Let the 'Big Hogs' Eat: Jaxson Dart and the Ole Miss offense ran wild against Auburn
Jonathan Mingo set a new single-game Ole Miss record for receiving yards in a blowout win at Vanderbilt.
He was held without a catch a week later.
One would figure the Rebels would struggle in such a game, when its clear-cut No. 1 wideout is schemed for and shut down by what is usually a formidable SEC opponent in Auburn. But there’s nothing normal, or ordinary, about the adaptability of the Ole Miss offense.
“Just sticking to what was working,” Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart said following a 48-34 win. “They couldn’t stop our run game. Last week we didn’t run the ball the way we wanted to, so we had to throw it a little bit.
“It just shows how diverse our offense is and how we can do so many different things to put defenses on their heels.”
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Auburn sold out in an effort to keep the ball away from Mingo.
They rolled coverage his way, bracketed him and clogged up every potential throwing lane that opened up in his direction.
Ole Miss, in response, leaned almost exclusively on a Rebel rushing attack ranked No. 1 in the SEC. Dart attempted just 19 passes (completing nine) for 130 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
He had just 21 passing yards in the second half, but Ole Miss was able to grind away to a win. Mingo, for his part, stayed engaged as a blocker, and Ole Miss produced three 100-yard rushers (Dart, Quinshon Judkins and Zach Evans) for the first time since 1976.
“That’s really cool when you have unselfish people like that,” Kiffin said of Mingo.
Judkins had a team-high in yards (139) and touchdowns (2), while Evans was close behind with 136 and one rushing score, respectively. Judkins has totaled 10 rushing touchdowns in all, the most by an SEC freshman since former Ole Miss Rebel John Rhys Plumlee in 2019.
Dart carried 14 times for 115 yards.
“We could run it on them when they knew we were running it,” Dart said. “It was fun. It’s pretty demoralizing for a defense when you get pushed back each and every play. We put it on our big hogs up front and leaned on them.”
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Judkins has scored at least two rushing touchdowns in four of seven games.
Ole Miss is also perfect after a season’s first seven weeks (7-0, 3-0 SEC) for just the second time since the 60s.
The Rebels’ 578 yards of offense against Auburn were their second-most of the year, and they did so without much of an aerial threat, although Ole Miss produced two Rebel running backs with a receiving touchdown in the same game for the first time in 22 years.
The Rebels were 12 for 19 on third down (they came in leading the SEC and ranked No. 5 nationally) and passed Georgia for the most rushing touchdowns in the FBS.
“Our identity as a team just starts up front with our offensive line,” Dart said. “Every game is on their shoulders and we rely on them. They’re so talented and executed at a high level. The best thing is just feeling every play them wearing down more and more and more and more.
“We knew from the get-go we could put them on their heels a little bit. We just stuck with that the whole time. When we saw them score, we knew we had to do the same thing.”
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Ole Miss could move up from No. 9 in Top 25 rankings released on Sunday.
The Rebels next travel to LSU in a week for a primetime kickoff on CBS at 2:30 p.m. CT.
“Every single week it’s almost like a brand new playbook,” Dart said. “There’s so many things we implement every week. You run some of your base things one week, and then the next week they’re not even in the game plan.
“It’s a testament to how great our coaches are and how they fully live up to preparation and taking every week independently from the others. When one thing’s not really working and the other thing’s really working, we can just lean on that and make quick adjustments and make things work.”
