OXFORD — Ole Miss senior running back Ulysses Bentley IV finally got his chance to shine Saturday against LSU. His 50-yard touchdown run — and ensuing celebration in the end zone — was a long time coming.
Bentley ran for 540 yards and four touchdowns last season for the Rebels, ranking second on the team in yards behind former All-SEC running back Quinshon Judkins. Judkins transferred to Ohio State in the offseason, leading many to believe Bentley would be one of the headlining rushers for the Rebels in 2024 along with senior Henry Parrish Jr. Parrish, a Miami transfer who began his career at Ole Miss, leads the Rebels with 612 rushing yards, which is second in the SEC and 16th nationally. Ole Miss’ second-leading rusher has not been Bentley, though; it has been former walk-on Matt Jones, who has 222 rushing yards.
Bentley entered the Rebels’ matchup in Baton Rouge with just 16 carries for 62 yards over the team’s first six games. He did not log rushing attempts against Kentucky or South Carolina and hadn’t received more than five carries in a game since the season opener against Furman.
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin has frequently asked about Bentley’s whereabouts this season, and Kiffin has remained adamant it was nothing Bentley had done and was instead about what the other players around him were doing.
“I can just control what I can control,” Bentley said.
Jones was ruled out for the LSU game with an injury, however, opening the door for Bentley to play an expanded role. He didn’t waste any time; Bentley’s third carry of the night came on fourth-and-inches early in the second quarter. He broke through the line of scrimmage and dashed 50 yards to the end zone, the longest rush of the season for the No. 18 Rebels (5-2, 1-2 SEC). After crossing the goal line, Bentley pounded his chest with his non ball-carrying arm as he ran to the back of the end zone and looked up at the home fans.
This one felt awfully good.
“It felt great, man, just to be back out there with those guys,” Bentley said. “I definitely showed a lot of emotion. I was definitely excited.”
Bentley says he has not received a reason for why he has not been carrying the ball more this year. He instead has been focused on controlling the controllables and has remained positive through it all. There’s no point in sulking or being frustrated.
“Like Kiffin talks about all the time, just going through adversity. You can’t just lay down and just be low at all times,” Bentley said. “Just always being positive and just figuring a way out how to get better each and every day to…be great.”
Kiffin said he met with Bentley Monday morning and let him know how happy he was for him.
“I actually just finished meeting with him and (I) told him how proud I was, how he handled adversity and how well that he played in the game,” Kiffin said.
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