The Ole Miss Rebels and head coach Pete Golding travel to take on Steve Sarkisian’s Texas Longhorns at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday in Austin, Texas. This Texas squad needs a huge victory after a couple of tough weeks. The Longhorns sit at 4-2 and rank No. 19 in the latest AP poll.

On the other side, the Rebels are 5-1 and ranked No. 7 in the nation. That makes this a top-20 matchup between SEC teams. With Sarkisian and quarterback Arch Manning desperately needing a big outing, the pressure in Austin is intense.

With the help of my colleagues at A to Z Sports, we put together score predictions for this Ole Miss at Texas contest. Here is how our staff sees the game playing out.

Brandon Little, A to Z Sports Ohio State

Texas is in a must-win situation this week, and it’s a tough ask against a good Ole Miss team. The Longhorns can’t afford a third straight loss, or they’re going from preseason national championship champion pick for many to not even making the college football playoff. Another loss could lead to the eventual departure of both Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning down the road. This game is that big.

The Longhorns are going to have to rely on their defense against an Ole Miss offense that’s dangerous with Trinidad Chambliss and Kewan Lacy spearheading things. Texas has to hope for an improvement from Manning or they’re just, or they’re just not winning this game. I think the noise of Manning being benched, if this continues, wakes him up and he plays well in a big moment. Texas has to treat this like a college football playoff game, and I think they come out on top in the end of a close battle.

Final score prediction: Texas 27, Ole Miss 24.

Rob Gregson, A to Z Sports Alabama

This is the game of the week in college football, and I don’t think it’s close. On one side, Trinidad Chambliss and the Rebels desperately want to avoid their second loss of the season. They have their eyes set on Atlanta and beyond.

The Florida loss looks better after what the Gators did to Texas last week, but that brings me to the Longhorns. 3 losses with a week to go in October would be the nail in the coffin for Texas and, honestly, the Arch Manning and Steve Sarkisian relationship. Sark is already threatening playing time and giving others first-team reps in practice. This is a must-win as it gets for the Longhorns, and there will be more tests down the road. Give me Texas in a tight one that has a lot of scoring, given the recent play of Ole Miss’s defense and the Kylan Simmons injury.

Final score prediction: Texas 33, Ole Miss 30.

Tyler Forness, A to Z Sports Florida

As a college quarterback, I am out on Arch Manning and Steve Sarkisian as the head coach. I think there is blame to go on both sides, but it’s just not working. As far as Manning is concerned, he’s missing reads and isn’t confident in seeing the field. I don’t know if that will get fixed anytime soon, and that could be a problem against Ole Miss.

The Rebels are humming right now, and it’s likely going to be easier for Trondedt Chambliss to operate with Colin Simmons out for multiple weeks. I’ll take the Rebels to win this one on the road.

Final score prediction: Ole Miss 38, Texas 27.

Craig Smith, A to Z Sports Miami

Texas’s season is officially on the ropes after another loss to Florida, and I think it’s Ole Miss that delivers the knockout blow to the Longhorns’ playoff chances in 2026 on Saturday. The Longhorns allowed 158 yards rushing last week to Florida, and backup quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. threw for 2 touchdowns.

Ole Miss has looked like a machine the last 2 weeks on offense with Kewan Lacey back. The Rebels also had the best defensive performance of the season last Saturday, throttling Missouri 31-3. While the defense won’t be nearly this dominant against— that dominant against Texas, it’ll be good enough for Ole Miss to jump in from front comfortably and hang on to get out of Austin with the win.

Final score prediction: Ole Miss 34, Texas 27.

Ryan Roberts, A to Z Sports Notre Dame

It’s now or never for Arch Manning, with head coach Steve Sarkisian toying with the idea of giving KJ Lacey some first-team reps. While Manning has been extremely up and down, the talent is still all there, and with a little bit of urgency, I actually do think that Arch is going to play his best game of the 2026 college football season.

The Ole Miss team, led by Trinidad Chambliss, is a great offensive team, but the defense has been very hit or miss depending on what week you’re talking about. Some weeks they look dominant; other weeks they look a little bit pedestrian. With Texas having the home field advantage, I think that the Longhorns get out of— get out of the game with the victory. Keeping their college football playoff hopes alive, at least for now.

Final score prediction: Texas 31, Ole Miss 27.

That leaves three of our five staffers picking the Longhorns, though nobody expects a comfortable night in Austin. We will know where Texas and Manning stand by the end of Saturday night.