What are Ole Miss' bowl projections after second loss of the season?
Ole Miss took a tough one on the chin last Saturday against Alabama in a 30-24 loss that easily could have been in the win column for the home team.
Instead, the No. 14 Rebels suffered their second loss of the season and second of their last three games. Despite the loss they are 8-2 through their first 10 games for a second straight season.
Having the success Ole Miss has had all year allowed for its bowl projections to improve nearly week-to-week. But the setbacks at Baton Rouge and at home to the Tide two days ago have stalled that upward trajectory.
A College Football Playoff berth is out of the question now and the program’s first trip to Atlanta to play in the Southeastern Conference title game will have to wait another year.
With all of that said Ole Miss is now on the outside looking through the window at a New Year’s Six berth that might go by the wayside, unless more chaos ensues the final two weeks of the regular season plus Championship Saturday on Dec. 3.
As things stand right now, it is looking very likely Ole Miss will hear its name called for one specific bowl game on Dec. 4 as the bowl prognosticators are very uniform in their projections this week.
Related: Making the Grade: How did Ole Miss fare in loss to Alabama?
Ole Miss is the consensus pick to represent the SEC in Orlando in early January.
Of the eight outlets that I pull bowl projections from it is a perfect eight-for-eight on Ole Miss being projected for the Vrbo Citrus Bowl on Jan. 2.
ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura and March Schlabach along with CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm and Sports Illustrated’s Richard Johnson all have Ole Miss playing at Camping World Stadium at Noon ET on the second day of 2023.
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All of the aforementioned writers have the same representative from the Big Ten taking on the Rebels in Penn State.
Action Network’s Brett McMurphy and Pro Football Network have Illinois taking on Ole Miss while Athlon Sports has projected Purdue to play the Rebels.
There does not appear to be much wiggle room to improve bowl standing without help.
LSU and Alabama are both projected for a NY6 bowl berth with the Tide a popular Orange Bowl pick and the Tigers getting a ‘home’ game in the Sugar Bowl at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
Now if LSU gets beaten by Georgia it would give them three losses, one more than Alabama and Ole Miss if both win out. Of course that could mean nothing since the Rebels two losses are to those two teams.
Tennessee getting back into the CFP Top 4, as is becoming a popular projection, would give two SEC teams back in the playoffs and could bump Ole Miss as one of the top three SEC teams not in the Playoffs.
Would that give the Rebels enough hope for maybe a Cotton Bowl berth? Tough to say as more CFP Top 10 teams are going to also have to have some bad finishes to their regular seasons.
For now, plan to pack some sunscreen and Mickey Mouse ears to see the Rebels in the postseason.
Here are Ole Miss current bowl projections:
ESPN
- Kyle Bonagura – Citrus Bowl vs. Penn State (Jan. 2)
- Mark Schlabach – Citrus Bowl vs. Penn State
CBS SPORTS
- Jerry Palm – Citrus Bowl vs. Penn State
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
- Richard Johnson – Citrus Bowl vs. Penn State
ACTION NETWORK
- Brett McMurphy – Citrus Bowl vs. Illinois
SPORTING NEWS
- Citrus Bowl vs. Penn State
COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS
- Citrus Bowl vs. Penn State
ATHLON SPORTS
- Citrus Bowl vs. Purdue
PRO FOOTBALL NETWORK
- Citrus Bowl vs. Illinois
