Ole Miss hits the bye in need of rest and resetting for November push

November could very well be one to remember for Ole Miss with a three-game stretch that is one of the most important in recent memory.

First, the No. 11 Rebels are able to now prop their feet up after earning some well deserved rest with the bye coming this weekend.

With the way the schedule panned out Ole Miss is the last team to hit its open date in the Southeastern Conference. That also means nobody else has played nine of their allotted 12 games besides the Rebels.

Ole Miss did so and came out on the other side with its best start to a season since 1990, sitting at 8-1 overall and 4-1 in SEC play. Not since the run in 2015 have the Rebels started conference play dropping only one of its first five games.

“We’re feeling great,” said defensive end Cedric Johnson after Tuesday’s practice. “That (Texas A&M) win just gives us a very good energy about ourselves, especially going into this bye week. We can rest our bodies, get a breather. Going into next week, we’re feeling good.”

The nine-game stretch was capped by Ole Miss knocking off the Aggies 31-28 at College Station last Saturday night. It balanced out the LSU loss two weeks ago and put everything the Rebels want to accomplish back into focus.

Related: What are the win probabilities for Ole Miss’ final three games?

While the bye week provides a chance for Ole Miss to take it easy not everyone chooses that path.

The win at Kyle Field was not a walk in the park for the Rebels. The defense struggled in the first quarter before finding itself again. A stretch where Ole Miss forced a turnover on downs and four punts by the Aggies between the second and third quarters was the difference.

Returning to form last weekend was a positive step in the right direction for the Ole Miss defense but the desire for a complete game of domination is still there.

This week of practice is meant to be more of a walk-through in soft pads and shorts, but working to improve is still at game-week level for some players.

“(This week is) really just getting better,” said safety AJ Finley on Tuesday. “We honestly aren’t satisfied with how we played on Saturday. The main focus is just getting better. This week is just getting better on the small things. Not really worried about Alabama too much right now. Just improving the small details we need to.”

After nine straight games it is hard for any football team to come out relatively healthy.

The Rebels are banged up and this week allows for the walking wounded to rest up as much as possible. Several players were wearing the black, non-contact jerseys at Tuesday’s practice. Whether out of precaution or necessity.

Getting the opportunity to not play a game the Saturday before No. 6 Alabama (7-1, 4-1) comes to town is big advantage for Ole Miss to lower the number of players in the training room.

One player that has been dealing with his fair share of injuries is Johnson. Despite playing in a limited role, the few snaps Johnson is on the field the past couple of Saturdays is not helping his recovery process.

“I’ve been working pretty hard to try and get it back to health,” Johnson said. “Playing on games just kind of, I don’t want to say sets it back, but just kind of makes me feel it a lot more than I usually would if I just wasn’t playing at all. It’s been good. It’s been getting a lot better and Bama week I feel I should a lot better. Ready to go.”

While Ole Miss gets the weekend off, it will be paying close attention to what transpires in Baton Rouge with No. 15 LSU (6-2, 4-1) hosting the Crimson Tide. An Alabama victory makes Nov. 12 in Oxford as a sort of de-facto SEC West title game.

The November push is here.