Week 12 Staff Predictions: Ole Miss vs. Florida

OXFORD, Miss. — In the midst of rumors swirling around regarding Lane Kiffin‘s tenure at Ole Miss, the No. 7 Rebels will gear up to take on the team that ended their playoff hopes a year ago, the Florida Gators.

The Gators hold a 13-12 lead in the all-time series, winning the last three matchups. The last time Ole Miss beat Florida was in Gainesville in 2008, when the Rebels gave the Tim Tebow-led Gators their only loss during a championship season. Ole Miss has not beaten Florida in Oxford since 2002.

Kiffin is 0-2 against the Gators, coaching his first game in the Vaught-Hemingway Stadium — and his first as the Ole Miss head coach — against Florida in a loss in 2020. Does history write itself? Will Kiffin coach his first and last game in the Vaught as the Rebels head coach against the Florida Gators? Who knows — but buckle up for the ride because it is still “win to survive” for Ole Miss when it comes to the playoffs in 2025.

With that being said, here is The Rebel Walk staff giving their best shots at predicting Ole Miss vs. Florida:

Adam Brown

Score prediction: Ole Miss 45, Florida 3

X-Factor player: Kewan Lacy

Ole Miss continues to roll on offense this week as the starters only see a half of action. Trinidad Chambliss throws for over 350 yards. While Kewan Lacy runs for over 150 with three touchdowns.

Bold prediction: Florida gives up over 400 yards of offense

Florida’s quarterback DJ Lagway comes in throwing for 1762 yards with 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. On the season, the Gators have averaged 341 yards per game through the first nine games. Florida allows 347.2 yards on defense and 22.4 points per game.

Billy Kuhl

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 30, Florida 17

X-Factor player: Kewan Lacy

Lacy is an electrifying talent and is just one touchdown shy of breaking the single season touchdown record for the program. With the record and the playoffs being on the line I can see Lacy getting a large workload especially with the limited carries last week. 

Bold Prediction: Ole Miss gets multiple takeaways

This is not something the Rebels defense does often but when they do get takeaways it feels like they come in bunches. With that the Gators offense isn’t always the most secure with the ball which is why I think Ole Miss can tally multiple takeaways. 

Daylan Flowers

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 34, Florida 10

X-Factor player: Princewill Umanmielen

Ole Miss will need to put pressure on DJ Lagway, eliminating the pass game for Florida. Umanmielen has found his stride as the season has gone forwards, and his adaptability has proved strong for Ole Miss. His presence creates one-on-one opponents for his peers, and the entire defense will thrive if he does. 

Bold Prediction: Ole Miss only punts the ball one time

The Florida defense has great athletes, but have shown to grow tired as the season has continued. Ole Miss has found the importance of possession, and Oscar Bird may be limited against the Gators 

David Walker

Score prediction: Ole Miss 51, Florida 7

X-Factor Player: Trinidad Chambliss

In a quarterback-driven offense such as the Rebels’, Trinidad has shown to be a tremendous ringleader. His point guard mentality coupled with an outstanding scheme has served him and his receivers well. I expect him to surpass against Florida any previous highs he’s had thus far in every meaningful facet of the game.

Bold Prediction: Gators will likely accumulate less than half that of the Rebels in a good old-fashioned drubbing.

Florida hasn’t lost as many as five true road games without a win since Charley Pell’s winless team did so in 1979. The 2025 Gators could match this dubious record Saturday night. Their fifth-year seniors are 4-17 in true road games in their careers, 4-22 counting neutral-site games, and any back-to-back road games they’ve played have ended in disaster.

The Gators haven’t covered a single spread on the road this year (0-4 ATS), dropping three of them by double digits. If there’s ever been a program you want to see buried, this is the one.

Donna Sprabery

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 34, Florida 17

Ole Miss enters this matchup with momentum, balance, and a clear advantage on both sides of the ball. Their offense can stretch the field, and their defense has been strong in key moments. Florida, meanwhile, has struggled with consistency and hasn’t shown the ability to keep pace against well-rounded SEC teams.

X-Factor player: The Ole Miss offense

Bold Prediction: Ole Miss never trails 

For the Gators to make this competitive, they’ll need to protect the ball, run effectively, and find a way to pressure the Ole Miss quarterback. If they can’t do that, the Rebels should control the game from the start.

Evie Van Pelt

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 62, Florida 10

X-Factor player: Kewan Lacy

Bold Prediction: Ole Miss gains 600 yards of offense and holds the Gators to under 200. 

Look for the Rebels’ defensive line to attack DJ Lagway (or whoever is at QB for Florida) with Princewill Umanmielen and Suntarine Perkins notching a total of seven sacks. The Rebels’ secondary should have Antonio Kite back and I think the unit records at least one interception.

This will be an old-fashioned butt whipping at the Vaught.

Jacob Quaglino

Score prediction: Ole Miss 45, Florida 21

X-Factor player: The Ole Miss secondary 

Here we are, on the verge of one of the biggest games in Ole Miss football history. Win and the Rebels just might lock up a playoff spot, even with the Egg Bowl still to go. The noise about Lane Kiffin’s future is louder than ever (and throw in the fact that one of the teams hoping to swipe him away from Oxford is the very one coming to town this weekend) and there will be no shortage of drama and storylines from this weekend.

Blocking out the outside noise and focusing solely on what we can expect on the field, the Gators will be bringing one of the league’s worst offenses to Oxford, one that has averaged only 12 points per game in road and neutral-site games so far. Throw in the fact that Florida QB DJ Lagway’s interceptions outnumber his touchdown passes, and this could be a real chance for Pete Golding‘s defense to shine, and improve its own less-than-stellar numbers when it comes to turnovers forced. 

Bold Prediction: The Rebels put up more points against Florida than any other SEC opponent this year

Playing at home, at night against a struggling Florida squad whose offense has been very lackluster has all the makings of a career day for Kiffin and co. Ole Miss has lost only three home games during Kiffin’s tenure excluding 2020 which saw limited home attendance. And if one of the SEC’s worst teams was able to manage 38 points against Florida a week ago, there’s no reason to believe that one of the nation’s best offense can’t also put up video game numbers, especially knowing that a win could seal a playoff spot.

Throw in the fact that the Rebels will be hosting a team whose road woes have not gone unnoticed, and this has all the makings of a resounding Rebel victory. Be on the lookout for a statement performance from Trinidad Chambliss and Kiffin’s offense, with the Gators possibly putting up a score or two in garbage time. 

Kam Wicker

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 41, Florida 28

X-Factor player: Harrison Wallace III

When the Rebels opened the season against Georgia State with Austin Simmons at quarterback, it seemed like Harrison Wallace III was going to be the clear number one receiver for Ole Miss. While the Penn State transfer still leads the Rebels in receiving with 36 grabs for 579 yards, Chambliss has consistently shared the love in the passing game each week.

Last week against The Citadel, the connection between Chambliss and Wallace III looked a bit more comfortable. I expect the duo to build off of that momentum en route to a big day for “Trey”.

Bold Prediction: The game is tied at halftime 

With all the outside noise leading revolving around Kiffin leading up to this game, I would not be surprised if the Rebels come out of the gates a little shaky on both sides of the ball. Meanwhile, the Gators are trying to impress a guy who is their clear favorite to hire as the next head coach of the program.

Florida hasn’t been great on offense this year, but with Lagway and the talent around him, I expect a back-and-forth scoring affair in the first half before Ole Miss makes adjustments.

Parks Burcham

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 34, Florida 21

X-Factor player: Trinidad Chambliss

I think Chambliss has had great games with the most amazing story in college football. I feel this games falls on his back, he has to play top tier football like he has shown he is capable of.

Zach Moreth

Score Prediction: Ole Miss 31, Florida 24

X-Factor player: TJ Dottery Andrew Jones

Ole Miss vs Florida has quite a few storylines heading into the game, but few remember just how much the loss last year hurt. This team will be motivated and ready to go come kickoff. I believe the X factor will be the linebacker core of TJ Dottery and Andrew Jones who will be heavily relied upon to stop the Gator run attack.

Bold Prediction: Trinidad Chambliss throws for 300 yards plus

Up next:

The week 12 matchup between Ole Miss and Florida kicks off Saturday, Nov. 15 at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN. Stay tuned in with The Rebel Walk for all your game coverage.