Ladies and gentlemen, we have made it! College football has arrived for the SEC and its fans. The Florida Gators will be one of the first teams to kick off as they will be on the road against the Ole Miss Rebels.
The Gators come into this game as one of the top ranked college football programs in the country. The expectations are high in Gainesville as Dan Mullen enters his third season as the Gators head coach. The last time these two faced against each other was in 2015 as the Will Grier led Gators pulled off the upset and defeated the second ranked Rebels 38-10. Here is the Florida Gators versus Ole Miss Rebels game preview.
Ole Miss Rebels
The Ole Miss Rebels will be home for their first game of the 2020 season and will host the Florida Gators. The Rebels will be led by their head coach Lane Kiffin as this is first game as the Ole Miss head coach.
The Rebels return some talented players on offense but also had a quarterback competition this fall. Former Florida commit and redshirt-sophomore Matt Corral and sophomore John Rhys Plumlee were the two quarterbacks competing.
Corral seems to be the favorite to be the starting quarterback but Plumlee is still expected to get some playing time. Nonetheless, Ole Miss has some playmakers in their offense. Sophomore running back Jerrion Ealy is the starting back and was second in rushing last season.
The Rebels also return their top receiver in junior Elijah Moore. The South Florida native will be the Rebels top receiver as he had 67 receptions for 850 yards and six touchdowns. Sophomore wide out Jonathan Mingo is another target to keep an eye on as some think he’s ready to take the next step for Ole Miss.
On defense, Ole Miss was one of the worst defenses in the SEC. The Rebels allowed 416.8 yards per game which was ranked 85th nationally and 12th in the SEC. They were also tied for 59th in the country in points allowed per game (26.5).
The Rebels lost all of their defensive line starters from last season. Their linebackers are the strength of their defense but will need the secondary to step up after an ugly performance last season. Players like safety Jaylon Jones and linebacker Lakia Henry are players that Ole Miss defensive coordinator, D.J. Durkin, will need to step up this season.
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators will be playing the Ole Miss earlier than originally expected. Due to the COVID-19, every SEC team’s schedule was changed to ten games and can only play SEC teams.
The Gators will be led by their head coach Dan Mullen who has tons of experience playing against the Ole Miss Rebels. The Florida offense will also be led by their redshirt-senior quarterback Kyle Trask. The Texas native is coming off a breakout season and looks to improve from last season.
The Florida offense lost a couple playmakers from last season in Lamical Perine, Van Jefferson and Freddie Swain. The Gators still have a lot of talent on offense. Tight end Kyle Pitts is arguably the best tight end in the country. Senior wide receiver Trevon Grimes is expected to be the top receiver on Florida’s offense. Their offensive line struggled last season but returns four starters and landed a top transfer in right guard Stewart Reese.
The Florida Gators defense also lost some really good talent in cornerback C.J. Henderson, linebacker David Reese and defensive ends Jabari Zuniga and Jonathan Greenard. Five-star outside linebacker Brenton Cox will make his Florida debut after not being granted immediate eligibility last season.
Florida does return two starting corners in Marco Wilson and Kaiir Elam. Both corners were just named All-SEC Second Team Preseason by the media. Linebacker Ventrell Miller will be replacing Reese but also got selected a third team in the All-SEC Third Team Preseason.
Five Players to Watch: Ole Miss Rebels
- WR Elijah Moore
- LB Lakia Henry
- RB Jerrion Ealy
- S Jaylon Jones
- QB Matt Corral
Five Players to Watch: Florida Gators
- QB Kyle Trask
- LB Brenton Cox
- TE Kyle Pitts
- CB Kaiir Elam
- WR Trevon Grimes
Five Predictions:
- Kyle Trask throws for over 250 yards and two touchdowns.
- Ole Miss plays both of their quarterbacks.
- Florida’s defense forces two turnovers.
- Lakia Henry leads Ole Miss’s defense in tackles for loss.
- Florida Gators beats Ole Miss Rebels 34-17.
