After utterly destroying a pair of cupcakes and escaping Tuscaloosa with a victory, it doesn't seem like much of anything could derail Ole Miss's 2015 momentum -- or it would seem that way if it hadn't enjoyed that same momentum in 2014 before a series of injuries badly hamstrung the Rebels offense.
So perhaps Ole Miss fans are counting their blessings that the knee injury suffered by junior defensive back Tony Conner in the win over the Crimson Tide isn't worse. Hugh Freeze told reporters Monday that Conner has a torn meniscus and will miss a minimum of four weeks after undergoing surgery on Tuesday.
One of the many five-star members of Ole Miss's famously loaded 2013 recruiting class, Conner has appeared in every game since his arrival in Oxford and started 27 of the 28. He finished his sophomore 2014 season second on the team with 69 tackles, nine for loss, as the Rebels finished No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense.
His absence will be keenly felt, but if Freeze had to pick any four-week stretch of the season for Conner to miss, it might be the exact one he's about to. The Rebels are play Vanderbilt at home this Saturday before visiting Florida, hosting New Mexico State, and playing Memphis at the Liberty Bowl. Tricky as the Tigers might be, only the trip to Gainesville should see the Rebels as anything other than heavy favorites.
Should miss Conner miss any further time, however, he could be absent from the defining games of the Rebels' season; they play Texas A&M, Auburn, Arkansas and then LSU in a five-week stretch before finishing the season at archrivals Mississippi State. The Rebels' defense is so laden with talent that even Conner might not be badly missed if he returns as expected ... but its late-season schedule is so grueling that he almost certainly will be if the knee doesn't heal on time.
