It’s a helluva bowl game, but one TCU has little interest playing in. The Horned Frogs let it be known earlier this month they thought they deserved to be one of the four teams in the inaugural College Football Playoff, and they did little to hide their displeasure.

They aren’t wrong in feeling this way after a 55-3 rout of Iowa State in the final week of the regular season dropped them from third in the CFP rankings to sixth, a byproduct of a less enticing semifinal matchup from a tv ratings standpoint.

TCU’s consolation is a Peach Bowl matchup with a very good Ole Miss team, and despite earlier jokes, the Horned Frogs will surely be ready to go come New Year’s Eve.

As for the Rebels, there was a time this season they were looking like playoff contenders much more than the Frogs. After four less than impressive out of conference wins to open the year (which put them in line with just about every other big program in the nation) Ole Miss made waves by handing Alabama their only loss of the season and following that up with a big win over a Texas A&M team that hadn’t yet been exposed as the Top 25 fraud they turned out to be.

It looked for a time this would be the season of Mississippi football, but back-to-back losses to LSU and Auburn all but expunged the Rebels’ playoff hopes.

Mississippi will be heading into the Peach Bowl on a high note however, having beaten their in-state rivals the Mississippi State Bulldogs and ultimately knocking them out of the College Football Playoff.

TCU is a fun offence to watch. They love to air it out and, led by Heisman candidate Trevone Boykin, had one of the best passing attacks in the NCAA. While they ranked fifth in offensive yards and seventh in passing, TCU scored more points than any team other than Baylor. The Horned Frogs scored more than 40 points in a game eight times this year and their 82 points against Texas Tech was one of the biggest outcomes of the year.

Boykin found himself in the Top 10 in many passing categories as well but what made him one of the best QBs in the nation this year, second best if we’re to believe the Heisman voters, was his dual threat ability. Boykin’s 642 rushing yards and eight scores on the ground were amongst the best among quarterbacks that could throw as well.

Something has to give however because as good as TCU’s offence proved this season, Ole Miss’ defence was almost as good. The Rebels finished 13th in the nation giving up only 321 yards per game. They’re particularly good against the pass as well. TCU faced just one defence as good against the pass as Ole Miss this season – Texas – and beat them 48-10. While Boykin was held under 300 combined yards, he did create three combined touchdowns against the Longhorns.

Ole Miss finished with a middle-of-the-pack offence this year, with more success coming through the air than on the ground. Senior quarterback Bo Wallace had a solid year and spent a couple weeks this year on different pundits’ Heisman Watches in the honourable mentions section. Boykin’s the star behind centre in this matchup, but Wallace could put up similar numbers if he has a strong finisher to his collegiate career.

The Horned Frogs defence put up respectable numbers this year as well. While their defensive side of the ball doesn’t run over opponents like the offence (if it did TCU would be a helluva lot harder to keep out of the College Football Playoff) but ranked a decent 31st in the country.

There’s a reason TCU probably belonged in the College Football Playoff, they’re a very good team; and the -3 line heading into the game seems a little low. This should be a great game but the Horned Frogs should only strengthen their argument they belonged in the Top 4 with a win over Ole Miss.

Eye on Sunday

CB Senquez Golson, FS Cody Prewitt, Ole Miss

There’s still plenty of time for this to change, but as of right now there isn’t expected to be many first or maybe even second rounders playing in the Peach Bowl. Two members of the Ole Miss secondary, Golson and Prewitt, are probably the top NFL prospects in this game, and each has a chance to sneak into the second round.

DT Chucky Hunter, TCU

Lots of good college players on the Horned Frogs, but not many of their draft eligibles are considered desirable to NFL teams. Hunter is the top ranked prospect on TCU right now, but at this point shouldn’t expect to hear his name called until the middle rounds.