Alabama Football: History not on the side of Ole Miss

Alabama football and Ole Miss have a long history defined as dominance by the Crimson Tide over the Rebels.

Alabama football fans cannot relate but it can’t be easy being an Ole Miss fan. Their school is supposed to be the state of Mississippi’s best. Ole Miss tries to claim bragging rights for football in the state of Mississippi but the Mississippi State Bulldogs frequently disprove that claim. The other big rivals for Ole Miss are the Alabama Crimson Tide and LSU.

LSU has the series lead with Ole Miss at 60-41-4. That respectable deficit for Ole Miss is a counterbalance to the embarrassing record Ole Miss has against Alabama football. The Crimson Tide dominates Ole Miss with a 50-10-2 record.

One of the 10 Tide losses came in the 19th century when the teams first played. Ole Miss shutout the Tide 6-0. Another loss came with another shutout of the Tide in 1910, with Ole Miss winning 16-0. It took 19 games and 58 seasons before Ole Miss beat the Crimson Tide again in 1968. In the long interval, there were 18 Alabama football wins and one tie.

Three seasons ago we summarized the 1969 game in a more complete history of Ole Miss and the Crimson Tide.

October 4, 1969 – Legion Field, Birmingham, AL

Alabama Crimson Tide 33 – Ole Miss 32

Often described as one of the most exciting games in college football history, it was the first, nationally hyped, primetime college football broadcast. The game more than lived up to the hype.

Ole Miss quarterback Archie Manning (Peyton and Eli’s dad) was spectacular. Archie ran and passed for 540 yards as the Rebels created 609 yards of offense. Alabama quarterback Scott Hunter was 22-29 for 300 yards. The Tide won in the last minute on a Scott Hunter to George Ranager pass.

Paul Bryant and Ole Miss head coach, Johnny Vaught met at midfield after the game and concurred it was the ugliest football game either man had ever coached. 1,149 yards of offense was unacceptable to the two legendary coaches.

“Whose eyes did Coach Curry look at?”

Ole Miss won two of the next ten games, in 1970 and 1976. A major Ole Miss upset took place in Tuscaloosa in 1988 with the Rebels winning 22-12. The following season, Ole Miss jumped out to an early 21-0 lead in Jackson, MS. Crimson Tide lore is Crimson Tide, Head Coach, Bill Curry saw in his player’s eyes they would come back and win. The Tide’s starting quarterback, Gary Hollingsworth is reputed to have said, “I’m not sure whose eyes he was looking at.”

Ole Miss got home wins in 2001 and 2003. The recent games all Alabama football fans want to forget were in 2014 and 2015. Nothing more needs be said about those last Ole Miss victories.

Lane Kiffin may have won Twitter this week. It will not make a difference on Saturday night. the long-established domination of the Crimson Tide over Ole Miss will add another chapter.