HottyToddy.com Sports Roundup

Hottytoddy.com is giving readers a roundup of all the commentary and information about the Ole Miss Rebels from various publications around the Web.

Readers will be able to check out the latest information in a single post every week throughout the season. Here at HottyToddy.com, we are doing all the leg work to find the information that people want to hear about Ole Miss sports.

This week, the roundup will consist of articles on Chad Kelly, the landshark defense prepares to face Alabama and the Ole Miss golf teams.

The Rebel Walk

Rebels’ Chad Kelly Lighting Up the Nation’s QBR

Ole Miss woke up this morning with the No. 1-rated quarterback in the country as Chad Kelly now leads the way in QBR, the spot-on rating system created by ESPN.

After 2 weeks, Kelly has compiled an overall 94.3 rating, putting him in some very good company. The QBR dates back to 2004, and its all-time Top 5 includes a who’s who of college quarterbacks: Russell Wilson (94.1), Andrew Luck (93.8) Sam Bradford (93.1), Johnny Manziel (91.3) and Marcus Mariota (91.3).

(Click here for the all-time best QBR)

In second place this season at 88.0 is the quarterback who went up against the Crimson Tide only yesterday, Middle Tennessee’s Brent Stockstill. Memphis QB Paxton Lynch is currently 3rd with an 87.6 rating while LSU’s Brandon Harris ranks 4th at 86.7. (For the list of the 2015 QBR, click here.)

Kelly and the Rebels face the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa this Saturday, September 19 at 8:15 CT. For the second year in a row, the contest will be the site for ESPN’s GameDay.

Courtesy of Evelyn Van Pelt to read more on this story click here

ESPN

Planning for success: Ole Miss QB Chad Kelly holds key to upset bid

Even Hugh Freeze seems unsure how good his Ole Miss team actually is, but he’ll find out soon enough.

Freeze’s Rebels couldn’t have had an easier time blowing out Tennessee-Martin and Fresno State to open the season, outscoring them by a combined margin of 149-24. There is almost no chance that they crack the 70-point barrier for a third straight week when they visit Alabama on Saturday, but a simple win would suffice in convincing their coach that something special is happening.

“If you ask me if we are ready for SEC play, I really don’t know,” Freeze told reporters at his Monday press conference. “I think we have a confident football team right now that believes we can win. I believe we can win. I also know that you can lose these games because you are playing really good teams.”

In No. 2 Alabama (2-0), No. 15 Ole Miss might be facing the best team it will play all season. And it will be playing the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, where it has not lost since Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M shocked the eventual national champions late in the 2012 season.

To read more on this article written by David Ching click here

Saturday Down South

Film Study: Ole Miss still more than talented enough to beat Alabama

One of the most disrespected teams in college football — at least as it pertains to teams with a ton of elite personnel — has to be the University of Mississippi. Most of the narrative surrounding the Rebels had nothing to do with the fact that they possess NFL talent on each unit on both sides of the ball, but rather how bad the team lost in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl to end the 2014-15 season.

Never mind the 9-4 record behind two wins over teams who at once found themselves atop the polls — 23-17 over the University of Alabama, followed by a 31-17 drubbing of in-state rival Mississippi State — most media pundits would rather talk about how the coaching staff rewarded the players with rings in the offseason.

Now what type of sense does that make?

Furthermore, it doesn’t seem as though Ole Miss was afforded the same benefit of the doubt as other teams who were replacing starters from the previous season — despite one of the players coveting the starting gig being the extremely talented JUCO transfer Chad Kelly.

Instead, the rhetoric seemed to focus on a rap song dedicated to the Buffalo NY., native, and how brash he may or may not have been at Clemson University — before his dismissal for conduct detrimental to the team. But most should’ve focused on how his offense at East Mississippi Junior College was schematically similar and could cut down on a learning curve one might associate with a player not only switching schemes, but transitioning to major college football from a lower level of competition.

Courtesy of Murf Baldwin and Saturday Down South click here to read more

The Rebel Walk

Ole Miss Landshark defenses prepares for Alabama

After Ole Miss defeated Fresno State 73-21 on Saturday afternoon, head coach Hugh Freeze said he was pleased with the overall performance of his team but noted his defense missed a couple of assignments that allowed the Bulldogs to bridge the gap on the scoreboard.

In the second quarter, Fresno State’s freshman quarterback Chason Virgil led the offense on a 10-play, 82-yard scoring drive that culminated with a 9-yard TD pass to junior wide receiver Josiah Blandin as the first half came to an end. This cut the Bulldogs’ deficit to 35-14 at halftime. On that drive, Da’Mari Scott’s 37-yard catch from Virgil on 2nd-and-6 from the Rebels’ 40 was one of the big plays to which Freeze referred.

Stopping the big plays important heading into game against the Tide

After the game, Freeze said he felt the defense needed to cut out a lot of the downfield plays. “I challenged them after halftime to set the tone early in the second half and they came out and did that,” he said. “They set it with a three-and-out fumbled punt, then created a turnover. I was really proud of how they took care of that. There is a lot to improve on.”

Courtesy of Courtney Smith read more

Men’s Golf

Rebels Wrap Up Play at Carpet Capital Collegiate

Junior Noah West fired 3-over par 75 in the final round of the Carpet Capital Collegiate to earn a top-25 finish, as Ole Miss wrapped up play Sunday.

West carded three birdies in the final round at the 7,032-yard, par 72 course and finished in a tie for 23rd with a three-day score of 224.

As a team, the Rebels finished tied for 12th with a three-round total of 913 at the event hosted by Georgia Tech at the Farm Golf Club. Auburn won the tournament, firing a three-round score of 868.

“It was not our best week for sure,” said Rebel head coach Chris Malloy. “We made way too many big numbers that kept us from competing with the top teams this week. We will need to get back home and be mature in our approach to get better for our next tournament at Shoal Creek.”

Senior Forrest Gamble and Junior Ben Wolcott both shot 5-over par 77s in the third round, as Wolcott finished the tournament tied for 34th with a three-day score of 227 and Gamble turned in a 233 to finish tied for 55th place. Freshmen Braden Thornberry posted an 78 Sunday to finish with a three-round total of 238 and in a tie for 67th, while fellow freshman Beau Briggs posted an 80 in the final round and finished tied for 73rd.

The Rebels will travel to  Birmingham, Alabama Sept. 28-29 for the Shoal Creek Invitational hosted by UAB. For all Ole Miss Men’s golf news and information, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMGolf, on Instagram at OleMissMGolfand on Facebook at facebook.com/OleMissMGolf. Fans can also follow head coach Chris Malloy on Twitter at @CoachMalloy12.

Ole Miss Individuals:

T18. Noah West 76-73-75–224

T29. Ben Wolcott 73-77-77–227

T39. Forrest Gamble 70-86-77–223

T42. Braden Thornberry 85-75-78–238

T51. Beau Briggs 77-85-80-242

Teams:

1. Auburn 288-287-293–868

2. Clemson 287-294-296–877

3. South Carolina 295-296-289–880

4. LSU 301-291-291–883

5. Georgia Tech 296-303-286–885

6. Alabama 289-317-289–895

7. Florida 299-296-304–899

8. Tennessee 296-301-303–900

9. North Carolina 303-301-299–903

10. Kennesaw State 297-310-299–906

11. South Florida 301-309-297–907

T12. Ole Miss 310-307-296–913

T12. Chattanooga 306-302-305—913

14. North Florida 306-308-307—921

15. Dalton State 303-314-315—932

Courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics

Women’s Golf

Fall Season Gets Rolling for New Look Rebels
The Ole Miss women’s golf team will head up I-55 Monday to compete in the Memphis Intercollegiate hosted by the University of Memphis at Ridgeway Country Club. The tournament will consist of three 18-hole rounds with the first rounds being played Monday and final round being played Tuesday. The field will tee off at 8:30 a.m. both days.

Fans can keep up with the event live via BirdieFire.

The Field
Memphis (host)
Arkansas State
Cincinnati
IUPUI
North Texas
McNeese
Oklahoma City
Ole Miss
Samford
Sam Houston State
South Alabama
Texas A&M Corpus Christi
UAB
ULM
Xavier

Course Stats
Par 71; 6,105 yards

Featured Hole
The par-5 18th is the longest hole on the course and keeps players on their toes as it features two water hazards at the beginning and end of the hole. The approach can be tricky for even the strongest players with bunkers on each side of the green.

Rebel To Watch For
Senior Abby Newton (Katy, Texas) returns to the Memphis Intercollegiate after earning medalist honors a year ago. The Texas native fired a 73-68-69—210 while helping her team earn a third place finish behind Middle Tennessee and the host Memphis Tigers.

Ole Miss Lineup
Abby Newton
Madisen Bentley
Sofia Idoyaga
Alison Hovatter
Martina Flori

Rebel Individuals
Katie Voll
Laura Hoskin
Kie Purdom

New Kids on the Block
Ole Miss welcomes freshmen Martina Flori and Kie Purdom to the roster along with sophomore Laura Hoskin who joins the team after a year with Oregon State. Purdom is an Ole Miss legacy in every sense of the word as her mother Keilly also played golf at Ole Miss and served as the head coach from 1991-2001. In addition, her father Kirk Purdom played baseball for the Rebels.

Coach Henkes Debut
Kory Henkes makes her tournament debut as the Rebels head coach after spending the last four years at GRU-Augusta. Henkes brings six years of head coaching experience to Oxford. Henkes is familiar with the Rebels as her GRU –Augusta squad claimed the 2014 Rebel Intercollegiate team title.

Coach Kory Henkes quoted:

On the start of the year…
“I’m really excited. We have a really good group of girls, who’ve been playing really well in qualifying so we’re excited to put it to test in a tournament.”

On gaining experience…
“We taking the entire team for the first event, so we’ll have five in the line up and three playing as individuals. It’ll be fun to get everyone some experience and some team bonding.”

On what the fall season means to the team…
“It can be a huge confidence booster for the girls if we can start out strong and have some good finishes, so that’s the hope for the fall. We’ll figure out what the lineup will look like and put some pressure on the girls and see what they do.”

On the seniors…
“The seniors are great. They’re a great group who work hard, and they always bring 100% when they come to play. We have a couple of fifth-year seniors so that experience is something that is going to be really good for our freshmen and sophomores to look up to. They’ll all play a part in the lineup this year, and I think it’s huge to have that leadership.”

For all Ole Miss women’s golf news and information, go to OleMissSports.com, and follow the Rebels on Twitter at@OleMissWGolf and Facebook at Ole Miss Women’s Golf.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports Informations

Hottytoddy.com sports staff