Instant Reaction: Bulldogs fall to Ole Miss in Egg Bowl

Mississippi State loses a third-straight Battle for the Golden Egg to the Rebels, but freshman Kamario Taylor gives hope for the future.

Mississippi Rebels offensive lineman Patrick Kutas (75) and wide receiver Harrison Wallace III (2) celebrate after a touchdown in the first half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

If the outside noise around No. 7 Ole Miss and the future of its coach was a distraction to any Rebels, it didn't show Friday morning.

Ole Miss soundly beat its archrival, Mississippi State 38-19 and will be headed to the College Football Playoff.

Mississippi State, though, ends its season in disappointing fashion after a 4-0 start to the season and three close losses that came down to a single play each time.

There'll be a lot more to discuss in the coming days. Signing day is a week away, the coaching carousel is in full swing and there's already work being done on the transfer portal.

For now, he's our instant reaction to the Bulldogs' Egg Bowl loss.

First Half Reaction

Mississippi State fans got their wish seeing freshman Kamario Taylor get his first career start and he delivered on the first drive.

Starting inside their own five yard, Taylor and the Bulldogs marched fairly easily downfield with a couple of big passes to Brenen Thompson and Seydou Traore. It ended with Taylor running 22 yards for a touchdown.

But then the season-long trend of Mississippi State having great first possessions and lackluster follow ups continued.

The lucky part was the Bulldogs’ offensive struggles coincided with Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss overthrowing multiple open receivers downfield.

Also, where has this run defense been all year? The Rebels have 98 rushing yards, but since their first drive it hasn’t been very effective on the ground.

Of course, it’s not a proper Egg Bowl without a little bit of a brawl at some point.

Ole Miss’s last drive of the first half should be concerning to Mississippi State with how easy the Rebels made it look and lead by 11 points at halftime.

However, in a unique twist, the Bulldogs will start the second half with the ball.

Let’s see what happens.

Second Half Reaction

The final 30 minutes highlighted all of the problems with Mississippi State this season: struggle to stop rushing attacks, commit costly penalties and letting defenses put too much pressure on the quarterback.

Taylor continued to show flashes of greatness, but those were mixed in with freshman-like mistakes like missing open receivers on third down.

He did show enough that there should be some hope and optimism in Starkville, which may have played a role in why he started the game in the first place.

Also because of runs like Taylor had on his 35-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that won't slow down the Cam Newton comparisons.

KAMARIO TAYLOR 🤯 #HailState || 📺: @ABCNetwork pic.twitter.com/jtPDhP26sx

— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) November 28, 2025

But the majority of the Bulldogs’ issues were on the defensive side of the ball. Simply put, with the exception of that lull in the first half, the Rebels couldn’t be stopped.

Now, the season isn’t officially over. If there aren’t enough six-win teams, the Bulldogs might get selected. But those chances are as small as Ole Miss’s chances of not going to the College Football Playoff.