College Football: 5 takeaways from April 7 spring games

3. Ole Miss Rebels (2pm, ESPNU)

Ole Miss head football coach Matt Luke is firmly in place at the helm of the Rebels’ program for the 2018 season. After taking over before the 2017 season with an “interim” label, Luke is now the full-time head coach. Ole Miss finished 2017 with a record of 6-6 and an Egg Bowl win over Mississippi State.

Luke’s Rebels have the quarterback in Jordan Ta’amu. Ta’amu put up fantastic numbers in limited action throwing for 1,682 yards, 11 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions. More impressive is that Ta’amu averaged 9.7 yards per attempt passing last season.

The Rebels need to put together a viable defense in order to compete in the SEC West. In 2017, the Rebels’ defense was ranked 113th in all of FBS college football per the S&P+ from Bill C.

Shea Patterson… who? Ta’amu finished the spring game 6-for-11 passing for 188 yards and scored twice. That’s good news for the Ole Miss offense that’s trying to find an identity and a feature back. The four running backs managed 127 rushing yards on 26 carries or 4.88 yards per carry against the Rebels’ defense.

The defense should be ahead of the offense in the spring but almost 5.0 yards per carry mixed with Ta’amu looking good behind center isn’t a good sign for Wesley McGriff’s defense.

Outlook: Luke’s Rebels will have a new defensive coordinator in 2019 but Ta’amu will keep them in ball games to finish above .500 in 2018.