Deep in the heart of sweet Dixie, Thanksgiving Week comes around like an old friend. For most, Thanksgiving is when your loved ones sit around a big old table to enjoy a family meal; in Mississippi, Thanksgiving Day brings the Egg Bowl between Mississippi State and Ole Miss. For those unfamiliar, the Egg Bowl is a college football rivalry unlike any other. It’s the one day the entire state of Mississippi shuts down to go out and support their respective programs while hating the other. In Mississippi, the Egg Bowl is about hate for the other and establishing dominance for the year.

Unless you’re from Mississippi or have spent time here, understanding the Egg Bowl is challenging for outsiders. Best believe every player on the roster for either program understands what’s at stake on Thursday night at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi. For Mississippians, Thursday night is more than just a football game; Thursday night’s Egg Bowl is a war within the state that will never end. From the small towns in the Delta to the coast, Mississippi State and Ole Miss fans share life 364 other days, but on Thanksgiving night, families across the state will hate each other during those three hours of the game.

Last season, the Mississippi State Bulldogs went into Vaught Hemingway Stadium in the final game of the historic career of Mike Leach, stealing a win over the Ole Miss Rebels.

This year, Ole Miss is the better team on paper without a question, but Mississippi State is without a Head Coach and has nothing to lose on Thursday night as they welcome the Rebels to Davis Wade Stadium for the 2023 version of the Egg Bowl. Ole Miss comes into the game with the Mississippi State Bulldogs with nine wins, looking to finish the 2023 regular season with a tenth win.

For Mississippi State, the Bulldogs face a situation where a win over Ole Miss would put them back in the postseason for the 13th straight season, and back-to-back wins over Ole Miss since 2018-2019.

No matter the records or what’s at stake, the Egg Bowl always delivers some of the most memorable college football moments, dating back to the first game between the two in 1901. There have been fights, heated moments, and heartbreaking defeats; the Egg Bowl has it all. Thursday night will be no different.