COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME OF THE WEEK: LSU VS. OLE MISS
COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME OF THE WEEK:
OLE MISS VS. LSU
(OLE MISS NOTES)
LSU holds a 66-44-4 series lead on the field … When played in Oxford, the series is tied at 11-11-1. • Since the rivals started playing for the Magnolia Bowl trophy in 2008, LSU holds an 11-6 edge. • This is the 13th ranked meeting between Ole Miss and LSU, with the Tigers leading ranked matchups 8-5 … It’s the first time since 1962 that both the Rebels and Tigers are ranked inside the top-10 in the AP poll. • Ole Miss has eight all-time wins against a top-10 LSU team: 1960 (No. 3), 1962 (No. 4), 1965 (No. 5), 1969 (No. 6, 1997 (No. 8), 2009 (No. 8), 2013 (No. 6) and 2025 (No. 4). • Since 2012, the home team has won 12 of the last 14 games in the series (.857 winning percentage). • Ole Miss enters the week ranked No. 8 in the AP poll and No. 9 in the Coaches poll … The Rebels are on their second-longest AP poll streak ever at 53 straight since 2023, trailing only 73 from 1957-63. • Ole Miss is 315-116-8 (.727) all-time at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium before vacated wins (293-113-8), including a 37-3 stretch since the start of the 2021 season. • Pete Golding has faced a ranked opponent in five of his first six career games as head coach at Ole Miss … Three of those have been top-10 opponents (#3 UGA, #10 Miami, #7 LSU). • RB Kewan Lacy has 27 career rushing TDs, which is tied with Brandon Bolden for third all-time in program history. • QB Trinidad Chambliss has registered a passing touchdown in 15 straight games, which is the fourth-longest streak in program history. • Twelve Rebels (Chambliss, Cedrick Beavers, Lucas Carneiro, Raymond Collins, Troy Everett, Horatio Fields, George Hamsley, Izaiah Hartrup, Patrick Kutas, Jehiem Oatis, Jordan Renaud and Brycen Sanders) have earned their degrees and are eligible for the 2026 season.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS LSU enters the matchup with a 2-0 record after opening the season with wins over Clemson and Louisiana Tech. The Tigers are averaging 48.0 points and 586.0 yards per game while allowing just 12.0 points and 221.5 yards per contest. LSU has been particularly effective on the ground, rushing for 456 yards and eight touchdowns through two games, while the defense has recorded 10 sacks and 17 tackles for loss. Quarterback Sam Leavitt leads the Tigers’ offense with 574 passing yards and nine total touchdowns.
OLE MISS-LSU SERIES HISTORY • This game marks the 115th all-time meeting between the Ole Miss Rebels and LSU Tigers dating back to 1894. • LSU holds a 66-44-4 advantage in the field, 66-43-4 after vacated wins. • When the game is played in Oxford, the series is tied 11-11-1. • LSU is Ole Miss’ second-most played opponent behind Mississippi State, which will reach 122 meetings on Nov. 27. • Since the rivals started playing for the Magnolia Bowl trophy in 2008, LSU holds an 11-6 edge … Ole Miss’ win in 2013 was vacated due to NCAA ruling. • The home team has won 12 of the last 14 meetings on the field. • This will be the 13th all-time meeting with both the Rebels and Tigers simultaneously ranked, the fourth in a row … LSU leads 8-5 in such games. • It’s the first time since 1962 that both the Rebels and Tigers are ranked inside the top-10 in the AP poll. • Ole Miss has eight all-time wins against a top-10 LSU team: 1960 (No. 3), 1962 (No. 4), 1965 (No. 5), 1969 (No. 6, 1997 (No. 8), 2009 (No. 8), 2013 (No. 6) and 2025 (No. 4).
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(LSU NOTES)
LSU And Ole Miss To Meet As Top 10 Teams For First Time Since 1962 LSU (2-0, 0-0 SEC) opens SEC play on Saturday when the Tigers travel to face Ole Miss (2-0, 0-0 SEC) in the much-anticipated return to Oxford for Lane Kiffin. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT and will be televised on ABC with Chris Fowler (pxp), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst), Holly Rowe (sideline) and Laura Rutledge (sideline) on the call. College GameDay will also be on hand for the weekend’s premier national game. LSU enters the game ranked No. 7 in both polls, while Ole Miss is ranked No. 8 (AP) and No. 9 (Coaches). It’s the first time LSU and Ole Miss meet a Top 10 teams since 1962 when the Tigers were No. 4 and Ole Miss No. 6 (Ole Miss won, 15-7, in Tiger Stadium). Kiffin, 2-0 at LSU, coached the Rebels for six years (2020-25) before taking over as the Tigers’ head coach on Nov. 30, 2025. LSU improved to 2-0 with a 45-14 win over Louisiana Tech last week, while Ole Miss defeated Charlotte, 41-9. Last year, Ole Miss beat the Tigers, 24-19, in Oxford. It’s the first time in the 114-game series that LSU will travel to Oxford in consecutive seasons. LSU goes into the Ole Miss game averaging 48.0 points and 586.0 total yards per game (228.0 rushing, 358.0 passing). Defensively, the Tigers lead the nation in total defense (142.0) and sacks (12), while ranking No. 2 in rush defense (18.0) and No. 12 in pass defense (124.0). QB Sam Leavitt has accounted for 7 TDs (5 rushing, 2 passing) and ranks No. 2 in the SEC in total offense (354.5). Leavitt has rushed for 135 yards and completed 41-of-66 passes for 574 yards, 2 TDs and 4 interceptions. Dilin Jones leads LSU in rushing with 179 yards and 2 TDs, while Winnie Watkins leads team in receiving (12-153-1 TD). LBs TJ Dottery (14 tackles) and Whit Weeks (13) lead LSU in tackles, while Edge Princewill Umanmielen leads the nation sacks (5) and tackles for loss (6.5). LSU Coach Lane Kiffin Lane Kiffin, who guided Ole Miss to four 10-win seasons and 55 total victories during a 6-year stretch from 2020-2025, is in his first season at LSU. Kiffin, now in his 15th season as a collegiate head coach, is 118-53 and includes head coaching stops at Tennessee (2009), Southern Cal (2010-2013), Florida Atlantic (2017- 19), and Ole Miss (2020-2025). His 55 wins at Ole Miss were the most over a 6-year period at the school since 1957-62 when the Rebels won 57 games. His 52 victories since the 2021 season rank behind Georgia (67) and Alabama (58) in the SEC during that span. At Ole Miss, Kiffin directed the Rebels to an 11-1 regular season mark and a berth in the College Football Playoffs in 2025. The 11 wins were the most during the regular season in Ole Miss history and it also marked the first time in program history the Rebels reached double-digit wins in three consecutive seasons. Since arriving at LSU, Kiffin assembled the nation’s No. 1 transfer portal class, a group that includes the No. 1 quarterback (Sam Leavitt), No. 1 offensive tackle (Jordan Seaton) and the No. 1 edge rusher (Princewill Umanmielen). Kiffin won national titles as an assistant coach at Southern Cal (twice) and Alabama (once) and he was part of offensive staffs that have produced four Heisman Trophy winners – QB Carson Palmer (USC, 2002), QB Matt Leinert (USC, 2004), RB Reggie Bush (USC, 2005) and RB Derrick Henry (Alabama, 2015).
• LSU’s offense has racked up 1,172 yards (456 rushing, 716 passing) in 2 games. It’s the most yards of offense for an LSU team over first 2 games of season dating back to 1937. • LSU’s defense has given up only 285 total yards (37 rushing, 247 passing), the fourth-fewest on record dating back to 1937. Others: 97 in 1937, 244 in 1958, 245 in 1979. • LSU leads the nation in total defense (142.0), sacks (12) and opponent first downs (16) and ranks No. 2 in rushing yards (18.0) and third-down conversion rate (4-of-27 for 14.8 pct.). • Offensively, LSU ranks No. 3 in total offense (586.0) and No. 4 in passing offense (358.0). • On 28 possessions by the opposition, LSU has forced 13 3-and-outs, had the opponent punt 16 times. LSU has allowed possessions of 5 or more plays only 6 times with 22 of the 28 possessions being 4 plays or fewer (11 by Clemson, 11 by Louisiana Tech). • The Tiger defense has allowed the opponent to penetrate LSU territory just 3 times in 26 possessions that started on the minus-50. Of the 103 offensive snaps by the opposition, only 14 have come in LSU territory (6 by Clemson, 8 by Louisiana Tech). Six of the 14 snaps came on drives that started on LSU’s side of the field due to a turnover. • For just the 6th time in school history, LSU’s offense accounted for 300-plus rushing yards (309) and passing yards (335) in a game against Clemson in the season-opener. The last time it happened came in the win over Florida in 2023 (329 rushing, 372 passing). • C Braelin Moore was awarded No. 18 for the Tigers becoming only the second offensive lineman (C Lloyd Cushenberry in 2019) in school history to be presented with the jersey since the tradition started in 2003. Moore will continue to wear No. 61 on gamedays and will have a No. 18 patch on his jersey. • LB Whit Weeks and TE Trey’Dez Green will wear No. 7 for LSU this year. It’s only the second time since the tradition started in 2008 with Patrick Peterson that two players have been awarded the No. 7 jersey (OT Will Campbell and LB Harold Perkins in 2024). • LSU climbed to No. 7 in both national polls this week following the win over Louisiana Tech. LSU has broken into the Top 10 of the national polls in eight of the last nine seasons.
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DOMINANT GROUND GAME PROPELS UNDEFEATED PITT OVER SYRACUSE
Damon Ferguson Jr. rushed for a career-high 102 yards and a touchdown for the third straight game as Pittsburgh dominated on the ground and earned a 27-13 ACC victory over visiting Syracuse on Thursday night.
Filling in for Ja’Kyrian Turner for the second straight week, Ferguson had his first career 100-yard rushing game after the freshman had 59 yards in last week’s win over UCF.
The Panthers earned their 12th straight home victory over Syracuse and beat the Orange for the 21st time in the past 25 meetings.
Ferguson needed 10 attempts in the first big game of his collegiate career and highlighted things with a 32-yard run down the right sideline with 12:38 left in the second quarter that gave the Panthers (3-0, 2-0 ACC) a 14-0 lead two plays after Syracuse was called for pass interference and unsportsmanlike conduct.
Ferguson also had a 33-yard run in the third quarter that set up quarterback Mason Heintschel’s 9-yard TD that gave the Panthers a 24-10 lead after the extra point.
La’Vell Wright added 81 yards on the ground and his 2-yard TD opened the scoring with 3:16 left in the first quarter shortly after a holding penalty kept the drive alive.
Heintschel completed 10-of-23 passes for 123 yards and contributed 41 rushing yards while Antonio Chadha had a 42-yard field goal in the second quarter and a 34-yarder in the fourth.
The Panthers totaled 245 yards on the ground as coach Pat Narduzzi was on the sidelines for his 144th game, surpassing Jock Sutherland (1924-1938) for the most in school history.Sports Coaching & Training
Syracuse (1-2, 0-2) allowed the game’s first 17 points and committed ten penalties for 94 yards after committing 14 penalties in last week’s loss to California.
Steve Angeli completed 13-of-25 passes for 161 yards but threw two interceptions and faded after completing nine of his first 11 attempts. He was replaced by Amari Odom with 8:09 left and the Kennesaw State transfer completed all seven of his passes for 44 yards.
Ahmad Miller led the Orange with 78 rushing yards, including a 2-yard TD with 3:28 left in the second quarter. Shay Barker made a 42-yard field goal and a 30-yard field goal for his first two career field goals after Tripp Woody’s 29-yard try sailed well wide with 10 1/2 minutes left in the second.
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LSU QB SAM LEAVITT UPGRADED TO QUESTIONABLE VS. OLE MISS
LSU quarterback Sam Leavitt was upgraded from doubtful to questionable on Thursday for the No. 7 Tigers’ rivalry showdown Saturday against No. 8 Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss.
The nature of the injury is not disclosed on the Southeastern Conference’s availability report, which also has the Tigers’ leading tackler, linebacker TJ Dottery, listed as questionable, or a 50% chance of playing per SEC injury report policy.
Though he did not appear to suffer an injury in last Saturday’s win over Louisiana Tech, Leavitt was listed as doubtful on Wednesday.
According to LouisianaSports.net, Leavitt missed Wednesday’s workout due to back spasms but returned to practice Thursday.
The Arizona State transfer spoke to reporters after the 45-14 home victory and did not appear to be dealing with an ailment.
“I’m just focusing on tonight, getting better, getting the body healthy,” Leavitt said when asked whether he was looking forward to facing Ole Miss. “But no, it’s going to be an incredible opportunity.”
Leavitt was slated to speak with the media Tuesday about the key SEC clash against Ole Miss, according to an LSU spokesperson, but he was not present at the session.
At a Monday news conference, LSU coach Lane Kiffin did not mention any information about Leavitt’s health. He also didn’t speak on the matter during his weekly radio show on Thursday night.
Under the SEC’s availability policy, a player designated as doubtful has a 25% chance to play and is “unlikely to play due to significant concerns.”
SEC football teams face penalties that range from $25,000 to $100,000 for late or inaccurate availability reports. It is at the discretion of SEC commissioner Greg Sankey whether to impose those penalties.
A two-year starter and Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year at Arizona State, Leavitt transferred to LSU after the school hired Kiffin.
After throwing for a touchdown and rushing for two more in a blowout season-opening win over Clemson, Leavitt threw for a score and ran for three more in the victory over Louisiana Tech, but he tossed three interceptions.
In two games with LSU, Leavitt has completed 41 of 66 passes for 574 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions. He has also rushed for 135 yards and five scores.
If Leavitt isn’t available to play, either freshman Husan Longstreet or sophomore Landen Clark will start. In two games, Clark has completed 7 of 10 passes for 109 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. Longstreet has attempted one pass, a 33-yard completion.
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