SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 28, 2013
No. 1 Alabama 25, No. 21 Mississippi 0: T.J. Yeldon rushed for 121 yards and a touchdown and the Crimson Tide held the visiting Rebels to 205 total yards in a dominant defensive performance.
Kenyan Drake added 99 yards on 12 carries and put it away with a 50-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter as Alabama (4-0, 2-0 SEC West) beat Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1) for the 10th straight time. The Crimson Tide allowed only 46 rushing yards on 25 attempts while posting their first shutout of the season and their eighth in the past three years.
Rebels quarterback Bo Wallace was 17-for-31 for 159 yards, lost a fumble and was sacked for a safety. Jeff Scott, coming off a career-high 164 rushing yards against Texas, was limited to 28 yards on eight carries.
Ole Miss' defense held its own in the first half, keeping Alabama to three field goals - kicks of 28, 53 and 42 yards from Cade Foster. Yeldon broke off a career-long 68-yard touchdown run less than a minute into the third quarter, and the Rebels sputtered on offense.
Ole Miss had its best chance to get back in the game late in the third quarter, driving to the Crimson Tide 7-yard line before C.J. Mosley batted down Wallace's pass on fourth-and-2 to preserve a 16-0 lead. The Rebels drove into Alabama territory one more time but were again stopped on downs.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Alabama improved to 53-0 since the start of the 2008 season when rushing for at least 140 yards. กญ The Rebels dropped to 0-10 all-time against top-ranked teams, 1-13 against defending national champions and 1-25 versus the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Ala. กญ Alabama has won 43 consecutive games when it commits fewer turnovers than its opponent.