ATHENS, Ga. — This week”s No. 5 ranking in the AP Top 25 confirms Ole Miss sixth-year head coach Lane Kiffin’s assessment that his football team has “done some good things” this season.
Kiffin said finding a way to win Saturday at No. 9 Georgia would take that progress to another level.
“You know, this is the elite,” Kiffin said of reigning Southeastern Conference champion Georgia (5-1, 3-1). “This isn’t coachspeak. It’s stats, or facts. This is the elite program in college football.”
Ole Miss (6-0, 3-0) took a 28-10 home win over the Bulldogs last season. Kiffin said winning at Georgia is more difficult.
Georgia’s 33-game streak of wins at Sanford Stadium ended on Sept. 27 with a 24-21 loss to Alabama, when the Crimson Tide were ranked 17th and the Bulldogs were fifth. It was the Bulldogs’ first home loss since 2019, and ended what was the longest active home streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
Georgia, which won back-to-back national championships in the 2021 and 2022 seasons and returned to the College Football Playoff last season after a one-year absence, is 10-0 at home against top-10 teams under Kirby Smart, who is in his 10th season as head coach at his alma mater.
“There’s another step that’s, you know, can you go beat an elite program like we were able to do last year in Georgia, but now do it at their place?” Kiffin said. “So it’s a great opportunity.”
The Bulldogs relied on dominant defense to win their national championships. This year’s team has earned a reputation for toughness, including from quarterback Gunner Stockton.
Smart also likes his team’s resilience, which was on display last Saturday at Auburn, where Georgia trailed 10-0 before winning 20-10.
“We haven’t started real well at times, and that can be attributed to a lot of factors, but … we have played really physical and outconditioned and outexecuted teams down the wire, which is a great trait to have,” Smart said. “But we’ve certainly got to play better earlier in games.”
The Rebels also showed comeback skills last week as quarterback Trinidad Chambliss threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score in a 24-21 nonconference win over Washington State. Ole Miss trailed 14-10 late in the third quarter.
Smart said Chambliss is an “explosive” dual-threat challenge.
“He’s quick, he’s fast, he’s tough, he’s got great lower body, great instincts,” Smart said. “There’s a difference in being a fast guy and being a runner. He’s patient behind blocks, quick when he needs to be. Some guys can only run perimeter runs well, some can only run internal well. He runs both.”
Missouri transfer Kewan Lacy has emerged as the dominant lead running back for Ole Miss. The sophomore has 126 carries for 587 yards and eight touchdowns this season, while Chambliss is second on the team with 61 carries for 287 yards.
Lacy, who had 24 carries for 142 yards against the Cougars last weekend, said he’s preparing for “just the physicality” of the Georgia defense.
“It’s going to be a real chippy game,” Lacy said. “So just coming out with the right mindset and being physical all four quarters.”
Georgia’s running game has been more balanced, with Chauncey Bowens recently gaining more playing time while Nate Frazier has made five starts. Each has 60 carries, while Stockton is close behind with 48.
Bowens was slowed by a calf injury against Auburn. Smart confirmed the injury was “kind of nagging” Bowens but said the freshman “has done everything” in practice this week.
There should be no shortage of atmosphere as the Rebels chase their third win in four meetings with the Bulldogs, who lead the overall series 33-14-1. ESPN’s “Gameday” program will be in Athens for the matchup.
“This is one of the games why you transfer here, to play in these big games,” said Ole Miss receiver De’Zhaun Stribling, a transfer from Oklahoma State who led the Rebels with six receptions for 63 yards against Washington State.
Ole Miss fans surged onto the field at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium after last season’s win over the Bulldogs in Oxford. Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson said that memory provides motivation for the rematch.
“I feel like the players that returned that played last season have a chip on their shoulder,” Wilson said, “so you could say that.”