By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
NEW ORLEANS – Ole Miss may have lost its coach to LSU, but the Rebel Nation took over the Louisiana Superdome on Thursday night at the Sugar Bowl with a sea of sky blue and sustained volume rivaling that of the Super Bowl Saints in 2009-10.
And the ultra-inspired No. 6 Rebels with new head coach Pete Golding of Hammond and their six offensive assistant coaches headed to LSU upset No. 3 Georgia, 39-34, in a classic College Football Playoff quarterfinal that saw the two Southeastern Conference combatants put up 786 yards of offense and 73 points.
Lucas Carneiro kicked the game-winning field goal from 47 yards out with six seconds to go for the win before Ole Miss got a meaningless safety when it recovered a fumble by Georgia’s Landon Roldan on the ensuing kickoff in the end zone for the final. Carneiro also kicked a Sugar Bowl record 56-yard field goal for a 6-0 lead in the first quarter after kicking the record 55-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead moments before.
But the hero of this game was Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, who may transfer to LSU and his former Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin now in charge there if the NCAA grants him another season. He was clearly the star as he put on a show. The senior transfer from Division II Ferris State looked a class above everyone else on the field as he completed 30 of 44 passes for 320 yards and two touchdowns.
“He made some unbelievable plays,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said.
Chambliss got Carneiro in range of the winning field goal after facing a 3rd-and-5 from the Ole Miss 30 with 26 seconds to go and the scored tied 34-34. He found wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling for 40 yards to the Georgia 30, setting up the kick.
Ole Miss (13-1) advances to the College Football Playoff semifinals against No. 10 Miami (12-2) in the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona, on Jan. 8. Miami upset No. 2 seed Ohio State, 24-14, on Wednesday. The other semifinal will pit No. 1 Indiana and No. 5 Oregon in the Peach Bowl on Jan. 9 in Atlanta. The national championship game will be on Jan. 19 in Miami.
“We’ve got good enough players. We’ve got good enough players to beat anybody,” Golding said, indirectly praising his former boss Kiffin for the talent he assembled for Ole Miss in rebuilding its program since 2020.
Golding, who had been Kiffin’s defensive coordinator since 2023, replaced Kiffin as head coach when Kiffin left Ole Miss on Nov. 29 just after the regular season ended at 11-1 to become LSU’s coach.
“And so, when they’re on the same page, we WILL beat anybody,” Golding said.
And the six offensive assistants Kiffin has hired to LSU will keep coaching Ole Miss through the playoffs under Golding and recruiting for LSU under Kiffin. Those are offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., co-coordinator/tight ends coach Joe Cox, pass game coordinator/receivers coach George McDonald, running backs coach Kevin Smith, inside receivers coach Sawyer Jordan and quarterbacks assistant Dane Stevens.
Should Ole Miss win the national championship, Kiffin’s old contract with Ole Miss says he will receive a $1 million bonus. LSU has agreed to pay that for Ole Miss, should that happen. LSU has agreed to pay Kiffin’s Ole Miss bonus money for each playoff win – $250,000 for the opening win over Tulane on Dec. 20 and another $250,000 for this one.
Hell, some Ole Miss fans after the game even started singing a favorite song of LSU students at games – “Neck.”
All in all, it was a Louisiana Thursday night for Ole Miss.
Chambliss’ 13th straight completion gave the Rebels a 34-24 lead with 9:02 to play in the game when he found wide receiver Harrison Wallace III for a 13-yard touchdown. That came two plays after Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton fumbled for a 10-yard loss to his 23-yard line after a 4th-and-2 gamble by Smart from the Georgia 33.
Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy, who is also trending as a potential transfer to LSU via the portal that opens Friday and goes until Jan. 16, put the Rebels ahead 27-24 on a 6-yard touchdown run with 11:29 to play. Then Chambliss found Wallace in the back of the end zone for a two-point conversion.
Chambliss completed 4 of 4 passes for 64 yards on that 75-yard drive in eight plays and scrambled like he was Archie Manning, running backwards, sideways and finally forward. On one such display, he found Wallace for a 44 yards to set up the touchdown for the 27-24 lead.
“Those scrambles were explosive,” Smart said. “He made a big circle before the pass to Wallace.”
Lacy finished with 99 yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns after his fumble in the second quarter was returned 47 yards by Georgia cornerback Daylen Everette for a touchdown and 21-12 lead with 2:34 to go before halftime.
Golding had no thoughts of benching Lacy after that turnover.
“He came up to me and said, ‘Coach, I got you. Don’t worry,'” Golding said. “I said, ‘I’m not.'”
And Ole Miss came back to get within 21-19 with 4:51 left in the third quarter on a 7-yard touchdown run by Lacy. Chambliss set up that score by converting a 4th-and-3 from the Georgia 44-yard line when he completed a 36-yard pass to Wallace.
Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton was no match for Chambliss as he completed just 17 of 32 passes for 215 yards and a touchdown.
Ole Miss outgained Georgia, 473 yards to 343.
“They responded like they have all year. Just a super tough group,” Golding said. “They’ve got a lot of grit, and they love playing football. They’re not tired of it.”
Ole Miss and Golding, who is 2-0 as a head coach, are just getting started.
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