Ole Miss upsets Alabama: How far can Rebels go in CFB Playoff race?

Published Oct. 4, 2014 10:45 p.m. ET

Bruce Feldman

OXFORD, Miss. -- The Party always seemed to lead to the heartbreak. Ole Miss fans have gotten used to it over the years. And on Saturday, against the mighty Alabama Crimson Tide, it sure felt like the Rebels and their fans were headed for more of the same. They'd gone toe-to-toe with the Tide in the first half but then a few moments before halftime, an Ole Miss handoff deep in Rebel territory led to disaster.

Bama's Cyrus Jones made a strip and took the ball in for a TD and a stinging 14-3 halftime edge. The fact that the refs missed a facemask call only made it hurt that much worse. Later in the second half, the Rebels looked like they had a sure TD on a deep ball, but normally reliable Evan Engram dropped the pass. Even when Ole Miss did take the lead on a pretty Bo Wallace TD pass to go up by six, they clanked the extra point off the upright. A Bama flag gave the Rebels another shot, but the Tide proceeded to block the next PAT attempt.

Ole Miss was clinging to the 23-17 lead with a minute remaining and the Tide were driving. The Rebels fans know how this story usually ends. Bama QB Blake Sims lofted a pass into the Rebels’ end zone towards towering tight end O.J. Howard, but 5-foot-9 cornerback Senquez Golson soared up and snatched the ball away near the end line. The play was ruled an incompletion since the refs thought Golson landed out of bounds.

Golson has some interesting history with the Tide. Three years ago Golson became the footnote to a spectacular run by Bama star Trent Richardson, who juked the Rebel down to the ground twice with soul-crushing moves. The clip went viral and must've been shown 10,000 times that season.

But this replay of Golson against Bama wouldn't be as harsh on the Rebel DB when the play in the end zone showed on the stadium's Jumbotron. At first it was hard to see anything from the replay, but the second video showed that Golson did in fact come down inbounds with the ball.

The Rebels sideline erupted. Ross Bjork, the Ole Miss AD, paced the sideline during the review with his back to the Jumbotron and was startled when his little 8-year-old son Payton giddily jumped on his shoulder. A few heartbeats later, the official word was announced. Interception. Ole Miss ball, its victory secured. For the first time, in a very long time, the pregame Party in the Grove was nothing compared to what was breaking out inside the stadium.

The crowd rushed the field. Players danced with fans and administrators. C.J. Johnson, a defensive lineman who was part of the Rebels’ 2-10 season under former coach Houston Nutt and later admitted that he'd thought about bolting from Ole Miss, sobbed uncontrollably while fans patted his shoulder pads and hugged him. Wallace, who at times has been mocked and ridiculed for his inconsistent play, shined against the Tide, handed the game ball to his 13-year-old brother, Bryce. Wallace's family will have this trophy forever and no matter what happens after Saturday, Wallace, his teammates and coaches and the Ole Miss fans would always have this sweet moment forever, too.

Coach Hugh Freeze, the man who brought Wallace to Ole Miss and had pumped a jolt of life into what had been a middling SEC program, admitted that he'd felt like his "heart got ripped out" right before the half on the fumble. However, his message to his team has always been to fight for 60 minutes and there wouldn't be any quitting on his watch. Before Ole Miss came out for the second half, Wallace, normally not a very vocal guy, told his teammates, "Hey, let's go write our own story."

What a story it turned out to be. The Rebels, relying on a stout defense and some bunch formations that confused the Tide D, outscored Bama 20-3 in the second half.

"Twenty-three first downs against that group is pretty dang good," said Freeze, adding that his program has endured some "brutal, gut-wrenching" losses over the years. No question it's even sweeter that two of the stars were Wallace and Golson, who has spent a lot of time in the coach's doghouse. "I tried to run him off," admitted Freeze. "He didn't understand how to be great. He didn't want to work, but now he's not showing up on lists."

The 45-year-old coach, best known for his recruiting prowess after reeling in a bunch of five-star recruits to Oxford, said seeing players, like Golson, change to become productive men is why he coaches.

An hour after the game, Ole Miss great Deuce McAllister was still emotional about what he'd witnessed Saturday in Oxford. "I'd never beaten Alabama (as a player)," he said. "I ran for around 200 yards on 'em but we still didn't beat 'em. This doesn't put you over the top, but it puts you closer. It's one thing to play these guys close. It's a whole 'nother to beat 'em."

Asked about his feelings on making such a big play to seal the victory against the team where he had such an embarrassing moment, Golson smiled. "Well, I owed them," he said.

This was bigger than any win any Rebel in Oxford had experienced with this program. Yeah, the Rebels had upset the powerhouse Florida Gators when Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer were on top of the college football world, but that Ole Miss team wasn't playing it as a heavyweight. This bunch is now in the thick of the College Football Playoff chase. Freeze was quick to point out, though, they'll have to put this one in the trash Sunday. In less than a week, they're headed to Texas to face an angry Texas A&M squad.

Freeze's team “won the day” against Alabama. Now can they go on to win a lot more than that?

Bruce Feldman is a senior college football reporter and columnist for FOXSports.com and FOX Sports 1. Follow him on Twitter @BruceFeldmanCFB.