No. 6 Ole Miss opens against Furman with highest preseason ranking since 1970

Furman at No. 6 Mississippi, Saturday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+/SEC+)

BetMGM College Football Odds: Ole Miss by 42 1/2.

Series record: Furman leads 1-0.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

The Rebels are coming off their first 11-win season and aiming high again, this time for the newly expanded College Football Playoff. They’re enjoying the program’s highest preseason ranking since 1970. Furman is coming off back-to-back 10-win seasons and won the 2023 Southern Conference championship. The Paladins return only seven starters, though.

KEY MATCHUP

An Ole Miss defense that stocked up in the transfer portal against an offense that lost its starting quarterback, top running back and the four offensive linemen who played the most snaps. The Ole Miss transfer group includes former Texas A&M defensive lineman Walter Nolan, ex-Florida defensive end Princely Umanmielen, former Alabama cornerback Trey Amos and Arkansas transfer linebacker Chris Paul Jr.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Furman: All-SoCon bandit Luke Clark had 53 tackles last season and led the team with six sacks. He’s picked to repeat for all-conference honors.

Ole Miss: RBs Ulysses Bentley IV and Henry Parrish Jr. will get their chances to shine with star Quinshon Judkins now at Ohio State. Bentley ran for 540 yards last season while Parrish returns for his second stint at Ole Miss after leading the Miami Hurricanes in rushing each of the past two seasons. Miami of Ohio transfer Rashad Amos was a 1,000-yard rusher last season.

FACTS & FIGURES

An Ole Miss win would mark No. 300 on the field at Vaught-Hemingway, not counting victories that were later vacated by the NCAA. ... The Rebels are 21-2 at home since 2021, with two 7-0 seasons. ... Furman finished last season ranked in the top seven in the FCS polls, its highest final ranking since 2005. ... A Furman defense that ranked 11th in the FCS allowing just 18.2 points per game returns only four of its top 15 tacklers. ... Furman won the only previous meeting 7-2 on Nov. 14, 1924, in Greenville, South Carolina.

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