.png&width=32&height=32&type=webp)
The University of Mississippi Athletics
Fresh Off the Field: Ole Miss Football’s Historic Dismantling of Furman
9/1/2024 | Football
Presented by Kroger
Ole Miss put on a clinic, eclipsing 50 points before halftime, allowing Jaxson Dart and most of the rest of the starters to watch from the sidelines as the second unit and beyond finished the job emphatically. The Rebels allowed just seven first downs on the night, including a string of seven straight three-and-outs in the second half. Furman never even made it to the red zone.
"Really pleased today by the performance, that is not always the case in these games when they go your way this early. I thought that our players really came out with a great intensity. They played like it was an elite SEC game. Really pleased with that. I thought the fans were really good, and the student section," Kiffin said. "Also playing clean, we ran 82 plays with no turnovers and a combined three penalties in all three phases of the game. That is enjoyable for a coach for that to happen."
Breaking Down the Breakdown
A lot to unpack with this one, so here we go. The 76 points were the most in the Lane Kiffin era and tied for the most since 1935. Ole Miss' 772 yards of offense were the second-most in program history behind only 826 against Louisiana-Monroe on Oct. 6, 2018. The Rebels' 52 first-half points were the most in program history since at least 1962.
"Fifty-two, missed a field goal at the end that is about as good as you can do," Kiffin said. "The one series, we don't punt, but the one series we kick a field goal and not a touchdown. We look at it, three points at the end, only four points left out there with a lot of series. That is a really good half. I don't care who you are playing, that is a hard thing to do."
Ole Miss is the only FBS team in the last 40 years to record a 75-plus point shutout with more than 750 yards of total offense.
Only one FBS team over the past 40 seasons has recorded a 75+ point shutout & more than 750 total yards of offense in a single game:
— Greg Harvey (@BetweenTheNums) September 1, 2024
Ole Miss (@OleMissFB) yesterday against Furman.
That's it! @Lane_Kiffin pic.twitter.com/OtBxQVAkAv
Dart Starts Heisman Campaign
Jaxson Dart put up Heisman Trophy numbers in Week 1, and it only took half of a game. By halftime of Ole Miss' season-opener against Furman, Dart's work was already done, as the Rebel quarterback was 22-for-27 with 445 total yards and six total touchdowns to give his team a 52-0 lead. Check out his first-half highlights below.
"Quite honestly, it was what we were expecting going into this game," Dart said. "That's the standard that we want to play at and excel at. A big thing for us is just trying to control what we can control. Regardless of what the score is, regardless of the situation, go into each play with the same mindset and try to execute the play the best we can. I was really happy with how we were able to do that tonight and I thought it was incredible by our defense to not give up any points."
Tre Harris for Biletnikoff
Tre Harris couldn't match his four-touchdown performance in last year's season-opener against Mercer, but the Biletnikoff Award candidate did just fine for himself. Harris picked up right where he left off in 2023, racking up 179 yards on eight catches in the first half with receiving touchdowns on consecutive drives. Check out every one of his catches below.
"For us it was a lot of our guys' first game, our first game together and we just wanted to go out there and show what we're about. This entire week our coaches were preaching to us about Furman, we weren't going to take them lightly. 'They're going to come off the bus ready to play with effort, so y'all have to play even harder than them.' We showed out tonight and I'm really really proud of the guys for that."
Stay Connected
Stay up to date with all the latest Ole Miss football news and content! Subscribe to The Sip, the official newsletter of Rebel football, and we'll drop the best Ole Miss football stories, videos and social media content to your inbox each week.
Update today to the all-new version of the Ole Miss Sports app, presented by Renasant Bank! The new app will serve as a dynamic hub for Rebel gameday content, including ticketing, parking, schedules, shopping for official Ole Miss merchandise and much more. Click here for more info or to download.
