Ole Miss lost at Texas 34-27, and Monday’s show was about what that loss actually changed — which turns out to be less than it felt like Saturday night. Every goal this team set in August is still on the table. The margin for error is what’s gone, not the ceiling. We hit the three things we learned in Austin, including the first time I’ve ever seen Trinidad Chambliss truly rattled, where Ole Miss turns if Kewan Lacy’s shoulder keeps him out against Auburn, and what the SEC betting board says about how the Rebels are viewed after the loss. Hotty Toddy.
Every goal is still in front of this team
Here’s the part that might surprise you after a 24-3 halftime hole: nothing Ole Miss wanted in August is off the table. The Rebels are 5-2, 3-2 in the SEC, and look at what’s left — Auburn, Georgia, Wofford and Mississippi State all at home, with the lone road trip to Norman. That’s four of the last five in Oxford, where this program has won 15 straight and is 38-3 since 2021. The league is a logjam this year; win out and you’re a two-loss team with a win over Georgia on the resume, and that’s a team hosting a playoff game, not boarding a plane in December.
Chambliss summed up the whole season in six words after the game: the Rebels have to win out. It’s difficult, but it’s doable — and the schedule is doing Ole Miss a favor.
The one that stung: Chambliss got rattled
This is the one that bothers me most. It was the first time I’ve ever seen Trinidad Chambliss truly rattled. He finished 25-of-52 for 250 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions — a career high in picks — and at halftime he was just 6-of-18 with two of them. Those 52 attempts are the most by an Ole Miss quarterback since Jordan Ta’amu in 2017. To his credit, Chambliss didn’t hide from any of it: “I played terrible tonight. I was careless with the football and I made bad decisions.”
The fix is in his legs. Chambliss ran for seven yards Saturday, his third straight game under 10 rushing yards, and Texas was happy to keep him in the pocket and dare him to throw it 52 times. When he’s a run threat, every back on the roster gets an extra blocker. And don’t forget: that was his 20th straight game with a touchdown pass, a streak only Chad Kelly’s 22 beats in school history. One bad night doesn’t erase who he is.
Who carries the load if Kewan Lacy can’t go
Kewan Lacy left Austin on a cart after landing hard on his left shoulder on his 16th carry — the same shoulder he hurt against LSU in September, the one that cost him the Florida game. Pete Golding said afterward he was in a lot of pain, and the real update should come from Golding’s media availability this week.
If Lacy can’t go, Makhi Frazier is the lead back — he went for a career-high 101 yards against Missouri and ran six times for 47, including a 34-yarder, after Lacy went down Saturday. Shekai Mills-Knight gives you the change-of-pace gear Frazier doesn’t. But the honest answer isn’t one name. You replace Lacy in the aggregate: Frazier as the lead, Mills-Knight as the change of pace, Terez Davis back on the line, and Chambliss’s legs back in the game plan. Replace him with the plan, not a player.
The market didn’t flinch
Here’s the tell on how Ole Miss is really viewed after the loss. On the FanDuel board logged Oct. 25, Ole Miss is a 13.5-point home favorite over Auburn with a total of 55.5. A week ago the Rebels were a 3.5-point underdog in Austin; now they’re a two-score favorite at home. The people setting these numbers did not overreact to Saturday — they still see one of the best teams in the league. Lines move, so check FanDuel for the current number, but the signal is clear: the respect didn’t go anywhere. Now it’s on Ole Miss to start fast and play like the team those numbers say it is.
Also on the show
Ole Miss legend John Fourcade joined to break down the Texas game and look ahead to Auburn. His bottom line on the Rebels’ playoff path was as blunt as it gets: “Don’t lose another game and you’re in.” He sees Auburn as a get-right spot and wants to see a two-score-plus win in Oxford to carry real momentum into the Georgia game.
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