On one play of Ole Miss football's 52-13 win against Georgia Southern on Saturday, defensive tackle JJ Pegues couldn't rein in his aggression.

The Rebels' defense allowed its first touchdown in the second quarter, snapping a 13-quarter streak. Georgia Southern put together a solid 10-play, 75-yard drive to get on the board, but it was propped up by penalties.

As Eagles quarterback JC French scrambled out of the pocket, Pegues followed in hot pursuit. He stuck out his hand to yank French down, but got the quarterback's face mask. It wasn't malicious, but it was a textbook 15-yard penalty.

Penalties have plagued Ole Miss the past two weeks. The Rebels committed two on the touchdown drive and 11 total, eight of which were called against the defense. Georgia Southern got 133 yards through accepted penalties.

"Sometimes when you create a team that's a really physical team, and you're going to try to play physical at a high-level snap-to-snap, it's going to get violent," coach Lane Kiffin said. "You're not going to be the least penalized team. Especially on defense. I understand that, I understand what we've created."

Saturday's game wasn't a one-off occurrence. The Rebels committed 11 penalties against Wake Forest a week ago in a one-sided but at times sloppy game. If the penalties can't be reduced, they could become more than a side note when SEC play starts Saturday against Kentucky (11 a.m. CT, ABC).

"The margin of player difference is going to start changing here," Kiffin said. "Already next week, (Kentucky) has got really good players. We're going to have to clean that up."

Physicality is the calling card of the Ole Miss defense. For the most part, it has worked. The Rebels held Georgia Southern to 37 rushing yards, and no team has rushed for more than 50 yards on them. Linebacker Pooh Paul, who had a team-high 10 tackles on Saturday, has been a leader in establishing the defense's hard edge.

"I feel like I reached the standard of the defense," Paul said. "They laid it out to me when I first got here: fast and physical. That's our motto and I feel like I have been trying to uphold that standard while I'm out there on the field each and every play."

Aggression and speed — qualities Pegues showed when chasing French from the pocket — sometimes work against you. Kiffin said he's OK with that.

"We've just got to be smarter at it," he said. "We're not going to have the least defensive penalties. Not with these players. I understand that. We've got to not have the penalties we can avoid."

Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin knows source of team's penalties