Ole Miss preview: Manning leads Rebels' youth movement

Lindy's Football Annuals
07/26/01 11:57 PM Central

Lindy's (AP) -- Eli Manning and Don Lindsey, residing at opposite ends of the football spectrum, are probably the two key people in the Mississippi Rebels' 2001 football season.

Manning is the sophomore quarterback with great expectations ... Lindsey is the defensive coordinator with the great experience.

For what it's worth, Lindsey was coaching football for 16 years before Manning was born.

It's a very different team than the veteran club that David Cutcliffe coached the past two seasons at Ole Miss. This team has only 12 scholarship seniors.

Last year at this time, Rebel fans had big expectations of a winning SEC record (something Ole Miss hasn't had since 1992) and a January bowl game. There were exciting playmakers on both sides of the ball.

But the main man on defense, Eddie Strong, was hurt in preseason and never played a down. And the main man on offense, Deuce McAllister, saw his Heisman Trophy hopes evaporate after a shoulder injury at Vanderbilt and an ankle injury at Alabama.

The Rebels managed to gain their fourth consecutive December bowl trip after whipping archrival Mississippi State 45-30 in what was the highlight of the season. Yet, when West Virginia scored five touchdowns on its opening five possessions of the Music City Bowl, it left Ole Miss with a 49-38 defeat and a disappointing 7-5 record.

Enter Manning and Lindsey.

If Manning can pick up where he left off against West Virginia -- throwing three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter -- the Rebels could have their best quarterback since ... well, since Eli's father Archie ran the show three decades ago.

Lindsey, who has been coaching college and pro football the past 36 years (he has been part of four national championship teams at Southern Cal and Alabama), will try to revive an undersized defense that couldn't stop strong running teams and couldn't take quarterbacks out of their comfort zone in 2000.

"We don't have many wide-bodies," Lindsey said. "We'll struggle with strong running teams. I don't have an answer for that. But that doesn't mean we won't win, and that doesn't mean we won't play hard."

Offensively, a lot will depend on how well Manning progresses early without the benefit of many SEC snaps. The redshirt sophomore knows the Cutcliffe system well and has a quick mind and a strong arm. But the younger brother of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning played only sparingly last year behind starter Romaro Miller.

Manning's offensive line figures to be good enough to create a competent running game and give the quarterback time to throw. The Rebels had continuity problems up front last year, but start with veteran tackles and center, led by all-SEC left tackle Terrence Metcalf.

With McAllister moving on to the NFL, the Rebels lose big-time talent and versatility. But senior Joe Gunn (951 yards in 1999) and junior Robert Williams are accomplished tailbacks in their own right, and senior Charles Stackhouse and Toward Sanford are stout fullbacks.

Cutcliffe insists he likes his new receivers, saying "Omar Rayford has gone to another level. Chris Collins has learned to be a receiver, not just a guy who is really fast."

Collins, Rayford, Jamie Armstrong, Ross Barkley and tight end Doug Zeigler will be back to lend pass-catching experience.

While the offense appears to have lots of potential, the defense will have to overcome its smallish look with quickness and smarts.

The overriding question last year was whether the problem was defensive coordinator Art Kaufman's scheme or simply a lack of quality personnel. Now that Kaufman is gone, Rebels fans will find out.

The fan base constantly called radio talk shows last year and demanded a more aggressive approach. But do the Rebels have the players to make it happen with the blitz? Or will they simply give up a succession of big plays and make it that much tougher on the Ole Miss offense?

Certainly, Strong's return will make a major difference. Lindsey said he'll be creative with Strong, putting him in different positions to make plays.

The Rebels will have to show they can hold up in the front four, where they figure to be outweighed by 20 to 30 pounds per man during the SEC season. Senior tackle Anthony Sims is solid, but do the Rebels have enough to go with him?

"The smaller you are, the more explosive and strong you have to be," Lindsey said. "That's where the offseason program comes in. The game up front is played from the ground up. If you have good strong legs and power angles, you have a chance to be competitive."

With only 12 scholarship seniors, the Rebels will have to get leadership any place they can find it. This is a team that has gotten used to bowl games and doesn't want that four-year streak interrupted, regardless of the dip in experience.

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