#12 Mississippi (9-2) at Mississippi State (5-6); 7:30 PM ET; ESPN … The Egg Bowl is one of those games that you tend to throw the record book as they are long-time in-state rivals who just want to beat the other guy. And this year both teams have plenty to play for. Ole Miss, for example, has been one of the surprise teams in the conference, if not the country, the country as the Rebels come with just two losses -both against top ten opposition in Alabama and Georgia – and still have legitimate hopes for a very nice bowl invitation. Meanwhile, its been something of a disappointing season for the 5-6 Bulldogs, who are also just 1-6 in conference play, but they can still gain bowl eligibility with a win over Mississippi.
At the same time, neither team doesn’t necessarily have much in the way of top prospects for the upcoming draft, although both are veteran ball clubs. Ole Miss, though, does have at least one player with some late second-day potential in WR Tre Harris (#9, 6-2, 205), a big-play threat who is averaging just under 19 yards a reception this fall. He combines with fellow WRs Jordan Watkins (#11, 5-11, 190) and Dayton Wade (#19, 5-9, 175) to give much-travelled QB QB Jaxson Dart (#2, 6-2, 220) plenty of options in the passing game, although he’s not much more than a late-round or free agent candidate. Meanwhile, other Rebels with later round potential include G/T Jeremy James (#78, 6-4, 305); C Caleb Warren (#54, 6-4, 310); DEs Cedric Johnson (#2, 6-3, 265) and Jared Ivey (#15, 6-5, 265) and DT JJ Pegues (#89, 6-2, 315). There is a pretty good chance, though, that Ole Miss is a bigger factor at the 2025 draft as the team’s best player is sophomore RB Quinshon Judkins (#4, 5-11, 210) who figures to be a leading prospect next year, although he has not had quite the dominating year he had as a true freshman last year, though, he has scored 14 TDs and should go over the 1,000 mark Thursday evening.
For its part, Mississippi State also has a solid veteran college QB Will Rogers (#2, 6-2, 215) who has thrown for over 12,000 career yards, but has never developed into a top-flight prospect. This year, for example, Rogers’ completion rate is under 60% and he has just 12 TD passes. Rogers, though, does work behind all-senior OL, although no one on the unit is considered to be more than fringe prospects; he’s also got a couple of pesky weapons in RB Ja’Quavarious Marks (#7, 5-9, 210) and WR Tulu Griffin (#5, 5-10, 180), although neither is particularly big. The Bulldogs’ D features a couple of underrated LBs in MLB Jett Johnson (#44, 6-2, 230) who has 117 tackles this fall, along with 3 picks and 2 forced fumbles, and outside guy Nathaniel Watson (#14, 6-2, 245) who has 116 stops of his own and is among the nation’s leaders with 10 sacks. The Bulldogs also have a solid DT in Jaden Crumedy (#94, 6-4, 305), while CB Decamerion Richardson (#3, 6-2, 195) who has the kind of length NFL teams covet, is arguably the team’s best prospect.
