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Ole Miss Football: 5 overreactions from Rebels’ loss to Cal

By Connor Muldowney

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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BERKELEY, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Matt Luke of the Mississippi Rebels stands on the sideline during their game against the California Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
BERKELEY, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Matt Luke of the Mississippi Rebels stands on the sideline during their game against the California Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

4. Matt Luke is in over his head

This can be considered true for a couple of reasons. One, Matt Luke had never been a head coach before taking over as the interim before the season. And two, he was expecting to be the offensive coordinator before Hugh Freeze stepped down amidst NCAA violations and potential scandals.

Luke got his Rebels off to a 2-0 start with wins over South Alabama and UT-Martin, but those were expected victories. In his first true test on the road against Cal, his team squandered a nine-point halftime lead and the last Rebel play of the game was a serious offensive blocking scheme gaffe.

For a former lineman, Luke should have seen the major flaw on the offensive line before the play even began. The center and right guard were spaced inexplicably far apart, allowing for a blitzing linebacker to come in and blow up the fourth-down conversion attempt in Cal territory,

The sack of Shea Patterson ended the game.

That was just one example of the team’s missteps on Saturday night, but there’s plenty of time to learn from that and move forward. After one loss, it’s tough to tell if Luke is truly in over his head.

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