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 The Rebels stunned the Crimson Tide with 30-10 and 43-24 leads
before Alabama fought back, scoring three fourth-quarter touchdowns
to close the gap to six points. Alabama had the ball twice in the
final minutes, but Ole Miss hung on for its second straight win over
the Tide and first in Bryant-Denney Stadium since 1988.
"Oh, man, what a game. It was definitely a four-quarter battle," Ole
Miss coach Hugh Freeze said. "We thought we had it put away a couple
of times, and they just wouldn't go away. That's a credit to their
staff and the character of their team and their kids."
Alabama had never lost two in a row to Ole Miss and was 25-1 in
Tuscaloosa before falling. The loss also ended the Tide's 17-game
home winning streak.
"Well, this is a little disappointing," Alabama coach Nick Saban
said. "We talked to the players on Friday. We thought last year when
we played we gave some things away, and I really don't want to take
anything away from Ole Miss. They played a really good game. But are
you going to be a giver, or are you going to be a taker? And I think
if you are going to be a great competitor, you've got to take what
you want."
Ole Miss (3-0, 1-0 SEC) led 17-10 at halftime and began the
third-quarter scoring with a 66-yard touchdown play by wide receiver
Quincy Adeboyejo when he grabbed a deflected pass to make it 24-10.
After stopping Alabama (2-1, 0-1), Ole Miss added field goals on its
two next possessions to boost its lead to 30-10.
Alabama rallied behind quarterback Jake Coker. He scored on a 3-yard
run to cap a nine-play, 69-yard drive and then threw an 8-yard
scoring pass to ArDarius Stewart to close the Tide to 30-24.
Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly responded with a 73-yard pass to
Cody Core to boost the lead back to 36-24. After an Alabama
turnover, Kelly fired a 24-yard touchdown pass to Laquon Treadwell
to make it 43-24.
"It feels great. I give all glory to God," Kelly said. "Grandma is
looking over me today. This one is for her. I'm so thankful to play
for a great team, great players, great coaches and great fans. This
is awesome. This is what you dream about."
Alabama answered with two touchdowns. First, running back Derrick
Henry ran 2 yards for a score and, after the Crimson Tide recovered
an onside kick, Coker connected with Richad Mullaney to trim the
deficit to six.
But on its final two possessions, Alabama threw an interception and
turned the ball over on downs.
"I really like the resilience of our players," Saban said. "They
played for 60 minutes in the game. They fought back in the game, but
the mistakes that we made, all that we gave away, we could not
overcome."
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The game didn't start well for Alabama as it fumbled on the opening
kickoff. But the Rebels didn't capitalize on the field possession,
going three-and-out and settling for a field goal to take a 3-0
lead.
When Alabama took the field on its first possession, Cooper Bateman
was at quarterback. Coker had started the previous two games for the
Tide.
Bateman moved the Tide's offense in the first quarter, but the unit
didn't produce any points.
Alabama added a field goal early in the second quarter to tie it at
3. On that drive, Alabama made it to the 2-yard line but couldn't
punch it in.
With 7:30 left in the second quarter, Ole Miss running back Jordan
Wilkins scored from 1 yard to make it 10-3. The scoring drive was
set up by an interception. It was the Tide's second turnover off the
night.
On the following kickoff, Alabama fumbled again for its third
turnover of the half. Ole Miss added another touchdown on a 4-yard
quarterback keeper by Kelly to make it 17-3.
Coker replaced Bateman at quarterback on Alabama's next drive and
led the Tide on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that spanned 5:40 to make
it 17-10 at halftime.
NOTES: After Jake Coker started the first two games, it was Cooper
Bateman at quarterback when the Tide opened the game against Ole
Miss. Saturday marked the first start of Bateman's Alabama career.
... Crimson Tide long snapper Cole Mazza was suspended from the game
for an undisclosed reason. Walk-on Alex Harrelson replaced him in
the lineup. ... Alabama WR Robert Foster left the game with a right
shoulder injury.
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