Ole Miss anticipated an aerial shootout against Tulsa’s top-ranked passing offense, but a tough Rebel running game and a defensive effort that never fully broke helped the 13th-ranked Rebels hold on by a final score of 35-27 over the Golden Hurricane on Saturday.
The Rebels (4-0) battled back from an early 14-7 first quarter deficit to take a 35-17 halftime lead over Tulsa (2-2), but the 2nd half became a defensive slugfest highly dependent on the running game and field position.
On the ground, Ole Miss tallied 308 of its 462 total yards, led by another impressive showing from freshman running back Quinshon Judkins, who ended the day on a career-high 140 yards and two scores on 27 carries. Today’s matchup marks the first time since 1999 that Ole Miss has had at least one 100-yard rusher in four consecutive games, as well as the first time since at least 1976 in available game-by-game data that Ole Miss has opened the year with four straight games with a 100-yard rusher.
Ole Miss head football coach Lane Kiffin met with the media after the game, and was clearly unhappy with the team’s performance, had another challenge for the Ole Miss fan base, and doesn’t like a particular rule in college football. Hear what Kiffin had to say right here. Video is courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics.