JACKSON, Miss. (AP) -Mississippi’s do-everything player Dexter McCluster is known as “The X Factor” to his teammates.
Problem is McCluster hasn’t been much of a factor this season.
Everyone in Oxford is confident the senior will have a breakout game soon, and with No. 3 Alabama visiting Saturday, the 20th-ranked Rebels could use something special from the smallest man on the field known for making big plays.
Maybe it will be this week.
“I know it’s going to come,” the ever-upbeat McCluster said. “And when it comes, it’s going to be electric.”
McCluster became one of college football’s most exciting players last year in coach Houston Nutt’s first season with the Rebels.
the I formation and baffled tacklers as the quarterback in the Wild Rebel.
McCluster was one of just two players – Florida’s Percy Harvin is the other – to rank in the SEC’s top 10 in yards rushing, receiving, receptions and all-purpose yards. He led the Rebels in yards rushing (655 yards) and rushing touchdowns (six), and tied for the team lead with 44 catches.
He also led the team in highlights, earning a reputation for big plays at key moments. Alabama coach Nick Saban said McCluster “is probably as dynamic a player as there is in this league.” High praise from a man whose favorite adjective is good.
Yet the dynamic Dexter everyone’s been expecting hasn’t really shown up yet. There have been moments, but McCluster didn’t play or was a nonfactor in parts of the Rebels’ first three games – touching the ball just once in the first half of the 16-10 loss to South Carolina.
He’s second on the team in both yards receiving (155) and rushing (148), averaging about 75 yards per game with just two touchdowns.
McCluster says the reasons for his lack of flash are pretty easy to identify.
rying to be a team player.”
Nevertheless, coaches made sure they gave him the ball in last week’s win over Vanderbilt. The results were encouraging, though he finished with 58 total yards.
“We made a conscious effort to get him the ball at tailback and wide receiver, to get him the ball on reverses and quick handoffs,” Nutt said. “The thing about Dexter is that every team knows where he is located and they try to keep a handle on him. That is going to help out other players, but we will always make a conscious effort to get him the ball.”
McCluster said teams were also starting to double up on him late last year, but it mattered little.
“We were in our groove, man, and that last stretch I don’t think anyone could touch us,” he said. “We showed everyone we played.”
The Crimson Tide was one of the teams that managed to withstand Nutt’s use of McCluster. Alabama players saw just about every special play the Rebels had, but managed to contain McCluster. They held him to 28 yards rushing and 21 receiving, and even picked off his one pass. Most importantly, they kept him out of the end zone in a narrow 24-20 victory.
Cornerback Javier Arenas says the key with McCluster is to not become discouraged while chasing him around.
ecause they’re going to make catches and they’re going to make a play. You’ve got to keep your poise and come back and be ready to fight the next play.”
As the murmurs have started to grow around McCluster’s role this year, so has his teammates’ confidence that we’ll soon see something special.
Ole Miss cornerback Marshay Green, who came up with the X Factor nickname, says it’s a lock.
“Hey, man, listen to this,” Green said. “To me, Dexter is one of the best players in the SEC, if not the best player in the SEC. Dexter McCluster will be ready come Saturday. I guarantee it. Trust me.”
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AP sports writer John Zenor in Tuscaloosa, Ala., contributed to this report.
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