No. 7 Ole Miss outscored Florida 14-0 in the second half to secure a 34-24 win in what was a dramatic matchup filled with story lines both on and off the field.
On the field, the Rebels (10-1, 6-1 SEC) bounced back from a costly, yet rare, interception thrown by Trinidad Chambliss, as running back Kewan Lacy had a career-high 224 yards and three touchdowns. Lacy also became the red and blue’s single-season rushing and all-purpose touchdown leader in the process.
Off the field, of course, is a looming decision for Lane Kiffin — one where he will elect to remain the head coach at Ole Miss or be the next frontman at Florida (3-7, 2-5 SEC), who has reportedly expressed interest in relocating the flashy offensive mastermind from one SEC program to another.
As of now, Kiffin has not publicly committed to what his next move will be. However, his current team is in a strong position to make its first-ever College Football Playoff appearance. Ole Miss is in the midst of its third straight 10-plus-win season, with Kiffin being the lone coach to achieve this feat.
“I love what we’re doing here. Today was awesome. To even talk about it right now would be so disrespectful to our players and what they did today,” Kiffin said when asked about his future job prospects.
A laser show preceded Saturday’s regular-season home finale, with a record-breaking 68,138 fans in attendance. With Kiffin reportedly mulling his next move, Ole Miss delivered an atmosphere that would make any coach have second thoughts about potentially leaving. While the team led an error-riddled effort for a majority of the contest, one thing that did not waver was the fans.
“I want to thank our fans. I thought that the atmosphere was electric from the beginning,” Kiffin on the atmosphere. “Throughout our warm-ups and coming out of the tunnel, seeing it packed like that was awesome. I think players feed off of that.”
Ole Miss jumped off to a quick 10-0 lead, courtesy of a three-yard touchdown by Lacy and a 27-yard field goal by Lucas Carneiro. The pendulum then swung in Florida’s favor. Gator quarterback DJ Lagway, after using his legs to convert on 3rd and 10 earlier in the Gators’ third offensive possession, hit the ground again in the red zone to score a 5-yard touchdown. Florida had cut the deficit to 10-7.
Florida took its first lead of the ballgame due to an interception thrown by Chambliss that put the Gators deep in Rebel territory late in the first quarter. A following facemask infraction committed by Ole Miss defensive end Kam Franklin set the Gators up at the 2-yard line, and Jadan Baugh capitalized with a touchdown, putting the visitors up 14-10 with 14:56 on the 2nd quarter clock.
Momentum shifted back in the Rebels’ favor. An offside penalty by Florida gave Ole Miss another try on 3rd down in what was seemingly a crucial drive. Chambliss delivered a 43-yard touchdown pass to De’Zhaun Stribling to reclaim a Rebel lead. Ole Miss boasted a 17-14 advantage with 9:39 remaining in the 1st half.
Volleying ensued between the conference counterparts. A 57-yard deep shot from Lagway to wideout J. Michael Sturdivant gave Florida a 21-17 lead with 6:54 remaining in the 2nd quarter. Another lengthy Ole Miss drive resulted in three points from Carneiro, though a penalty that was questionably enforced after the play was over could have given the Rebels a new set of downs. Florida closed the half with a 38-yard field goal from Trey Smack to give the Gators a 24-20 buffer at the midway break.
Ole Miss looked to pounce early in the second half, driving the ball to Florida’s 2-yard line to reclaim the lead. Those efforts proved fruitless when Chambliss threw a bad pass to Harrison Wallace III for an untimely turnover on downs after eating seven minutes of game clock.
Pete Golding’s defense, after a rough first 30 minutes of action, picked up the slack in the final two frames, keeping the Gators away from the end zone. After the defense forced back-to-back Florida punts, Kiffin’s offense capitalized. A 1-yard touchdown score by Lacy on the first play of the fourth quarter put Ole Miss up 27-24, breathing new life into the team.
Florida, however, was not quite ready to surrender. The Gators drove into Rebel territory and had a chance to either tie the game or take the lead with under 10 minutes left in the final frame. But a 3rd down interception tossed by Lagway to Rebel safety Wydett Williams Jr. dwindled Florida’s chances of playing spoiler.
A six-plus-minute drive by Ole Miss following Lagway’s blunder was effective in milking the clock, but not putting points on the board. Another turnover on downs in the red zone by the Rebel offense gifted Florida another possession. A 3rd down sack recorded by Princewill Umanmielen and a fortunate 4th down incompletion, one that was nearly caught by the Gator receiver, placed the Rebels’ offense back in scoring territory.
The next play, Lacy scored his third touchdown of the night, and Ole Miss walked away with the 10-point win, as Tom Petty’s “Won’t Back Down” played over the loudspeakers. Saturday’s win was one of revenge for Ole Miss. For those who recall the 2024-25 season, the Gators were the team that put the final death nail in the Rebels’ College Football Playoff hopes. Nonetheless, those aspirations are alive and well for the red and blue as the current campaign winds down.
Ole Miss finished the night with 538 total yards compared to Florida’s 326. On top of Lacy’s stellar showing, Chambliss had a solid night. The Ferris State transfer completed 26 of 35 passes for 301 yards, a touchdown, and the lone pick. His top target was Stribling with 76 yards and a score on four completions.
“My favorite part has probably been the process and how we’ve grown into our identity,” Chambliss said of what has been his highlight of this season. “At Ferris State, I was there for a while, so I kind of knew what the standard was and how the culture was there. It’s really cool to see how it is here at Ole Miss.”
Lagway completed 16 of 31 passes for 218 yards, a touchdown, and a pick. He also had a rushing touchdown. The Gator field general’s highest-performing receiver was TJ Abrams with 76 yards on a trio of catches. Sturdivant had the lone score on the ground. Jaden Baugh was Florida’s top rusher, with 61 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.
Florida was better at getting into the backfield defensively, logging four more sacks and tackles for loss in the matchup. The Gators were led by linebacker Myles Graham, who had 9 tackles, two of which were for a loss, and a sack. Jayden Woods was responsible for Florida’s one interception. For Ole Miss, Wydett Williams had a team-best 8 tackles and an interception.
The Rebels will enjoy a bye week before a highly anticipated Egg Bowl matchup against Mississippi State (5-6, 1-6. SEC), with playoff hopes potentially on the line for Ole Miss. The rivalry game will kick off at 11 a.m. CT on Black Friday, with ABC and participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations handling the broadcast.