Baylor Opens as Slight Vegas Favorite over Ole Miss in Season Debut

Ole Miss football will be a slight underdog when they take the field against Baylor to open the season in Houston.

Ole Miss football will be a slight underdog when they take the field against Baylor to open the season in Houston.

Baylor has opened as a one point favorite over the 'visiting' Rebels for both team's season opener tentatively schedule for Saturday, Sept. 5 at NRG Stadium in Houston. 

According to reports yesterday by Chase Parham of the Rebel Grove, the game very well may be pushed until Sunday, Sept. 6. The Houston Texans' home opener at NRG Stadium is not slated until Sept. 20 and the NFL season doesn't kick off until Sept. 10, so any move to Sunday will not conflict. 

It's been weeks since Ole Miss athletics director Keith Carter answered questions regarding logistics of the Baylor game. However, at the time, Carter said there were no plans to postpone the game or move it out of Houston amid concerns of the COVID-19 outbreak. A potential one-day delay to Sunday would likely be more of a television decision, getting more eyes on a nationally relevant game, than a pandemic decision.

The game will be the debut of not just the new Ole Miss coaching staff and the Lane Kiffin Era, but also a new staff at Baylor. Out went former head coach Matt Rhule for the NFL and the Carolina Panthers. In came former LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda. Baylor is the first head coaching job for Aranda, who has spent the last seven seasons serving as the defensive coordinator at both Wisconsin and LSU. 

The Baylor -1.0 opening spread should feel optimistic for Rebel fans who saw an Ole Miss team go 4-8 one season ago while Baylor went 11-3. The Rebels sit at a Vegas win total of 5.5 (-145 on the over) for the season. The Grove Report will take a more detailed look at all Ole Miss related gambling odds as the regular season more closely approaches.  

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