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We’re taking a quick peek at Penn State’s opponent in the Peach Bowl.
The upcoming Peach Bowl, set for Saturday, Dec. 30 at noon, will be the first-ever meeting between Penn State and Ole Miss. Both teams enter with 10-2 records, and just one spot separate them in the rankings. Both also enter in a similar spot in their conference and the national hierarchy — teams filled with NFL talent that win a lot of games, but find the conference champions and playoff berths just out of their grasps.
The Peach Bowl is shaping up to be an intriguing match-up between two teams who will be motivated to show they can beat a highly-ranked team and finish in the top 10. Let’s take a quick look at Ole Miss, with much more to come as we get closer to game day.
Key Players
QB Jackson Dart
208/318 (65.4 Completion Percentage), 2,985 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, 5 interceptions
RB Quinshon Judkins
1,052 rushing yards, 4.4 yards per carry, 15 touchdowns,
WR Tre Harris
47 receptions, 851 receiving yards, 8 touchdowns
S Trey Washington
75 tackles, 3 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
DE Jason Ivey
41 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery
Head Coach
Lane Kiffin
Ole Miss Record: 23-13
Overall Record: 84-47
Last 5 Seasons
2022: 8-5 (L-Texas Bowl)
2021: 10-3 (L-Sugar Bowl)
2020: 5-5 (W-Outback Bowl)
2019: 4-8
2018: 5-7
Quick 2023 Recap
Ole Miss began the season ranked #22, finished to pick fourth in the SEC behind Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee. While they would go on to lose to Georgia and Alabama as predicted, Ole Miss finished tied for third in the SEC along with Missouri, who also posted a 10-2 regular season and 6-2 conference record.
The season began with a 73-7 throttling of Mercer in the nonconference slate, followed by a more challenging match-up with then-#24 Tulane at home in week two. While Tulane kept it close into the second half, Ole Miss was able to eventually pull away for a 37-20 victory. The following week produced a 48-23 blowout over Georgia Tech to start out the season with a 3-0 record.
The unbeaten record would not last long with a trip to Tuscaloosa to begin SEC play. Alabama’s defense was able to shut down Ole Miss’ high-flying attack, as their offense was able to do enough to hand the Rebels their first loss of the season, 24-10.
Ole Miss would bounce back with a thrilling 55-49 victory over LSU in one of the most entertaining shootouts of the season. This kicked off a five-game winning streak for Ole Miss, who followed up with seven-point victories over both Arkansas and Auburn, a blowout over Vanderbilt and a 38-35 win against Texas A&M as the Aggies missed a potential game-tying field goal to end regulation.
This set up a battle of top 10 teams when they visited Georgia the following week. However, the win streak would be smashed as the Bulldogs ran away with a 52-17 victory.
Ole Miss would lick their wounds the following week in its final non-conference game, shutting down Louisiana Monroe 35-3 to reach 9-2. The regular season ended on Thanksgiving evening with a 17-7 victory in the Egg Bowl over Mississippi State. While the score was closer than expected, a rivalry game in the pouring rain will typically keep it that way.
It seemed like a spot in the Citrus/Capital One Bowl was inevitable. However, Florida State would go on to win the ACC and be left out of the playoffs, meaning only one ACC team was included in the NY6 bowls as Louisville was pushed out. This opened the door for a Peach Bowl invite for Ole Miss, where they will meet Penn State for the first time in program history on Saturday, Dec. 30 at noon.
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By: Jared Slanina
Title: Get to Know Ole Miss
Sourced From: www.blackshoediaries.com/2023/12/6/23987966/penn-state-nittany-lions-football-peach-bowl-ole-miss-2023-jackson-dart-lane-kiffin
Published Date: Wed, 06 Dec 2023 14:41:00 +0000
