After enjoying back-to-back four wins, Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss Rebels have lost their plot. Following their Week 5 loss to Kentucky, the Ole Miss Rebels again lost to LSU 26-29 in overtime. Their performance has sparked significant discussions, and why not? The landscape of CFB is changing week by week, and despite it being a 12-team playoff, the top teams simply can’t afford ‘Ls’ in their record. Naturally, Kiffin has come under heavy fire in the last three weeks. While analysts, experts, and football insiders are criticizing the recent performance of  Rebtheels, Josh Pate, a college football analyst, defends Kiffin and his team.

In a recent episode of Josh Pate’s College Football Show, Pate took a contrarian view of Ole Miss’ place in the rankings. A loss can derail your rankings. Two losses? Well, you are out of the top 10. That’s the case in the new AP rankings. The Rebels are at No. 18. However, Pate is not yet ready to turn into a naysayer. He provided critical analysis and backed head coach Kiffin and his team, saying, “Ole Miss. I’ve got some detachment, so I agree with what the AP did with Ole Miss. They’re down at number 18. So in a merit-based world, when you’ve lost to Kentucky and LSU, I mean, the canal probably doesn’t even drop far enough. Yeah, that’s where Ole Miss should be. They should be in that range.”

He further explained why the Rebels are among the top 10 teams. He firmly took a stand and highlighted that this week’s performance really does not matter for him and their rankings should not drop because of two losses.

“The JP pole will almost certainly still have them in top 10. This model that has Ole Miss Top 10 thinks they’re going to lose close this week on the road. They lost close on the road. If a model thinks a team that’s rated at a spot is going to do something and that team does exactly what the model thinks is going to do, there is no reason for the model to move that team,” he added. “So I strongly believe Ole Miss will still be a top-10 team in the JP pole this week; it doesn’t matter because they have two losses.”

Well, even AP Poll takes into account who you have lost to, but Pate is standing by his view that he had already taken this loss into consideration, and it doesn’t change the Rebels’ ranking for him.

Lane Kiffin shows frustration as Ole Miss’ playoff dreams fade

LSU Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier had a tough night on Saturday. Initially, he was not only struggling but believed that his last game was one of the worst games of his career so far. But his last two plays changed the dynamics and narrative entirely.

He finished the game for LSU by throwing a pass to Aaron Anderson in the last seconds. With help from Kyre Lacy, he scored a 25-yard touchdown and helped No. 13 LSU register their straight fifth win. Rebels QB Jaxson Dart tried his best to deliver impressive game plays. He threw for 284 yards and scored one touchdown. Running back Ulysses Bentley IV also made some significant contributions and scored with a 50-yard run. However, this loss has impacted the Rebels’ chances of winning the conference title, as they stand 1-2. Most importantly, it has significantly impacted their spot in the CFB playoffs, and this is going to trouble Kiffin.

Saturday Down South reported HC Kiffin’s statements after the game, which clearly reflect that he is not happy. “This sucks, guys. I feel for you, and you have a bye so you don’t get to play again. I don’t have a lot of positives for you.” Kiffin added, “It’s easier to get beat by a couple of scores, but this is like our game over half of the game, and we let it slip away. These are hard. This one will be around forever.”

Kiffin and his squad need to pull up their socks, as they will face big football programs like Oklahoma and Georgia. The Bulldogs already have one loss on their record, and Kirby Smart would want to avoid another L.