When No. 10 Penn State Football squares off against No. 11 Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl on Saturday, the game will feature one of the nation’s most dominant defenses against an electrifying offense.
The Nittany Lions are aiming to make history, by becoming the first program to win all six New Year’s Six Bowl games in college football history, as James Franklin‘s team looks to put a capstone on consecutive 11-win seasons.
Before Penn State can turn the page to a 2024 season with lofty expectations as a favorite to make the College Football Playoff for the first time, with the tournament expanding to 12 teams, Franklin and Co. have one last order of business for 2023, winning a second straight bowl game.
Can Penn State take down Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss in Atlanta?
Penn State Football vs. Ole Miss Picks, Predictions for 2023 Peach Bowl
Robert Casturo – NittanyCentral Senior Editor
Penn State starts slow on offense, defense doesn’t miss a beat without Manny Diaz. It’s close at half but Penn State pulls away for a comfortable victory, becoming the first team to win all six New Year’s 6 Bowls.
Quarterback Drew Allar looks decisive and sharp throwing 3 touchdowns to set up an offseason of hype by NFL scouts for the first round of the 2025 NFL draft.
Penn State Football 30, Ole Miss 17
Alec Whitaker – Senior Penn State Football Recruiting Analyst
The Nittany Lions face one of the best offenses they’ll see all year in the Peach Bowl versus Ole Miss. And they’ll have to do it without Chop Robinson, Johnny Dixon and Manny Diaz.
With that said, this is a deep and talented unit that should be able to hold up. The question is, what offense do we get?
If it resembles the Michigan State game, Penn State could win comfortably. If it looks more like the Ohio State game, PSU could be in for a long afternoon.
The most likely scenario is that it’s somewhere in between, and with this defense that may be enough.
Penn State Football 27, Ole Miss 20
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Joe Staszak – Penn State Football Reporter
This will be the first meeting between Penn State Football and Ole Miss and the game will pit two programs with seemingly parallel seasons.
The Lions are ranked No. 10 while the Rebels are right behind them at No. 11.
Both squads are 10-2 but Penn State is still lamenting a season that “could have been” while Ole Miss will be trying to celebrate their first 11-win season, should they come out on top in this one.
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin has implemented a pretty dynamic up tempo offense which could pose some problems for the Nits as they like to rotate defensive packages which a hurry-up offense doesn’t allow.
The Rebels also like their run game to flow through their fast paced offense which means more linebacker work, making PSU’s Kobe King a key factor in the middle. Rebel running back Quinshon Judkins is this year’s top threat. The 5-11, 210-pound sophomore has rushed for an astonishing 2,619 yards in two seasons. He has scored 15 TDs this season and pairs well with fellow back Ulysses Bentley IV.
Here’s a question; With Manny Diaz taking the Duke head coaching job recently, does interim defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter have Diaz’s instinct for when to push the pressure? We shall see.
We’ll also see if the Lions can continue their offensive dominance that they finished the season with.
Since losing to Michigan back on November 11, Penn State went on to beat Rutgers and Michigan State by a combined total of 69-6.
Saturday Should be a fun game to watch but seeing as the prognosticating Panda from Zoo Atlanta picked Penn State, and Yang Yang is riding a three game winning streak, I just think he’s due for a loss.
So, I’m going with the Rebels in a close one. My edge goes to the coach.
Ole Miss 34, Penn State Football 27
Lamarr Fields – Penn State Football Reporter
Penn State will be too physical for the Rebels, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Boasting a strong rushing attack and a physical defense the Nittany Lions will win the Peach Bowl, collecting two consecutive New Year’s Six Bowl victories. Penn State Football 24, Ole Miss 13
Chris Snyder – Senior Penn State Wrestling Reporter
On paper these two programs appear very similar. Both lost two games to upper echelon teams and both have a few quality wins.
And with only three confirmed opt-outs, two for Penn State (Chop Robinson and Johnny Dixon) and one for Ole Miss (Cedric Johnson), this game is going to come down to the ole tried and true metric: turnovers.
The Nittany Lions are 3rd in the nation in forcing turnovers (2.0 per game), while Ole Miss is 77th (1.3). However, both teams are incredibly stingy in giving the ball up. Penn State is only turning the ball over at a rate of 0.5 times per game (131st) and the Rebels clock in at 0.6 (129th).
This game is going to be close and it’s going to be a back-and-forth contest with neither of the teams pulling ahead by more than a touchdown. But I’m banking on a late turnover forced by the Nittany Lions’ defense to be the difference in Penn State holding on to win the Peach Bowl.
Penn State 24 Football, Ole Miss 20
Evan Smith – Senior Penn State Basketball Reporter
In a game that will look much like last year’s Rose Bowl, expect offseason optimism abound as Penn State will again complete a ‘nice’ season with a victory over Mississippi.
Nicholas Singleton will again have a 100 yard game and expect the offensive playback to be open far wider than it was in losses to Ohio State and Michigan.
Score one for the B1G over the SEC #itjustmeansmore.
Penn State Football 33, Ole Miss 22
David Malandra – Penn State Reporter
The running game and dominant pass rush for Penn State it’s going to have a huge impact on this game, and both will prove too much for Ole Miss to handle.
Penn State Football 34, Ole Miss 17
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