STARKVILLE – The Battle for the Golden Egg returns to Starkville on Black Friday, marking the 122nd meeting between rivals Mississippi State and Ole Miss on the gridiron.
For the Bulldogs, it’s a chance to win the game at Davis Wade Stadium for the first time since 2019, but to do so they’ll need to stop a College Football Playoff hopeful with the third-ranked total offense in FBS.
Ole Miss is led by a somewhat surprising tandem of senior transfer quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and sophomore running back Kewan Lacy. Chambliss earned the job after an injury to Week 1 starter Austin Simmons, but has been dominant through a 6-1 SEC schedule to propel his team to No. 6 in the CFP rankings.
He has made his mark as a passer with 2,657 passing yards and 14 touchdowns to just three interceptions, but forces defenses to respect the run as well with 444 yards and six scores on the ground.
The challenge of stopping Chambliss is a daunting one, and MSU head coach Jeff Lebby gave a glowing review of his performances in his Sunday media availability.
“The guy just makes a ton of timely plays,” Lebby said. “He can extend, he can create, does things in the run game that really make it hard for you, and then the way he’s been able to throw the football around and make plays when he’s needed to, it’s impressive.”
The transfer from Ferris State arrived with two Division II national championships under his belt, as well as a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year title to his name from last season, but there was little attention paid to the backup upon his arrival in Oxford. He has more than proven himself at the FBS level and done so in one of the most challenging conferences.
“For a guy that got there so late, has never played inside this league, he belongs,” Lebby continued. “He’s been a big time player and has given them the ability to have the season they’re having.”
Chambliss’ threat as a runner complicates the defensive game plan for the backfield, which also includes one of the best backs in the country.
Lacy is sixth in FBS in rushing yards with 1,136, is tied for the most rushing touchdowns with 19, and currently sits 13th in all-purpose yards with an average of 115.91 per game.
Lacy’s rushing has been critical in Ole Miss both pulling away from opponents and maintaining a balanced attack in close games. He posted a career-best 224 rushing yards with three touchdowns in a 34-24 win over Florida in Oxford two weeks ago and now prepares for one of the worst rushing defenses in the country over the last few weeks.
The Bulldogs have allowed 868 yards in their last three games, making them one of just nine teams in FBS to have allowed 2,000 rushing yards from opponents this season. Lebby is aware of the regression on the ground, and highlighted the need for better focus in taking down runners.
“We talked about it a little bit last week; they’ve played with good balance,” Lebby said. “Their run game right now is as good as its been all year long, and their back is a guy that can create a ton of explosives, great top-end speed, and then the QB involved in the run game makes it tougher. We’ve got to tackle well, we’ve got to find ways to get guys on the ground, get 11 hats to the football. That for us is where it starts, from a tackling standpoint, it’s going to be a huge piece of it Friday morning.”
It might sound simple, but getting off of blocks has been an alarming problem for the defense in recent games. It played a big part in Ahmad Hardy’s 300-yard game against the Bulldogs, prompting a re-evaluation of the team’s ability to get guys down. It’s the simple things that need to change for the defense, and it’s something the leaders in the team are focusing on ahead of the Egg Bowl as well.
“Just playing our gaps and doing our assignments,” Mitchell said, summing up the defensive struggles in a straightforward way.
Mitchell spoke candidly after the loss to Missouri about the defense, himself included, just failing to get the basic stuff right when defending the run.
“We’ve got to do simple better, and we’re going to do that this week and handle business,” he said.
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