Austin Simmons prepared to step into some big shoes at Ole Miss

• There’s a big difference in one magical drive and driving the bus on every play.

Ole Miss fans could read the room.

Or in this case the stadium — their stadium.

Mighty Georgia, national champions twice in the previous three seasons, trotted onto the field at Vaught-Hemingway representing what many of Ole Miss fans believed was the last significant hurdle between the Rebels and a college football playoff bid.

We all know the rest of the story, turnovers, missed opportunities and a 24-17 loss to Florida that left Ole Miss on the outside looking in.

It was a disappointing regular season finish for a team that’s won 39 games over the last four seasons.

The Rebels dominated Georgia in week 11, winning 28-10 against the Bulldogs, who were riding a 52-game win streak against SEC teams not named Alabama, a span covering four years.

The Ole Miss defense held Georgia to 245 yards — just 59 on the ground — and forced three turnovers.

But the win in all likelihood was made possible by Austin Simmons, the redshirt freshman backup to Jaxson Dart, the starter.

There was a collective gasp, probably some swearing too, when Dart left the field favoring his left ankle early in the first quarter.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Simmons, praised for his arm strength and quick release, was lauded for his enormous potential, but production was scant. Circumstances had not yet called for it, particularly in big games. His status changed in a flash.

Ole Miss had given up a 21-yard touchdown drive after Dart was intercepted on the fourth play from scrimmage.

Simmons, a Miami high school star nearing the end of his second season with the Rebels, came off the bench and completed five of six passes for 64 yards including clutch third- and fourth-down conversions.

Running back Ulysses Bentley got the points on a 9-yard run, capping a 10-play, 75-yard drive.

The team and the stadium were energized. Simmons, who had thrown only eight passes against FBS teams prior to the drive, had secured his place in Ole Miss lore.

“Now we’re thinking, ‘Hey, he can do this every play.’ It’s not doable,” said former Ole Miss quarterback Romaro Miller.

It was mostly tongue-in-cheek, but fans being fans, well, maybe it’s not that far off base for some.

Miller, of Shannon just outside Tupelo, was the Ole Miss starting quarterback under Tommy Tuberville as a sophomore and under David Cutcliffe as a junior and senior.

Simmons’ time has arrived

Like Simmons, Miller arrived at Ole Miss with great promise and waited his turn.

There is a difference.

Simmons, in the transfer era, has had opportunities to leave, for big money according to social media chatter, yet he’s still in Oxford.

More specifically, he’ll be in Atlanta this week representing the Rebels as their starting quarterback at Media Days.

Lane Kiffin’s two previous Ole Miss starting quarterbacks became NFL draft picks, Dart a first-rounder.

“In college football, guys don’t do that any more. They look at transferring where they can play immediately,” Miller said. “Hopefully he can reap the benefits of staying.”

Simmons, like almost any QB1, becomes the most important player on the field, but he won’t have to go it alone. The cupboard jellies and jams may be different, but it’s not bare.

“He’s definitely got some running backs, receivers and offensive linemen around him,” Miller said.

Simmons became known for leading a touchdown drive against Georgia, the calming influence he provided in the absence of Dart. What has made him the starter is what he got done every other day of his two years in Kiffin’s system.

“There are going to be drives like that Georgia game, but I’m quite sure there are going to be bumps in the road as well,” Miller said.

But there’s a big difference in one magical drive and driving the bus on every play.

“You don’t worry about the home games, but anytime you’re in a hostile environment, like Baton Rouge or Tuscaloosa or one of those places, you wonder how he’ll react,” Miller said.

Miller: Cupboard around Simmons not bare

At home and on the road alike, a young quarterback has to be able to rely on the cupboard’s jams and jellies.

“Everybody has got to do their jobs. He’s got to be able to play pitch and catch. The offensive line has to do their job to give him time to sit back there and analyze the system. He showed us a little bit in the Georgia game,” Miller said.

But now Simmons as the wheel from the get-go.

The Rebels are at Kentucky in Week 2. They’re at Georgia and Oklahoma in back-to-back weeks on Oct. 18 and 25.

“You just wonder how somebody’s going to react. It could be a deer-in the-headlights type of thing if things go bad.

“But the only way he’s going to get better is by getting out there, playing in it and just seeing what happens.”