It’s not overstating it to say that No. 18 Ole Miss’ College Football Playoff hopes, according to most college football sportsbooks, rest on doing what should be quite straightforward: beating Oklahoma. But the Rebels have tripped up as heavy favorites already this season, losing to Kentucky at home as a 15-point favorite.
But the Sooners have deeper issues as they continue their quarterback indecision as well as deeper changes in the building. Jackson Arnold is back at the controls as QB1, but with a wide receiver room that remains extremely banged up, the question is how much will it really matter who is behind center? The game script should be simple for Ole Miss: get up early and make the Sooners chase you, something they simply have not proven they can do in back-to-back embarrassing losses to Texas and South Carolina. Another loss for OU will continue a disappointing debut in the SEC, but if the game is somehow close, Ole Miss’ defense needs to prove it can get a key stop when it needs to with the game on the line. Their inability to do so is why their postseason hopes are currently one loss away from being effectively ended — and that’s before they play Georgia next month.
Oklahoma vs. Ole Miss: Need to know
Oklahoma has a new play-caller: Tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley has taken over as offensive coordinator and play caller after Seth Littrell was fired for presiding over offense that simply could not get into gear. But how much of that was really Littrell’s fault with a wide receiver room that has been decimated by injury and an offensive line that has failed to gel with multiple pieces from the portal? Littrell is a favorite son in Norman and a captain of the 2000 national championship team. Perhaps coach Brent Venables is hoping to have the same luck predecessor Bob Stoops did when he fired Josh Heupel and hired Lincoln Riley.
Help on the way for Arnold? As Arnold returns to the starting role, he’ll at least have a chance to get one of his top-five wide receivers back as Deion Burks was listed as questionable on the first SEC availability report of the week. Burks has not played since going down in mid-September against Tennessee, and Arnold will need all the help he can get to keep pace with the Ole Miss offense.
Key piece could help Rebels: It might be bad news for Arnold and the Sooners, but Ole Miss could get a huge boost if edge rusher Princely Umanmielen can return to action after missing the last two games with an injury. Ole Miss is second in the nation in tackles for loss and seventh in sacks.
How to watch Oklahoma vs. Ole Miss live
Date: Saturday, October 26 | Time: 12 p.m. ET
Location: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium — Oxford, Mississippi
TV: ESPN | Live stream: fubo (Try for free)
Oklahoma vs. Ole Miss prediction, picks
This is a game that matches up well for people looking at the total. Ole Miss has a high wattage offense built to put up points in bunches, but the Oklahoma defense is one of the best in the SEC. It stands to reason the Sooners could get enough red zone stops to turns sevens into threes and help under bettors. On offense, it’s doubtful OU will put up a big number on the scoreboard with all of their offensive issues no matter who’s playing quarterback. Pick: Under 49
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