No. 15 Ole Miss football holds off Hugh Freeze, Liberty, wins 27-14
OXFORD — In the battle of two projected first-round quarterback draft picks, it was Ole Miss' defense that set the tone in Hugh Freeze's return to Oxford.
No. 15 Ole Miss (7-2) defeated Liberty (7-3) 27-14 on Saturday. The Rebels' defense sacked Liberty quarterback Malik Willis nine times and intercepted him three times. Willis only mustered 173 passing yards and 71 rushing yards counting sacks.
Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral found more success. Corral was 20-for-27 passing for 324 yards and a touchdown. Junior running back Jerrion Ealy did the rest, carrying 10 times for 115 yards and two scores.
The game marked Freeze's first game as a visiting coach at Ole Miss since resigning as Rebels coach in 2017 for a pattern of personal misconduct. The five-year run would have been considered successful if not for the vacation of 27 wins because of NCAA violations. Freeze was hired by Liberty in December 2018.
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Here are the Clarion Ledger's takeaways from Saturday's Ole Miss win:
The pass rush is the life blood
Ole Miss entered Saturday ranked No. 14 in the FBS in sacks but had never logged more than five sacks in a game. On Saturday, the Rebels brought down Willis seven times in the first half.
Pressure powered the defense throughout the game. Sacks on third downs forced missed field goals and also punts early to keep a zero on the scoreboard. The pressure also forced Willis out of the pocket and into some mistakes.
What might be the most impressive part of the pass rush is how varied it was. Six Rebels sacked Willis, including defensive ends, a linebacker and defensive backs.
The Dannis Jackson game?
Top receivers Jonathan Mingo and Dontario Drummond didn't play Saturday. Senior Braylon Sanders did play, catching two passes for 64 yards, but was clearly still limited. That left Ole Miss to turn to junior Dannis Jackson as the No. 1 target.
It was an up-and-down day for Jackson. He had a bad drop in the first quarter and a crucial offensive pass interference call go against him in the third quarter. But he also caught six passes for 126 yards and a touchdown. A former track star, Jackson used his dynamic straight-ahead speed to stretch the field, and Corral targeted him on a number of deep shots.
After 135 yards receiving last week, senior receiver Jahcour Pearson didn't feature much in Saturday's game plan. But if Jackson and Pearson can have 100-yard days in back-to-back weeks as Ole Miss' fourth and fifth options, that bodes well for the Rebels as players get healthier.
The Freeze factor
Freeze, who was Ole Miss' coach from 2012-16, wasn't met with a particularly hostile crowd on Saturday.
Compared to the sellout stadium Ole Miss hosted against LSU, Saturday's Vaught-Hemingway Stadium was about three-quarters full. Ole Miss didn't make any mention of Freeze's tenure on the video board or over the loudspeaker pregame and other than when Liberty ran onto the field from the locker room, it was hard to perceive the Ole Miss crowd giving Freeze the time of day.
Who needs the ball anyway?
Liberty dominated time of possession, holding the ball for 37:16 compared to Ole Miss' 20:25. The Rebels had touchdown drives of 34 seconds, 56 seconds and 1:28.
Liberty ate clock. The Flames' two third-quarter touchdown drives took up 9:56 of the game clock. With a run-first approach, the Flames took Ole Miss' pass rush out of the game and methodically moved down the field, forcing Ole Miss' run defense to make plays. It didn't.
A big problem for Ole Miss' defense this fall has been half-to-half consistency. Against LSU and Auburn, that meant brutal first halves and strong finishes. Against Louisville, Arkansas and Liberty, it was the reverse. For the most part, the defense is getting results. But it's not an encouraging trend.
Contact Nick Suss at 601-408-2674 or nsuss@gannett.com. Follow @nicksuss on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Ole Miss football holds off Hugh Freeze, Liberty in 27-14 win
