Rebel Insider: There were real positives for Ole Miss at Tulane. Overall depth being one of them.

It was next to impossible to ignore the uninspiring play by the Ole Miss Rebels in New Orleans on Saturday, especially in the first half.

And it would have been a dereliction of our duty not to have pointed those things out in the subsequent recaps.

But there were positives from Tulane, too, and it’s time to talk about those as well if we are going to be fair in our analysis.

From our cheap seat, the biggest positive uptake – in our opinion – was the obvious difference in quality depth. It was apparent that Ole Miss’ ability to play more players more consistently finally took a toll on Tulane, whose first team seemed as good as the Rebels, but whose quality depth was not.

Once again, Ole Miss played a lot of players, especially on defense, and the freshness – if you can call it that in the heat down on that turf field on a hot day in humid NOLA – was obvious as the game wore on.

Players like Defensive End Isaac Ukwu, Defensive Tackle Zxavian Harris, Defensive End Jamond Gordon and having four linebackers – Coleman, Montgomery, Cistrunk and Jean-Baptiste – who all played extensively, were all Rebels who flashed and helped seal Tulane’s fate in the second half defensive effort that allowed a lone field goal to an offense that put up 17 points in the first half.

Sep 2, 2023; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Tulane Green Wave head coach Willie Fritz looks on during the first half against the South Alabama Jaguars at Yulman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

We’ve been touting the quality depth for over a month now.

We saw proof positive of that depth Saturday in the 37-20 victory over a Top 25 program.

Another positive that we conveniently swept under the run during our negative spins since the game was that this is not your Father’s Tulane. This Green Wave team is not your typical Group of 5 member, we don’t believe.

Playing without their top quarterback and their top tackler, both out with injury, they gave the Rebels all they wanted and some and their worksheet the past year and a piece speaks for itself.

Yes, the Rebels played poorly in the first half of their match, but let’s be honest – Tulane made them look bad at times. They had a good plan, they had good execution for a long time and they were not intimidated in the least by an SEC opponent.

This was a quality win over a quality opponent, it says here.

Another positive was point production.

You know, the Rebels did score 30 points on offense and the defense did hold Tulane to 20 points and score 7 points themselves on Jared Ivey’s 26-yard scoop and score late in the game.

If the Ole Miss defense can hold every opponent in that 20-point range and make game-changing plays like CB Deantre Prince’s interception and 50-yard return and Ivey’s score, there will be a lot of qins tallied in the 2023 season. That’s not a prediction. That’s a fact.

And while Tulane was without some of its top performers, the Rebels were not at full strength either. On offense alone they were without starting TE Caden Prieskorn. UTSA transfer WR Zakhari Franklin is still nowhere to be found. Newly-injured WR Tre Harris has 5 touchdown pass receptions in under 5 quarters. He joins the walking wounded on the sideline..

Get those players back healthy and there should be a plus difference in production on the offensive side of the ball.

Individual accolades are warranted as well in the positive list.

How about Ole Miss WR Dayton Wade and his 100-yard game? What about TE Michael Trigg coming out of the woodwork for a big TD reception? Then there was DT J.J. Pegues who was one of the few shining lights on defense in the first half. Rebel Safety DaiJahn Anthony was also visible with a couple of nice plays. S Trey Washington and LB Khari Coleman also showed up. Coleman forced the fumble on Ivey’s touchdown romp.

Let’s not forget Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart either. Prior to the game, we asked the question, ‘How would Dart perform under pressure?’

Dart was sacked four times and harassed several others. However, he still completed 17-27 passes for basically his career norm of 62% completion. That was good for 267 yards and 2 TDs with 1 interception. Dart also rushed for 61 yards minus the 20 on sacks. He answered our question – he performed just fine.

Yes, there were negatives to chew on from this game. In the first half, plenty of them.

But there was also a nice list of positives. The main ones? A 37-20 Ole Miss win over a Top 25 team and a 2-0 start.

There were things to celebrate.

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