Josh Pate Predicts Ole Miss Will Make SEC Championship Game in 2024

A college football analyst recently predicted that the Ole Miss Rebels will reach the SEC Championship Game in 2024.

Dec 30, 2023; Atlanta, GA, USA; Mississippi Rebels tight end Caden Prieskorn (86) catches a two-point conversion against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the second half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Can the Ole Miss Rebels end a couple of droughts this season: one being with a College Football Playoff appearance and the other coming in the SEC Championship Game?

Since the SEC Championship Game came onto the scene in 1992, Ole Miss has not reached Atlanta to represent the SEC West, and it has not won a conference championship in general since 1963. Now, however, the SEC West is no longer in existence as the conference has scrapped the division model with the addition of Oklahoma and Texas to the league.

That, in theory, makes the journey to Atlanta a bit easier for Ole Miss. All SEC schedules pose their share of difficulties, but not having to face the Alabama Crimson Tide every season should be a plus in the Rebels' corner.

On a recent edition of The Late Kick with Josh Pate, the host went so far as to predict that Ole Miss will break its conference title appearance drought this season, even though he thinks teams like the Georgia Bulldogs and Texas Longhorns could be ahead of them in talent.

Why? A lot of it has to do with the schedule. Georgia has to travel to Texas, Ole Miss and Alabama this season, and Pate doesn't love the Bulldogs' chances of emerging from that gauntlet unscathed. That led him to put the Rebels and Longhorns against one another in the title game.

"I've got Ole Miss in the SEC Championship Game, and I've got Texas in the SEC Championship Game," Pate said. "Both are very dependable teams, I think they're both well-rounded. I think Ole Miss defensively will come into form and be as well-rounded a product as we've seen them be under Lane Kiffin. It's a must-win moment this year for them. I think there's pressure but pressure they can deliver upon over there."

Alongside the schedule factor, Pate went on to say that Ole Miss and Texas are both very talented in their own right, but he gives the Horns the edge over the Rebels in Atlanta in this hypothetical scenario. Still, an appearance in the SEC Championship Game would be a huge step for Ole Miss as it aims for a College Football Playoff berth this season.

Can Ole Miss meet some of these lofty expectations in 2024? Time will tell, but the predictions themselves are certainly not backing down.