The No. 14 Ole Miss Rebels didn’t play at an elite level Friday night, but it was enough to earn their second straight win in their Egg Bowl rivalry against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

The Rebels (9-3, 5-3 SEC) defeated State 26-14, marking their fourth victory in the last five years over their in-state rival. Despite having to punt six times and struggling to establish a consistent offensive rhythm, this win gives Ole Miss a chance to secure its third double-digit win of the season in coach Lane Kiffin’s tenure (2020-present).

With this game and the regular season now in the rearview mirror, here are some notes and observations from Ole Miss’ win on Friday.

1. Ole Miss didn’t play like a College Football Playoff team on Friday, regardless of what may or may not be chaos in the rankings this weekend.

There’s a strong chance that Ole Miss has any chance of making the College Football Playoff after last week’s loss to Florida, but the Rebels didn’t look like a playoff team on Friday afternoon.

Mississippi State entered this year’s Egg Bowl with just two wins on the season, none of which were against Power Four opponents. It ranked 127th out of 133 FBS schools in total defense, but Ole Miss struggled to move the ball consistently in this year’s Egg Bowl, having to punt six times in the win.

After the game, Lane Kiffin said that part of Ole Miss’ conservative nature on offense was due to the defensive looks he received from State.

“The game was probably different than a lot of people would have thought,” Kiffin said, “but these guys came in and played three safeties deep, like a stop defense where it’s hard to throw the ball. Let yourself run the ball.. It probably looked different for everyone, but we just had to play a little different style to win.”

Should there be chaos in the rankings over Ole Miss this weekend, it’s unclear what the CFP committee would do. In theory, the Rebels entered Friday’s game with a slim chance of making the playoffs several Everything went according to plan during the rivalry weekend, but this year’s Egg Bowl performance wasn’t particularly impressive from an eye test standpoint.

2. Still, a rivalry win is a rivalry win, and the Egg Bowl always carries some emotional significance.

The Egg Bowl means a lot to Mississippi State and the win will always have some significance. Ole Miss hasn’t played particularly well and State hasn’t had a standout season, but winning two straight and four of the last five in this rivalry is impressive.

That’s not enough to heal the wounds that Ole Miss fans will feel if it doesn’t make the playoffs after this season’s high expectations, but it shouldn’t be ignored either.

3. The win should benefit the defense after a rocky start.

After leading 14-10 at the end of the first quarter, State didn’t score again the rest of the day.

Ole Miss got three sacks from the mobile Michael Van Buren, and the Bulldogs managed just 39 rushing yards the entire game. Defensive coordinator Pete Golding’s unity has long been this team’s strength and it showed again on Friday.

4. Jaxson Dart broke a major record despite a pedestrian statline.

Jaxson Dart now holds the record for most passing yards in Ole Miss history, surpassing Eli Manning’s total in the second half on Friday.

Dart’s impact on this team and program over the last three years cannot be overstated, and achieving this record in his final home game as a Rebel is a fitting end to his career.