GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Ole Miss coach Pete Golding summed up the challenge of this week perfectly.
“In this profession, you start getting comfortable, you start getting your (butt) beat,” he said.
Coming off an emotional win against LSU that spoiled Lane Kiffin’s return to Mississippi, the fourth-ranked Rebels have another challenge ahead: facing No. 21 Florida in the Swamp on Saturday.
It’s a chance for two of the Southeastern Conference’s nine unbeaten teams to show they can handle success — avoid a letdown, really — and get to 4-0 when they meet at Florida Field for the second time in three years.
“If there’s anybody in this building that’s overlooking this game, there’s something wrong with them,” Golding said.
The Gators are taking a similar approach after winning at Auburn last week.
“If we are not fully moved onto getting ready for Ole Miss, this is going to be ugly for us,” Florida coach Jon Sumrall said.
The Rebels are 3 1/2-point underdogs despite having two of the more impressive wins in college football this season: against Louisville and LSU. If the line holds, it would be the fifth time since 1978 that a top-five team was a road underdog against a team ranked outside the top 20, according to ESPN. The previous four top-five teams lost and failed to cover the spread.
“For us and this team, we’ve been preached to just move forward and keeping looking ahead,” Ole Miss tight end Caleb Odom said. “Coming off an emotional week, it will be easy for us to focus on what we got to do.”
The Gators have won the last two meetings in Gainesville, upsetting ranked Ole Miss teams in 2015 and 2024. But they haven’t forgotten about last year’s 34-24 loss in Oxford in which Trinidad Chambliss threw for 301 yards and a touchdown.
“Coach Sumrall always tells us to make sure you have a chip on your shoulder,” Florida linebacker Aaron Chiles said. “Play hungry. I understand the odds have us to be a favorite, but there’s a lot of people out there that don’t think we’re going to win.”
Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy, who ran for 224 yards and three TDs against Florida last year, is considered a game-time decision with a shoulder injury. Tests provided promising results, Golding said.
“It wasn’t nearly as bad as we thought it was,” Golding said.
Florida, meanwhile, could have receiver Eric Singleton Jr. back after a two-game absence. Singleton sprained an ankle in the opener.
“Common sense has to prevail,” Sumrall said. “You force a guy like that back too soon with his skillset, and then something bad happens that we could have avoided, and then you set him back four more weeks. It’s like, ‘Well, that was a bad idea.’ We’re going to make good, educated decisions about his return. He will have a shot.”
Chambliss is currently the betting favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. But Florida running back Jadan Baugh hopes to work his way into the mix.
Baugh ranks second in the nation with 458 yards rushing and leads the country with eight touchdowns. He’s averaging 8.48 yards a carry and, according to Pro Football Focus, has forced a nation-leading 30 missed tackles.
The Gators stepped up his Heisman campaign this week by sending out a “He13man” stats package. He wears No. 13. Baugh, though, started his own push weeks earlier by delivering Heisman poses after several TD runs.
“I’m not going to take the fun away," Sumrall said. "Growing up as a kid, you said, ‘I want to go play football, not work football.’ Now it’s our livelihood and it’s our job, but I want him to enjoy it.”
Ole Miss safety Sharif Denson and defensive tackle Michai Boireau will return to Florida Field for the first time since transferring.
Denson was a two-year starter for the Gators who entered the transfer portal before Florida finalized its current staff. Boireau wanted to stay in Gainesville but wanted more money than the team was willing to provide for a player who missed time with a knee issue in 2025.
“Just playing against my old teammates,” Denson said. “That’s going to be fun, that’s going to be an experience to get back on the field with them.”
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FILE - Florida Gators swamp signage is shown during an NCAA college football game between the against the Florida Atlantic Owls and the Florida Gators in Gainesville, Fla., Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Peter Joneliet, File)
FILE - Florida Gators running back Jadan Baugh (13) celebrates after rushing for a first down during an NCAA college football game against the Florida Atlantic Owls in Gainesville, Fla., Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Peter Joneliet, File)
