Q. Can you talk a little bit about the win over Florida last year, what that did to make your guys understand how important it was and believe, and also you were the only team that beat Florida last year, and the Tebow speech, just that whole how that inspired them?
Houston Nutt: That game gave us confidence. It gave us genuine confidence that we can win. To see a celebrated locker room like that, it was awesome.
But that win goes back to Florida. The thing I love about Tim Tebow, a lot of players will say, you know what, after a loss, a big loss, they'll say, I'm going to work as hard as I can, I'm going to do this, make all these promises. What you love about Tim Tebow, not only does he make the promise, he carries it out, and he puts his team on his back. I have those words, after our game, the words he spoke to the media, I have that on my desk. I read it to my team once. I have an awesome respect for that.
But that game helped us, and we really took off as the year went on and started playing better. We took care of the ball and our defense played awfully well.
Q. You mentioned the 600 pounds you have to replace. Talk about that process, who your candidates are, how you feel that's going.
COACH NUTT: Ted Laurent, Lawon Scott, Jerrell Powe, this time last year was 383 pounds; he's 320 right now. I'm excited about that. The strength of our team is defensive line. I'm really excited about our defensive line. Those guys have worked hard. Marcus Tillman, Emmanuel Stephens, Greg Hardy, Lockett. We have some depth there. They just got to keep coming, keep working.
Q. Obviously, last year you guys come in 0 8 flying under the radar. What is it like coming in this year with all the expectations? Do you like being in all the national polls?
Houston Nutt: I'm excited for our players. I'm excited for them because they're embracing it right, right way. How they go to a 5:30 workout, how they go to school, how they go to study hall, how they're doing things. Our antennas were up as coaches, how they would approach this off season with all the pat on the backs, much different. They're in uncharted waters.
Again, the way they're handling things, I love what they're doing right now. That's why we can't wait to get to camp and get back to work and carry that over, keep that going.
Q. Can this be a successful season if you do not go to Atlanta? Is it Atlanta or bust for this program at this point?
Houston Nutt: You know, again, I think this: you're in the toughest conference in America. I believe that with all my heart. If you look at our teams 1 through 12, very, very tough. Our staff has been to Atlanta before. Been there twice. That's a difficult journey. It's very hard to get there. Things have to go right.
I think our team is on the rise. I think there's some good things that are happening. We had a very good recruiting class. When you see our freshmen on campus, they don't look like freshmen. You just feel like things are getting ready to happen and we're excited.
I wouldn't say, Okay, Atlanta or it's really a downer. I don't believe that.
Q. When you were with Arkansas, you obviously had Darren McFadden, who was a Heisman contender while he was there. Jevan Snead is going to go through some of the same individual attention he got. Anything you can take with him from the Darren McFadden experience and give to Jevan?
Houston Nutt: Jevan and I have talked this summer about that, that there's going to be a lot more attention on him. It's how you handle the attention. He knows how to do it.
I think the biggest thing, learning what we went through with Darren McFadden, there's going to be attention, there's going to be a lot more media, a lot more TV interviewers. You have to stay focused and keep priorities priorities. It's school, it's football, and then handle all the extracurricular activities that's gonna happen with all this attention.
Q. Three of your first four games are on the road. Talk about having to play in tough environments such as Memphis, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt.
Houston Nutt: Always tough when you go on the road. Any time you go on the road in the SEC, you know this, tailgates are going to be full, stadiums are going to be full, it's going to be loud. It's how you handle it.
Early on we've got to be a very good road team, starting with the very first game in Memphis. That will be the only game played on ESPN on Sunday. No NFL, no college football game, but our game on Sunday. So got to be ready to go.
Q. You read here all the time about the difference between being the hunter and the hunted. Is there anything to that?
Houston Nutt: Well, it's a fact. Last year, the same group of experts picked us towards the bottom. Same group of experts now picking us towards the top. We tell our team, What does that mean? Doesn't mean anything. You are going to be hunted.
If you ask Urban Meyer, he's picked No. 1 I guess every year. Nick Saban had the good team when he was picked No. 1. The great teams expect to be picked No. 1. That's kind of where we want to get to.
Q. The spread offense has become a big part of college football. You run a more conventional approach. Does the wild rebel give you that balance that makes it difficult for defenses to prepare for you?
Houston Nutt: Absolutely. That gives us a chance to throw a little knuckle ball in there, try to slow down good defenses, defenses that are so fast, get them thinking maybe just a step slower.
When you say 'conventional,' what I like about that word, I think more of an old fashioned attitude which we have is we're going to be able to run the ball. But Jevan, threw for 2700 yards, threw 26 touchdown passes. So you have that ability to say, Don't overcrowd us now. Then you mix in that wild rebel with a Dexter McCluster at the direct snap, it gives you a lot of variety.
QB Jevan Snead
On rising expectations:
"I think with that ranking comes a lot higher expectations. As far as the team goes I don't think we're handling it any differently. People said we weren't going to do well last year. We ignored them and kept working hard. I think this year we're doing the same and working hard. We're going to follow that same formula and keep doing everything we can to improve."
On the Ole Miss offense:
"I think we're going to be a lot better this year, especially in the first half of the season. Last year was a new system. Just having experience is going to help us. We'll be able to add a lot to the offense."
On the possibility of being the first Ole Miss team to make it to the SEC Championship:
"We really don't talk about being the first team to do it. We're thinking about our team now. We had a great year last year and we having a lot of people returning. I feel like we have a great opportunity this year to do some big things."
On the possibility of winning the Heisman Trophy:
"I try not to put too much into it. When you're a kid you dream of stuff like that. I've had a rocky road getting to where I am. Just to be mentioned with all the great players and for the Heisman is a great honor for me. At the same time, I'm not focused on that. That's not my main goal. My main goal is to do everything I can to improve so I can help my team get some wins."
S Kendrick Lewis
On rising expectations:
"We need to be unsatisfied. Everyone knows us. To be humble. We know that we have a bull's-eye on our chest. Everyone knows us. We're going to get the publicity. We can't buy into it. To keep doing the things we do to be successful and continue working hard."
On the team's turnaround:
"One of the things that played a major role was our senior leadership. The year we went 0-8 there were a lot of guys going their own way. Our seniors stepped up this past year. They took control of the team. They showed the younger guys the way and what it takes to win. Everyone bought into Coach Nutt and what his staff had to offer."
On the beating Florida last season:
"That was a game that showed us that we could compete with all the other schools in the SEC. If you look at it, we won the Florida game but we came back and lost to Vanderbilt and South Carolina. It was a turning point. It got us closer together as a team like a band of brothers. It brought us closer together. We were able to come together and win. We went down to Arkansas. It was a close, close game but we had to come together to win as a team."
On the defensive secondary:
"We have Marshay Green returning at the corner. We have Cassius Vaughn at the corner. We have Johnny Brown and myself. It all starts up front. Without those guys we are nothing. We got Greg Hardy, Marcus Tillman, Ted Laurent, Lawon Scott, Jerrell Powe. All those guys are putting in the work that makes our job easier. They're the ones who are applying the pressure on the quarterback and stuffing the run. Those guys get all the credit for what happens in the backend with us.
On the schedule:
"I didn't really look to far down the schedule. I know LSU and Alabama are on our schedule because they're in our division. We just take it one game at a time. We have Memphis first. We're going through fall camp preparing for Memphis. Hopefully we'll become a better team and everything clicks on the same cylinder."
You can find the full Ole Miss Rebels press conference transcript by following this link.
SEC Football
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