| 2023 Ole Miss Rebels football | |
|---|---|
 | |
Peach Bowl champion | |
Peach Bowl, W 38–25 vs. Penn State | |
| Conference | Southeastern Conference |
| West Division | |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 9 |
| AP | No. 9 |
| Record | 11–2 (6–2 SEC) |
| Head coach |
|
| Co-offensive coordinator | John David Baker (2nd season) |
| Co-offensive coordinator | Charlie Weis Jr. (2nd season) |
| Offensive scheme | Spread |
| Defensive coordinator | Pete Golding (1st season) |
| Base defense | 3–4 |
| Home stadium | Vaught–Hemingway Stadium |
Uniform | |
 | |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| East Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 4 Georgia xy | 8 | – | 0 | 13 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 8 Missouri | 6 | – | 2 | 11 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 17 Tennessee | 4 | – | 4 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kentucky | 3 | – | 5 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Florida | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Carolina | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vanderbilt | 0 | – | 8 | 2 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 Alabama xy$^ | 8 | – | 0 | 12 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Ole Miss | 6 | – | 2 | 11 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 LSU | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 4 | – | 4 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Auburn | 3 | – | 5 | 6 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mississippi State | 1 | – | 7 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arkansas | 1 | – | 7 | 4 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship: Alabama 27, Georgia 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2023 Ole Miss Rebels football team represented the University of Mississippi in the West Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Rebels were led by Lane Kiffin in his fourth season as their head coach.[1]
The Ole Miss football team played their home games at Vaught–Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi. This was the final year for the SEC West and East divisions, as the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma joined the SEC from the Big 12 in 2024, and the SEC's divisional format was done away with, making the SEC Conference a 16-team battle in 2024.[2]
The Rebels were predicted to finish 4th in the SEC West behind Alabama, LSU, and Texas A&M. They started out 3-0 with a win over #23 Tulane on the road, but suffered their first loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide by a score of 24-10. They rebounded by defeating their arch-rival #13 LSU 55-49 in front of 66,703 (the then-largest crowd to ever watch a football game in the state of Mississippi).
The Rebels eventually won every subsequent game in the month of October and reached an 8-1 record and a #9 ranking in the first College Football Playoff rankings. This led to a Top 10 showdown with #2 Georgia, the two-time defending national champion, in Athens. ESPN's College GameDay broadcast their show on the University of Georgia's campus. The Rebels would lose 52-17; this would be the 2nd and final loss of the season for the team.
Wins over ULM and arch-rival Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl allowed the Rebels to claim another 10-win regular season, just the second in their history after the 2021 season. While it looked as though the Rebels would unfortunately get left out of a New Year's Six bowl and would be sent to the Citrus Bowl, they did receive a New Year's Six bowl berth after Alabama was selected to be in the College Football Playoff over Florida State (which sent the undefeated Seminoles to the Orange Bowl and thus opened up a spot in a New Year’s Six bowl for Ole Miss). The Rebels would be selected to play Penn State in the Chick-fil-a Peach Bowl. Despite being 5.5 point underdogs, Ole Miss won 38-25 in front of 71,230 fans from both teams, which was the 2nd-largest attendance of any bowl in the 2023 season following the Rose Bowl (96,371).
Following their win in the Peach Bowl against Penn State, the Rebels achieved their first 11-win season in program history.[3] It was also the first time in 52 years that the Rebels finished a season with two-or-fewer losses.[4]
- ^ "Handing out Ole Miss football's postseason grade for 2023". Red Cup Rebellion. November 27, 2023. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
- ^ Holt, Bob (November 23, 2023). "Long division: West vs. East becomes one big fight in 2024". Arkansas' Best News Source. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ Skiver, Kevin (December 30, 2023). "Ole Miss best seasons: Rebels clinch first 11-win season with Peach Bowl win vs. Penn State". Clarion Ledger. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ https://en.wikipedia.orgview_html.php?sq=&lang=&q=1971_Ole_Miss_Rebels_football_team