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Every team has moments that define a season. Some teams face these turning points and improve. Others crumble under the pressure.
Ole Miss rose to the occasion in 2015 and earned a trip to the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
Here is a list of 10 moments that shaped the 2015 Rebels run to its bowl game.
10. Chad Kelly wins starting job: Back in early September, Ole Miss wasn’t sure what it had in the former Clemson quarterback. Kelly proceeded to throw for 557 yards, six touchdowns and one interception in the first two games of the season.
That earned the trust of his coaching staff, which allowed Kelly to shine in Week 3 at Tuscaloosa.
9. Laremy Tunsil returns: The projected top-10 NFL draft pick missed the first seven games due to NCAA violations. Ole Miss greatly missed him in its two losses to Florida and Memphis.
But he returned to face Texas A&M on Oct. 25. In its final five games with Tunsil, the Rebels averaged about 201 rushing yards. In the previous three SEC games without him, Ole Miss averaged 104 yards on the ground.
8. Failed 4th Down vs. Memphis: Even though it wasn’t a conference loss, the defeat to Memphis could have been a costly one had Ole Miss won the SEC West.
Minutes after an interception and the Memphis touchdown that gave the Tigers a three-point lead with about two minutes left in the first half, coach Hugh Freeze elected to go for 4th-and-1 on the Rebels 34-yard line.
Kelly was stopped for no gain. Memphis already had momentum. The failed fourth-down play set up another Tigers TD right before half time. Ole Miss never recovered.
7. Arkansas TD to send game into OT: Everybody will remember the 4th-and-25 conversion in overtime, but Ole Miss could have avoided that situation with a stop in regulation. Instead, the Razorbacks tied the game at 45 with 53 seconds left in regulation.
6. Florida’s third TD: Ole Miss’ loss to Florida helped keep the Rebels out of the SEC Championship.
The Gators third TD put them ahead 19-0. Down three scores and without Tunsil for pass protection, Kelly fumbled twice, threw an interception and took four sacks. Ole Miss fell 38-10.
5. Tony Bridges’ Pick-Six vs. Mississippi State: The 45-yard score gave the Rebels a three-TD lead in the first quarter against the Bulldogs. That was enough cushion to ensure a victory over their cross-state rival and a trip to the Sugar Bowl.
4. Kelly’s Circus Act vs. Alabama: Kirk Herbstreit said we would look back on this play at the end of the season.
The Rebels’ 3rd-and-1 attempt close to midfield on the first drive of the second half looked more like a comedy of errors than anything. The snap bounced high into the air off Kelly’s finger tips. Then, he threw an unadvised pass into traffic, which bounced off two players and into the arms of WR Quincy Adeboyejo, who ran 66 yards for a TD.
Without the play, Ole Miss probably doesn’t beat Alabama.
3. Arkansas’ 2-point conversion: Again, Ole Miss could have avoided the 4th-and-25 failure defining its season if the defense stopped Arkansas on the final play of the game.
Razorbacks coach Bret Bielema elected to go for the 2-point conversion instead of sending the game into double overtime with an extra point. Arkansas QB Brandon Allen ran in the conversion and hope of an Ole Miss SEC West title was all but lost.
2. Kelly’s Almost Illegal Pass vs. Alabama: Alabama bounced back from Kelly’s circus act in the third and came within six points of Ole Miss with under 12 minutes to play in the fourth quarter. The Rebels needed a response.
On a designed rollout, Kelly found a wide open Cody Core down the sidelines for a 73-yard score. Initially, the referees ruled the play an illegal forward pass, but upon further review, Kelly had his back foot behind the line of scrimmage.
Over the next few days, there was some controversy about an illegal man downfield on the play. Regardless, the TD stood, and Ole Miss won, 43-37.
1. 4th-and-25: No other description is really necessary, but Arkansas pulled off its own circus play in overtime on 4th-and-25.
Razorbacks TE Hunter Henry caught a 10-yard pass and threw the ball backward before hitting the ground. Alex Collins picked up the loose ball and ran for the first down. Arkansas won the game a couple plays later with a TD and 2-point conversion.
In defeat, Ole Miss lost its control over the SEC West.
Dave covers SEC football for Saturday Down South.
