The Ole Miss Rebels went out west to take on Cal on Saturday night and were handed their first loss of the season.

The Bears emerged with a 27-16 home win, doing a good job of holding the Rebels’ potent offense in check.

However, the Rebels also hurt themselves by committing 16 penalties for 113 yards in the game, something coach Matt Luke said really took Ole Miss out of rhythm, according to OleMissSports.com:

“The penalties and just the lack of rhythm really hurt us on offense,” Luke said. “We have been through a lot together. I think the important part is facing adversity and seeing what happens. We are not going to do it alone. We are going to do it together.”

Also hurting the offense was the loss of C Sean Rawlings, who left the game with an ankle sprain:

“Sean is very important,” Luke said. “Injuries are part of football. The next guy has to step up and be ready to go.”

Following a bye next weekend, the Rebels face a tough road test on Sept. 30, traveling to Tuscaloosa to take on the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide.

To have a chance in that game, Luke said the Rebels need to clean up their mistakes and play better offensively:

“I think the offense as a whole, we expect to perform better,” Luke said. “The penalties and the drops and all of that causes you not to have a rhythm.”

Ole Miss has a bye to prepare for the Crimson Tide, but unless the Rebels can fix what hurt them against Cal, they’ll struggle to get anything going against Alabama’s stout defense.