Ole Miss delivered a stunning blow to Georgia, defeating them 28-10 in what can only be described as a season-defining game on Saturday evening.
This wasn’t just any win; it was a dominant performance that showcased Ole Miss’s ability to compete at the highest level, which is something that many believed the Rebels could do from the start of the season, before they suffered two losses.
The ripple effects will be felt in both the SEC and the College Football Playoff picture.
With this win, Ole Miss has thrown the SEC into a frenzy of tiebreakers and potential upsets. Having already suffered losses to LSU and Kentucky, the Rebels' path to the SEC Championship is still not a straight shot, but this victory over Georgia has rejuvenated their playoff hopes.
For Ole Miss to secure a spot in the SEC title game, several unlikely scenarios would need to happen, but an at-large berth is not off-the-table by any stretch of the imagination now. The loser of Alabama-LSU will now have three losses and be essentially eliminated from College Football Playoff contention.
If Ole Miss wins out, they could join a flurry of other SEC teams with two losses or less — including Tennessee, Georgia, Texas A&M, Texas, the winner of LSU-Alabama, and Missouri. Right now, Texas and Tennessee are the only two teams in the SEC with one overall loss, while there is a total of four teams with one conference loss. That list includes LSU, who will play Alabama tonight.
So, the big question here is: How many teams will the SEC get in the College Football Playoff and does this win propel Ole Miss into that group?
With so many big-time games left to be played in conference — including Georgia-Tennessee and Texas A&M-Texas — as well as upsets that could be brewing, there's really no way to know. At this point, it seems unlikely that a 9-3 SEC team gets into the playoff, but acknowledging that, it would be hard to leave Georgia out if they were to lose to Tennessee and finish 9-3, right?
Ultimately, Ole Miss’s decisive win over Georgia has made an already unpredictable SEC season even more chaotic. As the weeks wind down, fans can expect plenty of high-stakes matchups, unexpected upsets, and a College Football Playoff race that’s more chaotic than ever.