Ole Miss-Alabama: Rebels Heading For More SEC Heartache Against Crimson Tide

There are certainties in the universe like gravity that are reliable and predictable. 

One of those phenomena is Alabama beating Ole Miss whenever the two play.

Having lost just two of the last 20 meetings with the Rebels, the Tide lead the all-time series with a record of 45-9-2.

Alabama has beaten a Top 10 opponent this year, Virginia Tech, in convincing fashion.

Ole Miss has lost a game to previously unranked opponent. They have beaten no one of any consequence.

The supposedly high-powered offense under a guy with Heisman hype managed one touchdown against South Carolina, a defense that's not near as good as Alabama's.

The Ole Miss defense, while statistically good, has not played a team with an offense ranked in the nation's top half.

They are about to realize just how hollow statistics can be.

South Carolina exposed the Rebels as pretenders for the SEC crown. Alabama will expose them as being a middle-of-the-pack SEC team with a great public relations department.

This offseason, too many reporters and media personalities fell in love with the notion of the little team that could. An underdog doing well is a heartwarming tale that everyone was willing to jump on board with.

That was then. This is now.

Alabama will completely tear the wheels off that bandwagon.

Houston Nutt will throw every gadget play and the kitchen sink at Alabama. But it's a case of too few real horses and too big a wagon for him to pull off a win this Saturday.

I've reported all offseason that this Nutt cracks every time expectations are high for his team. It's his M.O. Like gravity, it's constant and unyielding.

You may rise and fall from the low- to high-middle of the SEC and you may occasionally score an upset when a top team is in a down cycle like Alabama in 2003. But you are Ole Miss.

It's alright to have hope. It's great you can dream of being on top. But when the season ends each year you realize, once again, that greatness is just outside your grasp.

Alabama-Ole Miss is a rivalry that dates back to 1894. Yet you've never won two games in a row against us. You've been beaten by a cumulative score of 1625-682, an average deficit of 29-12, over the last 56 games. You've been held without a touchdown 20 times.

The fans this Saturday will all wring their hands and wonder what went wrong.

Nothing went wrong, all went as expected. You were Ole Miss last season and the one before and you're Ole Miss this season, too.