Ole Miss Football vs. Oklahoma Series History: The 1999 Independence Bowl

The Sooners and the Rebels have met only once on the gridiron, and Saturday will mark the first meeting since 1999.

David Cutcliffe speaks during Ole Miss' 1999 trip to the Independence Bowl. / File/The Times

The Ole Miss Rebels and the Oklahoma Sooners will meet for the second time ever on Saturday and the first time in an on-campus matchup. Vaught-Hemingway Stadium will be the site for the inaugural Ole Miss-Oklahoma SEC matchup, two teams on different sides of the spectrum in conference play: one that is survival mode for a playoff spot and another who has already taken its fair share of beatings in its first year in the conference.

The Rebels and Sooners have met once before, but not in a regular season matchup: the 1999 Independence Bowl on a cold night in Shreveport, Louisiana.

The 1999 Rebels, led by head coach David Cutcliffe, were ready to go to battle against one of the giants in the sport, the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners were one of the sport's biggest brands but during the late 90s had fallen down the earth. Oklahoma hired Bob Stoops as head coach, and he had the Sooners moving in the right direction with offensive coordinator Mike Leach along with quarterback Josh Heupel.

The Rebels did have some firepower of their own in the form of All-American tailback Deuce McAllister, and he left his mark on this contest.

Quarterback Romaro Miller found McAllister on a 25-yard touchdown pass to get the scoring started in the first quarter. The Rebel defense stood firm in the first half, but the Sooners responded with 15 points in the third quarter and took the lead with a Heupel touchdown pass in the fourth quarter with two minutes left.

Down one point, the Rebels had time to put together a game-winning drive. Les Binkley hit a game winning field goal as time expired to give the Rebels a big postseason win for Cutcliffe and the Ole Miss program.

On Saturday, the stakes are much higher. The Rebels need to win out for a shot to make the 12-team playoff, and the first step is to beat the Sooners on Saturday. This Sooner squad is looking for anything to hang their hat on, and a win over a talented Ole Miss team could be enough for Brent Venables to get another year in Norman.

Kickoff on Saturday between Ole Miss and Oklahoma is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT, and the game will be televised on ESPN.

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