There are a lot of similarities between this year's Egg Bowl and the 2009 Egg Bowl. Except it's one of them vice-versa's.

In '09, #20 Ole Miss came into Starkville with an 8-3 record. Mississippi State was led by first-year head coach Dan Mullen, who had led State to a 4-7 record including several close calls in which the Bulldogs could not quite close the deal - most notably LSU.

In '12, #25 Mississippi State comes into Oxford with an 8-3 record. Ole Miss is led by first-year head coach Hugh Freeze, who has led UM to a 5-6 record including several close calls in which the Rebel could not quite close the deal - most notably LSU.

There are a couple of big, fat differences, however. Ole Miss is fighting for bowl eligibility. Mississippi State has won 3 in a row and are trying to become the first team since Ole Miss in 1986 to win 4 in a row in the series. So hopefully those differences offset the similarities so we don't end up with the lesser team winning again.