Sugar Bowl Game Prediction: No. 8 Ole Miss Rebels vs. No. 7 Baylor Bears

Here's our expectation from a top-10 matchup between two of the best from the SEC and the Big 12.

Author:
Brendan Gulick
Dec 31, 2021 5:37 PM EST

Another fabulous matchup on New Year's Day, the final game of the night has a chance to be the most entertaining game of the day. The Rebels are nothing if not entertaining and Baylor plays an exciting brand of football.

Both teams will be looking to wrap up top-10 rankings in the final poll for this season, taking momentum into the offseason and a likely top-10 ranking preseason next fall.

Here’s how our staff at BuckeyesNow expects the game to go down:

OLE MISS vs. BAYLOR– Saturday, Jan. 1 at 8:45 p.m. on ESPN
Spread: Ole Miss (-1.5)
O/U Total: 57

Brendan Gulick: Ole Miss 28, Baylor 27

With some of the top players around the country opting out of bowl games left and right, it's refreshing to see Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral choosing to play in the Sugar Bowl. The Rebels have one of the best offenses in the country and he's their unquestioned leader. They've had a bit of a strange year and it feels easy to spot their weaknesses, but I'm not sure Baylor can exploit them well enough.

The Bears have had a really good defense this season and I think they'll play well for Dave Aranda. I have a hunch this will be the closest New Year's Day game this year. Give me Ole Miss in a down-to-the-wire win.

Andrew Lind: Baylor 31, Ole Miss 24

The Rebels’ high-powered offense, which put up more than 500 yards and 35 points per game, leads me to believe this could be a high-scoring affair in the Superdome.

But the Bears’ terrific running game will slow things down and their top-20 defense will make quarterback Matt Corral uncomfortable in key situations to cap an impressive turnaround in Dave Aranda’s second season at the helm.

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Brett Hiltbrand: Baylor 41, Ole Miss 24

Considering Baylor was maybe an inch or two away from (probably) moving in front of Cincinnati for the fourth and final playoff spot, I think they're tremendously disappointed to be playing in this game. That's a double-edged sword anymore with motivations being what they are but I think Dave Aranda works this in his favor. I could see this being a bit of a blowout especially since Ole Miss is missing so many guys AND Baylor should be a pretty pissed off team.

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