Ole Miss Rebels Show Resiliency With Defensive Win Over Arkansas Razorbacks

The Ole Miss Rebels may not have looked great on offense against the Arkansas Razorbacks, but they showed that they can win a variety of games in Saturday night's defensive performance.

After last week's record-setting offensive performance in a 55-49 win over the LSU Tigers, seeing the No. 16 Ole Miss Rebels this week may have been a bit jarring.

The Rebels struggled on third down and failed for much of the game to establish a solid offensive rhythm, leading to the Arkansas Razorbacks claiming a 20-17 lead early in the fourth quarter. Even so, the Ole Miss offense was able to respond just enough to secure a 27-17 win, and that's a credit to Pete Golding's defense.

Ole Miss forced two interceptions from Arkansas quarterback K.J. Jefferson, and it took advantage of a subpar Razorbacks offensive line, holding the Hogs to 36 rushing yards and racking up five sacks. 

Oct 7, 2023; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks running back Raheim Sanders (5) is tackled by Mississippi Rebels defensive back Zamari Walton (6) and linebacker Khari Coleman (23) during the first half at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports / © Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

Every game won't be a massive shootout like this season's Magnolia Bowl, but good teams find a way to win anyway. After the defense struggled and the offense thrived a week ago, the roles were reversed for Ole Miss against the Razorbacks, but the Rebels managed to secure the win in front of the home crowd and move to 5-1 on the year and 2-1 in SEC play.

There have been seasons in recent memory where, if Ole Miss was going to win a football game, it had to win a track meet. The defense was simply not going to be a significant factor in slowing down the opponent. Even though the offensive performance was not pristine on Saturday night, Rebel fans should know by now that this offense has weapons and will be successful as this season rolls on.

At the end of the day, Ole Miss won, so that's automatically a positive for fans. But throw in the fact that it was the defense who stole the show, and that should be a positive sign for this team's ceiling in 2023.

Over the last two weeks, the Rebels have shown resiliency--first in a shootout, and then in a defensive battle. This team can win both types of games, and that battle-tested mentality will be needed as conference play continues after the bye week.