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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: Brandon Singleton #19 of the California Golden Bears catches the ball while covered by Myles Hartsfield #15 of the Mississippi Rebels at California Memorial Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
BERKELEY, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Brandon Singleton #19 of the California Golden Bears catches the ball while covered by Myles Hartsfield #15 of the Mississippi Rebels at California Memorial Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

3. Rebels can’t close

Ole Miss took a 16-7 lead into the locker room in Berkeley and it looked like the Rebels were clearly the better team on Saturday night. They held Cal in check and avoided any cooky #Pac12AfterDark madness in the first 30 minutes.

If Ole Miss came out of the locker room and forced Cal into a punt on its first drive, things could have been completely different. Instead, the Golden Bears marched down the field and scored within four minutes of halftime. Imagine if Ole Miss got a stop and scored on its ensuing drive to take a 23-7 lead. That would have crushed the Bolden Bears’ hopes.

However, Cal scored on that first drive which gave it confidence. It kept Ole Miss out of the end zone for the remainder of the half, scoring 13 more points to the Rebels’ zero. That’s what you call failing to seal the deal.

Nine points isn’t enough to call this a “choke” by Ole Miss, but the Rebels were truly in charge of the outcome and weren’t able to close. It was just one game on the road, though, so this trait may not stick with Ole Miss. The Rebels better hope they can shake the non-closing bug.

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