Ole Miss fades late in first loss of season, 43-35 at Georgia
ATHENS, Ga. — After trading scores for nearly three quarters, Ole Miss’ offense went silent down the stretch and Georgia never stopped scoring as the Bulldogs rallied to a 43-35 victory over the Rebels at Sanford Stadium.
Final from Athens. pic.twitter.com/xBLOdUwWsW
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
Although the Rebels scored on their first five possessions and gained 351 yards of offense, the Bulldogs did much of the same. Georgia picked up 34 first downs throughout the game, racked up 510 yards of offense and scored on all eight offensive possessions.
“Lot of credit to Georgia — in the fourth quarter, they made a lot of plays on both sides of the ball — they score every time they have the ball and have 34 first downs. But when you’re in a game like that, you have to keep scoring.”
~ Lane Kiffin in his opening statement after the loss
Game recap
Georgia opened the game with a methodical eight-play drive highlighted by Gunner Stockton connecting with Colbie Young on a 36-yard strike to move the Bulldogs deep into Ole Miss territory. Just when it looked like the Bulldogs were going to score at will, a pair of penalties stalled the possession, setting up Peyton Woodring for a 51-yard field goal to put Georgia ahead 3-0.
Trinidad Chambliss answered immediately for Ole Miss, orchestrating a long drive of his own full of short passes. After fumbling and recovering his own miscue on 2nd-and-goal, Chambliss scrambled toward the edge and found the end zone to give the Rebels a 7-3 lead with just under six minutes left in the opening quarter.
There he goes 🇹🇹@TrinidadChambl1 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/6utcIVc0eb
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
Stockton again guided Georgia down the field with ease, mixing Frazier’s rushing with quick completions. After draining the remainder of the first quarter clock, Stockton found Lawson Luckie for an 11-yard touchdown pass to push Georgia back in front, 10-7, on the first play of the second.
Again, Chambliss wasted no time responding. A much faster drive than the opening one consisted of completions to Dae’Quan Wright and Harrison Wallace III to move the chains, later finding Winston Watkins on a 24-yard gain down to the Georgia 5-yard line. Kewan Lacy finished it off with back-to-back rushes, the last one being from 1-yard out and crossing the plane to give Ole Miss the lead right back.
Yeaaaaa 5 🕺#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/7VtZigbGFe
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
It became evident early on that neither team could make a stop on defense, so, Georgia’s offense struck quickly in return. Completions to Dillon Bell and a series of strong runs by Chauncey Bowens and Frazier later set up Stockton’s 22-yard touchdown through the teeth of the Ole Miss defense, flipping the score again, 17-14.
Chambliss and the Ole Miss offense stayed poised despite a deafening Sanford Stadium crowd. The senior quarterback continued to share the ball around, getting the ball to Caleb Odom and De’Zhaun Stribling to move inside the Georgia 20. A pair of pass interference calls set up Lacy’s second 1-yard touchdown run, giving the Rebels a 21-17 lead with just over two minutes remaining in the half.
That’s ✌️ for Kewan ‼️#HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/aNTgLYM8pu
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
However, that was too much time for the Georgia offense. A 19-yard connection between Stockton and Oscar Delp pushed the Bulldogs near midfield, and a series of short gains pushed them to the Ole Miss 17-yard line where Woodring drilled a 35-yard field goal as time expired in the first half.
At the break, Ole Miss and Georgia combined for 434 yards of total offense and neither defense was able to force a punt.
“I thought we handled the wave of the stadium. I thought we were extremely zoned in on big moments… I told them before, expect to score on this defense. When you score, be ready to do it again.”
~ Kiffin’s message to the Ole Miss offense
The Rebels wasted no time extending the lead right out of the halftime break. On the second play from scrimmage, Chambliss saw Georgia defensive backs playing 10 yards off of every receiver and quickly hit Stribling for a completion that turned into a 75-yard race to the end zone that pushed the 28-20 just 14 seconds into the quarter.
One way ticket to Strib City ✈️@Dezhaunthegreat x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/tEN5pPRSXP
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
Adjustments were an afterthought for both teams as the Bulldogs continued to lean on their running backs to move the chains down to the Ole Miss 3-yard line. Stockton capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass, and though the two-point try failed, Georgia trimmed the deficit to 28-26 early in the third quarter.
Chambliss continued to execute the offense at an elite level on the ensuing possession. After an unbelievable grab by Deuce Alexander on the sideline, the Rebels across midfield and Chambliss later scrambled 16 yard for a critical fourth-down pick up. Two plays later, Chambliss powered into the end zone from two yards out behind the offensive line for his second rushing touchdown of the day, giving Ole Miss a 35-26 advantage.
WHAT A CATCH 🤯@Deuceisloose3 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/oN5yq4QOLI
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
Raise the flag 🇹🇹@TrinidadChambl1 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/uzQcWsnzUC
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 18, 2025
All the momentum flipped in Georgia’s favor after that score as Bulldogs were faced with a fourth down decision near midfield. Just when it looked like the Ole Miss defense stuffed the run for a turnover on downs, Frazier slipped out of the pile and picked up the first down. Quickly, Georgia moved back into the red zone as the third quarter came to a close, and Stockton capped off another scoring drive with a dump off pass to Frazier in open space that cut the Rebels’ lead to just two.
“This was the moment. If we stop him here, this game is really in a good direction.”
~ Kiffin on the 4th down conversion by UGA
The Ole Miss offense went three-and-out and did not gain a yard on the following possession, punting the ball away for the first time in the game. The Bulldogs then marched down the field behind Frazier and Bowens once again, taking a lead for the first time since the second quarter with a third passing touchdown to Luckie.
Lacy gained one yard on the first play of the next Ole Miss possession, but again, the Rebels would go three-and-out as the Georgia defense began to find its footing.
Desperately needing a stop to stay alive, the Rebels failed to stop the Bulldogs. Georgia again moved the ball well into Ole Miss territory before Andrew Jones stopped a third-down rush short of the sticks to force another Woodring field goal that was drilled from 42 yards out.
With no timeouts left, the Rebel offense had one last shot and failed to convert. Chambliss threw four-straight incompletions, turning the ball over on downs for the first time in the game and the Bulldogs were able to line up in victory formation.
Ole Miss was outscored 17-0 after going up by nine with four minutes left in the third quarter, gaining just one yard of total offense until Lacy rushed for 12 yards on the opening play of the Rebels’ final possession.
Chambliss led the Rebels with 305 total yards of offense, scoring three touchdowns and leading the team in rushing. Stripling led Ole Miss receivers with 96 yards on three grabs and the only touchdown reception.
“We had them. We have to bounce back and get ready for Oklahoma — I think this team is very resilient. All season we’re 6-0, but that’s not the case. You’re going to run into some bumps in the road. This isn’t going to define our season.”
~ Chambliss on the morale of the team after the loss
Suntarine Perkins led a rough showing for the Rebel defense with 10 tackles while Zxavian Harris tacked on a pair of tackles for loss.
Up next
Ole Miss will stay on the road and head to Norman next week to take on the Oklahoma Sooners. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CT and will be televised on ABC.
Kameron Wicker
Kam is an Ole Miss alumnus with a degree in Journalism. Even though he's from Delhi, Louisiana, that didn't stop Kam from growing up a diehard Ole Miss fan. He's a sports guru who watches and follows all sports at all times. He lettered four years in football and baseball in high school and is an avid Saints, Pelicans, and Astros fan. He currently resides in Gulf Shores, Alabama where he works full-time as a sports editor.
