Ole Miss Holds Off Hugh Freeze, Liberty In 27-14 Win

After the second offensive play from scrimmage, Saturday's result between Ole Miss and Liberty appeared sealed.

It was on that play that Jerrion Ealy scampered 70 yards to the end zone for No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC), and the Rebels never looked back en route to a 27-14 victory over Hugh Freeze and the Liberty Flames (6-3). Although Liberty made the game a closer one in the second half, Ole Miss was able to hold off the Flames' effort.

Freeze's return to Oxford was headlined by his quarterback Malik Willis who was intercepted twice in the first half and sacked seven times. Willis may not have had a highlight-reel day, but Matt Corral had a solid game without two of his top-three pass catchers on the field, putting up over 300 yards through the air and a touchdown. Corral also was protected partially by a defensive lineman converted to offense in Jalen Cunningham on the afternoon.

Although names like Dontario Drummond and Jonathan Mingo were not present for Corral on Saturday, Dannis Jackson was, and outside of a dropped pass in the first half, Jackson had a strong performance. He put up 126 yards in the game, leading Rebel receivers on the day.

Although his action was limited, Braylon Sanders did play on Saturday, accumulating 64 yards. The Ole Miss offense only mustered three points in the second half after leading 24-0 at halftime after seeming to click on all cylinders in the first half.

One of the biggest stories of the day, however, was the Ole Miss defense. Malik Willis and Liberty were able to put some impressive drives together, but the Rebels managed to hold them scoreless in the first half. On numerous drop backs, Willis had no time to throw or no open receiver to target, and while the Flames did have some success on the ground in rushing for over 200 yards, Ole Miss was ultimately able to hold its own on Saturday, outside of a lackluster showing in the second half where Liberty narrowed the Rebel lead. The Rebels did force three Malik Willis turnovers on the day, two of which came via A.J. Finley interceptions.

After a stellar first half and a rough second half, Ole Miss' defense was not perfect, but it did enough to come away with the win.

Now, Ole Miss' attention will shift to hosting nationally-ranked Texas A&M next Saturday in Oxford. From the Rebels' perspective, Saturday's win over Liberty may have been an opportunity for them to get somewhat healthy which was certainly a goal entering the weekend.

Kickoff between Ole Miss and Texas A&M is set for 6 p.m. CT next weekend.