Top SEC Games: Week 10 Edition
Oct 31, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Ole Miss Rebels quarterback Chad Kelly (1) celebrates after the game against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium. The Rebels beat the Tigers 27-19. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
Arkansas VS 18 Ole Miss
Location: Vaught Hemingway Stadium, Oxford, MS
Game Time: Saturday, November 7 3:30PM ET
TV: CBS
Ole Miss. Friend or foe? If you’re the rest of the SEC, you’re pulling against Ole Miss from here out. The SEC’s favorite team this week? Arkansas. Ole Miss, if you can believe this, still controls its own destiny inside conference play. If the Rebels were to win out they would face off in the SEC championship, most likely against Florida. Can you imagine the headlines leading up to that rematch? However, the problem with the Rebels is the loss to Memphis.
Due to that loss, the Rebels would have to climb into the top 4 from their 18th starting position. Most around the conference feel Ole Miss is in a hole too deep to climb out of, and if the Rebels win out they could essentially keep the SEC out of the College Football Playoff.
Oct 31, 2015; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks running back Alex Collins (3) rushes against the Tennessee Martin Skyhawks at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Arkansas defeated UTM 63-28. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
What a back drop for the CBS afternoon choice of the week. On to the game: Arkansas enters after destroying UT-Martin. Yes, the same UT-Martin Ole Miss threw up 70+ points on to start the season. We’ve seen that before. Still, the Razorbacks moved the ball at ease and bring a surprisingly balanced attack to Oxford.
Ole Miss seems improved against the run this year, but the pass defense has been suspect at times. Arkansas’s Brandon Allen will surely look to exploit mismatches with his arsenal of tight ends. On the flip side, Arkansas’s defense gave up massive amounts of yards to UT-Martin. How much of that is the product of sleep walking to a blowout win? We’ll find out Saturday afternoon when Chad Kelly and the Ole Miss receiving corps attack Arkansas’s secondary.
The wildcard in this game will be Ole Miss’s ability to run the football. The past two weekends Ole Miss has found a decent running game, though competition has been against bottom half rush defenses in Texas A&M and Auburn. Still, if the Rebels can find a run game, they would be able to match some of Arkansas’s game control tendencies. Look for an interesting matchup on the field, sidelines, and in the coach’s box.
Next: Playoff Eliminator?