Ole Miss Football Game Notes

Nov. 21, 2005

DATE: Saturday, November 26, 2005

TIME: 1:30 p.m. CT

SITE (CAPACITY): Davis Wade Stadium/Scott Field (55,082); Starkville, Miss.

TV: None

RADIO: Ole Miss Radio Network (David Kellum, play-by-play; Harry Harrison, color analyst; Stan Sandroni, sideline reporter; Richard Cross and Pete Cordelli, pregame and postgame hosts). Sirius Satellite Radio channel 110.

POLLS: Neither Ole Miss nor Mississippi State is ranked in this week's USA Today Coaches Top 25 or in the Associated Press Top 25.

SERIES INFO: This game will be the 102nd meeting of one of the nation's most-played rivalries. Ole Miss holds a 58-37-6 advantage in the series dating back to 1901. The Ole Miss-Mississippi State series is listed as tied for the 16th most-played in NCAA Division I-A history. The series is also listed as the 10th longest uninterrupted series, as the NCAA considers Saturday's game the 90th consecutive year that the two schools have faced each other. Neither team, however, fielded a squad in 1943 due to World War II. Saturday's game will be the 78th "Battle of the Golden Egg," as the two schools started playing for the trophy in 1927. Ole Miss holds a 52-20-5 advantage in the "Egg Bowl." The home team has won five of the last six games. Ole Miss has taken three straight in the series with an average margin of victory of 20.0 during the streak. The rivals have split the last 14 meetings since the series returned to campus sites in 1991, after being played yearly in Jackson from 1973-1990. Ole Miss is looking to become the first team in the series to win four straight Egg Bowls since the Rebels won four consecutive from 1983-1986. Ole Miss prevailed 20-3 last year in Oxford. The Rebels hold a 20-9-3 advantage in games played in Starkville. WHAT TO WATCH FOR: The Rebels are looking for a fourth straight Egg Bowl victory and have outscored the Bulldogs 51-3 in the last two meetings ... Ole Miss will be looking for its first victory over an SEC Western Division team ... The Rebels rank top 25 in the nation in total defense and pass defense ... Junior LB Patrick Willis ranks first in the country in solo stops (8.78 per game) and leads the SEC in total tackles (12.7 per game) ... Senior WR Mike Espy has recorded a catch in 23 consecutive games ... Saturday's game will mark the final game in a Rebel uniform for 22 Ole Miss seniors.

OLE MISS HEAD COACH Ed Orgeron: Ed Orgeron (Northwestern State, 1984) is in his first season as the Rebels' head coach, having been hired on Dec. 16, 2004. Ole Miss is Orgeron's first career head coaching position, although he possesses 20 years of college coaching experience, most recently as an assistant head coach on USC's 2003 and 2004 national champion teams.

MISSISSIPPI STATE HEAD COACH SYLVESTER CROOM: Sylvester Croom is in his second season as the head coach at Mississippi State. He has led the Bulldogs to a 5-15 record, in this his first career head coaching assignment. Prior to taking the position at Mississippi State, Croom spent three seasons from 2001-2003 as an assistant coach with the Green Bay Packers. Croom also served on NFL coaching staffs with Tampa Bay (1987-1990), Indianapolis (1991) and San Diego (1992-1996). Croom started his coaching career as a graduate assistant on Paul "Bear" Bryant's staff at Alabama in 1976. He then served as an assistant for the Crimson Tide from 1977-1986.

MISSISSIPPI STATE SCOUTING REPORT: After opening the season 2-1, Mississippi State is on a seven-game skid. The Bulldogs have suffered four losses by 26 or more points.

The MSU offense is averaging 11.8 points and 262.9 yards of offense per game, both of which are the low mark in the SEC. The Bulldogs are averaging 121.0 yards rushing per contest, led by senior RB Jerious Norwood, who ranks fifth in the SEC in rushing at 93.2 yards per game. Norwood has rushed for 932 yards and three touchdowns. Junior QB Omarr Conner has completed 86-of-167 passes for 903 yards with eight TDs and five INTs, while freshman signal-caller Michael Henig is 49-of-115 for 516 yards with four picks. Junior WR Will Prosser has hauled in a team-high 28 passes for 286 yards. Senior Tee Milons has recorded 18 receptions for 214 yards and a TD, while freshman Keon Humphries has 11 grabs for 200 yards and a pair of scores. Sophomore TE Eric Butler has 13 catches for 172 yards and three TDs, and Conner has also seen time as a receiver, making five receptions for 47 yards.

On defense, State is allowing an average of 24.5 points and 350.1 yards per game. Senior DE Willie Evans leads the SEC in sacks with 13.0 along with 53 tackles and 19.0 TFLs. Junior LB Quinton Culbertson boasts a team-high 72 stops, while junior S Jeramie Johnson has 63 tackles and seven pass break-ups. Senior CB Kevin Dockery has registered 5.0 TFLs, seven break-ups and three interceptions.

On special teams, junior K Keith Andrews is 5-of-8 on FGs with a pair of 40-yarders. Freshman P Blake McAdams is tied for third in the SEC with a 42.0-yard average in his 65 attempts.

OLE MISS BEGINS COACH "O" ERA IN 2005: Ole Miss officially kicked off the Ed Orgeron era with a 10-6 victory at Memphis on Sept. 5. Orgeron was hired as the 35th head coach in the history of the University of Mississippi on December 16, 2004. Prior to coming to Ole Miss, Orgeron served the previous seven seasons as the defensive line coach at the University of Southern California and played a key role in Pete Carroll's Trojans winning back-to-back national championships in 2003 and 2004. He also served as USC's recruiting coordinator from 2001-2004 and was named assistant head coach in 2003.

REBS, 'DOGS TO MEET FOR 102nd TIME TODAY: The Ole Miss Rebels and Mississippi State Bulldogs will renew acquaintances for the 102nd time at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/Hollingsworth Field. The rivalry is tied with the North Carolina-Wake Forest series for the 16th longest in NCAA Division I-A history. The NCAA also considers the Ole Miss-Mississippi State series the 10th longest running uninterrupted series in Division I-A, though neither school fielded teams in 1943. This game will also be the 78th edition of the game that has become known as "The Battle For The Golden Egg," or simply the "Egg Bowl." Ole Miss holds a 52-20-5 advantage in "Egg Bowl" games. With a win this year, the Rebels can become the first team to win four straight Egg Bowls since Ole Miss won four consecutive from 1983-1986.

THE START OF THE GOLDEN EGG: The Golden Egg was first proposed by members of Sigma Iota, an Ole Miss honorary society in 1927. Sigma Iota proposed that a trophy be awarded in a dignified ceremony designed to calm excited fans, after Ole Miss fans stormed the field at Starkville's Scott Field following the Rebels' 7-6 win in the 1926 contest.

The 1926 win snapped a 13-game losing streak to then Mississippi A&M, and was just Ole Miss' fifth win in 23 tries. Following the game, Ole Miss fans made a dash for the goal posts, while Aggie fans took after them with cane bottom chairs and fights broke out. The mayhem continued until most of the chairs were splintered.

After Sigma Iota made its proposal, Mississippi A&M approved the suggestion, and Ole Miss, two weeks before the game, officially added its approval. The trophy, to be called "The Golden Egg," would be a regulation-size gold-plated football mounted on a pedestal. Cost approximately $250 would be shared by both schools.

On Thanksgiving Day, 1927, the first "Battle of the Golden Egg" was waged before a crowd of 14,000 in Oxford. The Rebels won 20-12 and the symbol of supremacy in the series was born.

ORIGINS OF THE NAME: The term "Egg Bowl" can be traced back to 1978, when Executive Sports Editor of the Clarion-Ledger Tom Patterson decided to spice up the 1978 meeting. A year earlier, the Clarion-Ledger headline on game day had been "Egg Bowl Is Up For Scramble," and the following day it was "Egg Bowl `77: State 18, Ole Miss 14." With the Rebels 4-6 and the Bulldogs 6-4 and apparently out of the bowl picture heading into the 1978 game, Patterson instructed his staff to follow the "Egg Bowl" theme throughout the week. The result was an award winning special section on Sunday, which recounted in great detail the Rebels' stunning 27-7 victory over the heavily-favored Bulldogs. While the game is still officially the "Battle of the Golden Egg," most members of the of the media now refer to the annual game simply as the "Egg Bowl."

"EGG BOWL" FACT: The "Egg Bowl" will be played the Saturday following Thanksgiving the second straight season. The previous six years, the game was played on Thanksgiving Night and was televised nationally by ESPN. The two teams split the six meetings the game was played on Thanksgiving, with the Rebels winning the last two, 24-12 in 2002 in Oxford and 31-0 in 2003 in Starkville.

SENIOR FAREWELL: This game versus Mississippi State will mark the final appearance in a Rebel uniform for the 22 seniors on this year's team. The senior class of 2005 bring a four-year record of 24-23 (.511 winning pct.) into today's game, and helped the Rebels to appearances in the 2002 MainStay Independence and 2004 SBC Cotton Bowls. The 22 members of this year's senior class are: WR Taye Biddle (Decatur, Ala.), C Tony Bonds (Russellville, Ala.), C Ben Boyce (Gonzales, La.), DL McKinley Boykin (Bessemer, Ala.), DL Michael Bozeman (Hawkinsville, Ga.), DB Joshua Braithwaite (Chicago, Ill.), TE Jimmy Brooks (Ripley, Miss.), WR Mike Espy (Madison, Miss.), OL Bobby Harris (Decatur, Ga.), DE Corvelli Haynes (Cleveland, Miss.), WR Mario Hill (Meridian, Miss.), RB Brandon Jacobs (Long Beach, Miss.), DB Travis Johnson (Shannon, Miss.), OL Ryan Jones (Brandon, Miss.), RB/WR Larry Kendrick (Haines City, Fla.), LS Sidney McLaurin (Brandon, Miss.), DE Jayme Mitchell (Jackson, Miss.), WR Matt Pierce (Mobile, Ala.), LB Kelvin Robinson (Jackson, Miss.), QB Micheal Spurlock (Indianola, Miss.), OL Tre' Stallings (Magnolia, Miss.) and DB Bryant Thomas (Louisville, Miss.).

REBEL NOTEBOOK

The 33-point deficit against LSU was the worst for the Rebels since a 42-7 loss to Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Oct. 19, 2002. It was the worst home loss since a 41-3 defeat at the hands of Tennessee (in Memphis) on Oct. 3, 1996. It was the worst loss in Oxford since a 47-0 defeat at the hands of Kentucky on Oct. 1, 1949.

Against LSU on Saturday, the Rebels were held scoreless in the first half for the first time this year.

The Rebels have faced four ranked opponents this season (No. 9/10 Tennessee, No. 6/7 Alabama, No. 19 Auburn and No. 4 LSU), with an 0-4 mark against those opponents.

Ole Miss has exceeded 32 minutes in time of possession in three of the last five games.

The Rebels are 0-4 against the SEC Western Division this year.

Nine true freshmen and 22 players overall have seen their first action in the Red and Blue this season.

Ole Miss is concluding its second straight losing season ... The last time the Rebels finished below .500 in consecutive campaigns was in 1987 and 1988, going 3-8 and 5-6, respectively ... Prior to last year's 4-7 finish, Ole Miss had recorded seven straight winning seasons, their longest such streak since notching seven straight from 1965-1971.

The Rebels enter the game with an all-time record of 590-442-35 (.569 winning percentage).

The University of Mississippi is in its 111th football season dating back to 1893 ... Ole Miss did not field teams in 1897 due to an epidemic of yellow fever, and also in 1943 when football was abolished at all Mississippi state-supported institutions by the Board of Trustees.

ESPY EXTENDS STREAK: Ole Miss WR Mike Espy has hauled in at least one reception in 24 consecutive games, a career-long streak. The Madison, Miss., native has recorded a catch in 43-of-47 career games played.

OFFENSIVE NOTES

On Saturday, the offense allowed its first safety since the Nov. 2, 2002 game versus Auburn.

Ole Miss' seven net yards rushing against LSU was the least since rushing for four yards against Alabama in 2002 ... The Rebels have totaled 40 total rushing yards in the last three games and have been held under 70 yards rushing six times this season.

Senior WR Taye Biddle caught his first TD of the season in the fourth quarter against LSU. His previous TD reception was on Oct. 30 last year against Auburn, also in the fourth quarter.

Senior OL Tre' Stallings has started 47 consecutive games, which is the third-longest streak in the SEC and tied for fifth-longest in the nation. With a start against State, Stallings would tie the school record of 48 held by OL Marcus Johnson (2001-04).

Senior WR Mike Espy has moved into a tie for third on the all-time Ole Miss all-purpose yardage list with WR J.R. Ambrose (1984-87) with 3,186 yards in his Rebel career.

Senior WR Mario Hill ranks fifth in the SEC in receiving yards per game (65.5) and seventh in receptions per game (4.25), while Espy ranks fifth in the league in receptions per game (4.70).

REBEL "D" LEADS THE WAY: Below charts how the Rebel defense has risen among the nation's best (NCAA rank): Pass Defense (22) 186.8 Total Defense (25) 325.0 Scoring Defense (31) 21.0

DEFENSIVE NOTES

The Rebels allowed a season-worst 40 points to the LSU offense on Saturday, the most points given up since a 43-40 win over South Carolina on Nov. 1, 2003.

Junior LB Patrick Willis led the Rebels against LSU, tying a career high with 15 tackles and setting a new career high with 11 solo stops.

Junior FS Charles Clark recorded his first career interception against the Tigers, picking off JaMarcus Russell in the endzone in the second quarter.

Senior DE Jayme Mitchell notched his first career fumble recovery in the second quarter against LSU.

Senior LB Kelvin Robinson registered a career-high 12 total tackles against the Tigers.

Senior DB Travis Johnson is tied for second in the SEC in forced fumbles with three ... Johnson is also the SEC's active career leader in interceptions with 10.

The Rebels held the SEC's top rushing offense in Arkansas to 89 yards, the Razorbacks' lowest total of the season and 163 yards below their season average.

Ole Miss held Alabama to a then-season low in points (13) and a tie for its least rushing yards (121) ... The Tide was averaging 29.6 points per game.

The Rebels limited The Citadel to 81 yards of total offense on the game, the least allowed by the Rebels since holding Vanderbilt to 51 total yards in 1993.

ESPY APPROACHES RECORD: Senior Mike Espy is two returns shy of tying Ta'Boris Fisher's school record for career punt returns of 96. A senior from Madison, Miss., Espy ranks fourth on the Ole Miss career PR yardage list with 715.

MOSELEY NO. 1 IN SEC IN KICKOFFS: When it comes to kickoffs, junior K Will Moseley is tops among SEC kickers, recording touchbacks on 21 of his 33 kickoffs for a league-best 62.3 percentage. The Bailey, Miss., native is also tied, along with teammate Matt Hinkle, for fifth in the conference in field goals over 40 yards for a .500 percentage, knocking down 2-of-4 from that distance, including a 50-yarder against Tennessee.

SPECIALTY NOTES

Three different kickers have been used by the Rebels this season. Below charts how redshirt freshman Robert Bass, sophomore Matt Hinkle and junior Will Moseley have performed: Basw 7-7 PAT 2-4 FG Hinkle 4-4 PAT 5-10 FG Moseley 3-4 PAT 3-6 FG

Sophomore K Matt Hinkle has connected on a FG of 40-plus yards twice, hitting from 45 yards out against Kentucky and from 43 yards at Auburn.

Senior Mike Espy ran back a punt 51 yards for a his first career return for a TD at Vanderbilt ... It marked the first punt return for a score by a Rebel since Jason Armstead scampered 62 yards against Memphis in 2002.

REBELS IN NOVEMBER

Ole Miss has an all-time record of 191-159-13 (.544 winning percentage) during the month of November.

The Rebels are 113-67-5 (.624 winning percentage) in home games during November, including home contests played in Jackson and Memphis ... In home games played in Oxford during November, the Rebels are 66-28-4 (.694 winning percentage).

Ole Miss is 78-92-8 (.461 winning percentage) in road games during November.

In SEC games played in November, Ole Miss has an overall record of 81-86-7 (.486 winning pct.).

In SEC home games during November, the Rebels are 50-45-2 (.526 winning pct.), including home games played in Jackson and Memphis ... In SEC home games played in Oxford during November, Ole Miss is 19-22-1 (.464 winning pct.).

In SEC road games during November, Ole Miss is 31-41-5 (.435 winning percentage).

McSWAIN SETS FRESHMAN RECORD: With his 104 rushing yards against Kentucky, redshirt freshman RB Mico McSwain surpassed Joe Gunn (547 in 1998) to establish an Ole Miss freshman rushing record, now at 612 yards on the season. Prior to the Arkansas game, McSwain led Ole Miss in rushing in the first eight games of the year and registered three 100-yard performances, which is also a Rebel freshman record.

ROBINSON NAMED TO SEC GOOD WORKS TEAM: Senior LB Kelvin Robinson was featured as the SEC Good Works Team Player of the Week for the week of the Ole Miss-Tennessee contest. A criminal justice major from Jackson, Miss., Robinson has been active in the Oxford Pantry Canned Food Drive, the Oxford Highway Clean-up, Reading with the Rebels and Toys for Tots. He has visited patients at the North Mississippi Regional Medical Center and with the elderly at the Azalea Gardens Retirement Center and Heritage Gardens Retirement Center. He also visited area elementary schools, speaking to children at Costa Rica Elementary School during a study abroad program and during National Student-Athlete Day at Oxford Elementary School. Also, he has been part of the Ole Miss Team Mentoring Program.

GRADUATED REBELS: The Rebels have four players on this year's team who have completed their undergraduate degrees -- DT McKinley Boykin (Bessemer, Ala.), LB Kelvin Robinson (Jackson, Miss.), QB Micheal Spurlock (Indianola, Miss.) and OL Tre' Stallings (Magnolia, Miss.).

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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