After overseeing one of the country’s worst run defenses in 2017, Ole Miss defensive coordinator Wesley McGriff came into this season with a plan: load the box agains the run and leave his athletic defensive backs to fend for themselves against receivers downfield.
“One thing for certain is we’re definitely going to get in the box and stop the run,” McGriff told The Oxford Eagle a few days before the season opened. “We’re going to have creative ways to get in the box, but we definitely have a commitment to get in the box and stop the run.