Trinidad Chambliss passed for 314 yards and a touchdown — a third straight 300-yard passing performance for the Division II transfer— and No. 13 Mississippi defeated No. 4 LSU 24-19 on Saturday.
Kewan Lacy ran for a 15-yard touchdown and former LSU running back Logan Diggs added a 6-yard scoring run for Ole Miss (5-0, 3-0 SEC), which outgained the Tigers, 480 yards to 254.
LSU (4-1, 1-1), which has struggled to run the ball this season, played without top running back Caden Durham and gained just 57 yards on the ground. That placed added pressure on quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, who completed 21 of 34 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown, but also was intercepted once.
Still, the Tigers had a chance to pull within a field goal after Harlem Berry’s 6-yard touchdown run with 5:04 left, but LSU’s two-point conversion attempt failed when Suntarine Perkins stuffed Ju’Juan Johnson’s run.
Ole Miss, which finished with 166 yards rushing, bled the clock with first-down runs by Chambliss and Lacy before Chambliss’ fourth-down completion to tight end Dae’Quan Wright sealed it. Wright had a chance to score, but went down, allowing the Rebels to run out the clock.
LSU took a 7-0 lead when Nussmeier’s pass intended for Trey’Dez Green in the end zone was batted away by Sage Ryan — another transfer from LSU — only to be caught by diving Tigers receiver Nick Anderson.
Ole Miss responded by driving inside the LSU 10, settling for a short field goal. But the rhythm the Rebels established on that series carried over into the second quarter, when Mississippi outgained LSU 197-40, scored two TDs and came within 3 yards of another score.
Wide receiver Cayden Lee was racing toward the end zone after a long catch over the middle when AJ Haulcy’s heavy hit forced a fumble that safety Mansoor Delane recovered in the end zone. The play preserved a 7-3 Tigers lead.
Lacy gave Mississippi a 10-7 lead, capping a drive on which the Rebels benefited from four LSU penalties for 49 yards — including one for roughing the passer and two for pass interference.
Lee’s 2-yard reception near the pylon made it 17-7 just before halftime on a series that included a fourth-and-1 conversion on Chambliss’ quick pass to Dae’Quan Wright.
Damian Ramos’ field goals of 40 and 48 yards pulled LSU to 17-13 in the third quarter before Diggs’ TD widened Ole Miss’ lead again in the fourth.
As Chambliss gains experience and confidence in coach Lane Kiffin’s up-tempo offense, the dual-threat QB is showing he can give fits to elite defenses in the SEC. He’s now 3-0 as a starter since stepping in after Austin Simmons’ Week 2 injury.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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