LIVE! From the Manning Center: Ole Miss’ Kiffin, James and Anthony set the stage for Arkansas week
Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss football team have officially moved on from the high of their unforgettable win over LSU from over the weekend.
They don’t really have choice.
Because, next up, is Arkansas and its veteran quarterback, KJ Jefferson. Kickoff is set for Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network. Jefferson, in particular, has given Ole Miss and head coach Lane Kiffin fits over the last two seasons.
He’s combined for six total touchdowns in the last two showdowns between the teams. The Rebels (4-1, 1-1 SEC) could have had Jefferson, from nearby Sardis, back in the recruiting class of 2019. However, the previous staff offered Jefferson very late in the process and well after he’d cast his lot with the Razorbacks (2-3, 0-2).
Jefferson threw for 326 yards and rushed for 85 more in a 52-51 Ole Miss win in 2021. He also scored three touchdowns.
Jefferson led a rout of the Rebels last season. Arkansas scored 35 first-half points in a 42-27 win. Jefferson, for his part, threw for 168 yards and another trio of touchdowns.
“Excited about playing at home again,” Kiffin said, in his weekly press conference on Monday. “Hope we’ll have the same type of crowd we had last week. Similar game time, and this is a very challenging opponent. I know they’ve lost a few in a row, but took LSU down to the wire at LSU and have given us a lot of problems. They were up 42-7 or something at half last year against us.
“This is a really big challenge for us to play really well and contain these guys. You saw what they did to us last year, what they did to us three years ago. Excited for this challenge before we get into the bye week.”
Kiffin and players Jeremy James (offensive lineman) and Daijahn Anthony (safety) all met the media Monday to preview the game week ahead.
Here’s everything they had to say.
