Hugh Freeze has built one of the strongest defensive juggernauts in the country in the “Land Shark” 4-2-5 defense.
In addition, the group appears to be even stronger despite losing both starting linebackers and two members of the secondary. Why? Ole Miss brings back every member of the incredibly talented front four that was so strong against the run last season. It is a group that strongly contributed to the top scoring defense in the nation in 2014.
In three seasons in Oxford, Freeze has been nine games over .500, and has done a great deal of this work behind that strong defensive side of the ball. The fascinating part: Freeze was brought in as an offensive guru.
While he has also produced decent numbers on the offensive side of the ball, the offense was clearly limited at times with Bo Wallace under center. Coming into 2015, the squad returns both leading rushers, a deep wide receiving corps, including LaQuon Treadwell, and a foundational tackle in Laremy Tunsil.
Additionally, Freeze may have that talented dual-threat quarterback he has been craving in Chad Kelly… if he is able to keep him out of trouble and on the field. This has been an issue in other places, but Freeze is a master motivator who seems to get the absolute most out of everyone. If anyone has the ability to motivate Kelly and keep him on the right path, it is Freeze.
With all of these factors combined, Freeze has a chance to do something special in Oxford in 2015. It is at least expected that Freeze would be able to pick up his third bowl win in four seasons with Ole Miss. He is also attempting to build on the 22 weeks the Rebels have spent in the top 25 during his tenure.
Since coming to Ole Miss, Freeze has used his offensive knowledge to turn around the unit in small but noticeable ways that have not so much created an explosion of new output, but have limited the damaging mistakes which prevented the Rebels from moving up the ladder. However, having a strong defense to go with the yardage amassed on offense is truly what has made Freeze a valuable and influential presence on the sidelines.
Even at Arkansas State, Freeze had the same two-pronged success on each side of the ball. In his reign of dominance in the Sun Belt, Freeze oversaw an offense that finished 24th in the nation and a defense which matched that ranking. In this sense, his reputation as an offensive guru is oversold… because his ability to raise the level of play from his defense is underrated. This starts with recruiting, of course, but Freeze’s defensive staff creates and develops highly competent players. Freeze shapes rosters that start with a base of raw skills and finish their collegiate careers with far more polished instincts and abilities.
With the track record of doing this at every level he has coached, Freeze has certainly shown the consistency that has earned him the dual-threat label, which is not just for quarterbacks — it’s for coaches who can cultivate improvements on both sides of the line of scrimmage.
The big question this season, then, is whether or not Ole Miss’s current accumulation of talent will put the Rebels across the threshold. Only time and a grueling SEC West schedule will decide that. Road trips to Alabama and Auburn represent supreme tests. If Ole Miss can at least pass one of them and achieve a 10-2 season, everything Hugh Freeze preaches as a football coach will have been powerfully validated.
