No. 7 Kentucky at No. 14 Ole Miss Odds, Prediction for Week 5
Odds, best bets and analysis for this college football matchup
Matthew Horner - Sep 27, 2022, 2:55pm EDT
No. 7 Kentucky Wildcats
No longer a basketball school, the Wildcats have started to build something special on the football field. QB Will Levis and co. already nabbed a top-15 victory this season when they went and knocked off the then-ranked Florida Gators. However, since that victory, the Wildcats haven't exactly been great against less-than-stellar competition. Kentucky did manage to shut out Youngstown State, but they escaped disaster last week as they were able to squeak out a 31-23 win over Northern Illinois as 28-point favorites heading into the game.
Levis is widely expected to be a first-round pick in next April's NFL Draft and outside of a couple of somewhat lazy inconsequential turnovers, he's lived up to the hype. This is a guy that has the ability to lead his team to the promised land, but Kentucky has already had a shaky start to the year.
No. 14 Ole Miss Rebels
There is a reason Ole Miss is a -5.5 favorite in this game. The Rebels have crushed everyone thus far, with the team's lone close affair coming this past weekend, where they defeated Tulsa 35-27. However, it's very possible it was a case of taking the foot off the gas for a little too long as the Rebels were up 35-14 early in the second quarter before sleepwalking through the second-half.
QB Jaxson Dart has been great so far for the Rebels, throwing for 697 yards and 5 touchdowns. The rushing attack has also been great, with Quinshon Judkins rushing for 429 yards and 5 touchdowns of his own. As a team, Ole Miss is 2-2 ATS on the year, with some of their spreads being astronomical.
Kentucky will be their first real challenge this season, but they will at least be playing the game at home.
My Prediction
Ole Miss has absolutely annihilated their competition, outside of taking their preverbal foot off the gas last week against Tulsa up 35-14, which led to Tulsa making a last-second run to make it a 35-27 final. My biggest problem with them is that they haven't really played anyone at all. With a spread of -5.5, this is a tough one to make a bet on. I hate no mans land, so I really don't have a strong play here. I guess I would lay the points here, but it isn't one of my stronger plays.
