The Sugar Bowl scoreboard operator could be very busy tonight.
That’s because the game is a matchup of two of the most explosive scoring offenses in the nation with Ole Miss facing Oklahoma State in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in a prime time New Year’s matchup.
OSU averages 41.2 points a game, while Ole Miss averages 40.2.
The Rebels are a seven-point favorite, and I totally understand why.
Ole Miss has better talent, a better defense and more momentum coming into the postseason.
No. 12 Ole Miss is rolling into the postseason with the momentum of a pair of Top-25 wins in its last two games. For No. 16 Oklahoma State, it’s just the opposite.
The Rebels closed the regular by beating then-No. 20 LSU and then-No. 21 Mississippi State by double digits en route to a 9-3 season. The Cowboys have the better record at 10-2, but their world came crashing down around them late in the season. An undefeated start to their season was snuffed out in week 11 when they lost to Baylor. A week later, Oklahoma took them behind the woodshed in a 58-23 beating in the final game of their regular season.
Offensively, it’s going to be an even matchup. Defense is where this game is won, and that will swing the pendulum in the favor of the Rebels.
Yes, the Ole Miss defense has had some ups and downs, but the OSU defense has simply been pathetic in its last five games — giving up 588 yards per contest.
The Cowboys, who have allowed at least 390 yards passing in three of their last five games, will have no answer for Chad Kelly and Laquon Treadwell.
Those two have to be licking their chops coming into this matchup. A shootout will certainly play in favor of the Rebels, who are 8-1 when scoring 25 points or more in 2015.
A year after getting flat-out embarrassed by TCU in the Peach Bowl, Ole Miss will make the most of another shot at a Big 12 team. The Rebels win 44-35.
