The 2026 season is over for the Ole Miss Rebels (6-4, 4-4 SEC) for all intents and purposes.
This comes in lieu of a sloppy 24-17 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners. The game came to be on Sunday by virtue of the nationwide travel stoppage on Friday.
The loss plunges the Rebels to the same record as the Sooners and eliminates them from College Football Playoff contention. Ole Miss was facing lofty expectations heading into 2026, with the end result very unbecoming of a program on the rise.
Read more on head coach Pete Golding’s scathing statement following the loss below.
Golding Gives Indicting Statement On Ole Miss
A semifinal loss to Miami in January was the point in time that Ole Miss could’ve taken a true leap forward as a program.
Instead, the team looks to be in ruins – even in the pretense of returning QB Trinidad Chambliss. The second loss in a row has Golding truly exhausting all options to motivate his team over the final two games. The quote below is from Brad Logan (The Ole Miss Spirit).
“We’re about to find out what type of character some of these guys have.”
Sure, the Rebels have undergone numerous challenges this season. This isn’t a strong enough of a claim to justify three losses that shouldn’t have taken place, however.
Golding is fully aware that the Rebels’ season is essentially over. Despite this, he is still fighting to end the season with eight wins and an Egg Bowl victory. He’s lighting a fire under the team and attempting to see if they will respond to him in making this statement.
The manner in which Ole Miss finishes the year will likely be an indictment on Golding as well.
Pressure Mounting On Rebels Post Lane Kiffin
While LSU is falling flat in Kiffin’s first season, there are questions surrounding Golding’s ability to keep Ole Miss’ trajectory moving forward.
The Rebels were simply outmatched by Florida, Georgia, and Oklahoma. Florida’s offense was humming on all fronts in the September matchup. Georgia had a dominant performance from start-to-finish against Ole Miss on Nov. 7. Oklahoma’s stingy defense shut Chambliss down for much of the game Sunday.
Chambliss will not receive another season of eligibility. Running back Kewan Lacy faces an uncertain future as well after suffering a season-ending injury.
In many ways the pressure is on Golding to show that the ending of the 2025 season wasn’t a flash in the pan. This will be incredibly challenging to pull off, as the Rebels must adjust to the failures of 2026 via the transfer portal. There will also be a quarterback change, whether this is 2026 transfer Deuce Knight or another portal addition.
Ultimately, Golding is facing imminent pressure to turn things around. If he’s unable to, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Ole Miss starting over fresh in the near future.
Until then, the Rebels seek to earn win number seven on the year this Saturday against Wofford in the home finale. The Rebels then take on Mississippi State on the road.
Pete Golding Makes Indicting Statement Amid Ole Miss’ Season Collapse