Ole Miss is setting all the wrong records. The Rebels have had two of the most deflating games in the three-week old football season, squandering a 22-point lead against No. 4 Florida State and a 21-point lead against No. 1 Alabama.
That is the first time a Power 5 team has managed to pull that feat off in the past 10 years.
Ole Miss started the season as the No. 11 team in the country. After the debacle in Orlando, the Rebels fell to No. 19 in the AP Top 25. After Saturday’s collapse against the Crimson Tide, leaving Ole Miss’ lone win thus far in 2016 against Wofford, many expected the Rebels to fall right out of the Top 25.
The fall stopped at No. 23.
That points to the level of respect the Rebels have earned from national voters. It doesn’t hurt that Ole Miss has played two high-profile, nationally-televised games against national title contenders. Voters have seen the thin line the Rebels have walked and rewarded the effort.
The thin line, inexplicable to closed-eared detractors, is drawn between the reality of a sub-.500 start and quite frankly a No. 1 ranking. Had Ole Miss managed to beat the Seminoles and the Tide, that’s the reality.
Voters are also rewarding the gauntlet the Rebels have gone through. It would have been much easier if Ole Miss beat Johnson C. Smith University on opening weekend, became 2-0 against Wofford and then dropped to 2-1 after a loss to Alabama.
But three weeks into the season, Ole Miss is the best 1-2 team in America and by far the best first-half team. Through 27 minutes, 50 seconds of first-half time, Ole Miss outscored Florida State and Alabama by a combined 52-6. Think about that for a minute.
Clemson on the other hand, the No. 2 team in America, has beaten Auburn, Troy and South Carolina State, three teams with a combined 3-6 mark, two of those wins for Troy.
That’s why the Rebels are still in the rankings. There are four other teams with losses in the rankings – Florida State, LSU, Texas and Oklahoma. Only Oklahoma and Ole Miss have 1-2 records. Oklahoma has lost to Ohio State and Houston.
Ohio State, well, it has beaten Bowling Green and Tulsa by a combined 125-13.
Ole Miss needed Georgia to pull off its comeback on Saturday night at Missouri. It pushed the Bulldogs to 3-0 and to No. 12 in the country. The Rebels not only need a win, they need a win against a highly ranked team. And whether anyone likes where either Ole Miss or Georgia rank in the latest poll, that’s what you’ll have Saturday, another Ole Miss chance at a quality win.
Ole Miss opened as a touchdown-favorite. That’s the respect the Rebels are still getting nationally.
Just for fun, let’s say they run the table from here on out. That would include wins at LSU and at Texas A&M, the only two games left that ESPN’s FPI has the Rebels a dog in. If the Rebels weren’t in the SEC West with Alabama, which may not lose two SEC games, they would still have a shot at a conference title, and judging by the national voters’ current respect, a two-loss playoff shot.
Betters jumped at that opening line against Georgia, and it’s down to two points in spots. Fans aren’t buying the hype. Voters are. And the Rebels still have plenty of time to prove the voters right.
