How to watch and what to watch in 2019 Egg Bowl, Mississippi State vs. Ole Miss

One of the oldest rivalries in College Football, the 2019 Egg Bowl kicks off Thursday night on Thanksgiving with the Mississippi State Bulldogs hosting the Ole Miss Rebels at Davis Wade Stadium.

The Rebels enter this game at 4-7 (2-5 in the SEC West), coming off a tough loss to No. 1 LSU on Nov. 16. They’ll take on their rival Miss St. coming off a bye week, which should have them well-rested for the game. The Bulldogs are 5-6 (2-5 in SEC West) and are coming off a tune-up victory over Abilene Christian last week. While both teams are in rebuild years, this game does have some meaning for Miss St., which can secure a Bowl bid by getting to six wins on the season.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

The game will be televised on ESPN on Thanksgiving, Nov. 28, starting at 7:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. CT). If you want to stream the game, it’s available on WatchESPN as well.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Spread: Mississippi State (-2.5) vs. Ole Miss
Point Total: O/U 58 (-110)
Money line: Ole Miss (+125), Miss St. (-152)

— There have been 115 total meetings between Ole Miss and Miss St. in the Egg Bowl.

— Ole Miss leads the all-time series 62-45-6, though Miss St. has forfeited two wins and Ole Miss has vacated two wins.

— Miss St. has won two of the past three Egg Bowls, cover the spread in both of their victories.

— The road team has won in each of the past four Egg Bowls.

Pick against the Spread

It’s been a rough season for the Rebels. Ole Miss has lost four games by one possession ( Memphis, Cal, Texas A&M and Auburn), so at 4-7, they could have easily been heading into this game 8-3 having clinched a Bowl Game. So with the season lost, this is pretty much all Ole Miss has had to look forward to for a while now.

The Rebels are one of the best running teams in all of college football, highlighted by dual-threat QB John Rhys Plumlee, who ran for 212 yards and four TDs in the loss to LSU. Expect coach Matt Luke to stick to his game plan of establishing the run to try to take the crowd out of the game early. The Rebels rank third in the SEC in yards per game at 450.8, right behind LSU and Alabama.

As for the Bulldogs, RB Kylin Hill makes up pretty much their entire offense. Miss St. ranks third in the SEC in rushing yards per game at 228.5, though the Rebels are No. 1 overall in the conference in that category. The Bulldogs have also been worse on defense, allowing more passing yards and rushing yards per game than the Rebels.

I think this spread is a bit generous for the Bulldogs. All Ole Miss has to do is establish the run early, take a lead, and force Miss St. to try to throw the ball to catch up. That would put the Rebels in a good position to rush the QB, ranking second in the SEC with 30 sacks this season. I think Ole Miss is a better team and should keep Miss St. from Bowl eligibility.

Pick: Ole Miss +2.5

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Odds and lines subject to change. See website for details.