‘We just want to focus on the game’: Trinidad Chambliss ready to lead Ole Miss into the first round of College Football Playoffs
OXFORD, Miss. — It has been a wild few weeks for Ole Miss football. The Rebels have entered a new coaching era, with Pete Golding assuming position of head coach since the departure of Lane Kiffin. Ole Miss clinched the No. 6 seed in the playoffs, allowing the Rebels to bring their first playoff game to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium as they take on Tulane. At the helm of the offense will be quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, recently named SEC Newcomer of the Year, who spoke with media Thursday in the Manning Center.
Chambliss remains one of the best stories in college football. The D-2 transfer from Ferris State made quite the name for himself in the regular season, tallying 3,016 passing yards, 470 rushing yards, and 24 total touchdowns. His performance not only captured the heart of the Rebel fanbase but has earned him honors such as being named winner of the 2025 CSpire Conerly Trophy and 2nd Team All-SEC, having his own song, and even recently being featured in an AT&T commercial.
The Ole Miss QB lead Ferris State to a D2 National Championship last year, and now he is looking to do the same with the Rebels. Chambliss spoke about his new head coach, the commercial, his teammates, and playing in the playoffs.
Chambliss on Golding
Trinidad’s media opportunity kicked off with the signal caller asked how things have been with Coach Golding at the helm. He had high praise for his new head coach.
“He’s been good. He’s really taken over the role. He’s very emotional, knows how to talk to a team and he’s doing great.“
Chambliss on Coach Golding
 While he didn’t have much communication with Coach Golding as defensive coordinator, that is now changing.
“Throughout the season, I wouldn’t really converse with PG (Pete Golding) a lot, just obviously because he was a defensive coach, but I have had a couple meetings with him now and we’re on the right page for Tulane. We just want to have all our focus on Tulane.“
Trinidad Chambliss
Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. will stay with the Rebels throughout their playoff run. Obviously, this a key component to helping manage this offense in light of the recent changes. Trinidad was adamant about the importance of Weis Jr. sticking around for the playoffs.
“That’s crucial. Me being a quarterback, you know, having the same guy with me throughout the playoffs in my ear telling me, ‘Hey, we think it’s going to be this coverage.’ That’s really crucial for us moving forward. To have the same guys on the offensive staff is a really big deal for us.“
Chambliss on Charlie Weis Jr. staying to coach during the playoffs
Refocusing and Playoff Game against Tulane
The last few week have obviously been tumultuous for Ole Miss, and Chambliss was asked Thursday if it had been hard on the team.
“I wouldn’t say it’s been hard. We just want to focus on the game, and the focus that the team has right now it’s just Tulane. We can’t really worry about other stuff right now outside of football and what’s outside of the team. But yeah, we’re just really focused on Tulane, so we’re good.”
Trinidad Chambliss
The Rebels faced off against their playoff opponent, the Green Wave, earlier this season on September 20. Ole Miss dominated Tulane, 45-10. Trinidad was asked what he recalled from that game.
“Yeah, that game seems like it was a year ago. I just remember them being a physical team, really well coached team by Coach (Jon) Sumrall. He’s a defensive coach, so I know the defensive guys over at Tulane will be really solid and you know, they’re going to come differently this game. They didn’t have the best game against us earlier on in the season and they’ve been playing really good recently. So, we just got to be ready.“
– Chambliss on what he recalls about Tulane from earlier in the season
Before arriving at Ole Miss, Chambliss won a national championship at Ferris State. He talked about his experiences in the playoffs.
“Me being at Ferris State, it taught me a lot of how to win and what it takes to win in the playoffs. And it’s a different season, really. You know, we played the regular season, that’s over with now. And now it’s win or go home. So, our season is on the line for each game. And I feel like I know how to win and what it takes to win. So, I think that will help moving forward in the playoffs.“
Chambliss on his past experience, helping guide him in the playoffs this year
Trinidad shared his message to fans attending the playoff game in Oxford next weekend: “Bring the energy, bring the juice. I already know they will, but you know, we’re going to put on a show and we’re going to get the job done.”
Patrick Kutas and the o-line
Wide Receiver Harrison Wallace III has had previous playoff experience, as he played for Penn State last season before transferring to Ole Miss. Since transferring, Wallace has tallied 729 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Chambliss was asked how helpful conversations with Wallace have been since he has prior playoff experience.
“Trey has experience in the playoffs,” Chambliss began. “It’s great to have a vet at receiver. I can trust him whenever I throw him the ball and I can trust him whenever he can get open, so it’s great to have depth in that room.”
Chambliss was also asked about attending the recent awards ceremony in Jackson, Mississippi with Ole Miss offensive lineman Patrick Kutas. At that ceremony Chambliss would walk away with the 2025 C Spire Conerly Trophy for the best player in the state of Mississippi, while Kutas received the 2025 Kent Hull Trophy for the most outstanding senior offensive lineman in the state.
“Yeah, PK is one of my best friends. He was one of the first guys that would text me when I first got to campus, just a really great guy. He totally deserved that trophy. And then the offensive line, our relationship has grown throughout the season as my role increased and I actually took those guys out to Tico’s (Steakhouse). We had a little dinner just to spend more time with them, trying to get to know them outside of football. Yeah, those are my guys.“
Chambliss on his friendship with Kutas and the Ole Miss O-linemen
Chambliss and the AT&T Commercial
Over this past weekend during the many college football championship games, the Rebels’ quarterback appeared in a commercial for AT&T. The commercial was a play on the transfer portal in college football and featured Trinidad “transfering” his phone service to AT&T.
He was asked Thursday what the reaction has been to his commercial from his friends and family.
“Yeah, that was sweet. People were texting me from all over. My family from back home, friends from back home, my teammates here saw it on their TVs. They were like, ‘Dude, we just saw you on TV.’ I was like, ‘Dang, like that’s sweet.’ And then I was at Hayden’s (Bradley) house. We were watching all the games at his house and then it popped up and I was like, ‘Wow, that’s actually really cool seeing myself on TV.’ But, yeah, acting is harder than what a lot of people think.“
Trinidad on acting in a commercial
He was asked if his former coach at Ferris State, Tony Annese, had seen the commercial.
“Yeah, he did see it. He did text me,” Chambliss said. “He said that was awesome. He’s a jokester, so he was like, ‘Dude, you got to be better with the acting.’ I was like, ‘It’s hard.’Â But no, he was loving it. And my teammates back at Ferris, were loving it as well, too,” he added.
Update on Appeal to Play Next Year
Back in November, Chambliss applied for a waiver for an extra year of eligibility in hopes of getting an additional year to play at the D1 level. When asked, he said he hadn’t received word yet, but provided an update on when he expects an answer.
“I have not yet. It should be any day now. Hopefully, within a week.”
Trinidad Chambliss on his waiver application
What’s Next
The No. 6-ranked Ole Miss Rebels take on the No. 11 Ranked Tulane Green Wave in round one of the College Football Playoffs in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium next Saturday December 20th at 2:30p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on TNT and HBO Max.
Parks Burcham
Parks Burcham is a sophomore at the University of Mississippi. He is majoring in Journalism, emphasis in Sports Media, with a minor in Sports Management. He is originally from Booneville, Mississippi and graduated high school from Jumpertown Attendance Center.His favorite sports are basketball and football. He chose this path because he has always been extremely interested in the sports world. Parks enjoys all aspects of the game and hopes to do great work in this field.
