Lane Kiffin laid down the challenge and the Ole Miss offensive line 'went to work' last week
There is no secret that the one group of the Ole Miss offense that was feeling the heat the most after the loss at Alabama was the offensive line.
Head coach Lane Kiffin even admitted it was the one group he was going to have to get after and throughout last week said he challenged them.
The challenge appeared to be heard, understood and accepted as the front line of the Rebels offense had its best collective game of the season at arguably the most important moment of the year.
In the game at Tuscaloosa the Ole Miss offensive line allowed the Crimson Tide defense to sack Jaxson Dart five times — half of the season total of sacks allowed — pressured him eight times.
After scoring the second-lowest amount of points under Kiffin there was a harsh reality when Ole Miss returned to Oxford. The first couple days of practice saw the offensive line have a gut-check.
“We got to work,” said Jeremy James of what Kiffin’s message to his room was. “We had a lot of things to figure out and just had to get to work. That’s what we did.”
A week of going back to work and the basics looked to have done a world of good for James and the rest of his group. Against LSU there was very little pressure put on Dart.
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The Ole Miss offensive line kept a clean sheet against the Tigers defense.
Dart was not sacked last Saturday and managed the offense without being hurried but only four times.
The ability to have time in the pocket or to make a play also allowed for Dart to have zero interceptions and the offense has zero turnovers as a whole.
“I think it was just preparation,” James said of the difference against LSU. “We didn’t play our best game (against Alabama) and it showed. Then going into this past Saturday we just had to work hard. Tuesday and Wednesday our big work days. We went and put in the work and I think it showed up on Saturday.”
Following Saturday’s game Dart also acknowledge the work and effort the five guys in charge of protecting put in between the Alabama loss and the shootout victory over the Tigers.
“I’m so proud of them. The criticism they’ve received, I know it’s been hard on them,” Dart said. “We just had to get back to our identity as a team of being a balanced offense. They took great ownership and accountability of how they performed last week and the weeks before. All they wanted to do was come out this week and have a coming out party. That’s exactly what they did. I knew after the very first drive that every single one of them was locked in.”
This newfound confidence within the Ole Miss offensive line will be tested this weekend. The Arkansas defensive front is coming into Saturday’s game with 14 sacks credited to them, but they did not record one in last week’s loss to Texas A&M.
