In a Nutshell: Ole Miss handles Kentucky in Lexington, 30-23
LEXINGTON, Ken. – Ole Miss came back and held on late to beat Kentucky 30-23. Here is the game in a nutshell for the Rebels.
THE POSITIVE:Resiliency. The Rebels got off to a bad start but never gave up. How bad? In the first quarter, Austin Simmons completed two passes to Harrison Wallace II. He also completed two passes to Ty Bryant. It is too bad Bryant plays for Kentucky.
But the Rebels came back, got the lead and held off the Wildcats to go to 2-0 on the season. After Simmons’ two interceptions, he rebounded and went 6/7 for 120 yards the rest of the first half.
THE NEGATIVE: Penalties plagued Ole Miss in the game, especially some costly holding flags. The Rebels were penalized 7 times for 86 yards, including one that could have been disastrous in these close games against the Wildcats. Kewan Lacy scored a touchdown, but it was called back because of offensive holding. Ole Miss ended up having to settle for a field goal, a four-point differential that could have loomed large.
Also, the defense did not record a single turnover in the game.
THE KEY POSSESSION: In the fourth quarter, Ole Miss had a key drive that lasted three minutes and culminated in a field goal that gave the Rebels a 30-20 lead.
Last season, ahead late in the fourth quarter, Ole Miss was unable to maintain possession and run out the clock. It ultimately cost them the game.
The 9 play, 50-yard drive today, along with Kentucky’s use of time outs, led to the Rebel win.
THE KEY PLAY: Facing a fourth down with not much offense to show at the time, Lane Kiffin decided to roll the dice and go for it. That decision resulted in a 55-yard pass from Simmons to Wallace that got the Rebs to the Kentucky one-yard line.
Ole Miss with a huge play on 4th down to set up the TD run and keep this game close. Harrison Wallace racked up 36 YAC pic.twitter.com/R66vFZI6zT
— Jarodactyl (@JarodactylYT) September 6, 2025
One play later, Lacy blasted into the end zone and that sparked the Ole Miss comeback.
Too easy for Kewan 🔑#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/57r8Z7kjAa
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) September 6, 2025
THE KEY UNIT:The receiving corps. Although there was never a touchdown catch, Ole Miss picked up 235 receiving yards. Better yet, the group gained 126 yards after catch. That is a weapon that will be needed for the rest of the season.
Have a day Trey ‼️#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/EWveavlIzn
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) September 6, 2025
WHAT THIS MEANS GOING FORWARD:It was a win, and Ole Miss is now 1-0 in league play. But there are many things the Rebels need to address – and soon. The slow start and the penalties are atop the list, but there was an injury to Simmons (ankle) late in the game that sent him to the sidelines for Trinidad Chambliss. We’ll keep you posted on that throughout the coming week.
Arkansas is coming to Oxford next week. The Rebels have some adjustments to make before that game.
Steve Barnes
Steve Barnes joins The Rebel Walk staff as a senior writer and brings a trifecta of journalistic experience. As a writer, he has covered college sports for Rivals.com, Football.com and SaturdayDownSouth.com as well as served as a beat writer for various traditional newspapers.
He has been a broadcaster for arena football and several national tournament events for the National Junior College Athletic Association as well as hosting various shows on radio.
A former sports information director at Albany (Ga.) State University and an assistant at Troy and West Florida, he has helped host many NCAA conference, regional and national events, including serving five years on the media committee of the NCAA Division II World Series.
Barnes, a native of Pensacola, Fla., attended Ole Miss in 1983-84, where his first journalism teacher was David Kellum. The duo has come a long way since that time.
He will bring a proven journalistic track record, along with a knack for finding the out-of-the-ordinary story angles to The Rebel Walk.
Barnes continues to reside in Pensacola a mere ten minutes from the beach because he does have taste and a brain.
