Ole Miss Rebels fans need to be rooting for surprising teams to lock in College Football Playoff spot amid Lane Kiffin drama

Ole Miss fans have more than just Lane Kiffin staying in Oxford to root for this weekend as their playoff spot is still not 100% secure.

Travis May — College Football Managing Editor
Add as preferred source on Google
© Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

2025 college football regular season is about to wrap up and the Ole Miss Rebels are 10-1 with just the Egg Bowl remaining to play. As long as they take care of business against Mississippi State, Lane Kiffin and his Rebels likely lock in the best season in the history of the program and coast to the College Football Playoff. However, if the worst does happen, and Ole Miss loses to Mississippi State, then the Rebels seriously might need some help to ensure a playoff spot.

Which teams should Ole Miss fans surprisingly be rooting for and against this weekend in order to lock in a real shot at a magical postseason run, regardless of what happens amid all the Lane Kiffin drama? Let’s dive in.

Missouri Tigers at Oklahoma Sooners

There’s almost no way that Ole Miss makes it to the SEC Championships Game due to their tie-breaker situations with Alabama and Georgia, so Rebels’ fans attention to turn to the “next teams up” in the SEC and some other surprising non-conference opponents. The Sooners have put together an impressive season against a tough schedule, but that needs to come to an end quickly if teams like Ole Miss want to feel comfortable heading into the College Football Playoff selection show.

One more impressive win for the Sooners and they might just flat out pass up the Rebels in seeding despite having one extra loss. The Sooners currently sit at the eight seed based on this past week’s playoff rankings, just two spots behind Ole Miss. Lane Kiffin and the Rebels could use a Missouri Tigers victory over Oklahoma this week. A close game might even do the trick considering the current state of the Tigers in recent weeks.

Cincinnati Bearcats vs. BYU Cougars

The Big 12 and ACC should both only be one-bid leagues this year, but the more teams in those conferences beat each other up the more certain that outcome will be. BYU still somehow only has one loss on the season, and it seems the only way they make it into the College Football Playoff is with a miraculous win in the Big 12 Championship Game over Texas Tech. However, just to make sure there are no at-large chances, and that they don’t somehow also land a home game over Ole Miss if BYU does sneak in, they need an extra loss on their resume. If Ole Miss loses, and BYU wins out except for the Big 12 Championship, the last at-large spot could come down to these two as well.

Virginia Tech vs Miami (FL)

The College Football Playoff selection committee continues to prop up Miami so they can squeeze them into the bracket if at all possible. Miami currently sits at 13th overall and doesn’t have a great path to the ACC Championship Game. However, if they do win out they’ll have strong wins over Notre Dame, Pitt, and just two one-possession losses to good teams in Louisville and SMU. If there is some chaos that takes place in front of them, Miami’s going to find themselves in the mix for the final at-large spot with Ole Miss if the Rebels don’t handle business.

In short, there are several teams that fit this description for Ole Miss fans. There are still far too many teams who could finish the season with one or two losses on their regular season record. Ole Miss fans need to root for absolute chaos in these final two weeks right behind them in the standings. That would ensure a home game if they beat Mississippi State and a possible spot in the playoff even if they don’t.

We’ll be back with more Ole Miss Rebels coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!

Related Articles