It would have been easy to misunderstand a conversation Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin and Jaxson Dart had as the game clock wound down Saturday.
No. 5 Ole Miss beat Wake Forest 40-6 at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium. It was a mostly one-sided affair, and the Demon Deacons (1-2) became the third −and most prominent− victim to a Rebels team that has steamrolled each of its opponents and vaulted to the top of Pro Football Focus’ team rankings.
Ole Miss (3-0) more than doubled Wake Forest’s yardage gained (650 to 311), which makes the conversation between coach and senior quarterback more interesting.
“I talked with Coach Kiffin before the game ended,” Dart said. “I was like, ‘I feel like this is what we needed as a team. I feel like that was the ugliest 600-yard game that you could play.’ ”
That’s right. Dart said the 34-point win was perfect for the Rebels, but not because it was a soothing reminder of how much raw talent courses through the Ole Miss’ sideline. Dart said it was the perfect game for his team because he wasn’t, well, perfect.
“We did a lot of really good things and then we couldn’t finish,” Dart said. “You saw how explosive we are, but at the same time we just hurt ourselves. It’s a good wakeup call.”
Neither Kiffin nor Dart was dismayed postgame. Kiffin mentioned the good things Ole Miss did, such as the defense holding Wake Forest to a season-low 46 rushing yards. And yet, Kiffin shared Dart’s sentiment. Sure, the Rebels got the win. But to get better they need to focus on the non-winning plays.
“That’s a really good outcome,” Kiffin said. “Now, there’s some stuff in there we were a little bit sloppy. I thought Jaxson had two critical mistakes in the game.”
Ole Miss committed its first turnover of the season with 7:58 remaining in the first quarter. With the ball on the Wake Forest 17-yard line and standing in shotgun formation, Dart shot his hands in the air to catch a high snap. He nicked the ball but couldn’t corral it, causing a scrum at the 21-yard line. Wake Forest defensive end BJ Williams recovered it.
Later, with a 23-6 lead and 11:34 left in the third quarter, Dart threw his first interception of the season. On third down from the Ole Miss 26-yard line, Dart got the snap, looked to pass and was flushed to his left. He tried to thread a pass to running back Henry Parrish but did not lead him far enough. Linebacker Dylan Hazen swooped in and made the catch.
“I saw that coming on the interception, too,” Kiffin said. “He just got too casual in the moment.”
It didn’t take long for Dart to make up for his mistake. Ole Miss got the ball on its 4-yard line on its next possession. Dart engineered a smooth 11-play, 96-yard drive that ended with a ferocious collision. On the Wake Forest 13-yard line, Kiffin called a quarterback draw. Dart dropped back in the pocket, planted his foot and hurtled toward the end zone. Dart lowered his left shoulder when Demon Deacons safety Nick Anderson met Dart at the 3. Dart put Anderson into the ground and fell into the end zone.
“I was pissed,” Dart said. “I was tired of not scoring in the red zone. I told myself whoever is in front of me is going to get a feeling.”
Dart said that mistake energized him on that series. He is planning to feed off his bad plays next week, too.
“It’s definitely something that’s going to light a fire underneath us,” Dart said. “I know definitely for me. Going forward we have to take accountability and work harder.”