The No. 10 Ole Miss football team is keeping local cardiologists in business with another nail-biter victory over a conference opponent.
Saturday’s 38-35 win over Texas A&M was bolstered by heroic performances from Jaxson Dart, Tre Harris, and Quinshon Judkins.
The contest began with a series of punts exchanged by both teams. Dart later marched the offense down the field with a deep pass to Harris, setting up a touchdown run by Judkins to give the Rebels a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.
Ole Miss opened the second quarter with a 94-yard drive that resulted in a Harris touchdown. Dart took a nasty hit midway through the drive and had to sit on the sidelines for one play, but returned to action and showed no further signs of any lingering injuries.
Texas A&M’s special teams minimized the Ole Miss lead with a blocked field goal that was returned for a score. The Rebels responded with a touchdown pass to a wide-open Jordan Watkins to reclaim a double-digit lead. A failed two-point conversion attempt put the Rebels at a 20-7 advantage.
The Aggies pieced together a successful offensive drive late in the first half. Running back Le’Veon Moss reached the end zone to bring Texas A&M back within one score. Ole Miss led 20-14 at the break, with the defense only surrendering 134 total yards in the first two quarters.
After driving the length of the field and taking nearly seven minutes off the clock, Texas A&M quarterback Max Johnson threw an ill-advised pass that was subsequently picked off by Rebels’ safety John Saunders. Ole Miss made the Aggies pay for their error when Dart found Harris yet again with a long ball, which ultimately led to Judkins scoring his second touchdown of the contest. Harris secured Dart’s pass on the two-point conversion, resulting in a 28-14 Ole Miss lead.
Johnson looked to make things right in Texas A&M’s next drive after the turnover. The LSU transfer hit a wide-open Jake Johnson to cut the deficit to seven. Harris continued to further his NFL scouting resumé with another highly-contested catch that set Caden Davis, a former Aggie, up for a 22-yard field goal.
Texas A&M capitalized on a controversial catch which was initially called incomplete but later overturned, placing the ball in the red zone. Amari Daniels rushed up the middle to put the Aggies within three early in the fourth quarter.
A stalled Ole Miss possession placed Texas A&M in prime position to take its first lead of the game — and that’s exactly what happened. Rebels’ corner Deantre Prince was called for a costly pass interference penalty on an intercepted ball, nullifying the turnover. Johnson lept over the Aggies’ offensive line to give Jimbo Fisher’s squad a 35-31 lead late in the fourth quarter.
In what was arguably the most consequential drive thus far this season, Ole Miss went to its star running back and proven wide receiver to move the ball into scoring territory. Judkins amassed his third touchdown of the game to give the Rebels a 38-35 lead with just under two minutes left in the game.
The Aggies had one last shot to either seal the game or send it into overtime. Ole Miss dropped a potential interception and failed to secure a Johnson pass inbounds. With two seconds on the scoreboard, Texas A&M turned to Randy Bond to extend Saturday’s match with a 46-yard field goal.
Following a timeout Lane Kiffin called to ice the kicker, the snap was good, the hold was flawless, and Bond’s attempt was tipped by Zxavian Harris at the line of scrimmage, sealing an Ole Miss victory.
“Going forward — this is the SEC — you’re going to play great defenses inside and out. That’s what the SEC is known for, is defense, especially in the trenches,” Dart said of Texas A&M’s defense and the upcoming challenge his team faces in Georgia.
“Our mindset is to remain the same week in and week out with how we will prepare to not get too high or too low.”
Dart completed 24 of 33 passes for 387 yards and two touchdowns. Harris scored once for six points and another time for two. The Louisiana Tech transfer also had an impressive 213 yards on 11 receptions — an average of nearly 20 yards per catch. Judkins compiled 102 of the Rebels’ 131 total rushing yards for three scores.
On the Texas A&M front, Johnson found a weakness in the Ole Miss secondary, going 31-42 for 305 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
Next up for Ole Miss (8-1, 5-1 SEC) is a road match against the Bulldogs, who are the reigning national champions, in Athens. That game will be played at a time to be determined.
