Rebels practice without nine of 11 opening day starters on offense

Right now, we're not sure what offensive lineup Ole Miss will field Saturday when the Rebels step outside of SEC play to entertain Hugh Freeze and the Liberty Flames. Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin certainly cast an ominous glow on his team's injury situation during Wednesday's SEC teleconference.

Kiffin said that the Rebels have practiced this week without nine players on offense who started in the season's opening game. That includes quarterback Matt Corral, who has been limited to throwing in the walk-through portions of practices, according to sources. Corral aggravated an already nagging ankle issue last Saturday at Auburn.

Kiffin, sounding somewhat bewildered, said he has never experienced a rash of injuries like this on one side of the football.

"I never seen anything like this, so it does present a good challenge for us in game planning, calling plays during games. We looked around and practiced with two of the 11 starters that started the opener, a number of which are out for a while or the season." Kiffin said. "That is very strange on one side of the ball. It is what it is. We've got to overcome those challenges and find a way to win."

Kiffin has a policy of not discussing specific injuries, but among those starters known to be dealing with them are wide receivers Braylon Sanders (shoulder, lower body), Jonathan Mingo (foot) and Dontario Drummond (lower body), quarterback Matt Corral (ankle), right guard Ben Brown (bicep), tight end Chase Rogers (foot), center Orlando Umana (hand) and left guard Caleb Warren (foot). That is the eight injured Rebels we know about, but Kiffin said nine. There is some speculation the ninth could be running back Jerrion Ealy who missed games while in concussion protocol last month, but that has not been independently confirmed.

Brown is out for the season, while Mingo and Rogers are thought to be, as well.  The rest are a collection of game-by game issues, we believe. For instance, Sanders dressed last week at Auburn but did not play.

One approach Kiffin and his staff will be taking this week is to attempt to simplify some of their offense in an effort to put some younger players in better positions to succeed on Saturday.

"Yeah, we're having to," Kiffin shared. "Obviously, two of 11 starters is just unheard of. You don't usually lose nine starters from season to season in the off-season. You usually return more starters than that. We're going to simplify things, try to play some younger players, because obviously three points in the second half isn't going to get it done last week. We didn't do a good job. We were very overmatched at a number of spots and we've got to find a way to overcome that. That's what coaching is."

Ole Miss and Liberty are set for an 11 a.m. CT kickoff at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The game will be televised on the SEC Network.


SOURCE: ​Johnson, David. "Rebels practice without nine of 11 opening day starters on offense." 247Sports.com - Inside the Rebels, 3 November 2021, https://247sports.com/college/ole-miss/Article/Ole-Miss-Rebels-practice-without-nine-of-11-opening-day-starters-on-offense-174474168/