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The Wake Forest football program made a business decision Saturday after the Demon Deacons were embarrassed by Ole Miss in Winston-Salem. 

The Rebels cake-walked to a 40-6 win over the Demon Deacons in their first road game of the season, but won’t have a chance to pull off a similar result next season after Wake Forest elected to cancel its scheduled matchup.

The Demon Deacons were set to travel to Oxford, Miss., next September in the second installment of a home-and-home series, but as Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin said after Saturday’s contest, Wake Forest decided to “buy out” the game.

And when Kiffin means buy, he really means pay.

Wake Forest canceling the 2025 matchup against the Rebels will cost the program $1 million.

Ole Miss dominated Wake Forest on Saturday in every facet of the game. The Rebels picked up 649 yards of total offense including 272 yards on the ground, and despite turning the ball over twice, coasted to a 34-point win. Jaxson Dart threw for 377 yards in the win to go along with three total touchdowns.

As for the cancelation of next year’s contest between the two teams, it creates a unique scenario for Ole Miss as far as scheduling goes. Wake Forest being on next year’s schedule satisfied the SEC mandate for each team in the conference to play at least one game against a power conference foe each season. 

Now, Kiffin and staff will have to find an out-of-conference power five program that wants to come to Oxford next season.