STARKVILLE, Miss. — The only way to make this Egg Bowl victory any better for Ole Miss would have been if coach Lane Kiffin vowed to block phone calls from Florida and Louisiana area codes and signed a lifetime pledge to the Rebels.
Kiffin’s stock soars while multiple marquee programs hunt for their next coach, but let the handwringing over Kiffin’s future wait just a minute.
Savor this sweet ride, Rebels. How sweet? Perhaps Sugar Bowl sweet.
No. 8 Ole Miss matched a program record for single-season victories with its 31-21 triumph against Mississippi State on Thursday at Davis Wade Stadium amid cold, rainy, windy conditions.
If the 12-team playoff that college football officials have debated these past several months were in place today, the Rebels (10-2, 6-2 SEC) would be playoff bound. As it stands, they await a New Year’s Six bowl bid after placing second in the nation’s most rugged division.
For Mississippi State (7-5, 4-4), a few what-could-have-been moments kept a good season from becoming a great one.
Mississippi head coach Lane Kiffin walks off the field after a 31-21 victory against Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl.
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The Bulldogs’ defense admirably contained one of the nation’s best offenses for three quarters, but Mississippi State squandered one opportunity after another when it had possession. Each of MSU’s four first-half possessions advanced to at least the Ole Miss 22-yard line, but six halftime points and a pair of missed field goals were all the Bulldogs had to show.
Will Rogers overthrew an open Makai Polk in the end zone on one red-zone opportunity that turned into three points. Just before halftime, Jo’quavious Marks and…
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