Ole Miss travels up the road to the Liberty Bowl early Saturday to take on Memphis in an underrated rivalry game to open the 2019 season. It may not be a game featuring a pair of top 25-ranked opponents, but you can bet there is plenty of animosity in this one nonetheless.

The Rebels are coming off a disappointing 5-7 campaign in their second season under Matt Luke, and they have to replace star quarterback Jordan Ta'amu and wide receivers A.J. Brown and D.K. Metcalf. The Tigers are coming off consecutive AAC West titles under coach Mike Norvell. They return veteran quarterback Brady White to lead the high-octane offense that has led to the program's resurgence over the last half-decade.

Ole Miss is looking to get back to the top of the SEC West, while Memphis is focused on knocking off UCF and leading the AAC in 2019. What will go down Saturday afternoon? Let's take a look. And don't forget to subscribe to our Cover 3 college football podcast. Listen below for locks for the top games in Week 1.

Storylines

Ole Miss: Highly-touted quarterback Matt Corral will take over for Ta'amu, and the former four-star prospect will operate an offense under new offensive coordinator Rich Rodriguez that demands the signal-caller to do damage through the air and on the ground. He'll have established running back Scottie Phillips alongside, and five-star running back Jerrion Ealy off the bench to take some pressure off him. The biggest question for the Rebels is defense. Do they have one? Does the presence of new coordinator Mike McIntyre make an immediate impact? With so many offensive pieces gone, the defense has to take a massive step forward.

Memphis: White is coming off a season in which he threw for 3,296 yards and 26 touchdowns. The former Arizona State quarterback gets top receiver Damonte Coxie back after he caught 72 passes for 1,174 yards and seven touchdowns. The biggest question for Memphis will be how dynamic the offense will be without former running back star Darrell Henderson and do-everything receiver Tony Pollard. Luckily for the Tigers, 1,000-yard rusher Patrick Taylor returns as the feature back after serving as Henderson's sidekick last year.

Viewing information

Date: Saturday, Aug. 31 | Time: Noon ET
Location: Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium -- Memphis, Tennessee
TV: ABC | Live stream: WatchESPN.com  

Game prediction, picks

I don't trust the Ole Miss defense as far as I can throw it, but I don't think Memphis' offense will come out clicking on all cylinders without Henderson and Pollard. Because of that, expect Rodriguez to work Phillips and Ealy on the ground, and give Corral safe passes unless he absolutely has to open things up. I don't think he will, Phillips and Ealy will grind the Memphis defense down in the fourth quarter and lead the Rebels to a mild upset. Pick: Ole Miss (+5.5)

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