Ole Miss vs. Florida State: Game Grades, Analysis for Rebels vs. Seminoles
No. 11 Ole Miss was up 28-6 over No. 4 Florida State and 33 minutes away from establishing itself as a major College Football Playoff contender on Monday night.
But just as everything was going right, something clicked for redshirt freshman quarterback Deondre Francois and the Seminoles, who ripped off an inconceivable 33 unanswered points on their way to a come-from-behind 45-34 victory.
The 22-point rally was the biggest comeback in Florida State school history, and it capped one of the most wild opening college football weekends in recent memory.
Here's how the Rebels and the Seminoles graded out from their thrilling showdown in Orlando, Florida.
Ole Miss: Offense
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The Ole Miss offense started off as hot as it could hope for as Chad Kelly connected on four of his first five passes for 59 yards, including a three-yard touchdown strike to a slanting Damore'ea Stringfellow. The Rebels' next drive started with more of the same, but things could've turned when Florida State safety Derwin James picked Kelly off.
That didn't happen in the first half, as Kelly went on to torch the Seminoles for 266 total yards and three touchdowns. It wasn't until after the break that Florida State's defense settled in and completely shut down Ole Miss' offense.
The Rebels were obliterated in the second half, and specifically in the third quarter, when they netted negative seven yards and were outscored 23-0. Kelly did muster one more scoring drive to pull Ole Miss back to within one score, but that was the lone second-half highlight.
Kelly managed to throw for 313 yards and four touchdowns, but he also threw a trio of costly picks.
Grade: C
Florida State: Offense
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It was a tail of two halves for Florida State, and fortunately for Jimbo Fisher, the Seminoles saved their best for last.
It wasn't like the offense was bad in the first half. In his first start, Deondre Francois threw for an impressive 219 yards and a touchdown against a fierce and aggressive defense through two quarters. Dalvin Cook was stuffed, running for just 31 yards on 11 carries through two quarters, but the offense was able to do a few good things before the break.
The floodgates opened in the second half, though. Francois caught fire and torched the Rebels' secondary, and he even hurt the defense with his legs. He sparked a 33-0 run spanning two quarters and finished with an incredible 419 passing yards and two touchdowns against no interceptions. He also had 59 yards on nine carries, which was big as Cook was bottled up for 91 yards on 23 carries.
Grade: A
Ole Miss: Defense
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Ole Miss' defense did one thing consistently well all night, and that was stuffing Heisman Trophy candidate Dalvin Cook in the run game.
Cook got his yards as a receiver (seven receptions for 101 yards), but when Florida State turned to him in the run game, Ole Miss was ready and waiting. The star running back ran for just 31 yards on 11 carries in the first half and finished the game with just 91 yards on the ground.
But that strategy wasn't enough in the second half as Deondre Francois caught fire and torched the Rebels' secondary. The redshirt freshman connected on 63.5 percent of his passes and threw for an incredible 419 yards and two touchdowns against no interceptions.
By the end of the game, the defense looked gassed, and for good reason, because Francois had run the unit ragged in the second half.
Grade: D
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Florida State: Defense
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Florida State's defense lost some star power to the NFL draft with the deflection of cornerback Jalen Ramsey, but seven returning starters were expected to anchor one of college football's best defenses in 2016.
The Seminoles looked lost and overpowered by a relatively young Rebels offense in the first half, surrendering a staggering 305 total yards and four touchdown drives through 30 minutes.
That changed in dramatic fashion for the Seminoles after the break. The Rebels went backward seven yards in the third quarter and only put together one memorable drive in the second half—a 75-yard touchdown jaunt in the fourth quarter. They weren't able to gain any momentum from it though, as they finished with just 68 net yards of total offense in the final two quarters.
The secondary has a true ball-hawk in safety Derwin James, who snatched one of the three interceptions Kelly through on Monday night. But the defensive star of the game was DeMarcus Walker, who was unblockable as he registered an incredible 4.5 sacks.
Grade: B+
Ole Miss: Coaching
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Ole Miss lost a wave of talent to the NFL last season, which was the main reason many expected Florida State to cruise past the Rebels on Monday night.
But Hugh Freeze and the Ole Miss staff did an outstanding job of rebuilding their lines on both sides of the ball, and those units dominated their more experienced counterparts in Florida State through 30 minutes.
That paved the way for Hugh Freeze to keep the Seminoles off balance in every phase in the first half. The Rebels gashed the Florida State defense with a perfect combination of pass and run, while the defense held one of college football's best running backs in check for most of the night.
But once Florida State adjusted at halftime, Freeze and Co. weren't able to recapture the control. Florida State's defensive line found rushing lanes against the Rebels' young offensive line, and too many injuries on defense prevented the Rebels from coming up with the stops they needed.
Ole Miss' inability to establish any offensive rhythm in the second half is on Freeze, though.
Grade: C+
Florida State: Coaching
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Jimbo Fisher and the Florida State coaching staff were simply outclassed in the first half Monday.
From general decisions to in-game adjustments, Fisher was one step behind Hugh Freeze through 30 minutes.
Like late in the second quarter, when Dalvin Cook inexplicably fumbled the ball at the 3-yard line while he was waltzing into the end zone. With 1st-and-goal, Fisher called just one rush for Cook, who's widely considered one of the best three running backs in the country. The Seminoles, of course, settled for a field goal.
But reminiscent of Jameis Winston's incredible 2014 season, Florida State somehow defied the odds and came back. Much of that credit belongs to Fisher, who kept his team focused and calmly called the perfect second half on both sides of the ball.
Despite the rough start, it couldn't have ended better for the Seminoles.
Grade: A-
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