Texas football must beat Ole Miss at Royal-Memorial Stadium on Saturday in order to avoid its first three-game losing streak since 2021. That won't be an easy task.
The last three College Football Playoff brackets have featured one of the teams in this matchup. Texas reached the CFP semifinals during the 2023 and 2024 seasons while Ole Miss made it that far last season. But No. 19 Texas (4-2, 1-2) is on the brink of being eliminated from this year's playoff picture while Ole Miss (5-1, 3-1) has three wins over ranked opponents and are No. 7 in the Associated Press poll.
Here are five things to know about the Rebels:
1. QB Trinidad Chambliss has been as advertised
While UT senior Arch Manning has become a Heisman Trophy afterthought, his Ole Miss counterpart remains in the conversation. Sixth-year quarterback Trinidad Chambliss had thrown for 1,676 yards, 14 touchdowns and four interceptions while leading an Ole Miss offense that's averaging 37.5 points. Chambliss has also rushed for six scores. As of Sunday afternoon, DraftKings had Chambliss with the third-best Heisman odds.
2. Ole Miss hasn't yet been turned away in the red zone
The Rebels have been the definition of efficiency in the red zone. Ole Miss is 24-for-24 in converting trips inside the opponent's 20-yard line into points, with 12 rushing touchdowns, nine passing scores and three field goals (Iowa State is the only other FBS-level team that is perfect in the red zone). Ole Miss will face a Texas team that has allowed points on 13 of their opponent's 16 red-zone appearances.
3. Kewan Lacy is heating up in the Ole Miss backfield
Ahead of this season, the SEC's coaches and media members both labeled Ole Miss' Kewan Lacy and Missouri's Ahmad Hardy as their first-team running backs on their respective preseason teams. Lacy has rushed 62 times for 352 yards and five touchdowns over five games, but just recorded the best performance of his fall. In a 31-3 win over Missouri, he rushed for a season-high 122 yards and caught two passes.
4. Ole Miss, Texas have one thing in common
Texas is coming off an upset loss to Florida, and Ole Miss can feel the Longhorns' pain. The lone blemish on the Rebels' résumé is a 52-28 loss to the Gators on Sept. 26. But since that setback in which the Rebels allowed nearly 500 yards of offense, Ole Miss has outscored Vanderbilt and then-No. 13 Missouri by a combined score of 83-20.
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5. How often has Texas played Ole Miss?
Texas and Ole Miss have met eight times before, but the last game between the schools took place in Austin back in 2013. Texas owns a 6-2 lead in the series with one of those victories being a 12-7 decision in a 1962 Cotton Bowl that featured the No. 3-ranked Longhorns and No. 5 Rebels.
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This article originally published at 5 things for Texas football fans to know about the Ole Miss Rebels.