Ole Miss blew another lead, this one not nearly as big, but one that hurt just as much.

The No. 12 Rebels led only briefly Saturday night at No. 22 Arkansas and lost 34-30 to end any outside Playoff chance it had. It was the third straight loss to Arkansas.

5 TAKEAWAYS

Now hope for the best: Best possible bowl that is. There was a very minute chance of a Playoff spot, but that is gone. Wins over LSU, Auburn and Texas A&M over the next four weeks will soften the blow of Saturday’s loss and can be the saving grace of Ole Miss not spending Dec. 30 up the road in Memphis for the Liberty Bowl. Not to mention, Georgia losing to Vanderbilt isn’t helping the résumé.

Sub-.500 in the West: Ole Miss isn’t winning the West. That’s up to Alabama and Texas A&M at the moment, but the Rebels are now 1-2, which hurts considering the high hopes. Ole Miss’ defense isn’t pulling its weight, standing as one of only two SEC teams right now allowing more than 30 points per game along with Kentucky.

Next up is a date at LSU: The Rebels will be underdogs for the 8 p.m. CT kick against former head coach and LSU interim coach Ed Orgeron. Orgeron was 10-25 in three years in Oxford. He’s 2-0 so far at LSU. The Magnolia Bowl is now magnified with Ole Miss’ longer-term goals stymied by the Razorbacks.

Bad result after different start: For the first time all season, Ole Miss did not score on its opening drive, trailed at the end of the first quarter and did not lead at the half. It was a very different way to play and a much different way to lose than the blown three-touchdown leads against Florida State and Alabama.

Chad Kelly’s last attempt was guts: Down to a 4th-and-16 on the Rebels’ final chance, QB Chad Kelly didn’t have a lot of room to run but did anyway. He took off down the left side and was bent on getting the first down. The ball was perfectly hit by Santos Ramirez to force a fumble, but you won’t see a gutsier run all season than that effort by Kelly.

REPORT CARD

Offense: B – Something was off. Kelly and the receivers weren’t on the same page much of the night. There were a couple of standard, quick-scoring drives, but the run game was back to below average and Van Jefferson and Damore’ea Stringfellow combined for only three catches. That said, it was the 10th straight 30-point game dating back to last season.

Defense: C – Arkansas had 27 first downs and the game-winning drive looked easy. Ole Miss allowed first downs on a 4th-and-4 and a 3rd-and-9. After the 3rd-and-9, Rawleigh Williams III took off for a 22-yard run, part of his 180. Arkansas was only 5-of-16 on third down but made a few big ones

Special teams: B – Can’t miss an extra point. Who knows how that could have affected the final drive if down by 3 points instead of 4. Otherwise, Carlos Davis had 87 yards on 4 kick returns, nearly a touchdown on his first. Gary Wunderlich made his only field goal attempt, 33 yards.

Coaching: A – Guys were in the right spots and coaches can’t make open-field tackles.

Overall: B – A C would have been harsh. A play here or there and Ole Miss is in the top 10 this week. Struggles against the run got them again, and the offense wasn’t pinpoint enough for the one extra score the Rebels needed.

GAME PLAN

The Rebels held Austin Allen in check overall. His 61.0 QBR was his second-lowest of the season, but he made plays when he needed. Meanwhile, Williams went for nearly 200 yards to lead a balanced effort.

GAME BALLS

DE Marquis Haynes: Haynes was shaken up in the first half but returned just fine. He had 5 tackles, including a sack, a tackle for loss and an interception.

TE Evan Engram: Continues to prove he is the best in the country with 7 catches for 111 yards and a touchdown. He and Kelly have unbelievable chemistry.

DB Zedrick Woods: Had 10 tackles, his second double-digit performance of the season and first since the opener against Florida State.