Lane Kiffin told reporters in the postgame that Saturday’s 28-10 win over No. 3 Georgia “started a year ago.”

The Ole Miss head coach has been painfully clear about last year’s loss to the Bulldogs. The Rebels entered that November matchup with an 8-2 record and a top-10 spot in the AP poll. They took a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, then watched Georgia go on a 45-7 run to expose the Rebels. Since that result (a 35-point loss), Kiffin has said he built the 2024 Rebels with an eye toward Georgia.

Closing the gap with the Dawgs would, by extension, help Ole Miss reach its overall team goals of going to the College Football Playoff and contending for an SEC crown. Beat Georgia, the gold standard in the SEC for years, and Ole Miss would have a chance to do something it hasn’t done.

The Rebels stubbed their toe earlier this season, but everything was still on the table Saturday night in Oxford.

And Ole Miss went out and took it all.

“A year ago we lost to these guys by like 30,” Kiffin told ESPN’s Molly McGrath on the field after the game. “We made a decision we’ve got to recruit differently. We’ve got to go shopping. We planned for this game for a year, game-planned all offseason.”

Ole Miss moved to 4-2 in league play with the victory. They’re not completely out of the SEC title race yet, but the win did wonders for the CFP hopes.

The Rebels will head into a bye week where they’ll need to get healthy. Key offensive players missed the game on Saturday and quarterback Jaxson Dart briefly left with a lower-leg issue. When they return, the Rebels will face Florida in The Swamp and then host the Egg Bowl.

Two more wins and the Rebels are all but guaranteed a spot in the CFP.