Ole Miss currently ranks No. 51 overall in Bill C.’s advanced stats profiles enumeration, while the Aggies sit not far behind at No. 57. These teams are closely matched on paper, sure, but they practice fairly different styles of play on either side of the ball, with starkly different levels of success therein.

Now, about that over/under. Bill C. is predicting a score of 34.0-30.2, advantage Ole Miss. That seems keeping in line with Vegas and bettors’ feelings. However, Ole Miss’ defense is currently surrendering nearly 45 points per game, excluding garbage time, and there’s where bettors see the over prevailing on Saturday. A&M is scoring at a rate of 40.1 points per game — good for No. 40 in the S&P+ — while the Rebs are handing in 42.4 per outing.

Where the real difference will undoubtedly be felt is when the Rebs have the ball. The Aggies are allowing 34.4 points per game, 11 fewer than Ole Miss. That’s the wrinkle and difference maker in trying to predict the outcome here, because one essentially must ask the question: Can the Rebel offense maintain its eight-point production advantage over the Aggies’ defensive output? STAY AWAY.

How to watch:

Where: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, Oxford, Miss.
When: 6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
Online streaming: WatchESPN

So, let’s take as given that this betting line is essentially a push. Ole Miss gains a three-point advantage because that’s the traditional upward betting thrust that home teams receive in college football. These posts aren’t betting guides — they are in this circumstance — so much as explainers of “Why the hell is Ole Miss favored against an SEC West opponent?” and the like.

Things will undoubtedly get interesting in a hell of a hurry on Saturday night.

2. Ole Miss football could be very good this season. Not, like, top-tier, knock-your-teeth-out-of-your-mouth good, but they could make trouble for legitimate contenders. The Alabama game is always cheery. The LSU game consistently wades through an oil field of non-production on offense then ends up being squirrelly nevertheless. Everyone in the world should watch Arkansas and Ole Miss claw each other’s faces every year, because that particular bear fight makes for compelling television. What we’re saying here is that this year’s Ole Miss Rebels are extremely watchable.

3. This season comes with a hailstorm of uncertainty, anxiety, and downright terror. Last year I naively wrote that a full football season was Ole Miss’ ultimate release from the NCAA bullshit, and I was clearly wrong. DEAD WRONG. Many, all of us, have been wrong in our lives, and for that I’m sorry. We as a website didn’t really focus on football. Especially not this summer.

4. Ole Miss should — and hopefully will — become this year’s premier CHAOS TEAM. The team you should tune in to watch no matter who they play. Beat Bama. Lose to Cal. Play Texas A&M into 10 overtimes and watch the sun come up in the process. Do everything in your power to screw the lives and well-beings of those in your path. Do so in the most hilariously dramatic fashion imaginable. Do so when the game’s on the line with four seconds left and you’re stuck on your own 23 yard line. Do so because they hate you, and you hate them in return.

5. There’s a certain sort of relief in rooting for a team that won’t see postseason play in 2017, regardless of whether they go undefeated or winless. Indeed, the Rebs will probably fall somewhere in between those two poles, but please remember: NONE OF THIS MATTERS. Loss? Don’t go sulk. It doesn’t matter. BAD loss? Go have a beer and a cigarette and a joint and just chill out. None of this season matters. They’re playing for themselves, and in a sense, that’s the freest form of artistic, athletic expression. These guys will do what they do for each other. Not for you, not for me, not for the Bama haters, and certainly not for ESPN assholes. This team is wholly self-contained, unto itself, and they will hopefully play the shit out of themselves for this very reason.

6. Matt Luke is most definitely not coaching for his job, because his job is playing with house money. Play-calling this season will hopefully be rad as all hell, especially on offense. Let’s stop there.

7. This offense can be ridiculous, and if you like big, spectacular, ranging plays across the vast acreage of a football field, watch Ole Miss every week. They will undoubtedly deliver.

8. CHAOS TEAM. They can beat anybody, and they can lose to anybody. They can do both in spectacular fashion.

9. The NCAA Committee on Infractions is sitting down with Ole Miss people on Sept. 11. Whatever happens there and then — and it could be mortifying — it will throw a giant monkey wrench into the college football season machine. You’ll read about it everywhere, and we’ll undoubtedly deal with it on Red Cup Rebellion terms. Either way, that’s during the Cal game week, and, well, here take this life-vest and see what happens.

10. So let’s enjoy this huge, dumb spectacle. Ole Miss is under the microscope, which is itself pointed directly at the sun, and this whole affair could burst into flames sometime midseason. But they’re going to play a full college football schedule, beneath and apposite of whatever the hell is happening with the NCAA.

They’re going to play fucking football.

On Monday, as the Ole Miss football storm raged on upon the wave of fall camp’s first day of workouts, AP Mississippi beat man David Brandt — who graciously came on Podcast Rebellion last week — tweeted an interesting poll question: “It's 2025. Ole Miss is celebrating the 10-year anniversary for its Sugar Bowl win with a halftime ceremony. Will Freeze be invited?” His answer options were as follows:

A. Absolutely
B. Depends on NCAA case
C. Probably not
D. Not a chance

This is an interesting question, if perhaps only in thought experiment. The chances that Hugh Freeze appears at a halftime ceremony honoring the historic 2015 Rebel football team reside somewhere between whale shit and the bottom of the ocean. He certainly led a terrific campaign that year — the offense was spectacular and exciting and efficient — but the aftereffects of two years’ worth of NCAA probes and his resignation in disgrace would necessarily preclude his inclusion in any sort of in-person memorial. Especially in north-central Mississippi.

Still, though, under what circumstances and twists of fate and history could Hugh Freeze actually walk on the field at Vaught-Hemingway another time? What if a shit-faced Houston Nutt crashed the party yelling that OLE FREEZE STOLE HIS DAMN SUGAR BOWL? What if?

Our editorial line is a pretty solid “no,” but it does generate interesting — and INTENSE — conversation. So? (Poll will close at 5:30 CT Friday, Aug. 18.)

*Except for the football team. You aren’t allowed to take photos or videos with them, per the rules. Kind of an important detail?

I’ve never been to this event, but I’ve seen videos of it on episodes of “The Season” so I am an expert with regards to how someone should behave while in attendance. So, knowing that, heed my word: if you’re planning on attending tomorrow, my most important piece of advice for getting the most out of your Meet the Rebels experience is to not go by yourself.

I’m not looking out for your social well-being. I don’t care about your social well-being.

Okay, I care, but I don’t know you, and if you’re lonely or shy or quiet, that’s all fine. If you like Ole Miss and enjoy doing so alone, that’s also fine, if unorthodox. But going to Meet the Rebels by yourself is kinda weird. Like, what’s your deal, even?

I was tempted to say that really any adult that isn’t there to supervise children shouldn’t attend, but I was talked out of that. What if there’s a young couple with a free afternoon and a hankering to meet Benito Jones? He’s not going to remember you, but if you think that’s a fine way to spend time together then go for it. What if you’re a family of long-time Oxonians and you keep an extensive collection of Ole Miss quarterback-signed footballs? I don’t get that, but I think it’s really neat you have a hobby that you all can share together. So, while I still maintain that this is an event for children, I won’t pillory adult friends or family who go together. Go, and enjoy yourselves.

Just don’t go alone. You’ll stand in line for hours, quietly, and everyone will think you’re super weird. People will get uncomfortable. Matt Luke will think you’re kinda creepy. Even worse, the players will think you’re an autograph dealer, and those people are total pieces of shit.

So, like, find a friend or something and make them go so you don’t look so odd. Or just don’t go at all. That’s probably your best option.

Dan Wolken is reporting this is related to a call Freeze made to a number tied to an escort service. If that’s the case, yikes. That’s a bad look for anyone, but especially someone who constantly tweeted bible verses and gave sermons at local churches.

1. There must be something really, really damning. No administration sticks by someone through the NCAA stuff and then sees its coach “resign” for something small.
2. The recruiting class was already terrible, but now... yikes. Yeah, it’s going to get ROUGH. Like, lose battles to Louisiana-Lafayette rough.
3. I bet a lot of players will transfer. That’s wild conjecture on my part, but... if I’m a great player, I’m not sticking around for no chance at a bowl and nothing proven at head coach. No one is safe.
4. Ole Miss has to make a great hire during a terrible time. With NCAA sanctions looming, they’ll almost certainly just treat this season as a wash, but beyond that, what do they have to sell a new coach on? A roster that will likely be gutted by transfers and two awful recruiting classes in a row? It’s going to be tough to find someone good that wants to step in and take this thing over.

More on this as it develops.

Just 9 minutes later, this happened:

Presumably Pat Forde will follow-up with his reporting, and we’ll update this as it goes along. But, Matt Luke is the interim coach, Hugh is off into the sunset, a Committee on Infractions hearing is still pending, and his career is very much in question. For the Rebels, since Freeze was the de facto if not de jure offensive coordinator most years, it throws a lot of uncertainty into a 2017 season where the Rebels were already expected to struggle. There’s obviously a transfer exodus to worry about as well.

This isn’t the end of Ole Miss’ troubles...by any stretch. It’s the end of the beginning of their woes.

—

Phil Longo’s Air Raid offense isn’t as pass happy as you think, and he’ll be more than willing to feature a star running back.

If you’ve read anything in the last few days about new Ole Miss offensive coordinator Phil Longo, you’ve seen a lot of references to the Air Raid offense, the pass-obsessed system that’s taken over the Big 12. Longo describes himself as “100 percent Air Raid when it comes to the philosophical approach to throwing the football” and lists Mike Leach, the architect of the system, as his most significant professional influence.

That could all be of particular interest to one Cam Akers, the best recruit in the state of Mississippi and the No. 1 running back prospect in the country. Akers is being recruited by run-heavy teams like LSU, Ohio State and Florida State, and the concern among Rebel fans is that he’ll be turned off by Longo’s Air Raid offense. Bagging Akers is the top priority for Hugh Freeze in a year in which the NCAA investigation has trampled Ole Miss’ typically productive recruiting (the Rebels’ 2017 class currently ranks 47th).

So will the new coordinator hire push Akers away from Ole Miss? Not if he takes the time to learn about Longo’s system.

For starters, Longo’s offense is more balanced than a typical Air Raid.

"In the passing game, I 100 percent believe in that philosophy [of Leach and Texas Tech’s Kliff Kingsbury] throwing the ball. I think they're as good as anybody in the business throwing the football,” Longo told 247Sports on Friday. “Probably the biggest difference is that there is a very physical downhill run component to our offense."

Longo, who spent the last three seasons as the coordinator of FCS power Sam Houston State, threw the ball on 55 percent of his plays in 2016, which would have ranked as the 18th highest rate in the FBS this season (though still considerably lower than the 62 percent rates of Leach and Kingsbury). But that was with superstar quarterback Jeremiah Briscoe on the roster. In the two previous seasons combined, Sam Houston State passed only 41 percent of the time, which would have ranked all the way down at 97th in the FBS this season—just in front of Alabama.

In both 2014 and 2015, Longo’s offense ranked top 12 among FCS schools in rushing attempts, rushing yards per game and yards per carry. He’ll undoubtedly make sure Akers sees those numbers.

Longo will be willing to change his offense for Akers.

Not as a recruiting ploy, mind you, but as a practical adjustment. Longo has described his offense as a puzzle with square pieces, a system in which the components can be moved around fluidly to adjust for personnel strengths.

“It's designed to be more flexible so that regardless of our talent base we have the flexibility in the offense to promote the more talented players,” he told 247Sports. “There are games we run the ball 70 times to win it and games where we throw 70 times to win it. I'm perfectly willing to do either ...”

If Akers is half as good as he’s expected to be, Longo will be more than willing to tailor his offensive strategy to feature a star running back.

True, Longo never featured a back at Sam Houston State. In 2014, he gave the majority of carries to dual-threat quarterback Jared Johnson. In 2015, three of Longo’s running backs had at least 100 carries but none went over 200. With Briscoe doing the heavy lifting through the air this season, the Bearkats’ top two backs averaged about 11 carries apiece per game.

But Longo has also never had a back as talented as Akers.

Akers could do well in a power spread.

Longo will tweak his offense to promote Akers, but it’s not like he’s going to start running out of the I-formation 30 times a game. The Rebels will be a spread offense that includes a former No. 1 quarterback recruit and a loaded receiving corps, and they’ll do plenty of passing. But while those things initially sound like negatives for a running back, Freeze and Longo can sell them as positives. Longo’s offensive philosophy is predicated on the notion of “chasing space,” or attacking a defense where it has fewer bodies. When defenses back up or play the edges against Ole Miss’ spread passing game, space will open up on the interior for Akers.

“That’s definitely attractive,” Akers told 247Sports before Longo’s hire. “Having weapons around you as a running back, you always want that. Somebody who can spread the defense out, open the box up a little bit with good receivers and a good quarterback. And they’ve got the same offensive line coming back, I think.”

One hitch in all of this is that we’re currently in the middle of a recruiting dead period that runs through Jan. 11, which means Longo won’t have a chance to speak face-to-face with Akers before his expected commitment at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl on Jan. 7. But the dead period does allow for coaches to communicate with recruits over the phone, which will give Longo a chance to develop a relationship and explain his system.

The Rebels still face an uphill battle for Akers.

No matter what Longo changes in Oxford, Ole Miss’ offense still won’t be as appealing to a running back as the units at LSU, Ohio State and Florida State, all of which ran the ball less than 47 percent of the time in 2016. The Buckeyes have an alum tearing his way to NFL Rookie of the Year and the Tigers and ‘Noles will have running backs drafted in the first round come April.

“A lot of Ole Miss’ recruiting pitch to Akers is based off of emotional appeals,” Hugh Kellenberger of The Clarion-Ledger said earlier this week. “‘We are the ones that have been recruiting you the longest. We are the ones that are inside Mississippi. Be a Mississippian, be a native son that goes to a state school and does great things...’

“But they’re having to play catch-up on the practical appeal. LSU and Florida State I don’t think have near the same sort of emotional appeal, but they are far ahead of Ole Miss on a practical level.”

If Ole Miss doesn’t sign Akers, though, it probably won’t be because of Longo’s hiring. Assuming his philosophy is effectively communicated to Akers, Longo won’t hurt the Rebels’ chances. If anything, his commitment to fixing up Freeze’s long-struggling run game should provide a boost.

A short week prepping for a triple-option offense didn’t leave much time to fix problems after FSU. Freeze talked about it during his Monday presser.

First Jordan Wilkins, now Swinney. The Rebels’ backfield is suddenly and alarmingly thin.

The Rebels return Tony Conner and a veteran group of corners, but are set to start a pair of underclassmen on the back end. Can they avoid game-breaking mistakes?

One of the more worrisome storylines to come out of Ole Miss’ fall camp was that of injuries, especially on defense. Tony Conner and (hopefully) Fadol Brown are progressively working their way back into the mix for the Landsharks, but last week Hugh Freeze confirmed that C.J. Moore had suffered a torn pectoral muscle and could end up missing the entire 2016 season. Hoo boy.

Though Moore isn’t a starter, his loss is significant in that it removes one of the few experienced defenders from the safety rotation. Nine months after Mike Hilton and Trae Elston played their last games as Rebels, Freeze and Dave Wommack are faced with sending two underclassmen out to fill the gaps at the rover and free safety spots. Enter true freshman Myles Hartsfield at rover and sophomore Zedrick Woods at free safety.

Defensive backs coach Corey Batoon voiced expected concern while speaking with The Clarion-Ledger:

When you look at the amount of snaps that we’ve lost with Trae and Mike, that’s the biggest thing you worry about is replacing that experience. From a talent standpoint, you feel good about it. I don’t think there’s an issue from a talent standpoint. It’s just experience.

Freeze shared similar thoughts with Scout.com:

We are very young back there; I forget how young we are sometimes. We’re playing a lot of young kids on the back end of our defense right now. I do think they have the potential to be very good. But they are young. You make one mistake against a team like the ones we have to play early on, it can be costly. (Ole Miss safeties coach) Corey (Batoon) does a good job back there of getting them prepared. They are young, though. They’ll make some mistakes.

So the question now becomes: how quickly can Woods and Hartsfield catch on, and how many big plays will they allow against top-tier talent in the early going of 2016?

Myles Hartsfield will start at rover

Hartsfield (5’11, 199 lbs.) played high school ball in New Jersey, and he’ll be called upon to fill the shoes left vacant by Trae Elston’s departure.

He’s about the same size as Elston, but his true frosh status does raise a lot of question marks. Here’s Freeze on Myles Hartsfield after last week’s scrimmage:

He made some (mental mistakes) on Sunday in the scrimmage, but he’s running with the ones for a reason. We’ve got confidence in him and think he can do the job. That doesn’t mean mistakes won’t be made, but we’ve got confidence in him.

FSU or Georgia may not have lights-out downfield attacks so early in September — to say nothing of Alabama — but Dalvin Cook can get himself into the second level in a hell of a hurry, where he’s put tacklers on ice skates all too often.

Still, though, Hartsfield played a fair amount of cornerback at Eastern Prep, and that coverage experience will come in handy on third-and-long. Backing up Hartsfield? Another true freshman: skydiving Deontay Anderson, who fractured his wrist a couple weeks ago but isn’t expected to miss any time.

Zedrick Woods seems to have taken the starting FS job

Ranked the No. 8 high school safety prospect in the country back in 2014, C.J. Hampton once looked destined for stardom. But after a rocky 2015 in which he looked downright lost at times, he enters his junior season behind a lightly-recruited true sophomore on the depth chart.

In fairness, Woods came on strong down the stretch last season, logging significant snaps against LSU and State. He played in all 13 games, tallying 25 tackles, one for loss, and an interception.

Here’s Freeze on Woods last week:

Solid player. He’s got a lot of snaps under his belt, so we’re depending on him not to make those mistakes back there, and he can play a lot of places for us, too, which helps.

Whether it’s Hampton or Woods at free safety, both have the luxury of experience, which is sorely lacking at the rover spot. Hampton’s inconsistency may be what’s holding up his move into the starting role. Still, there’s something to be said for the fact that if Woods starts giving up big gains, Hampton’s time at free safety last season could prove useful.

A (mostly) healthy Tony Conner is back at huskie

If Conner can make a full recovery from last year’s torn meniscus, and if he can remain healthy throughout the season, his work at the huskie position will be a welcome stability for the Landshark defense. At 6’0, 225 lbs., Conner is one of the best nickel defenders in the SEC. Athlon named him a fourth team preseason All-American. Conner has started four seasons at Ole Miss, and in 2015 he tallied 17 tackles, four of which were for loss. After tearing his meniscus against Alabama, he ended up missing the next six games of the season.

That it’s required nine months for Conner to reach “90 percent” on the knee recovery might become an issue in the first month of the season. FSU, Kirby Smart’s revamped Georgia, and Alabama are punishing foes, and Conner himself fell victim to the “body blow” theory in September of 2015.

Experience is no concern at cornerback

It’s here that the Landsharks aren’t wanting for depth and experience. Senior Tony Bridges returns to the Rebels’ coverage team, and he was second among the Landsharks with three interceptions last year. Kendarius Webster has reportedly also made considerable improvements from spring to fall camp, and his 41 tackles and 11 passes defended in 2015 were solid contributions.

Further, with the experience of Bridges, Webster and C.J. Hampton, Batoon expects to rotate the players in his defensive backfield to help mask the inexperience at safety:

Last year, you look at the reps, Trae never came off the field, Mike never came off the field. When Tony was healthy, he never came off the field ... I think we have that depth now that we didn’t in years past. We have more depth, more quality depth. We play more guys, we’ll be fresher and we’ll be more successful.

Woods and Hartsfield are young, yes, and other veterans are taking on new roles, but maybe there’s comfort to be found in the fact that they’re all forced to practice against one of the best quarterbacks and receiving corps in the country. And hell, maybe early season bouts with three powerhouses will go a long way toward settling these guys into the new-look Landsharks.

Here's what we learned from the Rebel headman's first game week presser of the season.

On Monday afternoon, Hugh Freeze stepped to the podium for the first of many game week(!!!!) press conferences this season. This post, which represents a new weekly feature here at the Cup, is also a first of many. Every Monday afternoon, we'll be sorting through Hugh's presser to bring you only the notable information and explain why it matters. No more scrolling through long transcripts or sitting through a 20 minute video replay filled with 95 percent coach speak. We've already done that for you.

Here's what we learned on Monday:

Fadol Brown's Week 1 fate could be decided on Tuesday.

Brown, who recently traveled to a doctor in Texas for a last-ditch treatment on the pesky stress fracture in his foot, is back in Oxford and, as Freeze put it, "very optimistic."

"(He) says it’s feeling better, but today is a day off, so we won’t know until tomorrow's practice really what that means. Sometimes it is easy that it feels better when you are walking around, but we will see how it goes tomorrow in practice."

As the starting strong-side defensive end, Brown will play a critical role in holding the edge against Florida State's explosive running back, Dalvin Cook, who's a nightmare in the open field (a problem compounded by the Rebels' youth at safety). Freeze praised John Youngblood (who was listed as the starter in Monday's depth chart release) and freshman Victor Evans, but he's also implied previously that he doesn't think the position is deep enough.

Freeze feels "comfortable" with Rod Taylor at left tackle.

Monday's depth chart release, as expected, also listed Taylor as the starting blindside protector.

"[Taylor] is an athletic guy, wish he was a little longer, but he and Greg [Little] will split reps there. He also can play inside. Jeremy [Liggins] will be back with us soon, but we have been comfortable with Rod doing it all fall camp and I think he has done a nice job."

That concern over length stems from the fact that Taylor is playing outside of his natural position fit—the 6'3, 329-pound junior is a converted guard who's been forced to tackle a relative lack of options. Little, the five-star supercroot, will take over eventually, but seems to still be swimming a bit. Liggins is finally back at practice, but his suspension will keep him off the playing field until Week 2.

Read more about the O-line in this in-depth preview.

A lot of freshman will see the field.

When asked which freshmen will play next Monday, Freeze listed Little, wide receivers D.K. Metcalf and A.J. Brown, running back Eric Swinney (a redshirt), D-linemen Benito Jones and Montrell Custis, and defensive backs Myles Hartsfield, Jaylon Jones and Jalen Julius.

Hartsfield, who's penciled in on top of the depth chart at strong safety, is the only starter among that group. The most notable name not on that list is the guy expected to back up Hartsfield: four-star safety Deontay Anderson. Whether that's because Anderson is still healing up from a wrist fracture suffered two weeks ago or simply because Freeze forgot to name him isn't clear—none of the reporters asked that question. When the initial news broke, Freeze said he thought Anderson would be able to play with a cast and avoid missed time.

Hugh and Jimbo Fisher aren't bros.

"I don’t have a relationship with him. I mean I know who he is, obviously. He is cordial and I am cordial when we see each other, but we really have no relationship."

Ok, that one doesn't really fall into the notable information category, but I thought it was awkwardly humorous.

The rule that allows the NCAA to grant immunity for the players interviewed at Auburn and State also requires that they have an explicit reason to do so. Watch the vid to learn more.

In case you didn't know, Red Cup Rebellion has an awesome Facebook page (go like it!), and on this awesome Facebook page, I do live, weekly broadcasts. In an effort to bring that content over to our regular readers, I'm going to start posting them here on the site.

This week's was recorded a few days ago, so ignore the intro about the Cal-Hawaii game (Cal won by a lot and now has a bunch of Australian fans). We're diving into the recent news about the NCAA asking players at SEC West rivals to snitch on Ole Miss, and why that could be bad for everyone involved.

Here's what Yahoo's Pat Forde reported last week:

NCAA Enforcement representatives have visited Auburn and Mississippi State, and perhaps at least one more SEC Western Division school, this summer to speak with players who were recruited by Ole Miss. The players were granted immunity from potential NCAA sanctions in exchange for truthful accounts of their recruitment, sources said.

A defense that’s supposedly struggled to tackle in practice needs the sure-handed Conner healthy this season.

The Rebel running back has not completed the sufficient “progress toward degree” in his fourth year of eligibility.

Josh Robinson made a foolish error in assuming it was Dan Mullen who called the police on him for trespassing.