Coach:
David Cutcliffe
9-4, 1 year |
1999 Record: 8-4
Sep
04 |
@Memphis |
Won
3-0 |
Sep
11 |
Arkansas
State |
Won
38-14 |
Sep
18 |
Vanderbilt |
Lost
34-37 |
Sep
25 |
@Auburn |
Won
24-17 |
Oct
02 |
@South
Carolina |
Won
36-10 |
Oct
09 |
Tulane |
Won
20-13 |
Oct
16 |
Alabama |
Lost
24-30 |
Oct
30 |
@Louisiana
State |
Won
42-23 |
Nov
06 |
Arkansas |
Won
38-16 |
Nov
20 |
Georgia |
Lost
17-20 |
Nov
25 |
@Mississippi
State |
Lost
20-23 |
INDEPENDENCE
BOWL
|
Dec
31 |
Oklahoma |
Won
27-25 |
|
|
1999
Final Rankings
|
AP-22, BCS-NR,
Coaches-22
|
2000 Outlook
|
Expectations are soaring headed into
the 2000 season for the team from Oxford. It didn't
hurt that most preseason magazines are riding high on
the Rebels this year. With that said, anything less
than a SEC Championship game may be a disappointment
to most fans. If quarterback Romaro Miller steps into
that great senior player/leader mold and can move the
ball consistently through the air, the Rebels are going
to put some serious points on the board. Aside from
Miller, the two biggest keys to the Mississippi season
will be how well the undersized and inexperienced middle
of the defensive line, which usually is a large need
in the SEC, turns out. The second will be a much needed
improvement in pass coverage. The calenders are most
likely circled for the second game of the year as Coach
Tommy Tuberville returns to Oxford for the first time
with his Auburn cast. But it's no secret that the Alabama
game on October 14, which Ole Miss has not won since
1988, may be for the SEC West title. Coaches and fans
are looking for bigger and better things after three
consecutive bowl victories, like maybe a January bowl
game. If the defense can rise up it's definitely possible,
but certainly no guarantee.
Projected Record: 9-3
Mississippi
2000 Schedule
|
MISSISSIPPI
*POWER RATINGS
|
Offense
|
Defense
|
QB - 4 |
DL - 2 |
RB - 5 |
LB - 3 |
WR - 2 |
DB - 2 |
OL - 3 |
|
|
|
|
MISSISSIPPI
REBELS
2000 FOOTBALL PREVIEW
|
|
In depth coverage of
Rebel sports.
|
2000
OFFENSE
|
Ole Miss wouldn't exchange their
Ole Tailbacks with anyone in the country. Versatile senior Deuce
McAllister is being promoted as a Heisman Trophy candidate as
he emerged last season as a do everything kind of guy who can
run, catch, return kickoffs and punts, and even throw the ball.
He ran for 840 yards averaging 5.4 yards every time he was handed
the ball and caught 20 passes, and will be one of the nation's
premier kick returners. Joe Gunn, the other half of the tandem,
probably would have had a 1000 yard rushing total if he had
not been hurt in the last game of the season. He returns as
the SEC's leading returning rusher with 985 yards. QB Romaro
Miller enters his third season as a starter and senior leader.
His numbers show he threw for 14 touchdowns and 2000 yards last
year, but with defending foes geared to stop the run, Miller
will be expected to produce more if the Rebels want to make
it to the SEC final. There are holes that need filling at the
wide out spots. Ole Miss must replace one of the best clutch
receivers in school history, Cory Peterson, as well as the team's
second leading receiver Maurice Flournoy, who was dismissed
from the team for undisclosed reasons. It will be key that Grant
Heard, who redshirted last season, return to his 1998 form where
he caught 40 passes. On the offensive line, both starting tackles
from a year ago are gone, but the ingredients are there for
coaches to form a similar group that helped Mississippi finish
first in SEC West rushing in 1999. The special teams people
are jumping for joy as placekicker Les Binkley, who was 14-of-16
on field goals and 36 for 36 on PAT's returns. |
OFFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
|
QB |
Romaro
Miller |
6-1 |
195 |
Sr. |
|
Eli
Manning |
6-4 |
200 |
Fr. |
RB |
Deuce
McAllister |
6-1 |
220 |
Sr. |
|
Joe
Gunn |
5-9 |
207 |
Jr. |
FB |
Tremaine
Turner |
5-10 |
190 |
So. |
|
Charles
Stackhouse |
6-2 |
221 |
Jr. |
WR |
Grant
Heard |
6-2 |
190 |
Sr. |
|
Ross
Barkley |
5-11 |
170 |
Jr. |
WR |
Jamie
Armstrong |
6-0 |
180 |
Jr. |
|
Mike
Salters |
6-0 |
195 |
So. |
T |
Terrence
Metcalf |
6-3 |
300 |
Jr. |
|
Cliff
Woodruff |
6-6 |
275 |
Fr. |
G |
Shane
Grice |
6-1 |
315 |
Sr. |
|
German
Bello |
6-3 |
290 |
So. |
C |
Ben
Claxton |
6-3 |
290 |
So.
|
|
Charlie
Perkins |
6-2 |
295 |
Sr. |
G |
Keydrick
Vincent |
6-5 |
350 |
Sr. |
|
Augustus
Carwell |
6-3 |
343 |
So. |
T |
Matt
Koon |
6-4 |
285 |
Jr. |
|
Belton
Johnson |
6-4 |
290 |
So. |
TE |
Doug
Zeigler |
6-3 |
235 |
So. |
|
Mitch
Skrmetta |
6-4 |
245 |
Jr. |
K |
Les
Binkley |
5-9 |
170 |
Sr. |
|
Lee
Rogers |
5-11 |
175 |
Fr. |
Returning
starters in bold. |
Key
Losses: Cory Peterson-WR, Maurice Flournoy-WR, Adam
Bettis-TE,
Todd Wade-OL, Tutan Reyes-OL
|
|
2000
DEFENSE
|
On the minus side, coaches have to be concerned
about the front four on defense where the Rebels lost four
tackles, including All-SEC performer Kendrick Clancy. Size
could also play a factor in that there is none. On the plus
side, Ole Miss was one of the more effective teams in the
country versus the run last year and defensive end returnees
Derrick Burgess and Shane Elam were both a big part of that
equation. The linebackers are led by Eddie Strong, who may
be the team's best defensive player and for that matter one
of the SEC's best. Coaches will attempt to keep Eddie in situations
where he's not removed from the play by formations because
they want him near the football. If there was a weakness last
year it was clearly in the backfield. Replacing Independence
Bowl Defensive MVP Tim Strickland at corner and Ronnie Heard
at safety will be a major priority. Two starters are back
in Lucas and Taylor and with them the Rebels still return
five players who have drawn starting roles in the secondary.
But it's unlikely to expect the DL to immediately start recording
sacks and hurried throws from opposing QB's at the start,
so the pressure will be on the coverage unit. Senior punter
Reagan King has the leg but needs to improve on his 38 yard
average from 1999.
|
DEFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
|
DE |
Derrick
Burgess |
6-2 |
260 |
Sr. |
|
John
Romm |
6-2 |
241 |
Sr. |
DT |
Anthony
Sims |
6-2 |
272 |
Jr. |
|
Dusty
Braddock |
6-1 |
262 |
So. |
DT |
Antionne
Scott |
6-2 |
255 |
Sr. |
|
Jesse
Mitchell |
6-3 |
260 |
Fr. |
DE |
Shane
Elam |
6-1 |
240 |
Sr. |
|
Justin
Blake |
6-2 |
245 |
So. |
OLB |
Kevin
Thomas |
5-9 |
190 |
Jr. |
|
Amzie
Williams |
6-1 |
220 |
Sr. |
MLB |
Eddie
Strong |
6-2 |
235 |
Jr. |
|
Chad
Cook |
6-0 |
230 |
Sr. |
OLB |
Shawn
Johnson |
6-1 |
220 |
Sr. |
|
Ryan
Hamilton |
6-2 |
217 |
So. |
CB |
Ken
Lucas |
6-1 |
201 |
Sr. |
|
Desmon
Johnson |
5-9 |
160 |
So. |
CB |
Justin
Coleman |
5-9 |
175 |
Jr. |
|
Kevin
Farmer |
5-8 |
162 |
Jr. |
SS |
Anthony
Magee |
5-11 |
180 |
Sr. |
|
Kenny
Woods |
6-2 |
215 |
Sr. |
FS |
Syniker
Taylor |
6-0 |
195 |
Jr. |
|
Wes
Scott |
6-1 |
190 |
So. |
P |
Reagan
King |
6-2 |
225 |
Sr. |
|
Ben
Craddock |
5-11 |
190 |
Sr. |
Returning
starters in bold. |
Key
Losses: Kendrick Clancy-DL, Comone Fisher-DL, Tyler
Williams-DL,
Michael Boone-DL, Armegis Spearman-LB, Al Rice-LB, Ronnie
Heard-DB,
Tim Strickland-DB
|
|
|
|
|
|