University of Mississippi-Ole Miss Athletics

OXFORD, Miss – The No. 15 Ole Miss football team is in the first of two bye weeks as it prepares for an important home game next week with SEC newcomer Oklahoma.

Head coach Lane Kiffin held his press conference Monday to reflect on last week’s loss at LSU. Ulysses Bentley IV, JJ Pegues And Cayden Lee also met with the media this week, which you can find below.

The message

Ole Miss began the season as the College Football Playoff favorite, but stumbled twice early on, losing two heartbreaking losses, 20-17 to Kentucky and 29-26 in overtime to LSU. Kiffin spoke to his team Monday morning and made sure their current record doesn’t dictate the rest of the season.

“I just made sure they understood what was going on and looked at the entire season together and how close they are to being undefeated,” Kiffin said. “It’s very rare for games to go down to the last play, like it did for both of us, and in both games we were down four points with the ball and the chance to take a two-point lead and decide the game Projection.”

A series of missed opportunities could have turned the tide in any of Ole Miss’ three-point loss in SEC play. But it all boils down to finishing. The Rebels led almost continuously in both losses – they trailed just 2:25 in 420 minutes of play this season.


“There’s still a lot to play for,” Kiffin said. “I told them they were a really good team. We’re just not finishing the way a great team would, otherwise we’d be undefeated by now.”



Stay ready
The highlight of the night in Ole Miss’ loss in Baton Rouge was undoubtedly Ulysses Bentley’s 50-yard touchdown burst that gave the Rebels a 10-0 lead in the second quarter, the senior’s first touchdown of the season.


“It felt great to be back out there with these guys,” Bentley said. “I definitely showed a lot of emotions, I was excited, but it was good. It felt great.”

Bentley finished the season with highs in yards (107) and carries (11). The Houston native averaged just over seven carries per game a year ago, but entered last week with a season-high six. Despite having limited options so far, Bentley stayed ready when his number was called.


“I just prepared hard every week,” Bentley said. “I’m preparing with the O-line, preparing with Jaxson and the other guys and making sure I’m on top of things and ready to go out and make plays.”



Little things
Ole Miss certainly has options of all sizes in the running back room, including a key part-time member. Defensive tackle JJ Pegues has had at least one carry in five of Ole Miss’ seven games this season, including four rushing touchdowns, good for second on the team. It proves to be a crucial role, but he doesn’t let it detract from his defensive performances.


“I’m mostly focused on defense,” Pegues said. “I’m just coming for some extra film and extra walkthroughs and the running backs and stuff like that. It’s not a big burden for me. It’s something I did in high school and at Auburn, it’s just something I’m blessed to be able to do.”

Pegues is second among defensive linemen with 21 tackles on the year and leads the team with 7.5 tackles for a loss. With Pegues also playing a key role on the other side, the Rebels have been one of the best defensive units in college football this season. Still, they’re looking for every possible way to improve the second half.


“Just get better. It was a tough defeat. Our expectation was to win no matter what. We just have to look in the mirror and criticize ourselves,” Pegues said. “Are you giving your full commitment as a team? Do you do the little things? Just go back to basics. At the end of the day, it’s the little things that count.”



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