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Ole Miss and Pittsburgh are two of the most evenly matched teams in the bowl schedule this season, so Saturday's BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., should be a fun one to watch.
 
Here's who has the advantage at each position. 
 

 
There was a time this season in which teams looked forward to having their defenses go up against LSU junior quarterback Zach Mettenberger. That time, it’s safe to say, has come and gone. 
 
Mettenberger threw for 298 yards and a touchdown in a heartbreaking loss to Alabama two weeks ago and followed that up by tossing two touchdowns and 273 passing yards in a win against Mississippi State this past weekend. 
 

 
It’s that time of the year where few players are completely, 100 percent healthy. 
 
That is the case for Ole Miss and was the reason sophomore quarterback Bo Wallace sat out the majority of Tuesday’s practice. Wallace has dealt with a shoulder bruise and soreness for most of the season. 
 

 
The situation Saturday night was all too familiar for Ole Miss. Having the lead with just over two minutes left in the game, a defensive stop would have propelled the Rebels to six wins and bowl eligibility. Instead, they were handed another heartbreaking. This time by the Vanderbilt Commodores, who became bowl eligible themselves with the win.
 

 
Over the last two games against Arkansas and Georgia, Ole Miss has found itself unable to move the football on the ground. 
 
The rushing attack was a key factor in the Rebels’ early season offensive success, as the team topped 150 yards rushing in six of their first seven games. However, over the last two weeks, the Rebels have combined for just 123 yards on 66 carries, averaging out to just 1.86 yards per carry. 
 

 
ATHENS, Ga. — With Ole Miss up 10-7 in the second quarter, Georgia had the ball and the momentum after a 66-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Aaron Murray to senior wide receiver Marlon Brown. Then, Ole Miss and Georgia combined for four turnovers in the span of five plays, and while no points were scored off the turnovers, the Rebels missed out on a prime scoring opportunity after the first of the four turnovers.
 

Ole Miss jumped out to a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter and had hopes of the upset against No. 6 Georgia, and then the Bulldogs scored 37 unanswered points to win 37-10 in Saturday's Southeastern Conference clash "Between the Hedges."
 

 
Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze readily admits that it’s “very tempting” to shift his offense into overdrive and run a higher percentage of up-tempo plays. However, a lack of depth on both sides of the football makes that tough to do, as the Rebels are down to 64 healthy scholarship players. 
 
“That’s my nature, it is what I would like to do,” Freeze said. “If we were a little deeper in the secondary and at defensive end, it would be even more tempting. It’s still tempting.”
 

 
The Ole Miss Rebels defeated the Arkansas Razorbacks 30-27 on Saturday on the foot of senior Bryson Rose’s 31-yard field goal as time expired. While Rose was carried off the field in triumph, the Rebels’ second-straight Southeastern Conference victory was much more than a one-man job.
 

 
Third-down defense
 
The Rebels’ defense has consistently improved throughout the season, but one part of the game where they still struggle is third-down defense. On the year, Ole Miss ranks 91st in the country in opponent third-down conversion percentage, allowing opponents to convert almost 44 percent of third downs.
 

 
Ole Miss enters Saturday’s showdown against Arkansas with the potential of having one of their biggest offensive games of the season. The Rebels (4-3, 1-2 SEC) will take on a Razorback defense that is ranked 13th in the SEC in total defense, 12th in scoring defense, last in pass defense and fifth in rush defense.