Checking in on the Week 10 temperatures in Oxford, Miss…

Hot

Turnover margin. Ole Miss’ ability to force turnovers continued Saturday night in Baton Rouge; the Rebels were plus three in the turnover margin and still lost the game. The Rebels will need some takeaways this week against No. 4 Auburn to slow the Tigers down. Ole Miss has scored four defensive touchdowns this season, and it likely will need a couple more on Saturday night to get points.

Warm

The defensive front seven. Defensive end Marquis Haynes leads the Rebels with 6.5 sacks this season, and when coupled with D.T. Shackelford and Robert Nkemdiche, Ole Miss can dominate the trenches and really create pressure on the quarterback. Auburn’s Nick Marshall has shown he can be rushed into bad decisions when pressured. Tipped passes at the line of scrimmage have also been an issue for the Tigers. Ole Miss will need to pressure Marshall to get Auburn off-schedule and out of rhythm on offense.

Cold

The Rebels’ offense. For the second consecutive week, Bo Wallace completed less than 50 percent of his passes. Statistically, Ole Miss looks balanced and good on offense, but the eye test tells a stark picture. The Rebels are brutally one-dimensional, with no run game at all. Wallace is asked to do a lot on each and every play, and when he’s inaccurate, the Rebels stall very easily.

Frozen

Third down conversions. Ole Miss converted on just five of 17 third down chances in Saturday’s loss at LSU. This continues to be a problem area for the Rebels; Wallace and company continually find themselves in third-and-long situations, obvious passing situations and they’ve been unable to convert. Auburn struggled to get off the field against South Carolina. Ole Miss must move the chains and not give the Tigers more chances on offense.