Ole Miss opens the season hosting Georgia State on Saturday night in Oxford, and the oddsmakers are firmly on the Lane train to get the season kicked off.
This is in no way shocking as Kiffin’s offense has piled up points each of his seasons in Oxford. Additionally, his teams are 27-3 at Vaught Hemingway Stadium since his arrival, but let’s be honest no one is thinking an upset is in the cards on Saturday.
All of our odds are coming courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook where the Rebels
are favored by 34.5 against Georgia State. This is the first time these two teams have played each other, so there’s no series history to pull from though the Panthers are not new to playing SEC teams.
Last season, Georgia State shocked Vanderbilt 36-32 in Atlanta though the team went on to only go 3-9. Vandy meanwhile went on to completely turn the college football world upside down in beating Alabama later in the season. In 2023, LSU demolished Georgia St. 56-14 in Baton Rouge during a much more successful 7-6 season.
The last time the Panthers opened up an SEC team’s schedule was the year before in 2022 when it traveled to Columbia, SC to get dismantled 35-14 by Sakerlina. The last time it BEAT an SEC team on its home field to open the season was only a few years before that when GSU went to damn Rocky Top and beat the Vols, 38-30.
I say all that to say this program may not have all the history, tradition and talent on paper, but its players will not be intimidated by a night game at the Vaught. The vast majority of this Panthers roster is from Georgia, Alabama, and Florida from some pretty high profile high school programs, so this moment is huge for these players to come out and surprise Ole Miss.
On the flip side, the Rebels are replacing 18 of its 22 starters from last season’s double digit win team. Quarterback Austin Simmons has had considerable hype from coaches and some members of the media who remember his one phenomenal drive against Georgia last season.
Will the Ole Miss defense reload from first round draft pick Walter Nolen and a nasty defensive line? Can the transfer skill players like De’Zhaun Stribling and Harrison Wallace III fill the place of Tre Harris and Jordan Watkins?
If the Rebels come out and blast GSU by five touchdowns as FanDuel predicts, Ole Miss fans are going to be pleased to see things clicking this early. There are a lot of changes for this roster, and a lopsided win would be a sign of things to come this season.
