It certainly didn’t happen the way he could have expected, but nevertheless, Matt Luke is getting the chance to live out his dream this season in Oxford as head coach of Ole Miss.

Having been named the program’s interim coach following the resignation of former coach Hugh Freeze, Luke had his first opportunity to speak to the media as the Ole Miss coach Monday. Luke got emotional when discussing his dream job.

“I’m so excited to have the opportunity to be the head coach at the University of Mississippi,” Luke said. “I’ve been an Ole Miss Rebel my entire life. It’s all I can remember, from seeing my Dad’s ’35 helmet hanging in my den, pictures of his playing days hanging in my room, making the five-hour drive from Gulf Port to Oxford to watch my brother Tom play, wearing the No. 17 jersey in the Grove.”

“I can truly sit here and tell y’all this is my dream job. A job I’ve been preparing for all my life. I feel more strongly than ever that I’m the right man to run this program.

“I’m excited about our players. They’ve been through so much adversity, they’ve never wavered. Not one time, they haven’t wavered… It was evident to me at the Thursday night meeting, these guys just want to play football. They just want to go out and play the game that they love. They want to go out and represent Ole Miss and win football games. It’s my job to make sure the focus stays on the players.”