Football
Why Tomorrow’s Playoff Rankings Really Don’t Matter For Ole Miss
Where will Ole Miss land in the College Football Playoff rankings? The Rebels’ playoff hopes hinge on a crucial showdown with No. 2 Georgia.
One of the most important events of the year will take place Tuesday evening, the consequences of which will impact the lives of every person reading these words.
The College Football Playoff Committee will release its first rankings of the 2024 season Tuesday night. (What? Is there something else going on?). It’s a safe bet to say Ole Miss be in the Top 25.
But where exactly is another question that leads to the most important question of all: how many spots away from the top 12 will is the Rebels’ ranking be?
Ole Miss, ranked No. 16 in the AP Top 25 Poll and No. 12 in the AFCA Coaches Poll, figures to be on the outside of the playoffs in the first rankings. With three games left in the season there isn’t many more opportunities to earn a playoff spot, but the Rebels do have one of the best opportunities of anyone.
The Rebels host No. 2 Georgia on Saturday. A win over the Bulldogs would be enough to not only earn a top 12 ranking in the committee’s next rankings, but also gives Ole Miss a shot (albeit a long one) at playing for the SEC Championship.
Right now, there are five SEC teams with just one conference loss (Georgia, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Texas and LSU). Four more SEC teams have two conference losses (Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Missouri and Alabama) and two losses seems to be the cutoff point for SEC title contention.
If you look at those nine schools, a lot of them play each other in the final three weeks of the season. Georgia plays both Ole Miss and Tennessee. LSU and Alabama still have to play. Vanderbilt will end its season against LSU and Tennessee. And we can’t forget the return of the Texas-Texas A&M rivalry.
Throw in the fact teams like South Carolina and Arkansas have already proven themselves able to beat the best teams and the phrase “anything can happen” has never been truer.
The point of this, though, is to say that wherever Ole Miss ranked in tomorrow’s rankings doesn’t matter. No matter where the Rebels ranked, everything rests on the outcome of Saturday’s game against Georgia.
Back in the Vaught 🔒🏟️
🆚 Georgia
🗓️ Nov. 09
🕒 2:30 PM CT
📺 ABC#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/Zsk5uKcMfM— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 4, 2024
Win and the Rebels will be in line for a playoff spot.
Lose and the Rebels will be in line for a nice bowl game.
| Sat, Aug 31 |  | vs Furman | W, 76-0 |
| Sat, Sep 7 |  | vs Middle Tennessee | W, 52-3 |
| Sat, Sep 14 |  | @ Wake Forest | W, 40-6 |
| Sat, Sep 21 |  | vs Georgia Southern | W, 52-13 |
| Sat, Sep 28 |  | vs Kentucky | L, 20-17 |
| Sat, Oct 5 |  | @ South Carolina | W, 27-3 |
| Sat, Oct 12 |  | vs LSU | L, 29-26 (2 OT) |
| Sat, Oct 26 |  | vs Oklahoma | W, 26-14 |
| Sat, Nov 2 |  | @ Arkansas | W, 63-35 |
| Sat, Nov 16 |  | vs Georgia | W, 28-10 |
| Sat, Nov 23 |  | @ Florida | L, 24-17 |
| Sat, Nov 30 |  | vs Mississippi State | W, 26-14 |
| Thu, Jan 2 |  | vs Duke (Gator Bowl) | 6:30 PM • ESPN |