Ole Miss stayed put at No. 9 in the Associated Press Top 25 after a nail-biting 41-38 win over No. 24 Louisville to kick off year one of the Pete Golding era.
Trusted placekicker Lucas Carneiro drilled a 48-yard walk-off kick to lead the Rebels to victory in the only ranked-on-ranked matchup of the first, full college football weekend. Carneiro’s heroics capped a contest that could best be described as a tale of two halves for Ole Miss on both sides of the ball.
In the first half of Sunday’s neutral-site showdown in Nashville’s Nissan Stadium, the Rebel offense was plagued by turnovers and miscues. From a badly botched snap by center Brycen Sanders on the opening drive to star quarterback Trinidad Chambliss uncharacteristically fumbling and tossing an interception, and even Carneiro missing a kick he normally makes, Ole Miss struggled to piece together meaningful offensive possessions in the first 30 minutes. Meanwhile, the defense swarmed and held Louisville to a mere six points.
The script flipped in the second half. The Ole Miss offense, highlighted by a connection between Chambliss and speedy wide receiver Deuce Alexander, moved seemingly at will at times. The Rebels scored 31 points in the final 30 minutes and boasted a 14-point lead with under five minutes remaining in regulation. A well-coached Louisville team led by veteran frontman Jeff Brohm and a first-time starting quarterback in Lincoln Kienholz fought back. The Cardinals exploited miscommunications in the Rebel secondary and dismal tackling to tie things up with 1:31 on the fourth-quarter clock.
Ole Miss capitalized on Louisville having burned all three second-half timeouts in the 3rd quarter, drove into Cardinal territory, and ended the game with a successful three-point try.
Chambliss finished the game with 336 passing yards, 3 touchdowns, and the lone interception, while adding 60 yards on the ground and accounting for the one fumble. Alexander was his top target, finishing the game with 5 receptions, 159 yards, and 2 touchdowns. Auburn transfer Horatio Fields notably caught 5 passes for 47 yards. Star running back Kewan Lacy rushed 17 times for 61 yards and a score. He was sidelined in the third quarter with an injury, but Golding did not seem concerned about it long-term.
Defensively, the Rebels were led by a bevy of players, with linebacker Keaton Thomas being one. The linebacker had 8 tackles before being sidelined in the second half with a right foot injury. His replacement, Georgia Tech transfer Tah’j Butler, logged 7 tackles, one of which was for a loss of yards. Defensive end Kam Franklin, who was also injured in the matchup, had 2 tackles for loss and a sack.
Ole Miss will return to action on Saturday for its home opener. The Rebels will take on Charlotte, but all eyes remain on the following matchup — a Sept. 19 showdown against a Lane Kiffin-led LSU bunch that jumped Ole Miss in the polls this week.
The full top 25 can be found below:
- Ohio State
- Georgia
- Notre Dame
- Texas
- Indiana
- Oregon
- Miami
- LSU
- Ole Miss
- Texas A&M
- Oklahoma
- Alabama
- Texas Tech
- USC
- BYU
- Penn State
- SMU
- Tennessee
- Washington
- Utah
- Iowa
- Houston
- Missouri
- Louisville
- Virginia
It’s worth noting that Michigan, formerly No. 17, dropped out of the rankings after a controversial 13-12 win over Western Michigan on Saturday. Mississippi State and Southern Miss, after earning blowout victories over the weekend, did not earn any top-25 votes. The Bulldogs ousted Louisiana Monroe 62-13, while the Golden Eagles downed Alcorn State 49-3.