Vandy-Ole Miss has quietly become a decent SEC rivalry, and not just because they are permanent East-West Division rivals. It's also because they have had about the same level of talent for the last decade, despite Ole Miss being ridiculously overrated about once every 6 years or so. This season for Ole Miss reminds me of Eli's senior year, when they were supposed be an all-world team, but ended up being just a good team---which is saying a lot for the Rebels.
But I'm not just going to talk trash, I'm also going to back that talk up with words. Vanderbilt has not only won the last two games in this series. Since Bobby Johnson's arrival on campus in 2002 he is 3-4 against Ole Miss, and in the one OT loss that prevents a winning record Vanderbilt blew a 23-13 fourth quarter lead. Vanderbilt has actually outscored Ole Miss over that span 177-169 with an average margin of victory in the series slightly under a touchdown. The only games decided by more than touchdown were Vandy wins (hence the 177-169 margin of victory). The Rebels' average margin of victory is only 5. Frankly, it's not really the last 10 years. This rivalry has always been competitive. Ole Miss leads the series 35-46-2, and while I haven't looked, I'd be suprised if Vanderbilt played as well against other SEC team historically. I'm glad this game is getting some TV time on ESPNU, it should be worth it. Look for Vandy to Win over a dejected Rebels team that recently realized they weren't a top-5 (or top-25?) team.
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