Ole Miss Football secures second straight Egg Bowl win over Mississippi State

On By Littum

OXFORD — It was by no means a perfect performance, but No. 14 The Ole Miss Rebels secured their second consecutive Egg Bowl victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Friday by a final score of 26-14.

The rivalry win for the Rebels (9-3, 5-3 SEC) is their fourth in the last five in the series.

The game began with an interception thrown by Mississippi State quarterback Michael Van Buren to linebacker Chris “Pooh” Paul, and Ole Miss was able to capitalize on a field goal to take a 3–0 lead. State would answer with a 34-yard scoring pass from Van Buren to Kevin Coleman, but a rush by the Rebels’ JJ Pegues from six yards out gave Ole Miss a 10-7 lead midway through the first quarter.

Van Buren would then add a six-yard rushing score to give the Bulldogs a 14-10 lead at the end of the first, and that score remained in place until Ole Miss running back Ulysses Bentley IV broke off an 89-yard rushing touchdown that gave the Rebels a 17-14 halftime lead.

The only score of the third quarter came off the leg of Caden Davis (who went 2-for-3 in field goals on the day) to make it 20-14 entering the final frame. With just under 10 minutes left in the game, Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart connected with tight end Caden Prieskorn, who made a juggling pass in the end zone to tie the game.

Ole Miss struggled on offense during Friday’s game, but did enough to secure the win. The Rebels posted 397 yards of total offense, 254 of which came on the ground, and they were forced to punt six times in the win.

Still, quarterback Jaxson Dart’s 143 passing yards were enough to make him the all-time passing yardage leader in Ole Miss history, surpassing Eli Manning in the process. Bentley led the team in rushing with 136 yards and Prieskorn was the leading receiver with 53.

Defensively, tackle Walter Nolen led Ole Miss in tackles with eight, and Plys Paul and Trey Washington both hauled in for the Rebels.

With nine wins, Ole Miss will now await its postseason destination in the coming weeks.