Ole Miss boasts triple threat offense according to South Carolina HC Shane Beamer ahead of Week 6 SEC matchup
Despite their loss to Kentucky, the Ole Miss offense is still one of the most impressive in the entire nation. Any time a team loses a game, the general public's response is almost always an overreaction, assuming that the very foundation is crumbling.That's obviously not the case with Ole Miss. And according to South Carolina […]
Despite their loss to Kentucky, the Ole Miss offense is still one of the most impressive in the entire nation. Any time a team loses a game, the general public's response is almost always an overreaction, assuming that the very foundation is crumbling.
That's obviously not the case with Ole Miss. And according to South Carolina head coach, the man responsible for stopping the Rebels offense this week, Lane Kiffin's fast paced tempo offense presents quite the triple threat for the Gamecocks to defend.
Ole Miss' Offense is Tough to Slow Down
South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer kicked off his comments on the Ole Miss offense by expressing how difficult it is to slow down the fast paced tempo despite having faced some of that already this season:
"No, it's very difficult because you don't see [fast tempo offense] regularly. Obviously we've got some experience [against fast tempo] from playing Tennessee every year that I've been here in their tempo. So it's not completely foreign to us. Old Dominion, our opening ball game, they were a fast tempo team."
The truth about the Ole Miss offense is that they're even faster than Tennessee and Old Dominion this year. And what makes them especially difficult to deal with is that among the Top 25 FBS teams in offensive pace Ole Miss averages over a yard more per play than any of them.
Last week, Kentucky played four quarters of coward ball keep away (holding the football for 40 minutes) knowing Ole Miss would completely destroy them if given too many offensive drives. And even so, the Jaxson Dart to Tre Harris connection nearly single-handedly won them the game as they connected for over 170 yards on 11 receptions.
The fast-strike capability of Ole Miss' offense when they're clicking is tough to stop. Their two long touchdown drives went for a total of 144 yards on 12 plays in just about four combined minutes of game clock. And if their key third quarter drive hadn't been derailed by a fumble in Kentucky's red zone the Rebels likely finish off the Wildcats with ease. But it's not just the pace that makes the Ole Miss offense such a threat.
Ole Miss Triple Threat Offense
Beamer continued talking about what he sees as the real difficult part of playing Ole Miss' offense. The tempo may be tough, but the talents executing the plays are the real difference.
"I think the thing that makes Ole Miss really, really difficult is the fact that they're, you know, one, they are able to run the ball so well. Two, they've got really good players doing it. Three, the quarterback is a weapon to run and throw, so you've got to account for the quarterback run game. So it's challenging. Certainly the off week helped. We spent the majority of our time last week trying to get ourselves ready and try and get ourselves better, I should say, and slowly introduce Ole Miss. But it was good that we were able to introduce it last week and it not be completely new to us this week."
As Beamer outlined, the running game, the depth of talent on this Ole Miss team, and the elite dual threat quarterback play from Jaxson Dart creates a trio of problems for any team to defend against.
Ole Miss is currently averaging nearly six yards per carry on the ground and they've scored the fourth most rushing touchdowns on the year already. Their elite depth of offensive and defensive talent with future NFL Draft picks in every skill position group and a half dozen players posting 10+ pass rush pressures on defense makes for non-stop matchup nightmares. Then when you throw in a quarterback like Jaxson Dart who is leading the nation in adjusted yards per pass attempt, passer rating, yards per play, and can add value on the ground too? It's no wonder why Shane Beamer is worried about Ole Miss' triple threat offense.
The Rebels will need to find a more consistent rhythm and focus on not turning the ball over deep in South Carolina if they hope to bounce back following their loss to Kentucky, but the Ole Miss offense is still as dangerous as ever. Don't let one close loss to a top tier defensive front convince you otherwise.
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