How It Happened: Ole Miss Football Takes Down Arkansas Razorbacks 41-35 in SEC Win

Lane Kiffin and Co. earn the win in Vaught Hemingway Stadium, move to 2-0 in SEC play.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

OXFORD, Miss. – A game that began with a wild flurry of offense ended with a crucial defensive play as No. 13 Ole Miss football held off an Arkansas comeback attempt to win 41-35 on Saturday night and improve to 2-0 in SEC play just three weeks into the 2025 college football season.

The two SEC rivals combined for nine straight scoring drives in the first half, 997 yards of total offense (522 for Arkansas, 475 for Ole Miss) and 53 first downs.

But the shootout came down to a defensive stop in the end as TJ Dottery forced a fumble in the final minutes to halt the Razorback comeback.

Special teams proved to be crucial as well, as Ole Miss kicker Lucas Carneiro finished 2-for-2 on field goal attempts, while Arkansas was 0-for-2, ultimately spelling the difference in a six-point game.

Offensive Leaders
Trinidad Chambliss was outstanding in his first Ole Miss start, going 21-for-29 passing with 415 total yards (353 passing, 62 rushing) and three touchdowns (one passing, two rushing).

Harrison Wallace III once again led the receiving corps with six catches for 92 yards and a touchdown, just eight yards shy of his third straight 100-yard game to start the season.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

Kewan Lacy had a strong day out of the backfield with 84 all-purpose yards and a rushing touchdown.

Defensive Leaders
Suntarine Perkins led the Ole Miss defense with nine tackles on the night, including one for a loss, as well as one QB hurry.

TJ Dottery tallied eight tackles, broke up one pass and forced a fumble. Wydett Williams Jr. recovered that fumble and broke up a pass in addition to six tackles.

Zxavian Harris notched five total tackles, including one for a loss and added a pass breakup. Will Echoles had a team-high two QB hurries to go with four tackles.

First Quarter
Arkansas opened the game with a bang, as Taylen Green hit Jaden Platt for a 34-yard gain into Ole Miss territory.

The Rebel defense held strong there, forcing a 51-yard field goal attempt by Scott Starzyk, which missed to the right to keep it scoreless in what was the only non-scoring drive of the first half for either team.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

Ole Miss turned in a strong series in response with a heavy dose of the ground game, running for 37 yards on a 59-yard opening drive.

It looked like the Rebels might come up short after Trinidad Chambliss' pass attempt fell incomplete in the end zone on 4th-and-1, but a pass interference call against Arkansas set up a 2-yard Kewan Lacy touchdown to make it 7-0.

The Razorbacks answered with an impressive touchdown drive of their own, converting three third downs, including a 30-yard touchdown pass from Green to O'Mega Blake on 3rd-and-16 to tie it at seven.

Second Quarter
On the first play of the ensuing drive and last play of the first quarter, Chambliss found a wide-open Cayden Lee, who raced 57 yards after the catch for a 62-yard gain down to the Arkansas 13-yard line.

Chambliss finished it himself with a 9-yard completion to Harrison Wallace III and a 2-yard keeper for his first rushing score as a Rebel, which made it 14-7 for the home team.

The back-and-forth continued when Mike Washington exploded for a 47-yard touchdown on the following drive to tie it right back at 14.

It didn't stay that way long as Chambliss found Dae'Quan Wright for a 64-yard gain down to the goal line, and the Rebel QB punched in his second rushing touchdown in as many drives to put Ole Miss back on top, 21-14.

It looked like Ole Miss might stop the scoring flurry when Antonio Kite intercepted Green in the end zone, but a defensive holding penalty against the Rebels set up a 3-yard touchdown run by Braylen Russell to tie it back at 21.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

Chambliss started the next drive with a 22-yard completion to Lacy, then a pair of Arkansas penalties pushed Ole Miss into the red zone, where Chambliss checked out with a cut on his hand.

Austin Simmons took over, and despite hardly being able to put pressure on his injured ankle, tossed a 4-yard touchdown to Wallace to put Ole Miss ahead 28-21.

Arkansas answered with a 35-yard completion from Green to Washington, followed by a 15-yard scramble by the Razorback quarterback to move deep into Rebel territory.

Then Green reeled off 20 on the ground to convert a 3rd-and-10 and set himself up for a 5-yard rushing score to bring it even again at 28.

With just 1:16 to go, Chambliss re-entered the game and went to the air, where he hit Wallace for 15 yards, Logan Diggs for 13 and Deuce Alexander for 21 to set up a 36-yard field goal by Lucas Carneiro to put Ole Miss ahead 31-28 at the break.

Each team eclipsed 300 total yards in the first half with Arkansas at a slight edge, 333-301. Ole Miss totaled 17 first downs in the first half compared to 16 by Arkansas.

Third Quarter
After the relentless offense in the first half, both teams punted to start the second. Arkansas punter Devin Bale pinned Ole Miss at its own 7-yard line, but the Rebels quickly flipped the field.

Lacy moved the chains with 10 yards on the ground, then Chambliss dropped a 40-yard dime to Wallace.

A pair of red-zone penalties against the Rebels threatened the drive, but Chambliss delivered a strike to De'Zhaun Stribling for a 6-yard touchdown on 3rd-and-goal to give Ole Miss the 38-28 lead.

The Razorbacks drove just shy of the Ole Miss red zone in response, but back-to-back stops by Zxavian Harris, and a pass breakup by Nick Cull forced a field goal attempt, and Starzyk missed from 49 yards out to keep the Rebel lead at 10.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

Fourth Quarter
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Chambliss connected with Alexander for 35 yards down the sideline. Arkansas defender Kani Walker was injured on the play and was carted off after a delay.

Chambliss scrambled for 17 yards down inside the 10-yard line, where the Arkansas defense locked down, forcing a 23-yard Carneiro field goal to make it 41-28.

Arkansas delivered offensively with its back against the wall, mounting an 11-play, 75-yard drive, capped by Washington's second touchdown, to cut the Rebel lead to six, 41-35.

After a three-and-out by the Ole Miss offense, Arkansas drove into Rebel territory and looked poised to take the late lead, but TJ Dottery forced a critical fumble, and Wydett Williams Jr. recovered with 1:52 left on the clock.

The Ole Miss offense moved the chains once then went into victory formation to move to 2-0 in the SEC.

Next Up
Ole Miss takes a break from SEC play next week to face what will be its toughest non-conference test this season against Tulane, which moved to 3-0 on the season with a win Saturday night over Duke.

Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT on ESPN. Tickets are still available at OleMissTix.com.

More Ole Miss News:

The Ole Miss Football Depth Chart: Lane Kiffin and Co. Gearing Up for 2025 Season

Ole Miss Football 'Impressing' Texas Longhorns, Ohio State Buckeyes Target

Alabama Head Coach Betting Odds: Ole Miss Football's Lane Kiffin Listed as a Favorite

Join the Community:

Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and Ole Miss Rebels On SI: @OleMissOnSI for all coverage surrounding the Ole Miss program.