According to Bill Connelly's SP+ expert computer model, the Oklahoma Sooners enter the matchup as five-point favorites with a 62 percent chance to earn a victory. That gives Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels a 38 percent chance to win with the expert model predicting a final score of 28-23 on Saturday.

The largest stadium in the SEC, Texas A&M's Kyle Field plays host to 102,733 fans each Saturday.

John Mateer and the No. 13 Oklahoma Sooners are 6-1 through seven games this season. Their only loss came to the Texas Longhorns in Week 7. They will now face the No. 8 Ole Miss Rebels in Week 9.

The verdict: Fiction. Honestly, Illinois’ resume isn’t far too different from that of Notre Dame, which is being widely viewed as a Playoff team. USC is the best win for each of them. And their losses are against top-10 teams — No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Indiana for the Illini, and No. 3 Texas A&M and No. 9 Miami for the Fighting Irish.

Things change quickly in college football. And the results in Week 8 have brought adjustments to the playoff picture in this week's bowl projections.

Compounding everything is that programs of all sizes have asked their boosters to fund rosters, and that brings new expectations. It's one thing to absorb a perceived bad loss when you've paid for a ticket to the game. It's another when you're helping to pay the quarterback. Rolled heads are demanded, ASAP.

Where is Oklahoma in updated college football rankings? See where Sooners stand after Week 8 of the 2025 season.