Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss may not be afforded the luxury of a playoff berth with a 10-2 record

As the Ole Miss Rebels get ready for in-conference SEC play, it's becoming apparent that the program could miss the College Football Playoff even if they have what would be considered a marquee season for most other teams.

Despite having some success in the five years he has coached the program, Lane Kiffin has never made the College Football Playoff. With an extremely easy in-conference schedule, Ole Miss hopes to turn this around and make the playoff this season in an expanded 12-team playoff.

So far, Jaxson Dart has looked solid in the first four games of the season (against under matched teams to be fair) throwing for 1,554 yards and 12 touchdowns.

However, as the Rebels get ready for a somewhat easy SEC schedule, it's clear that the program will not have as much leeway as others.

Ole Miss could miss the College Football Playoff with more than one loss

Although Lane Kiffin could lead Ole Miss to a 11-win season, the Rebels face major obstacles with Georgia, LSU, and Oklahoma.

The Rebels will be considered favorites going into their matchup against the Tigers, but Kelly's squad will probably have their backs against the wall with Garrett Nussmeier doing everything he can to lead LSU to a victory.

Although a loss against the Tigers is somewhat possible and the game is weeks away, it's easy to say this game and the game the week after will be extremely telling of their playoff chances. Yes, Ole Miss could beat Georgia in the second week of November, but it's far more likely they will need to beat LSU and Oklahoma instead.

To be completely fair, all of this is speculative at the moment but it's clear that Ole Miss will need to win two of the three games against LSU, Oklahoma, and Georgia. Additionally, the program will need to survive any surprise upsets against lower-level SEC programs.

Finally, the school can probably still get into the playoff if the program has two losses with the second loss being in the SEC title game.

Yes, the school may be one of the last seeds in the tournament but Kiffin would accomplish a goal that he hasn't reached as a head coach for the Rebels. While the program may not be afforded the luxruy of making the playoff with two losses, the school is in a great spot to make the 12-team playoff going into the final week of September.