The Ole Miss Rebels are licking their wounds for the second time this season after a 31-24 loss to the Texas Longhorns last Saturday night in Austin. Ole Miss sits at No. 12 in the AP poll at 5-2 overall and 3-2 in the SEC, which puts the Rebels on the fringe of College Football Playoff consideration.

However, the Rebels have an opportunity ahead to climb back firmly into the playoff picture. They can also stay alive in what has turned into a tight SEC Championship Game race.

The first task comes Saturday afternoon in Oxford, where the Rebels host the Auburn Tigers. Auburn is a bit of an enigma. The Tigers beat Georgia 27-24 in Athens in one of the most shocking results of the entire college football season on Oct. 17. Last weekend at home against LSU, though, Auburn got handled decisively in a 38-17 loss to Lane Kiffin’s team.

This is an Auburn team that could leave Oxford with a win if Ole Miss doesn’t play its game. So the Rebels have to take care of their own business first. After that, plenty of other action across the SEC and the nation deserves their fans’ attention.

A huge game in Atlanta should have the attention of Rebel fans

The biggest SEC game for Ole Miss’ title game and playoff outlook takes place in Atlanta. The Florida Gators and Georgia Bulldogs meet at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and Rebel fans should be locked in.

Florida is No. 17 and 5-2 overall. As Ole Miss fans know all too well, the Gators trounced the Rebels last month in Gainesville. That means Florida holds the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Georgia is one of two one-loss SEC teams remaining, so it might seem natural for the Rebels to want the Bulldogs to lose. However, Georgia comes to Oxford next weekend, and Ole Miss will need to win that game anyway to keep its playoff and SEC title hopes alive.

Meanwhile, a Florida win would open the door for the Gators to run the table and finish 10-2. That could be a big problem for the Rebels. So Ole Miss fans should be saying “go Dawgs” on Saturday afternoon.

Two other SEC games carry weight. Texas, now 5-2, hosts the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Saturday night, while 5-2 Missouri travels to face the Arkansas Razorbacks.

The more losses the Longhorns pick up, the better, since Texas owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over Ole Miss. That’s a spot where Rebel fans should be cheering for Mississippi State, if they can stomach it. (I’m sure many cannot.)

Missouri is a different story. The Tigers are 5-2, but Ole Miss holds the head-to-head edge thanks to a 31-3 win on Oct. 17. If the Rebels are going to reach the playoff, they will very likely have to do it at 10-2. With Missouri at No. 23, it’s unlikely the Tigers could win out and finish ahead of a 10-2 Ole Miss team. On top of that, the better Missouri does, the better the Rebels’ resume looks.

So Ole Miss fans should be saying, “Go Tigers”.

Other games of interest around the country

From an at-large perspective, losses by as many top-15 teams as possible would be ideal for the Rebels. A few games outside the SEC stand out.

Unbeaten No. 6 Utah visits Cincinnati, which just knocked off previously unbeaten Texas Tech. The following week, the Utes play BYU. Rebel fans should be hoping Cincinnati takes down Utah this weekend. That way, either BYU or Utah would come out of the Nov. 7 Holy War with two losses, which would help Ole Miss and every other 10-2 hopeful.

In the Big Ten, Minnesota travels to No. 4 Indiana. The Hoosiers have been playing well, but so have the Gophers, who sit at 5-2 overall and 3-1 in conference play. It’s “go Gophers” on Saturday.

No. 2 Ohio State also plays at USC. The Buckeyes are a touchdown favorite, but they’ll be trying to win with a backup quarterback on a cross-country trip. Rebel fans should be saying “go Trojans” in hopes Ohio State picks up a second loss.

A few long shots round out the slate. Miami plays at North Carolina, UCLA hosts Nevada, and Notre Dame faces Navy in Foxborough. All three favorites are laying more than two touchdowns, so an upset isn’t likely. But an upset would still help the Rebels’ cause in any of those games.

As this season has shown, though, nothing is impossible. We’ll see if Saturday delivers some help for Oxford.