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Fraternizing with the enemy: Talking the Egg Bowl with Jordan Merritt

The time has come for Mississippi State to play...that team. So to learn more about them, I did some fraternizing with the enemy.

By Andrew Miller

Nov 23, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) runs with the ball against the Florida Gators during the second half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
Nov 23, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) runs with the ball against the Florida Gators during the second half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images / Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
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It's Egg Bowl week. Mississippi State football will conclude its 2024 season in Oxford on Black Friday against their arch-rivals, the Ole Miss Rebels. To say Ole Miss has had a roller coaster of a season is putting it lightly. They came into the year with their highest expectations ever, seemed to be living up to that hype through the first few weeks, but then came crashing down to earth with a head-scratching home loss to Kentucky and a gut-punch overtime defeat to LSU.

Then the Rebels got back on the right track and pulled off the win of a lifetime, dominating Georgia to put themselves firmly back into the championship mix. Just two weeks after that, however, they took a killer loss at Florida, giving them their third loss to a currently unranked team and effectively ending their playoff hopes.

Technically, Ole Miss still has a path to the playoffs, albeit an incredibly slim one. But in all likelihood, this season is going to go down as an all time disappointing one in Oxford. To learn about how the Rebels are handling that and get a better feel for this team, I did some fraternizing with the enemy, interviewing Jordan Merritt of Ole Hotty Toddy.

Q&A with Ole Hotty Toddy site expert Jordan Merritt

Q: Ole Miss has never entered a season with expectations like they did this year, but now they’ve fallen short of that goal of being a title contender. What exactly went wrong with this team, and is there any concern of the Rebels having a letdown performance to close the year?

A: The main problem has been mental mistakes during the three losses. Against Kentucky and LSU, Ole Miss was in a position to win those games, but penalties and dropped passes cost them.

Against Florida, the offense had chances to win the game, but some questionable play calling in the red zone resulted in another one-score loss, going 0-3 on scoring visits inside the 20. The Rebels could be unbeaten in another season, but if you want to be the best, you must find ways to win, which they failed to do.

After the devastating loss, they could take their eyes off the ball. However, the 2022 season had a similar feel, which resulted in Lane Kiffin's only Egg Bowl loss, so the hope is that it won't happen again.

Q: Lane Kiffin and Jeff Lebby obviously have their history together. Do you see Kiffin dialing up anything special to make a statement against his old OC?

A: Haha, it's Lane Kiffin, so I have to say yes. Despite the trolling on social media, there is a more serious side to Kiffin when it comes to trying to win games than previously. A comment after the game would be a better bet, but after the loss to Florida, getting the job done is the primary goal.

Next: Q&A Cont.

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