Ole Miss Rebels Must Clean Up Defensive Mishaps To Be Competitive vs. Georgia Bulldogs

The Ole Miss Rebels did not play their best brand of defense on Saturday versus the Texas A&M Aggies, and they will have to tighten up if they want to upset the reigning national champions on the road in Week 11.

OXFORD, Miss. -- It went down to the very last seconds and was closer than some wanted it to be, but the No. 10 Ole Miss Rebels managed to beat the Texas A&M Aggies 38-35 on Saturday in what is slowly becoming one of the more bitter rivalry games in the SEC. 

Ole Miss' third-straight victory over Texas A&M was full of emotion and mishaps on both sides of the ball, but the errors on defense stuck out the most. The Aggies entered Vaught-Hemingway Stadium with an injury-riddled roster and still managed to record 457 total yards of offense, and 21 more rushing yards than Ole Miss.

Blown coverages and a slow day from the Rebels' pass rush gave A&M backup quarterback Max Johnson a chance to pick apart the Ole Miss secondary. It did not help that the Rebels were missing senior cornerback Zamari Walton for chunks of the game due to an apparent injury. 

Ole Miss Rebels defensive back Teja Young celebrates on the field vs. the Texas A&M Aggies (2023) / Carleigh Harbin-The Grove Report

At the end of the day, a win is a win, especially in the SEC. Ole Miss is now 8-1 and has a great shot at finishing the year 10-2 at worst. But the Rebels will not be able to make the same mistakes on defense in Week 11, as they have to face the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs on the road with a New Year's Six Bowl game or possibly more on the line.

A loss to Georgia does not mean the season's over, but a win would certainly spice up bowl season for the Rebels. The offense is going to find ways to score; we have seen it all season aside from when Ole Miss battled Alabama in Week 4. The defense, however, has played great at times but it has also shown shades of last year's unit. 

If Ole Miss' defense shows up against the Bulldogs - who may be without superstar tight end Brock Bowers - the Rebels have a good shot at winning this game. Ole Miss will have to slow down a unit that is currently averaging 493.0 yards of total offense per game.

The Rebels are going to have to play the best football they have played all season, as the Bulldogs have not lost a regular season game since 2020. Ole Miss has played some tough Alabama teams, but this is arguably the best team from top to bottom that Lane Kiffin has faced with the Rebels.