Chambliss accounts for 4 touchdowns as No. 9 Mississippi beats No. 13 Missouri 31-3

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Trinidad Chambliss threw for three touchdowns and ran for another Saturday as No. 9 Mississippi beat No. 13 Missouri 31-3.

Ole Miss (5-1, 3-1 SEC) was never seriously threatened after trailing 3-0 in the opening 10 minutes. Chambliss had a five-yard touchdown run and finished 20-of-36 passing for 241 yards, including touchdown passes of 10, 21 and 17 yards to Caleb Odom, Horatio Fields and Caleb Cunningham.

“I don’t think we played a perfect game, but to hold them to three points says a lot,” said Ole Miss coach Pete Golding, before referring to Chambliss: “He wasn’t perfect either, but I’m glad he’s on our side.”

Missouri (5-2, 2-2) trailed 21-3 at halftime and did not reach the red zone in the second half until the final two minutes. Jamal Roberts, after consecutive 200-plus yards rushing performances, rushed for 39 yards on 20 carries.

“I’m not going to wallow in this. The season is not over,” Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said. “I’m going to be disappointed because we had an opportunity and we didn’t get it done.”

Kewan Lacy finished with 122 yards on 16 carries, primarily in the second half as the Rebels pulled away. Makhi Frazier added 101 yards on 15 rushes as Ole Miss finished with 498 yards of total offense, 257 on the ground.

“We knew we were going to have to run the ball and stop their run to win,” Golding said. “We were able to do that and we beat a good football team.”

The transfer portal additions dominated the game’s buildup, as Missouri quarterback Austin Simmons, receiver Cayden Lee and defensive back Chris Graves, Jr. returned after high-profile roles on last year’s Ole Miss playoff team. Lacy, the Rebels’ leading rusher for the past two seasons, began his career at Missouri.

Simmons was 25 for 44 for 339 yards and an interception. Lee had five receptions for 62 yards and Graves had four tackles.

Leading 7-3 early in the second quarter, Ole Miss converted consecutive touchdown drives of 61 and 80 yards. Between them, Missouri missed an opportunity to keep pace. The Tigers had a first-and-goal at the Ole Miss 2 but consecutive rushing losses were followed by an incomplete pass to the end zone and Blake Craig missed a 23-yard field goal attempt.

Missouri: The Tigers have a tough November schedule but three of their final four games are at home, where they are unbeaten this season.

The Tigers got a strong performance from linebacker Nicholas Rodriguez with 13 tackles. Bruno Reus averaged 42.5 yards on seven punts, including a pair of 50-plus yards that were downed inside the Ole Miss 20-yard line.

Ole Miss: The Rebels still have games against No. 1 Georgia and No. 7 Texas. Four of the final five contests will be played at home, where the Rebels are 25-1 since 2023.

Ole Miss limited Missouri to 39 yards on 26 rushes. Defensive tackle Will Echoles consistently disrupted the Missouri offensive front for five tackles, two broken up passes, one sack and one quarterback hurry.

We played lights out on defense. Missouri is a great team. This was a big-time game for us,” Echoles said. “Stopping the run has been an issue for us at times this year, but it’s gotten better.”

Ole Miss, in the No. 9 slot, entered the week as the fourth of four SEC teams ranked in the top 10, but could benefit with a number of losses above. No. 13 Missouri will drop but figures to rank among the highest two-loss teams in next week’s poll.

Missouri: The No. 13 Tigers have an open date before an Oct. 31 visit to Arkansas.

Ole Miss: The No. 9 Rebels visit No. 7 Texas on Saturday.

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