Fearless Forecast: 2022 Ole Miss Football Schedule Predictions

OXFORD, Miss. — The Ole Miss season is just one week away, so I decided to run through each game on the Rebels’ schedule and offer predictions on the outcome. 

Troy – September 3, Oxford

In 2021 the Trojans posted a 5-7 overall record and were just a few plays away from knocking off Liberty and South Carolina. They bring a lot of key players back from what was one of the youngest teams in college football a season ago — including their leading passer, rusher, and receiver, as well as many veteran defenders.

Newly-appointed head coach Jon Sumrall will be looking to make a statement in his first game, and there are few better ways to do that than upsetting a top-25 ranked SEC team on the road. 

[Click HERE to read our interview with Coach Sumrall.]

The Rebels should win the game with ease but Troy has a good enough team to hang around for a little while if the Rebels fail to show up and play well. However, I’d be really surprised if that happened, and I think the Rebels start the season on a good note.

Prediction: Will Win

Central Arkansas – September 10, Oxford 

There’s not a lot to talk about with this game. Central Arkansas just does not have what enough to be able to do anything crazy here. They went 5-6 in 2021 which included a couple of lopsided losses to fellow FCS opponents. 

The Rebs should take care of UCA without any problems.

Prediction: Will Win

Georgia Tech – September 17, Atlanta 

This will be Ole Miss’ first Power-5 opponent — and road game — of the season, and while Georgia Tech was not very good last year, the way the Rebels play in this one could be very telling of what the expectations should be for this team. 

If by some chance the Rebels happen to still have a QB competition going on, this could very well be the game where one of the Ole Miss signal-callers takes control of the position.

Georgia Tech finished 3-9 in 2021 with the only impressive win coming against North Carolina at home. 

The Yellowjackets have two very good linebackers in Ayinde Eley and Charlie Thomas. If those two play to their potential, they could pose a threat to the Rebel offense. 

Regardless, I don’t think the Yellowjackets’ play will be enough to contain the Rebel run game, and Ole Miss should leave Atlanta 3-0.

Prediction: Will Win

Tulsa – September 24, Oxford 

The Rebels return home to square off against Tulsa in the final non-conference contest of the season. The Golden Hurricanes finished their 2021 campaign with a 7-6 record and a win over Old Dominion in the Myrtle Beach Bowl. 

Ole Miss will look to put them away early in order to rest the starters ahead of the beginning of the SEC schedule.

Expectations vary for Tulsa this year as the team is projected to win six games, four of them by one score or fewer. 

They nearly pulled off a massive upset against Cincinnati last year, but that was more an indictment of how Cincinnati played than it was a reflection of Tulsa’s strength. The Rebels shouldn’t have a problem here.

Prediction: Will Win

Kentucky – October 1, Oxford

In my opinion, this is the most important game of the 2022 season for the Rebels. Kentucky is coming off a ten-win season and will be very a formidable team. 

I look for the the Wildcats to finish second in the SEC East this season and have their second straight ten-win year. A few of Kentucky’s key defensive players from a year ago chose to come back and exercise their COVID year, and they have several other NFL draft prospects on the defensive side of the ball.

Kentucky has two former Rebels on its defense in Jacquez Jones and Keidron Smith, both excellent players who strengthen the Wildcats’ unit.

Kentucky returns its starting quarterback, Will Levis, who made some big plays in 2021, as well as running back Chris Rodriquez who rushed for 1,378 yards and ten TDs last year. 

The Wildcats have one of the better defenses in the SEC to go along with their solid ground game, and while the Rebels should have a potent run game, themselves, they’re also going to need a lot of production from the passing game to win this game. 

Ole Miss is going to have to play a well-balanced game offensively to win. Whoever is at quarterback for the Rebs will be facing the best defense they have faced to this point in the season. 

Ultimately, the edge may come down to the home-team crowd in the Vaught. 

Prediction: Should win 

Vanderbilt – October 8, Nashville

Second-year head coach Clark Lea has his work cut out for him if he wants to make Vanderbilt a competitive SEC team, and it’s going to take at least a few more years of program building in order for him to do so. 

In the meantime, the Commodores should improve upon their 2-10 record from 2021 as their roster has gotten better, but likely not enough to make a significant difference from a competitive standpoint.

One of Vandy’s biggest flaws last season was its defensive line and linebacker play, and I don’t really see that improving dramatically since the roster looks mostly the same at those positions. 

This could very well mark a career day for Ole Miss running back Zach Evans as the offensive line should have its way with the Commodore defensive front.

Prediction: Will Win

“I think I’m going with Ole Miss.” — @davidpollack47 🏈🔥#PartyInTheSip pic.twitter.com/WczYiMBvNT

— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) August 27, 2022

Auburn – October 15, Oxford

This is the SEC West game I have the most confidence in the Rebels winning. 

I am not sold on head coach Brian Harsin, and I think the Auburn football program is in a weird place right now. On Friday, the Tigers’ athletic director, Allan Greene, announced one week before the start of the season that he would be exiting his position.

Auburn has had a quarterback battle between LSU transfer TJ Finley, Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada, and Oregon transfer Robby Ashford. In the Tigers’ last open scrimmage today, it appeared Calzada was out of the competition and that Finley held a slight edge over Ashford. 

While Auburn has a solid roster coming back, I’m still predicting them to finish last in the SEC West this year.

I think Ole Miss’ defense will have a huge game at home and that will be the difference. I don’t foresee any of the quarterbacks on the Auburn roster standing out too much, and Ole Miss will have one of the better defensive back rooms in the SEC. 

I expect Auburn to turn the ball over a few times, and if Ole Miss can capitalize on those, the Rebels should be just fine in this game. 

Auburn has had Ole Miss’ number historically and the Rebels haven’t defeated the Tigers since 2015, but that streak ends this season.

Prediction: Will Win

LSU – October 22, Baton Rouge

Ed Orgeron’s last two seasons as Tigers’ head coach left LSU weakened, and while I expect new head coach Brian Kelly to do a good job, it’s going to take a year or two for him to get things back to normal in Baton Rouge. 

The quarterback situation isn’t ideal, and they are losing their leading rusher from 2021 — as well as having to replace four starting offensive lineman from last season. 

However, LSU is still very talented defensively and their play should give the Tigers a good chance to win this game.

I think this is a solid matchup for Ole Miss, and the defense will have another dominant game that propels the Rebels to victory. 

This one will likely be very stressful for Ole Miss fans, but what late-October game in Baton Rouge isn’t?

Prediction: Will Win

Texas A&M – October 29, College Station 

While I said above the Kentucky game is the most important one for Ole Miss this season, I believe this one is a close second. The Rebels matche up very well against what will probably be a top-ten Aggie team at the end of the year. A&M begins the preseason ranked No. 6 in the nation by the AP. 

This game is important because the Rebels have a good chance to win it on the road, and it would make for perhaps the biggest win of the year. 

A&M’s defense should be one of the most talented in the country, so I expect a low-scoring game. They have long, athletic defensive backs that are going to be tough for the Rebels’ young quarterback. They also own one of the best defensive fronts in the country.

That being said, I look for Ole Miss’ defense to be really good also, and the Aggies’ offense will be more prone to turnovers. The game is a toss-up and it should be a close one down to the wire. 

In the end, turnovers will be the difference in the game, with A&M committing more than the Rebels. I’ve got Ole Miss pulling off a massive win in a hostile environment.

Prediction: Will Win

Alabama – November 12, Oxford

However it happens, I am pretty confident Ole Miss will enter this game against the Tide either undefeated or at most with only one loss. The Rebels will likely be ranked in the top ten at this point — which makes this a defining game in the SEC West. 

Alabama might have one of the best teams it has ever had, which includes returnees Bryce Young, the leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy, as well some future NFL receivers. There are some who believe linebacker Will Anderson will be a serious candidate for Heisman, as well. 

Saban’s team will appear similar to most of his teams — talented and experienced. Although I look for Ole Miss to put up a solid fight at first, this one will be a battle against a very deep Alabama team. 

It should be a really fun weekend in Oxford, and the odds of College Gameday coming to town for this one are pretty solid, but look for Bama to be heavily favored.

Prediction: Toss Up 

Arkansas – November 19, Fayetteville

Although several key players on both sides of the ball departed after the 2021 season, Arkansas enters 2021 with a solid squad after strong recruiting in the offseason. 

Head coach Sam Pittman retained most of his staff from 2021 — including offensive coordinator Kendal Briles, who has helped returning quarterback KJ Jefferson become an excellent SEC QB.

If history is telling, this game will be a great one that will come down to the wire. Both teams have balanced, efficient offenses and I’m expecting a number of points to be scored. 

In the past, this game has been absolutely absurd and I see no reason to believe this late-November game in Fayetteville will be any different. 

Ole Miss will be the better team, but who knows what will happen on the road in this one? I think it goes to overtime. 

Prediction: Toss-up 

Mississippi State – November 24, Oxford

The Bulldogs went 7-6 in 2021 and finished fourth in the SEC West after a season filled with inconsistent play. They were solid defensively last season, and they do have a lot coming back on that side of the ball. 

Quarterback Will Rogers settled into the air raid offense nicely last season and should have a ton of confidence coming into this year.

While State should be a better version of the same team from a year ago, Ole Miss overall has a much better team. 

How the Ole Miss secondary fares with the air raid will be the deciding factor, and I think they rise to the occasion and get the win at home.

Prediction: Will Win

Kickoff

Ole Miss and Troy kick off at 3:00 p.m. Saturday, September 3, at Vaught-Hemingway in Oxford.

(Feature image credit: Ole Miss Football)