yards (6,148).
• WR Dontario Drummond is third in the SEC with four receiving touchdowns.
• RB Snoop Conner currently sits at 17 career rushing touchdowns, just one shy of breaking into the top 10 and tying Leon Perry (17) at No. 10.
DEFENSIVE NOTES
• Chance Campbell (7.2), Otis Reese (6.8) and Keidron Smith (6.2) all average six or more tackles per game.
• The Rebels have forced at least one turnover in 13 of the 14 games under Lane Kiffin and co-defensive coordinators D.J. Durkin and Chris Partridge.
• DL Sam Williams leads the SEC and ranks No. 3 in FBS with 1.25 sacks per game ... Williams has registered a sack in every game this season for the Rebels.
• Of the 26 signees that Ole Miss signed as part of the 2020-21 signing class, 15 were on the defensive side of the ball, including eight defensive backs.
• Ole Miss has an SEC-most three Canadian players on its roster, all of which on the defensive side of the ball (Jaden Dicks, Deane Leonard, and Tavius Robinson).
• DB Keidron Smith was named the winner of the 2021 Chucky Mullins Courage Award and will wear a 38 patch on his No. 20 jersey.
KIFFIN'S WEEKLY RADIO SHOW ON THURSDAYS
RebTalk, the official weekly radio show of Ole Miss Athletics, will broadcast each Thursday this fall at Bouré in downtown Oxford from 6-7 p.m. The show, which is hosted by the "Voice of the Rebels" David Kellum and includes special guests, will air live on the Ole Miss IMG Sports Network. Ole Miss Football head coach Lane Kiffin and select players will join the broadcast each Thursday throughout the season.
