Date Opponent
09/01/18 Texas Tech
09/08/18 Southern Illinois
09/15/18 Alabama
09/22/18 Kent State
09/29/18 LSU
10/06/18 (HC) Louisiana Monroe
10/13/18 Arkansas
10/20/18 Auburn
11/03/18 South Carolina
11/10/18 Texas A&M
11/17/18 Vanderbilt
11/22/18 Mississippi State
Head Football Coach
Matt Luke took over the reigns at Ole Miss last season after former Head Coach Hugh Freeze was forced to resign. This is never a good position to be in or a good way to start your career as a Head Football Coach. Coach look has a lot of experience as an assistant coach under some of college football's greats which includes stints under Coach's David Cutcliffe, Phil Fulmer, and Tommy Tuberville among others. This is going to be a hard one for me to call because there is so little information about Coach Luke's philosophy of play and how well his decision making process works under the stress of being the Head Coach. He was able to finish out the season for Ole Miss last year with no major problems or criticisms, which at this point has to be a big plus. I am usually very high on line coaches becoming head coaches, most teams tend to go with the more flashy and well known offensive stars of the game. But if you have been paying attention to my blogs you know that I believe that most football games are won and lost on the line, not in the backfield. An offensive line coach like Luke can hire someone to run the offense and call plays, but it takes the mind of a line coach to know if his lineman can deliver the blocks that will make those plays work. Coach Luke will have a good feel for what is going on in the trenches, and he will have better insights into how to build the offense around his linemen, rather than around his "Skill" players. It does not matter how good your QB, RB's or WR's are if the offensive line is not capable of making the needed blocks to make a play work, so if there is an advantage for Ole Miss this is where I believe it must be found.
The problem is that coach Luke will be spending most of his time trying to dig himself out of a hole and bringing together a disillusioned and fragmented squad. Will they rally behind an unproven Head Coach and will they be able to stay focused? Will they fold up and quit trying when the first bit of adversity strikes? Will they squabble and fight and become an "every man for himself" type group of players, or will they resign themselves to the facts and come together in unity and play as a solid team? These are the questions that I will be looking for answers to as the season opens up, right now I'm on the fence about the possible outcome.
Key Offensive Players
Junior WR - A.J. Brown 6-1 225 lbs.
Junior TE - Dawson Knox 6-4 250 lbs.
Key Defensive Players
Junior DB - Vernon Dasher 6-1 200 lbs. (Junior College Transfer)
Senior LB - Detric Bing-Dukes 6-1 254 lbs.
Summary
Ole Miss has suffered severely in many different ways from the abrupt coaching change and the questions regarding the program as a whole. Several team members were forced to make agonizing decisions about their careers, some of which left gaping holes in the rebel's roster. This will be a tough season with a lot of adversity and fan pressure, it is critical that the team unite and become very focused and become willing to make personal sacrifices for the overall good of the team. It will most likely be up to the offense to carry the load for a depleted defense that was one of the weakest in the Nation among the major colleges last season, especially against run defense. This fact alone could mean a ruinous 2018 SEC schedule if it can not be overcome with determination and grit. I'm predicting another 6-6 season with some embarrassing losses along the way to some of their rivals who will enter the contest with overpoweringly strong offenses. But a 6-6 season would not be a disaster, and if the Rebels could pull out a win in the Egg Bowl the future of the program could receive a boost and add some precious and needed time for rebuilding, restoration and a regaining of lost confidence.
Comments