The Oklahoma Sooners welcome the Ole Miss Rebels to Norman on Saturday. The Sooners have never beaten the Rebels and are 0-2 since joining the SEC.

The Sooners lost last season in Norman 34-26. Now, the Rebels come into Norman at 6-3, with their College Football Playoff hopes hanging by a thread after being blown out 42-7 at home by the Georgia Bulldogs last season.

That's why head coach Brent Venables expects a hungry and desperate Ole Miss team this Saturday.

"We've got a really talented football team in Ole Miss coming here this weekend," Venables said. "... This is a team that's coming into here with a desperate mindset. They've got to win to go to the playoffs. They are still in a strong position to do so if they win out."

Oklahoma will have to be prepared for an Ole Miss team that understands the stakes and has little room for error. The Rebels still have a path to the College Football Playoff, but another loss would make that pursuit much harder. That urgency could make them a dangerous opponent, especially against a Sooners team looking to establish momentum late in the season.

For Oklahoma, Saturday offers a chance to change the narrative against a program it has yet to defeat. The Sooners will have home-field advantage and a chance to build on their dominant win over the Florida Gators, but they'll need a complete performance to take down the Rebels. With both teams entering the game with plenty to prove, the game carries major implications for each program's season.