FEELIN' PEACHY: Ole Miss Topples Penn State, Gains Historic 11th Win in Peach Bowl
The No. 11 Ole Miss Rebels have finished their 2023 season on a historic note, capturing their 11th win of the season in a 38-25 decision over the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.
The win for Ole Miss gives it 11 wins in a single season for the first time in school history, and it also marks the first New Year's Six bowl victory for Lane Kiffin since he arrived as the head coach in Oxford prior to the 2020 season.
The Rebels (11-2) held a 20-17 advantage over the Nittany Lions (10-3) entering halftime of Saturday's game, and the Ole Miss defense kept Penn State at bay long enough for its offense to find a rhythm and score 11 points in the third quarter to go up by two scores. Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart was one of the biggest playmakers of the day, finishing the game with 379 passing yards and three scores.
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Ole Miss tight end Caden Prieskorn was responsible for 136 yards and two touchdowns in the receiving department, and he was joined by wideout Tre Harris over the century mark as well. In rushing, Quinshon Judkins led the Rebels with 105 yards on the ground after a slow start to the day against Penn State's defensive front.
The Rebels started shakily on their first offensive possession of the game, but they managed to secure a 20-17 lead at halftime after a back-and-forth first half of play. After the intermission, Ole Miss forced a three-and-out from the Penn State offense, and it accounted for a field goal and a touchdown pass from Dart to Judkins to reach a 14-point advantage by the end of the third quarter.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Rebels blocked a Penn State field goal attempt, further solidifying their momentum that persisted until the final whistle, and a Jaxson Dart rushing touchdown midway through that frame gave Ole Miss a 38-17 lead that put the game out of reach for the Lions from the Big Ten.
Ole Miss finishes the season with a mark of 11-2, and it will head into a new era of the Southeastern Conference next season as one of the hottest teams in the league, both on the field and in the transfer portal. This momentum also carries into the expansion of the College Football Playoff to include 12 teams, a field that Ole Miss would have already made in 2023 had this format been in use.
The Rebels are set to open their 2024 season on Aug. 31 at home against Furman before hosting their first FBS opponent of the year in the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders on Sept. 7.
