OXFORD — University of Mississippi first-year head coach Hugh Freeze and the football team continued preseason preparation Thursday afternoon on the practice fields adjacent to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

With the season just a little more than a week away, Freeze said the Rebels’ main goal is taking care of the ball.

“We were crisp,” Freeze said. “Ja-Mes Logan and Vince Sanders really stood out. They made some phenomenal catches. The quarterbacks took care of the ball, except for one decision Bo Wallace made. We have to coach him better so he won’t make that decision. We’re hoping to get through some practices before we play where we take care of the ball totally. That was the only mishap today.”

Freeze said confidence and maturity will be keys for Sanders, a former standout at Noxubee County High School.

“He’s talented enough to make the plays when they come to him,” Freeze said. “He enjoys this system. There’s another year of maturity. They’re just kids when they get here, and he’s starting to mature.”

Freeze also praised assistant coach Matt Luke and the offensive line for having made significant strides in the preseason.

“Coach Luke being able to be with them for long periods of time during fall camp really helped. Aaron Morris and Pierce Burton are playing really well right now,” Freeze said. “They are definitely playing better as a unit.”

The Rebels continue to bounce back from several key injuries.

“Collins Moore looked good today,” Freeze said. “He moved around and didn’t seem to have any pain. He caught a couple of balls. Wesley Pendleton looked good working around in his drills. Charles Sawyer is doing well. Cliff Coleman seems to be the slowest of the three right now.”

Ole Miss and the University of Central Arkansas will kick off the season at 6 p.m. Sept. 1 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. For all information pertaining to gameday, go to OleMissFB.com.

n In related news, the second season of the award-winning weekly show “The Season: Ole Miss Football 2012” will premiere Thursday on OleMissSports.com’s RebelVision.

The program will be shown on various cable networks throughout Mississippi and the Southeast region Thursdays and Fridays during the season.

The show earned a variety of honors last year, as the Ole Miss Sports Productions crew went behind the scenes to tell the story of the campaign through the eyes of the players. Fans got an up close and personal look at the Rebels during team meetings, practices and bus rides to the games.

“The Season: Ole Miss Football 2011” earned an AVA Gold Award for outstanding achievement by creative professionals involved in the concept, direction, design and production of media, and received an Emmy nomination by the Southeast Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) in the category of outstanding achievement in Television News and Program Specialty.

Alabama

n Football team begins work on opener: At Tuscaloosa, Ala., The football team held a two-hour practice in full pads Thursday afternoon at the Drew-Thomas Practice Facility.

Thursday was the Crimson Tide’s 22nd practice of the preseason. Alabama also took its first look at preparations for the University of Michigan. More extensive work slated for today. Alabama will take on Michigan at 7 p.m. Sept. 1 (WKDH) at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

“The first units are starting to come together a little bit better,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “Some of the situational things we are still working on. Tomorrow we will get a little more work in for the first game. Preparation is so important, and I think that is probably the message of the day for everyone. You go through the off-season and spring practice, work hard all summer long then go through two-a-days and you lose sight of really why you do all that. The reason you do all that is to get yourself ready to play games.”

The Senior Bowl also announced its first watch list Thursday. All nine of Alabama’s scholarship seniors — Quinton Dial, Nico Johnson, Barrett Jones, Robert Lester, Damion Square, Carson Tinker, Chance Warmack, Jesse Williams and Michael Williams. — are on the list.

Alabama has two more practices this week before game-week prep begins Monday. It will travel to Dallas on Friday afternoon..