Ole Miss baseball coach Mike Bianco felt a tap on his back between games of the Rebels' doubleheader at Georgia on Saturday.

True freshman reliever Austin Simmons, who'd thrown 24 pitches in 1.2 scoreless innings in the first game, wanted Bianco to know that he felt good and was ready to pitch in the second game if needed.

Throwing twice in the same day is highly unusual in modern baseball. Arms like Simmons' left one, which hits the mid-90s from the mound and also twirls a ball for the Rebels' football team, are protected at all costs. In the seventh inning, Bianco took Simmons up on his word anyway. With the Rebels clinging to a 3-1 lead, and trying to avoid a damaging series sweep, Simmons entered with a man on first and nobody out.

Simmons walked the first man he faced. Then he used a nasty breaking ball to strike out a pair of Bulldogs — including all-world third baseman Charlie Condon. After a second walk, Simmons coaxed a ground ball that should have gotten him out of the inning. But Brayden Randle couldn't field it cleanly at shortstop, and Georgia (29-10, 9-9 SEC) scored an unearned run.

No matter. Simmons induced a bases-loaded pop-out that got the Rebels out of trouble with the lead intact, and turned the ball over to Brayden Jones, who went on to collect the save in a 3-2 win.

"He was really spectacular," Bianco said. "Just proud of him. He loves baseball. He wants to be here. And you love guys that want the ball, and not only want the ball, but can go out there and execute pitches like he did today."

It was just an inning — and not even a scoreless one at that. But in the context of the Rebels' season, it could be crucial. That inning had explosive potential. Few could have blamed Simmons — who some would argue shouldn't have been in the game and who definitely should have been in the dugout had the Rebels (21-18, 6-12) played adequate defense — for imploding.

But he didn't. He helped keep Ole Miss in the fight despite another weekend of subpar baseball.

"With where we are, and what's left in the league, it's no secret," Bianco said. "Those that have been around me, I never say 'must win' or anything like that, because nobody knows. You're always in it until you're not. But at some point, we gotta start winning some games.

"When you haven't played well after winning a weekend the last weekend, you gotta at least get outta here with one."

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Bianco's fond of saying that you don't win in the SEC without playing well. The Rebels made seven errors in three games. Their pitching didn't give them a chance in a run-rule loss on Friday. Their plan to pitch around Condon failed them in Saturday's opener as he slugged his 25th and 26th homers of the season to turn a 2-2 tie into a 7-2 Georgia win.

Eventually, Ole Miss will have to play well for an extended stretch to make a regional, not just for a game here or two games there.

Thanks to Simmons and others, the Rebels still have an opportunity to do that. But time is running out.

David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.

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This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Austin Simmons helps Ole Miss baseball avoid disaster at Georgia