Chad Kelly threw for 384 yards and three touchdowns as Ole Miss rebounded from its Florida loss with a 52-3 victory Saturday over New Mexico State.

5 TAKEAWAYS

  • Ole Miss’ receiving corps is as deep as it is talented. Ten Rebels caught passes Saturday. Laquon Treadwell led the way with eight receptions for 136 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Markell Pack had three grabs, including one that went for a 66-yard score, and Quincy Adeboyejo had six catches.
  • Still work to be done offense. The Rebels tend to rely on the big play, and against teams like New Mexico State, it can. But Ole Miss needs to improve at extending drives. The Rebels converted just 7-of-18 third downs.
  • Still work to be done on defense. New Mexico State converted 5-of-8 third downs, including its first three on its initial drive. The Aggies settled for a field goal after Ole Miss stopped a third-and-19.
  • The Rebels played a clean game for a change. They were only called for three penalties for 35 yards and most important, none was called during a crucial situation.
  • A patchwork secondary played well. It only surrendered 141 yards and Mike Hilton snagged his first interception, while Trae Elston grabbed his fourth. It was Elston’s first pick since the Alabama game.

REPORT CARD

Offense: A- — The Rebels moved the ball well but again bogged down in the red zone. On its first drive, Ole Miss had a first-and-goal and ran three times. Each run was stuffed and the Rebs kicked a field goal.

Defense: A- — Using a variety of reserves, the defense swarmed New Mexico State. The Rebels collected four sacks, but allowed too many plays that extended drives.

Special teams: C — Ole Miss only punted once and Gary Wunderlich was perfect in kicking, but the Rebels fumbled two punts. The defense did not allow any points off the turnovers, but better opponents will take advantage of situations like that.

Overall: B — It is hard to imagine that grade in a 52-3 win, but it fits. For every two great plays Ole Miss made, it seemed it made one negative one.

GAME PLAN

Offensively, the plan was balance and it worked. Ole Miss threw for 400 yards and ran for another 265. Defensively, the Rebels wanted to eliminate double-digit yards on a particular play. The Aggies averaged 2.6 yards per rush and 3.4 yards per pass.

GAME BALLS

  • Chad Kelly. The junior threw for over 300 yards for the fourth time this season. He ended 24-of-33 for 384 yards and three touchdowns. Kelly ran for another.
  • Laquon Treadwell. Led the way with 136 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including one that is going to be on highlight shows for years.
  • Terry Caldwell. The junior started at middle linebacker for the injured C.J. Johnson and shined. He tied for the team lead with five tackles, but had one of them for a loss and also had his first sack as a Rebel.
  • Marquis Haynes. The sophomore goes unnoticed on the defensive line playing opposite of Robert Nkemdiche, but the sophomore had two tackles for loss and also had two sacks.

INJURY UPDATE

Wow, how much space is available here? On offense, two offensive linemen were held out — Justin Bell and Robert Conyers. Javon Patterson was not expected to play, but entered the game on the second Ole Miss possession. Add to that the NCAA is still putting together its version of the Warren Report on Laremy Tunsil, who sat for the sixth consecutive week. Why is it taking the NCAA so long to examine a rental car contract? The Rebels hope to release more information on the matter early in the week.

Running back Jaylen Walton and wide receiver Damore’ea Stringfellow also missed the game.

Defensively, Tony Conner is still out after surgery to repair cartilage in his knee. Linebacker C.J. Johnson also had knee surgery. Both should come back before the end of the year.

That cannot be said for two other Landsharks. Isaac Gross is out for the year with a neck injury, and earlier in the week, reserve defensive back Tee Shepard left the team after a variety of injuries to concentrate on earning his degree.

After the second Rebel drive, tight end Evan Engram limped to the locker room with an apparent lower leg or ankle injury. He appeared to get injured catching his first pass of the game, which led to the first Ole Miss touchdown. He returned for the next possession.

With the game in hand, he sat out the second half.