This Saturday night, the No. 7 LSU Tigers are set to face off against the No. 8 Ole Miss Tigers. This isn’t just another game; it marks the first time Lane Kiffin will coach against his former Ole Miss quarterback, Trinidad Chambliss, after Chambliss opted to stay in Oxford for his final season of college ball despite heavy speculation he’d follow Kiffin to LSU.
Why Chambliss Stuck Around Oxford
Chambliss had an absolute monster season last year, a true breakout performance after joining Ole Miss from DII Ferris State. He started the season behind Austin Simmons on the depth chart, but when Simmons got hurt in Week 3, Chambliss stepped up in a win over Arkansas and never looked back. The dude threw for 3,937 yards, slung 22 touchdowns, and only coughed up three interceptions. Plus, he added 527 rushing yards and eight more scores on the ground. Seriously, that’s video game stuff! Since he was already in his fifth season, Ole Miss actually filed a waiver with the NCAA for an extra year of eligibility, citing a medical redshirt in 2022 from respiratory issues. They wanted him to stay, and for good reason!
The Unanswered Questions and the Dawg Slicer
Kiffin’s exit from Ole Miss to LSU after the Egg Bowl was pretty dramatic, but Chambliss stayed put, ready for the Rebels’ first-ever CFP berth under their new head coach Pete Golding. Kiffin’s LSU introductory press conference was December 1, weeks before Ole Miss hosted No. 11 Tulane in the first round. The Rebels stomped Tulane 41-10 at home, then faced No. 3 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Chambliss absolutely sliced up the Dawgs’ defense, throwing for a season-high 362 yards and two touchdowns in an incredible 39-34 victory. His team just barely lost to Miami in the CFP Semifinal, with their season running through January 8. Two days before that game, Chambliss already announced he was returning to Ole Miss in 2026, assuming he got that sixth year. Of course Kiffin tried to recruit him to LSU in those weeks after leaving Oxford. An On3Sports report from May confirmed “there were discussions” between Chambliss and LSU. But as Chambliss himself put it, “I had just transferred here. My offensive coordinator was Coach (Charlie) Weis. I had just learned that system. He was leaving, and they were taking most of the offensive guys. I didn’t know who was going to be our head coach at the time. I didn’t know who was going to be the OC. There were just a lot of unknowns and question marks.” That’s a lot of uncertainty to jump into, right?
So, this Saturday, when the No. 7 LSU Tigers battle the No. 8 Ole Miss Tigers, watch Chambliss go to work against his old coach. It’s gonna be electric!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
Leave a Reply