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The passing attack at TCU has occupied the nation’s attention this year. And why not? Horned Frogs wide receiver Josh Doctson leads all of college football gaining 152.4 yards per game. He is second in the NCAA with 1,067 receiving yards.
Trevone Boykin, who has been mentioned in the Heisman conversation, has been throwing the ball at will against the secondaries he has faced. He is ranked seventh in the nation with 2,539 yards and his 180.7 pass efficiency rating is second in the country.
All those number suggest TCU must have the best passing game in the nation. Not really. The Horned Frogs are more of a one-trick pony.
After Doctson, Boykin really doesn’t have anywhere else to go with the ball. Doctson, a transfer from Wyoming, has 60 catches this year. The next highest total for a TCU player is 19.
The Frogs probably wish their attack was more like the one in Oxford, Miss.
Ole Miss is 11th nationally in passing and leads the Southeastern Conference in that category. As a team, Ole Miss throws for 339.8 yards per game. Unlike TCU, the Rebels achieve their passing fortune by spreading the wealth.
Quarterback Chad Kelly has option after option each time he drops back to pass.
Of course he has Laquon Treadwell, an almost certain first-round pick in next spring’s NFL draft, who leads the SEC with 756 yards receiving. But when defenses have to use two players to contain Treadwell, there is an impressive cast of receivers for Kelly to target.
While Treadwell leads the team with 54 catches on the year, the other four receivers who are in the regular rotation each have at least 20 each. Four receivers rank in the Top 25 in receiving in the conference, with Markell Pack ranked 26th. Each brings a unique talent to the Rebels offense.
Junior Quincy Adeboyejo is almost a Treadwell clone when it comes to speed and ability to get open. He has scored a team-high six touchdowns, including one thrown to him by Treadwell.
Senior Cody Core is a rangy receiver who lines up in the slot. He has amassed 426 yards and has a knack for making the clutch catch.
Damore’ea Stringfellow is the newcomer after transferring from Washington. He has 291 yards on the year with a talent for catching the ball in traffic.
Pack is the change-up the Rebels like to bring in to give the other receivers a break. There is not much of a drop off in talent when those times come up as he has 256 yards for the season.
But don’t think Ole Miss just has speedy wideouts. Tight end Evan Engram is now the Rebels’ all-time leading receiver at that position. He has 18 catches and Jaylen Walton has another 11 out of the backfield.
Even defensive beast Robert Nkemdiche has caught a touchdown pass this year.
The mix of receivers has gelled together despite a variety of backgrounds.
The receiving corps is as diverse geographically as it is talent wise. Treadwell is from Illinois, Adeboyejo from Texas, Core from Alabama, Stringfellow from California and Pack from Mississippi.
Also, Engram hails from Georgia and Walton from Tennessee.
Add to that, Kelly, the man pulling the trigger, is from Buffalo, N.Y.
All those cultures and all those skills have blended pretty well in Oxford. Just ask SEC defensive coordinators.
Steve Barnes is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers SEC football.
