The biggest jump in the AP poll published Oct. 4 belonged to Missouri, which moved up 11 spots to No. 14 after a 45-17 win over Florida. A week later, on Oct. 10, the Tigers beat Texas A&M 27-6 at Faurot Field. Now they head to Oxford, Mississippi, where No. 9 Ole Miss is waiting.
The record behind the climb
Missouri is 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the SEC under Eliah Drinkwitz, in his seventh season, and sits No. 14 in the AP poll and No. 16 in the Coaches poll as of Oct. 10. The Tigers beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 54-14, won at Kansas 38-21, beat Troy 27-17, lost 31-24 at Mississippi State on Sept. 26, beat Florida 45-17 on Oct. 3 and beat Texas A&M 27-6 on Oct. 10. The only loss came on the road against a team that was ranked at the time.
Ole Miss was 3-1 and 1-1 in the SEC under Pete Golding, in his first season, and No. 9 in the Oct. 4 AP poll. The Rebels beat Louisville 41-38, beat Charlotte 41-9, beat LSU 32-24 on Sept. 19 and lost 52-28 at Florida on Sept. 26.
The game
Missouri plays at Ole Miss on Saturday, Oct. 17 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford. Kickoff is 2:30 p.m. Central on ABC, ESPN or SECN. Ole Miss then plays at Texas in Austin on Oct. 24.
The tailgate
The Grove is the one everybody measures against: ten acres of tents, chandeliers and Sunday best in the center of campus, west of the Lyceum. Missouri has its own scene on Truman's Terrace, black and gold before the walk into Faurot, at Memorial Stadium.
What to watch
A ranked Missouri team that has won its last two, one of them by 28 points, goes to a ranked Ole Miss team at The Grove.