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(Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
Despite the situation after the departure of head coach Lane Kiffin, the Ole Miss Rebels put all that aside to secure a 39–34 win over the Georgia Bulldogs on January 1 in the Sugar Bowl.
With the win, Ole Miss advanced to the College Football semifinal, ending Georgia’s postseason run and setting up a matchup with the Miami Hurricanes.
Georgia appeared in control early. The Bulldogs’ defense limited Ole Miss to 12 points in the opening half, while the offense surged with a 21-point second quarter. That balance disappeared after the break, though, as the defense surrendered 27 points over the final two quarters.
Offensively, the momentum also faded. After the second-quarter outburst, Georgia managed just 13 points the rest of the way, leaving little margin for error as the Rebels pulled away late. After the win, former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel sent a warning to the Hurricanes about Ole Miss.
“I’m thinking Ole Miss is going to be a really hard out that next game they play,” Manziel said on the January 1 edition of “Night Cap.” “Miami is playing great ball right now. I think if you get that level of Carson Beck that you got [against Ohio State], if you can get that with their defense, they’re going to be a really, really hard out.
“You just don’t know what Carson Beck you’re going to get. He looked the other day like a guy who’s played 30, 40 games, but then you’ll see him against [Texas A&M], and he’ll make enough plays to get it done, but inconsistent at times. I still think he’s a good quarterback, and this Ole Miss team is going to be fired up. I think that game is going to be unbelievable.”
Georgia HC Kirby Smart Was Outcoached in Loss to Ole Miss
After the game, SEC Network analyst Jordan Rodgers openly shared his thoughts on Kirby Smart’s coaching against Ole Miss.
“That was [Pete Golding’s] second game as the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels, going against probably the greatest coach in college football right now, Kirby Smart, a two-time national championship as a head coach in Georgia,” Rodgers said after the Bulldogs’ loss. “And Pete outcoached him; he really did.
“He made decisions when they needed to be made; he was aggressive at times. He inspired his players; he allowed them to play free [and] allowed them to be aggressive [and] allowed Charlie Weis Jr. to be aggressive with play calling. I thought it was a fantastic job by Pete.”
Pete Golding Gets Major Praise for Holding Down Ole Miss
Additionally, Rodgers applauded Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding not only for outcoaching Kirby Smart but also for keeping the team steady after Lane Kiffin departed for the LSU Tigers‘ head coaching position.
“He kept the entire ship from sinking all months,“ Rodgers added. “When everything was working against him—coaches half in, half out, players probably half in, half out, getting contacted by everybody, coaches all across the country, I imagine—that happens. And he kept them together to focus on the biggest game in Ole Miss history, and they performed when they needed it.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports journalist covering the NFL for Heavy.com. He previously covered the league for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has contributed as a freelance writer for The Sporting News. He also served as an editor for Athlon Sports and Heavy Sports focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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