Trio of Turnovers Gives Baylor Sugar Bowl Win Over Ole Miss

Ole Miss vs. Baylor Bears football video highlights, final score in 2022 Sugar Bowl
The Baylor and Ole Miss football teams meet in the 2022 Sugar Bowl on Saturday, Jan. 1.

Baylor defeated Ole Miss 21-7.

Ole Miss, ranked No. 8 in the USA Today Sports AFCA Coaches Poll, ended the season 10-3 overall. No. 6-ranked Baylor improved to 12-2 overall.

Check out the top plays from the game.

Matt Corral:Update: Ole Miss QB Matt Corral leaves with injury vs. Baylor football in Sugar Bowl

Baylor’s Monaray Baldwin touchdown run
Baylor receiver Monaray Baldwin ran 48 yards for a touchdown with 11:14 left in the fourth quarter. Baldwin’s touchdown put Baylor up 14-7 vs. Ole Miss.

Ole Miss’ Miles Battle interception
Ole Miss defensive back Miles Battle intercepted a pass by Baylor quarterback Gerry Bohanon at the goal line, and Battle returned it 9 yards to the Ole Miss 9-yard line with 3:19 left in the third quarter.

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Ole Miss’ Luke Altmyer touchdown pass to Braylon Sanders
Ole Miss quarterback Luke Altmyer threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to receiver Braylon Sanders with 9:13 left in the third quarter. Sanders’ touchdown tied the game 7-7 vs. Baylor.

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Baylor’s Al Walcott interception return touchdown
Baylor cornerback Al Walcott intercepted a pass by Ole Miss quarterback Luke Altmyer and returned it 96 yards for a touchdown with 10:16 left in the second quarter. Walcott’s touchdown put Baylor up 7-0 vs. Ole Miss.

Ole Miss’ AJ Finley fourth-down stop
Ole Miss cornerback AJ Finley tackled Baylor receiver R.J. Sneed at the Baylor 47-yard line on fourth down a yard short of the first down with 13:03 left in the first quarter.

Baylor’s Chateau Reed intercepts Matt Corral
Baylor safety JT Woods intercepted a pass by Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral at the Baylor 38-yard line with 14:27 left in the first quarter.

WE'RE TIED!

Luke Altmyer's first college TD pass was a beauty 😍 pic.twitter.com/BYq4dayaVN

— ESPN (@espn) January 2, 2022

Ole Miss football arrives at Superdome
Head coach Lane Kiffin leads the Ole Miss football team into the Superdome.

Here’s more Sugar Bowl news:
TV, live stream information:How to watch Ole Miss vs. Baylor football on TV, live stream plus game time in Sugar Bowl
Betting odds:What is the Ole Miss vs. Baylor football betting line, over/under in Sugar Bowl 2022
Jake Springer:How transfer Jake Springer transformed Ole Miss football defense
AirPods:Lane Kiffin says wearing AirPods pregame is often a decoy. He doesn’t want to be hassled

No. 7 Baylor beat No. 8 Ole Miss 21-7 Saturday night, as the Bears capped off a historic season in Dave Aranda’s second year. In winning the Sugar Bowl for the first time since 1957, the Bears not only notched their first 12-win season in program history, but gained their first New Year’s Six/BCS bowl victory since the system was introduced in 1998.

The result was difficult for Ole Miss to swallow, however, as star quarterback Matt Corral was knocked out of the game in the first quarter after injuring his right leg on a sack. The play came on third down when defensive end Cole Maxwell hit Corral and his leg appeared to buckle.\

Ole Miss missed a field goal on the next play.

True freshman Luke Altmyer came in and played admirably in relief, throwing for for 174 yards and a touchdown on 15 of 29 passing. However, Baylor’s defense was dominant against an overmatched Rebels offensive line, posting 10 sacks, breaking up seven passes and forcing three interceptions against Corral and Altmyer combined. Cornerback Al Walcott caught an interception off a Matt Jones tip and took it 96 yards for the first score of the game.

Baylor running back Abram Smith rushed for 172 yards on 25 carries to break the program record for single-season yards rushing, passing Terrance Ganaway’s 2011 mark of 1,547 yards. Quarterback Gerry Bohanon struggled, completing 7 of 17 passes for 40 yards. However, he motioned Tyquan Thornton into a throw for a two-yard touchdown to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. Freshman Monaray Baldwin scored the Bears’ other touchdown on a sweep.

BLOWN UP pic.twitter.com/jAYo7KiqnD

— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) January 2, 2022

Ole Miss’ defense played good situational football, holding the Bears without a third-or fourth-down conversion through the first half. However, the Bears finished the game converting 7 of 15 third downs. Ole Miss converted 5 of 6 fourth-down attempts, but missed two field goals that could have kept the game manageable. Ultimately, the floodgates opened as Baylor rushed for 279 yards in a physically dominant performance.

With the final New Year’s Six game in the books, let’s unpack all that happened in New Orleans between the Bears and Rebels.

1. Historic season
   After going 2-7 in Aranda’s first season, few expected Baylor to put together a nationally relevant follow-up. However, the Bears multiplied their wins six-fold, captured their first Big 12 Championship Game victory and winning the Sugar Bowl for the first time in more than 60 years. The Bears were picked eighth in the preseason Big 12 media poll, closer to No. 10 Kansas than the top half. Instead, Baylor will go down as the biggest turnaround in college football in 2022 — or, at least in a tight battle for the top spot along with No. 2 Michigan.
2. Disappointing finish for Corral
   At one point in the regular season, Corral was considered a Heisman contender by leading one of the top offensive units in college football. However, Baylor whipped Ole Miss’ offensive line and sacked Corral three times in the first three drives of the game, the final one of which led to the unfortunate injury.

Thankfully, Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin revealed after the game that Corral’s X-rays came back negative, so hopefully it won’t impact the 2022 NFL Draft prospect’s stock. Corral is rated the No. 1 quarterback on the CBS Sports NFL Draft Prospect Rankings and No. 10 overall. The threat of injury is why many draft prospects have opted out of bowl games. Hopefully, this injury won’t cost Corral.

3. Dominant defense
   Baylor’s defense absolutely dominated Ole Miss’ offensive line, holding one of the nation’s top offenses to 322 yards and a paltry 3.6 yards per play. The Rebels averaged just 2.6 yards per carry after clearing five yards for most the season and allowed an astonishing 10 sacks. Corral threw just six passes, but one was his fifth interception of the season.

Not having Corral in the lineup mattered, but Altmyer did his best in relief. Out of his 174 yards passing,142 came on plays of more than 15 yards. Unfortunately, Altmyer was thrust into an unenviable position as Baylor’s defense got pressure on him almost immediately after each snap. It’s hard to win football games when you can’t compete up front, and Ole Miss was unable to overcome it.

Baylor linebacker Terrel Bernard won Sugar Bowl MVP honors after putting together one of the best performances of his career with 17 tackles, two sacks and a pass breakup. JT Woods had two interceptions — one off Corral and Altmyer. His impact was not felt much in the box score, but nose tackle Siaki Ika collapsed Ole Miss from the inside out.

4. QB of the future?
   Kiffin will likely look to the transfer portal after losing Corral to the draft, but the Mississippi native Altmyer made a decent case to start in 2022. The freshman showed great situational awareness, converting on numerous third-and-fourth downs with key runs and downfield passes. On one of the few plays Ole Miss blocked with consistency, Altmyer found Braylon Sanders for a beautiful touchdown pass.

Altmyer has four years of eligibility remaining after playing just four games in 2021. Even if he doesn’t earn the starting job in 2022, there are plenty of reasons to be excited about his long-term potential. Altmyer played well against one of the best defenses in college football, all things considered.

5. Baylor has arrived
   The Bears have earned six 10-win seasons since 2011, including four appearances in New Year’s Six bowls. However, Aranda’s squad did what the others could not: get over the hump in the postseason against a fellow top-10 opponent. There are arguments to be had about the best Baylor team in program history, but this iteration is the most accomplished by quite a bit. The future looks bright for Baylor as the new version of the Big 12 approaches. With Aranda leading the way, the Bears are poised to be a perennial conference title contender. If the CFP expands, Aranda’s Bears could soon be fighting for even more.