Ole Miss football ended its Week 1 matchup against the Mercer Bears with a 73-7 victory in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Mississippi quarterbacks Jaxson Dart, Spencer Sanders and Walker Howard combined for 524 passing yards and six passing touchdowns. Running back Quinshon Judkins rushed for 60 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Jordan Watkins returned a punt for a 69-yard touchdown, weaving past Mercer's punt team to put Ole Miss up 44-7 with 13:07 left in the third quarter.

Mississippi will face the Tulane Green Wave on Sept. 9 in Yulman Stadium. Tulane defeated the South Alabama Jaguars at home on Saturday. They earned a 37-17 victory in New Orleans behind 294 passing yards and four passing touchdowns from quarterback Michael Pratt and 106 receiving yards and two touchdowns from wide receiver Jha'Quan Jackson.

Tulane took the No. 24 spot in the Associated Press's Week 2 Top 25 poll. Ole Miss ranked in at No. 20, taking spots over Duke, Colorado and Texas A&M.

What are some bold predictions for Ole Miss's Week 2 matchup against Tulane?

3. Jaxson Dart will record at least 260 passing yards

Dart ended the win over Mercer with 334 passing yards and four passing touchdowns. He completed 18 of his 23 pass attempts. Dart added 36 rushing yards on four carries, good enough to take second place on the squad in rushing yards behind Judkins.

“I think Dart's grown tremendously over the offseason,” Watkins said, via The Associated Press. “That first game, the first half, was a testament to that, really. You see him going through his reads, not forcing the ball.

“He played a really, really good game, a complete game.”

The Green Wave faced a few ranked teams throughout the course of their 2022 campaign.

They took on UCF twice, once in November and again in the AAC Football Championship. They took on Cincinnati during the final week of their 2022 regular season. UCF quarterback John Rhys Plumlee recorded a total of 132 and 209 passing yards in the two matchups. Cincinnati quarterback Evan Prater was limited to 102 passing yards and 10 completions on 26 pass attempts.

Ole Miss football offensive lineman Quincy McGee commented on Tulane's defensive line on Wednesday.

“(Tulane's) defensive line is pretty good,” McGee said, via Sports Illustrated Staff Writer Ben King. “You can't overlook anybody, any opponent you're playing. Everybody wakes up and plays football just like we do… I feel like their whole defense is pretty good. They'll give us a fight, but we'll fight harder.”

Dart must build off his success from Saturday's matchup against Mercer and overcome Tulane's defense. If he can, he may have a solid chance at continuing his consistent quarterback play before Ole Miss faces Georgia Tech on Sept. 16 and Alabama one game later.

2. Tre Harris will earn at least 100 receiving yards and one touchdown

Harris finished Saturday's outing with 133 receiving yards and four touchdowns on six receptions. He scored his fourth touchdown of the game off a pass from Dart in the third quarter, allowing him to break a school record for touchdown receptions in a single game.

“I didn't realize about setting the touchdown catch record until I looked up and saw we had those first-quarter touchdowns,” Harris said, via The AP. “It's been unbelievable for me since I've come here. I'm really happy.”

Harris and Watkins both broke the 100-receiving-yard mark on Saturday. Tulane cornerback Jarius Monroe, who led the Green Wave with three interceptions and eight pass deflections in 2022, ended the team's matchup with South Alabama with three tackles.

If Harris can continue to be a solid option for Ole Miss's quarterbacks, he will have the opportunity at again leading Mississippi football in receiving yards and touchdowns when it faces Tulane.

1. Ole Miss will take a one-score victory over the Green Wave

Ole Miss will need to take a win on the road before they move on to face some of their tougher SEC football opponents later in the year.

Mississippi linebacker Monty Montgomery commented on Pratt's performance against South Alabama on Thursday.

“He's a great quarterback,” Montgomery said, via The Grove Report Publisher John Macon Gillespie. “That was a great game by him. He's a dual-threat, and we have to contain the passer. I feel like we're going to do a great job this week containing him. A lot of sacks. You should expect that.

“They've got a lot of good receivers and running backs. They've got a solid team. Pratt definitely has weapons, and we're going to stop the explosive plays from happening. We're going to take over as a defense.”

Ole Miss can take an important win in New Orleans if it can get Judkins and its passing offense in a consistent rhythm early in the matchup.