3 Ole Miss players most to blame for loss to Texas

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Ole Miss dropped to 5-2 on the season after a 34-27 loss to Texas over the weekend. Pete Golding took some of the blame for the loss, but there is plenty of blame to go around.

The Rebels struggled on both sides of the ball in the game. They managed 363 yards of offense, but just 113 on the ground. Meanwhile, they had 419 yards, including 207 on the ground. Further, the Rebels turned over the ball three times while going just 6 of 18 on third down in the contest. It was a stark contrast from the prior two weeks, where Ole Miss had dominated. Before the Rebels return home to host Auburn, it is time to evaluate who struggled in the game against Texas.

Trinidad Chambliss did not have his best game

Trinidad Chambliss had been great all season. Coming into the game, he had been over 55 percent passing in every game, never threw more than one interception with just four all season, and ran for touchdowns in five of six games. Against Texas, he was dreadful. Chambliss completed just 25 of 52 passes for 250 yards. He did have two touchdowns, but was intercepted three times and did not find the end zone on the ground.

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One of the interceptions was early in the game and especially costly. After Ole Miss tied the game in the first quarter with a field goal, the Rebels forced an interception of Arch Manning. On the next play, from the Texas 32-yard line, Chambliss threw an interception of his own. The second interception was also costly. Texas was leading 24-3 late in the second quarter. Ole Miss drove the field and had the ball at the Texas two-yard line. Instead of taking the three points on fourth down, Ole Miss went for it. Chambliss was intercepted, and the possession was wasted.

The issue with the interceptions was that they were atypical for Chambliss, something Taylor Hodges of HottyToddy.com pointed out.

“What’s even worse about both interceptions was that they were passes thrown to covered receivers. It’s the type of throws you make in a video game and instantly know you threw a pick. That’s not typical Chambliss,” Hodges wrote.

This was not a case of Texas making great plays, but instead was a case of him making poor decisions that cost his team.

The offensive line was dreadful

The offensive line was not good against Texas. The line had been dominant the two weeks prior to Texas. Delano Townsend, Patrick Kutas, and Brycen Sanders had been great, ranking wonderfully in the run game. The three interior offensive linemen helped Ole Miss run for 196 yards against Vanderbilt, and then 257 yards against Missouri. The interior of the line was still solid against Texas in pass situations. Only Townsend was well below his season averages, allowing two pressures on Chambliss.

Still, in the running game, the three of them were awful. Ole Miss ran the ball 30 times, but for just 113 yards. Kewan Lacy ran the ball 16 times, but for just 36 yards before Lacy left the game with an injury. While Ole Miss averaged 3.8 yards per carry, much of the success in the running game came on just two plays. One was on a 34-yard run from Makhi Fraizer, and the other was a fake punt that netted 17 yards on the ground. Removing those two plays, the Rebels averaged just 2.3 yards per carry on the ground. This put them in longer second- and third-down situations, and with Chambliss off, it did not go well for Ole Miss.

Pete Golding deserves heat for the run defense

For as good as the offense has been in recent years, the defense has been just as good. The defense reached its height under Golding as the coordinator in 2024, when they were a top-ten defense and second in opponent scoring. They were still top 40 and one of the best in the SEC in 2025, but have dropped off this season. That drop-off continued in this game.

The run defense was horrible. Texas ran the ball 42 times for 207 yards and three touchdowns. Meanwhile, Raleek Brown ran the ball 23 times for 157 yards, averaging 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Michael Terry III and Arch Manning both had runs of 19 yards, and both found the end zone on the ground. Much of the blame needs to go on Golding.

Texas has been held to under 90 yards on the ground going into the fourth quarter. Ole Miss then allowed the Longhorns to run for 121 yards in the final quarter, including an 80-yard touchdown drive that was entirely runs. There are two reasons that Golding deserves blame here. First, the defense was tied. On the three drives before the Texas touchdown drive, the Ole Miss offense was on the field for less than four combined minutes. The play calling did nothing to give the defense rest, and it showed.

Secondly, Golding did nothing to help the defense out. There was no change in play calling in the fourth quarter, and the snap count shows a lack of willingness to bring in rotational players on what proved to be the game-deciding drive. With a lack of solid coaching decisions, the defense struggled, and Ole Miss lost the game.

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