EDITOR’S NOTE: Counting down to the first week of Ole Miss football practice the week of August 15, HottyToddy.com’s own Collin Brister, former sports editor of the Daily Mississippian, will bring you exclusive “5 at 5” analyses of either A) the opponents Ole Miss will be facing this season or B) some background on Ole Miss’ players at each position. It’s being called “5 at 5” because each original piece will give you 5 key things to know, and we will post these stories at 5 p.m. every Monday-Friday.
NUMBER 1:
Recent History
Ole Miss and Georgia will play for the first time since 2012 on September 24. The Rebels lost to the Bulldogs 37-10 in Hugh Freeze’s first year. Ole Miss played the Bulldogs the year before in 2011 and lost 27-13 in the last year of Houston Nutt.
NUMBER 2:
Nick Chubb
Chubb rushed for over 1500 yards during his first season in Georgia, as he lead the team in rushing with Todd Gurley missing time due to a NCAA suspension. Chubb was off to a stellar start during the 2015 season as he had rushed for 747 yards in only six games, before tearing knee ligaments during the Tennessee game. Chubb is a physical running back with good acceleration that will provide help to whoever Georgia is breaking in at quarterback. Chubb will likely leave for the NFL draft after the 2015 season, and the junior running back could very well be in New York in December when the Heisman is presented.
courtesy: James Lott
NUMBER 3:
Georgia Quarterback
As has been the theme with the past two FBS team previews, the Bulldogs don’t have a quarterback set in stone. Georgia signed the second-ranked quarterback in the country in the 2016 signing class in Jacob Eason, and he could definitely compete for the starting position. If Georgia decided to go with Eason, Oxford will be the young freshman’s second road SEC start, as Georgia will play Missouri the week before in Columbia. The Bulldogs also have Grayson Lambert who was decent last season. Lambert completed 63 percen of his passes. He threw 12 touchdowns to two interceptions.
NUMBER 4:
Kirby Smart
For the first time since 2000, Georgia will have a new head coach on the sidelines. Mark Richt resigned after going 10-3 in Athens last season, and the Bullodgs hired former Georgia defensive back Kirby Smart. Smart is known as the mastermind behind Nick Saban’s defenses at Alabama and will likely bring that defense-first mentality with him to Georgia. Smart was offered many head coaching jobs during his tenure as the Alabama defensive coordinator, but he turned teams such as South Carolina and Auburn down to wait on the call from his alma mater.
NUMBER 5:
Analysis and Pick
It seems like the same song and a different verse. The Rebels could be playing against a true freshman at quarterback when Georgia rolls into Oxford. They may be playing a senior that’s limited from a passing perspective in Lambert. Nobody knows, or will know until the Bulldogs play their first three games. Like the Rebels, Georgia will be tested early as they’ll play North Carolina and Georgia away from home. Nick Chubb is an animal, and could pose problems for Ole Miss, but Georgia doesn’t have an answer at quarterback right now. Until they do,
Ole Miss-34
Georgia-24
View yesterday’s 5-at-5 on the five biggest storylines heading into Ole Miss’ season here.
Collin Brister is a staff writer for HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at collin.brister@hottytoddy.com.
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