Ole Miss Earns Berth in College Football Playoff, Will Host Tulane
Ole Miss’ historic 2025 football season isn’t done yet, as the Rebels have earned their first-ever invite to the College Football Playoff.
No. 6 Ole Miss (11-1, 7-1 SEC) will play host to 11-seed Tulane at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Saturday, December 20 at 2:30 pm CT on both TNT and HBO Max, a rematch from earlier this fall when the Rebels triumphed over the Green Wave, 45-10. This will be the 75th meeting all-time between the two schools in a long-standing series that dates back to 1893. On the field, Ole Miss leads 46-28, including a dominant 14-2 mark in Oxford.
Season ticket holders will have access beginning this evening, with a priority deadline of Friday, December 12 at 5 pm CT. A student sale will begin December 12 at 8 pm CT, with tickets allotted in a first-come, first serve fashion. Student tickets are not eligible to be transferred. All tickets for the CFP will be administered through OleMissTix.com.
This first playoff game is the first non-bowl postseason game in Ole Miss history, but a win would put the Rebels in the Allstate Sugar Bowl in another rematch, this time against the No. 3 seed Georgia Bulldogs.
On the field, Ole Miss owns an all-time postseason record of 27-15 (26-15 after vacated wins), good for a winning percentage of .643 that ranks as the best in the SEC and is tied for third among all FBS schools with at least 25 bowl appearances.
Ole Miss’ superb 2025 campaign – the first 11-win regular season in program history – has been paced by a dynamic, balanced offensive attack, as well as a timely defense that ranks among the top teams in the SEC in passing yards allowed.
Offensively, the Rebels lead the SEC and rank FBS top-10 in total offense (No. 3, 498.1 ypg), passing offense (No. 3, 309.6 ypg) and yards per completion (No. 8, 14.3), while also ranking FBS top-25 in first downs (No. 6, 307), scoring offense (No. 11, 37.3 ppg), passing efficiency (No. 20, 155.6) and sacks allowed (No. 21, 1.3/game).
The story of the 2025 Rebels offensively has been of two crucial newcomers: senior QB Trinidad Chambliss and sophomore RB Kewan Lacy. Chambliss – a transfer from Division II Ferris State who won the Conerly Trophy and was a semifinalist for the Maxwell, Walter Camp, and Davey O’Brien Awards – has been superb since taking over as Ole Miss’ starter in Week Three, averaging 348.6 yards of offense and 300.0 in SEC play alone in that span.
Lacy – the first Doak Walker Award finalist in program history – has broken Ole Miss single-season records in rushing touchdowns (20), all-purpose touchdowns (20) and points by a non-kicker (120) while ranking among the best rushers nationally at 1,279 yards on 258 attempts.
The Ole Miss defense – under the watch of head coach Pete Golding – ranks as the third-best pass defense in the SEC, yielding just 182.6 yards per game through the air. Golding’s defense has been superb in the second half, allowing only 8.8 points per game in the back half all season – including only 16 second-half points the entire month of November with two second-half shutouts. Elsewhere, Golding’s defense also leads the SEC in fourth-down defense (No. 8 FBS, .360) and ranks 24th nationally in overall scoring defense (20.1 ppg).
Golding had the unenviable task of replacing one of the greatest defenses in Ole Miss history, but his 2025 Rebels have been productive from both the transfer portal and high school ranks alike. Top returners and junior linebackers TJ Dottery and Suntarine Perkins lead the team in tackles, owning a combined 124 stops and 11.0 tackles for loss, but the underclass of powerful sophomore linemen Kam Franklin (6.5 TFL, 3.5 sacks) and Will Echoles (6.0 TFL, 3.5 sacks) – as well as team-leading transfer Princewill Umanmielen (10.0 TFL, 6.5 sacks) – has proven just as talented at causing mayhem in the backfield.
Ole Miss also owns an elite special teams unit, led by junior kicker and Lou Groza Award semifinalist Lucas Carneiro, as well as impressive freshman punter Oscar Bird.
Carneiro ranks among the top kickers nationally, leading all SEC kickers and sitting tied for fourth nationally at 114 total points scored – fifth-most in Ole Miss single-season history, fourth-most among kickers. On the season, Carneiro is 22-of-25 (88.0 percent) on field goals with a long of 54 and a perfect 48-of-48 line on PATs. Carneiro has also been brilliant on kickoffs, owning 73 of Ole Miss’ SEC-leading 74 touchbacks.
Bird, meanwhile, has Ole Miss currently slotted as the top net punting squad in the SEC and third-best nationally at 43.8. On 32 total punts, Bird owns an average of 45.9 yards per attempt with 14 sent at least 50 yards, 11 pinned inside the 20 and a long of 64.
Tulane (11-2, 7-1 American) won the American Conference title on Friday over North Texas, its second conference championship in the last four years. Head coach Jon Sumrall, who has recently named the next head coach at Florida, has led the Green Wave to their first playoff appearance thanks to an excellent offensive line and the play of transfer QB Jake Retzlaff, who ranks fourth nationally at 16 rushing touchdowns.
In their meeting back on September 20, Ole Miss dominated Tulane, stifling the Green Wave to only 282 total yards (104 passing), while QB Trinidad Chambliss had a superb game, passing for 307 yards and two scores while also rushing for 112 yards on the ground.
About the Author
