Headlines
What Needs to Happen for Ole Miss to be in the Playoffs
Coach Hugh Freeze says a word of encouragement as Ole Miss football players sway back and forth before entering the field. (Photo by Danny Dickey)
After losing two games within the first three weeks, Ole Miss seemed to be out of the playoff picture. Now, after winning convincingly in the past two weeks, there has been a lot of debate on whether or not the Rebels still have a shot.
Since Ole Miss’s losses came so early and against quality opponents, the Rebels never actually fell out of the Top 25. They are now ranked back in the top 15, and have a fighting chance to find themselves in the top 5 by the season’s end. Still, Ole Miss, if continuing to play well, would need a stroke of good fortune to find themselves in the playoffs. Here are some things that need to fall in the Rebels’ favor over the next few months for this dream to become a reality.
Florida State needs to finish strong.
One of the reasons why the Rebels remain in the playoff race is because of their quality of losses. This aspect of their resume’ needs to remain, because Ole Miss needs all the help they can receive.
Undefeated teams need to lose.
A two-loss SEC team can get in over a one-loss team from just about any other conference. But, could they get in over an undefeated team? Nope. Ole Miss needs to hope that the Washington’s of the world lose a game or two along the way.
Alabama needs to lose…twice.
In order for Ole Miss to make it to Atlanta, the Rebels would need to win out, and mighty Alabama would have to lose two conference games. It seems impossible that the king of college football would lose two games, but Ole Miss needs it to happen. It would be hard for the playoff committee to turn down the champion from the best division in college football.
The Rebels need to win.
If Ole Miss cannot win the remainder of their games, nothing else matters. The first step in Ole Miss’s quest to the playoffs is the simplest of them all: just win.
Cole Crenshaw is a intern for HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at tccrensh@go.olemiss.edu.
Follow HottyToddy.com on Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat @hottytoddynews. Like its Facebook page: If You Love Oxford and Ole Miss…
| Mon, Nov 4 |  | vs Long Island University | W, 90-60 |
| Fri, Nov 8 |  | vs Grambling | W, 66-64 |
| Tue, Nov 12 |  | vs South Alabama | W, 64-54 |
| Sat, Nov 16 |  | vs Colorado State | W, 84-69 |
| Thu, Nov 21 |  | vs Oral Roberts | L, 100-68 |
| Thu, Nov 28 |  | vs BYU | W, 96-85 OT |
| Fri, Nov 29 |  | vs 13 Purdue | L, 80-78 |
| Tue, Dec 3 |  | @ Louisville | W, 86-63 |
| Sat, Dec 7 |  | vs Lindenwood | W, 86-53 |
| Sat, Dec 14 |  | vs Southern Miss | W, 77-46 |
| Tue, Dec 17 |  | vs Southern | W, 74-61 |
| Sat, Dec 21 |  | vs Queens University | W, 80-62 |
| Sat, Dec 28 |  | @ Memphis | L, 87-70 |
| Sat, Jan 4 |  | vs Georgia | W, 63-51 |
| Wed, Jan 8 |  | @ 23 Arkansas | W, 73-66 |
| Sat, Jan 11 |  | vs LSU | W, 77-65 |
| Tue, Jan 14 |  | @ 5 Alabama | W, 74-64 |
| Sat, Jan 18 |  | @ 17 Mississippi State | L, 81-84 |
| Wed, Jan 22 |  | vs 13 Texas A&M | L, 62-63 |
| Sat, Jan 25 |  | @ Missouri | L, 83-75 |
| Wed, Jan 29 |  | vs Texas | W, 72-69 |
| Sat, Feb 1 |  | vs 2 Auburn | L, 92-82 |
| Tue, Feb 4 |  | vs 10 Kentucky | W, 98-84 |
| Sat, Feb 8 | | @ LSU | 7:30 PM SECN |
| Wed, Feb 12 |  | @ South Carolina | 6:00 PM SECN |
| Sat, Feb 15 | | vs 17 Mississippi State | 5:00 PM TBA |
| Sat, Feb 22 |  | @ Vanderbilt | 2:30 PM SECN |
| Wed, Feb 26 | | @ 2 Auburn | 6:00 PM TBA |
| Sat, Mar 1 |  | vs 12 Oklahoma | 1:00 PM TBA |
| Wed, Mar 5 |  | vs 1 Tennessee | 8:00 PM TBA |
| Sat, Mar 8 |  | @ 6 Florida | 5:00 PM SECN |