Lane Kiffin sends strong message on costly interception from Jaxson Dart in first half

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin was not pleased with what he saw out of quarterback Jaxson Dart in the first half Saturday against Georgia Tech. Although the Rebels took a 21-0 lead into halftime, it was their defense and rushing attack (216 first-half yards) that led the way.

Dart, on the other hand, finished just 4-of-9 passing for 92 yards and threw an interception in Yellow Jackets territory with just 24 seconds remaining until halftime. That prevented the Rebels from potentially taking an even bigger lead into the locker room, and left Kiffin frustrated at his young QB.

“I caught up with Lane Kiffin coming out of halftime and asked, ‘Coach, what did Jaxson tell you he saw on that turnover?'” ESPN’s Tom Luginbill said on the broadcast. “He looked at me dead in the eye and said, ‘Jaxson wasn’t talking, I was talking.’ He is not happy with his quarterback. You could tell that by Lane Kiffin’s body language on the sideline after the turnover occurred. He said, ‘We’ve talked so much about being smart with the football. We love you being a gambler, but you’ve got to play the position correctly.'”

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Lane Kiffin would have liked to see Jaxson Dart play it safe and keep the ball in that situation instead of trying to force a throw like he did. Dart turned things around in the second half and make a few big throws, and the sophomore will hope to continue to improve as the season goes on.

Ole Miss linebacker Troy Brown ejected for targeting

Ole Miss linebacker Troy Brown was called for targeting late in the second quarter Saturday after colliding with Georgia Tech receiver Malachi Carter. Per the targeting rule, he was ejected for the remainder of the game.

Brown lowered his shoulder as he leaned into a tackle on Carter, making contact to his helmet. Because the penalty occurred in the first half, Brown will be eligible to play the entirety of next week’s contest against Tulsa.

Prior to being ejected, Brown recorded three tackles on the day.