New Mexico State’s season has, to this point, been defined by close home losses to Georgia State (whose football program is a mere five years old) and UTEP.
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Couple the injury news with the reality that the Rebels were embarrassed last week in a 38-10 loss to Florida and the mood has been a little apprehensive in Oxford.
Ole Miss is trying to bounce back from a lopsided 38-10 loss to Florida in the Swamp. The Aggies’ lone turnover came when wide receiver Teldrick Morgan attempted a pass that was intercepted.
The Rebels do get a respite from SEC play this Saturday when they host New Mexico State (0-4). Safety Tony Conner and linebacker C.J. Johnson are also out due to recent surgeries, and offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil is likely sitting out another game as an NCAA investigation continues. “They were coming in here talking about their Landsharks and they do this, they do that”.
Both Shepard and Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze issued statements confirming the news. While with the Rebels, the Professional Football Strength and Conditioning Coaches Society named him the 2010 collegiate strength and conditioning coach of the year. It’s the first of two straight non-conference games for the Rebels, and they have a laundry list of things to tune up after last week’s blowout loss at Florida.
RB Leonard Fournette, sophomore, LSU: Last week, 26 carries for 233 yards and two touchdowns in 44-22 win against Eastern Michigan. The Rebels totaled 328, their lowest amount of yardage this season. The junior leads the SEC by throwing for almost 300 yards per game.
No. 13 Northwestern (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten) at No. 18 Michigan (4-1, 1-0 Big Ten) (2:30 p.m. Saturday, Big Ten Network): Michigan has been surprisingly dominant after losing its opening game at Utah.
BREAK IN THE SCHEDULE: Ole Miss is hoping to take control of the matchup early against winless New Mexico State before a hard four-game stretch that includes a non-conference game against much-improved Memphis and then three league games against Texas A&M, Auburn and Arkansas. His team will likely be more reliant on Rose, who’s rushed 71 times for 579 yards (8.2 yards per carry) and six touchdowns.
According to oddsmakers at GTBets, Ole Miss is the overwhelming favorite, as the Rebels are getting odds of -42 points against the Aggies.
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Chad Kelly is determined his Rebels’ offense will improve. He’s been sacked nine times over the past three weeks and taken a few hits on rush attempts as well. Elston is second on the team with 29 tackles and leads the Rebels with three interceptions.
