In the first round of the College Football Playoff, Ole Miss will face off against Tulane in what will be a rematch in Oxford. The winner of this game will go on to play the Georgia Bulldogs in the Sugar Bowl.
In the previous matchup earlier this season, Ole Miss routed Tulane 45-10. However, as Georgia has proven in their win against Alabama in the SEC Championship game, a lot can change since September. So here are three things Georgia really needs to pay attention to in the Tulane-Ole Miss playoff game.
1. How Ole Miss offense performs without Lane Kiffin
The big news surrounding Ole Miss the past few weeks has been Lane Kiffin leaving for LSU. Even if the Rebels say that the departure of Kiffin does not change anything, it certainly has to.
New head coach Pete Golding will have to completely swing the morale back in the Rebels' favor. Golding is also a former defensive coordinator, meaning his philosophy is likely much different than that of Kiffin. Even if Kiffin was not the primary play caller of the offense, it will be intriguing to see how the offense does without him.
2. Tulane run game
Tulane's run game in the first matchup was almost non-existent. Their leading rusher was quarterback Jake Retzlaff who had 51 yards with 30 of those coming on one run.
Since that game, Tulane's primary ball carrier has seemingly shifted from Arnold Barness III to Javin Gordon. Now with the freshman getting the primary touches, it will be interesting to see how well Tulane is able to control the line of scrimmage on offense this time around.
3. Trinidad Chambliss on the ground
One of the biggest factors in Ole Miss's success against Tulane was Trinidad Chambliss's ability to run the football. Even though Tulane has a pretty solid defense, Chambliss was unbeatable on designed QB runs that day.
Since that game, Chambliss has had significantly less success running the ball. In the past three games he has run the ball 21 times for just 35 yards. If Tulane is able to contain Chambliss this time around, it could be a much more competitive football game.