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Q. What’s the story behind the "doctor" Bo nickname? Not everyone knows and it is all over twitter.
A. The Dr. Bo thing for Bo Wallace actually started up on this very blog network. A few of the guys over at SB Nation's fine college football blog, Everyday Should Be Saturday, randomly came up with it while playing some NCAA Football before the season, and it's kind of taken off from there. They've done some pretty hilarious posts on Dr. Bo's unlicensed medical advice, and even got the good doctor himself to acknowledge the nickname.
Q. How is Ole Miss’ offense different from Auburn’s? Do you guys think you can win by only throwing the ball nine times like Auburn did last week?
A. Both teams use run-heavy spreads, but I'd say the biggest thing that separates the two is Auburn's athleticism at the quarterback position. As y'all know all too well, Nick Marshall is a very legitimate threat to break big plays on the ground, which goes a long way in freeing up interior running lanes for the backs in the read-option. Bo Wallace is actually surprisingly competent running the ball, but lacks the big-play ability of Marshall. We will, however, need to rely on Bo's throwing ability come Saturday. Unless the Rebels get a big lead early, expect to see him throwing the ball around 30 times or so.
Q. Does Arkansas do anything that makes you nervous about the game at all?
A. Y'all's ability to run the ball is the biggest threat. The Ole Miss defense is allowing 5.1 yards per carry in SEC play, and you can be sure Bret Bielema will be trying to exploit that this weekend. The Rebels' best defense against the Razorback ground attack will be the offense -- if we can build an early lead, we'll force y'all into more passing situations and take the ball out of Alex Collins's hands.
Q. How big was that LSU win to get you guys back on track? Is Andrew Ritter now more popular on campus than Marshall Henderson?
A. The LSU win was huge. For starters, it's a win over a division rival ranked in the top-10, but it was also important in preventing a four-game losing streak in the middle of a brutal conference schedule. We had Alabama, Auburn, Texas A&M and LSU in four consecutive weeks, and I'd said going in we needed to come out on the other side with at least one win. The LSU victory salvaged that and has us looking good for at least an eight-win season.
Ritter is certainly a popular man on campus these days, but until he starts trolling Auburn fans and getting in Twitter wars with Erin Andrews, he's not overtaking Marshall.
Q. Is Robert Nkemdiche going to be 100 percent for Saturday?
A. I'm not sure if he'll be 100 percent, but the younger Nkemdiche will definitely be on the field Saturday, which is great news for a defense that's been decimated by injuries as of late. With C.J. Johnson out for the year and Carlos Thompson banged up, the Rebels have been playing without their top three defensive ends for nearly a month. Nkemdiche's size and strength will be huge in helping to slow down the ground attack, and expect to see him playing on the interior of the line a decent bit to help close down running lanes.
Q. Juco All-American predicted LSU to win by 21, did Ole Miss fans hit the "panic button" a little too quickly on the season?
A. I wouldn't say we were panicking, and in Juco's defense, just about everybody thought the Tigers would run away with that one. It was a brutal stretch in the schedule, so dropping four in a row wouldn't have been the most shocking development for a young and inexperienced team. Our schedule is extremely favorable down the stretch, and even with a loss to LSU we would be in good shape to improve on last year's seven wins. As I mentioned above, though, that win gave us a critical boost in the standings and has us in play for a legit postseason game.
Q. Score and prediction on how it will shake out.
A. Arkansas's running game worries the hell out of me. If the Hogs can pound the ball and eat up the clock, they have a real chance for the upset. With that being said, I think the Rebs come out throwing and put up some quick points, forcing the Razorbacks to play from behind. I'll say Dr. Bo prescribes three passing touchdowns and Ole Miss wins 31-21.