Playoff Picks and Green Wave Showdown
No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels (11-1, 7-1 SEC) will host the Tulane Green Wave (11-2, 7-1 AAC) in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. It’s Pete Golding’s debut as the Rebels’ lead play-caller following the post-Lane Kiffin era. With home-field advantage secured, national analyst Josh Pate predicts that if Ole Miss jumps to an early lead—as high as 35-7—starters might be resting by the late third quarter. Pate confidently picks the Rebels to win and cover, envisioning a dominant performance that sends Oxford into raucous celebration.
Of course, nothing says “playoff strategy” like banking on an instant blowout to bench your starters early—because why risk fourth-quarter heroics when you can swap in the scout team and watch them fumble for fun? National analysts sharpen their crystal balls all offseason only to discover the ultimate secret: score first, win big. Meanwhile, somewhere in the stands, a confused mascot is practicing its victory dance six seconds into the game. Welcome to playoff football, where a 35-7 halftime lead doubles as a team nap and a halftime show for the marching band.
Rebels Eye Super Transfer Lineman
Colorado Buffaloes defensive lineman Jehiem Oatis has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal after one season in Boulder. A former Alabama reserve, Oatis tallied 57 tackles, five pass deflections and 1.5 sacks over three seasons with the Crimson Tide before following coach Deion Sanders to Colorado in 2025. With his lone Buffaloes campaign yielding underwhelming production, Oatis is seeking a third school—Ole Miss—where defensive coordinator Pete Golding and D-line coach Randall Joyner first recruited him out of high school. With one year of eligibility remaining, Oatis could bolster the Rebels’ front under a coach already familiar with his skill set.
It appears Golding is treating the Transfer Portal like a Walmart doorbuster sale: “And in aisle three, we have a defensive lineman fresh from the Boulder bargain bin!” Oatis’s journey from Tuscaloosa to Boulder and now to Oxford reads like a cross-country road trip that even GPS can’t keep up with. One wonders if his next stop includes a cameo on a reality show: “Keeping Up with the Transfers.” Meanwhile, Rebel fans nervously refresh their browsers come Jan. 2, hoping to snag the next portal unicorn before someone else swipes it under their noses.
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