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GAME NOTES: The 21st-ranked Ole Miss Rebels are coming off a heart-breaking loss, and it will be interesting to see how they respond in this weekend's SEC clash with the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Ole Miss opened the season with back-to-back victories over inferior opponents before traveling to South Carolina for a big-time bout with the Gamecocks last Thursday. The result of that tilt was a painful 16-10 defeat that has taken the Rebels out of contention for the national title for the moment, although the season is still quite young.

"As much as that hurt, we had to get the message across that there is nothing we can do about that now," said Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt about the loss to South Carolina. "We can learn from it, correct our mistakes and get back out."

Vanderbilt is a respectable 2-2 overall this season, but the team's 0-2 mark in SEC play is surely disappointing. Last weekend, the Commodores took a break from conference action to post a 36-17 decision over Rice on the road.

We're obviously very pleased to get a win over Rice on Saturday," said head coach Bobby Johnson. "The whole game didn't go exactly like we wanted, but anytime you go on the road and play somebody that has a winning record the last couple of years and is used to winning at home, it felt good to get a win."

Coming into this season, Ole Miss was viewed as an explosive offensive team with a Heisman-caliber quarterback in Jevan Snead. Sure, the team is scoring 35.7 ppg through three outings, but the modest 365.7 total ypg generated thus far tells a more accurate story of the struggles that have existed.

"That's probably been one of the most disappointing things, not being able to really come out and get in that rhythm like we are accustomed to," said Nutt after the South Carolina game. "Keeping the ball, getting first downs and putting points on the board, it has taken us too long to get going. I expect that to change now, I really do."

Snead has completed a lowly 49.3 percent of his passes for 491 yards and six touchdowns against two interceptions, numbers that fall far short of expectations. No receiver has more than three catches to his credit, and the ground attack has been the most reliable means of attack, with Brandon Bolden and Dexter McCluster making plays when called upon.

Meanwhile, the Ole Miss defense has been strong, as opponents are only scoring 12.0 ppg against the Rebels, who are yielding 290.3 total ypg. They are giving up a mere 100.3 rushing ypg on an average of 2.8 ypc. The pass defense has been strong as well, as opposing quarterbacks have barely been able to complete half of their attempts. Greg Hardy, the team's stud defensive end, was on the field for more than 30 snaps last week in his return from injury. If he can be relatively healthy the rest of the season, Ole Miss will benefit tremendously.

The defense held South Carolina to three field goals last week on drives that spanned 12, 13 and 14 plays, respectively. The only touchdown allowed by the Rebels was the culmination of a 25-yard drive, so it is hard to blame the defense for that one. Ole Miss allowed just 285 total yards, including 65 rushing yards on 34 attempts, but Snead and the offense managed a mere 248 total yards. Aside from a 45-yard touchdown pass from Snead in the fourth quarter that made things interesting, there really wasn't much to cheer about.

Against Rice last week, Vanderbilt finished with 484 total yards while limiting the Owls to 282 yards. The Commodores featured a balanced offensive attack that yielded 216 rushing yards and 268 passing yards. Quarterback Larry Smith completed 23-of-41 passes, and Warren Norman rushed for 119 yards and a score on only 11 carries. Four different players had a rushing touchdown for the Commodores, and while Jared Hawkins wasn't one of them, he did gain 61 yards on 11 attempts in a return from injury.

"I thought Jared ran well and we were glad to have him back," said coach Johnson. "He looked fresh and ready to go. He looked hungry to make some good runs and I thought he did that. It's great to have a tailback with experience out on the field like Jared has."

Overall this season, Vanderbilt is scoring 23.3 ppg while gaining 367.8 total ypg. The Commodores have scored 10 of their 11 offensive touchdowns on the ground, and the running game accounts for 201.0 ypg at a clip of 4.4 yards per attempt. Norman has gained 250 yards and three touchdowns, posting 6.9 yards per carry. As for Smith, who has a pair of rushing scores to his credit, he has only completed 48.7 percent of his passes with three interceptions. There isn't a serious receiving threat in the fold, so expect defenses to begin to key more on the run.

Opponents are scoring 13.8 ppg against Vanderbilt, which is allowing 266.0 total ypg. Clearly, the defense has performed quite admirably against both the run and the pass. The fact that opposing quarterbacks are only averaging 7.6 yards per pass completion against Vandy with one touchdown and five interceptions is surprising, especially considering that the Commodores' best defensive back from a year ago moved on to the NFL. Myron Lewis has a pair of picks to his credit, and Theron Kadri paces the club with three sacks.

Give the edge to Ole Miss, which is eager to get back on the field. Still, expect Vanderbilt to put up a fight, especially at home.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Ole Miss 27, Vanderbilt 17