It’s the battle of the best one-loss teams in the country Saturday in Oxford, Mississippi. The College Football Playoff rankings debuted this week, and Auburn and Ole Miss are ranked No. 3 and No. 4, respectively. The winner still controls its own destiny. The loser might be knocked out of contention entirely.

Auburn has a 28-10 advantage in the series and has won nine of the 12 games played in Oxford, but the Rebels are off to their best start (7-1) since 1990.

Here is a breakdown of Saturday’s game:

Auburn’s key to victory: Auburn has to protect the football. The Tigers have five turnovers in the past two games after committing five total in the first five. The last time they played in the Magnolia State, they turned the ball over on their first two possessions, digging a 21-0 hole against Mississippi State. This Ole Miss defense is even better. The Rebels lead the nation in interceptions (17), turnover margin (+13) and points off turnovers (97). Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall, who has thrown all three of his interceptions on the road this season, has to be smart with the football. Expect the Tigers to try to run early and often.

Ole Miss' key to victory: Speaking of Auburn’s rushing attack, it will be critical for Ole Miss to slow that down, but if the Rebels want to win Saturday, it’s up to quarterback Bo Wallace. The senior looked to be past his late-game struggles, completing 73 percent of his passes in the fourth quarter with six touchdowns and no interceptions through the first seven games. Then he threw the interception against LSU last weekend that sealed the game. How does Wallace respond? The talent is there, and this Auburn defense can be exposed on the back end, but there is no telling which Bo will show up Saturday.

Auburn X factor: Somebody has to get to Wallace and make plays in the Ole Miss backfield. At this point, Auburn is still searching for that guy. Junior college transfer DaVonte Lambert leads the team with 3.5 sacks, but the player to keep an eye on is linebacker Kris Frost. He has been as good as anybody on the defense the past two games with 21 tackles. Despite missing significant time against Louisiana Tech, Frost is fourth on the team in tackles (37). He also has 5.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and six quarterback hurries. The Tigers will need Frost and fellow linebacker Cassanova McKinzy to be active on Saturday.

Ole Miss X factor: The Rebels' wide receiver to know is Laquon Treadwell, who leads the team in receptions and yards, but don’t sleep on Cody Core. The junior hails from Auburn, Alabama, so there will be a little extra motivation Saturday when he faces his hometown team, the same team that never offered him a scholarship. Core has 26 catches for 390 yards this season, and leads all receivers with five touchdowns. At 6-foot-3, 196 pounds, his length and athleticism could cause problems for an Auburn secondary that has struggled in recent weeks, especially against bigger wide receivers like Mississippi State’s De'Runnya Wilson.

Playoff impact: It’s not quite an elimination game for the College Football Playoff, but it sure feels like it. Auburn might be able to climb back into contention with two losses based solely on strength of schedule. The Tigers still have trips to Georgia and Alabama on the schedule. But if Ole Miss loses, that might be it for the Rebels. They have a quality win against Alabama and a chance to take down the nation’s No. 1 team, but a weak nonconference schedule and cross-division games against Tennessee and Vanderbilt won’t help.