Well, it was nice while it lasted; two rivals, setting aside their differences for the greater good of a long-suffering state.

It was rather honorable, even a bit touching. But now it’s over.

No. 1 Mississippi State and No. 4 Ole Miss had been supporting the you know what out of one another all season in hopes of both reaching the Egg Bowl with unblemished records, all but ensuring both teams could reach the College Football Playoff this winter. Then Ole Miss lost to LSU, and it all flew out the window.

The Mississippi schools needed one another to stay unbeaten as long as possible for both to reach the playoffs. Now, even if Mississippi State remains unbeaten until the Egg Bowl, both teams are staring down negatives entering the showdown in Oxford.

If MSU wins, it eliminates Ole Miss from playoff contention. If a one-loss Ole Miss team beats Mississippi State, however, the Bulldogs would have to watch Ole Miss spoil their perfect season along with stealing the SEC West crown.

Had both teams been undefeated, it could have been the game of the year in the SEC and the greatest game in Egg Bowl history. The game would be an immaculate culmination to the best football season in Magnolia State history. Now, it’s an elimination game for one side and a potential spoiler game for the other.

Both teams looked like they’d have some margin for error in this season’s finale, but that’s no longer the case.

The dream scenario is dead and buried. Mississippians hoping both teams would stay perfect to keep their state on the forefront of the college football universe have returned to supporting one side or the other.

Even Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen chimed in on his distaste for “that team from the North.”

“It’s nothing personal … It’s just more of a dislike of the institution as a whole,” Mullen said.

Ole Miss has one game left against a ranked opponent prior to the Egg Bowl — this week’s home showdown with Auburn. Mississippi State also has just one game left against a ranked team before its showdown with Ole Miss — a road test against Alabama on Nov. 15.

Ole Miss will reach the Egg Bowl with two losses at most, and it’s unlikely Mississippi State will have more than one loss entering that contest. Instead, it will be a hotly-contested elimination game, be it for a playoff spot or a West Division title.

It’s been less than a week since Ole Miss lost, but all that brotherly love in the Magnolia State has turned back into unadulterated hate on both sides.

Any great rivalry game needs some level of disdain between the two participants; it’s just an unwritten rule of sports, especially at the collegiate level. However, if both Ole Miss and State were undefeated in the Egg Bowl, the stakes would have been so high there’d have been no need for mutual hate leading up to the game.

Desperation to capitalize on a great opportunity this season necessitates hate. Neither team ever played in a BCS bowl, and it’s unknown if either will climb this high in the national polls ever again.

We all knew Ole Miss and Mississippi State couldn’t stay friends forever, but it’s shame it all had to end so abruptly. That’s the nature of the current SEC West, and both teams would rather remain in contention than pat one another on the back.

Rest assured, Mississippians, the Egg Bowl will still be a premier game this season.