THE STORY
They’ll talk about it forever in Oxford.
LSU’s fourth-and-goal try from the Ole Miss 5-yard line with a minute to play was tipped and picked off in the end zone. The Rebels beat their former head coach Lane Kiffin, 32-24, Saturday night in a thriller disguised as a blowout for the first 30 minutes.
The difference was Trinidad Chambliss.
The Ole Miss quarterback scored the decisive touchdown on a keeper where he displayed his impressive speed to beat LSU defensive Ty Benefield to the pylon from 14 yards out to break a tie with 6:42 left.
Most of the night, it was Chambliss’s right arm doing the heavy lifting. He threw for 248 of Ole Miss’s 289 yards in the first half and finished the game with 363 yards. Every time Ole Miss needed a play, Chambliss made it.
The first half was a powder-blue tsunami that crashed on LSU from all angles. Chambliss was sublime, piloting four straight scoring drives to roll up 24 points on a defense that had no answers for his arm or legs.
Before halftime, Chambliss was 8-for-8 on third down for 115 yards and two touchdowns, the last coming five seconds before halftime when he hit Deuce Alexander to cap a 75-yard drive that only took 1:52. That answered LSU’s only points before intermission and capped a dominant Rebel half.
LSU roared back in the third quarter with 14 unanswered points. A field goal early in the third tied it, but the Tigers never led.
Blake Baker’s defense got two stops in the second half, an interception and a missed 53-yard field goal. That allowed the offense to play catchup, but when the moment was the biggest, it was Chambliss who rose to the occasion.
LSU falls to 2-1 on the season and 0-1 in SEC play. Texas A&M, which was beaten soundly by Kentucky on Saturday, visits Tiger Stadium next week.
THE STATS
Chambliss: 33-for-48, 363 yards, 2 TD, rush TD
Leavitt: 16-for-27, 158 yards, TD, INT, 17 carries, 63 yards, Rush TD
Dilin Jones: 23 carries, 106 yards, TD
Chambliss was 8-for-8 for 115 yards and two touchdowns on third down in the first half.
Ole Miss outgained LSU 426-to-330
LSU ran for 172. Ole Miss ran for 63
LSU won the third quarter 14-0.
Ole Miss won the first half 24-7.
THE PLAYS
After a pair of three-and-outs, Ole Miss mounted the first drive of the game. The Rebels converted multiple third downs on an 11-plys drive to set up a Lucas Carneiro from 37 yards out. 3-0 Rebs.
The Rebel offense kept it rolling with a 6-play, 78 yard touchdown drive. Chambliss got them down there and Lacy finished it from three yards out. 10-0 Ole Miss.
Chambliss kept cooking. On third-and-12 from the 21, he found Traylon Ray for the walk-in score. 17-0 Ole Miss. The drive was 92 yards on 11 plays.
After Leavitt pulled a Houdini move, running the width of the field to eventually find Winnie Watkins inside the five at the two-minute timeout. Dilin Jones ran it in from there to cap a 17-play, 75-yard drive to get LSU on the board, 17-7.
Ole Miss went right down the field in 1:52 as Chambliss fired a strike to Deuce Alexander from 20 yards out. That was Ole Miss’s fourth straight scoring drive. 24-7 Ole Miss.
A third down pressure got to Chambliss, and he fired high and into the arms of Ja’Keem Jackson. He brought it back to the Ole Miss 33.
Leavitt carried it in for the score five plays later, all runs, to make it 24-14 with 9:18 to play in the third.
Carneiro missed from 53 yards with 5:42 left in the third.
LSU finally hit a deep shot. Leavitt to Winston Watkins from 26 yards out on a beautiful throw and catch on third-and-13. LSU got within three with 3:05 left in the third.
Ty Benefield ran Chambliss down on third-and-10 near midfield to drop him for a huge loss and force a Rebel punt with a minute left in the third.
Trey’Dez Green left the game after a 19-yard catch and run with 14:21 left. He appeared to injure his right leg.
LSU drove inside the five, but couldn’t punch the ball in. Instead, Scott Starzyk tied the game from 23 yards out. 24-24, 11:21 left.
Ole Miss converted a fourth-and-one with 9:21 left at the LSU 40 on a direct snap to the back.
Chambliss outran Benefield to the corner and gave Ole Miss the 30-24 lead with 6:14 to play. Head coach Pete Golding elected to go for two, and the Rebels converted from inside the one after two offsides penalty on LSU. 32-24 Rebels.
Leavitt converted a fourth down with his legs to extend LSU’s final drive.
On fourth-and-goal from the five with 1:03 left, Leavitt’s pass was tipped and intercepted to seal the game.
