First Reactions: Ole Miss Defeats UTEP, 28-10

As always, a more detailed analysis is to come from us later, whether it be today or tomorrow.

Our apologies on delaying this until Sunday morning. Every week, we would like a knee-jerk-reaction type of post on whichever Ole Miss football game it is that has most recently concluded, but last's combination of exuberance, Schadenfreude, and distilled fermented grains would have caussed an y sort of post i were too haVe writein 2 look liek This. So while this may be late, it's worth the wait.

For the second straight week, the Rebels have put up 500+ yards of offense, and while the competition has not been the toughest we will see all year, it is remarkable to think just what one offseason with a new head coach, new quarterback, and new attitude towards football can do for a team.

Ole Miss gained an average of 7.8 yards per play last night, going for 538 yards over 69 plays. The Rebels did it mostly on the ground, going for 332 yards on 42 rushes. Jeff Scott was a pretty big part of that, as the shifty back returned to the field last night showing hardly any signs of his back injury to go for a team-leading 113 yards.

Bo Wallace was, again, excellent at moving in and out of the pocket, throwing accurate passes, and keeping the team "on schedule" as they call it in Freezespeak. He was 15-of-22 with 174 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for 53 yards and another score. Through just two games, a quarterback who was an unknown to most of us last season, has led Ole MIss to two victories, posting a total of 573 offensive yards and seven touchdowns.

He is currently fourth in the SEC in quarterback rating. He is also ninth in the conference in rushing yards regardless of position, sandwiched in between halfbacks LaDarius Perkins and T.J. Yeldon in that category.

But forget about Bo Wallace for a moment, because the entire offense is clicking well right now. Again, we must take the level of competition into consideration, but it is fun to point out that, after two games, the Ole Miss offense leads the conference in total yards, rushing yards, and third down completion percentage. The Rebel offense is also the 7th-ranked total offense in the country.

Let's not take credit away from the defense yesterday, which was absolutely suffocating against the run and incredibly opportunistic in the red zone. The goal line stand early, where a fourth and goal quarterback keeper was stuffed at the one, was one of those moments where, if you're watching at home like I was, you can't help but jump off of of your couch and search immediately for something to tackle and scream at - in a good way.

In that same vein, Cody Prewitt's pick in the end zone just a few drive later was also very encouraging and motivating. Really, it was just great to see an Ole Miss defense not get discouraged when the opponent would, say, convert a third-and-long or score against long odds. UTEP played hard and generally smart football, something for which we were refreshingly up to task.

Later today or tomorrow sometime, Mexter or Juco (or somebody) will have a more in-depth look at yesterday's game and its implications. For now, just enjoy yet another victorious Sunday.