Ole Miss reached the CFP semifinals and Vanderbilt won 10 games for the first time in 122 years — and both programs show up to this Friday night in Nashville with brand-new faces running the show.
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MISSVAN
MISSVAN
OverUnder
Best BetOle Miss
Ole Miss walks in with the more proven starting quarterback and a program that just played in a CFP semifinal, while Vanderbilt is handing the keys to either a true freshman or a backup with zero career starts. That kind of quarterback uncertainty on the other side makes the Rebels the safer bet to leave Nashville with the win, even on the road.
Ole Miss
+Reached CFP semifinals last season
+Chambliss returns after 3,937-yard, 22-TD season
−First-time head coach in Pete Golding
−Defense rebuilding under two new coordinators
Vanderbilt
+First 10-win season in program's 122 years
+Alexander, deep WR room return with portal additions
−Lost Heisman finalist Pavia and TE Stowers
−Unsettled QB battle between Curtis, Berlowitz
Trinidad Chambliss is back under center for the Rebels after throwing for 3,937 yards and 22 touchdowns against just 3 interceptions last season, and he's doing it for a new boss — DC-turned-head coach Pete Golding took over when Lane Kiffin bolted for LSU. Vanderbilt's answer is a lot less settled. Diego Pavia, the program's first-ever Heisman finalist, is gone, and Clark Lea still hasn't picked between 5-star freshman Jared Curtis and steady veteran Blaze Berlowitz to replace him.
Curtis was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2026 class and flipped from Georgia to stay close to home, but Lea has been careful not to crown him too early, pointing to the mental processing that still needs polish. Berlowitz, meanwhile, spent years learning the offense behind Pavia and could easily be the Week 1 starter if the staff wants stability over ceiling. Whoever wins the job will have real weapons around him — Sedrick Alexander averaged 5.4 yards a carry last year, and the receiving room got an upgrade even after losing tight end Eli Stowers to the NFL.
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MISS Ole Miss
VAN Vanderbilt
Ole Miss isn't walking in unscathed either. Golding is learning on the job as a first-time head coach, and he's rebuilding his own old unit with two new defensive coordinator hires, Patrick Toney and Marcus Woodson, after the Rebels rode a nasty defense to that CFP run. Whatever shows up on the field Friday night, both sides have real questions to answer before this one kicks off.
Ole Miss Rebels
Sep 25?@ Florida—
Sep 19?vs LSU—
Sep 12?vs Charlotte—
Sep 6?vs Louisville—
Vanderbilt Commodores
Oct 2?@ Georgia—
Sep 25?@ Auburn—
Sep 19?vs NC State—
Sep 12?vs Delaware—
Sep 5?vs Austin Peay—
Recent form.
The Rebels have the higher floor walking in — a CFP semifinal appearance and a returning starting quarterback are hard to argue with, especially given Chambliss's efficiency numbers from a year ago. But new coaching staffs are unpredictable in year one, and Golding inherited a defense that now runs through two coordinators who've never called plays together in Oxford.
Ole Miss Rebels
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Vanderbilt Commodores
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Vanderbilt's calling card last season was toughness — squeezing out wins nobody expected from a program that had 2 wins two years earlier. If Curtis or Berlowitz can avoid killing drives with turnovers, the Commodores have enough around them, from Alexander in the backfield to a receiving corps that added Cole Adams and Ja'Cory Thomas via the portal, to make this a legitimate homefield test for a Rebels team still finding its footing under a new coach.
