Ole Miss jumps to No. 17, Mississippi State receives votes in AP college football rankings

A conference win on the road and losses by previously higher-ranked teams moved Ole Miss up three spots to No. 17 in the latest Associated Press Top 25, while Mississippi State received votes to be included after a big upset over Arizona State.

Ole Miss trailed Kentucky early, then surged to take a late first-half lead but later surrendered the scoreboard advantage — all to come away a 30-23 victor. Saturday’s matchup between the Rebels (2-0, 1-0 SEC) and Wildcats (1-1, 0-1 SEC) essentially played to the status quo with neither team able to completely separate from the other, leading to a rather dramatic contest from start to finish.

Sophomore quarterback Austin Simmons battled back from two early interceptions and helped avenge last year’s loss to Mark Stoops’ club. Simmons, who was sidelined in the fourth quarter with an apparent ankle injury, completed 13 of 24 passes for 235 yards. He also had 44 yards and a score on the ground.

As for Simmons’ health status, Rebel head coach Lane Kiffin assured that it didn’t appear to be something worth panicking over. Prior to Ole Miss’ last scoring drive of the contest, Simmons was spotted walking comfortably on the sidelines.

The Rebels’ top target in the air was Harrison Wallace III, who logged 117 yards on four receptions. Tight end Trace Bruckler had a pair of consequential catches down the stretch and ended the day with 29 yards. Ken Lacy was the top guy on the ground with 138 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries.

Defensively, Ole Miss was led by defensive tackle Zxavian Harris. The Germantown High School alum logged six tackles (four solo), a sack, and a tackle for loss. Umanmielen also stood out in the contest, with a sack and two tackles for loss. Placekicker Lucas Carneiro connected on three of four field goal attempts, with his longest make being from 43 yards out. A full recap can be found here.

Next up for the Rebels is a home matchup versus Arkansas at 6 p.m. ESPN and participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations will broadcast the game.

A trio of teams ranked ahead of Ole Miss found themselves in the loss column on Saturday, allowing Kiffin’s crew to move up in the poll. Florida, formerly ranked No. 13, and Arizona State, previously ranked No. 12, both suffered losses. The Gators were upset at home by a promising South Florida team. The Sun Devils were stunned by a late go-ahead touchdown by Mississippi State that fueled field storming festivities in Starkville. Michigan dropped in the rankings after losing at Oklahoma.

Despite receiving 52 votes following its thrilling win over the Sun Devils, Mississippi State did not do enough to be ranked for the first time in the Jeff Lebby era.

The full top 25 can be found below: