SEC Round-Up: Ole Miss' "Landshark" defense continuing to decline

Landsharks seemed like a perfect nickname for the Ole Miss defense.

They smelled blood. They attacked. They devoured.

The band played the theme from “Jaws." Heck, the Rebels defense terrorized its prey just like that shark from “Jaws.” Ole Miss even adopted a shark, "Tony," as its mascot.

From 2013 to 2015 the Ole Miss defense was exceptional. In 2014 it was even spectacular. The Rebels led the nation in points allowed, was 13th in total defense, 16th in pass defense and 29th against the run.

Yet since 2016 the quality of Ole Miss defense has steadily declined. Now, Ole Miss ranks 109th in the nation or lower in total defense, scoring defense, rushing defense and passing defense.

Defensive tackle play is solid, but the pass rush is anemic, linebackers are slow and the secondary is suspect.

All of Ole Miss’ “Power Five” opponents have scored at least 27 points. Southern Illinois even scored 41 in three quarters.

Texas A&M hopes to exploit those defensive deficiencies when Ole Miss visits Kyle Field on Saturday at 11 a.m.

The Rebels are still trying to get better. And in their case, playing a good game may start with talking a good game.

“Some dudes just got to be more vocal,” junior defensive end Qaadir Sheppard told the Jackson Clarion-Ledger this week. “That’s basically it. Sometimes when I’m on the far field of the field I might not get the ball. When I’m looking back, nobody says nothing. Then the ball’s snapped. It happens.”

Apparently, it’s happened a lot.

The Rebels’ 5-4 record is a testament to its weak schedule and strong passing game. 

Quarterback Jordan Ta’amu leads the Southeastern Conference in passing. A.J. Brown and DeMarkus Lodge rank among the SEC’s top four in receiving. Even running back Scottie Phillips is fourth in the SEC in rushing.

In fact, Ole Miss is the second-highest scoring team in the SEC. Just last week the Rebels scored 44 points. 

But South Carolina scored 48.

That brings us back to “Jaws.” Remember how it ended? The shark was blown to pieces.

The same has happened to the Ole Miss defense.

Around the SEC...

Who’s hot: So much attention is given to Alabama’s explosive offense that some may overlook the fact that the defense is evolving into a typical dominant Crimson Tide unit. Alabama’s defense has allowed just three touchdowns — none rushing — in the last three games. In that span opponents have averaged just 222 yards per game. By the way, Alabama is now 11th in the nation in total defense.

Who’s not: Florida quarterback Feleipe Franks followed up a bad outing in a loss to Georgia (105 passing yards) with a worse one in a loss to Missouri (84 yards). He completed only 9 of 22 passing attempts before being benched in the third quarter in favor of Kyle Trask.  Franks figures to be back in the starting lineup, but only because Trask was injured in practice on Wednesday and is unlikely to play against South Carolina on Saturday. Last year, Franks completed just 40 percent of his attempts (10 of 25) and had an interception in a 28-20 loss to the Gamecocks.

Andrew Kilzer, TexAgs

Trayveon Williams looks to build off a 107 yard effort against Auburn last weekend.

Keep an eye on: Texas A&M running back Trayveon Williams has exceeded 100 rushing yards in five games thus far. That includes a week ago when he rushed for 107 against Auburn. Williams figures to again exceed 100 rushing yards (and maybe much, much more) this week against Ole Miss. The Rebels allow an average of 210 rushing yards per game. In the last three games Arkansas’ Rakeem Boyd, Auburn’s JaTarvious Whitlow and South Carolina’s Mon Denson all exceeded 100 rushing yards against Ole Miss. None of those teams run as effectively as A&M. Williams is third in the SEC in rushing — look for him to be leading the conference after this week.

Best matchup: Alabama’s pass protection vs. Mississippi State’s pass rush is a perfect example of strength on strength. The Crimson Tide lead in the SEC in fewest sacks allowed with just 6. Mississippi State is third in the SEC with 23 sacks. Mississippi State has potential first round draft choices in defensive linemen Jeffery Simmons and Montez Sweat. Alabama tackle Jonah Williams, center Ross Pierschbacher and the Tide offensive line face a major challenge in keeping them away from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. 

The pressure is on: Auburn’s inability to run consistently puts added stress on quarterback Jarrett Stidham to compensate. He was able to do that with a late rally last week against Texas A&M. However, that will be much more difficult against Georgia, which is 11th in the nation in pass defense. The Bulldogs last seven opponents have passed for 226 yards or less. Only one opponent — Tennessee? — has managed more than one touchdown pass against the Bulldogs. Stidham has passed for 300 yards against just one opponent — Tennessee. He’ll need his best game of the season for Auburn to have a chance at an upset.

This week’s games: Ole Miss at Texas A&M; Mississippi State at Alabama; Arkansas at LSU; Auburn at Georgia; South Carolina at Florida; Kentucky at Tennessee; Vanderbilt at Missouri