Video: Ole Miss Turns to Ta’amu to Replace Shea Patterson at Quarterback

GAME EIGHT
ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS (2-5, 0-4 SEC) at OLE MISS REBELS (3-4, 1-3 SEC)
Date: Saturday, Oct. 28, 2017
Time: 11 a.m. CT
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Venue: Stadium (64,038)
Surface: Natural Grass
Series: Arkansas leads 34-28-1
    In Oxford: Ole Miss leads 7-5
    Streak: Arkansas, W3
Live Stats: OleMissSports.com
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com
Twitter Updates: @OleMissFB
Television: SEC Network
Dave Neal, Play-by-Play
Matt Stinchcomb, Analyst
Dawn Davenport, Sideline
Satellite Radio: Sirius 137, XM 190

 WHAT TO WATCH FOR…
•  Ole Miss and Arkansas will be meeting for the 64th time in a series that dates back to 1908.
•  Ole Miss records show the Rebels trailing the series 28-34-1, while Arkansas’ records indicate a 35-27-1 advantage for the Razorbacks
•  Arkansas claims a forfeit victory in a 1914 game that Ole Miss won 13-7.
•  Arkansas holds a 15-10 edge since it joined the SEC in 1992.
•  Ole Miss leads 7-5 in games played in Oxford.
•  Matt Luke is in his 10th season at Ole Miss but first season at the helm, taking the reins of his alma mater as the 38th head coach in program history.
•  Sophomore QB Shea Patterson, the SEC leader in passing (322.7 ypg) and total offense (320.4 ypg), is out for the rest of the season after he tore his right PCL against LSU.
•  Junior QB Jordan Ta’amu will make his first career start at Ole Miss following the injury to Patterson.
•  Ta’amu completed 7-of-11 passes for 78 yards and ran for 20 yards after taking over for an injured Patterson during the LSU game.
•  The Rebels lead the SEC and rank eighth nationally in passing offense (333.9 ypg).
•  Ole Miss is tops in the SEC and fifth nationally in kickoff return average (27.48 ypr).
•  Ole Miss is one of only nine teams in FBS that has lost one fumble or less through the first seven games.
•  Sophomore WR A.J. Brown leads the SEC in multiple receiving categories: yards (717), yards per game (102.4), receptions per game (5.6) and touchdowns (6).

OLE MISS HEAD COACH MATT LUKE
Matt Luke (Ole Miss, 2000) is in his 10th season at Ole Miss but first season at the helm, taking the reins of his alma mater as the 38th head coach in school history. The Rebels are 66-53 with Luke on staff as a full-time coach, including 3-4 with him leading the program. He was born a Rebel as his family has ties to Ole Miss that span three generations. During his 23 years as a player and coach at the collegiate level, Luke has risen through the ranks while learning from a number of successful veteran coaches. He has worked alongside national champion Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer, Duke head coach David Cutcliffe and former Ole Miss head coach Tommy Tuberville, among others. On the field, he has mentored 17 all-league selections as well as All-Americans and first-round draft picks Laremy Tunsil and Laken Tomlinson. Luke, a four-year center for the Rebels (1995-98), spent the past five seasons as the team’s co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. During his first stop in Oxford (2002-05), he served four seasons coaching the Ole Miss tight ends and offensive line under Cutcliffe.

ARKANSAS HEAD COACH BRET BIELEMA
Bret Bielema (Iowa, 1992) is in his fifth year as the Arkansas head coach after a seven-year stint as the head coach at Wisconsin. Bielema has compiled an 27-31 record in Fayetteville and owns a career mark of 95-55. He has led the Razorbacks to winning seasons in each of the last three years. Before coming to Arkansas, Bielema led Wisconsin to three straight Big Ten titles and Rose Bowl appearances. He was the first coach to guide a Big Ten team to three straight Rose Bowls since Michigan did it from 1976-78. He was the defensive coordinator for two seasons at Wisconsin prior to his elevation to the top post. He was also a co-defensive coordinator at Kansas State (2002-03) after beginning his career as an assistant coach for nine years at his alma mater, Iowa (1993-01).

ARKANSAS SCOUTING REPORT
The Arkansas Razorbacks currently sit at 2-5 overall, 0-4 in SEC play. The Razorbacks have lost three straight, but four of its five losses on the season have come against teams currently ranked amongst the top 25 in this week’s Coaches Poll. Arkansas ranks eighth in the SEC in scoring offense, averaging 27.4 points per game, just behind Ole Miss’ mark of 30.7. Consensus All-American center Frank Ragnow anchors an Arkansas line and offense that features a pro-style attack that llikes to run first and pass off of its running game. The Razorbacks average 160.7 yards per game on the ground and feature a three-headed rushing attack. Dylan Hays, David Williams and Devwah Whaley all have 60 or more rushing attempts on the season and average around 45 yards per game apiece. Arkansas’ signal-caller Austin Allen was named to the preseason All-SEC third team. Allen has missed the Razorbacks’ last two contests after injuring his right shoulder against South Carolina. Allen has completed 66 of his 117 passes for eight scores and four interceptions.   Jonathan Nance has been Arkansas’ biggest threat at the receiver position, tallying two 100-yard games this season and ranks third in the SEC with five receiving touchdowns. On the defensive side of the ball, Arkansas is giving up 35.7 points per game, allowing 40 or more points in its last three contests. Most recently, Alabama and Auburn ran for 308 and 345 yards respectively. Sophomore lineback De’Jon Harris ranks first in the SEC in solo tackles (5.6) and second in tackles per game (9.4). Kevin Richardson II anchors a Razorback secondary as the senior from Jacksonville, Arkansas ranks second in the conference with three interceptions.

KNOX HAS CAREER DAY
Sophomore TE Dawson Knox, who walked-on to the Ole Miss squad in 2015, was a bright spot for the offense during the Rebels’ 40-24 loss vs. LSU. The former high school quarterback tallied a career high in both receptions (five) and receiving yards (72).

REBEL-RAZORBACK CONNECTIONS
•  OL Greg Little and the Razorbacks’ Connor Limpert were teammates at Allen High School in Allen, Texas.
•  Freshman wideout Josh Ricketts and TE Grayson Gunter played together at Madison Central High in Madison, Mississippi.
•  Junior LB Detric Bing-Dukes and Arkansas sophomore LB Terrell Collins both attended Iowa Western CC.

PATTERSON OUT FOR THE SEASON
Sophomore QB Shea Patterson is out for the season after tearing the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) in his right knee during the second quarter against LSU. Patterson was on a blistering offensive pace, leading the SEC in total passing yards (2,259), passings yards per game (322.7), completions per game (23.7) and total offense (320.4). Patterson ranked in the top 20 nationally in seven passing areas. In just his fifth career start, Patterson threw for a school-record 489 yards and a career-best five touchdowns in Ole Miss win over UT Martin during week 2 of the 2017 season. He broke Chad Kelly’s previous Ole Miss record of 465 yards set last season against Auburn and finished one TD shy of tying Eli Manning’s school record six touchdown passes set against Arkansas in 2001. Despite not finishing out the final five games of the season, Patterson’s 2017 season numbers will still allow him to etch his name in the single-season school record books in multiple categories.

Pass Efficiency: 2nd – 151.5
Yards Per Attempt: 2nd – 8.7
Total Offense – Avg. Per Play: 5th – 7.31
Completion Percentage: 5th – 63.8
Yards Per Completion: 5th – 13.6

NEXT MAN UP
Junior college transfer QB Jordan Ta’amu will make his first career start at Ole Miss following the injury to Shea Patterson. Ta’amu completed 7-of-11 passes for 78 yards and ran for 20 yards after taking over for an injured Patterson during the LSU game. Ta’amu has appeared in three games this season, but hadn’t recorded any passing stats until last weekend. Coming out of New Mexico Military Institute, Ta’amu was rated a 3-star prospect by Scout and ESPN and was tabbed the No. 4 junior college dual-threat QB in the nation by ESPN. He was a member of the Scout JUCO Top 100, listed as the No. 99 overall JUCO prospect in the country. As a sophomore at NMMI, Ta’amu threw for 3,014 yards and 32 touchdowns while also rushing for 328 yards and seven touchdowns. He ranked third in the NJCAA with 334.9 passing ypg and second nationally with 32 passing touchdowns. Ta’amu was named 2016 Southwest Junior College Football Conference Player of the Year, All-Region and All-SWJCFC. As a prep star at Pearl City High School in Hawaii, Ta’amu was named all-state and Division 2 Offensive Player of the Year after throwing for 1,779 yards with 29 TDs and only four interceptions.

FINAL CAMPAIGN FOR SACK-MASTER HAYNES
Preseason All-American DE Marquis Haynes continued to add to his school modern-era sacks and tackles for loss records with one sack and one tackle for loss against LSU. Haynes’ career sack record total of 30.0 sits atop of the all-time record book ahead of Greg Hardy (26.5). His 44 .0 TFLs are tops in Ole Miss history, passing former Rebel DE Derrick Burgess (42.0). Haynes led the Rebels in sacks as a freshman (7.5), sophomore (10.0) and junior (7.0). The Jacksonville, Florida, native is a unanimous preseason All-SEC first-team pick and made watch lists for the Bednarik, Nagurski, Hendricks and Lott IMPACT awards.

PUTTING THE ‘SPECIAL’ IN SPECIAL TEAMS
Sophomore kick returner Jaylon Jones is always a threat to take one back to the house. Jones, who had a 97-yard TD return during first game of the season vs. South Alabama, leads the SEC and ranks sixth nationally with 593 total kickoff yardage and is third in the SEC with 27.0 yards per return. Jones’ 194 kickoff return yards against LSU were the second-most in a game in school history. As a team, Ole Miss is tops amongst the SEC and fifth nationally in kickoff return yardage (27.5).

WILKINS FINDING HIS STRIDE
Senior RB Jordan Wilkins started the season slow, but has helped add another weapon to the potent Ole Miss offense. Wilkins recorded his third-straight game with a rushing touchdown after a 28-yard TD against LSU. After rushing for just 103 yards (34.3 ypg) during the Rebels’ first three games, Wilkins has tallied 365 yards on the ground over the last four contests. Earlier this season, Wilkins became became only the 12th player to exceed 100 rushing yards during the Saban era, after running for 101 yards on 12 carries against Alabama.

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?
WR A.J. Brown is off to a stellar sophomore campaign as he leads the SEC and ranks 10th nationally in receiving yards per game (102.4) and is 16th nationally in touchdowns (6). Brown’s four 100-yard receiving games this season ranks fourth in the single-season record books for 100-yard games, just two shy of Laquon Treadwell’s mark of six set during the 2015 season. Earlier in the year, the Starkville, Mississippi native hauled in eight receptions for 233 yards and two scores vs. South Alabama, breaking Eddie Small’s Ole Miss record of 210 receiving yards set versus Vanderbilt in 1993. Brown’s total of 233 yards also tied Pharoh Cooper of South Carolina for the 13th most receiving yards in a game in SEC history. His two TD catches of 71 and 77 yards also marked the first time in school history a receiver posted two 70-plus yard touchdowns in the same game.

 GARY “WUNDER-KICK”
After a nearly flawless junior season, K/P Gary Wunderlich entered his senior season as one of the nation’s top placekickers. Dating back to last season, he made 19 straight field goals before a miss in the fourth quarter against South Alabama. He broke Bryson Rose’s previous school record of 17 straight and ranks second in SEC history for consecutive field goals made trailing only Georgia’s Marshall Morgan by one. A Lou Groza Award semifinalist last year, he has been named to the watch list this preseason, as well as to various preseason All-America and All-SEC squads. Wunderlich has made a field goal in 17 straight games in which he’s played. His streak is the longest active in the NCAA, and surpasses Ole Miss kicker Josh Shene’s streak of 16-straight back in 2008. Wunderlich continues to work his way up several Ole Miss career record lists.

Points Scored: 3rd – 305
Points Kicking: 3rd – 305
Field Goals Made: 3rd – 56
PATs Made: 3rd – 137
PATs Attempted: 3rd – 141

DEBUTS
A total of 27 players have made their Ole Miss debut this season: Ryder Anderson, Gabe Angel, Alex Ashlock, D.D. Bowie, Mac Brown, Jack DeFoor, Breon Dixon, Donta Evans, Kweisi Fountain, D.J. Forte, Javien Hamilton, Eli Johnon, Jerry Johnson, Luke Logan, Bryce Mathews, Art Mitchell, Royce Newman, Tre Nixon, Jack Propst, Jack Raborn, Braylon Sanders, Mohamed Sango, Qaadir Sheppard, Jordan Ta’amu, Chandler Tuitt, Charles Wiley and Brenden Williams.

A.J. BROWN ADDED TO BILETNIKOFF AWARD WATCH LIST
Sophomore WR A.J. Brown was added to the watch list for the 2017 Biletnikoff Award, the Tallahassee Quarterback Club (TQC) Foundation announced Oct. 11. Brown is one of nine players nationwide added to the watch list after totaling 700+ yards receiving through the first seven games. Brown, who has already surpassed his 2016 total in catches and receiving yards, is off to a hot start averaging 102.4 yards per game. The Starkville, Mississippi, native leads the Southeastern Conference in receiving yards (717), yards per game (102.4) and receptions per game (5.6). He’s also tied for the team lead and first in the conference with six touchdowns, four more than his total from his freshman campaign. The 2017 Biletnikoff Award winner will be presented live on Dec. 7, 2017, on The Home Depot College Football Awards Show, which will air on ESPN from 6-8 p.m. CT. College Football Hall of Famer, Heisman Trophy winner, and Biletnikoff Award voter Desmond Howard will present the trophy on the show.

WATCH LIST REBELS
Ole Miss players garnered a bunch of preseason honors this year, including several players tabbed Preseason All-America and Preseason All-SEC by media outlets. The following Rebels have been recognized on watch lists for some of the biggest awards in college football:

•  A.J. Brown: Biletnikoff Award
•  DeMarquis Gates: Butkus Award
•  Marquis Haynes: Chuck Bednarik Award, Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Ted Hendricks Award, Lott IMPACT Troph
•  Greg Little: Outland Trophy
•  Javon Patterson: Wuerffel Trophy, AFCA Good Works Team
•  Shea Patterson: Maxwell Award, Davey O’Brien Award
•  Sean Rawlings: Rimington Trophy
•  Gary Wunderlich: Lou Groza Award

OFFENSIVE NOTES
•  Ole Miss returns five starters and 28 lettermen from last year’s offense that led the SEC in passing and ranked top four in scoring and total offense.
•  Leading rusher Akeem Judd (826 yards) graduated, leaving senior Jordan Wilkins as the leader of the RB corps … Senior Eugene Brazley and sophomores D’Vaughn Pennamon and Eric Swinney compete for carries.
•  The Rebels replace full-time starting WRs Damore’ea Stringfellow (Miami Dolphins) and Quincy Adeboyejo (Baltimore Ravens) who were Nos. 3 and 4 on the team in receiving yards, respectively, last year.
•  Top returning WRs are sophomore Van Jefferson (who started every game last year and earned Freshman All- America honors), sophomore A.J. Brown, junior DaMarkus Lodge, senior Markell Pack and redshirt freshman D.K. Metcalf, who combined for 10 TD catches last year.
•  Gone is first team All-American and statistically the best tight end in school history Evan Engram (New York Giants)  who is the only four-time All-SEC pick in school history and finished his career with 162 receptions, 2,320 receiving yards and 15 TD catches.
•  Ole Miss returns four of five starters from last year’s O-line and several others who earned starts and significant snaps throughout the season.

DEFENSIVE NOTES
•  The Rebels return six starters and 28 lettermen from last year’s defense.
•  All-SEC end Marquis Haynes returns to lead the Landshark Defense … A senior, he ranks first in school history with 30.0 career sacks and first with 44.0 tackles for loss.
•  Freshman All-American Benito Jones is a  sophomore and returning starter Breeland Speaks a junior, to lead the way on the interior of the defense.
•  Senior DeMarquis Gates, who led the team with 76 tackles in 2015 and 79 in 2016, is the lone returning starter at LB and has played on both the inside and outside throughout his career.
•  Returning starters at DB include Zedrick Woods (moving from FS to SS) and Myles Hartsfield (moving from rover to CB), a Freshman All-America pick.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
•  The kicking game is a strong point this year with senior returnees Gary Wunderlich at placekicker and Will Gleeson at punter … Both are entering their fourth seasons as full-time starters.
•  Wunderlich has made a field goal in 17 straight games in which he’s played in.
•  Ole Miss ranks fifth nationally and first in the SEC in kickoff return average (27.5).

CHUCKY MULLINS COURAGE AWARD
In the spring, senior DE Marquis Haynes became the 27th different Rebel to be awarded the Chucky Mullins Courage Award, which goes to a standout defensive player each year. The award honors the late Chucky Mullins, who had his Ole Miss career come to an end during the 1989 Homecoming game against Vanderbilt when he was paralyzed after making a tackle. After returning to his studies at Ole Miss, Mullins passed away May 6, 1991. Haynes wears the No. 38 jersey in Mullins’ honor this season.

LUKE’S WEEKLY RADIO SHOW ON TUESDAYS
RebTalk, the official weekly radio show of Ole Miss Athletics, is moving to a new day and location for this season. Beginning Aug. 29, RebTalk will be broadcast each Tuesday this fall at Bouré in downtown Oxford from 7-8 p.m. The show, which is hosted by the “Voice of the Rebels” David Kellum and includes special guests, will air live on the Ole Miss IMG Sports Network. Ole Miss Football head coach Matt Luke and select players will join the broadcast each Tuesday throughout the 2017 season.