A 'collective group' is working to keep the focus in the Ole Miss locker room
Losses are not fun but for Ole Miss they have become a rare thing over the last two years of the Lane Kiffin era.
Through nearly two seasons the Rebels are 18-4 in the regular season under Kiffin, not including the 4-5 2020 regular season. Wins are just expected now in Oxford and not something that hopefully happens on 12 Saturdays in the fall.
Still, a setback was had this past Saturday when Alabama eked out a 30-24 win at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, snapping Ole Miss’ 14-game home winning streak and also putting an end to major season goals for the Rebels.
No longer can Ole Miss win the SEC West — claimed by LSU — nor can it sneak into a berth for this year’s College Football Playoff. Those goals must once again wait for next August.
But what Ole Miss still has in front of it is the chance for a second-straight 10-win regular season if it can take care of business at Arkansas this Saturday and then Mississippi State at home next week on Thanksgiving night.
Veterans in the locker room were vital for the Rebels last season in bouncing back after its two losses during the regular season. Former quarterback Matt Corral, defensive end Sam Williams and linebacker Chance Campbell were just some of the leaders in the locker room keeping spirits up and the focus sharp.
Safety AJ Finley was another voice for Ole Miss, even after the 52-51 win over the very same Arkansas team it faces in four days.
But all those players, minus Finley, are gone and a new group of leaders have had to emerge in 2022. It has been an all hands on deck situation in the Ole Miss locker room after the two losses to LSU and Alabama over the last three games.
“I feel like it’s been a collective group of people,” Finley said. “It’s been a lot of people, honestly, who know we just got to move on. Not really let this game affect us in the next few weeks. Just move on and get ready for the next few games.”
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Getting up off the mat quickly should not be hard motivation for Ole Miss with plenty of players remembering what happened last year when Arkansas came to Oxford.
Defense was at a premium and hard to spot as both teams traded touchdowns and field goals, combining for 68 points in the second half.
Finley does not need any reminders from what happened 13 months ago.
“I felt like they played really hard against us,” Finley said. “They had a good scheme for what they were doing. They obviously had Treylon Burk last season. He was a really dynamic player and played a big part of them doing what they did last year. We got to come back this week and not let them do what they did last year.”
Burk is now catching passes from Malik Willis and Ryan Tannehill in the NFL as a Tennessee Titan, replacing former Titan and Rebel A.J. Brown. There are still threats on this Arkansas team, including quarterback K.J. Jefferson.
It is expected the Sardis, Miss. native will return after missing the last couple of games due to an injury and playing with some motivation. Similar to last year when he made his return to the north Mississippi area.
You can watch Finley’s full post-practice interview from Monday below. Video provided by Ole Miss Sports Production.
