Florida vs. Ole Miss Preview: Rebels Seek Third Ranked Win as Gators Aim to Match 2025 Total
Quick Look
- 4 Ole Miss travels to face No.
- 21 Florida in a rematch of last week's vengeance game, with the Rebels seeking their third win over an AP-ranked team before October and the Gators aiming to match their 2025 win total of 4-8 with a victory.
- The game features a highly anticipated running back matchup between Florida's Jadan Baugh and Ole Miss' Kewan Lacy, who is questionable after being banged up in last week's win.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Ole Miss recently defeated a rival referred to as 'The Bad Man' in their previous game, earning vengeance. Florida, under new head coach Jon Sumrall, started the season unbeaten and secured a road win against Auburn in a high-scoring shootout. Both teams are preparing for a matchup that features strong running back talent and historical trends of Florida performing well against top-10 teams at home.
How do you recover from winning your Super Bowl? At least in the NFL, you have an entire offseason to recover from it. No. 4 Ole Miss doesn't have that privilege. A week after getting its vengeance against The Bad Man, Ole Miss has to hit the road for its second consecutive matchup against a ranked team, and third in four weeks.
No. 21 Florida had its first real test of the season last week, and it passed. The Gators went on the road to face fellow unbeaten Auburn and won 44-39 in a shootout. New coach Jon Sumrall has gotten off to a great start to the season and has Florida fans excited about their program for the first time in a while.
While Trinidad Chambliss is the superstar that draws the most attention, the most inriguing matchup here could be at the running back spot. Florida's Jadan Baugh is one of the best in the country, as is Ole Miss' Kewan Lacy. There is some question about Lacy's status after he was banged up in last week's win, but if he can go, there won't be many games in college football that have a better matchup of running backs this season.
Florida vs. Ole Miss: Need to know
Ole Miss is looking to do something that hasn't been done in nine seasons: The Rebels are underdogs as they hit the road to take on the Gators this weekend, but if they can pull off the upset, it will be their third win over an AP-ranked team already this season. It would be the first time any team has picked up three ranked wins before the end of September since 2017 Clemson, and only the fourth time in the BCS/CFP era.
The Gators could match their 2025 season win total here: The best way for a new coach to endear himself to his new fanbase is to win games, and Jon Sumrall has done a great job of it so far. It also helps when you take over after an abysmal season, because the bar is pretty low! So low that the Gators are already a win away from matching last season's win total. The Gators finished 4-8 in 2025 and a win against Ole Miss would make them 4-0.
Florida does well at home against top-10 teams: The Gators haven't been as successful as they'd like in recent years, but they've done a great job of pulling off big wins at home all the same. Last season, No. 9 Texas came to town as a big favorite and lost to Florida in a game that effectively kept Texas out of the College Football Playoff. In 2024, it was No. 9 Ole Miss who fell in The Swamp. In fact, Ole Miss has come to Gainesville as a top-10 team twice in its history and lost both times. The first was when Ole Miss was No. 3 and lost to Florida 38-10.
Where to watch Florida vs. Ole Miss live
Date: Saturday, September 26 | Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium -- Gainesville, Florida
TV: ABC | Live stream: Fubo (try free)
Florida vs. Ole Miss prediction, picks
I'm a little skeptical of Florida being a favorite in this game, but I've no real interest in going after the spread here. No, the one thing I'm most confident about is that points will be scored. Florida's defense hasn't exactly been incredible despite playing a relatively easy schedule overall, and we've already seen Ole Miss allow points to Louisville and LSU. I think we get another shootout here. Pick: Over 58.5
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The game will exceed 58.5 total points scored.
Likely · Within hours
Open Questions
- Will Kewan Lacy be able to play given his injury from last week's game?
- Can Ole Miss secure their third win over an AP-ranked team before the end of September?
- Will Florida continue their home success against top-10 opponents?
- How will Jon Sumrall's first season as Florida head coach progress beyond this game?
