The 2008 Ole Miss Rebels football team represented the University of Mississippi during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team's head coach was Houston Nutt, who served his first season in the position and replaced Ed Orgeron, who was fired after accumulating a 10–25 record at Ole Miss from 2005 to 2007. The Rebels played their seven home games in 2008 at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi.
With an 8–4 regular-season record and a 5–3 mark in the SEC, head coach Houston Nutt revived a Rebel squad that was coming off four straight losing seasons and a 3–9 campaign with no conference wins in 2007. It marked the team's best improvement from one season to the next since former coach Johnny Vaught's debut in 1947. Projected to place fifth in the SEC Western Division in the pre-season, the Rebels finished second in the division, knocked off the previous two national champions on the road, #4 Florida and #18 LSU, and ended the regular season on a five-game win streak.
On December 8, the Associated Press announced that Rebels offensive tackleMichael Oher, defensive tacklePeria Jerry and kicker Joshua Sheene were selected for the first team of the Associated Press All-Southeastern team. Oher was a unanimous pick. Receiver Dexter McCluster was a second-team pick.[1] On December 9, the Southeastern Conference announced that Oher and Jerry were named to the first team of the All-SEC team selected by the 12 league coaches.[2] On December 10, the Southeastern Conference announced that Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt was named the Southeastern Conference coach of the year, sharing the award with Alabama's Nick Saban and Vanderbilt's Bobby Johnson. Michael Oher was awarded the Jacobs Blocking Trophy, given to the league's top blocker.[3] The 2008 College Football All-America Team included Michael Oher and Peria Jerry.
Ranking Movement Legend:██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. ██ Not ranked the previous week.
Poll
Pre
Wk 1
Wk 2
Wk 3
Wk 4
Wk 5
Wk 6
Wk 7
Wk 8
Wk 9
Wk 10
Wk 11
Wk 12
Wk 13
Wk 14
Wk 15
*Final
AP
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
25
22
20
14
Coaches
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
25
24
15
Harris
Not released
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
24
23
BCS
Not released
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
25
Harris Interactive publishes their final ranking on Week 15 (the end of the season), before the bowl games are played. The Bowl Championship Series final standings are released on Week 15. Neither publish a ranking or standing after the bowl games are complete.[4][5]
Assistant Athletics Director for Football Operations
1st
Arkansas State University (1992)
Don Decker
Head Football Strength Coach
1st
Evangel College (1988)
Tim Mullins
Head Athletic Trainer
11th
University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) (1991)
Clifton Ealy
Assistant Athletics Director for Community Relations
1st
University of Central Arkansas (1982)
Danny Nutt
Assistant Athletics Director for Player Development
1st
University of Arkansas (1985)
Ken Crain
Head Equipment Manager
10th
University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) (1996)
Game summaries[]
Memphis[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Memphis
7
3
0
14
24
Ole Miss
14
13
7
7
41
Ole Miss opened the 2008 season with new head football coach Houston Nutt by beating state-line rival Memphis, 41–24. The game started off quick for the Rebs as Jevan Snead hit Shay Hodge for a 70 yd TD strike on the game's second possession and never looked back. The game also featured the introduction of the "Wild Rebel" off of which Dexter McCluster scored a touchdown.
Wake Forest[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Ole Miss
7
7
0
14
28
#20 Wake Forest
7
3
10
10
30
Ole Miss lost 30–28 after Wake Forest kicked a 42-yard field foal with three seconds remaining in the game. In a game with several lead changes, Ole Miss took the lead with just over one minute remaining in the fourth quarter on a fourth and goal Jevan Snead touchdown pass. Wake Forest played down the field in 53 seconds, aided by 2 penalties, to set up the game-winning field goal.
Samford[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Samford
7
0
0
3
10
Ole Miss
3
17
7
7
34
Vanderbilt[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Vanderbilt
14
3
0
6
23
Ole Miss
17
0
0
0
17
Ole Miss lost to the Vanderbilt Commodores in the final minute of the game as Vanderbilt forced Ole Miss' Dexter McCluster to fumble the game-winning touchdown at the goal line.
The Ole Miss Rebels posted its 600th win in school history on September 27, 2008 when it defeated the Florida Gators 31–30 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida,[7] giving the season's conference champion, Florida, its only loss of the 2008 season. This was also Ole Miss' first win over a Top 5 ranked team since 1977 when the Rebels defeated Notre Dame. Notre Dame went on to win the national championship that year.
Florida went into the game undefeated at 3–0. Never trailing Ole Miss by more than a touchdown, Florida came within an extra point of tying the game at the end of the fourth quarter. Ole Miss had different plans in mind, however, as the extra point kick was blocked, and Florida was held to 30. While the defense was able to force a punt out of Ole Miss on the next possession and get the ball back inside Ole Miss territory, Florida found itself with the choice between converting a 4th-and-1 situation or attempting a long field goal. Florida opted to go for the first down, but the Ole Miss defense stopped QB Tim Tebow and he did not convert the one-yard run. The game ended as time expired during Ole Miss' ensuing possession.
Following Ole Miss' win over Florida, Sports Illustrated featured Ole Miss on the cover. Then Ole Miss went on to lose to South Carolina in what many Ole Miss fans refer to as the continuation of the Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx. The last time Ole Miss was featured on the Sports Illustrated cover was in 1970. After the cover ran, which was a picture of then Ole Miss quarterback Archie Manning, Manning suffered a broken arm during the season.
On more than one occasion, the Rebels had a chance to pull away, but South Carolina forced timely turnovers to keep themselves alive. In the end, the Rebs gave one too many gifts to SC and the Gamecocks were able to sneak out of Oxford with a win.
After several early failed drives in the opening quarter, Ole Miss became the first team to score on Alabama in the first quarter, as well as the first to have a lead against the Crimson Tide. However, the Crimson Tide answered back on their next drive with a touchdown, giving Alabama a 7–3 lead to end the first quarter. Ole Miss had limited offense in the second quarter as the Tide defense held a shutout for the remainder of the half. However, the Tide offense scored 17 points with a 2-yard rush touchdown, a 41-yard field goal, and a 30-yard touchdown pass. Alabama led the Rebels 24–3 at halftime.
However, the second half was different as the Crimson Tide failed to score for the remainder of the game. Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt, who had previously coached at Arkansas, gambled on a 4th–and–goal with a fake field goal attempt, as Rob Park passed to Jason Cook for a 9-yard touchdown. Several minutes into the fourth quarter, Ole Miss again cut into Alabama's lead when Jevan Snead threw a 17-yard touchdown strike to Shay Hodge, as the Rebels trailed 24–17 after a Joshua Shene extra point. Three minutes later, Shene hit a 35-yard field goal, cutting Alabama's lead again to 24–20. A stalled drive forced Alabama punter P. J. Fitzgerald to give the ball to the Rebels with 3:03 left. The Rebels moved the ball steadily down the field over the next two minutes, however they turned it over on downs after a failed 4th–and–5 on Alabama's 43-yard line.
Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt returned to Arkansas in his first game against his former team, the Arkansas Razorbacks. Ole Miss, and Houston Nutt, won 23–21.
Auburn[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Auburn
0
0
7
0
7
Ole Miss
0
10
0
7
17
The Auburn rivalry had been running steady ever since Head coach Tommy Tuberville bolted Oxford for the Plains. In his fifth, and what would be his final return trip, the Rebels were finally able to emerge as a winner. In a defensive struggle, the Rebels picked off the Tigers three times in the fourth quarter, and were able to put the game away on a Brandon Bolden touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter. The final count, Ole Miss 17 Auburn 7
Louisiana Monroe[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Louisiana Monroe
0
0
0
0
0
Ole Miss
7
31
14
7
59
Ole Miss shutout Louisiana Monroe 59–0 to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2003.
Mike Wallace 34-yard pass from Jevan Snead (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 7-0
2
13:37
LSU
Colt David 46-yard field goal
MISS 7-3
2
9:01
MISS
Brandon Bolden 3-yard run (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 14-3
2
5:36
MISS
Mike Wallace 25-yard pass from Jevan Snead (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 21-3
2
2:13
LSU
Terrence Toliver 9-yard pass from Jordan Jefferson (Colt David kick)
MISS 21-10
3
11:11
LSU
Colt David 52-yard field goal
MISS 21-13
3
7:53
MISS
Markeith Summers 13-yard run (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 28-13
4
4:23
MISS
Joshua Shene 19-yard field goal
MISS 31-13
In this 97th meeting of Ole Miss and LSU, the first time referred to as the Magnolia Bowl, Ole Miss snapped a six-game losing streak against LSU, beating the defending national champions 31–13. Ole Miss' last win against LSU was in 2001.
Shay Hodge 10-yard pass from Jevan Snead (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 17-0
1
0:36
MISS
Mike Wallace 17-yard pass from Jevan Snead (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 24-0
2
0:42
MISS
Mike Wallace 72-yard pass from Jevan Snead (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 31-0
3
7:09
MISS
Bradley Sowell 1-yard pass from Jevan Snead (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 38-0
4
12:18
MISS
Brandon Bolden 24-yard run (Joshua Shene kick)
MISS 45-0
Ole Miss won the most lopsided Egg Bowl since the Rebels won 48–0 in 1971, by beating Mississippi State 45–0.[8][9] Only once in this game did the Mississippi State offense cross the 50-yard line into Ole Miss territory.[10] Ole Miss held MSU to just 37 total yards including minus 51 rushing yards. Ole Miss set a school record with 11 sacks. Mississippi Statewide receiver Brandon McRae was carted off the field after breaking his leg in the second quarter.[11]
The #20 Rebels defeated the #8 Texas Tech Red Raiders 47–34 in the 2009 AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic in Dallas, Texas on January 2, 2009.[12] The Red Raiders and the Rebels had met in bowl games twice before—1986 Independence Bowl and 1998 Independence Bowl—with Ole Miss winning both. The teams also met during the 2002 and 2003 regular seasons with Texas Tech winning both games of the home-and-home series.[13]
The Rebels' last bowl bid came 5 years ago and ironically in the Cotton Bowl Classic, a 31–28 victory over Oklahoma State. In this Cotton Bowl Classic, Ole Miss made its fourth appearance in the Cotton Bowl Classic, now carrying a 3–1 record. The Rebels defeated Texas Christian University 14–13 in the 1956 game and dropped a 12–7 decision to Texas in 1962.
Statistics[]
Team[]
Team
Opp
Scoring
417
247
Points per Game
32.1
19.0
First Downs
256
222
Rushing
122
86
Passing
124
117
Penalty
10
19
Total Offense
5299
3994
Avg per Play
6.2
4.7
Avg per Game
407.6
307.2
Fumbles-Lost
20–10
21–7
Penalties-Yards
66–624
79–596
Avg per Game
48.0
45.8
Team
Opp
Punts-Yards
54-2099
78-3056
Avg per Punt
38.9
39.2
Time of Possession/Game
30:14
29:37
3rd Down Conversions
75/173
60/187
4th Down Conversions
9/14
12/22
Touchdowns Scored
52
30
Field Goals-Attempts-Long
17–21–47
13–16–52
PAT-Attempts
52–52
28–29
Attendance
371,036
381,047
Games/Avg per Game
53,005
76,209
Scores by quarter[]
1
2
3
4
Total
Ole Miss
113
133
80
91
417
Opponents
59
81
27
80
247
Offense[]
Rushing[]
Name
GP-GS
Att
Gain
Loss
Net
Avg
TD
Long
Avg/G
McCluster,D.
13
109
697
42
655
6.0
6
40
50.4
Eason,Cordera
13
140
660
13
647
4.6
3
28
49.8
Bolden,Brandon
13
98
565
23
542
5.5
5
44
41.7
Davis,Enrique
10
64
258
14
244
3.8
3
62
24.4
Davis,Derrick
13
21
98
0
98
4.7
0
14
7.5
Wallace,Mike
13
10
97
5
92
9.2
0
18
7.1
Snead,Jevan
13
57
187
127
60
1.1
3
17
4.6
Thomas,Devin
5
5
34
0
34
6.8
0
19
6.8
Tapp,Billy
4
3
21
2
19
6.3
0
21
4.8
Summers,M.
13
2
19
0
19
9.5
1
13
1.5
Breaux,Lionel
13
3
21
5
16
5.3
0
15
1.2
Hartmann,Andy
12
1
10
0
10
10.0
0
10
0.8
Cook,Jason
13
1
1
0
1
1.0
0
1
0.1
Team
4
6
0
13
−13
−2.2
0
0
−3.3
TEAM
Total
13
520
2668
244
2424
4.7
21
62
186.5
Opponents
13
411
1593
481
1112
2.7
9
44
85.5
Passing[]
Name
GP-GS
Effic
Att-Cmp-Int
Pct
Yds
TD
Lng
Avg/G
Snead,Jevan
3
145.77
43–77–3
55.8
660
6
64
220.0
McCluster,D.
3
−100.00
0–2–1
0.0
0
0
0
0.0
Tapp,Billy
2
150.40
1–1–0
100.0
6
0
6
3.0
Bolden,Brandon
3
410.80
1–1–0
100.0
37
0
37
12.3
Total
3
143.03
45–81–4
55.6
703
6
64
234.3
Opponents
3
121.70
72–112–2
64.3
656
4
43
218.7
Receiving[]
Name
GP-GS
No.
Yds
Avg
TD
Long
Avg/G
Rodriguez,Jonathan
3
10
163
16.3
1
31
54.3
Hodge,Shay
3
8
176
22.0
3
64
58.7
Wallace,Mike
3
8
151
18.9
0
42
50.3
Cook,Jason
3
4
30
7.5
0
16
10.0
Eason,Cordera
3
4
26
6.5
1
14
8.7
Breaux,Lionel
3
3
40
13.3
0
29
13.3
Bolden,Brandon
3
2
43
21.5
0
33
14.3
Harris,Gerald
3
2
20
10.0
1
16
6.7
Hartmann,Andy
3
2
11
5.5
0
8
3.7
Snead,Jevan
3
1
37
37.0
0
37
12.3
Harris,Andrew
3
1
6
6.0
0
6
2.0
Total
3
45
703
15.6
6
64
234.3
Opponents
3
72
656
9.1
4
43
218.7
Defense[]
Name Patrick Trahan
GP 14
Tackles 141
Sacks
Pass Defense
Interceptions 7
Fumbles 2
Blkd Kick
Solo
Ast
Total
TFL-Yds
No-Yds
BrUp
QBH
No.-Yds
Avg
TD
Long
Rcv-Yds
FF
Total
Special teams[]
Name
Punting
Kickoffs
No.
Yds
Avg
Long
TB
FC
I20
Blkd
No.
Yds
Avg
TB
OB
Total
Name
Punt Returns
Kick Returns
No.
Yds
Avg
TD
Long
No.
Yds
Avg
TD
Long
Total
NFL prospects[]
Nine Ole Miss players who ended their career at Ole Miss this year were either taken in the 2009 NFL Draft or signed contracts with NFL teams. Michael Oher and Peria Jerry were first round draft picks at #23 and #24 respectively. Oher was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens while Jerry was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons. Mike Wallace was the 84th pick going to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round. Jamarca Sanford was the 231st pick going to the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round. Additionally, signed a free agent deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, signed a free agent deal with the Baltimore Ravens, the late signed a free agent deal with the Seattle Seahawks and later was signed by the Baltimore Ravens and later cut, Ashlee Palmer signed a free agent deal with the Buffalo Bills and Jermey Parnell signed a free agent deal with the New Orleans Saints.[14] Fein was found dead on October 7, 2009.
