September 7, 2016
The fallout from the University of Mississippi’s loss to Florida State University continued on Tuesday, Sept. 6. http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/17480355/ole-miss-rebels-lose-cb-ken-webster-rb-eric-swinney-season-ending-knee-injuries">Hugh Freeze confirmed to ESPN.com that starting cornerback Ken Webster and backup running back Eric Swinney are lost for the rest of the 2016 season with knee injuries.
Both injuries hurt units that lacked depth even before the season started. Those thin units showed in the http://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=400868979">Rebels 45-34 loss to the Seminoles on Labor Day night.
Webster’s injury might have turned the game around for FSU. Until he was hurt on the fourth play of the Seminoles’ opening drive, Webster allowed UM to play man-to-man coverage against the Seminole receivers and let the linebackers and defensive line stuff the run and pass rush.
During the second quarter, the FSU offense got rolling, as both teams made adjustments with Webster’s injury. The Seminoles were able to pick on weaker defensive backs all night when the Rebels tried to play man-to-man.
Freshman FSU quarterback http://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore?gameId=400868979">Deondre Francois was able to pass for 419 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers against the Rebels. Webster’s injury played a big part in Francois being able to settle down and make throws in his first college start.
Webster’s teammates surrounded him just moments before being carted off the field, and then, he was still yelling words of encouragement and coaching up the defense. The Rebels defense still was able to contain FSU’s offense before the Seminoles fully figured out the team’s defense right before halftime.
The Rebels were already thin at running back after redshirt junior Jordan Wilkins was suspended for the 2016 season. They got even thinner at the position when redshirt freshman Swinney injured his knee on his first carry of the game.
While no one expected the Rebels to out-rush the Seminoles, with FSU running back Dalvin Cook being healthy at the start of the season, UM did need to run the ball to give its offense balance. FSU finished the game with 161 rushing yards to the Rebels’ 61 rushing yards.
Cook out-rushed the Rebels by himself with 91 yards on 23 carries. Akeem Judd led UM in rushing with 44 yards on eight carries.
FSU was able to build a http://www.espn.com/college-football/matchup?gameId=400868979">42:39 to 17:21 advantage in time of possession. The amount of possession showed late in the game, as the Rebels defense was worn out from being on the field for so long.
The Rebels are going to need players to step up for the rest of the season. They will have to figure out their problems quickly with the University of Alabama coming to town in two weeks.
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