Week 3 shook up the College Football Playoff picture, and ESPN’s updated odds made the biggest winner and loser in the SEC pretty easy to spot.
Ole Miss came out of Saturday night’s win over LSU in Oxford with the week’s biggest boost, jumping 21% in ESPN Insights’ updated Playoff odds. The Rebels are now sitting at a 40% chance to reach the Playoff, which puts them ninth nationally. That surge followed the kind of scene that can change a season fast, and it also pushed Ole Miss up to No. 4 in the latest AP Poll.
The road ahead is still plenty tough for the Rebels, starting with another SEC test this Saturday at No. 21 Florida. But after Week 3, they’re in the best shape they’ve been in so far.
LSU, on the other hand, took the opposite hit. The Tigers’ loss in Oxford knocked their Playoff odds down 22%, leaving them 14th overall at 28%. The numbers tell the story cleanly: Ole Miss and LSU basically traded places in terms of momentum after one game.
Texas A&M also took a major step backward in the eyes of ESPN Insights. With Texas already holding the top Playoff odds at 85%, the Aggies saw their own chances fall by 36% after a shocking home loss to Kentucky.
Those were the headline swings from a memorable Week 3, and ESPN’s updated model reflects just how much one Saturday can reshape the playoff race. The full odds now show where the race stands heading into Week 4, while the Kalshi market is offering its own view of which teams have the inside track to land among the final 12.
In Other News...
Kirk Herbstreit Sparks Viral Backlash During Ole Miss LSU Week
Kirk Herbstreit found himself at the center of another noisy college football weekend after a College GameDay segment in Oxford turned political and quickly spilled beyond the field. During the lead-up to Ole Miss-LSU week, Herbstreit said he does not follow politics closely and does not know Sen. Ted Cruzs political views, stressing that his own focus is on football, family, faith and country.
The comments did not land quietly. Fans and media figures pushed back online, pointing to Herbstreits past political commentary and treating the explanation with skepticism. For an Ole Miss weekend already packed with attention, the episode added another layer of attention around a pregame show that usually tries to keep the spotlight on the matchup. [Read more 🡒]
Jaxson Darts Scary NFL Injury Leaves One Big Question For Ole Miss Fans
Jaxson Darts first Monday night spotlight in the NFL came with a scare that Ole Miss fans will feel too. The former Rebels quarterback suffered a sprained MCL against the Los Angeles Rams, and while initial X-rays came back negative, the bigger checkup was still ahead with an MRI scheduled for Tuesday.
The good news for New York is that the injury is not season-ending, even if Dart is expected to miss some time. For Ole Miss, it adds another uneasy reminder of how quickly a quarterbacks season can change at the next level, and it leaves one obvious question hanging in the air as the medical reports come back. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Just Saw One QB Change The Draft Debate Around Arch Manning
Through three weeks of the 2026 season, Trinidad Chambliss has turned himself into one of the sports earliest Heisman favorites, and it has happened the way NFL evaluators love to see it happen: against quality opponents. The Ole Miss quarterback has been stacking strong performances while giving the Rebels a legitimate centerpiece at the exact moment the national conversation is starting to sharpen around the draft and the postseason awards race.
Arch Manning, meanwhile, entered the year with the kind of expectations that usually make every throw feel magnified, but his early statistical output has not matched the hype. That gap has already raised fresh questions about how steady his production will be over the course of the season and whether he can hold onto first-round buzz, especially with both quarterbacks headed into upcoming games against ranked opponents that could swing the discussion again. [Read more 🡒]