LSU football now favored in matchup vs. No. 7 Ole Miss

If Week 6’s loss to Tennessee was the low point of LSU football’s season, last Saturday was its peak. The Tigers rebounded from a 40-13 loss by going on the road to defeat Florida pretty easily. Brian Kelly’s team was firing on all cylinders, especially on the offensive side of the ball. The win saw the Bayou Bengals improve to 5-2 on the season and 3-1 in Southeastern Conference play.

The tough contests just keep on coming from here on out. LSU is now preparing to welcome another Top 10-ranked opponent to Tiger Stadium. Undefeated Ole Miss will square off against Kelly’s Fighting Tigers in CBS’ SEC Game of the Week. There is a lot of hope around Baton Rouge that LSU will fare better against the Rebels than it did against the Volunteers. Oddsmakers have had their say on the topic, and they tend to think that’s the case.

LSU football now favored in its matchup vs. No. 7 Ole Miss

Lane Kiffin’s squad, who is currently ranked No. 7 in the nation, will be traveling into a hostile environment looking to keep his team afloat in the SEC West. Ole Miss is currently undefeated and a win in this year’s Magnolia Bowl would see the Rebels pass their toughest test to date.

The visitors opened up as -2.5 favorites on Sunday, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. This line didn’t last long though as the odds shifted drastically on Monday morning. The four-point swing has held firm for the last 24 hours, which means LSU moving to 1.5-point favorites is no fluke.

It’s a curious flip from oddsmakers in Las Vegas considering the circumstances. The Tigers were beaten by four touchdowns less than two weeks ago against another Top 10 SEC opponent. Meanwhile, the Rebels remain unbeaten and their offense looks fantastic.

Usually, lines go through drastic swings like this when all of the money is going one way. Action Network has reported that 71 percent of bets have been placed on Ole Miss though, which rules out that case. Perhaps oddsmakers know something we don’t or maybe there’s just a lot of confidence in the Tigers after the show they put on at The Swamp over the weekend.

Either way, somebody smart out there somewhere is backing the Bayou Bengals.

If Jayden Daniels and the rest of the LSU offense can move the ball as efficiently as they did against Florida, who could blame them? The Tigers were unrecognizable—in the best possible way—on Saturday. Mike Denbrock’s unit finally looks to have turned a corner.

If LSU can play up to its potential on both sides of the ball, the Tigers will have much bigger fish to fry than Ole Miss. While highly unlikely, Kelly still has the 5-2 Bayou Bengals in a position to contend for the SEC West. This is a testament to the fantastic job that the former Notre Dame legend has done since coming to Baton Rouge less than one year ago.

Saturday is a chance at a new beginning for a team in the midst of a rebuild. The LSU Tigers are now favored over a Top 10 team at home, a win would represent the rapid acceleration of any retooling done by the program.