Ole Miss to Open 2026 Season Ranked in Top 10 of AP Poll

Ole Miss will enter the 2026 season ranked as a top-10 team, as the Rebels looks to return to the College Football Playoffs.

Jan 1, 2026; New Orleans, LA, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Trinidad Chambliss (6) and running back Kewan Lacy (5) lift the trophy after the 2026 Sugar Bowl and quarterfinal game of the College Football Playoff against the Georgia Bulldogs at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 2026 college football season is inching closer and with that comes the reveal of the Associated Press Top 25 poll. 

In Monday’s initial rankings, it was revealed that the Ole Miss Rebels will open the upcoming season at No. 9 in the AP poll. Among teams in the Southeastern Conference, Ole Miss is the fourth-highest ranked team behind No. 3 Georgia, No. 5 Texas and No. 8 Texas A&M.  

2026 Preseason AP Top 25 Poll

1. Ohio State

2. Oregon 

3. Georgia

4. Notre Dame

5. Texas

6. Indiana 

7. Miami (FL)

8. Texas A&M

9. Ole Miss

10. Oklahoma 

11. LSU

12. Texas Tech 

13. Alabama

14. BYU

15. USC

16. Michigan 

17. Washington 

18. Penn State

19. SMU

20. Tennessee 

21. Utah 

22. Iowa

23. Houston 

24. Louisville 

25. Missouri 

Earlier this month, Ole Miss learned that it was ranked No. 10 in the US LBM Coaches Poll.

Following the completion of the 2025 season, with Indiana being crowned as the national champion in Miami, No. 3 Ole Miss received its highest final AP ranking since the 1962 season. 

It was an unprecedented campaign for the Rebels, who finished with a program best 13 wins, including two wins during the College Football Playoffs. Ole Miss’ 11 regular season wins also set a new program record through 12 games in 2025.

Not only did the Rebels achieve new heights as a program on the field, but they had to do it throughout what was a distraction-filled season amid Lane Kiffin’s uncertain future at the time. Kiffin ultimately chose to accept the job as LSU’s new head coach immediately following the completion of the Rebels’ regular season, prompting Ole Miss to promote (then) defensive coordinator Pete Golding to fill the full-time role. 

With Golding as a first time head coach, Ole Miss didn’t skip a beat as they crushed Tulane in the first round of the playoffs, then beat Georgia in what was a thrilling upset in the Sugar Bowl. The Rebels’ dream-season then came to a crushing end in the national semifinals, losing to the Miami Hurricanes in the final moments of the Fiesta Bowl.

Now, Golding is just weeks away from beginning his first full season as a head coach with the ninth-ranked Rebels. 

Ole Miss football is set to kickoff the 2026 season on Sunday, September 6 against Louisville at 6:30 p.m. CT (ABC) at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

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