Eighth-ranked Ole Miss gave former head coach Lane Kiffin, now LSU’s head coach, a memorable homecoming on Saturday.
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, who played under Kiffin at Ole Miss last year, led the Rebels to a convincing 32–24 victory over the No. 7 Tigers in Oxford. Kiffin, who left Ole Miss late last season for the LSU job, coached his first game in Oxford since leaving and suffered his first loss as the Tigers’ head coach.
Chambliss delivered with 33–48 passing for 363 yards and two touchdowns versus one interception. He also rushed for a touchdown but only had two yards on nine carries.
“All week, my biggest fear was when the game was at the end, and Trinidad had the ball in his hands,” Kiffin told reporters afterward. “The guy made a lot of plays during the game and did a great job. That’s why I said he’s the hardest player to play in America. He showed up great today.”
Kiffin brought Chambliss to Oxford as a transfer from Division II powerhouse Ferris State, and Chambliss led the Rebels to the College Football Playoff last year. The Rebels made it to the CFP semifinal without Kiffin on the sideline, and the team still isn’t missing a beat with head coach Pete Golding on the sideline.
“It wasn’t the Super Bowl, and we didn’t make it to be the Super Bowl,” Golding told reporters afterward.
Golding’s crew played like business as usual as they jumped out to a 10–0 lead in the first quarter with kicker Lucas Carneiro’s 37-yard field goal and running back Kewan Lacy’s five-yard touchdown run. Ole Miss meanwhile held LSU to punts on the first three drives of the game, and the Tigers only had 31 yards on 14 plays through the early part of the second quarter.
Chambliss then made it 17–0 with a 21-yard touchdown pass to Traylon Ray with 9:49 left in the half, which capped an 11-play, 92-yard drive. Ray caught seven passes for 115 yards and a touchdown to lead the Rebels receivers.
LSU finally got on the board with a 17-play, 75-yard drive as running back Dilin Jones scored on a 2-yard run. The Rebels didn’t let the Tigers’ momentum last with an eight-play, 75-yard scoring drive as Chambliss hit wide receiver Deuce Alexander for a 20-yard touchdown pass, bringing the score to 24–7.
LSU crept back in during the third quarter, starting with cornerback Ja’Keem Jackson’s interception. That led to quarterback Sam Leavitt’s 4-yard touchdown run and a 24–14 score.
The Tigers then took advantage of a missed field goal by Ole Miss and drove seven plays for 64 yards to trim the deficit to a field goal, 24–21. Leavitt threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Winston Watkins Jr. with 3:05 left in the quarter to close the gap.
LSU then tied the game in the fourth quarter, 24–24, on a field goal after an Ole Miss punt. The Rebels responded with a 13-play, 75-yard scoring drive as Chambliss scored on a 14-yard touchdown run, resulting in a score of 32–24.
“Yeah, we came out in the third quarter and threw an interception. But we trust him when he [Trinidad Chambliss] has the ball in his hands,” Golding said. “We got his back, and he has our backs. So, you know, it was a heavyweight battle between two good teams. We kept our composure and got the job done.”
Ole Miss then shut the door as defensive back Jaylon Braxton picked off Leavitt with 58 seconds left. While Kiffin couldn’t beat the team he coached for six years, things are about more than Saturday’s game for his return to the place where both he and his late father, Monte Kiffin, once coached.
“We had all week—especially today,” Lane Kiffin said, “I would’ve said that win or loss, there were just a lot of emotions of gratefulness for this place beyond football. This type of game without my dad—it was a lot—not the name-calling and everything we got off the bus and everything.
“It was much more just a lot of gratitude for this place and the people that changed my life, way bigger than winning a football game.”
