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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Sunday Notebook: Cardiac Rebs Win Again
11/5/2023 | Football
OXFORD, Miss. – When Ulysses Bentley IV cruised into the end zone to put Ole Miss up by three touchdowns in the second quarter, it looked like the Rebels were finally on their way to a stress-free win in SEC play—but of course, that was just too good to be true as Lane Kiffin's Rebels had to overcome a furious Texas A&M comeback to secure a 38-35 win and improve to 8-1 overall and 5-1 in SEC play.
Bentley's touchdown was called back due to a holding flag, and moments later, the Aggies blocked Caden Davis' field goal attempt and housed it to turn what looked to be a 21-0 rout into a 14-7 fight. Texas A&M hung around all afternoon at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, eventually taking a 35-31 lead with 4:34 to go.
Then came perhaps the most impressive drive of the season for the Rebels, a prolific nine-play, 75-yard march that gave Ole Miss a three-point lead—and also left too much time on the clock.
Including Saturday, four of the Rebels' last five games have been decided by one possession, three of which have come down to the final play. The defense locked down in the waning moments to beat LSU and Arkansas. Against the Aggies, special teams applied the finishing touch, as Zxavian Harris tipped A&M's game-tying field goal attempt as time expired.
"They're like the cardiac kids or something the way our kids play and take it down to the wire in these games," Kiffin said. "What an exciting finish to a game. Kind of somewhat of an LSU feel where it seemed like we were in command and then let it slip away there. To get it back at the end there, go down and score on a 75-yard drive and then block the kick at the end, I've got to give our players a lot of credit."
Big Play Tre
Lane Kiffin and his staff thought they could do damage with Tre Harris out wide this weekend—and boy, were they right. Harris caught a career-high 11 passes for 213 yards, the highest output by a Rebel receiver this season and the sixth-best single-game receiving yardage mark in program history.
Harris stuffed the highlight reel with stunning grabs on seemingly every drive, his connection with quarterback Jaxson Dart as sharp as ever. The senior out of Lafayette, Louisiana, joined Jonathan Mingo, Elijah Moore, AJ Brown, Eddie Small and Pat Coleman on the exclusive list of Rebel receivers with 200 yards in a game.
"Obviously Tre showed up today," Kiffin said. "That was what we thought the matchup was that would help us in our favor because inside people really struggle with them was to let Tre go one-on-one outside. It takes Jaxson making some great throws and Tre making some great plays."
Invesco QQQ
It wasn't just a pass-happy day for the Rebel offense. Ole Miss once again leaned heavily on its All-American running back, and once again, Quinshon Judkins did not disappoint, notching his first career three-touchdown game to beat the Aggies. The sophomore out of Pike Road, Alabama, eclipsed the century mark on the ground for the third straight game, giving him 592 yards and eight scores over the last five contests.
Judkins was lethal near the goal line Saturday. He opened the day's scoring with a touchdown in the first, opened the second half's scoring with another in the third and ended the day's scoring with the go-ahead TD with 1:40 to play—all three coming from inside the 10-yard line.
Judkins has scored the game-deciding touchdown in each of Ole Miss' last two one-possession wins.
"Honestly, I'm just glad we got the win overall as a team," Judkins said. "Going into this game we all knew A&M was a great team, they had a great front defensive line and great defensive players. So just coming out with the win overall is a great feeling."
Big Play Zay
While Judkins and Tre Harris constructed a bookcases full of big plays on the offensive end, Zxavian Harris bookended his day with big plays.
After Ole Miss was stopped on its first drive, Harris returned the favor on A&M's first series. The sophomore out of Canton, Mississippi, crashed through the Aggie offensive line and tackled running back Reuben Owens for a loss to put them behind the sticks, eventually leading to a punt, which allowed Ole Miss to race out to a 14-0 lead.
Harris had a spectacular day throughout, notching a career-high seven tackles, including the early TFL. The big man came through big in the end, using every inch of his 6-foot-7, 335-pound frame to raise up and plant a fingertip on Randy Bond's 47-yard attempt to seal another emotional win for the Rebels.
"I was actually with my position coach praying," Judkins said of the final play.
"We were all just happy, people were crying happy tears," said John Saunders Jr. "It was crazy, for real."
"Jaxson came off and was like 'We scored too fast,' and I said 'Can you be positive please?' And then he's like 'They're going to make the kick,' and I'm like 'Can you be positive?' Finally after the game he said alright, he'll stop being negative," Kiffin said.
"I kind of blacked out just running around screaming," Dart said.
Next Up: Ole Miss at Georgia
Ole Miss now sits at 8-1 overall and 5-1 in SEC play going into Athens to take on the No. 2 team in the nation and defending national champion Georgia (9-0, 6-0).
ESPN's College GameDay announced Saturday night that it will broadcast its weekly preview show live from the UGA campus. Kick time is yet to be announced for the top-10 tilt.
The Bulldogs are coming off a 30-21 win over No. 12 Missouri at home on Saturday.
The Rebels will return to The Vaught the following weekend to host ULM for senior day, looking to close out a perfect home record for the 2023 season. Tickets are available at OleMissTix.com.
Bentley's touchdown was called back due to a holding flag, and moments later, the Aggies blocked Caden Davis' field goal attempt and housed it to turn what looked to be a 21-0 rout into a 14-7 fight. Texas A&M hung around all afternoon at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, eventually taking a 35-31 lead with 4:34 to go.
Then came perhaps the most impressive drive of the season for the Rebels, a prolific nine-play, 75-yard march that gave Ole Miss a three-point lead—and also left too much time on the clock.
Including Saturday, four of the Rebels' last five games have been decided by one possession, three of which have come down to the final play. The defense locked down in the waning moments to beat LSU and Arkansas. Against the Aggies, special teams applied the finishing touch, as Zxavian Harris tipped A&M's game-tying field goal attempt as time expired.
"They're like the cardiac kids or something the way our kids play and take it down to the wire in these games," Kiffin said. "What an exciting finish to a game. Kind of somewhat of an LSU feel where it seemed like we were in command and then let it slip away there. To get it back at the end there, go down and score on a 75-yard drive and then block the kick at the end, I've got to give our players a lot of credit."
Big Play Tre
Lane Kiffin and his staff thought they could do damage with Tre Harris out wide this weekend—and boy, were they right. Harris caught a career-high 11 passes for 213 yards, the highest output by a Rebel receiver this season and the sixth-best single-game receiving yardage mark in program history.
Harris stuffed the highlight reel with stunning grabs on seemingly every drive, his connection with quarterback Jaxson Dart as sharp as ever. The senior out of Lafayette, Louisiana, joined Jonathan Mingo, Elijah Moore, AJ Brown, Eddie Small and Pat Coleman on the exclusive list of Rebel receivers with 200 yards in a game.
"Obviously Tre showed up today," Kiffin said. "That was what we thought the matchup was that would help us in our favor because inside people really struggle with them was to let Tre go one-on-one outside. It takes Jaxson making some great throws and Tre making some great plays."
The @JaxsonDart ➡️ @_treharris13 connection 🤩
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/qOc8HacT5R
That's @_treharris13's ball, sir.
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/q8qNS1QxEA
THAT MAN IS NOT REAL@JaxsonDart ➡️ @_treharris13 pic.twitter.com/iRAprGV8ui
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
Dude's a freak. 🤯@_treharris13 | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/QgMfoEasLB
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
Invesco QQQ
It wasn't just a pass-happy day for the Rebel offense. Ole Miss once again leaned heavily on its All-American running back, and once again, Quinshon Judkins did not disappoint, notching his first career three-touchdown game to beat the Aggies. The sophomore out of Pike Road, Alabama, eclipsed the century mark on the ground for the third straight game, giving him 592 yards and eight scores over the last five contests.
Judkins was lethal near the goal line Saturday. He opened the day's scoring with a touchdown in the first, opened the second half's scoring with another in the third and ended the day's scoring with the go-ahead TD with 1:40 to play—all three coming from inside the 10-yard line.
Judkins has scored the game-deciding touchdown in each of Ole Miss' last two one-possession wins.
"Honestly, I'm just glad we got the win overall as a team," Judkins said. "Going into this game we all knew A&M was a great team, they had a great front defensive line and great defensive players. So just coming out with the win overall is a great feeling."
Too easy for @qaj4_ 😮💨
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/U7NMzkbcFa
The legs just keep churning. 😳@qaj4_ | ESPN pic.twitter.com/lD9LZ8tMyb
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
Q's second TD makes it a two-TD lead ✅✅@qaj4_ | ESPN pic.twitter.com/Gnj9VYphgV
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
Q FOR THE LEAD!@qaj4_ | ESPN pic.twitter.com/j7bxAT5hAU
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
Big Play Zay
While Judkins and Tre Harris constructed a bookcases full of big plays on the offensive end, Zxavian Harris bookended his day with big plays.
After Ole Miss was stopped on its first drive, Harris returned the favor on A&M's first series. The sophomore out of Canton, Mississippi, crashed through the Aggie offensive line and tackled running back Reuben Owens for a loss to put them behind the sticks, eventually leading to a punt, which allowed Ole Miss to race out to a 14-0 lead.
Harris had a spectacular day throughout, notching a career-high seven tackles, including the early TFL. The big man came through big in the end, using every inch of his 6-foot-7, 335-pound frame to raise up and plant a fingertip on Randy Bond's 47-yard attempt to seal another emotional win for the Rebels.
"I was actually with my position coach praying," Judkins said of the final play.
"We were all just happy, people were crying happy tears," said John Saunders Jr. "It was crazy, for real."
"Jaxson came off and was like 'We scored too fast,' and I said 'Can you be positive please?' And then he's like 'They're going to make the kick,' and I'm like 'Can you be positive?' Finally after the game he said alright, he'll stop being negative," Kiffin said.
"I kind of blacked out just running around screaming," Dart said.
Rebs Win 👍 pic.twitter.com/6i6Nkp7I70
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2023
Next Up: Ole Miss at Georgia
Ole Miss now sits at 8-1 overall and 5-1 in SEC play going into Athens to take on the No. 2 team in the nation and defending national champion Georgia (9-0, 6-0).
ESPN's College GameDay announced Saturday night that it will broadcast its weekly preview show live from the UGA campus. Kick time is yet to be announced for the top-10 tilt.
The Bulldogs are coming off a 30-21 win over No. 12 Missouri at home on Saturday.
The Rebels will return to The Vaught the following weekend to host ULM for senior day, looking to close out a perfect home record for the 2023 season. Tickets are available at OleMissTix.com.
Players Mentioned
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