The No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels enter SEC play on Saturday after turning in one of the most dominant starts to any college football season on record, particularly on offense. Their first opponent in SEC play: The Kentucky Wildcats, who have already played a pair of conference games and rank among the top 10 in FBS in total defense (217.0 yards per game).
A clash of the Titans is set to happen in an underrated SEC game in Week 5.
Kentucky vs. Ole Miss Betting Preview
All Kentucky vs. Ole Miss odds are from DraftKings Sportsbook and are correct as of Thursday, Sept. 26.
- Spread
Ole Miss -17.5 - Moneyline
Kentucky +550, Ole Miss -800 - Over/Under
53.5 - Game Time
12 p.m. ET - Location
Vaught-Hemingway Stadium | Oxford, MS - Predicted Weather at Kick
71 degrees, mostly sunny and warm - How To Watch
ABC/ESPN+
Ole Miss is one of three SEC teams, along with Texas and Tennessee, to kick off the season 4-0 both straight-up and against the spread. While the moneyline has tightened a bit midweek, the Rebels remain the favorites. They’ve been favored by at least 21 points in every game this season and boast a strong 9-2-2 record as the spread favorite since the start of 2023.
Under Lane Kiffin, the Rebels have been a solid bet in non-conference games, covering the spread nearly 74% of the time (14-5-1 ATS). However, that success hasn’t translated as well to SEC matchups, where they’ve covered in less than 44% of games (13-17-3 ATS) during the same period.
After easily going over the total in their 76-0 season-opening win against Furman, the last three Ole Miss games have all hit the under.
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On the other side, Kentucky has covered the spread in three of its four games this season, including their lone game as an underdog, where they narrowly lost to Georgia by just one point as 22-point underdogs.
Since the start of the 2021 season, the Wildcats have covered the spread in 11 of their last 19 games as underdogs. Kentucky’s games, especially in SEC play, have also tended to be low-scoring, with 16 of their last 26 conference games going under the total.
Prediction for Kentucky vs. Ole Miss
Lane Kiffin and Co. have certainly raised the expectations in Oxford, even before the dismantling of Furman, Middle Tennessee State, Wake Forest and Georgia Southern.
The Rebels rank first in scoring offense and tied for first in scoring defense among all FBS teams. But their warm-up is over, as Kentucky brings a legit SEC defense to Oxford. The Wildcats held a potent Georgia offense to 13 points just two weeks ago.
While Dart has a plethora of weapons on offense, his connection with Harris is as strong as any quarterback-receiver duo in the nation. Without a shutdown corner on the roster, Kentucky will hope that defensive tackle Deone Walker, the Wildcats’ best pro prospect and a likely first-round pick in next year’s NFL Draft, can generate pressure on Dart and force him off his spot.
Getting to play this game at home is huge for the Rebels, whose next two matchups come in tough road environments at South Carolina on Oct. 5 and at LSU on Oct. 12.
While Mark Stoops, now Kentucky’s all-time winningest head coach, has a strong defense that recently slowed down Carson Beck and the Georgia Bulldogs, this is a step up in weight class that isn’t ready for what the Rebels bring to the table.
Prediction: Ole Miss 45, Kentucky 6
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