Ole Miss Football: 3 takeaways from tough loss at California
By Zach Bigalke
Ole Miss football went to Berkeley this weekend and fell in a close loss to California. Here’s what we learned.
In one of the quieter matchups between undefeated Power Five teams that was on the Week 3 docket, Ole Miss headed west to face California in the Bay Area. It was a showdown featuring two teams in transition. Cal has enjoyed nothing but success so far in its first year under neophyte head coach Justin Wilcox.
Ole Miss, meanwhile, is trying to redeem its season under interim coach Matt Luke, after Hugh Freeze resigned in disgrace before the new year. It was a great way to cap another great weekend of football action, as #Pac12AfterDark struck again in Berkeley.
Ole Miss took a 16-7 halftime lead, but Cal came charging back for the 27-17 victory. Here are three takeaways from the late action between the Rebels and the Golden Bears.
3. Shea Patterson is still a work in progress
Shea Patterson was supposed to vault up and take the next step as Ole Miss quarterback in 2017. Through the first two games, it looked like Patterson was doing just that after huge days against South Alabama and UT-Martin. But beating up on Sun Belt and FCS programs is very different than facing a Power Five defense.
That step up in competition seemed to flummox Patterson on Saturday night in Berkeley. The quarterback completed 25 of his 43 passes for 361 yards and two touchdowns. But he also threw three ugly picks, including the last that was returned 31 yards by Cameron Goode for the game-sealing touchdown.
Patterson is definitely talented. A player doesn’t rack up over 1300 passing yards in three games without having an incredible arm or the skill to lead a college offense. But he seemed incapable of making the big play, and too often he forced things against a deceptively good Cal secondary.
That defensive backfield made Patterson pay for his mistakes, and as a result Ole Miss is now heading home to Oxford with the first blemish on their record. Offensive coordinator Phil Longo will need to work with his staff to restore Patterson’s confidence heading into SEC play, or else the season could go completely off the rails for the Rebels.