Mississippi-Mississippi St Preview Capsule

Posted November 25, 2015 6:00 am

By The Associated Press

No. 19 Mississippi (8-3, 5-2 SEC) at No. 23 Mississippi State (8-3, 4-3), 6:15 p.m. (ESPN2)

Line: Pick 'em.

Series Record: Mississippi leads 62-43-6.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

Egg Bowl bragging rights and a possible SEC Western Division title for Ole Miss. The Rebels must beat the Bulldogs on Saturday and then hope that Auburn can pull off an upset over Alabama in the Iron Bowl.

KEY MATCHUP

Mississippi State QB Dak Prescott vs. the Ole Miss defensive line. It's hard to overstate how important Prescott is to the Bulldogs' offense. He's thrown for 3,159 yards, 23 touchdowns and just three interceptions this season and also run for a team-high 478 yards and nine touchdowns. He'll go against an Ole Miss defensive line that includes talented playmakers such as DE Marquis Haynes and DT Robert Nkemdiche.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Mississippi: QB Chad Kelly is the SEC's leading passer with 3,504 yards, 25 touchdowns and 12 interceptions this season. The junior is also a threat to run with 353 yards rushing and nine touchdowns. He struggled some with turnovers earlier in the year, but hasn't thrown an interception over his past two games.

Mississippi State: DL A.J. Jefferson has been the team's most consistent big-play threat this year on the defensive line with 13ˆ½ tackles for a loss and five sacks. He'll be asked to make life uncomfortable for Kelly.

FACTS & FIGURES

Prescott became the first player in SEC history to account for over 550 yards of total offense and seven touchdowns in a game during Mississippi State's 51-50 win over Arkansas on Saturday. He also broke the school's single-game passing record with 508 yards. ... MSU WR Fred Ross is the first player in school history to have at least 100 yards receiving in three straight games. During that stretch, he's caught 29 passes for 383 yards and three touchdowns. ... This is the first time in Egg Bowl history that both teams have been nationally ranked in back-to-back seasons. ... Ole Miss is scoring 40.5 points per game which ranks 12th in the nation and first in the SEC.

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