# 2003 Ole Miss Rebels football team

The 2003 Ole Miss Rebels football team represented the University of Mississippi during the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. Coached by David Cutcliffe, the Rebels played their home games at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium.
In the Egg Bowl, Ole Miss beat Mississippi State by a score of 31–0. Ole Miss held the lead in the series at 57–37–6.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 11:30 am | at Vanderbilt | | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN (rivalry) | JPS | W 24–21 | 29,411 |
| September 6 | 11:00 am | at Memphis* | | Liberty Bowl Memorial StadiumMemphis, TN (rivalry) | ESPN2 | L 34–44 | 51,914 |
| September 13 | 6:00 pm | Louisiana–Monroe* | | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS | | W 59–14 | 50,654 |
| September 27 | 6:00 pm | Texas Tech* | | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS | | L 45–49 | 54,649 |
| October 4 | 11:30 am | at No. 24 Florida | | Ben Hill Griffin StadiumGainesville, FL | JPS | W 20–17 | 90,101 |
| October 11 | 1:00 pm | Arkansas State* | | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS | | W 55–0 | 51,286 |
| October 18 | 11:30 am | Alabama | | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS (rivalry) | JPS | W 43–28 | 60,825 |
| October 25 | 6:15 pm | No. 21 Arkansas | | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS (rivalry) | ESPN2 | W 19–7 | 58,717 |
| November 1 | 11:30 am | South Carolina | No. 20 | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS | JPS | W 43–40 | 56,878 |
| November 8 | 2:30 pm | at Auburn | No. 20 | Jordan-Hare StadiumAuburn, AL (rivalry) | CBS | W 24–20 | 86,063 |
| November 22 | 2:30 pm | No. 3 LSU | No. 15 | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS (rivalry) | CBS | L 14–17 | 62,552 |
| November 27 | 6:30 pm | at Mississippi State | No. 17 | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS (Egg Bowl) | ESPN | W 31–0 | 53,582 |
| January 2 | 10:00 am | vs. No. 21 Oklahoma State* | No. 16 | Cotton BowlDallas, TX (Cotton Bowl Classic) | FOX | W 31–28 | 73,928 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### Vanderbilt

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rebels | 0 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 24 |
| Commdores | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
at Vanderbilt Stadium • Nashville, TN
* Date: Saturday, August 30, 2003
* Game time: 11:30 A.M. CST
* Game weather: cloudy • Temperature: 79 °F (26 °C)
* Game attendance: 29,411
* Referee: Steve Shaw
* TV: JPS
* Pregame line: Ole Miss –12.5
| Statistics | Ole Miss | Vanderbilt |
| First downs | 19 | 19 |
| Total yards | 370 | 399 |
| Rushes/yards | 33/95 | 38/101 |
| Passing yards | 275 | 298 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 22–33–0 | 21–33–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:06 | 30:54 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Ole Miss | Passing | Eli Manning | 22/33, 275 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT |
| Ole Miss | Rushing | Tremaine Turner | 13 carries, 55 yards, 0 TD |
| Ole Miss | Receiving | Chris Collins | 6 receptions, 91 yards, 0 TD |
| Vanderbilt | Passing | Jay Cutler | 20/32, 248 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Vanderbilt | Rushing | Kwane Doster | 14 carries, 41 yards, 0 TD |
| Vanderbilt | Receiving | Erik Davis | 6 receptions, 138 yards, 1 TD |

### Memphis

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rebels | 0 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 34 |
| Tigers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 23 | 44 |
at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN
* Date: Saturday, September 6, 2003
* Game time: 11:00 A.M. CST
* Game weather: clear skies • Temperature: 74 °F (23 °C)
* Game attendance: 51,914
* Referee: Steve Landis
* TV: ESPN2
* Pregame line: Ole Miss –7.5
| Statistics | Ole Miss | Memphis |
| First downs | 22 | 17 |
| Total yards | 408 | 506 |
| Rushes/yards | 30/116 | 36/117 |
| Passing yards | 292 | 389 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 26–48–2 | 19–34–0 |
| Time of possession | 33:02 | 26:58 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Ole Miss | Passing | Eli Manning | 26/48, 292 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT |
| Ole Miss | Rushing | Tremaine Turner | 10 carries, 43 yards, 0 TD |
| Ole Miss | Receiving | Bill Flowers | 6 receptions, 97 yards, 1 TD |
| Memphis | Passing | Danny Wimprine | 18/32, 355 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Memphis | Rushing | DeAng Williams | 28 carries, 135 yards, 2 TD |
| Memphis | Receiving | Tavariou Davis | 3 receptions, 113 yards, 1 TD |

### Louisiana–Monroe

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Indians | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Rebels | 7 | 17 | 21 | 14 | 59 |
at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS
* Date: Saturday, September 13, 2003
* Game time: 6:00 P.M. CST
* Game weather: partly cloudy • Temperature: 77 °F (25 °C)
* Game attendance: 50,654
* Referee: Rogers Redding
* Pregame line: Ole Miss –27.5
| Statistics | Louisiana–Monroe | Ole Miss |
| First downs | 21 | 30 |
| Total yards | 307 | 565 |
| Rushes/yards | 31/29 | 47/225 |
| Passing yards | 129 | 340 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 26–44–2 | 24–30–0 |
| Time of possession | 29:20 | 30:40 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Louisiana–Monroe | Passing | Steven Jyles | 14/21, 160 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT |
| Louisiana–Monroe | Rushing | Kevin Payne | 16 carries, 34 yards, 0 TD |
| Louisiana–Monroe | Receiving | Floyd Smith | 9 receptions, 128 yards, 1 TD |
| Ole Miss | Passing | Eli Manning | 21/26, 353 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT |
| Ole Miss | Rushing | Jamal Pittman | 13 carries, 75 yards, 1 TD |
| Ole Miss | Receiving | Chris Collins | 9 carries, 121 yards, 2 TD |

## Team players in the NFL

| Player | Round | Pick | Position | Club |
| Eli Manning | 1 | 1 | Quarterback | New York Giants |
| Stacy Andrews | 4 | 123 | Tackle | Cincinnati Bengals |
| Von Hutchins | 6 | 173 | Defensive back | Indianapolis Colts |
| Charlie Anderson | 6 | 200 | End | Houston Texans |

## Awards and honors

* Eli Manning, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award
* Eli Manning, Maxwell Award
* Jonathan Nichols, Lou Groza Award