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OXFORD — It may have been a pain to arrange, but Ole Miss football’s last-minute deal to schedule a game against Washington State was profitable.
Ole Miss will pay Washington State $400,000 for a game in Oxford on Oct. 11, 2025, according to the contract obtained by the Clarion Ledger.
The game was scheduled out of necessity. An opening was created in Ole Miss’ 2025 schedule when Wake Forest pulled out of the matchup earlier this year. The Rebels played at Wake Forest on Sept. 14 (winning 40-6) as part of a home-and-home agreement. Wake Forest backed out of the return trip to Oxford shortly before the game.
Wake Forest notified Ole Miss days before the one-year deadline. Because it notified Ole Miss with more than one year to go, Wake Forest paid $750,000. It would have owed $1 million if the notice came within one year of the game.
Still, Ole Miss will pocket $300,000 from Wake Forest’s buyout fee, even after paying Washington State to complete next year’s schedule.
Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin was frustrated with Wake Forest for putting the Rebels in a tight spot. Most colleges have nonconference games scheduled years in advance. Ole Miss has at least part of its nonconference schedule booked through 2037.
“Unfortunately, (scheduling) was something we had to do in season,” Kiffin said. “We had to meet about it for potential ideas. With Wake Forest doing that to us so late, really obviously not a lot of ideas. Not a lot of options.”
The SEC requires its teams to schedule at least one power-conference opponent. Because Wake Forest was that team, the vacancy was especially difficult to fill. Even as part of the weakened Pac-12, Washington State counts as a power program, per an SEC spokesperson.
Washington State comes at a cheaper cost than Ole Miss’ 2024 home nonconference opponents
Compared to what Ole Miss paid its three nonconference teams this season, the Cougars coming to Oxford for $400,000 is a bargain.
Ole Miss paid Furman $500,000. Middle Tennessee and Georgia Southern each was paid $1.6 million.
And it was evident Kiffin was concerned what it would cost Ole Miss after Wake Forest backed out.
“Now we’ve got to go find somebody and most people are all scheduled up,” Kiffin said. “And even when you find somebody, you’ve got to go pay them. It’s kind of an unwritten rule not to (back out of games), actually.”
Ole Miss does not have to repay Washington State with a return visit. If either team cancels the game or doesn’t appear, the offending team will owe the other $400,000, per the contract.
Ole Miss football history vs. Washington State
Ole Miss has never played Washington State, which is 7-1 this season. The loss was a 45-25 defeat at No. 19 Boise State.
“I don’t know a whole lot about them lately except it sounds like they are playing really good this year,” Kiffin said.
Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_
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