Washington State at No. 4 Ole Miss
This was the classic trap game. In Week-5 No. 13 Ole Miss upset No. 4 LSU and then had last week off. They come into the game an undefeated team averaging almost 38 points per game playing at home against a 31.5 point underdog who has no significant wins and averages just 20.7 points per game—114th in the nation. The Rebels had the ball to start and drove all the way down to the Washington State 4 yard line where instead of taking the easy three decided to go for it and had to turn the ball over after an incomplete pass. After holding the Cougars to a three-and-out the Ole Miss Place Kicker, Lucas Carneiro, would miss from 47 yards out and Washington State, starting from their own 29 would find the end zone 9 plays and 71 yards later on a 26 yard TD pass to Freshman WR Landon Wright from Senior QB Zevi Eckhaus to take a 7-0 lead at the end of the 1st Qtr.
Ole Miss would fumble the ball 10 plays into their 2nd Qtr opening drive and lose it to the Cougars. But Washington State couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity, missing a 54 yard field goal attempt five plays later. Nine plays later the Rebels would get the same opportunity and this time Carneiro would kick one through the uprights from 40 yards out to finally get Ole Miss on board at 7-3. After holding Washington State to a punt on their next possession the Rebels would finally find the end zone and take a 10-7 lead at the end of a 87 yard drive on a 2 yard TD pass from Senior QB Trinidad Chambliss to Senior TE Dae’Quan Wright with less than 30 seconds left in the half.
The Ole Miss lead would last less than five minutes into the second half as the Cougars would be back in the end zone just seven plays later on a 46 yard Kirby Vorhees TD Run to go up back up 14-10—a lead that would last till the very end of the 3rd Qtr when Ole Miss would take the ball 82 yards in 11 plays and go back up on top 17-14 on a Chambliss 17 yard TD run with time running out in the third. After both teams were held to three-and-outs to start the 4th Qtr the Cougars would bog down early in their next drive after a couple of penalties and would have to punt from their own 16 yard line giving the Rebels really good field position for their next possession. Starting with a 23 yard run on their first play from scrimmage, just three plays later Chambliss would complete a 35 yard TD pass to Cayden Lee to give Ole Miss a two possession lead at 24-14. Four minutes later Washington State would cut that to just a three point lead, 24-21, on a 19 yard TD pass from Eckhaus to Tony Freeman with less than three minutes left in the game. Stuck at midfield on their next possession Ole Miss would have to punt the ball back to the Cougars with a minute left. But even with a defensive pass interference penalty Washington State couldn’t get any closer than the Ole Miss 38 yard line when time ran out.
For Washington State, Senior QB Zevi Eckhaus was 24-of-31 for 218 yard, 2 TD’s—1 to Junior WR Tony Freeman who led the team with 90 yards on 9 receptions and 1 to Freshman WR Landon Wright—and no interceptions while also rushing 11 times for 18 yards. On the ground Sophomore RB Kirby Vorhees led the way rushing 10 times for 88 of the team’s 127 yards and their only TD. For Ole Miss, Senior QB Trinidad Chambliss connected on 20-of-29 for 253 yards, 2 TD, and no interceptions while also rushing 11 times for 15 yards and their only TD on the ground. Sophomore RB Kewan Lacy gained the majority of their 186 rushing yards with 142 on 24 carries while Senior TE Dae’Quan Wright and Junior WR Cayden Lee were the recipients of a Chambliss TD each. This game was probably a good wake up call for Lane Kiffin’s Rebels as they’ll be on the road the next two weeks to take on No. 9 Georgia and No. 14 Oklahoma. For the Cougars they’ll stay on the road as well to take on another ranked team this coming Saturday—No. 18 Virginia.
Wake Forest at Oregon State
As the AP pointed out in their recap of the game for ESPN, after their 39-14 loss to Wake Forrest at home in Corvallis this past Saturday their 0-7 record is the Beavers’ worst start since 1991 when they started 0-10. The first half for Oregon State offensively consisted of five punts, a missed field goal, a fumble leading to a Wake Forest TD, and an interception. The third quarter wasn’t much better, two punts and a 10 play turnover on downs. With a 32-0 cushion to start the 4th Qtr, Wake Forest head coach Jake Dickert—in his first year there after bailing from Washington State—was able to take his foot off the gas and put some backups in leading to Oregon State’s only two TD’s of the game. Of course the Beavers were so busy high fiving after the first one that the Demon Deacons’ Senior RB Demond Claiborne was able to run 66 yards on Wake Forest’s first play from scrimmage to add another seven points to their total.
As far as who’s to blame, the search for the guilty and praise and honor for the non-participants has already been taking place in Corvallis. After losing to Appalachian State the prior week the brain trust of Athletic Director Scott Barnes and Head Coach Trent Bray fired Special Teams Coach Jamie Christian in spite of the fact it seemed difficult to link the play of that unit directly to all of their losses. This week Wake Forest scored three TD’s on passes of 36, 52, and 55 yards. So maybe the problem wasn’t Jamie Christian and Special Teams, maybe it’s more likely Rod Chance, the Beavers Co-Defensive Coordinator and Secondary Coach is the culprit. Barnes is doing his part to cover his ass with his statement to Beaver nation saying that; “I understand and share your disappointment with how our football season has started. My expectations for our program are high, and right now, we are not meeting them.” Bray when asked said that he planned to keep showing up, “until they tell me I can’t.” Well that didn’t take long. Multiple sources reported just after noon this past Sunday that Trent Bray had been fired. If you were an Oregon State college football donor you’ll be pleased to know that the approximate $4 million dollar buyout due Bray will be handled exclusively with your funds. Robb Akey has been named interim head coach.
As far as this game goes, for the Beavers QB’s Maalik Murphy and Sophomore Gabarri Johnson combined for just 19-of-42 for 175 yards, 1 TD to Sophomore WR David Wells Jr., and 1 interception. On the ground, Senior RB Anthony Hankerson and Freshman RB Cornell Hatcher Jr combined for 144 yards on 29 carries with Hatcher picking up the only rushing TD. For Wake Forest, Sophomore QB DeShawn Purdy was 14-of-27 for 270 yards, 4 TD’s, and no interceptions. On the ground, Senior RB Demond Claiborne picked up 144 yards and the only rushing TD of the team’s 198 yard total. It’s possible that the Beavers will be posting their first win of the year this coming Saturday as they’ll be hosting a non-major in Lafayette. As far as ironing out all their problems–to be continued.