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Peach Bowl Early Preview – (9) Ole Miss and (6) TCU Promise Fireworks

John Benson

by John Benson in News

Updated Jan 17, 2018 · 9:40 AM PST

Peach Bowl: Georgia Dome, Atlanta (Dec. 31, 12:30 p.m.)

(9) Ole Miss Rebels (-3, 56.5) vs. (6) TCU Horned Frogs

Even though the No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels (9-3) and No. 6 TCU Horned Frogs TCU (11-1) have to be disappointed after missing out on the playoffs by such a narrow margin, both have the chance to end the season on a high note with a win in the Peach Bowl.

You won’t find Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze or TCU coach Gary Patterson complaining about their bowl game.

Said Freeze, “To be one of the first teams chosen in the New Year’s six bowls and to come to a place that is extremely dear to us in Atlanta and particularly the Peach Bowl, we’re honored.”

Patterson added, “[Our team] wanted to play somebody that was a caliber of a top five team and we feel like Ole Miss is that team.”

Freeze and Patterson are preparing for an epic Xs and Os battle, as TCU will be searching for weaknesses in Ole Miss’ No. 1 scoring defense (13.8 points per game), while Ole Miss will be trying to find ways to contain TCU’s No. 2 scoring offense (46.8 points per game).

Though Ole Miss has been able to contain other high-powered offenses this season (holding both Alabama and Mississippi State to 17 points), you better believe TCU’s dynamic quarterback, Trevone Boykin, is keeping Freeze awake at night.

“[Their q]uarterback makes them go, reminds me of Johnny Manziel when we had to play and defend him,” Freeze said. “It’s very similar to that. Their coordinator came from that system. They got great players around [Boykin] but he’s a different animal. You have to defend him every play in both run and pass, which is the difficult task.”

As for the TCU defense, which gives up 20.3 points per game, Freeze said, “Patterson is always going to have a great defense. He has a great scheme. His kids play extremely hard. I don’t think they’re underrated because I think all of us in this world know how good they are. If you look at, ever since the Baylor game, I think they’ve set a pretty good tone of what they are defensively.”

The “Baylor game” alluded to by Freeze was what kept the Horned Frogs out of the playoffs. TCU traveled to Waco and nearly upset the Bears, but gave up 20+ unanswered in the fourth to fall 61-58. Freeze is right that the defense rebounded, thereafter, though. The next week, TCU dominated Oklahoma State (41-9) as 8.5-point favorites, and they only gave up 18.4 points per game over the last seven.

Despite the tough defenses, look for this game to be all about offense, which means the over (56.5) is the play.

(Photo credit: SD Dirk (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode]. Photo has been cropped.)

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