Fourth Down Woes, Turnovers Sink Ole Miss in Bowl Game vs. Texas Tech

There was a massive discrepancy in fourth down efficiency in Wednesday night's Texas Bowl, and Ole Miss suffered as a result.

HOUSTON -- After a disastrous first half, the Ole Miss Rebels were unable to pull off a comeback against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the TaxAct Texas Bowl on Wednesday night.

Despite a comeback attempt in the second half, the Rebels wound up on the sour end of a 42-25 final score at NRG Stadium in Houston, dropping their fourth-straight game to end the 2022 season.

Failure on fourth downs, a stifled running game and turnovers sunk the Rebels in the postseason loss. Ole Miss went 2-for-7 on fourth downs Wednesday night, including 1-for-5 in the first half, and Texas Tech was 5-for-6 in that category. In total, Ole Miss turned the ball over five times compared to two from Texas Tech, and the Red Raiders scored 16 points off of those Rebel miscues. 

Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart threw for over 300 yards in the loss paired with two touchdown and three interceptions. Neither of the Rebels' top rushers in Quinshon Judkins and Zach Evans eclipsed 100 yards rushing on the night, but Evans did find the end zone on the ground in the first half. Dart also found pay dirt on the ground in the fourth quarter.

With the loss, Ole Miss finishes the season at 8-5, going 1-5 down the stretch after an undefeated start. The Rebels will open their 2023 season at home in the first weekend of September when they play host to Mercer at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. 

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You can follow John Macon on Twitter at @JMakeGillespie.

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