Trent Reinsmith
- Date: Saturday, October 1, 2022
- Location: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, MS
- Time: 12 p.m. ET
- How to Watch: ESPN
Two unbeaten SEC football teams face off on Saturday, October 2022, when the Kentucky Wildcats head to Oxford, Mississippi, to face the Ole Miss Rebels. With a win, Kentucky will repeat the 5-0 start to its season from last year. Meanwhile, Ole Miss looks for its first 5-0 start since 2015.
Kentucky is 4-0 overall to start the 2022 NCAAF season, with one of those wins coming to an SEC rival. The Wildcats topped the Florida Gators 26-16 during the second week of the 2022 NCAA Football season. Kentucky is coming off a 31-23 win over Northern Illinois in Week 4. With that win, the team moved from No. 8 to No. 7 in the AP Top 25 poll.
Ole Miss is also 4-0 to start the 2022 NCAAF campaign. The team’s matchup against Kentucky marks the first time this year that they have met a ranked team as well as their first game agains an SEC foe. The Rebels are coming off a 35-27 win over Tulsa in Week 4 of the NCAAF season. That victory saw the team move from No. 14 to No. 12 in the AP Poll.
Before we look at the Week 5 NCAAF matchup between the Kentucky Wildcats and the Ole Miss Rebels, check out the current NCAAF Betting opportunities and our guide to betting on the 2022 NCAAF National Championship.
Kentucky Wildcats (7) vs. Ole Miss Rebels (12) picks
| Teams |  |  |  |  |  |
| Kentucky Wildcats - No. 7 | +215 | +220 | +225 | +225 | +202 |
| Ole Miss Rebels - No. 14 | -255 | -270 | -265 | -265 | -255 |
Kentucky breakdown
Senior quarterback Will Levis is the No. 4 ranked QB in the SEC in passing yards with 1,185. His 67.52 percent completion rate puts him seventh in the conference. That completion percentage is a career high. Levis has been sacked an SEC-high 16 times this season. Only two other quarterbacks in the conference have been sacked 10 times or more.
Kentucky ranks 12th in the SEC in total offense with 1,511 yards. The team’s passing yardage of 1,185 is fourth in the conference, but its 326 ground yards are 13th and nearly 200 yards fewer than the No. 12 ranked team, South Carolina. Tayvion Robinson, a senior wide receiver, is the No. 3 receiver in the SEC with 349 receiving yards. He has two touchdowns through the air on the year. In addition, Kentucky gets running back Chris Rodriguez back for the Ole Miss game. Rodriguez had 1,379 yards last year on 225 attempts. His return will add a lot to the Wildcats’ offense.
Kentucky’s defense has allowed an average of 13 points and 272 yards per game. With that, the Wildcats rank fifth in fewest points allowed and fourth in fewest yards allowed in the SEC.
Ole Miss breakdown
Ole Miss Quarterback. Jaxson Dart is completing his passes at a 62.2 percent rate this season. However, Dart is not a very active QB. The sophomore has only attempted 82 throws this season, which gives him just three more attempts than Kentucky’s Levis has completions on the season. With that, Dart is 11th in the SEC in passing yardage with 697. He’s been sacked once.
Despite its 829 yards in passing this year, Ole Miss is fourth in total offense in the SEC with 1,952 yards. The team is No. 1 in rushing yards in the conference with 1,123. Two Ole Miss running backs, Quinshon Judkins and Zach Evans, are in the top four in ground yards in the SEC. Both men are averaging more than six yards per carry on the season. The pair have combined for nine rushing touchdowns.
The Ole Miss defense has allowed an average of 312.5 yards per game and 10 points per game. Ole Miss is third in fewest points per game and sixth in fewest yards per game in the SEC.
Our pick
Everyone knows Ole Miss relies primarily on its running game, but the team continues to rack up yards and wins. I don’t think that plays out any differently in this SEC matchup. The return of Rodriguez Jr. from suspension is a wildcard in this game, but I still think the Rebels are the best bet in this week 5 NCAAF matchup.
Pick: Ole Miss Rebels to beat the Kentucky Wildcats.
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