Among the many cliché phrases surrounding the Mississippi State University 24-17 win over Arkansas, “a win is a win” fits the bill. The Bulldogs had to send it into overtime to finally pull through, thanks to a Damian Williams rushing touchdown and a Taveze Calhoun interception to seal the deal and keep their bowl hopes alive. This marks the first time that MSU won a game in the state of Arkansas. 
The unsung hero of the game was redshirt sophomore running back Josh Robinson. He rushed for 101 yards on 17 carries and also had a huge block on the overtime touchdown run by Williams. 
With the win over the Razorbacks, it is now time for the game that has been marked on everyone’s calendar since late August. Longtime rivals will meet on Thanksgiving night for the 110th meeting between the Ole Miss Rebels and MSU. Ole Miss leads the overall series with a 61-42-6 record. However, the last time the Rebels won a game in Starkville was in 2003 behind Rebel quarterback Eli Manning. 
In the last 10 matchups in Starkville, the Bulldogs have a commanding 7-3 record. Recent history has shown the Rebels have a hard time in Starkville, but this year is up for grabs for both teams. MSU will need to win in order to go to its fourth straight bowl game. Ole Miss needs a win to keep the Egg Bowl trophy for another year and improve its resume for a better postseason bowl game. 
This year’s Egg Bowl will feature many new faces from last year’s matchup. A question that circles around the state of Mississippi will finally be answered: Who is the better freshman defensive lineman, Chris Jones of MSU or Robert Nkemdiche of Ole Miss? These two players are talented in everything they do and were both highly recruited by many top-ranked programs. 
Key to the game will be Ole Miss’s reaction to a hostile environment due to the fact that its last road game was on Oct. 5 when the Rebels lost to Auburn. For the Bulldogs, it will be their senior night, and nothing would be more important to that senior class if they won on Thursday. With a win, this year’s senior class would leave the school as the only senior class in MSU history to go to four straight bowl games. It would also have a nice 3-1 record over the Rebels, which would be a great stat the players can cherish for the rest of their lives. 
This is more than a game where one team will leave with a trophy. It has always been about something bigger than all of us. This game sets the tone for the offseason, which starts with national signing day in February. 
The winner of this game usually catches the eyes of high school football players from the state of Mississippi and can actually be a factor in where they will be in college the following year. This game is about bragging rights for the next 364 days. It is good, old-fashioned hatred that brings out the best in both schools. 
The records of both schools truly do not matter. All that matters in this game is which team wants it more and can play with heart through all four quarters. 
This year’s Egg Bowl game will be one of the biggest in series’ history. This game will truly set up the future for one of these schools. The loser of this game will have to go back to the drawing board. Ole Miss and MSU both could have remarkable seasons in the 2014 campaign. The fans see this as the final game of the year, but I can tell you for both these football programs it is only the beginning.