Keys to the Game: Ole Miss Rebels vs Florida Gators

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss is in the midsts of a season not a lot people projected after Lane Kiffin’s squad lost so many to the NFL last season. Now, however, the Rebels sit at 9-1, overall, on the year, 5-1 SEC, and are slotted to make their first College Football Playoff appearance in the modern era with just two regular-season games remaining.

Ole Miss hosts Florida today in one of the most anticipated matchups in program history. A win for the Rebels could get Ole Miss that much closer to a playoff berth, including a potential first-round game at home in Vaught-Hemingway.

Of course, there is also a ton of buzz regarding whether Lane Kiffin ultimately signs an extension with Ole Miss or, perhaps, looks at one of the many openings around the country — including the vacancy in Florida following the Gators’ firing of Billy Napier.

With all the noise surrounding this weekend, here are three keys for the Rebels to come away with a crucial win in their final regular season game of 2025.

Execute and minimize penalties

This game obviously has created a lot of emotions, whether it’s Ole Miss wanting to avenge last season’s loss or the Florida fans going crazy on Twitter as they insist Lane Kiffin is headed to Gainesville. But a major key to winning this game is for the team to avoid the emotional roller coaster and focus on going 1-0 this week. And that comes with execution and concentration.

Ole Miss is one of the most penalized teams in the SEC. The Rebels have amassed 65 penalties thus far for 617 yards. The Gators, in contrast, have had the flag thrown at them 48 times for a total of 414 yards in 2025. Ole Miss needs to limit mental mistakes that could give Florida a chance to keep the game close.

Contain DJ Lagway

Gators’ quarterback DJ Lagway is not having the season many expected; however, he is still one of the most dangerous players in the SEC as he’s always a threat to take off running. His versatile skill set could cause the Rebels defense a handful of problems.

Lagway enters Week 12 having completed 171-of-265 passes (64.5%) for 1,762 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 125.02 rating through nine games this season. He is 9-7 as the starting quarterback of the Gators, having posted his third top-25 upset as a starter in Week 6.

When Lagway is on, he has every tool you could ask for including great pocket presence, a rocket arm and an ability to make plays out of the pocket with his legs.

Ole Miss has seen a number of true dual-threat quarterbacks this year, so Pete Golding’s defense should be prepared. It, again, just comes down to execution from the players.

Feed Kewan Lacy

Finally, this is another game that could truly come down to the Rebels’ run game. Last season when the two teams met, Ole Miss played a wide receiver at running back and the team just didn’t have the ability to grind out the clock when they needed to.

But this is 2025 and Missouri transfer running back Kewan Lacy has been tasked with these types of situations all year — and he has exceeded expectations. He is sitting at 912 rushing yards on 200 attempts. Lacy has recorded four 100-yard games this season and could be in for another, which would push him past the 1,000-yard mark.

Lacy is currently tied for the school record for most rushing touchdowns in a single season (16) and looks to break the program record this week against Florida. His ability to break free in open space as well as shake tackles places him as one of the best players in the SEC. He will be a key aspect for the Rebels this weekend.

A Look Ahead

Ole Miss and Florida’s highly-anticipated matchup is set to kick off at 6 p.m. CT with on-field Senior Day events scheduled to begin 30 minutes prior. This must-win game for both sides is undoubtedly going to cause quite the scene in Oxford.