Shortly after Ole Miss beat in-state rival Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl, Hugh Freeze made it clear that he wanted his team to get another shot at a New Year’s Six bowl.

Obviously, playing in back-to-back New Year’s Six bowls is an accomplishment in itself. Only four other teams in college football can claim that feat. But that’s not why the Ole Miss coach wanted to play in one of those bowl games.

No, the reason Freeze wanted to return to the New Year’s Six was for redemption.

He remembers what happened a year ago when the Rebels made it to the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta. He remembers the 28-0 hole his team found itself in at halftime against TCU. He remembers the three interceptions Bo Wallace threw in that first half, including one that went back for a touchdown. More than anything, he remembers the final score -- 42-3.

That TCU team -- led by quarterback Trevone Boykin -- was no joke, but it was still an embarrassment for the Ole Miss program, as well as the SEC.

Fortunately, thanks to a couple of Florida losses down the stretch, Freeze received his wish. Ole Miss is returning to the New Year’s Six with a spot in the Allstate Sugar Bowl against another Big 12 opponent, Oklahoma State. And when the Rebels returned to the practice field Monday, there was a different attitude, a different approach than last year.

"I think we are playing at a high level offensively, and we can’t let this spell of being off [get to us]," Freeze said. "We’ve got to attack it.

"I didn’t like the way that last year went, obviously. I’m going to make sure our kids, every single day, hear that from me. And if they really want to be great, then we’ve got to compete in these types of games."

As a result of what happened last year, Freeze has decided to change up the practice schedule. He lengthened the time his Ole Miss team will work out before they break for Christmas. And once they get to New Orleans, he wants a more consistent schedule. He wants to practice at the same time and the same place every day.

This year’s bowl game is a business trip, and the Rebels are attacking it that way.

"We all just have to understand that this is another game," Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly said. "We’re going out here to win a football game, not to go on vacation. We just have to make sure we keep focused; we do the right thing on and off the field; and we come to work every single day with locked intensity and a willingness to work."

Kelly wasn’t on last season’s team. He didn’t have to endure the beatdown put on the Rebels by TCU. But he still understands the importance of this game for the players who were there. And he knows how much a win would mean to this Ole Miss program.

"I think it’s huge," Kelly said. "It’s huge for this university, this program, the recruits, the players around us. This is the biggest game behind a national championship game. We haven’t been here [Sugar Bowl] in 40 some years. I think it will be great to just end the season on a winning note and start the offseason knowing that we can be the best."

If Oklahoma State thinks it is going to face the Ole Miss team that showed up (or failed to showed up) in last year’s Peach Bowl, the Cowboys are wrong. This year’s Rebels have a hunger, a new sense of motivation heading into the postseason.

They remember last year. And they're not going to let it happen again.