When the calendar flips to the first day of the new year, the Sugar Bowl will quickly answer two major questions: Did Ole Miss really recover from Lane Kiffin’s exit, and did Georgia fix the one thing that was putting them into tight games earlier this season—their defense? If you ask FOX Sports lead analyst Joel Klatt who wins the January 1 game, those answers point clearly toward the Bulldogs as the overwhelming expert pick.

“The way that they’re playing on a mission, this Georgia team could absolutely win the national championship,” Klatt said. “They’re finally playing the type of football you expect them to play all the time. I think Georgia wins this one, and they win it handily. The air kind of leaves the balloon for Miss.”

And this feeling by Joel Klatt is not coming out of thin air. It’s the feeling that’s rooted in confidence, given the outcome of what happened last time when these two teams met. Georgia beat Ole Miss 43-35 in Athens, and since that night, Georgia has looked like, well… Georgia again.

The Bulldog has allowed 10 points or fewer in their last four games. They have started getting after quarterbacks, piling up 12 sacks over the last five games, and making life simply miserable for the opposing offenses like Texas and Alabama. Georgia’s defense is putting other teams on the fence. But here is a thing—taking opponents lightly is the biggest mistake one can make.

Georgia Bulldogs need to have a formula up their sleeve to ensure they have a sure-shot win. The best part is that they already do!

The formula is age-old and simple—don’t mess with what’s not broken. During the first meeting, Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy was held to a season low of 31 rushing yards. This makes replicating that effort all the more crucial. If Georgia controls the trenches, it can then effectively limit Ole Miss’s offensive plans.

Meanwhile, there is no doubt that Ole Miss is talented, but losing Kiffin, the play-caller behind all that early offensive success, for sure makes the margin for error thin more so in a playoff environment against a team whose defense is at its peak now.

Klatt, in his podcast, mentioned that once Georgia gets the lead, the pressure will pile on Ole Miss immediately and sideline them. His prediction is simply that Georgia covers the 6.5 points, wins 42–27, takes the Sugar Bowl, and takes one key step closer to the national semifinal.

But here is a thing, Georgia, to take notice of: Ole Miss is getting help from their ex-head coach!

Lane Kiffin is helping Ole Miss, but he may be helping Georgia, too!

Lane Kiffin is not a part of the Ole Miss story anymore; he is not their head coach anymore. But connections don’t die with a flick of a pen on paper, right? Kiffin spent an entire season with that roster, helped build what they became, and there is no reason he wouldn’t want this team to make a run at a national championship. Even though his dynamics with Trinidad Chambliss are far from ideal, he offered key advice to the team.

Kiffin didn’t sugarcoat what went wrong the first time Ole Miss played with Georgia. The Bulldogs did not punt once in the 43-35 win. His message was simply—Ole Miss has to calm the opposition offense and contain their quarterback. Sure, this is not groundbreaking advice, but it’s coming from the one who knows the team better than anyone.

Plus, it’s not that Lane Kiffin is here giving free “tips” to win over Georgia because of his emotional connection. There is a financial incentive at play, too. LSU agreed to pay Kiffin the bonuses Ole Miss would have owed him based on how far the Rebels advance in the playoff. That context makes his recent comments feel less in the air.

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But the irony of the situation is it’s Kiffin who might be the one helping Georgia win this—at least indirectly.

See, Kiffin is taking much of his Ole Miss staff with him to LSU. Those coaches are finishing the playoff run with the Rebels and also managing the recruiting work for LSU at the same time. This divides the attention and lessens the total focus on prepping to take down Georgia.

That’s a dangerous gamble against a team like the Bulldogs. Ole Miss might have talent, but prep matters in playoff football—and the result will all but be seen on January 1st.