Rece Davis, Pete Thamel Predict Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin Will Make College Football Playoff

A pair of national college football analysts are high on the Ole Miss Rebels as fall camp nears.

Jul 15, 2024; Dallas, TX, USA; Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin speaking at Omni Dallas Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports

SEC Media Days is a time for storylines within one of the top conferences in college football, and now that the event has passed in Dallas, the season is just around the corner.

One of the biggest talking points at media days was the Ole Miss Rebels and whether or not they can truly achieve what many believe to be their full potential in 2024: a College Football Playoff berth.

Following the media frenzy in Dallas, ESPN's Rece Davis and Pete Thamel discussed the Rebels on an edition of the College GameDay Podcast, and they both believe that Ole Miss can reach the CFP this season, thanks in large part to some additions up front. Davis opened the segment by discussing head coach Lane Kiffin's back-and-forth with Paul Finebaum earlier in the week, but he believes that some redemption is coming his way after some previous bumps in his career.

"Lane may really be vindicated this year in the SEC because he's had great offenses, he's had good teams, he's done a really good job there," Davis said, "but now, he's shored up the defensive front...most notably Walter Nolen coming from Texas A&M to Ole Miss.

"Obviously, I think they're going to be really, really good on offense. I'm just gonna go ahead and say it, man: I think Ole Miss makes the playoff."

Thamel agreed with Davis that Ole Miss has a really strong chance at reaching the playoff, but his focus was more on the NIL side of the equation. Since profiting off of name, image and likeness became legal in college football, the Rebels have made waves in that department to help land some top talent.

"Give Ole Miss credit as a program and as an athletic department," Thamel said. "They saw NIL as an equalizer to get them out of what they have been historically in the bottom half of SEC teams. They have been aggressive, and they've almost used it as a flex to show how much they care. They really, really have gone all-in."

The Rebels miss out on facing the Alabama Crimson Tide and Texas Longhorns in their SEC slate this season, but they do have stiff tests on the road at LSU and at home against Georgia that could determine their postseason fate. It's also worth noting that all schedules in the SEC present their fair share of challenges, so Ole Miss will have to prove itself on the field when it counts.

The season will open for the Rebels at home against the FCS Furman Paladins on Aug. 31.