2013 Pre-Season Preview: Ole Miss Rebels

2012 Record: 7-6 (3-5 in SEC)

Head Coach: Hugh Freeze (second year at Ole Miss, 37-13 All-Time)

Last Bowl Game: 2013 BBVA Compass Bowl: beat Pitt 38-17

Stadium: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, MS (capacity = 60,580)

Home Field Advantage: ranked 44th out of 69 BCS teams

Schedule Glimpse:

2013 Schedule Link

Toughest Home Games: 10/12 vs Texas A&M, 10/19 vs LSU

Toughest Road Games: 9/14 at Texas, 9/28 at Alabama

Swing Games: 8/29 at Vandy, 10/5 at Auburn, 11/9 vs Arkansas, 11/23 vs Missouri, 11/28 at Mississippi State

Statistical Snapshot:

2012 Statistics Link

Stat to Fear: had 29 turnovers in 2012 (13th in SEC), allowed 34 sacks in 2012 (11th in SEC)

Stats to Cheer: had 38 sacks in 2012 (2nd in SEC), scored on 91.11% of red zone trips (1st in SEC)

Advanced Stats (Football Outsiders 2012 FEI Ranking): 42nd out of 124 teams

Personnel:

Phil Steele's Returning Starters: Offense: 9, Defense: 10, Special Teams: 0

2013 Depth Chart

Key Defensive Returnees: LB Denzel Nkemdiche (82 tackles, 3 INT), S Cody Prewitt (80 tackles), LB Mike Marry (78 tackles), DE CJ Johnson (6.5 sacks),

Key Offensive Returnees: QB Bo Wallace (2994 yds pass, 63.9% completions, 22 TD, 17 INT), RB Jeff Scott (850 yds rush, 6 TD), WR Donte Moncrief (66 rec, 10 TD), WR Ja-Mes Logan (43 rec), WR Vince Sanders (39 rec)

Top 2013 Recruits: DE Robert Nkemdiche, OT Laremy Tunsil, WR Laquon Treadwell, S Tony Conner, DT Lavon Hooks

Verdict:

Under Houston Nutt, the Rebels started out with two 9-4 seasons but quickly reversed their fortunes as they won just four games in 2010 and two in 2011. Hugh Freeze took over last year and quickly got the Rebels back on the winning track despite not having a lot of the pieces that he needed to run his style of football. Now with one year under his belt and a blue-chip recruiting class, expectations are much higher in Oxford.

On offense, the Rebels return QB Bo Wallace and he did a good job running the show last season. The biggest area of improvement we will need to see from Wallace is limiting interceptions as he led the SEC in that category. At RB, the Rebels return senior Jeff Scott and rising sophomores I'Tavius Mathers (7.7 ypc) and Jaylen Walton (5.13 ypc). Leading receiver Donte Moncrief returns as does second leading receiver Ja-Mes Logan but the WR corps took a bit of a hit when Vince Sanders broke his collarbone in fall practice. Freshman Laquon Treadwell is expected to have an immediate impact. One player who will be missed is Randall Mackey as he played a jack-of-all-trades type role for the Rebels last year catching 25 passes, running for 325 yards and even tossing a TD pass. Overall, the Rebels have a lot of toys to play with on offense but Wallace has to stay healthy and he has to be more consistent. The Rebels lose just one player off of the OL and return 82 career starts. The bad news? That same line allowed 34 sacks in 2012.

Last year the defense gave up 27.6 ppg, which was a lot better than the 32.1 they gave up in 2011 but it's still an area that needs improvement as it's almost impossible to win on a consistent basis in the SEC without a stout defense. The DL returns two of it's best players in CJ Johnson and Issac Gross but lose three out of the next four from last years depth chart. The Rebels will be counting heavily on heralded freshman Robert Nkemdiche to step up and help this line gel. At LB, Denzel Nkemdiche has been a difference maker and he returns alongside Mike Marry. The secondary returns in tact but it's got to do a better job as last year it gave up 246 ypg (11th in SEC) as well as 119 pass plays of 10 yards or more and 41 pass plays of 20 yards or more. As Ole Miss takes the field for game one, there still seem to be jobs up for grabs, in the secondary, based on the latest depth chart released from Hugh Freeze and that feels like a concern.

The schedule is front-loaded for Ole Miss so expect them to struggle out of the gate. In the first seven games they must play at Texas, at Alabama, vs Texas A&M and vs LSU. Oh yeah, they also have to start the season at Vandy which is going to be a toss-up. Where Ole Miss can make up some ground is in the final five games of the season as they should be favored in all of them except possibly the final game at rival Mississippi State. Ole Miss will continue to improve under Hugh Freeze this season but don't look for a huge jump in W-L record.

Prediction: 7-5

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