Unsung heroes from Ole Miss’ 27-16 win over Vanderbilt

Ole Miss fans
Doug Pensinger/Getty
Dave Holcomb
Dave Holcomb

Ole Miss outlasted Vanderbilt on Saturday, as the Rebels pulled out a 27-16 victory. It was a sloppy win for Ole Miss, but the Rebels still had their fair share of unsung heroes.

Defensive tackle Woodrow Hamilton didn’t necessarily save the game for Ole Miss, but his big play proved to be the turning point in the victory.

Rebels quarterback Chad Kelly threw his second interception with 11:25 left in the game, which set up Vanderbilt’s offense at the Ole Miss 19-yard line. At that point, Ole Miss led 20-16.

Three plays later on 3rd-and-1 at the 10-yard line, Hamilton pushed Vanderbilt running back Ralph Webb backwards for a four-yard loss. Vanderbilt was forced into a field goal attempt, which was no good.

Any momentum Vanderbilt had gained off Kelly’s turnover was quickly gone in large part because of Hamilton’s key tackle on third down.

Here are the rest of the unsung heroes for the Rebels in their victory over the Commodores:

Denzel Nkemdiche, Linebacker, Senior

Anything you can do, I can do better, right little brother? Denzel’s brother, Robert, had six tackles, including two for a loss last week against Alabama. Denzel recorded a career-high 14 tackles and two for a loss against Vanderbilt.

Robert Nkemdiche, Defensive Tackle, Junior

While his brother shined on defense, Robert scored the game-winning touchdown on a 1-yard run at the goal line. Ole Miss struggled inside the Vanderbilt 5-yard line all night and turned to its top NFL prospect for the key score.

Jaylen Walton, Running Back, Senior

Despite Ole Miss averaging just 3.6 yards per rush as a team versus Vanderbilt, Walton gained 6.3 yards per attempt. When the Rebels needed to run out the clock, they turned to Walton, and he put the game on ice with another score late in the fourth quarter.

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